"Wait, that's not right!"
She suddenly came to her senses and bared her teeth at Sato, her two little pointed canine teeth looking especially adorable.
"Who is she?!"
Eriri pointed at Yukinoshita Haruno.
Haruno watched the scene with a cheerful smile. After giving Sato a meaningful grin, she lightly covered her mouth and giggled.
"You mean me? I'm his about-to-be-his-girlfriend."
"A... what girlfriend?!"
Eriri's voice instantly shot up several octaves as she stared at Sato in utter disbelief.
"Don't listen to her."
Sato rolled his eyes helplessly.
"Oh my, you were confessing to me just a moment ago, and now you're already denying it. Nohara-kun really is heartless."
Haruno put on a pitiful expression and looked at Sato with pouting lips, as though she might burst into tears the very next second.
"Really?"
Eriri looked at Sato.
"No."
"Hm? I happen to have proof."
Haruno suddenly smiled as she waved her phone in her hand.
"Miss Sawamura, would you like to hear it?"
Eriri glared at Haruno in annoyance.
Where did this old woman even come from?
Just then, Kasumigaoka Utaha and the others slowly walked over from the distance. The first voice to reach them was Yukinoshita Yukino's cool, indifferent one.
"Big Sister, what are you doing here?"
Haruno's eyes lit up the moment she saw Yukino. She walked over with a smile and hugged her younger sister.
"It's Little Yukino. Ever since I last met Nohara-kun, it's been so long since we've seen each other. We were just catching up."
Yukino expressionlessly pushed Haruno away.
Haruno simply giggled, placed both hands on Yukino's shoulders, and looked her up and down. Her bright eyes seemed to sparkle like they held a sky full of stars as she praised her without hesitation.
"Little Yukino looks so beautiful this morning. Even your big sister can't help loving how you look. Any boy who doesn't like Little Yukino definitely isn't a normal boy. Isn't that right, Nohara-kun?"
At the end, she turned toward Sato and gave him a playful wink.
Sato: "..."
He looked around at the pairs of bright eyes fixed on him and let out a quiet sigh.
She's still trying to dig a hole for me?
"She's Yukinoshita's older sister?"
Eriri looked at Haruno in surprise.
"I'm sorry. My sister has caused you all trouble."
Yukino immediately sighed and stepped forward to apologize to the two of them. She didn't even need to think about it to know just how troublesome her sister could be.
"Huh? Little Yukino, I haven't done anything at all."
"Big Sister, let's go."
Yukino glanced at Haruno before suddenly grabbing her by the arm and pulling her toward the crowded area.
"Huh? Little Yukino, don't be like that. I still haven't shown everyone the really good part!"
The youthful college girl was dragged away by her younger sister. Seeing there was no escaping Yukino's grip, she turned back and mischievously winked at Sato.
"Young man, if you confess to me again next time we meet, I might just say yes."
"..."
The surroundings suddenly fell silent.
With her arms folded across her chest, Utaha looked at Sato with an amused smile.
"What confession? Care to tell us about it?"
Keeping perfectly calm, Sato set the tray in his hands down, picked up a napkin from the table and wiped his hands. Then, with a casual flick, he tossed the used napkin neatly into the trash can beside the table.
"What's there to talk about? I suggest you don't believe a single word she says."
As he spoke, he reached into his pocket, took out a small box, and handed it to Eriri.
"Happy birthday."
Eriri accepted it with obvious delight.
Utaha couldn't help letting out a mocking laugh, then rolled her eyes at Sato so dramatically they almost seemed ready to float away.
Hmph. Men.
Yuuki Asuna watched the scene with a gentle smile.
Holding the little box, Eriri gave it a light shake before looking up at Sato expectantly.
"What's inside?"
"Well..."
Sato rubbed his forehead.
"I spent a long time trying to figure out what to get you. After thinking it over, I realized your only real hobby is drawing, so in the end I picked out a few ribbons for tying your hair."
With Yuuki Asuna here, Sato didn't say everything.
If only Utaha had been present, he probably would have said, "Other than reading and drawing R18 doujinshi, you don't have any other hobbies, so I honestly couldn't think of what to buy."
Choosing a birthday present for Eriri had been genuinely difficult. There was no way he could give a girl a set of R18 doujinshi for her birthday, even if she liked that kind of thing.
So in the end, he chose several ribbons for tying her twin tails.
"Heh. Looks like someone really likes twin tails."
Utaha sneered from the side as she looked at Sato with disdain. It reminded her that the heroine of the script she'd recently finished also wore twin tails.
She looked at Eriri with a hint of caution.
Could a losing heroine actually make a comeback?
Sato, however, replied calmly,
"What's wrong with liking twin tails? I don't just like twin tails. I also like ponytails, side ponytails, bob cuts, long straight black hair, loose hair, tied-up hair. I like all of them."
He then looked at Eriri.
"What do you think? If you don't like them, I'll go back and think of something else."
Eriri gently shook her head. Opening the gift box, she looked at the ribbons in all sorts of colors inside.
"I really like them."
Sato smiled.
"As long as you like them."
Eriri picked out the sky-blue ribbon from the box, removed the black ribbon she had been wearing, and tied her hair with the new one instead. Looking both nervous and shy, she asked Sato,
"W... what do you think?"
"Just as beautiful as before."
Eriri was overjoyed.
But then another soft snort came from behind them.
Someone's jealousy bar is maxxing out.
The smile on Sato's face immediately disappeared. Turning to Utaha, he said fiercely,
"What have you been doing since earlier?"
A dangerous glint immediately flashed across Utaha's eyes.
You're lecturing me?
Keeping a straight face, Sato leaned down and whispered into her ear,
"I'll deal with you after the gathering is over."
Utaha froze for a moment. Then her cheeks flushed slightly. Folding her arms across her chest, she turned her head away and let out another soft huff.