Chapitre 41: Parents' Surprise Visit

Kikuchi Koji held himself with great elegance almost all the time. He knew there was no time for him to rest and that he must uphold his image as the face of his company. That's why his hair is always slickly combed, and he always wore his best every single time he steps foot out the front door. His stature is on the tall side, and that was even more accentuated by the semi-custom suits that he wore.

"Is this the house?" Kikuchi Koji asked, smoothly parking the black sedan he drove beside the aforementioned house.

His wife, Kikuchi Saori, nodded in confirmation. "Yes, this is the house. I just checked the information that Franz sent us."

The husband and wife stayed for a couple of minutes inside their car, contemplating whether they should go out or not. They weren't even sure if Megumi was inside. What would happen if they were mistaken? It would just be an embarrassment for them. And also, Hajime might recognize who they were if they were to blatantly show their face like that. What would he think about Megumi? Would he assume something and cause a misunderstanding? No, they might even be the ones who'd cause a misunderstanding.

"No, she must be here, there's no way she's not here," Koji assured himself, turning the engine off before he stepped out of the car. He just had to, before he changed his mind.

"Why are you so sure?" Saori slowly got out. She immediately felt the chilly winds on her bare skin, causing her to shiver. "Brrr~~~ it's so cold."

"Megumi doesn't have any friends... as much as I hate to admit the case." Koji heaved a deep sigh. He paused for a few moments before he continued establishing his conclusion. "And as far as I know, Hajime is the only one she's opened herself to."

"Right~ whatever, let's just get this over with. I'm going to freeze to death here."

"We really came to the right place, right?" Koji reconfirmed.

"Yes, just hurry up and knock. It's cold."

.....

Meanwhile,

"Yes, just hurry up and knock. It's cold." Saori's teeth chattered.

The couple cautiously approached the decrepit house, trying to remove the thought that it would fall over if they as much knock on the door. Regardless, Koji reached for it and rapped a couple of times.

'Hah, trying to act as if you're cold? Heh~ as if that would fool me and let you in. There's no way I'll let debt collectors enter my house.' Hajime forced a smile on his face.

Megumi approached the window, her eyes dilated before her face showed visible surprise. "MOM? DAD?!"

'Wait... don't tell me—' Hajime didn't need another confirmation. Removing every inch of doubt in his mind, Hajime immediately unbolted the door and opened it for Megumi's parents. They didn't hesitate to come inside, dusting themselves off before setting their shoes by the side of the door— a sign that they came on good terms, or at least that's what Hajime thought.

"I'm sorry I didn't recognize you sooner, sir, ma'am, I had to check who you were first since these parts of the neighborhood are dangerous."

"Ah~ you must be Hajime, right?" Megumi's dad extended his hand, pretending to be oblivious about his identity. "Nice to meet you. This house, it's not so shabby. Not so shabby at all."

"Pardon the sudden visit, Hajime," Megumi's mom bowed in greeting. "On behalf of our daughter, we apologize for all the trouble." She continued.

"No no, not at all," Hajime denied, even though he totally agreed with her mom. Of course, she didn't want to lose face in front of Megumi's parents. As much as he dislikes Megumi, he didn't want to portray a bad first impression. "She um... she cooked dinner."

"Mom? Dad? What are you doing here?" Megumi whispered, feeling her second-hand embarrassment. Since her parents came to pick her up.

"Oh, Megumi, your friend over here said you cooked dinner? Mind if we join you?"

"Yes! I do mind, dad!" Megumi hissed. She couldn't afford to raise her voice, for some odd reason. She was thinking too much about how Hajime would react that she suddenly became sheepish.

"No, not at all, please do so." Hajime offered, even extending his hand towards the table in the living room. At first, Hajime wondered if there would be enough food for everyone but his worries were misplaced. Megumi cooked a lot.

"Oh, wow, what's this? Such a romantic candlelit dinner. Do you always have such a high-standard dinner, Hajime? Or is this exclusive to Megumi?" Megumi's dad teased, ruffling Hajime's hair.

"You misunderstand sir, I don't really have electricity so I could only afford to light candles," Hajime responded. Well, he wanted to deny it, but then he realized that Megumi's dad was actually partially right. After pondering about it, he realized that he doesn't usually have dinner, nor does he light candles. He only did so because Megumi was there.

"Well, it's elegant in its own way." After a slight chuckle, Megumi's dad gestured towards his wife— that they take a seat so Megumi and Hajime could continue their romantic candlelit dinner.

In silence, Megumi returned to her seat so she could have another helping. Her cheeks flushed a nice shade of red as shamefulness got the better of her. Regardless, she stayed quiet, trying to block off the words that her parents continued to pester her with. She could deal with their teasings sure— but in front of Hajime? She'd rather die than experience such disgrace.

However, it's not like she has that much of a choice. She basically unintentionally set herself up for such treatment.

"Here you go, sir, is that enough rice?" Hajime said. Somehow, he was enjoying the expressions that Megumi wore. "Here you go ma'am."

Megumi's parents nodded along, playing a part in the process as the three of them unanimously and unspokenly decided to tease Megumi. Somehow, in an unexpected sort of way, an alliance was born and the three of them ate with gusto. Meanwhile, Megumi continued to droop her head in embarrassment, hoping that the seconds would pass by quicker.