I thought, She’s a weirdo too, huh? Then it hit me.
Wait a second. She’s rich. Isn’t she the perfect candidate for a kept man’s benefactor?
At that moment, Tachibana suddenly seemed to glow with a radiant light. A glimmer of hope shone in what had seemed like a closed-off future. In my mind, I could already picture the brilliant life of being a kept man.
“Hey, Tachibana. You can have this entire bento.”
“Really?! Thanks, that’s a big help!”
Just as she reached for the bento I offered, I pulled it back at the last moment, leaving her grasping at thin air.
“But there’s a condition.”
“A condition?”
At this point, anyone could guess what it was.
I didn’t want to let this chance slip by. This could very well be my once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to achieve my dream of being a kept man.
Determined not to waste this moment, I boldly declared:
“Please, make me your ‘kept man’!”
My heartfelt plea echoed through the old, abandoned club building.
“Huh?”
Tachibana stared at me, dumbfounded.
At the same time, the bell rang, signaling the start of the fifth period. It seemed like I was about to skip class.
* * *
“I see... This is a truly dire situation. Does your apartment get broken into by burglars on a daily basis or something?”
“No, it doesn’t! This building has top-notch security. It’s just... the result of my complete lack of life skills.”
“…You’d be the first to die if you were sent back to the Stone Age.”
“Everyone would die in that situation!”
I was currently visiting Tachibana’s apartment, where she lived alone.
After I begged her to let me be her kept man, we skipped the fifth period and had some sort of impromptu interview. Apparently, Tachibana had been wanting a helper, and she’d found my cooking to be exceptionally good.
She also seemed to have a sharp sense of judgment and concluded that I didn’t have any ulterior motives, deciding that I wasn’t a threat.
Thanks to all these factors aligning, I passed her “interview” and was immediately tasked with a second trial: cleaning her apartment.
“Wow, I can’t believe you managed to live like this.”
“Somehow... I did.”
“It looks like you really do need a kept man like me who excels at housekeeping. How about signing a permanent contract right now—”
“I’ll think about it. For now, get to work.”
“…Fine, fine.”
But I couldn’t help feeling exhilarated. This was the most rewarding task I’d had in a while—probably since I cleaned the house of my novelist neighbor, Yamada, who lived in a hoarder’s mess.
“Alright, time to get started.”
I rolled up my sleeves and began cleaning.
Tachibana had apparently moved to Tokyo alone to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Back in Aomori, she had relied entirely on her mother for household chores. Busy with work, she’d never had time to develop housekeeping skills herself.
What a perfect client for me.
Excited at the unexpected opportunity, I worked at lightning speed to clean her chaotic apartment.
From time to time, I came across underwear scattered around, but of course, I wasn’t tempted in the slightest.
To make that clear, I’d even said earlier:
“By the way, seeing your underwear lying around does nothing for me!”
In response, she threw a nearby trash bag at me. Apparently, I lacked tact.
Two hours later…
“This is amazing…”
Tachibana sat elegantly on her now-pristine sofa, sipping tea and marveling at my work.
I couldn’t help but feel proud that my “kept man training,” akin to bridal training, had finally paid off. The hours I’d spent honing my skills hadn’t been wasted after all.
But I still wasn’t officially a kept man yet.
Swallowing nervously, I decided to bring up the matter that had been on my mind.
“So, what do you think? I might be biased, but I’d say my housekeeping skills surpass any cleaning service or helper out there. Plus, I’m not attracted to you at all, so you wouldn’t feel unsafe around me.”
“It’s kind of annoying that you’re not attracted to me… but yeah, you’re incredible.”
“Right? So, how about signing a permanent contract with me?”
“…”
Tachibana didn’t respond right away.
Still, her interest was undeniable, and I was confident she was close to agreeing.
But there was a look of unease on her face, as if she had some lingering concerns.
“...I trust my instincts, and they’ve never been wrong before. So, I don’t feel like there’s much risk in letting you be my kept man. It’s not like I’m looking for romance or anything. But... I need tangible proof that I can trust you.”
Of course, that was only natural.
Tachibana is a wildly popular model.
For someone in her position, making a decision based solely on instinct would be a huge gamble.
But I had no ulterior motives or lustful intent toward her. I was confident in that.
Tachibana’s instincts told her the same thing, and she almost fully believed it.
Still, clear evidence was necessary.
She opened her mouth slowly and made a proposal.
“So, how about you try being my kept man... on a trial basis?”
A trial basis—
Well, that was reasonable.
Of course, I had no reason to turn her down.
“Of course.”
And with that, I became Tachibana’s provisional kept man.
* * *
Destiny—
I believe it does exist.
Looking back on this moment, I think the gears of fate began turning here.
Sure, I’m a bit odd, but Tachibana is strange too.
The fact that she even entertained the idea of having a kept man might make her even more unusual than me.
But perhaps it’s precisely because two such peculiar people met in such a miraculous way that a “love” story could unfold between a man aspiring to be a kept man and a wildly popular model with zero life skills.
This is the story of our romance.
[The End]
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