"Kyouko-chan~" Mrs. Minami said cheerfully. You should call him over. Let him sit with us~ Young people these days are so fun to chat with."
"Y-You mean... Haruki-kun?"
"Of course!" another woman chimed in, her eyes sparkling. "He's so polite. And handsome! We don't mind if he joins us, do we?"
"Not at all~ The more, the merrier!"
Kyouko placed her teacup down carefully.
"Umm... I barely talk to him, actually..." she said softly, her voice light and a bit awkward. "We're... not really close. He's quiet, and I don't want to make him uncomfortable..."
A few of the women pretended to be disappointed.
"Aww~ that's too bad..."
"Really? Living together and still so distant?"
"Well, he does seem like the quiet type..."
Kyouko nodded politely, folding her hands neatly in her lap. "Yes... he mostly keeps to himself."
From the kitchen, Haruki quietly finished his last sip of coffee, placed his mug in the sink, and washed the dishes with calm.
When he dried his hands and turned toward the hallway, the chatter from the living room continued behind him.
As he passed the archway, a few of the women noticed him—smiling sweetly, some pretending not to look, others openly admiring the way his toned shoulders moved under the towel draped casually around his neck.
Haruki paused for a moment, glanced toward the group, then shifted his gaze to Kyouko.
She stiffened slightly, as if surprised to see him, even though she had been watching him closely since he turned off the kitchen faucet.
"I'm... heading upstairs," Haruki said, his voice soft and shy, almost mumbling—as if they barely knew how to talk to each other.
Kyouko blinked once and gave a small, awkward nod. "Ah... o-okay..."
She didn't meet his eyes.
A few of the women giggled behind their hands.
"Very respectful of his mother-in-law~"
Haruki gave a tiny bow to the group before walking past the staircase and slowly heading up.
Kyouko reached for her teacup again, hiding her lips behind the rim.
This big boy... is too good at this...
"Kyouko-chan~" Mrs. Minami leaned forward with a playful grin, her teacup held like a prop in a drama.
"Umm... yes?" Kyouko replied softly, keeping her expression neutral, though her stomach tightened.
"You should be a little more..." she paused, twirling her finger in the air, searching for the word. "You know... friendly with him."
Another woman leaned in, whispering with a smirk, "Yeah! You two looked so distant. You shouldn't treat your son-in-law like a stranger!"
"If it were me..." one of them chimed in, pressing a hand to her cheek. "A handsome guy like him, living under the same roof? Ohh~"
Kyouko's eyes widened slightly, her cup frozen halfway to her lips.
"Oh come on, Kyouko-chan~ Don't act so innocent~" another giggled.
One of the women clutched her chest dramatically, swaying. "Just imagine... a young man like that on top of you, whispering 'Darling~' in that deep voice..."
"Kyaaa~ stop! You're going to make me spill my tea~!"
More laughter and teasing erupted—louder now, with each comment getting more outrageous. Some leaned into each other, pretending to faint from the fantasy.
Kyouko sat still, smiling politely, her face slightly pale—but her hands gripped the edge of her skirt beneath the table.
She gave a small, nervous laugh. "You all watch too many dramas..."
"Of course~! But sometimes real life is even juicier, no~?"
The room erupted into another round of teasing giggles, but Kyouko just sipped her tea slowly.
"Kyouko-chan~" Mrs. Minami called again, her tone playful yet curious. "Where's your husband? We haven't seen him around lately."
Kyouko opened her mouth to answer, but before she could speak, one of the other ladies jumped in with a smirk.
"Hah! You're one to ask, Minami-san. Doesn't your husband come home late every other night?"
That set off a ripple of laughter.
"Probably avoiding you, not the house~!"
"Oi~ That's rude!" Minami laughed, swatting the woman's shoulder. "But at least I still have a husband. Can't say the same about your sister's third divorce!"
"Hey, leave her out of it!"
They burst into teasing again, their voices rising like waves of laughter.
"Did you hear about the newlywed couple in Block C?" one said, her eyes sparkling.
"Ohh~ you mean the night noises?"
"Yes, yes! I was trying to watch TV when I suddenly heard 'Aaah~ harder!'—I thought someone was watching adult videos!"
"Turned out to be the real thing~"
They roared with laughter, slapping each other's arms and shaking their heads in fake disbelief.
"The son of that widow in Block B also moved in last month, right? My niece saw him sneaking in with some college girl. She said the girl wore nothing but a hoodie and flip-flops!"
"Heh, not like the old days when people had any shame~"
"Oh please, don't pretend like you didn't sneak into your boyfriend's bed back in the '80s~"
More laughter, more tea, more shameless stories flying back and forth like darts across the table.
Kyouko sat quietly through it all, her smile gentle and steady.
She nodded politely when they looked her way, even chuckled softly at the wilder parts. But her eyes stayed distant, focused somewhere past the steam rising from her cup.
The gossip didn't stop.
Kyouko smiled gently, listening as she rose now and then to pour more tea, refill the coffee jug, and bring out another plate of sweet crackers and rice snacks.
She didn't say much. Just nodded, smiled, and laughed politely when it was appropriate.
"Kyouko-chan~ Where's the toilet?" one woman asked, standing up and adjusting her blouse.
Kyouko turned calmly. "Ah, just before the door to the backyard. There's one there."
Kyouko smiled, but her inner voice was sharp. These ladies better not go wandering upstairs. Not that they know there's a second bathroom up there, anyway...
She glanced at the clock.
They'd been here for hours.
Just as she was bringing out another tray of manju, her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out.
Kyouko sighed softly and accepted the call, tapping the green button and holding the phone up to her face.
"Mooom!" Satomi's voice came through the speaker, loud and sharp.
"Hm?" Kyouko replied with a calm smile.
"He's upstairs. Why?"
"He didn't answer my call! I tried like five times."
Kyouko tilted her head. "Maybe he's busy with work... or sleeping?"
"Can you call him?" Satomi asked, frowning.
Kyouko gave her a gentle smile, then slowly turned the phone to face the living room, showing the lively group of ladies now loudly discussing whether their old classmate's husband had hair implants.
"Hello, Satomi~!" the women sang in unison, all waving at the screen.
Satomi blinked, stunned.
"Ahh... Hello, Aunties."
Kyouko turned the phone back toward herself.
"I'm entertaining guests right now."
Satomi pouted. "...Tell Haruki to call me when he wakes up."
Kyouko ended the call and tucked her phone back into her apron pocket with a sigh.