After that, we immediately started baking the cake, and I sat at the dining table, chatting with Suzumiya and her mother while watching them cook.
During that conversation, I asked about Iizuka.
『How’s it been since then? Has he said anything to you?』
「Yeah, he’s been sending messages to my smartphone almost every day, but I’m leaving them all unread. Even when he tries to talk to me directly, I avoid making eye contact and run away.」
『I see. If you ever feel like you’re in danger, let me know right away, okay?』
「Yeah, thank you. Having Shinonome-kun around is really helpful.』
「That’s right! I heard Shinonome-kun helped Kiyoka! This girl has been going on and on about Shinonome-kun, Shinonome-kun every day, it’s been quite something, ufufu.」
「Mama! Don’t say weird things! Shinonome-kun, it’s not like that! I’m just talking about how grateful I’m for your help!」
『Ahh, yeah, it’s okay.』
「But still, Shinonome-kun is hard to say, isn’t it? Your first name was Seiji-kun, right? Let’s call you Seiji-kun.」
『Ehh, well, yes…』
「Geez, mama! What are you doing calling him by his first name?! I haven’t even called him by his first name yet!」
「Then, Kiyoka, why don’t you call him Seiji-kun too? Right, Seiji-kun♪」
『Hahaha, I guess so…』
Well, yeah, Suzumiya’s mother.
She’s quite a formidable person, isn’t she?
The type who breaks down barriers with her daughter’s friends or boyfriends?
The type who easily becomes friendly.
Also, as a side note, Suzumiya’s mother’s chest was even more assertive than Suzumiya’s.
「S-S-S-Seiji-kun? Is it okay if I call you by your first name too…?」
『Ahh, yeah, it’s fine. Shinonome is hard to say anyway.』
「Y-Yeah, that’s right. Seiji-kun♪」
Embarrassed Suzumiya is cute, but somehow being called by my first name feels ticklish, or chilling, or to be honest, I don’t think I’ll get used to it.
Besides, Suzumiya has a boy she’s interested in, right?
I think she shouldn’t be acting all spoiled with me.
After that, when the cake was done, she brewed some tea and we moved to her room to eat together. The cake was genuinely good.
I successfully got to eat the long-awaited “homemade cake” and completed my mission, but due to the impact of Suzumiya’s mother and the embarrassment of first-name basis, my attachment to the homemade cake had already faded.
Moreover, Suzumiya’s room was quite stimulating with the blend of Suzumiya’s scent, the aroma of black tea, and the sweet smell of cake, so maybe because of that, for a while after that, just smelling sweet Western confections like cakes or cookies made me feel like I might get indigestion.
Also, in Suzumiya’s room, after eating the cake, we just chatted a bit about books, and nothing sweet happened.
However, Suzumiya, who blushed every time she called me “Seiji-kun” until the end, had a cuteness that I had never seen at school, and it made my heart skip a beat just a little.