Chapter 1:

Chapter 1: — "Little Troublemakers!"

Poyo & Mochi: A Small Happiness


I let out a shaky breath as I pushed open the door to my apartment. My umbrella was dripping, my jacket was damp, and my bangs were plastered to my forehead.

“Ugh… what a day,” I muttered, kicking off my shoes with a squish.

My tiny apartment greeted me with its usual silence. It wasn’t much, one room, a tiny kitchen space, a bathroom that groaned when you turned on the faucet, but it was mine. I worked hard for this. I paid every bill on time, even if it left me stressing every month.

And now…

I glanced down at my arms. Two soft, squishy blobs blinked up at me from my scarf. Poyo wobbled happily, while Mochi just huddled closer to my chest, letting out a timid little “Mmm…” sound.

“Yeah,” I sighed, “you two are really here, huh?”

I gently set them down on a towel near the door, watching them plop softly against the fabric. They looked so tiny sitting there, like abandoned jelly candies that had decided to come to life.

“Okay, uh… first things first,” I said, running a hand through my hair. “I have no idea how to take care of living slime blobs. I don’t even know what you eat. Or if you eat. Or if you’re going to eat me in my sleep.”

Poyo bounced once, like it was trying to interrupt my panic. “Poyo!”

I stared at it. “...Did you just say your own name?”

“Poyo!” it repeated proudly, like it had just won the lottery.

Mochi tilted slightly, making a soft “Moochi…” like it was shy about speaking at all.

I couldn’t help but let out a tiny laugh. “You two are unbelievable. I can’t believe I’m talking to blobs of slime right now.”

I walked over to the kitchenette, opening the fridge. It was modest, a few drinks, eggs, leftover curry in a container, and some jelly cups I bought on sale.

“Let’s see,” I muttered. “What does a slime even eat…? Jello? Water? Human souls?”

“Poyo!”

“I was joking,” I said quickly, pointing my spoon at Poyo like it could understand.

I opened a jelly cup and placed a little on a saucer I didn’t really use. Poyo hopped over immediately, face first, and started absorbing it like it was the best thing in the world. Mochi inched closer slowly, like it was checking if it was poisoned.

“It’s safe, you know,” I said softly. “I wouldn’t give you something bad.”

Mochi blinked up at me with those watery eyes, then cautiously dipped itself into the jelly. It let out the tiniest happy squeak.

“There you go,” I whispered, smiling despite myself. “Great. Now I’m officially spending my food budget on blobs.

But it wasn’t a bad feeling. Honestly… watching them eat made me feel kind of warm inside.

“Alright,” I said, crouching in front of them. “If we’re doing this, there have to be some rules. Got it?”

Poyo and Mochi stared at me like round, shiny pebbles.

“Rule one: No bouncing on furniture. I have exactly one table and one couch, and they are not your personal trampoline.”

“Poyo!”

“That wasn’t a yes, was it?”

“Poyo.”

“Yeah, I didn’t think so,” I muttered.

“Rule two: No waking me up at night. I have school, part-time shifts, and a very fragile grip on sleep.”

“Mochi…”

The shy one tilted slightly, like it actually felt guilty. Poyo just started wiggling happily in place.

“And rule three,” I said, pointing a finger at them like a teacher. “No eating my stuff. If you eat my notes, I’ll… actually, I have no idea what I’ll do. But it won’t be fun for either of us.”

“Poyo!”

“…I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?”

Bath time… was chaos.

I tried filling a bowl with lukewarm water, setting them gently inside to clean off the rain. But Poyo decided it was a pool party, splashing water all over the kitchen floor, bouncing around like it had caffeine in its nonexistent bloodstream.

“Poyo! No—! Stop bouncing!” I yelped, slipping slightly as a wave of water hit my socks.

“Poyooo~!” it chirped.

Mochi, on the other hand, just floated quietly in the bowl like a shy little bubble, blinking up at me like it was the most well-behaved slime on the planet.

“Why can’t you be more like Mochi? So gentle, sweet and... calm I guess...” I grumbled at Poyo, who was now trying to climb the counter. “I should’ve known the pink one would be trouble.”

“Poyo!” it protested annoyingly, like it understood the accusation.

Eventually, after some towels, yelling, slipping, and a small existential crisis, both slimes were clean and wrapped in soft hand towels like little dumplings.

I collapsed onto the couch with a loud groan. “I’m exhausted and you’ve only been here for... what... two hours?”

“Poyo!”

“…Mochi.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered. “I see how it is. My couch isn’t even this comfortable for me.”

I sat down beside them, feeling the cushion dip a little under my weight. For a moment, everything was quiet except the faint dripping of rain outside. It was… strangely cozy.

“Y’know,” I said, glancing between them, “I didn’t really plan for this. I didn’t wake up today thinking, ‘Oh, I’ll just adopt two talking slime blobs and ruin my budget.’”

Poyo tilted its round top like it was listening seriously. Mochi blinked slowly, curling a little closer to my side.

“But,” I continued softly, “even with the bills, and work, and everything else… I don’t feel as tired right now.”

“Poyo!”

That cheerful chirp made me laugh under my breath. “You’re a noisy little thing, you know that?”

Then, without warning, Poyo bounced against my arm like an affectionate cat. Mochi pressed shyly against my thigh, almost like it was trying to mimic Poyo but didn’t quite have the confidence.

“…You’re gonna make it really hard to stay mad at you,” I said, trying not to smile too wide.

“Poyo~!”

“Mmm…”

The three of us just sat there for a bit. Me in the middle of my secondhand couch, and two weird, squishy creatures glued to my side. My apartment was still small, still cluttered, still full of the same worries… but it didn’t feel so heavy tonight.

“Alright,” I sighed finally, standing up and stretching my arms. “Couch time is over. I’ve got cleaning to do, you two have… uh, squishy things to do, I guess.”

Poyo flopped onto its back dramatically like it had just been betrayed. Mochi followed, letting out the tiniest, most pitiful squeak.

“Oh, don’t give me that look,” I laughed. “I’m not kicking you out. Just… try not to destroy the place while I clean, alright?”

“Poyo!”

“Mochi.”

I sighed and pushed myself off the couch, already feeling the weight of responsibility settling on my shoulders. “Okay, Hanae,” I muttered to myself. “Two little blobs. How bad can it be?”

Five minutes later, standing in the bathroom with a soaked floor, I answered my own question.

“...It’s bad.”

I wrung out the towel for what felt like the tenth time, groaning as cold water seeped through my fingers. Poyo’s “bath time” splash zone had extended way farther than I thought possible. It was like cleaning up after two hyperactive toddlers, except these toddlers could bounce off walls.

“This is my life now,” I muttered under my breath. “Bills, work, exams… and wiping slime water off the bathroom tiles.”

I gave the floor one final swipe, tossed the wet towel into the laundry basket, and exhaled sharply. “There. Clean. Sort of.”

As I stepped back into the living room, the sight that greeted me made all that irritation melt away in an instant.

Poyo and Mochi were curled up together in a little pile of towels and blankets. Poyo had flattened itself like a sleepy pancake on top of a folded corner, while Mochi was nestled right against it, their tiny, round bodies rising and falling in the softest little rhythm.

“…You two are ridiculous,” I whispered with a small laugh, leaning against the doorframe. “And way too cute for your own good.”

The apartment was quiet now, the good kind of quiet. The kind that didn’t feel lonely.

I walked over to the calendar hanging near my desk. There it was, circled in bright red marker: Final Exam – Friday.

After that… summer break.

No classes. No late-night study sessions. No professors breathing down my neck. Just work and whatever chaos these two brought into my life.

I exhaled slowly, a tiny smile tugging at my lips. “Guess the timing couldn’t have been better, huh?”

I returned to the couch, grabbing the blanket and gently scooping Poyo and Mochi into my hands. They were warm. Soft. Mochi instinctively curled against my palm while Poyo wobbled slightly, letting out a sleepy “Poyooo…” before going still again.

“Yeah, yeah,” I murmured, wrapping the blanket around all three of us as I lay down. “You’re trouble… but maybe the good kind.”

The faint sound of rain outside and their tiny, squishy warmth against my hands made the room feel less like a place I was surviving in… and more like a place I belonged.

My eyes grew heavier with every quiet breath. My last thought before drifting off was simple and certain:

They’re going to be worth it.

And just like that, surrounded by two little blobs who’d turned my dull routine upside down, I fell asleep.

Kawaii Koi
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