As I led the awakened Satou out of the station, a residential area not much different from my neighborhood spread out before us.
Houses lined the streets, trees stood along the sidewalks, streetlights glowed, and a few stars were visible in the sky, it wasn’t the kind of scenery that changed much over a few stations.
「Then, please lead the way.」
「Y-Yes, I’ll do my best.」
Our destination is Satou’s house.
Only after safely escorting her there will my mission of inviting a girl friend out shopping be complete.
Moreover, Japan’s safety isn’t that bad… or rather, such sophistry might not apply when it comes to Satou’s strengths, or perhaps her terrifying aspects…
「…Those glasses really suit you after all.」
「…Uh.」
Especially now, with Satou wearing the glasses she bought today, there’s truly a possibility that doesn’t depend on the level of safety in the area.
If I’m being exaggerated, so be it, but at least as long as I find the current Satou attractive, there’s no option for me to leave without accompanying her home.
「Will you be wearing those glasses from tomorrow?」
I thought about changing the subject, but for now, I steer the conversation towards being able to see her embarrassed expression for longer.
「I-I’m planning to.」
「I see.」
「…Um, because it’s the first thing a friend has chosen for me, I want to wear it with care.」
「I’m glad you feel that way. But if you find something else you like, don’t hesitate to wear it, okay?」
There are different patterns, shapes, and even shades of red. There’s surely other glasses that Satou would like besides the ones I chose.
However, she took off the glasses she was wearing with both hands, looked at them, and slowly shook her head.
「Thank you, Hinata-kun. …But at least for now, there’s no other glasses I want to wear more than these. E-Even if I meet others in the future, I’m sure they’ll all be like these…」
Just as Satou cut off her words.
「Mmmー?」
Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice came from behind, and I hurriedly turn around.
At the same time, I shield Satou with my back, but…
「That’s rare, I didn’t expect to meet Ayane-chan here. Maybe it’s a reward from God for me working hardー?」
A relaxed, drawn-out voice.
Satou turns around a bit later.
「I thought you were an indoor type on holidays, but I still have a lot to learn.」
Short bob black hair, loose clothing.
At first glance, you can tell she’s beautiful, but perhaps because she’s wearing glasses similar to the ones Satou was wearing, her impression is somewhat faint.
Moreover, her mature eyes behind the glasses are calm, but unlike her loose voice, no emotion can be seen.
「Wha… eh, O-Onee-chan!?」
「Yahhooー. Nice to meet you too, boy.」
The person Satou called Onee-chan raised one hand, narrowed her eyes in a smile, and then turned them towards me, smiling again.
「Heeー, so you were in the middle of a date, huhー. Sorry for interrupting. Should I leave now?」
「T-That’s not it, Onee-chan…! This isn’t, um, a d-date… or anything like that…」
Thus, we ended up going to her house together with the person who introduced herself as Satou Maaya.
I thought it would be safe if her Onee-chan was there, so I didn’t need to accompany Satou… but when I said “then”, Satou gave me such sad eyes that I couldn’t bring myself to leave.
So, for some reason, I’m tagging along too…
「You think the same? It’s not a date?」
「I invited Satou to go shopping. My little sister was with us too, so it’s not a date.」
──Light Novels──
──Read Here──
「…S-See?」
「Ehhー, sounds suspiciousー.」
「G-Geex, Onee-chan! If you’re going to tease me, go home first!」
「Ahaha, sorry, sorry. But I want to chat with Hinata-kun too, so I decline going home firstー.」
「T-That’s different from what you said earlier!」
「Don’t sweat the small stuff, don’t sweat it.」
We haven’t even been walking for five minutes, but even in that short time, I’m starting to understand this person a little.
「Hey, hey, you’re the one Ayane-chan makes bento for, right?」
「That’s right. I’m very grateful.」
「Uwaaー, lucky youー. I hardly ever get to eat Ayane-chan’s homemade cooking.」
「I’ve never eaten such delicious bento before.」
「Uh…」
「Waa, you’re good with words. But that’s rude to your mom, you knowー.」
She suddenly slows down, moves to my left side where Satou isn’t, and tightly wraps her arm around mine. Then she starts poking my cheek with her finger like scolding a child.
「M-My parents are hardly ever home because of work. And even when they come back, they always say they’re bad at cooking.」
「Even so, it’s NG to compare it to home cooking. Otherwise, Ayane-chan will have mixed feelings when she goes to greet them later, right?」
「Wha… hey, Onee-chan!」
「Ahaha, right, it wasn’t a date, was it?」
「I’ve said that many times, haven’t I? …M-More importantly, you’re too close to Hinata-kun!」
「Ehhー.」
「No “Ehhー”. No pressing your body against him!」
「She said so. What a shameー.」
The softness that had been pressed against me finally leaves my arm, and I sigh in relief.
This person has an unusually close sense of distance.
Maybe I feel this way because I don’t have much experience with people, but even so, linking arms with someone you’ve just met isn’t normal.
However, more than the physical distance, it’s the conversational distance that’s the closest of all.
Since entering high school, it’s like experiencing being “a child being talked to by an adult”, and it makes me feel uneasy all the time.
「Still, I never thought I’d see Ayane-chan with a boy.」
She stares intently into the depths of my eyes from the side.
I try to look away because I feel awkward returning her gaze, but her eyes don’t leave me easily.
After five or ten seconds, Maaya-san moves away from me and quickly returns to her original position. She’s only slightly taller than Satou and nowhere near my height, but there’s something incredibly mature about her back that feels enormous, something I can’t possibly match.
Whether it’s her aura, her reliability, or perhaps…
「Well, I kind of guessed from the bento-making, but seeing it with my own eyes like this, it’s, how should I say, surprising…」
The words muttered towards the stars flow backward with her footsteps.
Satou seems to have taken smaller steps, and my right hand, which was holding hers, is gently pulled back.
「…I have to… change too…」
Have to change──
Satou, who muttered so, is looking at Maaya-san, not me.
「That’s right.」
Maaya-san smiles at Satou as she turns around.
…What’s going on?
Unfortunately, my relationship with Satou isn’t deep enough for me to understand the true meaning of this exchange, but Satou returned to my side and smiled apologetically, so I didn’t feel like pursuing it further.