novel-bin Page 34
Page 34
Can't you eat by yourself?
—Let's not say such immature things today. After all, today is the anniversary of the seating arrangement change.
I took out the bento box I had wrapped in a handkerchief, and then silently clasped my hands together.
Since it was a father-son family, I relied on school cafeterias or convenience stores for meals until junior high school. But after I entered high school, my stepmother, Aunt Yu-Jin, inexplicably became more enthusiastic and would make us lunchboxes every morning before going to work.
Of course, this is for two people, including Yui.
We all told her not to go to so much trouble, but Aunt Yu-in said that making bento boxes for her son who was going through puberty was her long-held dream. Aunt Yu-in looked really happy when she half-jokingly said that "Yui-onna is just a side thing," and I felt embarrassed to refuse again—but there was actually another reason why we declined her bento box.
"Hey, my friend. You're still the same guy who never waits for anyone."
A brown-haired boy, who at first glance seemed frivolous, came over with sweet bread and a lemon tea wrapped in aluminum foil. His name was Kawanami Kogure, and he introduced himself as my friend. Kawanami glanced at my bento box, and his flippant expression turned into a wry smile.
"It's as lavish as ever today. This is Irito-san's bento box..."
Please don't use that tone to express your curiosity.
That's right. My bento box and Yui's bento box had exactly the same dishes.
This is something we can't help but feel helpless about, but we instinctively can't accept it. We find it annoying to eat the same thing for lunch, even though it seems like we have a very good relationship.
Yui and I both know that this idea is childish, so we don't strongly insist on it with Aunt Yui... But Yui is probably afraid that her classmates will compare our lunches, so she often leaves the classroom during lunch break.
But I'm absolutely not moving. Why should I have to change locations for this woman?
"Well then, let me take advantage of this opportunity again today."
"Okay. Mine is always one and a half times more than hers..."
"They probably think all high school boys are big eaters, even skinny literary types like you."
"But I feel embarrassed to leave it at that."
"There are definitely some concerns. I haven't had many mothers traveling with me, so I don't know much about it."
Kawanami picked up a cherry tomato, popped it into his mouth, and said this. Then he gave a lewd, wicked smile.
"When Irito sees your empty lunchbox, she'll definitely look at you differently, thinking, 'You don't look that great, but you're a boy after all.' As long as that's the goal, I'm fine with eating one or two cups of rice."
"Thank you so much. I would have been even more grateful if you weren't there in person."
I could feel her cold gaze on my neck. It felt like, "I saw right through you; this is definitely your weak spot." She wanted to kill me.
"Yui--! Let's have lunch together--!"
A cheerful voice spoke to the girl behind me.
The ponytail bobbed lightly at the edge of my vision. Whoosh! It's Nan Xiaoyue! I tried my best to remain invisible.
"Okay...where are the others?"
"It seems like something came up with the club. Oh dear~ This is terrible~ I haven't even decided which club to join yet. What about you, Yui?"
"Me too... I haven't even decided whether or not to participate."
"We've visited a lot of clubs together, but something just doesn't feel right—Golden Week is over, and honestly, it's getting harder to join. What should we do?"
Hey, I didn't hear that you two went to visit the club together? Don't go out alone with such dangerous people.
"Hey, stepson. Your expression is a little scary."
"It's my stepbrother."
I gave a brief correction while devouring the karaage chicken. Aunt Jin's karaage chicken was incredibly delicious; every time it was served for dinner, my friend and I would secretly fight over it. She even said "no strangers." You're from Kyoto, huh? Well, you really are.
"Anyway, it'll just be the two of us for lunch today, Yui! What do you say—? How about we go somewhere secluded—?"
Nan's tone was as if she was deliberately telling me, like a jab. The unspoken message was, "We're going somewhere alone—aren't you envious—?" Envious my foot! I think she's been given some kind of injection to think like that (so clever).
That being said, it is indeed dangerous for Jie and Nan to eat alone together... No joke, we really have to consider the possibility of her being drugged.
Although what this woman does is none of my business, my dad and Aunt Youren will be heartbroken, so prevention is better than cure. But given this, what should I do?
"What, Nan, is it just the two of you today?"
Just as a brilliant plan was about to fall from the sky, Kawabata preemptively spoke:
"How about you eat with us? Anyway, this seating arrangement only lasts until today, so it's nice to have a casual get-together once in a while."
……What did you say……?
Upon hearing this unexpected suggestion, not only me, but everyone's eyes were focused on Kawanami.
Kawanami only reacted to my gaze, secretly winking at me. How annoying.
"...What?! Kawanami, you're not thinking of using this opportunity to get close to Yume, are you? How disgusting!"
Nan immediately countered, using her advantage as a girl to unleash the ultimate attack of "How disgusting~".
This foul move was so powerful that it could knock a boy down onto the mat in one blow and send him crashing back to the ground, but the opponent was none other than Kawanami Kogure, the ultimate weapon against Nanami Akatsuki, and he didn't flinch at all.
"No, no, you can rest assured about that. Because I specialize in romance ROMs."
"ROM-specific? What's that?"
"Read Only Member" means you only read and don't reply. That's the most fun part.
"...Oh? So you're just a voyeur."
Oh dear, Nan's tone has turned quite cold. He's usually such a cheerful, even wildly so, this is really unusual.
...That girl, Yui, sometimes makes that kind of sound too.
"That's suspicious~ After all, you're Kawabata."
"Kawabata-kun, do you have any criminal record?"
"Listen to me, Yui! This girl, back in middle school—"
"Wait, wait, wait! We don't need to talk about my topic anymore!"
"If you want me to shut up, then don't trespass into a young girl's secret garden!"
Oh, so Minami has the advantage in this respect. Let's see how Kawanami responds.
When I became a complete spectator, "Ugh, ugh," Kawanami finally spoke, his face showing the frustration of a chess player hesitating to make a move.
"...Okay, let's take this opportunity to get to know each other better. Why don't we chat about our middle school days while we eat our lunches?"
"…………!"
Kawabata's words caused the three of us to fall silent instantly.
What... what exactly is this guy planning...? Everyone present, without exception, has a painful secret they can't tell anyone!
"W-What...? Something from middle school?...I don't care, but Yui..."
"No, no, it doesn't matter to me, but my younger brother..."
"No, it's not a big deal for me... nothing interesting happened..."
See? It's like some smug guy trying to order weird food!
Seeing that we were exchanging "you won't refuse" vibes, Kawanami inexplicably broke into a big smile.
"Okay! Then let's not talk about our middle school days, let's just eat normally!"
Nan and I were both taken aback by the suggestion, but Jie accidentally let it slip:
"Okay, that's acceptable..."
"Okay, it's decided then!"
Kawanami stood up as if he had found a pretext to criticize him, and began to push the nearby tables together.
That move was a strategic retreat!
This negotiation technique is also known as the "face-saving effect." It involves first making a difficult request that is clearly likely to be rejected, then feigning a concession while actually making the real demand. The psychological barrier of "I already refused, so it's embarrassing to refuse again" makes the request more likely to be accepted. Almost every psychology reference book mentions this.
Kawanami just used this very technique—Minami and I were wary, which is why we were able to spot it, but the unsuspecting Yui fell for it. This guy's got some skills.
"...Ugh...!"
"Hey!"
Minami avoided Yui's gaze and glared at Kawanami in annoyance, while Kawanami snorted smugly. The outcome was decided.
And so, the wonderful quartet was born.
Sitting directly in front of me was Minami, next to her was Kawanami, and diagonally in front of her was Yui. It was natural for the men and women to sit on opposite sides, but the fact that they didn't sit opposite each other was simply a result of their instincts.
"It still feels so unbelievable! I'm actually eating across from Irito-san!"
"Hmm...it's alright..."
(Illustration 005)
The defeated expression from before had vanished, and Nan was now speaking to me with a beaming smile. The reason my answer sounded like someone unaccustomed to interacting with girls wasn't because I was unaccustomed to it, but because I was afraid that Junko would discover that there was some kind of strained relationship between Nan and me that could barely be called communication.
That's what I was thinking, but there seems to be another problem with doing it that way.
First, I felt a cold gaze, then my phone in my pocket vibrated slightly.
"…………?"
I checked under the table and found that it was a message from Jie Nu.
If I'm a hardcore otaku, then you're a hardcore otaku girl, okay? But that's too unoriginal, so I immediately responded as follows:
Thank you so much for your advice. I'm not like some people who are easily fooled into falling in love with someone just because they're treated gently, so please don't worry. Please understand. — 12:39
That response was incredibly polite, it couldn't have been more courteous. The text prediction function really came in handy.
In reality, Yui glanced under the table, her shoulders trembling slightly. "It worked! It worked! Now that Minami and Kawanami are here, I doubt she can even glare at me, let alone talk back. Hahaha!"
"I don't think I've spoken to Irito-san very often?"
Yui must have wanted to launch into a long rebuttal, but Kawanami happened to speak to her at that moment. That was a brilliant assist; it really shows how important friends are when you're out in the world.
"Huh? Oh... that's true... now that you mention it, it seems so."
"I would never let Yui get close to such a frivolous and sleazy man! Today is an exception, you know, Kawanami!"
"Yes, yes, yes, let me take advantage of this opportunity."
Seeing that Kawanami and Minami had returned to the center of attention, Yui's gaze fell back to under the table. Was she about to make her move?
"By the way, I've always been curious, Irito-san, what do you do at home?"
"ah."
It arrived halfway through my typing... What do you mean by "not just a little bit"? Are you from ancient times?
"...Ah—uh, you're asking what I do at home?"
"No, I was just wondering what you do during your vacation..."
"Ugh, this guy is awful! What normal person would ask a girl they don't know well something like that?"
"I don't have any evil intentions. You see, even though this guy is super herbivorous, he still lives under the same roof as a boy, right? Of course he's curious and wants to know how he usually lives."
"That's true—I asked Irito-san before too."
"I've heard guys say that too, but I'm still curious about girls' perspectives. Girls probably pay attention to more things, right?"
"Well, I guess so... especially the guy—he almost never goes out, even on holidays."
"You're no different." - 12:42
"Aside from staying in my room, I try to be as careful as possible. As long as I'm paying attention, I actually have a pretty peaceful life."
You're impressive for talking and typing at the same time.
"Oh~" Kawabata naturally exclaimed in admiration.
"So that's how it is in reality. If this were a comic book, we'd bump into each other in the bathroom right away."
"Stop confusing comics with reality, you idiot!"
"Who are you calling an idiot? You're so noisy, you idiot... Hey, Irito. Even though he says that, haven't you guys ever had an accident like those in manga?"