Stealing Spree

A new look. As someone who never truly cared about my appearance, this was also a breath of fresh air for me.

And the more I stared at myself in the mirror, the more I found myself lost in my thoughts.

If I took Auntie Yayoi’s words, people would have a hard time recognizing me. Whether that would be good or bad, I had no idea. However, considering their reaction; Auntie Yayoi and Mina becoming mesmerized, I had to prepare for the same thing to happen later and tomorrow at school.

I wouldn’t change the way I act, of course. But I have to prepare for unforeseen circumstances because of this new look.

It would be a bit of a buzz for a few days but like any rumor and gossip, the hype would die down eventually.

That’s why there’s no reason for me to overthink this. On the other hand, I’m looking forward to my girls’ reactions when they see me.

I asked Mina to keep the photo she took, after all. I was going to meet them one by one or if they couldn’t wait for it, I’ll take a photo of myself and send it to whoever wants it.

Before I left for my part-time job, I waited for another half an hour for Mina to get her hair trimmed.

Well, it’s the same process as the one Auntie Yayoi did for me but girls’ hair was more delicate because of the length.

I got so absorbed watching it that I didn’t even find myself bored. Moreover, seeing Mina furtively searching for my figure every few minutes was a sight to behold. Whenever I caught her doing that, the girl would either act annoyed or bashful. Whichever the case, she’s blushing all of the time.

Then there’s also Auntie Yayoi. Although she’s mostly focused on taking care of her precious daughter’s hair, she would open up topics we used for idle chatter.

Yep, the same as most barbers, she’s a little talkative, especially when she was enjoying her masterpiece.

She would also glance at me occasionally, bearing the same expression that I saw from her earlier. I never tried to pry on it and instead treated it as the effect of my new haircut.

She’s as adorable as her daughter but of course, that’s natural.

Around twenty minutes later, Auntie Yayoi finished with her new masterpiece.

Although she said she was only trimming Mina’s hair, it felt like she had applied some kind of technique, highlighting Mina’s beauty through it.

I was stuck staring at the girl and if not for her pinching my cheeks, I would stay like that for a long time.

“Thank you, Auntie.” I sincerely expressed my gratitude.

However, Auntie Yayoi just reached for my cheek, the same as earlier, before shaking her head and giving an appreciative smile, “I will be embarrassed if you keep thanking me Onoda-kun. Compared to your help, this is nothing.”

“She’s right, Ruki. We should be the ones expressing gratitude to you. But you won’t like that, right?” Mina added.

With the two of them joining forces like this I could only raise my hand in surrender.

In any case, Auntie Yayoi still asked me for something when Mina went for a short bathroom break.

An embrace.

I thought it was just some motherly gesture. However, that’s not it at all, she was biting her lip and she looked like she’s going to blush at any moment.

She’s also a little fidgety as though she’s trying to contain herself.

As someone who could easily pick up on that… I understood. Her affectionate gaze earlier wasn’t an illusion.

“Auntie…” I said. However, I stopped myself from continuing what I was going to ask.

Well, she looked like she mustered her courage to ask for it. If I blow that up, her embarrassment would just be more emphasized.

That’s why I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her.

“Onoda-kun, you don’t need to give meaning to this. Treat this as an old lady’s childish whim being fulfilled by you.”

Or so she said, but the way her heart beats like it was faster than a bullet train, it showed how nervous she was at the moment.

To calm her down, I simply stayed silent and caressed her head and back.

But before finishing that hug, I left a few words in a whisper.

And because of that, she quickly walked out as though she were running away from me.

When Mina returned, she wondered where her mother went and I made up an excuse on the spot.

Well, I still told her that her mother asked for a hug and I willingly did it.

Mina looked at me suspiciously before dropping it a few seconds later. “Shameless guy. I told you, if you started liking my mother, you should tell me about it first.”

Yep. This girl did say that before the incident happened.

“Mhm… I remembered. Honestly, I do adore your mother. But not at the level of what you thought… Besides, she could just be influenced by my new look. Sooner or later, she’d return to normal and who knows? She might get a new suitor.”

“Yeah, if she did get a new one, I can foresee that you will not like that very much.” Mina looked at me smugly as though she completely read my character.

“This girl… Are you actually hoping for me to become your stepfather?”

Upon hearing that, her smug expression broke. She then grabbed my collar and agitatedly shook me a few times.

“Huh?! You idiot, that’s not a very good picture! You’re mine… Alright, forget about my mother.”

“You started it. Besides, I’m just teasing you.” I wrapped my arms around her and spent another few minutes calming her down.

Well, I better keep it at that. Auntie Yayoi is an adult. She won’t just fall for someone younger than her, much less her daughter’s boyfriend.

When we left the salon, as we had expected, the employees and customers waiting there whistled and expressed some kind of admiration toward me.

Well, I politely greeted them before taking our leave. As for Auntie Yayoi, she has already returned to her normal self.

With those hairstylists and patrons as an example, the effect of the haircut was really too strong…

-

-

When I showed up at our meeting place, Sena had the same reaction as most people I ran into.

She got mesmerized for a few seconds before the fact that I am the one she’s waiting for sets in her mind.

“… Ruki, wear this.” Perhaps still in a trance, Sena pulled out a cap from her bag and handed it to me. However, even before I could ask her why I should wear it, Sena grabbed the cap back and put it on my head by herself.

She then inspected my form, spinning me once. A few seconds later, she gave a satisfied nod before hugging my arm. “Keep the cap on, Ruki. That way no one can see how handsome you became.”

Yep. She instantly decided to cover my hair, suppressing whatever changed because of it.

“Is it that powerful?” I asked.

“It is! More than you think so!” She blurted out an instant answer. “Oh, how wrong are we… To think that it will be that destructive. I felt a rush right there. Something like, I want to keep you all to myself.”

“Alright. Don’t exaggerate it too much. Your reaction can be attributed to your feelings for me.”

“You handsome guy, stop underestimating yourself.” Sena pointed out before shaking her head in slight disappointment at my comment. “Anyway, I’m kidding about not taking that off. You look really great, Ruki.”

And ending it with that compliment, Sena chuckled and tightened her embrace on my arm.