She's a stressed and struggling student in Osaka, living alone and barely managing to pay off her debts to keep herself off the streets. But an encounter with her used-to-be favourite utaite, Mafumafu, might change all of that!
I open my eyes, I'm in a bed. I scan the room, I realise that this isn't my room at all. Quickly, I jump out of my bed. Where am I?! And my head really hurts.. I have to get to the bottom of this! On my way out, I nearly step on a cat.
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It's looking at we weirdly, like it's staring straight into my soul. I shudder, and start to walk away, but the cat follows me, I sigh. I guess it can tag along with me. "Guess it's just the two of us in this house, huh, kitty?" I say. Just then, I hear another meow.
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"Three of us, actually. ", I mutter. The cats follow me as I roam the house, I wonder who's house it is. When I find then, I'll ask them why I'm here. I have to be careful, I don't know who it could be. "Do you know anything?", I question the kittens. They meow in response; not exactly an answer, but it'll do.
As we continue down the hall, I can hear someone watching anime on the TV. You're kidding me. I silently groan, but this is good, I have the element of surprise. I signal to the cats to be quiet, and their small paws silently patter. Curious, I sneak up behind him. He's watching Gochiusa. I get a whiff of his hair, it smells nice. I shake my head, what am I thinking?! I don't know who this person is, but he looks pretty harmless. I think to myself, how should I confront him? Just then, the grey cat starts meowing. I sweat, this isn't good. No! Stay still!, I think, but unfortunately, cats don't understand thoughts. The man turns around. "Mm? What's wrong, Iroha?", he asks. I recognise that voice. Mafumafu. He turns around, and spots me. "Ah, you're awake!"
Surprisingly, he's not scared. His lips spread into a smile, he's actually pretty cute. I blush, but quickly shake my head, he kidnapped me!, I remind myself. "Why did you bring me here?" I ask, coldly. "You passed out," he replies, "I brought you to my house, so I could treat your bruise.". I touch my forehead, feeling a plaster on it. That's right, I remember now. I got angry because Mafumafu paid my bills without me asking. And then I saw him in the park, charged at him, lost control, and ran straight into a tree. My head doesn't hurt anymore, thank goodness. "Well," I say, "I better go back to my house. I can manage on my own. You don't need to worry about me. We're strangers anyways. But thank you", I smile wanly, and close the door behind me without looking back, I can manage on my own.
She smiled at me... I blush, and smile. At least she's warming up to me, I think. But, she's walking by herself. I should follow her just to make sure nothing happens. I pat Iroha-chan and Potato, "Stay here, ok?" I ask, and they meow in response "Good kitties", I smile. I quickly put a jacket on, leave, and set off to find her. She shouldn't have gone far, right?
As soon as I arrive at my house, I notice something is wrong, very wrong. Why? First off, Furuichi-san is waiting for me, and secondly, men are carrying my things out of my house. I run up to him "What's going on?!" I ask him, shaking him by the shoulders. He glares at me "Get your hands off me, and then I'll tell you.", he says coldly. I take my hands off his shoulders. "So," he announces, "Your house is getting repossessed."
What? Suddenly, I get a sick feeling in my stomach. "W-what do you mean?" I stutter. "Like I said, your home is getting repossessed.", he replied, "You were too late to pay your bills, and I was going to tell you, but you weren't at home." "Then where am I supposed to stay now?!" I ask, in disbelief, "You can't just toss me out onto the streets! What about college?!" He sighs, "That's your own problem, and isn't your sister paying for your scholarship?" "No!", I shot back, "I meant my textbooks, stationary, and laptop! What about them?!" He groans "Would you stop whining like a damn kid? Also, all of your stuff is at the university, so there's no need to worry." I sigh, at least there's that. "But-" "Be quiet!", he roars, and I flinch. "It's your own problem now. I don't care if you end up on the streets, I'm just doing my job.", and he starts to walk away. "U-um!" I'd be glad to take her in!" a familiar, high-pitched voice cries.
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Furuichi-san and I look to the source of the voice. I groan, not again. And did he follow me here?! I clench my fists, but restrain. I can't cause any trouble, or he might call the cops on me. I'm already in a tight bind as it is. "You'd take ###-san in?" he asks, Mafumafu nods determinedly. "I-I can supply her food! And my house is pretty roomy! I'm alone too, I only have Iroha-chan and Potato with me!" You call your house roomy?! At the very least, it's messy!, I think, and Furuichi-san shoves me forward roughly. I stumble forward, into Mafumafu's chest, he catches me. "Well, she's your problem now", he barks "Good luck.", and he walks away. I look up at him, and he smiles at me. "Well, I guess we're stuck together, huh?", he laughs, and I sweat. Great.
