Chapter Text
After a heart-to-heart with Mafuyu's mother, her parents agreed that Mafuyu could stay at Kanade's house until things settled down. Life for Kanade and Mafuyu continued in its usual rhythm. However, a major concert for Honami and her band, Leo/need, meant she wouldn't be able to visit the Yoisaki house for a while. Still, the thoughtful caretaker had prepared two weeks' worth of homemade meals, leaving them stocked in the fridge for Kanade and Mafuyu. Little did they know, their quiet routine was about to be disturbed…
Kanade was busy comping as usual when she hummed to herself. "Oh right… Mochizuki-san isn't coming over this weekend. Mafuyu's still at school, and the house hasn't been cleaned in a while."
She wandered into the kitchen, intending to make some cup noodles, when her eyes landed on a cockroach.
"😨" Kanade gasped.
"T-There are so many of them…" she stammered, trying to maintain her composure. "Oh, right… I think we have some bug spray. It should be in that drawer—"
She reached for the drawer, but a cockroach scuttled directly onto the handle. Kanade snatched her hand back as if burned.
"W-What should I do…?" she fretted. "Since Mochizuki-san isn't coming for a while, the house is barely clean, and there are so many of them…" She glanced at the clock. "Mafuyu's still at school, and I don't want to bother her by suddenly calling her."
Kanade could only groan, a shiver of dread running through her as the unfriendly creatures scurried around her.
Just then, the front door clicked open.
"I'm back," Mafuyu's calm voice announced.
"M-Mafuyu! Good timing…!" Kanade blurted out.
Mafuyu stepped inside, her gaze falling upon Kanade, who was now awkwardly dodging cockroaches that seemed to be everywhere.
"What's happening here—" Mafuyu began, but Kanade suddenly grabbed her arm and hid behind her back.
"S-Sorry…" Kanade mumbled. "It's because Mochizuki-san is so busy, and we haven't had time to clean the house together because you have school…"
Mafuyu was silent for a moment. "…It's fine. We can clean today since I have nothing else to do."
At that precise moment, a cockroach landed on Mafuyu's hair.
"M-Mafuyu…!" Kanade cried, pointing frantically. "On your head…!"
Mafuyu didn't flinch. Kanade could only stare at the creature with wide, fearful eyes.
"There certainly are a lot of them," Mafuyu observed calmly. "Should we call someone to deal with this bug infestation?"
Mafuyu calmly shooed the creature away from her hair. It fluttered through the air, causing Kanade to tighten her grip on Mafuyu's arm even further. Seeing Kanade's fear, Mafuyu decided to back away from the swarm.
"That might be a good idea…" Kanade said, relief seeping into her voice.
"Should we use some bug spray for now?"
"Were you planning to use one earlier?" Mafuyu asked.
"M-Mhm. But there was a bug next to the drawer where the spray was, so I couldn't do anything."
"It's best if we don't use one right now," Mafuyu stated.
"E-Eh? Why?"
"That would startle them, and they'd all begin flying around like moths gathering around a bright light during the rainy season."
"You don't have to explain it in such detail, but it makes sense…" Kanade admitted.
"For now, why don't you go back to your room? I'll call someone right away to take care of this."
"O-Okay…" Kanade said, a grateful sigh escaping her lips. "Sorry for troubling you."
With that, Kanade retreated to her room. Mafuyu promptly called an exterminator, and soon, the house was free of the unwelcome visitors. Kanade could finally cook her cup noodles in peace, though the sheer number of bugs had certainly left her a little traumatized.
"Even if it was just for a short while, that was kind of chaotic…" Kanade murmured later.
"I agree," Mafuyu responded.
"But we really should learn to adjust our schedules so we can clean the house together frequently," Kanade mused.
"Lesson learned, huh…" both girls thought in unison.
"I'll make an exception and not tell Mochizuki-san what happened today," Mafuyu offered.
"Thanks, Mafuyu…" Kanade said with a sigh. "That's for the best, I suppose. Mochizuki-san would've been traumatized too…"
Despite their initial decision, they couldn't resist sharing the chaotic experience during their usual Nightcord meeting. Mizuki just bursted into laughter, while Ena promptly scolded them for neglecting their cleaning duties, reminding them how easily both roommates could get distracted.