A Leisurely Weekend
What should I do this weekend?
…Isn't that a question every human being on this planet has asked themselves at least once?
(I'm something of an exception, but still.) On weekdays, everyone's schedules make it hard to do anything significant. Weekends exist to shake off that weekday fatigue — yet plenty of people still find themselves wrestling with the same old conflict: I've got free time, so I should do something… but actually getting up and moving sounds like a pain.
That was me back in my student days.
"…What should I do."
And that cat over there was no different.
It was the weekend. Cecilia lay sprawled on the bed, languidly rolling about, a thoroughly drowsy voice slipping from her lips. I was sitting on the floor with my back against the bed, reading a book, when I glanced over at her.
"Bored?"
"Mhm…"
"Is there anything you want to do?"
I closed the book with a soft tap and asked lightly. Quiet and boring were things I was used to, but that didn't mean I could just leave Cecilia like that.
Come to think of it, last week had been her first time attending school. She'd spent more than a third of every day adapting to an unfamiliar environment — and now that it had suddenly vanished, of course she'd be bored. The silver lining was that she wasn't alone. What was the point of living together otherwise?
Figuring I'd hang out with her for a bit, I heaved myself up with a grunt.
"…W-well? There's nothing in particular I want to do, um…"
At her words, I stopped mid-rise. Well, yeah. Being bored but unable to think of anything to do was a classic weekend problem. It was a little strange — or maybe fascinating — to see that modern human pattern show up in Cecilia.
"Mm…"
Cecilia stretched out long on the bed, rolling around. Then she poked her head out over the edge, still lying down, and looked up at me.
"…I'm free."
"Yeah. What should we do?"
I plopped down on the bed beside her head. Cecilia looking up, me looking down. We locked eyes blankly for a moment before I reached out and gently ran my fingers through her hair.
"…Hehe♪"
The strands slipping between my fingers were soft. When my fingertip brushed her ear, a little "Mm♪" slipped out of her — a sound that was nice to hear.
"What should we do…"
I pulled my hand back with a touch of reluctance. Then both of us rested our chins in our hands and started thinking.
"Reading, like usual?"
"I've been reading nonstop for a while… I want to rest a bit."
"Want to go out somewhere?"
"Oh."
"Oh?"
"That might be nice?"
Propped up on her elbows with her chin in her hands, Cecilia looked up at me and smiled sweetly. The word "outing" seemed to have caught her interest.
"But where to?"
"Ah."
This time it was my turn to make a useless sound at Cecilia's expectant question. Where to?
"Ah, um…"
I hadn't thought of anything at all.
"…Let's see…"
I glanced at the clock. 11:49. Just about time to start thinking about lunch.
"…Is there anywhere in particular you'd like to go?"
"Hmm, not really?"
"Yeah? Hmm."
I stood up from the bed. Watching me, Cecilia slowly pushed herself up to sit as well.
"Want to think about it while we do some grocery shopping for lunch?"
"Ah, okay~."
A bright, easy smile spread across her face. Feeling my mood lift at the sight of it, I started pulling clothes out of the wardrobe one by one.
"I'll go change first. Call me when you're done."
"Okay."
I handed Cecilia her clothes, grabbed my own, and headed into the bathroom. I was still in my pajamas, so I couldn't just throw something over them like the day before. I stripped off the pants and top and quickly changed into outdoor clothes.
From outside came the soft rustle of fabric. I closed my eyes for a moment and kept my composure.
"I'm done changing."
Only after her voice came through did I open the door. There stood Cecilia, warmly dressed. A thick shirt and thick pants — both soft and fluffy, looking warm and easy to move in. Over that, an ivory cardigan gave her an even softer impression. It was one of the outfits she liked best among the few she owned.
"Coat?"
"Here."
She held up two coats she'd somehow already pulled out, grinning playfully. Was she planning some kind of prank again? I reached for a coat — and Cecilia suddenly yanked it back behind her.
"I'll put it on for you!"
Ah. Got it.
"…All right, go ahead."
Looking at her dazzling smile, I figured there was no point refusing. Half exasperated, half endeared, I smiled and slipped my arms in as she guided me.
"Okay, the other side~."
"Yes, yes."
Once both arms were in, Cecilia even straightened the collar and smoothed everything down. Watching those small hands tug and adjust from the front hem all the way up to my neck was genuinely adorable.
Was this what it felt like for a dad getting his tie fixed by his daughter? Hmm, maybe not quite. What this situation was closer to was more like newlyweds—
"All done!"
Cecilia's voice, full of joy, made me flinch. Then I slowly reached toward the girl whose face might as well have had "Praise me!" written across it.
"…Yeah! Good job, Cecilia."
"It's not like putting on a coat is something you can really do well or badly, though."
"Don't undercut your own work."
"Eek! Mm, hehe♪"
I stroked her head while kneading one of her ears with my other hand. After savoring the soft squeak and the smile that followed, I gently let go.
"Anything you want to eat today?"
"Hmm~ Not sure? Nothing particular comes to mind."
"Yeah? Then… how about seafood?"
"Seafood?"
"Yeah. Like shrimp."
"Shrimp! I've never had that before."
"Then let's have that for lunch."
"Okay! Ah, but Eunhyuk — there's something I want to try."
"Hm?"
I had my shoes on and was about to open the door when I glanced back. Cecilia was fidgeting, half-hesitant, half-not. The black coat still hung over her arm, not put on.
Some time had passed since the otherworlders appeared — not a huge amount, but enough. By now, among people who followed the news, almost no one was unaware of their existence. Some had even begun digging deeper into that other world, or growing curious about things like magic. I still didn't know much, but someday I wanted to know a great deal. That was the hunger to learn — curiosity and interest by another name. Outwardly and inwardly, people were deeply fascinated by otherworlders.
"…Mm."
And so, in this modern society with its faintly wondrous atmosphere, Cecilia walked through the market street with my hand held tight — no hood, no hat, her ears fully exposed.
"…You okay?"
"Y-yeah. For now, probably."
Her answer came out a little faltering, but it wasn't too quiet or mumbled. Her steps were slow, but steady, without any stumbling. Her sky-blue eyes flicked left and right. It looked like a half-and-half mix of wariness and curiosity… at least to me.
"It feels… strange."
"Because all the eyes are on us."
I answered lightly and gave her soft hand another firm squeeze. Cecilia half-clung to my arm as she walked forward.
"…"
"…"
I could feel the stares. The way the surroundings had gone unnaturally quiet probably wasn't just my imagination.
"Hey, that…"
"Yeah…"
"Her ears…"
"…What's their relationship…?"
"That guy, over there…"
Countless gazes poured toward Cecilia and me in turn. If I had to put a ratio on it, maybe four to six. I was a little surprised by how many landed on me as well.
"…Mm."
Still, what mattered right now was Cecilia. At her request to experience the surrounding stares for herself at least once, we'd come out without covering her ears. As a bonus, her tail wasn't hidden either — the silver-white tail currently hung a little stiff behind her back.
This was only the second time she'd walked around with her ears and tail showing. Setting aside that brief moment at night when no one was around, this was essentially the first. We had brought a coat and a hat just in case. Since we'd already agreed she'd put them on the moment she started feeling bad, I kept a close watch on her condition.
"You tell me right away if it's not okay, alright?"
"Mm-hmm. …But it's surprisingly fine. Different from what I expected. Still, a little — no, a lot…?"
Cecilia glanced to the side. There was a small mart there, and the owner and several people who looked like customers were whispering among themselves about something.
"…Pretty blatant."
"Yeah. I didn't think it'd be this much either."
I nodded in quiet agreement with her words. It was on a completely different level from when she'd shown them at night. Stares poured down on us as if we were the main characters of the entire market street. That Cecilia seemed okay was both a little unexpected and a huge relief. Back then, even when she was wrapped tight in a coat, she'd been extremely wary of surrounding eyes — compared to that, she was remarkably stable now.
The problem was that I wasn't so stable. I'd never been this exposed to stares before. It wasn't exactly hard, but it was uncomfortable enough.
"…Mm."
I almost wished someone would just talk to us already. The stares themselves were one thing, but the way people looked at us like some kind of curious spectacle was even more grating. Not the gaze you give a fascinating person so much as the one you give a rare animal. Well, it was unconscious, so it wasn't truly malicious, but still…
"Mm, how much farther?"
"We're almost there. Right over…"
With those thoughts running through my head, we arrived at the shop we'd been aiming for. Or rather, we were just about to.
"—Eunhyuk!"
A woman's voice rang out, and someone clapped a hand firmly onto my shoulder.