Life As Hikigaya Hachiman

Chapter 540: Mafuyu's Lap Pillow Service

After dinner, Hachiman followed Mafuyu to her apartment.

Opening the door to her place, Mafuyu spoke shyly, "P-please, come in."

"Thank you for having me." Hachiman nodded and stepped inside.

Looking around, he noticed that although the room wasn't exactly tidy, it was at least much better than the first time he'd visited.

After all, he'd taught Mafuyu a few cleaning basics, so she'd learned to manage some simple organization.

For example, she had at least stacked her old textbooks neatly in a corner…

Just as Hachiman thought this, he heard a loud crash as the pile of textbooks toppled over.

Um… Seriously? Putting the smallest books at the bottom was bound to fail.

"Oh no! I'll clean it up right away!"

Mafuyu hurried over, fumbling as she tried to reorganize the books.

But, unfortunately, she forgot her tendency to be hopeless at household chores. The more she tried, the more the textbooks scattered across the floor.

In the end, the once vaguely organized pile of books lay scattered everywhere, while Mafuyu sat among them with a defeated look.

"Why… why is this happening…"

Seeing her in this state, Hachiman sighed.

"Let me handle it."

"Mm-hmm," Mafuyu nodded obediently.

.....

With the skill of a seasoned pro, Hachiman quickly organized the scattered textbooks, tying them securely with a strap to prevent them from toppling again.

"That should do it. Just put them in a corner," he said, dusting off his hands.

Mafuyu nodded enthusiastically. "Mm-hmm, you're amazing, Hachiman-kun!"

Amazing? This is just basic…

He smirked slightly but kept working, moving on to clean other parts of the room.

He found empty milk cartons on the table, an unmade bed, and… a piece of black fabric by the bed.

Uh…

"Ah! Give that back!" Mafuyu's face turned bright red as she snatched the fabric from him.

"Hachiman-kun, you… you pervert! Inappropriate!"

Ignoring her flustered accusations, Hachiman continued tidying up.

Mafuyu had offered to help seeing how hard he was working, but Hachiman firmly refused.

With your level of cleaning skills, you'd just slow me down. It's faster if I do it alone.

Still, he couldn't completely talk her out of it, so he reluctantly let her help with some simpler tasks, like wiping the table and mopping the floor.

Soon enough, without any mishaps, Hachiman finished organizing the room.

Mafuyu also cleaned the last patch of floor.

Looking around the now clean and tidy room, Mafuyu felt a wave of satisfaction.

Setting down the mop, she let out a sigh of relief and smiled at Hachiman.

"You worked so hard, Hachiman-kun. I'll make some tea for you."

With that, she grabbed the mop and headed to the bathroom.

A moment later, Mafuyu returned with two cups of green tea, setting one down across from him at the low table.

"Please, enjoy."

"Thank you."

Hachiman took the cup with a nod, and Mafuyu glanced around, beaming at the orderly room.

"Thank you so much, Hachiman-kun."

"Don't mention it; it was no trouble," he replied, sipping his tea.

"It might seem easy to you, but it's hard for me," she admitted, rubbing the tea cup shyly. "I've never been good at organizing since I was young. The more I try, the messier it gets..."

"Well, a clumsy girl—that's kind of a cute quality," Hachiman shrugged. "Honestly, I think you're more endearing this way than as the stern, efficient Sensei everyone sees at school."

Hearing his words, a blush spread across Mafuyu's cheeks as she stammered a response.

"C-cute? That's… inappropriate… I-I'm your teacher!"

Unfortunately for Mafuyu, her words held no power over Hachiman.

"So what if you're a teacher? Who said teachers can't be cute?"

It's true—who ever decided that teachers can't be cute?

The perfect example would be Shizuka Hiratsuka, his other teacher, who even earned the affectionate nickname "Shizuka-cute" from her many fans online.

Upon hearing Hachiman's words, Mafuyu thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a rebuttal, ultimately letting out a small whimper.

"Ugh... don't bully your teacher!"

However, despite what she said, she wasn't actually angry; in fact, she felt a bit happy.

As for Hachiman, seeing her look so pitiful made him chuckle.

In an attempt to hide her embarrassment, Mafuyu picked up her tea and tried to shield her face with the cup.

But soon, she seemed to remember something and set the cup down.

"By the way, is there anything I can do to help you, Hachiman-kun? You've been helping me so much, and I feel a bit guilty about it."

Hachiman smiled and shook his head.

"It's okay; these are just small favors."

Mafuyu, however, disagreed.

"Even if they're just small favors, as the saying goes, little things accumulate into something significant."

"Even if it's just a small gesture, I want to repay you for your kindness, Hachiman-kun."

Upon hearing this, Hachiman raised an eyebrow.

"Are you really that determined, Mafuyu-sensei?"

"Of course!" Mafuyu nodded repeatedly.

"Well then…"

At this point, Hachiman let out a helpless sigh and said half-jokingly, "How about a lap pillow from you?"

"A lap… pillow?"

Mafuyu's face turned slightly red at those words.

"Yes, a lap pillow." Hachiman nodded.

He had intentionally chosen something that would put Mafuyu in a difficult position, as he genuinely considered tidying up the room to be a simple task.

After all, he didn't come over every day to clean. If that were the case, it wouldn't be unreasonable to accept some form of payment.

But with the way things were now—coming by only once every ten days or so—there was really no need for any compensation.

Just when Hachiman was confident that Mafuyu would give up, she unexpectedly agreed.

"Okay, I'll give you a lap pillow."

?

Wait, did she really just agree?

Could it be that his favorability rating with Mafuyu wasn't that low after all?

As Hachiman silently mused over this, Mafuyu stood up from her seat and moved to sit beside him, her face flushed as she patted her thigh and said, "Come... come on."

Hachiman-kun has helped me so much; it's just a lap pillow, after all—what's the big deal?

Under the soft light, Mafuyu sat up straight, like a student waiting for a teacher's question.

Hachiman glanced down at her legs, which were tightly together in black skinny jeans, outlining an alluring curve.

"Am I really going to rest my head there?" Hachiman asked uncertainly.

"Please... hurry up," she replied.

Mafuyu tried to keep a stern face, but the blush on her cheeks deepened instead.

Seeing this, Hachiman couldn't help but say, "Well, here I go."

Upon hearing this, Mafuyu raised an eyebrow, wanting to say something.

However, before she could speak, Hachiman had already laid his head on her lap.

"Ah…"

Feeling the sudden weight on her legs, Mafuyu let out a small gasp.

As for Hachiman, he lay back comfortably, enjoying Mafuyu's lap pillow service without a hint of guilt. After all, she had agreed to this, and he hadn't forced her in any way.

Sinking into the soft sensation behind his head, Hachiman closed his eyes in contentment.

Moreover, because he was only separated by a layer of denim, he could clearly feel the warmth radiating from Mafuyu's legs.

Unable to resist, he rubbed his head against her thigh.

Mafuyu, feeling the unusual sensation on her legs, blushed and said, "D-Don't move around; it'll tickle."

At her words, Hachiman indeed stopped moving, simply lying there and relishing the comfort.

It seemed that girls often had pleasant fragrances about them.

For example, Saeko had a charming musk scent that was intoxicating, like alluring poppies that drew one in effortlessly.

Then there was Kotonoha, who had a subtle milky fragrance.

And Utaha carried a faint scent of roses…

As for Mafuyu, she had a fresh, elegant fragrance reminiscent of orchids.

Breathing in that delightful scent, Hachiman felt entirely relaxed.

Meanwhile, Mafuyu also let out a sigh of relief.

Initially, she had felt a bit tense before Hachiman rested his head, but now that he had, she felt reassured.

Looking down, she noticed that Hachiman had closed his eyes, a smile on his lips, looking quite content.

Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, Mafuyu lifted a hand and gently stroked Hachiman's head, humming an unknown tune as if trying to lull him to sleep.

After a while, Hachiman opened his eyes to find himself staring into Mafuyu's watery gaze.

Their eyes met, reflecting each other's presence, and both felt a flutter of emotions in their hearts.

As his gaze drifted down to Mafuyu's luscious lips, Hachiman felt an overwhelming impulse to kiss her.

To kiss or not to kiss?

That was the choice!

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