Crossover: After deciding to give up, i became popular

By the standards of a single resident, Kanade Natsukawa was a textbook example of perfection—regular routines, a healthy diet, meticulous personal hygiene, and an absence of women frequenting his home.

In short, the ideal high school bachelor.

But the truth was that his healthy lifestyle wasn't entirely self-imposed. The so-called "angel next door," Mahiru Shiina, had a habit of criticizing his bad habits and forcefully intervening in his life, all in a misguided effort to turn him into a couch potato.

To avoid becoming a total slacker under her watch, Kanade worked hard to behave.

Especially recently, as the angel had grown increasingly bold, entering his home unannounced and meddling in his daily life.

"Good morning, Kanade," Mahiru greeted cheerfully as soon as she saw him emerge from his room.

"…Good morning." Kanade yawned, rubbing his eyes.

He no longer found it surprising to see Mahiru in his home, cooking breakfast in the kitchen or waiting for him in the living room.

Even as he ate her meticulously prepared meal, he couldn't help but let his mind wander to more frivolous thoughts—was Mahiru perhaps a little tsundere?

For all her claims about making him "ready himself," her actions weren't so different from before. If anything, she had expanded her repertoire from making dinner to occasionally preparing breakfast, lunchboxes, and even cleaning his apartment.

The "ready yourself" part seemed a bit exaggerated for these domestic duties.

At first, Kanade had resisted her intrusions, but he found himself unable to hold out against her adorable pouts and playful tantrums.

There had been awkward moments too—like the time Mahiru decided to do his laundry and found an oddly stained pair of underwear in his basket. She turned beet red, scolded him mercilessly, and stormed back to her apartment, refusing to do his laundry ever again.

Not that he'd wanted her to in the first place.

"Do you have plans today, Kanade?" Mahiru asked as she cleared the table.

"Yeah, I'm meeting up with a friend," Kanade replied, nodding.

Mahiru had become increasingly like a live-in housekeeper lately. If not for certain tasks he still did himself, he'd feel like he was being trained into a complete freeloader.

"Then… take care on the way, and let me know when you're back," Mahiru said with a slight nod, refraining from prying further. She understood that overstepping would only push him away.

"…Do you have plans today, Shiina?" Kanade asked, averting his gaze.

Even now, her warm, approachable aura was overwhelming, making it all too easy for him to mistake his feelings as "liking" her again.

"I was hoping to spend the day with you, but since you're busy, I'll visit Kato-san instead."

"Kato?" Kanade blinked, surprised to hear Kato Megumi's name from Mahiru. "You two are that close already?"

As far as he remembered, they'd only met for the first time last weekend. Had Kato managed to charm even the angel herself in just a week?

That's Kato for you, Kanade thought, silently applauding her.

"We've been chatting on LINE these past few days," Mahiru admitted, her cheeks slightly flushed.

Kanade didn't understand why she seemed embarrassed. Wasn't making friends a good thing?

Still, there were plenty of things he didn't understand, so he didn't dwell on it. Instead, he focused on finishing his breakfast.

After tidying up, Kanade left the house.

"I'm heading out."

"Take care."

After a short train ride and a brief walk, Kanade arrived at the meeting spot.

Standing there, eagerly scanning the crowd, was a familiar girl—a small devil in a white blouse and striped brown skirt.

"You're finally here, Senpai!" chirped Iroha Isshiki, bouncing on her heels.

"You're so slow! I almost fell asleep waiting for you!"

"I'm not late. You're just early." Kanade held up his phone, showing the time: 8:55 AM, still five minutes before their agreed time.

"Senpai, if you arrive after a girl, you're late, no matter what!" Iroha declared, her hands on her hips.

Kanade raised an eyebrow. Something felt off.

"...A date?"

"Of course, it's a date!" Iroha replied smugly.

"I'm leaving."

Kanade turned on his heel, but Iroha quickly grabbed the hem of his shirt.

"It's just a practice date, Senpai! For research purposes, so I can get familiar with the flow of a real one…"

"…" Kanade sighed, resigned. There was no getting out of this.

He couldn't deny that the list of supporters she'd provided was valuable, but he was already regretting agreeing to this arrangement.

Sometimes, you had to give something to get something.

"Where to? Just a heads-up, I'm not familiar with the shops around here," Kanade said, deciding to roll with it.

"No problem! I've already planned everything in detail. You just need to follow my lead!" Iroha announced, brimming with confidence.

Kanade resisted the urge to comment. If you've got everything planned, why not practice with the person you actually want to date instead of dragging me into it?

He sighed and followed her.

The first stop: a movie theater.

As a classic dating activity, it was an unsurprising choice.

"I want to watch this!" Iroha said, pointing to a poster.

Kanade followed her gaze and saw the title: Titanic.

"…"

Could she have picked anything more cliché?

Still, classics were classics for a reason, and it wasn't a bad choice.

"Then I'll—"

"You're not thinking of watching a different movie, are you? I'll have you know, splitting up is absolutely not allowed!" Iroha said, crossing her arms and glaring at him.

"Of course not. What kind of person do you think I am?" Kanade deadpanned.

Do people like that even exist?

"I was going to say, 'Then I'll buy the tickets.'"

Iroha's expression immediately brightened. "Senpai, you're so reliable! Oh, and don't forget a large bucket of popcorn. I like the big ones!"

"Buy it yourself!"