"Ding dong..."
Seeing no response, Tsuna pressed the doorbell again, "Ding dong…"
"Coming, coming."
"Click…"
"Tsuna? Are you here for Shin-chan? Come in quickly."
Tsuna gave a slight bow and greeted the slightly plump Nohara Misae before him, then walked into the house at her welcome.
"Shin-chan is on the second floor. You can go up and find him. If you need anything, just come downstairs and find me."
Misae looked at the chocolate Tsuna was holding, then, noticing the drinks Shin-chan had just taken upstairs, she seemed to guess the reason. She chuckled and walked towards the living room.
"Okay."
Tsuna took off his shoes and headed straight for the second floor. He knocked on the door, waited for a response, then pulled it open and walked in.
As soon as he entered, before he could even look around the room, his eyes were drawn to the three large bottles of orange juice on the coffee table directly in front of him. Behind the coffee table sat Shin-chan, with his legs crossed.
"Are you planning to get yourself drunk?"
His gaze shifted to Shin-chan, who was wearing a red long-sleeved t-shirt paired with off-white pants – it was the familiar Shin-chan, no doubt.
The second floor was Shin-chan's current bedroom. Ever since he started third grade, Auntie Nohara had moved him to the second floor. He had heard this room used to belong to Auntie Nohara's sister.
Green tatami mats, a coffee table, a wardrobe, and a desk with a chair – that was it, very simple.
If Shin-chan wanted to sleep at night, he would just take out the futon and pillows from the wardrobe and spread them on the tatami.
This is a common method in many Japanese homes, as it saves space by not having a permanent bed, and it can be put away at any time.
Shin-chan's whole family sleeps this way, even Himawari on the first floor.
"I'm heartbroken."
Hearing this, Shin-chan imitated Nohara Hiroshi from back when he used to drink. He picked up the cup filled with drink next to the coffee table and downed it in one gulp, his eyes fixed on the 'Mr. Crocodile Chocobi' in Tsuna's hand.
"Here, take it." Tsuna walked over, sat down with his legs crossed opposite him, and placed the item in his hand directly in front of him.
His main purpose for coming here was to catch up with Shin-chan. As for being heartbroken or anything like that, he was interested, but not overly so.
After all, it was impossible for Shin-chan and Nanako to be together, and they had never even been a couple…
"I love you to death." Shin-chan instantly returned to normal, unceremoniously took out a box, tore it open, and poured it into his mouth.
"I forgot to ask just now, why didn't you call Nene over?" Tsuna picked up a disposable cup nearby, poured himself a cup of juice, and asked.
As for Kazama, he chose not to ask, because he knew that Kazama was still attending a private middle school and could only come home during the three holidays, spending his weekends at school.
Shin-chan swallowed the chocolate in his mouth and let out a satisfied little burp.
"Today is Saturday, Nene is going on a date with her new boyfriend, so I didn't call her."
"She got a new one?" Tsuna was a bit surprised.
Counting this new one, from the beginning of junior high until now, she had changed boyfriends five or six times…
"Yeah, I just don't know how long this one will last." Shin-chan took out a chocolate biscuit, threw it into his mouth, and nodded in response while chewing.
He picked up his drink, took a small sip, thought for a moment, and, considering the time Nene had dated her previous boyfriends, said, "Maybe one or two months."
Putting everything else aside, he somewhat admired Nene for still not having her first kiss after dating so many boyfriends. The reasons for each breakup were almost always the same.
Because Nene has violent tendencies and is developing into a big boss in Japan…
"What about Himawari, then?"
Shin-chan spread his hands. "She went shopping with friends."
After speaking, he didn't give Tsuna a chance to continue questioning or change the subject, and feigned grievance. "Tsuna, you're too much. Even though I'm heartbroken, you came over and kept talking about other people, not caring about me at all…"
"…" Tsuna was speechless; he had been found out.
"Then tell me about you and Ai?"
"Shouldn't it be about me and Nanako?"
"Then who is Nanako marrying?" Tsuna simply stopped changing the subject and asked directly.
"Her high school classmate…"
"How long have they been together?"
"Three years, I think. I never noticed before…"
"When is the wedding?"
"Next month, on the day of the Sakura Festival…"
Tsuna watched as the more he asked, the more Shin-chan seemed to fade, so he simply chose not to ask anymore. He had learned everything he wanted to know, and there was nothing left to ask.
Did Shin-chan really like Nanako? He wasn't sure, but it seemed like he did.
However, the age difference between them was too big. Shin-chan was the same age as him, both sixteen, turning seventeen after their birthdays, while Nanako, whom he spoke of, was already over thirty…
"It's okay, you still have Ai." He really didn't know how to comfort Shin-chan.
Shin-chan picked up the filled drink and downed it in one gulp. "I'm not interested in kids my age, okay."
After speaking, he again imitated the look of Nohara Hiroshi in his memory, letting out a long sigh.
"Just wait a bit longer. When Ai is in high school, you'll be interested." Tsuna was slightly speechless; he had been hearing Shin-chan say this since kindergarten.
From the initial version of 'I'm not interested in little kids' to 'kids my age,' he probably wouldn't say it anymore later on.
As time passed, he and Shin-chan chatted about this and that, mostly revolving around him and Ai.
It wasn't until noon when Misae came up to call them both. She wanted Tsuna to stay for lunch, but he politely declined, saying that Shizuka had prepared something at home and he needed to go back.
Finally, he said goodbye to the two of them and left the Nohara house.
"I'm back!"
"Wash your hands quickly when you get back, dinner is almost ready."
"Okay!"
"Brother, I think I just saw Onii-san. Did he come to our house just now?"
Himawari walked into the living room and saw Shin-chan inside still eating 'Mr. Crocodile Chocobi,' and couldn't help but ask curiously.
She clearly remembered that her brother had already spent his allowance for the month, so there was no way he could have bought these three boxes of 'Mr. Crocodile Chocobi,' not to mention the empty box next to them.
"Yeah." Shin-chan watched TV, picked up a chocolate biscuit without turning his head, and chewed it.
"Give me a box." Hearing this, Himawari wanted to go up and snatch it, but Shin-chan agilely dodged her.
"This was exchanged for my love. If you want some, go find Tsuna."
Himawari paused her actions. "I'm afraid Sister Shouko will choke me to death."
The two of them messed around in the living room for a while. Finally, Misae, who had prepared everything in the dining room, saw that they still weren't coming out and couldn't bear it anymore. She confiscated the remaining untouched chocolates.
She also didn't forget to give each of them a flick on the forehead.
The two of them followed Misae to the dining room for dinner without daring to breathe loudly. Afterwards, Shin-chan was lectured by Misae for drinking too many drinks.