Masho no Otoko wo Mezashimasu

281.
At Hatano Household

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It had been a few days since Kohaku went on a trip. When Kohaku had just gone on a trip, Yoko always muttered lonely, but now she just sighed at the photos, perhaps because she had got used to it.

However, Yoko looked fine today. After all, today was a holiday.

She didn’t have to get up early in the morning, and no one complained about her drinking alcohol early in the morning.

On such a holiday day, Yoko suddenly said

“Let’s have a girls-only gathering.”

“…a girls-only gathering?”

“Yeah.
Maria, we need to relax once in a while.
Kohaku-kun isn’t here.
There’s no punishment for showing your sloppy side.
For us working people who don’t have summer vacation, we need to use the occasional holiday as much as we can.
I need it! “

Yoko grabbed Maria’s fist and said so. 

Certainly, it is necessary to release stress once in a while. 

Maria nodded.

“Okay, let me cook something nice.”

“Thank you! Then I’ll buy more drinks.”

“Hmm…?”

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But, we still have a drink at home. 

Before Maria could say anything, Yoko jumped out of the house after saying so.

Well, it may not be enough for Yoko-sama….
I wonder how strong is Yoko-sama’s liver? 

Maria was also good at drinking, but she thought that she couldn’t be compared to Yoko.

“Well then, let’s start cooking…”

Let’s make a lot of things that are suitable as a side dish for drinking.

Let’s go with Chinese food today. I think of dishes that seem to go well as a side dish are fried chicken, mapo tofu, spring rolls, dumplings…

And so, Maria prepared the ingredients.

Not long after, Yoko called Maria with a smartphone.

『”I met our neighbor, Kikusui-san, so I invited her. Please add another serving!”』

“Understood.“

Then, let’s make it.

Maria put on an apron and started cooking.

◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

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“I’m backー!”

“… T-t-thank you for inviting me today …”

“Welcome back.
And, welcome, Kikusui-san.”

“Well, I met her on the way to the liquor store.
I heard that the deadline for the manuscript is approaching, but it’s hardly progressing.
It seems like she’s about to be taken by the editor, so she’s on run.”

“N-no… I-I didn’t run away… I-I went outside, t-to search for inspiration.”

“Well, anyway, I brought her here.”

“Hah…”

Is it okay?… Well, she is a great writer. I guess, she will manage to come up with a story soon or later. 

And the girls-only gathering started with Kikusui, a novelist next door who still fluttering.

“Cheers!”

“Cheers”

“C-c-cheers…”

CLANG!! CLANG!! CLANG!!

The glasses were coming together and the liquor was brought to the mouth.

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The umami and rich flavor spread firmly in the mouth. 

It’s a very delicious liquor.

“This is delicious, right!? I bought it on impulse because this rare brand happened to be in stock!”

“Yes, it’s very delicious.”

Yoko nodded with satisfaction.

As expected, Yoko-sama is good at choosing alcohol. 

Yoko, who put the glass on the desk and said,

“There’s a lot for three of us, drink as much as you like!”

“T-today, I-I, can’t see… K-k-kohaku-kun…”

Kikusui said so while looking at the room, perhaps she was worried that Kohaku was left alone.

“That’s riーght.
He’s on a trip with his friends! Leaving his mom alone!”

“Umm…”

“Really, I was so surprised! When my company got a call from Housei Toukain, and he was asking for me to be on the phone, I thought I would be killed!”

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Yoko lamented.

“Then, when I was on the phone, he suddenly said, that he would absolutely guarantee Kohaku-kun’s safety, so please allow him to travel with her granddaughter… When I thought it was like throwing a boy into a group of hungry wolves.
I refused… Then I was strongly told that the memories of the high school days were important and that he would never make Kohaku-kun feel unpleasant.
In the end, he said that Kohaku-kun had already agreed.
Since that was the case, I had no choice…”

Housei Toukain must have known that he was saying something unreasonable. After all, he was asking to let a boy around the same age as his granddaughter spend days under the same roof for a few days… But he was good at talking it out.

“I-if that’s the case, s-since Kohaku-kun doesn’t dislike it… w-what will happen?”

Kikusui thought about the same thing as Maria and said so.

“Ahahaー.
No way my Kohaku will…”

“B-b-b-but, a-at there, only children in adolescent, u-under the heat of h-hot summer…”

“… Nah, nothing will happen… Nothing… no way…”

Yoko muttered in a small voice, but suddenly raised her voice.

“Let’s drink! It’s gonna be alright, my Kohaku is a very good child who’s thinking about the future more than anyone else! And all we can do now is, drink!”

After saying that, Yoko and Kikusui put the glasses together again.

CLANG!! CLANG!!

The amount of liquor consumed on this day far exceeded the amount that a lady would drink.

And after the gathering, Kikusui seemed to have written a story of a naive boy who had a summer experience in her new novel.