Before I knew it, I had grown used to Otoha’s slowness.
And when I heard her strange little sound effects, I actually started looking forward to whatever she was doing next.
People say that love can make even flaws look charming.
Little by little, I had started to feel something like attachment.
And our home was gradually being filled with Otoha’s cozy illustrations, transforming everything into her world.
Then one day, I got an email from an old university friend.
It was news I didn’t need to hear—news that Akane had married our classmate and left for New York.
It snapped me back to reality, pulling me out of the slow, gentle timeline I had been living in with Otoha.
And, as if on cue, that was the one day I came home to find that dinner wasn’t ready.
“I’m sorry,” Otoha said, her crescent-moon eyes looking apologetic.
“I suddenly got an illustration request. They needed multiple samples right away, so I just finished a moment ago.”
“I’ll start making dinner right now—”
“No need! By the time you finish cooking, it’ll be tomorrow!”
I was irritated.
If this had been Akane, she would have somehow still managed to have dinner ready when I got home, even if she had a last-minute work emergency.
But more than that, with someone like Akane, I wouldn’t have minded sharing household chores.
She had an elite career—a job that truly mattered.
It was one thing to split responsibilities with someone contributing to national policy.
But Otoha’s little doodles? They were nothing in comparison.
The more I looked at her, the more frustrated I became.
“…Rentarō-san?”
She looked surprised by my cold tone.
That’s right.
I had kept everything bottled up inside until now—
Every irritation, every frustration, every resentment.
And tonight, I needed to finally say it.
If I didn’t, I’d end up stuck in this slow-moving life forever.
I wasn’t meant to live like this.
I wasn’t meant to be with a low-tier woman like Otoha.
“I’ve been wanting to say this for a while. Why are you so damn slow at everything?!
I like efficient women who can actually get things done!”
“I-I’m sorry… I’ll try to do things faster from now on.”
Her crescent-moon eyes dimmed, clouded with hurt.
Even that expression annoyed me.
“And the thing that pisses me off the most—
It’s that sound your slippers make!”
“…Slippers?”
She blinked in confusion, looking down at her feet.
“Yeah, that pat-pat noise! Every single day, all I hear is pat-pat, pat-pat! It’s infuriating!”
“I… I didn’t realize it was so loud…”
“It’s not just that! Everything about you is annoying! I can’t take it anymore!”
“I-I’m sorry…”
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