"By the way, Chihaya-san, I think there's a comic con on Saturday. Are you going?"
Mayuri Shiina asked, waggling her finger and looking up and to the side as if trying to recall something.
"Which one are you talking about? A friend of mine invited me, so I might go."
An image of Marin's blonde hair flashed in his mind. Chihaya Kaiser took out his phone, opened her social media page, and saw that a new set of photos was up and her follower count had risen to three hundred.
Realizing it was rude to be on his phone, he quickly put it away and said to Mayuri Shiina.
"Maybe we'll run into each other. If you hear of any suitable jobs, please be sure to let me know. Thanks."
"Of course! Let's get in touch then. It'd be great if we meet!"
Mayuri Shiina clapped her hands and smiled.
She was always so kind and gentle, which gave Chihaya Kaiser a very good impression of her. He never would have guessed that she and Rintaro Okabe were childhood friends who had actually ended up together.
He wondered who confessed. It didn't seem like something Mayuri Shiina would do; it was probably Rintaro Okabe.
While speculating about this gossip, Chihaya Kaiser kept a smile on his face and continued talking with Mayuri Shiina about work at the convention.
While they were discussing work, Kurisu Makise and Rintaro Okabe went back to fiddling with that microwave, which was clearly just a microwave connected to a phone.
No matter what they did, a time machine wasn't going to appear, let alone make that banana disappear.
In the end, after all their tinkering, they'd made no progress.
Chihaya Kaiser glanced around. The System hadn't sent any notifications, so he didn't know if this could even be considered a date.
Looking at the room full of people, he figured it probably didn't count.
After listening to them bicker for several more minutes, he realized he'd never complete his quest if this kept up.
"Um... I have plans with my sister, so I should probably get going."
"Oh? In that case, I'll leave with you."
Kurisu Makise tilted her head, crossed her arms, and stood up with Chihaya Kaiser.
"It's about time I left anyway. I can't believe I was foolish enough to think he could actually build a time machine. What a waste of time."
"...Okay."
Chihaya Kaiser said goodbye to everyone at the lab and started on his way.
He looked at Kurisu Makise, feeling that his date quest was a complete bust.
Suggesting they go somewhere else now would make it an actual date; visiting the lab had been a perfectly natural excuse.
There was nothing to be done.
He felt he had no choice but to give up on it.
The streets were bustling with people weaving through the crowds, everyone seeming to just brush past one another.
The setting sun cast long shadows.
The girl's profile looked beautiful in the soft light. It was the golden hour for photography, and she was the perfect model for a portrait.
Unfortunately, Chihaya Kaiser hadn't brought his camera.
The two walked in a comfortable silence, heading toward the same station until a train roared past, its loud noise accompanied by an unpleasant smell from the wind it kicked up.
She turned her head to look at the boy's profile. "Chihaya, are you going to meet your sister now?"
"Yeah, more or less. But I'm heading to a live house. You probably wouldn't be interested, would you?"
Chihaya Kaiser made a tentative invitation, half-expecting to be refused.
He put on a polite smile. "I should probably head this way, Christina. Let's meet at the lab again next time."
"Hey, do you really like that nickname?" Kurisu Makise's gaze lingered on his face, but the moment he looked back at her, she quickly averted her eyes.
"I do. I think it's a pretty good nickname. Or would you prefer I call you Chris (Kurisu) directly?"
The boy's tone was teasing. 'Christina' was a friend's nickname, but calling her 'Kurisu' would be far more intimate. He was sure she wouldn't agree to it.
And indeed, Kurisu Makise didn't agree. She turned her head, avoiding his gaze, and changed the subject.
"I find that name irritating, personally. But if you like calling me that, then do as you please. Are live shows interesting?"
"Huh?" Chihaya Kaiser paused, then nodded. "The live house over there is really nice, and it has a café. I don't know if there's a show tonight, though, or what kind of band would be playing."
"Is it really that fun? I'm just thinking that if I go and it's not interesting, I'll be genuinely angry for having wasted my time."
Kurisu Makise took a step forward, her tone slightly demanding, giving off a strong 'I'm very curious' vibe. She blinked repeatedly, hoping he would get the hint.
Chihaya Kaiser looked at her, his expression briefly puzzled before dawning realization struck. A grin spread across his face as he answered.
"It's a lot of fun. Especially as a musician, swaying to the beat on stage, moving with the rhythm of the drums and bass, playing every note. Standing in the spotlight, with your fingers dancing and sliding across the fretboard... it gets your blood pumping."
Chihaya Kaiser recalled the days he played with Ryō—every rehearsal, every live show.
"Want to come with me?"
"I suppose I can condescend to go have a look and see what a Japanese live house is really like."
Kurisu Makise tilted her head, a smile on her face.
So this is what a tsundere is like.
Chihaya Kaiser realized she was a bit difficult—she wouldn't say what she wanted directly, had a competitive personality, and loved to argue things to the very end, whether it was with him or with Rintaro Okabe.
Then again, he figured, you'd need that kind of personality to graduate from university at eighteen.
However, Kurisu Makise was surprised to hear he had performed on stage before, her eyes widening.
"Photography and playing an instrument must take up a lot of time, right? And you have to go to school like normal?"
"Of course." Chihaya Kaiser nodded. "I have a wide range of hobbies, but I'm just a jack-of-all-trades, master of none."
"That's really not what I expected." Kurisu Makise tucked a strand of hair, blown by the wind, behind her ear.
"What did you expect?" he asked, confused.
She pouted. "I thought you'd be the type to constantly be dating, spending your high school years wasting time surrounded by girls."
"Why would you think that?" Chihaya Kaiser's eyelid twitched; something felt off.
"Hmph. I wonder who it was who invited me somewhere, only to get swarmed by a group of girls."
He was more or less used to her way of speaking by now, but he hadn't expected Kurisu Makise to hold such a grudge. She hadn't said anything at the time, but she was bringing it up now.
Chihaya Kaiser once again experienced her petty contrariness. He suppressed a laugh, pursed his lips, and began to explain.
"I was a victim in that situation, too."
"Looked to me like you were enjoying it."
"Not at all. It was exhausting."
"Oh, I see. So it was exhausting." The corners of Kurisu Makise's mouth tilted up slightly, as if she was the one enjoying it, relishing this kind of banter with him.
"I seriously don't have time to get tangled up with girls. Especially ordinary girls."
Chihaya Kaiser explained earnestly, his tone softening. "Thankfully, you came and bailed me out. Otherwise, I really don't know what I would have done."
It was precisely this earnest tone that hit Kurisu Makise right where she was vulnerable.
The girl froze instantly, holding her breath, unsure of what to do with her hands.
He didn't have time for ordinary girls... in other words, did that mean he didn't think she was ordinary?
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