After a while, we arrived at her house.
Surprisingly, it wasn't that big—just a normal-looking house.
"Uhm, is this your house?" I asked, scratching my head. I thought rich people lived in flashy mansions.
"Yes, this is indeed my house," she said with a small smile. "I'm not the kind of person who likes to stand out. I just want to live a normal life."
Once we stepped out of the car, the two men who had accompanied her drove away, taking the car with them.
"Uhm... they took your car too?"
"Of course. They'll park it at my private hotel. I run a chain of hotels and resorts."
"Why not just park it here?"
She chuckled and gently patted my head. "What would you think if your neighbor suddenly had a Porsche Cayenne parked outside their house? Creepy, right?"
I didn't even know what a Porsche Cayenne looked like, but I nodded anyway.
Inside, her house was completely normal. No butlers, no marble floors, not even a grand chandelier. Just... homey. Cozy, even.
"Come on, dear. Sit on the sofa. I forgot to cook lunch earlier."
"You cook your own food? I mean, you could just hire a five-star chef or something."
"I did. But I assigned them all to my hotels. Cooking your own meals is part of everyday life, isn't it? Don't worry, I'm a good cook~"
As she walked into the kitchen, I glanced around the living room. Standard appliances. A few plants. A shelf full of manga. Posters of anime characters. Wait—anime?
"Uhm… you watch anime?"
"Yep! It's how I spend my evenings. What about you?"
"We sold our TV a long time ago. And I don't have a phone, so I've barely seen anything."
She peeked over her shoulder and grinned. "Then we'll watch anime together, okay?"
This woman... she's actually kind. She feels less like a mafia loan shark and more like an eccentric older sister.
After a little while, she called me over to eat. She'd made curry.
"You eat curry, right?" she asked, sitting across from me at the small living room table.
"Yeah, but… at least let me help next time. I should work to pay back the debt somehow."
She looked amused. Resting her elbow on the table, she cupped her chin in her hand and tilted her head.
"Ara~ You can cook? I'd love to taste your food someday, dear."
This might be late to say, but… this lady is really beautiful.
Before I realized it, I was smiling at her—not because of what she said, but because something about her just made my heart race a little.
"Ye–yes! Please look forward to it."
Then she scooped up a spoonful of curry and held it out toward me.
"Come on, dear. Say ahh~"
This is bad. This is bad. This is REALLY bad.
"Uhm, what are you doing"
"Spoon feeding you?"
"But I can eat myself."
She looked at me with a pitiful eyes.
"Dear... open your mouth. Let mommy spoil you~"
For the sake of my family's debt... I must eat the spoon. I braced myself, opened my mouth, and accepted my fate.
"Delicious, right?"
"Y-yes."
"Just yes? Say it properly: 'Feed me more, Hayase.'"
AHH. THIS IS TORTURE.
"Fe...feed me more, Hayase-sama."
"Oh come on, don't be so formal. Or do you want to call me mommy that badly?"
"Feed me more, Hayase..."
"Ah what's that! Too bland! Where's the emotion? Don't be shy, naughty boys like you really want to be spoiled, don't you?"
She teased me the whole meal like that. I lost count of how many "ahh"s I did. I just prayed dinner wouldn't be the same.
When we finished, I stood up.
"Uhm… let me do the dishes, Hayase-sama."
"Like I said, just call me Hayase. No need for -sama."
"Right. Sorry, I'll keep that in mind."
"Akira-kun, right? Then I'll call you dear!"
"That's... not even close."
To think that I can pay our debt by letting the woman we owe 3 million yen to spoon feed me. This is practically nonsense.
As I was the dishes, she patiently wait for me, smiling.
As I look at her, a weird thought suddenly slipped on my mind.
We're like a newly married couple!
"Ara dear, why are you grinning? Did you remember something funny?"
"No please kindly ignore me."
After I finished washing the dishes, she suddenly grabbed my wrist.
"Come here, let me show you around!"
"I mean, I already saw most of the house. It's not that big."
"Do you know where you're going to sleep?"
"Wait... I'm sleeping here? I thought I'd just work during the day and go home at night."
She burst out laughing.
"Come on, I didn't take you in just to make you work. Technically, I paid 3 million yen for you, so of course I want to keep you close as much as possible. You can visit your parents anytime, but you'll live here now."
Yeah she's right... I was sold. I should've thought this through more.
"But I didn't bring anything. Can I go home and get some clothes?"
"No no! I'll get lonely! We'll buy everything new later."
She pulled me into a room. It was... awesome. A large bed, a gaming PC, manga shelves, a cozy table.
"Is this my room?"
She placed her hands on my shoulders and leaned close.
"Our room, dear~"
"We're sleeping... together?!"
"Yep. And you don't have any right to refuse, because technically, I own you," she said with a mischievous grin.
I froze. I should've brought a lawyer.
"Don't pout, dear. I was just teasing," she laughed. "There's only one room in this house. I'm not going to make you sleep on the couch or the floor."
"But a boy and a girl sharing a bed is kind of..."
She lifted my chin with one finger, smiling.
"Don't worry, dear. Just for tonight, you can sleep in peace. I probably won't do anything~"
Yeah. I'm doomed.