These two people were caught red-handed by people they knew.
They came over to say hello and expressed their relief and joy at Aiko's safe return. However, some of them, especially the wives who knew them from the past, started to heckle Aiko and Taichi.
Taichi acted shy and flustered, while Aiko smiled and clearly denied it, which made Taichi's expression twitch stiffly, attracting sympathetic glances from everyone.
When she meets classmates who come to the festival with their husbands and children, Aiko is often asked the most fatal question for her now: "Don't you have a partner now?" This makes Aiko fall into an abnormal state.
Seeing Aiko's blushing, hesitant reaction, the people around her naturally became curious and turned their gazes towards Taichi. It was no wonder Taichi looked needlessly excited.
The mere fact of being able to chat and mingle with familiar people from my hometown at the festival was deeply moving for Aiko. She had thoroughly enjoyed the festival today.
As for Grandpa Yamashiro, his cotton candy has evolved into a state of art, even to the point of being divine. Even Aiko was amazed to see his stall displaying cotton candy in the shape of many famous statues.
When Grandpa Shancheng gave all these to Aiko without saying a word, Aiko was really troubled. However, she understood that this was Grandpa Shancheng's gift to celebrate her safe return, so she accepted it anyway.
"Is this really edible...?"
"...Wouldn't it be a waste if I didn't eat it?"
Aiko and Taichi walked up the stairs, away from the still bustling festival venue, and sat down on a bench in the shrine's courtyard to rest for a while. Aiko swung her feet relaxedly.
There was no one else here. Although I didn't feel tired, I still let out a deep breath without realizing it.
"Luckily, I met my dad on the way. I asked him to keep the marshmallow for me. I can enjoy it slowly when I get home."
Aiko's father, Hatayama Sohei, also had a stall at the festival, selling "orange candies" similar to candy apples. Aiko left a marshmallow statue of Venus with him. As for Sohei, seeing Taishi's servile demeanor, he wore an indescribable expression.
Aiko felt a little confused at her father's reaction, completely confused about what he meant. However, she eventually decided to ignore it. Speaking of which, Taishi is also a member of the hometown youth group, so he should be involved in the festival's operations. How long does he plan to stay with me? — Then, Aiko wondered.
"Taishi, don't you need to help?"
"Eh? Oh, no need. Yeah."
What happened? Taiji had been strangely silent since a while ago, and seemed a little nervous... But never mind, it didn't matter.
Aiko decided not to take it to heart, because the bustle and atmosphere of her hometown made her feel happy and comfortable.
I used to visit the front yard of this shrine quite often. Although I never really cared about what kind of deity was enshrined there, I often came here to pay incense and pray for exams and other matters.
Although he had only been away for a year, Aizi missed his hometown so much.
Everything in her hometown was taken for granted by Aiko, and she didn't particularly like it. Sometimes she even felt a little annoyed. However, now Aiko feels that everything is irreplaceable and precious.
Because she had deeply experienced in a distant other world that nothing in the world existed as it should be.
Aiko narrowed her eyes and looked at the festival venue from afar, her eyes full of cherishment, as if she was looking at her own treasure.
Taichi was mesmerized by his beloved son. After a moment, Taichi came to his senses and suddenly patted his cheek.
The crisp and loud slapping sound startled Aiko, and she looked at Taishi in surprise.
Taichi, visibly nervous, spoke to Aiko.
"I say, love. Do you want to come back here?"
"Hmm? I'm back now, aren't I?"
"No, that's not what I meant... I'm asking if you want to quit your current teaching position and come back here to live."
Aiko's eyes widened, unable to understand why Taichi suddenly said such a thing.
Ignoring Aiko's startled reaction, Taichi continued. His expression was quite sincere, as if he was trying to convince Aiko.
"I saw it on TV, and it was terrible. I don't think your students are wrong, but if you continue to hang out with them, you might become a target of criticism because of them in the future."
"...So what? It's only natural, since I'm a teacher."
"That's enough."
Taishi wasn't asking Aiko to stop teaching; she could have found another teaching position in her hometown. Furthermore, Aiko believed she was simply doing what a teacher should do, but Taishi didn't take it for granted. Aiko was shouldering too much.
Taizhi counseled Aiko. As he'd said, Aiko had indeed taken on too much. Teachers have their own lives, too. By ordinary worldly standards, Aiko's burdens were insane.
However, Aiko is just that kind of teacher. Even when summoned to another world, even when faced with life-or-death crises, the part of her that is "Teacher Hatayama" remains unchanged.
"No, I'm not resigning. As long as the school agrees, I'll continue teaching there. I want to see those students graduate from that school."
Aiko said this and stood up. There was no trace of hesitation in her eyes, and her heart was more resolute than stubborn. She had a clear will.
Aiko turned to return to the festival venue, signaling she would not discuss the matter further. Seeing her like this, Taishi grew anxious and quickly blocked her path. He continued to persuade her, his anxiety evident.
Anxiety caused him to blurt out something he didn't really want to mention, which was also the most fatal fact for his beloved son.
"Love... is that really what you care about?"
“…What do you mean?”
"The one you really care about...is actually your lover, right?"
"Whahaha, what? What are you talking about!?"
Her beloved son, who had been so composed, suddenly became flustered, his expression completely devoid of any resoluteness. This topic was still a fatal blow to her.
Seeing Aiko's panic, Taichi gave a wry smile, his entire body relaxing as if he had let go of the turmoil in his heart. However, at this point, he could no longer deceive himself.
"Ai, you're the only one who still thinks you've kept it a secret. Auntie and I all knew about it a long time ago. You found a lover during your disappearance. And that person is... your student."
“!?!?”
Aiko's reaction was very interesting, and her expression alone completely revealed her thoughts.
Why did Taichi know this!? Had Mom and the others figured it out? Why!? Aiko was clearly thinking this.
"Of course I can tell. You've never been good at hiding your feelings."
“B-but…how could you even know that I’m your student…”
"Is that even a stretch? A relationship developed while they were missing, and they're still too afraid to introduce them to their parents. Such a person must be a student. That's generally what you'd assume, right?"
Taichi was absolutely right. Aiko held her head in her hands, feeling distressed.
Taizhi couldn't help but feel helpless about his beloved son, but he immediately put on a serious expression and continued to persuade him, as if he wanted to provide answers to his son's current troubles.
"How can a teacher tell a student... You understand, Ai."
“──!”
"You're in so much pain, aren't you? You've suffered so much... Under such unusual circumstances, it's inevitable that you'll be distracted... But I don't mind."
"Taishi?"
Sensing the change in atmosphere from Taishi's tone, Aiko looked up at him. His face was closer than she'd expected, and his serious gaze made Aiko take a few steps back. Taishi was approaching again.
"Love, you should end that impure relationship. Then return home and start over. You might feel lonely at first... but I will always be with you."
"Taishi? What are you talking about..."
No, in fact, Aiko already understood. Seeing Taichi's eager eyes, no matter how slow Aiko was, she could see it.
However, Aiko had never imagined that Taichi could harbor such feelings for her. At least as far as Aiko knew, Taichi had other girlfriends during his school days, so Aiko could hardly hide her surprise.
"Love. When you disappeared, I was so scared that my heart was broken. That's when I realized how important you were to me."
"Tai-Taishi, y-you should calm down first."
Seeing Taichi approaching, Aiko felt no fear, but she was filled with confusion. Taichi's increasingly agitated expression left Aiko at a loss as to what to do.
His next words pierced his son's heart even more sharply.
"Things aren't going well with your partner, are they?"
“Ugh…”
"It's natural that things won't go smoothly. He's just a child. There's no way I can make you happy. I've inherited the family business, I'm already very responsible, and I'm the same age as you. If you stay with me, everything will go smoothly."
Taichi uttered a confession that was practically a marriage proposal. Meanwhile, Aiko, still retreating, bumped her back against a tree planted in the shrine's courtyard, unable to retreat any further. She hadn't realized how many steps she'd taken without realizing it.
Taishi reached out and grasped Aiko's slender shoulders. A man's expression appeared on his face, one Aiko had never seen before—no, an expression he had never shown to Aiko, his childhood friend.
If it was Aiko before being summoned, she might have been moved by such a Taishi.
However, no matter how strong her childhood sweetheart's feelings were, they could not stir up any ripples in Aiko's heart. On the contrary, it made the face of another man appear more vividly in her mind...
"beginning……!"
"like!"
The faint sound that escaped my lips was someone else's name. My beloved was right before my eyes, but she had no eyes for me.
This jealousy made Taichi's body move. The hand gripping his shoulder began to exert force. Was he trying to force his beloved son into his arms? Or was he planning to force a kiss?
Aiko never expected that Taizhi would use such tough measures. Moreover, her whole heart was thinking about her lover at that time, so she had no time to react.
“No, Hajime…!”
In a moment of desperation, Aiko was about to put up a strong resistance, about to unleash a force powerful enough to send an ordinary person flying—
"Oh, I'm here, Aiko."
"what?"
"what?"
Taichi and Aiko both let out sounds of surprise.
Before she knew it, Hajime was standing there with a bright smile on his face. He held Taishi's collar with one hand and stopped Aiko from pushing Taishi's hand away with the other.
"Who are you? What are you going to do?!" Taishi yelled.
"That's what I'm asking. What do you want to do with my woman?"
Then, Taichi disappeared. No, to be more precise, his body flew away at an incredibly low altitude, like a stone skipping on water.
Taishi's neck was tightly gripped by the collar that Hajime had grabbed, and he couldn't help but let out a whine. His body bounced three times on the dirt before landing on the ground, where he fell to his knees, coughing violently.
Despite Taichi's response, Aiko looked up at Hajime in surprise.
“Uh… Hajime?”
"Yes, it's me."
"W-Why are you here?"
"Because you're here, right?"
"Why is it a question? He's not some famous mountaineer..."
Aiko asked, her face full of confusion. So Hajime exaggeratedly pretended to be sad.
"I've noticed you've been dwelling on a lot of things lately, so I wanted to have a good talk with you."
“Ah… this… I…”
Aiko knew that she had been avoiding Hajime for a while, and now she felt very embarrassed and couldn't help but drop her eyes.
Then, Hajime's expression suddenly changed into an evil smile.
"I want to greet your family, but if I ask you to come, you won't agree, right? So—"
"So... what?"
"I just came here without permission♪"
"beginning……"
Someone, or maybe all of Yue and the others, must have suggested this, and Hajime was happy to join in the fun. That must be it. Aiko could easily imagine Yue and the others giving Hajime a thumbs-up as he set off, wishing him a safe journey.
Yue and the others must be worried about Aiko too. Thinking of this, Aiko felt even more ashamed. However, she was still sincerely comforted by their concern.
"So you transferred here, huh?"
"That's what happened. I used a compass to search and saw the scene of the festival. So I thought I'd go with you."
A closer look revealed that Hajime was also wearing a yukata. This meant that he had changed clothes specifically to accommodate Aiko after learning of her current location. Aiko's heart warmed at the thought.
"I owe you an apology for interrupting you so suddenly. But considering the outcome, it's a good thing."
Having said that, Hajime's gentle eyes completely stopped smiling and looked at Taishi who had finally stood up.
It was only then that Aiko remembered that Shi had seen her being approached by another man, and she was suddenly overwhelmed by a strong sense of shame.
"N-No, Taichi and I really don't have that kind of relationship! I-I don't have any feelings for him at all! Zero feelings! Zero possibility!"
“Ah~ Yeah, yeah…”
Taiji fell to his knees again. His body was barely injured, but it was the damage to his mind that was more severe than being thrown.
Being completely rejected by the woman he loved... Such a painful hurt, even Shi's glare at him couldn't help but soften a little.
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