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Ding!
That was the chime of a bell, followed by a door swinging wide open, and a small, though energetic, highschooler popping inside.
“Yooo~...” The girl stopped in her tracks and took a quick look around. “...Ah, right. There’s nobody here, hehe.” She lightly bonked herself on the head as she headed further inside, in a much more relaxed manner.
She sat herself down at the counter, sighing, as her chin rested in her palm. The cafe was never empty around this time, yet here she was now.
She opened her phone and scrolled to her recent messages.
From: Kanon
‘-Hey, Chii-chan! You know how we’re headed to the U.S. right? Can you drop by the cafe a few times while we’re gone and take care of Manmaru? Thanks!’
From: You
‘No problem! Have fun!!’
Right. That was why Chisato was here. Curses, she’d almost forgotten. Where was Manmaru, anyway?
“Maaanmaru? Where are you?” She’d stood up from her seat and was walking around, calling out to the owl, whom she adored dearly. Eventually, Chisato made her way upstairs, and into Kanon’s room.
“Manmaru, there you are!” The owl in question was cooped up in a corner of the room, purposely avoiding the first-year. She ran closer, at almost lightning speed, throwing her arms around the owl. It sweated a great deal as it attempted to struggle out of her hold.
“Manmaru!! What are you doing here? Did you hear me come in? Kanon-chan asked me to come feed you! Are you hungry? I got you–”
Suddenly, a loud ‘hoot’ boomed throughout the room, which sounded distressed, if anything.
“H-HOOT!!!”
Chisato jumped away, a little frightened by the sudden noise. “H-Huh?! Manmaru! What’s wrong??” She looked at Manmaru worriedly. She was as dense to the owl’s feelings as ever. All it did was stare back at her.
“Hoot.” In owl language, Manmaru would tell Chisato to go away, but seeing as she cannot understand owl, she took that as an invitation.
“Oh, I see.. Then let’s hang out together! ” Chisato smiled excitedly. Manmaru, though, flew downstairs, ignoring her request.
“Ehh?? Wait up!” She quickly followed the furry animal down the stairs, where it went to rest on its perch.
“Manmaru? What’s up?”
“...Hoot.” Manmaru then closed its eyes, leaving Chisato to stare in awe.
“...Ehe, I guess they were sleepy.. So adorable~!!” Contrast to just a few minutes ago, Chisato was as happy and energetic as usual, again. She smiled.
Then, a few minutes passed. She was still smiling. Watching Manmaru never got boring. Chisato could do it all day; all week, even. And she was extremely grateful that Kanon trusted her so much to look after her pet owl.
“Round, round, round, round~~” Poke. Poke. It was like she didn’t care that the owl was asleep. A simple action such as poking was enough to keep Chisato entertained. That was her idea of quality time with her favorite owl.
The next day, Chisato entered, similarly to the day before. This time, Manmaru was waiting for her at the door.
“Hoot.” Manmaru gave a short greeting, devoid of any positive energy.
The white-haired girl giggled. Manmaru was always so cute. “Manmaru! I got your favorite food!”
‘Finally, meal time’, the owl thought, as it perked up slightly. Chisato learned over the decade of knowing Manmaru, that its favorite meal was mice, and that’s exactly what she got for it.
After meal time, Chisato sat down at the counter, having lured Manmaru over with more food. And that was where she admired the owl, once again; a blissful sigh escaped from her lips.
And after a while, Chisato left the Shibuya residence. She would return later, for sure. And now alone, Manmaru was left to reflect on itself.
Manmaru was used to being adored by Chisato, yet it was always a little unnerving. Anybody could tell how she made Manmaru feel; apart from Chisato, herself. That was the craziest part of it. She would never change. Manmaru would continue to be admired and loved, and cared for dearly by her… But when it was worded that way, it didn’t feel so bad.
And maybe that was okay.