"Alright, just leave it here."
Directing Butterfree and the Gardevoir siblings to use their psychic power to stack the massive piles of wool neatly in the storage room, Natsu casually picked up w, who had been lounging atop the wool.
"w~"
The wool is so comfy...
Dragged away, w went limp, looking completely relaxed.
The large piles of wool stacked together resembled clouds drifting in the sky—soft, fluffy, and incredibly cozy to lie on.
"Alright, ti to head back for dinner."
Giving the now-fluid-like w a shake, Natsu casually tossed it into the air.
A blue glow flashed, and w's body ca to a stable hover in midair.
Then, like a fish swimming through water, it glided effortlessly, following behind Natsu.
"Thanks for the hard work, Butterfree, Gardevoir, and Gallade."
"Brii..."
Perched on the eaves, Butterfree let out a long yawn.
After working all afternoon, its mind felt completely drained.
It had been a long ti since it felt this ntally exhausted.
Flapping its wings twice, it responded briefly to Natsu.
"Garr"
Compared to Butterfree, Gallade and Gardevoir were in much better shape.
Being Psychic-types, their mastery of psychic energy was far superior to Butterfree’s.
With a casual wave, Gallade greeted Natsu before disappearing with Teleport.
It was ti to go catch up on so sleep.
Originally, it had planned to spend the afternoon relaxing, but that was completely derailed, leaving Gallade feeling a bit disappointed.
As for Gardevoir, it no longer carried the sa nervousness and constant need to prove its value as it once did.
Nowadays, it would even joke around with Natsu occasionally—though, given its serious nature, its jokes weren’t particularly funny.
After tidying up the storage area and putting away the shearing tools, Natsu grabbed a basket of berries and headed ho.
By the ti he returned, the sky had fully darkened.
Just a few weeks ago, around 7 or 8 p.m., there would still be so lingering daylight on the horizon.
But now, just past 6 p.m., the sun had already sunk completely below the horizon.
"You're back."
As Natsu pushed open the door, the warm yellow glow of the lights illuminated his face.
The dining room lights had an adjustable setting.
Natsu preferred pure white lighting, so he usually kept them that way.
However, female Indeedee and i preferred the softer, warm yellow glow, especially during dinner.
"Dinner’s ready!"
"I made so of the dishes together with Indeedee sister. She’s really amazing."
i, wearing an apron, looked completely different from her usual sporty and energetic self.
Her long, silky black hair was casually draped behind her, and even under the soft, warm lighting, her face—without any makeup—showed no flaws.
Her sleeves were rolled up, and she wore pink house slippers.
It really seed like she had made herself at ho here.
"Thanks for the hard work, i."
Setting down what he was carrying, Natsu smiled as he spoke.
Upon hearing his words, i's long lashes fluttered slightly, and she tilted her head, gazing at Natsu in silence.
"...What is it?"
Feeling slightly unnerved under i's gaze, Natsu asked hesitantly.
Was there sothing off about him?
He did a quick glance down at his clothes—nothing seed out of place.
And he didn’t think there was any weird sll, either.
"Natsu, you’re always so polite and formal."
"It’s not a bad thing, but it feels like you always keep a bit of distance when you talk to people."
Tapping her chin thoughtfully, i searched for the right words.
Natsu was always incredibly polite, no matter who he was talking to.
Never flustered, never impatient—always calm and collected.
It made him easy to like, but at the sa ti, it could also make him feel distant.
Like now.
Even though they'd known each other for quite a while, there were monts when i still felt like Natsu was far away.
It was a strange, subtle feeling.
"...I guess it’s just a habit."
Being called out on it, Natsu instinctively tried to brush it off.
He really did treat everyone in the sa way—always weighing his words before speaking.
Back in high school, he had two fairly close friends.
But even with them, his way of talking wasn’t much different from how he spoke to regular classmates.
Though he had occasionally thought about trying to be more casual and open, in the end, he always stuck to this distant yet polite way of speaking.
i was no exception.
"Alright, if you say so."
i studied him for a mont, then broke into a bright smile and pulled him over to the dining table.
Natsu might not have answered directly, but she knew he’d at least think about it.
Just like when she once pointed out that he always furrowed his brows when he was alone, making him look like he was in a bad mood.
At the ti, she had asked if sothing was wrong out of concern.
And after that, she noticed that Natsu had consciously tried to change that habit.
Just like how she took his advice seriously and worked on improving herself.
Both of them were making efforts to adjust and understand each other better.
From their first eting to now, months had passed in the blink of an eye.
Living together had beco sothing completely natural, and sotis, they didn’t even need words to understand each other’s thoughts.
After settling Natsu into his seat, i excitedly started introducing all the dishes on the table.
She pointed out which ones she made and which ones the female Indeedee was responsible for.
She shared little cooking mishaps and what had been on her mind while making each dish.
i seed to have an endless desire to share her thoughts with Natsu.
Then, as she leaned in close to tell him about sothing funny that had happened, her eyes accidentally caught sight of Natsu’s profile.
A sudden impulse surged within her.
Already leaning in, she bent a little closer, tilting up slightly on her toes.
One hand rested on his shoulder, the other on the table.
More than half of her upper body pressed against Natsu’s shoulder and back.
She tried to keep her voice steady as she continued talking, but the soft pink hue of her earlobes completely betrayed her emotions.
Maybe because of her nervousness, i didn’t notice Natsu’s reaction.
But just like her, Natsu was feeling a little tense too.
The clear, gentle voice beside his ear, the faint fragrance lingering at the tip of his nose, and the warmth pressing against his back—he was keenly aware of all of it.
All of this was stimulating Natsu’s nerves.
He never considered himself the type to get flustered just because a girl got close or touched him.
After all, he was a modern-day otaku, well-versed in the internet—he had seen things, learned things.
We otakus always end up knowing all sorts of weird knowledge from weird places.
If it had been soone else, Natsu would have simply glanced at them, found an excuse, and subtly distanced himself.
Back in high school, there were girls who had deliberately said so rather bold things to him, but he had only smiled and given no particular reaction.
His indifference had left one of those girls slightly disappointed.
No deeper reason—it just didn’t cross his mind to care.
In a way, Natsu was quite conservative.
Both in his views on relationships and marriage.
But this ti, he didn’t feel indifferent.
Turning his head slightly, Natsu suddenly found himself unsure what to do with his hand resting on the table.
Yet, as he felt the warmth radiating from the smaller, delicate hand beside his, he finally lifted his own hand—
And gently covered it.
i’s hands weren’t as soft and smooth as one might expect.
She was, after all, a traveling Pokémon Trainer.
Constantly trekking through forests and mountains, her efforts at skincare could only do so much.
At best, it was more for peace of mind than actual effect.
Under the harsh sun, even with protective clothing, getting tanned was inevitable.
Perched on the windowsill, w giggled quietly, covering its mouth as it watched the scene unfold.
Floating beside it, a phone screen recorded everything.
Within the album, there was now a tiline—from the first hints of sothing between them to this mont of real progress.
Seeing the latest photo, w nodded in satisfaction.
This felt like watching a long-awaited romance finally co to fruition.
w was so pleased that it felt like it could now go feast on a big al and take a nap without regrets.
Yep, this kid never lets down.
"Inde?"
Carrying the last plate out of the kitchen, female Indeedee stopped in her tracks, blinking curiously at the two who were now much closer than usual.
What’s going on here?
Just as she made a sound, her brother swiftly covered her mouth and pulled her aside.
Not now! Don’t interrupt them!
Despite being a newcor to the household, Indeedee brother was already invested in shipping this couple.
w: Hello, friend, do you enjoy shipping? I can provide a detailed analysis for you.
Slowking: Greetings, sir. As the vice-president of the Natsu Fan Club and the true power behind the president’s throne, allow to introduce you to our great master, our unwavering pillar, the handso and gentle Natsu.
Under their relentless indoctrination, even the newer Pokémon had quickly joined the Cult of Natsu.
If such a thing actually existed.
"Mm?"
Female Indeedee, whose mouth was still covered, instinctively raised the plate in her hands to keep it from spilling.
Although her brother had acted quickly, the slightly ambiguous atmosphere had already been broken.
Snapping back to reality, i jolted upright as if spring-loaded, standing stiff as a board.
anwhile, Natsu, who had been held down in his seat, coughed awkwardly twice.
"Ahem. Let’s eat."
Letting out a forced chuckle, Natsu swiftly moved on.
i also sat back down obediently.
Her fingers fidgeted anxiously, twisting together as her gaze darted around the room.
She couldn’t keep her eyes on anything for more than five seconds.
Not even on Natsu.
In fact, the mont she looked at him, her eyes darted away even faster.
"Indee?"
Setting down the last dish on the table, female Indeedee sat hesitantly in her seat, visibly nervous.
Ah… did I just ss things up?
"It’s fine, it’s fine."
Noticing her unease, Natsu reached out and gently ruffled her hair.
Soft.
His reassuring touch made Indeedee relax a little.
Just a little.
Mostly, she just felt secondhand embarrassnt.
And so, dinner proceeded in an awkward, quiet atmosphere.
That night, both Natsu and i found themselves struggling with insomnia.
The Next Morning
For the first ti in ages, Natsu slept until noon.
"Shit, I overslept."
Seeing the ti on his phone, Natsu instinctively sat up.
But then, he rembered—
The farm was running smoothly now.
Even if he stayed in bed all day, nothing would go wrong.
So, after a brief mont of hesitation—he laid back down.
Curled up with his newly acquired pillow, w, Natsu let the cool midday breeze drift in through the open window.
Originally, he had been sleeping alone.
But around five in the morning, a certain pink feline had started softly whining beside his bed.
It was just enough noise to wake him up, but not enough to be outright annoying.
You’d think it was being considerate—
Except it literally humd him awake.
And yet, w had remained dutifully on the floor until Natsu, half-asleep, finally gave permission.
Only then did it gleefully pounce onto the bed and snuggle into his arms, purring contentedly.
A mischievous little rascal with a keen sense of timing.
"w~"
Flung off the bed by Natsu’s sudden movent, w now hovered in the air, looking utterly confused.
Huh? What was that for?
Ignoring its bewildered expression, Natsu stretched his slightly stiff limbs and got up to wash up.
Even though he had slept until noon, he couldn’t just stay in bed all day.
Especially not when there was soone else in the house.
"Lopuu~"
As Natsu was brushing his teeth, Lopunny walked past, carrying a stack of freshly laundered clothes.
It had a clear purpose—passing by him just to nuzzle him twice before continuing on its way.
Most of the Pokémon on the farm seed to enjoy doing that.
"Yadon."
As soon as Natsu finished washing up, Slowking appeared in front of him.
"Yadon."
Soone’s here to see you.
Hands clasped behind its back, Slowking maintained its usual wise and mysterious expression.
But the faint dark circles under its eyes revealed that it hadn’t slept well last night, either.
Last night, Slowking had secretly gone to find w—
To ask about so lingering philosophical questions it had been pondering.
They ended up talking for a long, long ti.
So long that, by the ti Slowking finally ran out of things to say, w happily trotted off to bed, leaving Slowking alone to stare at the starry sky in deep contemplation.
"Soone’s looking for ? Who?"
Natsu found it a bit strange.
His social circle was practically nonexistent.
Most of the townspeople knew of him but rarely ever visited him directly.
"Yadon."
It’s the guy who brought the Indeedee Pokémon before.
After thinking for a mont, Slowking confird that it had seen this person before.
The sa one who had delivered the prize for defeating Ting-Lu.
"Really? Give a sec."
Grabbing a jacket from the sofa, Natsu casually draped it over his shoulders and followed Slowking to the farm’s entrance.
There, waiting patiently, was the sa man who had co to the farm once before.
Reviews
All reviews (0)