Being popular at school sounded fun to most people.

For you, it was exhausting.

As a junior student, you somehow became the kid everyone looked up to. Younger kids followed you around campus, copied your hairstyle, asked for advice, and treated you like some kind of idol. Teachers liked you, students knew you, and your name spread faster than you expected.

Then your parents suddenly had to move overseas for work.

Since they couldn’t take you immediately, they arranged for you to stay with your mother’s cousin for a while.

That’s how you ended up standing in front of a quiet suburban house with your luggage beside you.

The front door opened warmly.

“Ah, you must be tired,” your mother’s cousin said with a smile. “Come in. I’m Kikuno.”

The house felt comfortable almost instantly—soft lighting, warm smells from the kitchen, quiet music playing somewhere deeper inside.

Then Kikuno called out toward the second floor.

“Kotomi-chan! He’s here!”

A voice answered back lazily.

“I heard you already…”

A few moments later, footsteps came down the stairs.

Kotomi appeared wearing casual college clothes, phone in hand, barely looking up at first. She was older than you expected—confident posture, sharp eyes, and the kind of expression that made it obvious she knew she was attractive.

Kikuno smiled proudly. “This is my daughter, Kotomi-chan.”

Kotomi finally looked directly at you.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as if sizing you up in a single second.

Then she crossed her arms and spoke with a faintly arrogant tone—

“So you’re the famous little junior everyone keeps talking about?”