Since yesterday, Soyo had been feeling nervous about today's date, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
She barely managed to doze off for a bit, and before dawn broke, she got up and began struggling in front of the wardrobe about what to wear.
Just like that, she dawdled for two to three hours. Seeing that the agreed time was getting closer and closer, she finally decided to fully leverage her strengths and picked a long floral dress that was elegant and gave off a mature vibe, paired with a crystal necklace on her fair neck.
She didn't look like a university student who hadn't yet graduated, but rather more like a gentle newlywed wife.
It's said that boys at this age have little resistance toward mature and gentle older-sister types.
Now it seems, that was indeed true.
However, Soyo didn't get carried away. Reluctantly letting go of Kaito's arm, she put her hands together, "Boyfriend or whatever… it's just a desperate measure to make her back off, please don't mind."
"It's fine, you helped me out too."
Kaito casually brushed past the topic and then asked, "Thought about where to go later?"
"Mm… it's also my first time in Akihabara," Soyo's slender fingertips gently touched her lips. She was clearly dressed up today, her usually bare and pretty face now had light makeup, with a tall nose bridge and radiant smile. She looked like a painting.
"Since it's to thank Kaito-kun for helping me, today's schedule will be decided by Kaito-kun~ How about it?"
When chatting among classmates at Tsukinonomori, they occasionally talked about little tricks in love.
Girls with strong opinions give off a sense of distance; most boys prefer the clingy, dependent type.
Soyo learned a lot from them and even searched online for love guides on how to win over boys, taking serious notes.
You could say she was very dedicated.
"Today's schedule is up to you," implicitly means "I'm entrusting myself to you," which easily stirs a boy's sense of responsibility and satisfies their vanity.
Many times, when trying to grow closer in relationships, it's these subtly influential little details that matter.
Kaito, however, didn't think that much.
Some people like to make plans before going out. Ehere to go first, then where next, having the whole process in mind.
But others don't care so much when going out, they just wander and explore freely.
He belonged to the latter. With the assistance of divine sense, he didn't even need to worry about getting lost.
As a sacred land for otaku culture, and right during a golden holiday period, the crowd on the streets could be described as a sea of people. There were even many blonde-haired, blue-eyed foreigners among them, mostly tourists.
With too many people around, trouble easily follows.
"Sorry, he already has a girlfriend, okay?"
"Exchange contact info? Dame~ (No way~)"
"He's not a celebrity, and has no interest in debuting. Please stay back. If you keep bothering us, I'll call the police."
Nagasaki Soyo originally thought that as long as she could outshine the crowd, even if there were ill-intentioned bad women, they'd feel ashamed and not dare approach.
But clearly, she was still too naive.
Even though she was standing right beside Kaito, those bad women who came up to hit on him all chose to deliberately ignore her existence, their faces full of desire as they stared at the beautiful boy in front of them, almost pressing their bodies against him.
'Such shamelessness!'
And the young lady Soyo, even when trying to scold someone, sounded more like she was being coy, completely unable to speak harsh words with real bite.
Finally, after turning down the twelfth bashful yet hopeful girl, and seeing that it was already noon, Kaito simply suggested they grab a meal first, inside a restaurant would at least be a bit quieter.
Naturally, Soyo didn't refuse, and she was getting a little hungry too.
———
A few minutes later.
Inside a family restaurant beside the street, seated at a corner table, the two sat face to face.
"This place has lots of recommendations on the forums, not expensive either. I heard their omurice and parfaits taste pretty good."
Kaito handed her the menu in his hand, "See if there's anything you want to eat?"
"Mm… then I'll try the omurice, and a cup of hot Earl Grey tea."
Soyo glanced at the menu for a moment and quickly made her decision.
Kaito then turned to the still spacey waitress nearby, "I'll have the same, omurice and hot Earl Grey tea. Also, bring two matcha parfaits, thanks."
"O-oh… okay…", The soul-less waitress walked off. Not looking at her footing, she nearly tripped on flat ground.
But not long after, she returned excitedly with a tray full of various desserts and snacks, enthusiastically declaring, "You are our 100,000th customer since opening, so today's meal is entirely free!"
Then, shyly asked if they could exchange contact information? So she could notify them first when there are promotional offers in the store, and even offer free delivery.
"No need for the free meal," Kaito gently declined her request to exchange contact info, which left the waitress very disappointed.
However, the complimentary snack platter she insisted on giving them could not be taken back, firmly claiming it was a blessing for the 100,000th customer.
Once she reluctantly left, glancing back every few steps, Nagasaki Soyo shook her head helplessly.
"Kaito-kun, aren't you a bit too popular?"
It's impressive that the waitress could come up with such a clumsy excuse like "100,000th customer gets a free meal."
'Speaking of which… this so-called free meal. Could it be that she covered it out of her own salary?'
'When it's time to pay the bill later, better just pay together.'
As a rich girl living in a high-rise luxury condo, Soyo of course didn't care about such a small amount of money, she wouldn't even mind renting out the whole place.
"On that note, Nagasaki-san isn't far behind either, right?"
Kaito picked up a fry from the snack platter, it was freshly fried and still warm, and paired with ketchup, tasted pretty good.
"It's different," Soyo gently shook her head. She was simply good at blending into the environment. Though she had many friends, that was a result of deliberate effort and adaptation.
Kaito was different. Even if he did nothing and just stood there, he could still attract countless moths to the flame, willing to be burned to ashes without regret.
The two didn't dwell on the topic and naturally began chatting about recent fun stories, the atmosphere was quite harmonious.
And just at that moment—
Ding-a-ling~
The bell above the store door rang softly, accompanied by a bright and energetic girl's voice, "Ryou! Hurry up and catch up!"
A blond-haired girl with a side ponytail walked in briskly, followed by a blue-haired girl carrying many bags, eyes lifeless.
Kaito instinctively looked over and met the gaze of the blonde girl. She paused for a moment, then quickly turned to surprise.
"Kaito-kun? What a coincidence!"
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