I Can't Call Your Name

Kaito wiped the cold sweat from his brow, silently praying to escape the scene before things spiraled further out of control.

As the curious crowd began to gather, his eyes caught sight of Misaki's bag lying on the ground.

Acting swiftly, he grabbed it, slid her wallet back inside, and handed it over with practiced efficiency.

"Uh, sorry—" he stammered, only to have Misaki snatch the bag from his hands with a glare so sharp it could cut steel.

He swallowed the rest of the words, feeling his courage drain faster than a popped bubble.

With his face burning from guilt and shame, he avoided her gaze and hurried away, his feet carrying him far from any more disaster.

He didn't dare look back—not then, not later that day. He convinced himself that leaving the memory behind meant erasing it entirely.

But Misaki's furious expression haunted him all day, her harsh words echoing in his mind, refusing to let him focus on anything.

Orders went missing, addresses got mixed up, and by the end of the day, he had racked up more complaints than he'd seen in a year.

By evening, his spirit was crushed. After cutting his workday short to avoid further humiliation, he dragged himself home under the twilight sky.

When he stepped inside, he looked like the very definition of defeat: lifeless and completely devoid of hope.

Fate, as always, had taken his dreams and thrown them into a blender.

The idea of being branded a creep by such a beautiful girl chewed away at his soul.

Any chance of something—anything—between them had been stomped out and buried, or so he thought.

As these thoughts dragged him deeper into despair, Kaito decided to wash away the day's misery with a hot shower.

The memories of that disastrous day haunted him, even in the shower. It didn't take long before he couldn't take it anymore.

Barely holding onto his towel, he stepped out of the shower, water still dripping off him as he moved toward the kitchen.

A cup of coffee was all he needed to shake off the exhaustion, and after that, he planned to just lie down and try to sleep it all away.

But little did he know, fate wasn't finished with him yet. In fact, it was just getting started.

As he made his way to the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Then again. And again.

Someone was relentlessly pressing the bell, each ring more irritating than the last.

Kaito froze, letting out a long, frustrated sigh, his eyes locked on the door. He was in no mood for this.

His mind teetered between answering the door or ignoring it completely.

After a moment's hesitation, he trudged reluctantly toward the door, bent down, and peeked through the peephole.

On the other side was his landlady, Naomi, doing the same thing—peering through the peephole at him.

He quickly backed away, making up his mind. He'd act like he wasn't home until she gave up and left.

"Hey! I know you're in there! Don't worry, I'm not here for the rent!"

Naomi's voice came through, slurred with just the right mix of irritation and drunkenness.

Kaito sighed, his only option now was to open the door. He reluctantly reached for the doorknob, putting on a forced smile as he swung it open.

"Naomi-san? Was that you? Sorry, I was in the shower, didn't hear the doorbell..."

Naomi raised an eyebrow, scanning Kaito from head to toe. He was still wet and hadn't bothered to get dressed.

Then, Naomi grabbed the tense-looking girl next to her by the arm and pulled her forward.

"Come on, what's with all this shyness in the new generation?"

Kaito's heart nearly stopped the moment he laid eyes on the girl in front of him.

His tongue retracted, sliding down to his stomach.

The girl Naomi shoved in front of him was Misaki—the same girl from that awkward encounter earlier.

Just when Misaki saw him, it was like a bucket of iced water had been dumped on her.

She froze, then, almost immediately, her expression turned from shock to seething anger.

Kaito was paralyzed, unable to speak, caught between the shock and Misaki's intense glare.

His face reddened more with every passing second, his ears practically whistling with the heat, as if they were about to explode like a train horn.

In the end, the only logical thing he could think of was to slam the door shut in their faces without another second of hesitation.

And that's exactly what happened. The sound of the door slamming echoed through the room, only intensifying the tension.

Kaito leaned against the door, cold sweat dripping down his face, his expression a mix of helplessness and fear.

"Dammit! I can't even face her after this morning. How does Naomi-san know her? If they're related..."

Naomi slammed her fist against the door, her frustration building. "What the...?!"

Kaito jumped, snapped back to reality, and rushed to get dressed, fumbling with his clothes.

"Open the door, already!" she shouted, her patience wearing thin.

"Come-coming!" Kaito's voice cracked as he quickly threw on some clothes, trying to calm Naomi down.

Finally, he managed to pull his clothes together and opened the door with a tense, forced smile.

"Sorry, I just got out of the shower and didn't have time to get dressed. Please, come in."

Naomi shot him a sly look before smirking, "What, is your scrawny body supposed to turn us on or something?"

She pushed past him and stepped inside, then glanced back. Misaki stood frozen by the door.

"Well, come on," Naomi said, raising an eyebrow.

She turned back, grabbed Misaki's arm, and pulled her inside. As they entered, Misaki hesitated.

"But... didn't you say there was a girl living here?"

Naomi shot Kaito a mocking smile and rolled her eyes. "I don't see any men around here," she teased.

Kaito's tense expression remained as he watched Naomi settle in.

She flopped onto the couch, leaning back and stretching her legs out in an exaggeratedly relaxed pose. Her mocking tone didn't falter.

"I wouldn't exactly call someone a man who spends the night with me and still manages to stay a virgin," Naomi teased.

Misaki's judging gaze immediately shifted to Kaito, her face even more tense than before.

Kaito felt like he had walked right into a trap. Unable to stand Misaki's piercing glare any longer, he snapped.

"Wha-what?! That's not how it happened! You're starting the story from the most ridiculous part!"

For a moment, he glanced at Misaki, her disapproving stare still fixed on him.

He swallowed hard, his voice hurried. "You were drunk, and some guys were bothering you."

Turning back to Misaki, he spoke with a look of guilt on his face, as if confessing to a judge.

"And she couldn't walk home, so I helped her. That's it. Really!"

Misaki's intense glare softened slightly, but before she could fully let it go, Naomi interjected, her voice cutting through.

"And you spent the night with me!"

"Yes, but..." Kaito was now completely out of his depth, unable to meet Misaki's eyes for even a second.

Naomi, having thoroughly enjoyed the tension in the room, smiled at Misaki and said.

"Oh, darling, I'm just kidding! Come, sit next to your aunt!"

Kaito took another hit. He no longer knew how much longer he could survive in this battle.

"Did she just say aunt? Relatives, definitely relatives. I'm screwed!"

As Kaito repeated Naomi's words in his mind nervously, Naomi called out to him:

"Hey, virgin on standby, make us some coffee so we can wake up."

Kaito quickly headed to the kitchen, preparing the coffee with trembling hands. It didn't take long before he served it to them.

He did everything he could to avoid eye contact with Misaki, as if even one glance would trigger a curse and turn him into a statue.

For a while, the only sound in the room was only Naomi sipping her coffee noisily.

After finishing the large mug like a beer, Naomi seemed to remember something and looked at the pair.

"Oh, I nearly forgot," she said, pointing at Kaito. "This is Kaito Kobayashi, he's been renting from me for a year now."

Without wasting any time, she pulled Misaki toward her, squeezing her tightly.

"And this is Misaki Okada, my sweet, precious niece."

Kaito, pushing the unpleasant incident from the morning under the rug, bowed respectfully.

"Nice to meet you."

Misaki only nodded in response, her tense gaze still fixed on Kaito.

Unable to endure the tension any longer under Misaki's stern gaze, Kaito finally spoke up.

"Um, may I ask what brings these two lovely ladies to my house at this hour? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm all for hosting, but—"

"Oh, that issue!" Naomi interrupted, grinning as she patted both their heads.

"You two are going to share this place."

Kaito and Misaki, almost as if in unison, shouted in shock.

"Whaat?"