My dear wife, I still love you more.

If it were before, when someone asked her if she liked Aki Tomoya, although she might have given the same answer, the tone of her reply would have been completely different.

"Really? I thought that either Hasegawa or Aki Tomoya, at least one of them would be someone you like."

"How could that be? I would never like people like them," Eriri said stubbornly.

"That's good. At least I don't have to worry about you taking Eriri from me." Kasumigaoka Utaha looked at Eriri with a smile.

"Huh? You, you—"

"I like Hasegawa-kun."

"Eh!!! You like—Hasegawa?" Eriri asked loudly at first, but then lowered her voice when she mentioned Hasegawa.

"That's right. After all, Hasegawa is so handsome and talented. It's only natural that I like him."

“It’s no use. Hasegawa, he, he said he wouldn’t date in high school.” Eriri said seriously.

"You didn't know how to date in high school? Was it that you didn't know how to date, or did he already have someone he liked?" Kasumigaoka Utaha asked Eriri, her cigarette squinting slightly.

"Of course, he didn't date during high school. Although Hasegawa was surrounded by many girls, he didn't have any feelings for any of them," Eriri said matter-of-factly.

When Kasumigaoka Utaha heard Eriri say that, her eyes lit up.

"Really? But I heard that Hasegawa and Yui seem to have a rather unusual relationship," Kasumigaoka Utaha said meaningfully.

"Yui Yuigahama? I know her, but she and Hasegawa have no relationship whatsoever. At most, Hasegawa is just temporarily renting a place at Yuigahama's house. That's all they have," Eriri said with particular certainty.

"Are you renting a place at Yui Yuigahama's house?" Kasumigaoka Utaha raised an eyebrow and looked at Hasegawa's back with a smile.

……

"Kenichi, look here, these are all Tokyo Ghoul doujinshi!" Aki Tomoya waved and called out to Hasegawa from a stall.

"Uh, oh." Hasegawa, who was a little distracted, quickly went over after hearing Aki Tomoya's voice.

"Kenichi, you're acting a bit strange today," Aki Tomoya couldn't help but ask.

"Well, it's probably because I didn't sleep well last night." Hasegawa came up with this excuse again, as if that really was the case.

"I see. Kenichi, take a look at this. I think it's very well written. Although it's not as good as your writing or the original work, it's the best doujinshi I've ever read."

"Really? Then I'll have to take a good look. If Tomoya says it's good, then it must be very well written."

……

On the other side, in the coffee shop, Mrs. Yuihama was standing in front of the oven, staring blankly at it, her eyes somewhat vacant, not paying any attention to the oven at all.

"Yuigahama, what's wrong with you today? You're acting strangely, and you seem to be spacing out a lot?"

"Ah, sorry, um, I, I—"

"You didn't get enough rest yesterday, did you? Your dark circles are so obvious, even foundation can't cover them."

"Huh? Is it... that obvious?"

"Of course, it's very obvious. Yuihama, are you alright? Did something happen at home?"

"No, no, nothing, nothing happened." Mrs. Yuihama hurriedly waved her hands and shook her head, but there was a hint of panic in her expression, making it obvious that she was lying.

……

Before I knew it, another day had passed.

Hasegawa returned carrying a large pile of things. However, compared to yesterday, although he had sold more items, Hasegawa himself wasn't quite sure what many of them were. He just bought whatever caught his eye, or whatever Aki Tomoya and the others had recommended, all in a daze.

There weren't many things that Hasegawa actually liked or thought were good.

"I am back."

Standing at the door, he paused for three seconds, then Hasegawa opened the door and walked in, casually calling out.

"Oh, you're back. Hasegawa-kun." Mrs. Yuihama's slightly guilty voice came from the kitchen next door, but she had no intention of coming out of the kitchen at all.

At this moment, Hasegawa's mind calmed down. After hearing Mrs. Yuihama's voice, Hasegawa felt as if the soul he had lost that day had been found again, and he became energetic again.

He placed the groceries in the living room, then quickly rummaged through them. Hasegawa found something he had bought for Mrs. Yuihama, and with a smile on his face, he went to the kitchen door.

Mrs. Yuihama had been hiding in the kitchen, looking a little flustered, chopping vegetables with a knife. However, when she heard Hasegawa's footsteps approaching, and even heard them coming from the kitchen doorway, she became even more panicked, to the point that she accidentally cut her finger.

"oops!"

A scream rang out, and a bloody mark appeared on Mrs. Yuihama's finger.

Hasegawa, who had just arrived at the kitchen door to prepare the gift he had chosen for Mrs. Yuihama, was startled to see that she had accidentally cut her finger. He rushed to her side, grabbed her cut finger, and looked at the bloodstain with a pained expression.

"Mrs. Yuihama, how could you be so careless?" Hasegawa said, putting Mrs. Yuihama's hand into his mouth.

"what!!!"

Mrs. Yuihama was surprised by Hasegawa's actions and blushed deeply, her face burning hot, like a ripe tomato. She even turned her head away, not daring to look at Hasegawa at all.

Hasegawa's expression was a bit strange at this moment. To be honest, Mrs. Yuihama's fingers were very thin and soft, but they were ruthless and extremely spicy. This was because Mrs. Yuihama had just been cutting chili peppers, and they must have been very spicy ones. Hasegawa felt a burning sensation in his mouth.

Mrs. Yui glanced at Hasegawa out of the corner of her eye and noticed his strange expression. She couldn't help but laugh, finding Hasegawa's appearance hilarious.

However, she then felt embarrassed because Hasegawa was sucking on her finger.

"Mrs. Yuihama, wait a moment, I'll go get a bandage." Hasegawa said, running out quickly and returning just as fast as he could, holding a bandage in his hand.

"Mrs. Yuihama, you're so careless! You actually cut your finger. Luckily, the wound isn't deep. Otherwise, you would have been in a lot of pain, especially since you were cutting chili peppers." Hasegawa said to Mrs. Yuihama while applying a bandage to her finger.

"It's all because you came to the kitchen, Hasegawa-kun! If you hadn't come, I wouldn't have cut my finger!" Mrs. Yuihama said, her face turning red again as she realized that her tone sounded like she was pleading with Hasegawa.

Mrs. Yuihama's coquettish tone made Hasegawa feel his heart melt.

Mrs. Yuihama blushed, lowered her head, and pulled her hand away from Hasegawa's. She turned away, not daring to look at Hasegawa. Trying her best to act naturally, she picked up the knife again to chop vegetables, but her cheeks were still red and burning.

“Let me do it. What if you accidentally cut your hand again?” Hasegawa said, stepping forward and placing his hand on Mrs. Yuihama’s hand that was holding the knife.

Mrs. Yuigahama recoiled as if she'd been burned, quickly pulling her hand back: "Hasegawa-kun, you, you—"

"Mrs. Yuihama, I've told you before, I like you." Hasegawa was straightforward and confessed his feelings to Mrs. Yuihama again.

"Hasegawa-kun, you, you, you should know that we, we are impossible."

Why is it impossible?

"Because our statuses are so different, and besides, you and Yui are the same age, I, I could be your mother."

"Mrs. Yuihama, love has nothing to do with age, status, or even nationality, as long as we like each other," Hasegawa said earnestly to Mrs. Yuihama.

"No, no, I promised Yui, I promised Yui I'd watch over you for her, how could I, how could I be with you—" Mrs. Yuihama's face grew redder and redder as she spoke.

If the internet connection is lost, the file uploaded from the phone will not be split.

Chapter Twenty-One: Mrs. Yuihama's Dilemma

Mrs. Yuigahama was conflicted. She didn't dislike Hasegawa; after all, he was the son-in-law she had chosen from the beginning. However, what she didn't expect was that Hasegawa actually liked her.

Furthermore, after Hasegawa confessed his feelings for her, his attitude towards her changed. His every word and action revealed his affection, even his pursuit of her. Well, perhaps Hasegawa had always been like this, but she hadn't initially considered it from this perspective.

In short, Mrs. Yuihama is currently extremely conflicted. What's even more troubling for her is that after Hasegawa confessed his feelings to her, he seems to be subtly hinting at wanting to pursue her openly. This is what worries Mrs. Yuihama the most.

"By the way, Mrs. Yuihama, I saw someone buying Ai-chan figures at the anime convention, so I bought them for you." Hasegawa said, placing a box in front of Mrs. Yuihama.

"Ai-chan figure?" Mrs. Yuihama's eyes lit up. Ever since watching Brave Ai-chan, Mrs. Yuihama has been a huge fan of the drama and even admires Ai-chan very much. So when she heard Hasegawa say that he bought her an Ai-chan figure, she was immediately pleasantly surprised.

Upon opening the box, the Ai-chan figure appeared before her, about twenty centimeters tall. The figure's face was exactly like Ai-chan's, and the craftsmanship was quite exquisite. Mrs. Yuihama particularly liked the figure, turning it over and over in her hands. However, when she looked up and saw Hasegawa's eyes filled with a smile, even undisguised love and doting affection, Mrs. Yuihama's heart skipped a beat.

"Um, thank you, thank you Hasegawa-kun, but this figure is too, too, too valuable, I can't accept it." Mrs. Yuihama shook her head, placed the figure on the table, and then pushed it towards Hasegawa.

"Expensive? No, no, no, this thing is actually quite cheap. After all, it's a character from a TV series, not a bestseller, so its price isn't actually that high."

"Really?"

"Of course it's true. I would never lie to you about something like this, Mrs. Yuihama." Hasegawa looked directly into Mrs. Yuihama's eyes.

Mrs. Yuihama found Hasegawa's gaze unbearable and couldn't help but lower her head. However, even with her head down, Mrs. Yuihama could still faintly feel Hasegawa's burning gaze.

Hasegawa's gaze made Mrs. Yuihama's heart race, her mind go blank, and her thoughts slow down; she simply didn't know how to react.

Hasegawa noticed a blush creeping up Mrs. Yuihama's cheeks as she lowered her head, and thought she was truly beautiful at that moment. This reminded Hasegawa of a line of poetry, which he then recited aloud: "The gentleness of that lowered head is like a water lily, shyly trembling in the cool breeze."

Although the person who wrote this poem was a scoundrel, the poem itself was quite well written.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Yuihama became even more shy, a sweet feeling welling up inside her. Being praised like that by such an outstanding young man would make anyone happy, wouldn't it? However, after realizing what she had said, Mrs. Yuihama couldn't help but feel flustered. Hasegawa was the boy her daughter liked! How could she, as his mother, react this way?

"I...I'm going back to rest."

Mrs. Yuihama turned around in a panic and tried to run away.

Snapped!

Hasegawa grabbed Mrs. Yuihama's wrist: "Mrs. Yuihama, your favorite brave Ai-chan is about to start. Are you really going back? Even if you want to sleep, you don't have to go so early."

"Huh? Um, I, I—"

"Mrs. Yuihama, let's watch TV together. After all, it's such a great drama, wouldn't it be a shame not to watch it?"

"I--"

“Mrs. Yuihama, I really like you, and I even confessed to you. But even if you don’t give me an answer, you don’t need to keep avoiding me like this. After all, it’s just the two of us at home now. If you keep avoiding me, it feels really strange to be at home. I might as well move out.”

"no!"

Hasegawa had barely finished speaking when Mrs. Yuihama immediately exclaimed, then blushed, "Um, no, I mean, I mean. Um, I promised Yui I'd keep an eye on you for her, so, so I think, I think it would be more convenient for you to stay here."

"Is it because of Yuihama that you let me stay, Mrs. Yuihama? And what about you, Mrs. Yuihama? What are your thoughts?" Hasegawa felt as if he had a glimpse into Mrs. Yuihama's Achilles' heel.

"Huh? I, I, I promised Yui."

"I know you promised Yuihama, but I want to know what you think, Yuihama. After all, the person I like is you, Yuihama," Hasegawa continued, pressing her further.

"You, you, Hasegawa-kun, how could you do this?" Mrs. Yuihama seemed a little anxious, her eyes slightly red, as if she was about to cry.

"Um, Mrs. Yuihama, I was just kidding, just kidding. Don't be so hasty. Come on, let's watch TV together. Look, Brave Ai-chan has already started." Hasegawa quickly said to Mrs. Yuihama. Seeing Mrs. Yuihama like this, Hasegawa felt a little sorry for her. Moreover, Hasegawa didn't want to push her too hard. After all, if he was pushed too far, Mrs. Yuihama might really try to kick him out, which would be terrible. Hasegawa didn't want to leave; he didn't want to miss the opportunity to live with Mrs. Yuihama.

"Hasegawa-kun, you, you're so mean."

"Okay, okay, I'm so bad, I'm such a bad guy."

"That's right, you're a bad guy."

With this kind of coaxing, Mrs. Yuihama finally sat down on the sofa, of course, as far away from Hasegawa as possible. Hasegawa sat on one side of the sofa, while Mrs. Yuihama sat on the other side, trying her best to stay away from Hasegawa.

Looking at Mrs. Yuihama like this, Hasegawa couldn't help but laugh. Although Mrs. Yuihama had always been gentle and virtuous, which was indeed very attractive to Hasegawa, she was just as interesting and attractive to him now. Hasegawa even felt that teasing Mrs. Yuihama like this was quite enjoyable.