Uncle Hikigaya is Forever Young [41]

Hikigaya Hachiman felt no anxiety or fear about the home visit at all. Usually, kids get nervous about these things because they're afraid the teacher might tell their parents about their grades, behavior, or some other kind of "bad news."

But he hadn't even set foot in the classroom once—so what was there to fear?

In fact, to be honest, this wasn't even a formal home visit. A formal home visit would involve just the teacher and the parents alone.

This only happened because Hiratsuka Shizuka was overly conscientious about her responsibilities.

...

Hikigaya Ryōhei-san turned out to be unexpectedly reasonable—even possessing a kind of scholarly gentleness and an easy-going charm. After just exchanging a few words, the beautiful teacher quickly formed this impression.

Facing a student's parent, Hiratsuka Shizuka was likewise amicable and professional, chatting easily with a sense of competence.

Besides, her looks naturally gave her extra points: tall, attractive, and wearing an impeccably tailored professional suit that immediately conveyed reliability to most parents.

Her iconic long, silky black hair fell neatly behind her shoulders, contrasting beautifully against her fair and delicate skin. With just a touch of makeup, she exuded a pure elegance without losing maturity.

A woman with such outstanding temperament and appearance naturally found it easy to communicate with parents of various personalities.

Although the Hikigaya household seemed a bit down on its luck, with years of teaching experience under her belt, Hiratsuka Shizuka easily deduced from the room's decor that this Hikigaya-san genuinely enjoyed reading, spoke with grace, had good manners, and maintained a cheerful optimism.

Of course, Hiratsuka Shizuka didn’t come here merely to chat idly. She'd prepared several questions beforehand.

For example, when could Hikigaya-kun return to class? She hoped it would be as soon as possible—without interfering with his recovery, naturally.

Hikigaya-san showed full understanding toward educators:

"Hachiman’s leg is pretty much healed. How about I send him to school tomorrow by bicycle? It’s time he got back into studying seriously!"

"Oh, th-that’s really not necessary—next Monday will be fine! There's no need to rush, Hikigaya-san; right now, the pace of each subject isn't too fast."

She also informed them that the Sōbu High entrance and academic tests would take place early next month, so she hoped he would prepare as thoroughly as possible.

Hikigaya-san readily agreed to everything—frankly answering all her questions.

Hiratsuka Shizuka genuinely felt Hikigaya-san was surprisingly easy to talk to. Some questions hadn’t even occurred to her yet, but Hikigaya-san already provided concise, straightforward answers without any hesitation.

Soon enough, there was nothing left to ask about the child.

Yet, she had gotten all the information she'd intended.

After about twenty minutes, Hiratsuka Shizuka had a crystal-clear grasp on Hikigaya Hachiman's family and health situation.

"Thank you very much for your cooperation, Hikigaya-san. I'll take my leave now. I look forward to seeing Hikigaya-kun back in class next Monday."

Having finished her questions, Hiratsuka Shizuka wasted no words. She bowed lightly toward Hikigaya Ryōhei and stood up, ready to leave.

She was, after all, a serious female teacher who managed to have pleasant conversations with most parents. Each time she visited, she carefully prepared what information to ask and how long to stay.

She absolutely wasn’t like how those annoying brats spread rumors about her—saying that she'd beat up the parents first before even starting the home visit! Seriously, how could anyone believe that kind of nonsense...

There were always some students who'd slander her at school—calling her things like “Iron Fist Invincible Hiratsuka,” or “Death-before-getting-a-man Hiratsuka,” or even “Blacksmith Hiratsuka.” Such talk made many people mistakenly think she was some violent maniac, and even led some confused parents to lodge complaints against her.

All those were just rumors!

Rumors!

Purely rumors!

She was, after all, a good teacher who graduated from a prestigious teaching university and had many years of teaching experience behind her.

If she really couldn't get married, it was all their fault!

If she ever caught them in the act…

"Leaving so soon, Hiratsuka-sensei? You're welcome to stay a bit longer," Ryōhei offered politely, feeling somewhat relieved himself. Such polite small talk was common among adults.

Playing the role of the Hikigaya siblings’ father in front of outsiders still felt somewhat awkward for him. He was clearly just a scapegoat; he'd only even met their mother once.

Never even held her hand, yet here he was, forced to wear this green hat every single day.

"I shouldn’t disturb you any further. Hikigaya-kun mentioned you have a demanding job as well. Hikigaya-kun, there's no need to get up; just rest," Hiratsuka Shizuka waved her hand, and as she turned to leave, her eyes inadvertently caught sight of some photos hanging on the wall behind her.

One larger photograph had big golden words: “Tokyo Gakugei University, XXth Graduation Ceremony”???

Wait a minute, she was also a graduate of Tokyo Gakugei University!

No, that meant... Hikigaya-san was also a fellow alumnus?

Though the beautiful teacher felt astonishment at discovering Hikigaya-san was her senpai from the same school, and was curious about why he seemed to have ended up somewhat unsuccessful, these were personal matters. As a teacher, she chose not to pry.

Still, a trace of curiosity lingered.

...

Every family has their own difficulties.

The Miura household.

After Yumiko fell asleep, Miura Fusako—busy tidying up the house—placed her hand on her forehead with a deep, melancholic sigh.

Even though they had health insurance, they'd just received a notice that their household had already reached the maximum subsidy limit for medical expenses this month.

The cost of gene therapy alone had already risen to 120,000 yen per month.

When they received the news while swiping their card at the hospital a few days ago, Fusako’s first reaction had been to stop treatment immediately—but Kōzō had rejected the idea on the spot.

Today, her husband had gone on a business trip to Hokkaido.

I don't want treatment anymore! We can't continue like this!

Miura Fusako was a strong-willed woman. Once this thought took root in her mind, she couldn't help but dwell on it. She thought a lot—if only she didn’t need to pour everything into treating her illness, life wouldn't be so exhausting…

As Mrs. Miura was tidying up the shoe cabinet near the entryway, she heard the sound of high heels clicking on the floor, quickly approaching before suddenly stopping right outside her door.

The doorbell rang several times in rapid succession.

Eh? Is that Sonoko?

"Come in!"

"Wuuu! Fusako, I was wrong! I want to get married—please help me! My mom is gonna kill me today!"

Miura Fusako had just straightened up, feeling a little soreness in her back, when she heard this oriole-like melodious yet desperate voice. She looked up immediately.

Even though it was already late, Machida Sonoko had clearly just gotten off work, still in her office attire. She burst in through the door, her face completely different from her usual workplace demeanor, practically diving into Fusako’s arms and tightly clutching her waist.

Fusako felt both amused and exasperated. She'd been telling Sonoko for years now that a woman should settle down properly—but Sonoko had stubbornly refused to listen.

Mrs. Miura lightly patted her best friend’s short hair, jokingly remarking, "First of all, you need to find a boyfriend—I mean, if you want to get married…ha!"

Puchi!

It was as if something had just been pierced through.

"Onee-sama! Quickly set me up with some marriage interviews! A guy, no bad habits, reasonably decent, alive! Please just hurry up and help me!"

---

T/N: me in 10 years

This is a fan translation of 比企谷大叔永远年轻 by Stargazer All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!