How to raise a random guy's wife

"Eh?" Kato Megumi blinked, and glistening tears streamed down her face. She reached out to wipe them away, but Kobayashi Sora stopped her.

"Don't touch your eyes. Rice cakes have bacteria on them, you told me that." Kobayashi Sora pulled out a tissue. "Close your eyes."

“…Hmm.” Kato Megumi closed her slightly reddened eyes, tilted her head back slightly, her fair skin faintly flushed pink, tiny teardrops still clinging to her curved eyelashes, and her cherry-pink lips moved with barely a whisper, as if…

Kobayashi Sora folded a tissue into a sharp corner and brought it close to her eyes to absorb her tears.

Then flatten the sharp corner and wipe away the tear stains on her face.

The warm sensation traveled through the tissue to Kobayashi Sora's fingers; it was hard to tell if it was the temperature of her tears or the temperature of Kato Megumi's cheek.

"Is it not ready yet?" Kato Megumi asked softly.

"Alright, open your eyes." Kobayashi Sora put down the tissue. "Why are you crying all of a sudden?"

"I didn't even notice until you pointed it out." Kato Megumi looked at the light novel placed to the side. "Senpai is really amazing."

"A well-thought-out design, subtle foreshadowing—when everything is connected, it naturally creates a torrent of emotions." Kobayashi Sora chuckled. "Although the early stages were only average, the emotional resonance became stronger as it progressed. Although flashbacks were rarely used, specific props and scenes could make readers involuntarily recall past events, making even a simple sentence have the effect of the last straw that broke the camel's back."

“That’s exactly what I mean,” Kato Megumi nodded. “I don’t even know how to describe it. It just feels so touching. I didn’t even realize I was crying.”

"Alright, that's enough for today." Kobayashi Sora closed the light novel. "I'll take a bath... take a bath, relax before I go to sleep, otherwise my eyes will be swollen."

"Okay." Kato Megumi picked up the rice cake and handed it to Kobayashi Sora. "The rice cake is yours now."

“Speaking of which,” Kobayashi Sora hugged the rice cake, “when I was taking a shower, this little guy was squatting by the door and meowing. I thought something had happened, but when I came out, nothing was wrong.”

“Cats’ ancestors lived in the desert, so too much water is a danger sign,” Kato Megumi explained as she took out toiletries from her bag. “When you go to take a shower, it senses that you’re going to do something dangerous in the water. On one hand, it’s curious about what you’re doing in the bathroom, and on the other hand, it’s worried about whether you can come out alive.”

"Taking a bath feels like a life-or-death situation." Kobayashi Sora scratched Nian Gao's neck. "Thanks for your concern."

"Meow~" Nian Gao meowed and made a happy purring sound.

Kobayashi Sora returned to her desk with the cat in her arms, finishing up her work.

Rice cake struggled a few times before breaking free from my embrace and squatting in front of the bathroom door.

After a moment of silence, they started scratching at the door.

"Good girl, mochi~" Kato Megumi's voice came from the bathroom, "I'm fine."

"Meow~" Nian Gao responded and obediently squatted at the bathroom door.

Kobayashi Sora shook her head, checked the memo again to confirm tomorrow's schedule, and shut down the computer after verifying that everything was correct.

After glancing in the direction of the bathroom, Kobayashi Sora found a suitable spot in the living room and started doing push-ups.

Hmm... exercising is still very necessary.

I'll go back and ask someone who works out for some bodyweight exercises.

When Kobayashi Sora finished her workout, Kato Megumi also finished her bath and started blow-drying her hair.

Rice cake followed behind her, only to be startled away by the sound of the hairdryer.

Kato Megumi turned to look at the cat and saw Kobayashi Sora walk into the bathroom.

She paused in the act of drying her hair, suddenly remembering something.

At home, she was used to sharing the bathwater with her sister.

Because you shower first and then take a bath, you won't have to worry about unclean water.

This is a good habit for saving water.

And she brought this habit... here.

Kobayashi Sora habitually turned the water down to cool and was taking a shower.

As I was rinsing, I noticed the water in the bathtub.

Then the problem is coming.

To use or not to use?

Kobayashi Sora felt two little people appear next to her head.

A little devil with sharp horns and a tail whispered, "Using a classmate's bathwater—that's a dream for so many. Others want it but don't even have the chance! Once this opportunity is gone, it's gone forever. Water carrying the scent of a young girl—can't it awaken your desire to bathe? Besides, she hasn't drained the water, which means she has the same idea as you. Are you going to let her good intentions slip away like that? Even if she doesn't have the same idea as you, that's fate's arrangement. Are you going to rebel against fate? Even if you want to rebel against fate, shouldn't you first take a bath and rest to face fate in the best possible condition? Don't overthink it. Thank nature for its gift, and immerse your body in it with gratitude, enjoying this rare comfort and peace."

A little angel with a halo and wings declared righteously, "Wasting water is wrong."

Kobayashi Sora felt that what they said was absolutely right.

Even after the sound of the shower in the bathroom disappeared, Kobayashi Sora still didn't come out.

After finishing drying her hair, Kato Megumi realized something, her face flushed slightly, and she bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth.

"Xiao Lin?"

"Hmm?" The sound of running water came from the bathroom.

"I'm going to sleep now."

"Ah...yes, sweet dreams."

"Good night."

When Kobayashi Sora came out, there was only a seemingly innocent-looking rice cake at the door.

After patting the rice cake's head, Kobayashi Sora dried her hair, turned off the living room light, and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Kobayashi Sora, woken by her alarm clock, habitually looked toward the kitchen, her nostrils flaring.

There was no aroma of breakfast, nor was there anyone preparing it.

That's true, this time is earlier than usual school time, so Kato Megumi probably hasn't woken up yet.

Kobayashi Sora quickly washed her face, feeling a little more refreshed. She opened the refrigerator to check the ingredients, picked out a few things, and made two breakfasts: an egg sandwich, a vegetable salad, a pumpkin soup, and two cups of coffee to perk her up.

Only the pumpkin soup is a little more troublesome, but it only takes about ten minutes.

Kobayashi Sora glanced at the time, wiped her hands on her apron, and knocked on the bedroom door. "Kato... um?"

His movements came to an abrupt halt, and with a light tap of his finger, the bedroom door closed...

It slowly opened.

Chapter 51 I didn't remember

The soft morning light shone through the gaps in the curtains onto Kobayashi Sora's bed, a bed she knew all too well.

The girl lay on her side facing the bedroom door, her slightly messy short hair plastered to her face. Her smooth, jet-black hair made her sleeping face appear even whiter and more alluring, and her long, deep breaths could be faintly heard.

With each breath, her chest rose and fell, not fully covered by the blanket, and a button at her collar was undone, revealing her delicate collarbone and snow-white skin.

Kobayashi Sora couldn't bear to break the tranquility before her, but the blanket covering Kato Megumi stirred.

A fluffy cat head popped out, its golden eyes fixed on Kobayashi Sora, and then...

"Meow~"

Mochi jumped off the bed, stepping on Kato Megumi's body, and happily hugged Kobayashi Sora's leg.

"Meow~"

"Hmm?" Her eyelashes fluttered, and Kato Megumi slowly opened her eyes, slightly startled when she saw Kobayashi Sora. "Eh?"

"I...it...you...I just tapped it once...um...breakfast is ready."

"Good morning~" Kato Megumi, who had just woken up, said in a soft voice as she sat up in bed, ran her little finger through her hair, and greeted the guests in a daze.

"Good morning." Kobayashi Sora picked up the rice cake. "Would you like sugar in your coffee?"

"One sugar cube will suffice."

"I understand." Kobayashi Sora closed the door behind her, picked up the rice cake, found its food bowl, and added water and food.

A short while later, Kato Megumi changed out of her pajamas and came out of the bedroom. "Last night, the rice cake kept asking to come in, so I opened the door and let it in."

She yawned. "After a while, it wanted to go out again, so I opened the door and let it out. After a while, it wanted to come back in."

"I feel like it's abandoned, even though I'm right here in the living room." Kobayashi Sora chuckled. "Just ignore it, it'll quiet down in a bit."

As Kato Megumi ate her breakfast, she said, "It kept scratching at the door and crying pitifully."

"I was probably sleeping too soundly and didn't hear it at all." Kobayashi Sora recalled that when he was home alone, he wouldn't close the bedroom door completely, so he had never experienced the cat scratching at the door. "Didn't you sleep well last night?"

"Hmm..." Kato Megumi looked away. "I guess so."

"You could say that?" Kobayashi Sora sensed something was off. "I mean, you didn't go to bed very late last night, did you?"

"It wasn't particularly late."

"Really?"

Kato Megumi looked down at the sandwich on her plate, "Hmm..."

"Is your pillow uncomfortable?"

"No, I was just reading a novel for a while."

"You've been reading for a while?" Kobayashi Sora stared at Kato Megumi. "You didn't actually read all five books, did you?"

“It’s three books,” Kato Megumi corrected. “I finished reading two of them before taking a shower.”

"Even if you're attending a book signing event, there's no need to read everything."

"It's not because of the book signing, it's because the content was so interesting that I didn't want to go to sleep."

"How are you feeling now?" Kobayashi Sora knows all too well the pain of not getting enough sleep; she just experienced it a few days ago. "How about I go by myself today? You can eat and then get some more sleep."

"It's okay. I usually have a good sleep schedule, so staying up late occasionally is fine."

"People's physical constitutions cannot be generalized."

"Eh?"

"I'm the type who has a very good daily routine, so I feel like I'm going to die if I stay up all night occasionally."

"It's probably best not to stay up late then." Kato Megumi finished breakfast first. "I'm going to wash my face. Shall we leave in a bit?"

"Yes, the company car will be here in a bit, and then we'll set off."

Okay.

At the appointed time, Kobayashi Sora received a call from the driver and set off with Kato Megumi. Before picking up Kasumigaoka Utaha, Kobayashi Sora went to a convenience store to buy milk and pineapple buns, and then rushed to Kasumigaoka Utaha's house.