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Chapter 3 - Escorting the Neighbors around the Town Part 2
Twenty minute bus ride.
Me and Misumi, left the residential area and headed to the city.
The road is three vehicles wide and is lined with buildings of different heights.
The area is surrounded by train stations, hotels, department stores, large shopping malls, and cinemas.
However, we did not stop at any of these places.
We are in a pure white building.
This large and quiet building is a hospital.
And now we took the elevator up and arrived in front of someone's room.
“Uhm, I'll be waiting for you around here…”
“…No, please come in, don't hesitate. I would like to introduce Tsushiro-kun, who has helped me to Ojii-chan.”
I didn't really want to go in there because I felt out of place, but Misumi grabbed my right arm and wouldn't let go, so I had no choice but to go in there too.
After knocking twice, I heard a “please come in” sound from inside, so I opened the sliding door silently.
“Oh, Sayo~! It turned out to be you~ Eh, who are you, you bastard!?”
“…Eh!?”
As soon as I entered the room, I heard the voice of a kind Ojii-chan who loved her granddaughter, but immediately changed.
When he saw me standing next to Misumi, he grabbed the pillow with his hand, and threw it straight at me.
Somehow, I managed to catch it in front of my face, it was a throw with killing intent aimed at me. To the point that I forgot that it was a pillow, and I thought that from my neck to my head I would be blown away by the blow.
“Wait, Ojii-chan!? T-Tsushiro-kun, are you alright!? W-What just happened!?”
"Oh, it's okay. I don't know why the pillowcase came off…”
“P-Pillow!? You Ojii-chan! What are you doing!”
“Stay away from him, Sayo! I will get rid that beast myself!”
Apparently, this geezer thought that I was the boy who took advantage of Misumi, and as soon as he got off the bed, he immediately grabbed his crutches and raised them like a sword.
“I-Isn't your grandfather very energetic…?”
“I-I'm really sorry, Tsushiro-kun…”
“Korrraaa!? How dare you talk to Sayo without my permission! Son of a bi*ch!"
The old man rushed here with great momentum, but…
Puchin… and there was an annoying snapping sound that I shouldn't have heard.
“Ojii-chan, that's enough and shut up. If not, we will go home.”
Her voice was icy cold.
Misumi who kept her face always calm, but just at this moment, the look disappeared from her eyes and she looked serious.
When I heard such a dialect next to me, cold sweat ran down my back.
Her grandfather, who was rushing here suddenly stopped and was silent.
While taking off the sandals he was wearing, he quickly sat down seiza on the floor, and put her hands and forehead on the floor.
“Welcome, Young Master, please enjoy your time.”
“O-Okay…”
I've never seen a dogeza with such open arms, and I've learned that there's nothing sadder than a grandfather kneeling at his granddaugther's scolding.
“Is that so, um… sorry, boy.”
The old man who was lifting his upper body on the bed bent down uncomfortably.
And Misumi, who was sitting next to me also bowed deeply and said, "I'm sorry too."
“It's fine, there's no need to worry since I'm fine. Misumi also please raise your head.”
After a brief commotion, Misumi explained that I was the neighbor who helping her.
To be honest, it seemed that the old man wasn't sure from the bottom of his heart, but maybe because he was afraid of being scolded by Misumi again, he became quiet.
“Oh my… even though Ojii-chan's body is still paralyzed, right? Still need to rest.”
P-Paralyzed?
The old man who threw a pillow right at my face with a dynamic overhand throw is paralyzed you say!?
And lastly, if he's paralyzed why can he hold onto crutches and run with all his might…!?
"Right. Thanks to the rehabilitation, my condition has gotten much better, but… my right hand is still numb.”
Are you kidding me!? I desperately resisted the urge to say it.
“Remember Sayo, you have to be more careful, got it? You are pretty, I don't know when a man will attack you."
Said the old man, while glancing at me.
“No, I won't attack her, so don't worry. Because I'm just Misumi's neighbor.”
"How dare you! So you're saying that Sayo isn't pretty, huh!?”
“N-No, that's not what I meant…”
"Or do you want to die quickly?"
"No!"
“So, do you think Sayo is pretty?”
“Hey, what do you mean, Ojii-chan!?
Misumi, who was blushing, tried to stop the old man's question, but by that time, the answer was already out of my mouth.
"Well, of course, she's pretty."
“T-Tsushiro-kun…!?”
Misumi turned around in shock and opened her eyes.
Why are you so surprised? If ten people saw Misumi's face and were asked whether she was beautiful or not, they would all shake their heads vertically.
Besides, if I said, “No, she's not pretty” here, it was obvious that I would be killed by that geezer.
“Look at him, Sayo. However, he is a man. He looks at you with an inappropriate look, doesn't he?"
"No, thinking she's pretty is one thing, but seeing her like that is another. I just replied that Misumi is pretty, and I don't intend to do anything about it."
“Y-You two, please stop…!”
Misumi's shoulders shook, and she covered her face with both hands, looking down.
I didn't expect her to be that shy, so I also felt a little uncomfortable.
“By the way, Sayo. How are your eyes? Has it gotten a little better?”
The old man, unaware of our feelings, came up with a new topic.
Then Misumi lifted her face, still slightly red.
“Uhm, nothing has changed at all.”
"I see…"
The old man looked down and shrugged his shoulders.
There was a heavy silence in this room.
However, I unconsciously broke this silence.
“Can it be cured…? Minami's eyes?"
Then, the old man turned his gaze to me.
“Well, you know why Sayo's eyes can't see?”
“Um, visual impairment caused by excessive stress?”
"That's right. Sayo's vision will return as long as the stress she is experiencing is gone."
After hearing that geezer's answer, there was a feeling of something spreading in my heart.
Maybe, it's a feeling of pleasure.
It wasn't for me though — But for the neighbor I just met, I somehow felt relieved.
— It was as if there was a glimmer of hope.
"Tsushiro-kun? Why are you daydreaming?”
Misumi mysteriously tilted her neck.
"Hmm? Oh, no, it's nothing."
I felt a bit silly, so I shrugged and tricked him.
After talking to Misumi and the old man, Misumi and I left the hospital.
When we were going home, I still remember the old man saying to Misumi, "You will come again, right?", with his face like he is about to cry.
Although his behavior is a bit extreme, my impression of him is that he is a good grandfather who loves his granddaughter.
"After this, where do you want to go?"
I asked Misumi, as I walked along the carefully paved pavement, walking with my hand on my right arm.
“Um, is your stomach a little hungry yet?”
"Yes, a little."
When I checked the analog watch on my left hand, it was already past 3 o'clock.
I only ate once, and it was too late, so it's true that soon I'll be hungry.
Misumi seems to be similar to me.
“T-Then, there is a place I want to visit!”
“S-Sure.”
Maybe it wasn't my imagination that Misumi's tension seemed a little high.
She paused for a moment, took out her smartphone from the bag on her shoulder, and started operating it.
It took several tens of seconds for Misumi to zoom in on the text and bring the screen closer to her face.
“I-I want to try going here!”
I looked at Misumi's smartphone screen and checked the location and direction from here.
"Okay. Then, let's go."
“O-Okay!”
Translator: Exxod
Editor: Janaka