Chapter 3

“Mayuki-kun, I’m coming in~”

Since both my hands were full, I called out while leaning my weight on the doorknob with my elbow. There was no response, so I opened the door and went inside.

The first thing that caught my eye wasn’t Mayuki-kun lying in bed, nor the clothes carelessly tossed aside, but a large, circular LED light. It must be one of the pieces of equipment he uses for streaming. The Professor, who came in behind me, began to gaze at the streaming setup with great interest.

Looking around again, my heart inadvertently leaped at the thought that this was the room I always saw through my smartphone display… I shook off the feeling and headed towards the side of the bed.

Mayuki-kun had the covers pulled up over his head. I thought it would be bad if he were fast asleep, but as I got closer, he fidgeted and stirred, so it seemed he was awake.

“For now, sit up. You won’t get better if you don’t get some nutrition in your stomach.”

At that, Mayuki-kun slowly sat up.

Seeing his revealed expression, a question mark floated up in my head.

“…Why are you still wearing makeup?”

“Because…”

He fell silent. “I’m not mad, you know,” I added, offering the meal tray.

“Can you eat by yourself? Or do you want your Onee-chan to feed you?”

“…In that case, um…”

After letting his gaze wander, Mayuki-kun timidly opened his small lips. I nodded, saying “I see,” held the bowl, scooped a small amount of porridge onto the spoon, and brought it to his mouth.

“How is it?” “…It’s delicious.”

“Think you can eat more?”

“If you’ll feed me, Himari-san…”

“Of course. You’re sick, so go ahead and let me pamper you.”

For a while after that, I repeated the cycle of scooping and feeding.

When the bowl was about half empty, Mayuki-kun said he was full, so next I opened the medicine packet.

“It’s easy to catch a cold when the seasons change, so you have to be careful.”

“…I’m sorry, I always feel unwell around this time of year.”

“The temperature difference between an air-conditioned room and outside is drastic, and it’s a time when your hormonal balance can get out of whack easily. But even before that, you’re always living an unhealthy lifestyle, aren’t you, Mayuki-kun? I can tell.”

I hand him the water and medicine. Mayuki-kun took them, and after a slight hesitation, gulped them down. He grimaced, his face still made up.

“It’s bitter…”

“Good medicine is bitter to the taste, as they say.”

“Himari-san, you sound like a grandmother…”

“Are you trying to provoke me?!”

Seeing my reaction, Mayuki-kun giggled, but he seemed more exhausted than when he’d greeted me earlier. Thinking that might be the case, I placed a hand on his forehead.

“Y-ah!”

I got a cute reaction. A strange feeling bloomed inside me, but I pretended not to notice and compared his temperature to my own.

“See, your fever’s gotten worse.”

“…It just went up now.”

“Does that mean you were pushing yourself earlier? Really, you have to sleep properly during the day.”

“…That’s not what I meant.”

“What do you mean?”

“…It’s nothing.”

I see, I said, cutting the conversation short. Just as I was about to take the tray and leave the room…

“Mayuki-kun. No, ‘Kamimura Mayu.’ There is something I’d like to ask before you sleep.”

Such a voice called out. The source was the Professor, who had entered after me.

“Um, Professor, I think it’s better to let him rest quietly for now…”

“Of course, I won’t force you to answer, and if you don’t want to, that’s fine too. It’s not as if there’s any particular problem. I am merely interested as a researcher of social networks.”

While I was wondering what to say, Mayuki-kun opened his mouth.

“Go ahead, Reika-san… ask me anything.”

I held my tongue.

“I hear your parents are divorced. When did that happen?”

“…In the fall of my third year of middle school.”

“And when did you start streaming?”

“…Right around spring break, when I was transitioning from middle school to high school.”

Listening to their exchange, I had the absentminded thought that he was just like me.

My parents also divorced when I was in my third year of middle school. It’s tough when your home life changes drastically at the same time your school environment is completely changing. The parents’ opinion that it’s a good time because the child’s compulsory education is over and they’re becoming an adult… it seems considerate at first glance, but in reality, it’s nothing more than the parents’ own unsightly excuse, using their child as a pretext… Not that I’d say something to spoil the mood.

“The shoes in the entryway belong to your parents, who used to live here with you.”

“…Yes.”

“The contents of the cupboard were covered in dust because you couldn’t bring yourself to throw them away.”

“…Yes.”

And then the brilliant Professor casually strikes at the heart of the matter.

“You were seeking ‘someone to talk to’ on the internet. Is that right?”

Mayuki-kun mulled it over carefully before answering.

“…That… might be it… No, I’m sure that’s it.”

He gave a small nod.

“I’ve been interested for some time. A streamer who is a high school student, yet whose brand is crossdressing. It’s simple to write down, but you’re a considerably unique existence. I really wanted to know your roots.”

“Um… I’m sorry, I don’t follow. What do you mean?”

I couldn’t help but interject.

“To begin with, I found it strange that ‘Kamimura Mayu’ was living alone in a detached house in a residential area far from the city center. For example, business-type influencers live in luxurious houses to show off their success and gain more followers, trying to broadcast that lifestyle. Just like in ‘house tour’ type videos and blogs.”

It’s true, you see a lot of house tour videos from streamers… or rather, I have the impression that countless similar segments are done on TV, too. Viewers are interested in the lifestyles of famous people, so relatively speaking, the lives of those celebrities become more and more luxurious.

“An influencer as well-known as ‘Kamimura Mayu’ should be able to live in a more accessible location, even if living alone. If you were to leave the city center, you could move to a well-equipped residence. I was considering the intention behind not doing so. That’s what I wanted to confirm.”

I understood what the Professor was saying.

Mayuki-kun is a minor, so he should need a legal guardian or custodian to purchase a residence. But even if he’s living alone, it’s hard to imagine they don’t exist at all, and I can’t really think of a reason for him to keep living in this house.

If there is a possibility… it would be, for example, sentimental attachment or nostalgia.

“…It’s just as you say, Reika-san. Because this is the place where I was born and raised.”

Mayuki-kun began to speak haltingly.

“…One reason is that there’s no particular reason to throw them away, but… when I remember how the three of us in my family used to eat with these dishes, I just can’t bring myself to get rid of them.”

A certain sense of resignation could be felt in his words.

“But, somewhere in the back of my mind, I might be feeling that ‘maybe my father and mother will come back.’ Maybe that’s why I can’t throw away the dishes, or the shoes, or the futons.”

There are people in the world who don’t change where they live no matter how famous they become. They have an attachment to the land or the house, and they live their days with a firm policy. However, if I were to put Mayuki-kun’s style in the same category, it felt far too heart-wrenching.

“What was the reason you started crossdressing?”

The Professor continued her questions matter-of-factly.

“…Crossdressing… actually, there isn’t a clear reason for it… Ever since I was little, I liked being told I was cute… I started studying makeup because I wanted lots of people to find me endearing… I was all alone at home, and there was nothing else to do…”

“I’m sorry to trouble you when you’re unwell. I thank you for your answers. Well then, please take care.”

The Professor turned on her heel and left the room. As always, her next move is impossible to predict. Her words and actions are even more so. I gave a wry smile and said, “For now, let’s take off your makeup,” but while Mayuki-kun nodded with a “Yes…,” he didn’t seem to want to move.

Since there was no helping it, I decided to resort to forceful measures.

“Y-ah, Himari-san, what are you—”

“If you don’t want to move that much, then Onee-chan will just carry you!”

“I-I can, I can walk by myself!”

He really seemed to hate the idea. I was only half-joking, but being rejected so strongly felt a little disappointing. What is this feeling?

I left Mayuki-kun and exited the room. With the meal tray in hand, I went straight to the kitchen. I’ll have him eat the rest of the porridge warmed up tomorrow morning. Just as I put plastic wrap over the bowl,

Click.

That was the sound of the front door opening.

────Huh?

I stop what I’m doing and check the entryway, but no one is there.

For the time being, I re-lock the door and return to the kitchen again.

I think as I scrub the plate with a sponge.

The Professor should have locked the door when she came in. She did it herself. Wait, does that mean someone left from inside? But there’s no way Mayuki-kun would leave. So, does that mean the Professor left?

As the thoughts rapidly connected and the situation became clear, I instinctively bolted for the entryway.

The Professor’s beloved car sped past right in front of my eyes.

“Huh?!”

I involuntarily stopped washing the dishes and called the Professor on my phone.

Her car is set up with a speakerphone, so she should be able to answer even while driving. Though, first of all, I don’t understand the meaning of the Professor driving in the first place.

After a few rings, the call connects.

“Something came up that I want to investigate, so I’m returning to the lab.”

“Is that the first thing you say instead of ‘Hello’?!”

At the Professor’s dopey-sounding voice, I couldn’t help but raise my own.

“Are you telling me to go home from here by myself?!”

I switch the call back to speakerphone and open a train information site on my phone, but I find a fatal flaw. I don’t know which direction the nearest station is. Next, I launch a map app. However, the residential area where this house is located is in a tricky spot, with a subway line I don’t normally use running about three kilometers away. It’s probably the line Mayuki-kun uses to get to school.

As I was searching for transfers on the train information site again, the Professor’s voice rang out.

“Your lecture tomorrow isn’t until the afternoon, right? It would be good for you to look after Mayuki-kun tonight.”

That’s what I heard from the other end of the line, in her matter-of-fact tone.

“…What did you just say?”

“Your lecture tomorrow isn’t until the afternoon. It would be good for you to look after Mayuki-kun.”

“Sorry, that was a metaphor! It’s not that I really couldn’t hear you, it’s just that I couldn’t comprehend what you said for a moment! Ah, no, that’s not it!”

Somehow managing to control my tongue that was about to get twisted, I shouted.

“I’m not prepared to stay the night! Like pajamas!”