CM Chapter 24

Chapter 24 – Graduation

Chapter 1, Part 8.1

Novel Title: ひとりじめ (Completely Mine)

Author：椎崎 夕 (Shiizaki You)

Illustrator：小山田 あみ (Oyamada Ami)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: 細川 湊 (Hosokawa Minato -MC) & 荻原 浩志 (Ogiwara Koushi -ML)

*Please read at knoxt.space, the original site of translation. TQ*

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The morning awakening was remarkably good.

As he drew back the curtains of the sliding window and fully opened the window itself,  Hosokawa Minato inhaled the crisp air, carrying the lingering chill of winter and the fresh scent of spring. A gust of wind came through, billowing the curtains dramatically.

The sky outside was a flawless blue without a single cloud. Although the cherry blossoms had yet to bloom, the day felt perfect for a graduation ceremony.

Breakfast was planned at a café near the university with Nagashima. Dressed in a brand-new suit and tie he had prepared for this day, Minato packed his remaining toiletries and sleepwear into a Boston bag, completing his preparations.

Since he had already moved to his new residence, the loft-equipped studio apartment he had been living in for the last half-year was now empty and barren. The futon set, the sole piece of furniture left, was a rental he was permitted to leave behind.

Today marked his farewell to this room where he had spent the last stretch of his university life. Feeling somewhat sentimental, Minato checked the time, picked up his belongings, and left the apartment. After locking the door, he hurried to the bus stop and caught the next bus just in time.

Before breakfast, he had promised to return the apartment keys.

After getting off three stops later, the real estate office he needed was right in front of him. Despite it being just before nine in the morning, the place was already open. Handing over the well-worn keys to the waiting elderly shop owner, Minato officially relinquished the apartment. It was no longer his home.

That weekly rental apartment where he had spent the last half-year was something Ogiwara Koushi’s older brother, Masayuki, had found for him. The day after that incident, Minato had canceled his old cell phone contract and signed up for a new one with a different provider. He had been taken to the real estate office shortly thereafter. By Monday of the following week, after finishing his part-time job, he had been informed that the move to his new place was complete.

The new apartment, neither too far nor too close to the university, was conveniently located near Yoshiharu’s residence. When Yoshiharu learned of the new address, his face lit up with joy. At the tutoring center where Minato worked, his direct supervisor had been reluctant to let him go. Fortunately, Minato was offered a transfer to another branch within the same company, allowing him to continue working there.

Although he had passed the teacher recruitment exam, he had not secured a full-time position. While he could have waited for a permanent opening by working as a temporary teacher, he ultimately decided to accept a full-time position at the tutoring center after careful consideration.

The new workplace was several hours away by bullet train. Though the company entrance ceremony was still ahead, Minato planned to relocate to the area later that day to attend the pre-employment training sessions scheduled beforehand.

“Oh, Minato’s in a suit.”

As he walked a few steps from the real estate office, a voice called out from the side. Turning, Minato saw Nagashima standing there in a suit and tie as well. His unusually groomed hair and refined tie suited him well, but his casual stance, leaning on one leg with an air of nonchalance, was as typical as ever. Minato couldn’t help but laugh.

“You’re laughing at me? Really?”

“Sorry, Eisuke, you look great too. A solid 50% increase in handsomeness.”

Though he genuinely meant the compliment, Nagashima frowned in irritation and strode ahead. Minato followed him into the café they had arranged to meet at, where Nagashima slumped heavily into a chair and glared at him directly.

“I can’t take a compliment when you’re laughing as you say it.”

“No, really, I mean it. Yoshiharu’s style recommendations are always spot-on.”

“That’s not a compliment for me—it’s for Yoshiharu.”

Grumbling under his breath, Nagashima ordered a breakfast set from the waiter who came over. After ordering his own meal, Minato glanced at his friend.

“I got a new cell phone yesterday, so my number and email have changed. Can I ask you to update my contact info? I’m canceling this one by the evening.”

As Minato sent a prepared email from his new phone, Nagashima’s expression darkened slightly.

“You changed it again? You do that so often.”

“This will be the last time. I’d planned to cancel the old one after graduation anyway. I don’t need it anymore.”

“…I see.”

Nagashima, the only person aware of what had happened six months ago, was silent for a moment, seemingly holding back further comments. At the time, he had been deeply upset but had respected Minato’s wishes, keeping everything secret even from Yoshiharu and Koumoto Kouta, who had since become Minato’s friends as well.

“By the way, there’s an invitation to celebrate graduation tonight—just the four of us. Yoshiharu and Koumoto-san are treating us.”

“Tonight? That’s a bit sudden.”

“They said they couldn’t set anything up earlier because of tight schedules. Now that they’re free, they’re making up for lost time. We’ve got orders to keep you busy till morning. You’re coming, right?”

Minato hesitated at Nagashima’s breezy statement.

“I was planning to leave for my new place today… I’ve already returned my apartment keys, so I have nowhere to stay.”

“Then stay at either my place or Yoshiharu’s. And anyway, if we’re out all night, you’ll end up at one of our places regardless. Your training starts in three days, right? If you don’t have anything urgent, just stay here until then and hang out with us.”

As Nagashima peeled a boiled egg with a flourish, Minato smiled wryly and sipped his miso soup.

“That’d be a bit difficult. I want to arrive early to familiarize myself with the area.”

“What, you don’t want to drink and hang out with me and Yoshiharu?” Feigning hurt, Nagashima pouted.

Minato chuckled. “Of course not. That’s not it.”

Nagashima, who had secured a local job, could commute to work from his current apartment without any trouble. Yoshiharu and Koumoto had already settled into their lives as working adults here. In contrast, Minato was the only one starting a new chapter, moving away and starting a different life this spring.

Although the bullet train journey wasn’t excessively long, it wasn’t close either. Once they were all working adults, finding time to meet wouldn’t be easy.

That’s probably why Nagashima, uncharacteristically persistent, kept pushing him to join. Yoshiharu and Koumoto must have made special efforts to clear their schedules, too.

“If it’s going to be a group sleepover, Yoshiharu’s place is bigger. What time should we meet? I promised to spend the afternoon with my mom, so I’ll be free after that.”

His mother, who had come from their hometown, was leaving today. After the ceremony, they had planned to have lunch and go shopping.

“Seven at the earliest. I’ll be free earlier, though, so just let me know when you’re done. Send me your location.”

“Got it.”

After leisurely finishing his coffee, Minato left the café and headed to the university.

At the auditorium, where the graduation ceremony was to be held, Minato parted ways with Nagashima and headed to his assigned seat. As he sat down and looked up, he saw the school flag displayed on the stage above the heads of the other graduates, all dressed in suits. The solemn atmosphere reminded him that this truly was the end.

…In the end, Ogiwara hadn’t come.  

Thinking back to his earlier musings that morning, Minato smiled wryly to himself.

“Of course not. It’s not like he had any reason to come.”

Still, deep down, he had hoped. Somewhere in his heart, he had prayed that Ogiwara would visit him, clinging to the connection they had shared during the two months as tutor and student—and to the memory of that night when Ogiwara had come to his apartment. 

Minato himself couldn’t make a move because he had a promise with Masayuki. However, Ogiwara could have pursued him if he really wanted to. Even if Minato changed his residence, his phone, and his part-time job, he couldn’t change the university.

Yet, there was not the slightest hint that Ogiwara had any intention of pursuing him.

In the end, it was all self-deception. The feeling that he was cherished, the smiles that Minato thought were given without reservation, all of it was just a means for Ogiwara to satisfy his curiosity.

Even that act, which still vividly lingered in Minato’s memory, was nothing more than just that.

“……”

The moment those thoughts crossed his mind, emotions surged up uncontrollably, and Minato forcefully shut them down. Why? Why had he felt the frustration and pain at that time? Even now, the feelings for Ogiwara that wouldn’t disappear, he suppressed them, along with his resignation.

He wanted to hear Ogiwara’s true feelings. That wish, which he could never let go of, would remain unfulfilled as Minato would soon leave this place. After that, it would be unlikely that he would ever see Ogiwara again.

He was supposed to have been prepared. After graduation, he would leave this place and move to a distant land. He had decided it himself, in order to forget.

Doubts, wishes, anger, and love. He pushed all of those deep into his heart as Minato gently closed his eyelids. He said goodbye to Ogiwara, the image of him still burned into his mind, as though severing ties between them completely.

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*Translator’s Note: I think Masayuki handled things on his end so that Koushi won’t be there. What d’you guys think? Anyway, just a heads up, we’ll move to ten years later in the next chapter. -K

Next update: 2026.08.21

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