After school, Hiroshi walked out of the gate clutching his freshly reclaimed notebook. Spotting Miyu surrounded by her friends, he took a deep breath. Alright, just hand her the notebook and get this over with, he thought, though nerves gnawed at his resolve.

As he approached, Miyu caught sight of him out of the corner of her eye. Her expression immediately shifted, her usual confident smirk replaced by a forced nonchalance. "What do you want?" she asked, her voice dripping with irritation.

Hiroshi blinked, confused. “What do you mean? I’m coming over to your hou—”

Before he could finish, Miyu’s face turned bright red, and she cut him off, stammering, “W-what?! What are you talking about? Just leave me alone!”

Her friends exchanged glances, whispering to each other. Miyu, desperate to maintain her image, shoved Hiroshi lightly away. He stumbled back, finally catching on to her act. She doesn’t want them to know, he realized.

"Right... got it," Hiroshi muttered, turning away. If she wanted to pretend she didn’t know him, fine. He’d just head to her house and wait for her there.

Twenty minutes later, Hiroshi stood outside Miyu’s house, fiddling nervously with the straps of his backpack. The house looked slightly run-down, with overgrown weeds creeping up the edges of the walkway. He’d been half-wondering if Miyu was going to ghost him when she finally appeared, storming up the path.

“What were you thinking, coming up to me in front of my friends?!” she shouted. “They were looking at me weird after that!”

Hiroshi flinched instinctively, raising his hands. “I’m sorry! Please don’t hit me!”

Miyu froze for a moment, then sighed. Her voice softened. “No... I’m sorry. For, you know... hitting you so much. Just—ugh, let’s go inside, nerd.”

The moment Hiroshi stepped into the house, his jaw dropped. Trash was piled everywhere—crumpled snack bags, empty soda cans, and discarded papers covered the floor. Clothes were strewn across furniture, and the faint smell of instant noodles hung in the air.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Oh my god,” Hiroshi muttered, pinching his nose. “When’s the last time you cleaned this place?”

Miyu crossed her arms defensively. “Uh... a long time ago?”

Hiroshi frowned, glancing around. “Where are your parents?”

Miyu’s confident facade cracked slightly as her gaze dropped to the floor. “I... I don’t really have any,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. “I just have a big sister, but she’s not home right now...”

Hiroshi’s heart sank. “Oh. I’m sorry...”

“Sh-shut up!” Miyu snapped, her voice sharp but trembling. “I don’t need your sympathy!”

Looking around, Hiroshi realized there wasn’t even a clean spot to sit. He sighed. “Go take a nap or something. We’ll study later.”

“What?!” Miyu protested. “I need to study right away!”

“Don’t worry,” Hiroshi replied, waving her off. “Just go to your room for a bit. I’ll take care of it.”

Miyu narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Fine, but this better be good!” She stomped off to her room—the only clean space in the house—and changed into her pajamas before collapsing onto her bed. Within minutes, exhaustion overtook her, and she drifted off to sleep.

When Miyu woke up an hour later, she immediately noticed something different. The air smelled... fresh? Rubbing her eyes, she wandered out of her room—and froze.

The house was spotless. The trash was gone, the floors gleamed, and the furniture looked almost new. Hiroshi was standing in the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, washing the dishes.

“W-what the hell happened here?!” Miyu exclaimed, staring in disbelief.

Hiroshi turned, smiling sheepishly. “Oh, nothing. I just cleaned a little.”

“A little?!” Miyu repeated, her voice rising. She glanced around, unable to hide the awe in her expression. “Everything looks so...”

“Good, right?” Hiroshi interrupted, his smile widening. “You like it?”

Miyu’s cheeks flushed, and she quickly turned away, trying to maintain her composure. “It looks... average,” she mumbled, though the corners of her mouth twitched upward. She hugged herself, secretly relieved to finally be able to sit somewhere without being surrounded by trash.

“Well,” Hiroshi said, drying his hands, “let’s get studying now. I couldn’t focus in a place like this, so I figured I’d tidy up first.”

Miyu crossed her arms, her face still red. “Y-yeah, sure. Whatever. I’m so tired, though...”

Hiroshi raised an eyebrow. “Really? You literally just woke up!”

“U-uhm...” Miyu stammered, her flustered tone betraying her. “Y-yeah, that’s why I’m tired, nerd!”

Rolling his eyes, Hiroshi placed his notebook and textbook on the now-pristine table. Miyu sat down beside him, unusually quiet. Hiroshi’s heart raced as he realized the situation: he was sitting next to Miyu—in her house.

Trying to focus, he pointed to a topic in the textbook. “Alright, let’s start with photosynthesis. It’s pretty simple. So, plants take in sunlight and—”

“I don’t understand,” Miyu interrupted flatly.

Hiroshi blinked. “Really? This is kind of ea—”

“Shut up!” Miyu snapped, her face turning red again. “I know it’s easy, but I’m not smart, so shush it, nerd!”

Hiroshi flinched, raising his hands defensively. “Okay, okay! I’m sorry!”

As they leaned over the textbook together, Hiroshi couldn’t help but smile to himself. This is going to be a long night...