Chapter 28: Weekend, just the two of us on a date?! (2)

“So, Rina. Instead of curry rice, how about steak and lobster?”

Aya said calmly, folding the menu.

I was momentarily stunned and stared at her blankly before regaining my senses.

“Wh, what? Is it okay to order something like that?”

“Of course. Today is a special day.”

A special day… How am I supposed to take that?

This must be Aya teasing me.

Aya is definitely playing with me.

Aya with an 8 out of 10 on the favorability scale was scary.

The protagonist was also toyed with by that kind of Aya.

I felt my face gradually heating up, unable to do anything, and fiddled with my hair with my fingertips.

My head is getting so hot that it’s being sous vide, so it’s not working properly.

“Bu, but, isn’t that too expensive? I feel burdened…”

“Do you feel burdened by me, Rina?”

‘Yes… It’s very burdensome. The goddess of the academy, from the first day… Ugh.’

Aya smiled softly and lightly pulled my empty water glass, pouring water into it.

Even that action was full of elegance, it was truly Aya-like.

“Then, Rina, what would you like to drink? This restaurant’s signature drink is also good.”

“Ah, for drinks… I think something normal would be good! Th, that, green grape ade!”

I hurriedly answered and chose the most ordinary-looking drink on the menu.

But Aya’s expression was still pleasant, which made me even more embarrassed.

“Really?”

“Uh-huh… If you recommend something else… that’s fine too…”

“Hmm, ade might not be bad either? It’s better to have ade with meat. The carbonation’s fullness prevents overeating.”

‘Right… We came out to talk about the festival, right? Yes, if we move on to talking about the festival, it’ll be fine.’

My inner thoughts were already in chaos, but Aya calmly pressed the bell and looked at me.

And as if she read my mind…

“Then, shall we slowly talk about the festival?”

I nodded and made a resolution internally.

I can’t keep being flustered in this atmosphere!

‘Okay, Rina. You have to get a grip! You have to help with the festival preparations properly!’

But… that playful smile on Aya’s lips.

My resolution didn’t even last 3 seconds.

“Before that, Rina.”

“Uh, uh-huh?”

“You have a scheming face.”

“Wh, what?”

I tilted my head in bewilderment at Aya’s words.

Then Aya slowly tilted her head and sent a playful look.

“Yeah. You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”

“N, no I’m not! There’s nothing!”

“Really?”

Aya tilted her head slightly and looked at me.

And then she added with a calm smile.

“You’re really not hiding anything?”

“N, no…!”

“Hand.”

Ah…

I slowly extended my hand as if I were under a spell by Aya’s soft voice.

At the same time, I remembered the novel Aya lent me last time.

I read it all, wondering if there really was such a scene in the novel.

And I realized that the novel Aya lent me was not a ‘general novel’.

So… ah…

The moment Aya’s fingertips touched me, I got goosebumps and quickly pulled back, asking.

“Tha, that, you know… Is touching hands common in Aya’s family?”

“Huh?”

“Th, that folk remedy you told me about last time. I’m… curious about it.”

“Ah, my mother is from Northern Europe, so she learned a lot of folk remedies.”

“Ah… I see.”

I blinked.

Then Aya burst into laughter.

“Rina, you’re cute.”

“Uh-huh…”

Ah, I feel like I’m becoming a doll under Aya’s spell.

But I don’t dislike it… is what I’m thinking.

Ah, no, as a former man, I should take the initiative.

“Right, the festival—”

I hurriedly tried to change the subject.

But at that moment, there was a knock on the door and a waiter came in.

“Excuse me~ Are you having a good time? I’ll take your order.”

‘Goo, good time…’

Ah, it’s so hot now that I really think steam might be coming out of my head?

Leaving me embarrassed, Aya looked at the menu and ordered with a fluent foreign accent.

I… In my past life, I thought my foreign accent was pretty good, but now it’s just Japanese katakana foreign language, nothing more, nothing less.

And when the waiter came and went, it was a bit of a refresher.

But Aya wants to continue the previous atmosphere, so she leaned her elbows on the table, clasped her hands, put them on her cheek, and looked at me.

“Rina.”

“Yeah, why?”

“By any chance, did you finish reading the novel I lent you last time?”

“Yeah… of course, I have to return it.”

I took the book out of my bag and handed the problematic novel to Aya.

Aya took the book, put it in her bag, and leaned forward, getting closer to me.

“Rina.”

“Yeah…?”

“Do you, like me, like the protagonist in that novel?”

Ah, Aya, how far are you going to go?

When I see your silver hair and blue eyes, I’m really captivated.

Your appearance, which is unrealistic yet exists in reality…

‘…She’s probably testing me, right?’

“I, I can’t say no. But we can’t. That’s a novel, and in reality…”

When I barely opened my mouth, Aya’s eyes shook for a moment.

And soon, Aya slowly tilted her head and opened her mouth again.

“Does it have to be realistic?”

At those words, I swallowed dryly.

This was definitely not a simple joke.

***

Every time Rina stumbled over her words, a small ripple arose in Aya’s heart.

And that ripple gradually grew, stimulating emotions that Aya hadn’t expected.

‘What does Rina really think of me?’

At first, it was just a joke.

The novel she lent her last time wasn’t intentional either, it was just a light topic to talk to Rina about, coincidentally matching her hobbies.

But when Rina returned the novel, blushing and flustered, Aya was captivated by an unknown curiosity.

‘Could it be… that she really thinks of me like in the novel?’

It was a question thrown like a joke.

But Rina’s flustered reaction gradually shook Aya’s heart.

She wanted to know a little more about Rina’s true feelings.

Maybe, if they held hands and talked like in the novel scene, would their true feelings be conveyed?

But Rina flinched and pulled away as soon as their hands touched.

Aya laughed it off, but Rina’s attitude was strangely bothering her.

It seemed like an attitude of avoidance, rather than trying to hide something bigger.

Was that why?

That question suddenly popped out of Aya’s mouth.

“Do you, like me, like the protagonist in that novel?”

The moment those words ended, Aya was surprised by herself.

Internally, she was reproaching herself, ‘Why did I say that?’, but while waiting for the answer, her heart was beating faster and faster.

‘What if Rina really likes me?’

‘No, how Rina thinks of me isn’t important… Isn’t how I think of Rina more important?’

Aya finally realized.

How she was looking at Rina, and why she just wanted to hear Rina’s answer.

This moment waiting for Rina felt too long.

Rina hesitated for a long time, then opened her mouth awkwardly without making eye contact.

“I, I can’t say no. But we can’t. That’s a novel, and in reality…”

Reality.

When Rina’s words ended, a small crack appeared in Aya’s heart.

The word ‘reality’ evoked a strange resistance in her heart.

So, Aya took another step forward.

“Does it have to be realistic?”

She maintained her usual calmness as much as possible so that her voice wouldn’t tremble.

But, Aya herself knew better than anyone the weight of those words.

Having said these words, she could no longer say it was a joke.

“Th, that is… I mean…”

Aya stammered.

That weight of ‘reality’ was much heavier than she thought.

Aya hesitated for a moment, then lowered her head.

“Forget what I said until now.”

Aya’s heart, mumbling her lips, was complicated.

While not believing in her own feelings, the thought that maybe she might be feeling the same thing as Rina…

Aya’s fingertips trembled minutely.

***

‘Huh…?’

At Aya’s sudden change, question marks popped up inside me.

Aya, who was incredibly proactive until a little while ago, suddenly blushed, relaxed her posture, put her hands on her cheeks, and leaned back in her chair.

That appearance was somehow embarrassing, yet calming, and I unconsciously let out a sigh of relief.

‘Ah… I’m glad.’

If Aya had continued to push me relentlessly like this, I didn’t have the confidence to handle what my heart would do.

And… at the same time, another worry arose.

Aya’s attitude suddenly changed, could there be a problem?

I asked carefully.

“Aya, are you sick?”

Aya’s eyes widened, and she hurriedly shook her head.

“Ah, no! I’m fine.”

“Really…? Then that’s good.”

A subtle red tinge still remained on Aya’s face.

That appearance somehow didn’t seem like the usual Aya… it was somehow cute.

‘But, is she really okay? Or, is it because of me…?’

However, before I could ask any further, a staff member knocked on the door at the right time.

The sound of the knock cut through the air, and the strangely tense atmosphere was slightly relieved.

“Excuse me~ The food is here.”

The plates the staff brought had a subtle aroma of flavorful steak and lobster.

At the sound of the knock at the right timing, I bowed my head in relief.

It was just the time when we needed time to sort out each other’s feelings.