387 - Story About Buying My Classmate Once A Week

Chapter 387 My room isn't that large, so with four people inside, it's naturally quite lively. Even as we eat our pizza, there is always someone talking, adding to the cheerful atmosphere. You might say it has a birthday-like vibe. Back when I was in high school, I was accustomed to environments like this and could easily adapt to the atmosphere. I wished to do the same today and just thought I should enjoy the day, but I find it hard not to be distracted by Miyagi sitting right across from me. Currently, she's chatting pleasantly with Mio and Utsunomiya. It makes sense for her to converse with her best friend, Utsunomiya, but seeing her chat so amicably with Mio would have been unthinkable not too long ago. Observing this changed Miyagi stirs an unease within me. I know how she became friends with Mio. She worked part-time at the café where Mio works in order to buy the necklace that now sparkles on my chest. Given the reason, I can't complain. Besides, Mio isn't a bad person. She falls into the category of a good person. I can't exactly tell Miyagi not to get close to her. I take a bit of the pizza. Miyagi wasn't thrilled about me working part-time either. She even asked me to quit once. I briefly think about wanting Miyagi to return to the version of herself from before she started working part-time, and I take a sip of my orange juice to dismiss the thought. I should view Miyagi's part-time work as a good thing, as it made it easier for me to work too. It means that it's also easier to achieve my dream of living with Miyagi instead of returning home after graduation, so there's no need to be disheartened. After finishing the pizza on my plate, I move on to the chicken. "Hazuki, shouldn't we open the Chanmerry and eat the cake soon?" At Mio’s suggestion, I glance at the table to find that most of the pizza and side dishes have already disappeared into our stomachs. I respond, "Yeah, I'll go get it," and join Miyagi to bring plates with the Chanmerry and cake. When I try to hand the Chanmerry to Mio, she pushes it back to me, saying, "Hazuki, you should open it." "Mio, the person who brought it should open it." "Is it okay if I open it? Don't blame me for what happens." "What do you mean by ‘what happens?’" "I’m not confident I can open it without spilling it. But since Hazuki said I should open it, I'll give it a try." Cheerfully, Mio says so and snatches the Chanmerry from my hand, briskly opening the golden package. "Hey, Mio, wait. I'll open it." "Don't worry, don’t worry. I'm just going to pull the cork out, so nothing as alarming as what Hazuki worries about will happen." Even though she just admitted she wasn't confident, Mio assures me as she attempts to pull the cork out without even reading the instructions. "Huh, it won't open." She tilts her head, lifting the bottle to inspect it, causing the liquid inside to swirl. I have a bad feeling about this. No, I only have a bad feeling about this. "Mio-san, isn't the cap on the Chanmerry supposed to be twisted off?" Utsunomiya's voice reaches my ears, and when I glance at her, she too must be feeling uneasy since she’s keeping her distance from the table. "Oh, you twist it, right?" Saying that, Mio twists the cork aggressively, producing a light "pop" in the room. Naturally, the contents burst out, and Mio's dismayed cry echoes. "Ah, Hazuki. This is bad. Give me something!" I grab a tissue from the platypus plushie's back and wipe the Chanmerry-soaked table and floor. No matter how you look at it, it's obviously faster if I do it myself rather than handing the tissues to Mio. "Hazuki, sorry. Let me help." As she says so, Mio tries to get up and plants her hand on the wet floor. "Whoa, it's cold!" Mio's cry echoes, prompting Miyagi to instruct, "Mio-san, don't move," before exiting the room to fetch a wet towel. "Sorry, Shiori-chan." "It's all right, but isn't Mio-san quite different from when she's at work?" Miyagi points out, and with a straight face, Mio responds, "Today's me isn't in work mode." Indeed, when she isn't working, Mio tends to be rather careless and laid-back. It's no wonder she spilled the Chanmerry. "Mio, if you're not in work mode, just stay quiet." "Uh, sorry." A pitiful voice echoes, and Miyagi bursts into giggles. "Eh, Shiori-chan, what's so funny?" "Mio-san, you’re like a scolded child." "Eh, is that how I seem?" "Yeah." The joy in Miyagi's laughter is more evident than at any other point today, and it captures my attention fully. "Maika-chan, do I seem problematic today?" "Not really problematic, just amusing." Utsunomiya chuckles and comments, "You've spilled about half the Chanmerry," prompting Miyagi to laugh along. This situation is indeed amusing. If it were only Mio and Utsunomiya here, I’d be laughing too. But right now, my lips won't curl into a smile. The reason is simple. Miyagi is giggling softly. --While looking at Mio. Today's Miyagi is "the fun-loving Miyagi who's with friends," but she hadn’t been laughing out loud. Yet, here she is now, giggling. This Miyagi is cute. It’s a face I don't get to see often, making me want to keep watching forever and see it again and again. However, I didn't cause this smile, and this isn’t the aquarium where I could make Miyagi so happy. Mio had effortlessly done something I rarely get to do. I turn my gaze away from Miyagi and discard the wet tissue into the trash. Yet immediately, Miyagi returns to my vision. But my expression is frozen. Still, I can't keep staring at Miyagi’s laughter indefinitely, and I can't remain unsmiling in this situation either. "Mio, go wash your hands." "Will do." With that, Mio leaves the room, and the three of us clean up the spilled Chanmerry. Soon after, Mio returns and tries to open the remaining bottle, prompting my unamused voice to stop her as I take it from her hands. "Mio, you're banned from opening the Chanmerry. As for the last bottle... Should Miyagi or Utsunomiya open it?" While pouring the remaining half of the original Chanmerry into glasses, I ask the other two. "It's too much hassle, so I'm fine." Miyagi's typical response is followed by Utsunomiya's eager voice, "I'd like to open it. I'll make sure not to spill it, is that okay?" "Of course." I hand the last bottle to Utsunomiya, explaining the opening instructions from the package. "I think the cap needs to be twisted off. Also, don’t shake the bottle." "Got it. Are you sure you're okay with it, Shiori?" At Utsunomiya’s prompting, I glance back at Miyagi to find her usual, unsmiling demeanor. "I'm okay. Leave it to Maika." The expression Mio caused to surface has vanished from Miyagi, leaving me relieved and slightly disappointed. Whenever I'm in this home with people other than Miyagi and me, my emotions become tangled, sparking unexpected feelings. My unchecked emotions threaten to twist my expression into one unfitting for the situation. "Alright, I'll open it now." Saying so, Utsunomiya twists the cap of the Chanmerry. Pop. The contents don't spill, and a pleasant sound echoes. I accept the bottle from Utsunomiya and pour the Chanmerry into glasses. When the four of us toast, Miyagi speaks up. "Let me drink yours, Sendai-san." "It's fine, it's not like I can't drink carbonated drinks." "Don't force yourself; you can just have some orange juice." Miyagi stretches out her hand calmly, so I pass her my glass without resistance. "Hazuki, if you're not good with carbonated drinks, you also can't drink beer, right?" Mio remarks while eating her shortcake, adding, "And champagne's out of the question too." "If you open a bottle of champagne, I'm sure you'll soak everything around you again," I tease, trying to untangle my mixed emotions as I turn my gaze to Mio. "Erase that memory, please." "You spilled quite a bit of the Chanmerry earlier, didn’t you?" Utsunomiya chuckles, while Mio, having taken a big gulp of Chanmerry, dramatically pretends to lament. "Sigh. I guess the three of you hate me now" "Well, you did turn this place into a sea of Chanmerry." I jest exaggeratedly, only to get a swift, "It wasn't a sea," in return. "True, not quite a sea, but you did spill half of it, Mio-san," Utsunomiya comments with a cheerful grin, as Mio feigns wiping away tears. "You're just as usual, Hazuki, but even Maika-chan said something like that... Shiori-chan, you wouldn't say something like that, right?" "In this situation, I kind of have no choice but to say I wouldn't," Miyagi sighs dramatically. "Phew, I'm glad. Shiori-chan still loves me, then." "I never said I loved you." Miyagi states the words I was about to let slip, and I feel a sense of relief. It's not good. Being like this is really not good. Mio is my friend, but right now, she’s also Miyagi's friend. And Miyagi is kind to her friends. She uses words she wouldn't use with me and shows expressions I seldom see. It’s not amusing, but it's something I should accept. "I like you, Mio-san," Utsunomiya says cheerfully, to which Mio responds with, "Maika-chan, you're kind. Hazuki, you're so cold," turning a resentful look my way. Fixing my gaze on Mio instead of Miyagi, I speak up. "Don't worry, Mio, I don't hate you." I know I should say I like her in these situations, but in front of Miyagi, I don't want to say "I like you" to anyone else. I grip my wrist, where traces of her linger. I feel Miyagi's gaze. I hold it tightly, hard enough to leave a mark, then gradually let go. "Thanks to Maika-chan, not Hazuki, my self-esteem just got a big boost!" Mio says brightly, adding, "The next party will be for Maika-chan’s birthday." I look at Miyagi. Our eyes meet. But in an instant, her gaze shifts to my chest. Miyagi's gaze rests on the four-leaf clover necklace that makes me who I am. I thought that if I had a mark that everyone could see, that showed I was Miyagi's alone, I'd be able to navigate these kinds of situations with ease. Yet, it seems that's not the case. Today, I can't help but wish that, no matter what expression Miyagi wears—no matter who made her wear it—there would still be a mark of mine on her that shows she belongs to me. I take a bite of the shortcake adorned with white cream and a strawberry on top. "This cake is delicious," I say, and I hear Miyagi respond, "It is."