You are Loved

Chapter 1

Discord link: [discord . gg / 4y5QVPj]

Disclaimer: I don't own Rent a Girlfriend, or any of its characters...

*Ding Dong!*

Kazuya Kinoshita forced one eye to open when he heard the unmistakable sound of his doorbell being rung from outside. He slowly turned over on his futon and stared at the door, half-tempted to answer it or just ignore it.

Against his better judgement however, Kazuya decided that he had nothing to lose if he answered it, so he slowly stood up and dragged himself to the door as if he was a living corpse.

"Who is it...?" he spoke in a tone filled with anxiety and sadness as he opened the door to see who it was.

"Hahaha, that's my Master for you! Is that a cosplay? An average-ish Halloween cosplay by a shut-in NEET who hasn't showed up for two weeks! Although it's not the season for it..."

Mini Yaemori stood before him, wearing her usual track jacket and shorts. She had a big smile on her face too, one so bright that it seemed like it could affect anyone else within five meters of her and make them happy too, maybe except for him.

"Anyway, it's been a while!" she exclaimed, using Indian to greet him.

"Oh, it's just you, Yaemori." Kazuya spoke in the same depressed tone, unaffected by his neighbor's enthusiasm.

"There'll be no end to your disappointment if you keep getting crushed every time it's not Mizuhara-san," she scolded him, before puffing her cheeks in a pout. "And don't you give me a lame greeting like that!"

"I-It's not like that."

"Pfft!" she gushed, unable to stop herself from giggling when she saw his face underneath his hair, which had grown longer after several months. "Your face is as red as Lal Qila!"

"The hell are you even saying?"

"I went on a trip to India! For a month."

Well, that explained why she was gone one day and there was no sign of her anywhere. Anyway, it seemed like the only reason she came here was to greet him, which meant he could end this conversation already and go back to his futon to wrap himself with his blanket.

"Is that all? I'm just gonna go back to sleep, then... I'll see you later, Yaemori..." he turned around and prepared to close the door, which inadvertently gave Mini a clear view of what was inside his apartment space.

"W-Wha..." her eyes widened upon what she saw there, which caused her to rush inside and take a look at the whole place. "Th...This is...!"

Kazuya's home was a complete dump.

The place was completely dark, with the light solely coming from the windows and the door. Various garbage bags were gathered at one side, while water battles, empty ramen cups, and dirty cooking tools were scattered all over the floor. The worst part was that a futon was placed in the middle of the room, which could only mean that all of this was done willingly.

As a matter of fact, the only aspect of the apartment that remained clean was Kazuya's pet goldfish, who was as healthy as ever.

"W-What happened here, Master?! Something wrong with Mizuhara-san?" Mini asked, turning to the only person who could give her an answer.

"Uuuuuu..."

Kazuya already had tears forming in his eyes, as he only got reminded of his troubles before Mini showed up. He had already calmed down significantly from the crying fit he went through an hour ago, but now it was coming back to him.