After playing on the slide a total of five times, they finally seemed satisfied.
"It was a great experience."
Hime seems quite satisfied.
His expression was somehow filled with satisfaction. Sliding must have really liked it.
"...Did you have that much fun?"
"It's normal."
But I would never say it was fun.
He had a look on his face that said, "I'm not old enough to be having fun on the slides." He thought it was normal, but he'd played there many times... Oh well, whatever.
I don't think they'll admit it even if I point it out, so I'll leave it at that.
"Yohei, I've been wondering for a while now... what kind of tire is this?"
After the slide, Hime headed towards the tire.
...This isn't a metaphor. There are literally four large tires half-buried in the ground, lined up at equal intervals.
The semicircular part above ground is just the right height to jump over or sit on.
Play equipment... I wonder if it's okay to call it that. It was an object that left me a little unsure how to react.
"Now that you mention it, that's true... what is this?"
"Even Youhei doesn't understand."
"No, I've seen them before and played with them before, but I didn't know their names... I called them tires."
"It is what it appears to be. I have no other choice."
"Did you play by climbing on it, jumping on it like a vaulting box, or sitting on it?"
"I was relieved to find that the uses were exactly what I had imagined."
Saying this, Hime approached the tire and hopped onto it.
She sat with her butt flat on the floor. It seemed that Hime had decided to use it as a bench.
"There's someone already using that bench over there, so let's rest here."
"Previous customer?"
Is there anyone else there besides us?
There was no one there when I arrived. I guess I arrived while Hime was playing... She seemed to have noticed, but I hadn't noticed at all.
I quickly turned around to see who it was.
Looking ahead, I looked at the only wooden bench in the park and saw a black object sitting there.
"--A cat?"
It wasn't a person.
A black cat was sitting on a bench. It was staring at me, either wary or observing me. Even though it was only a few meters away, I thought it was a pretty bold cat. It showed no signs of wanting to run away.
"He was walking right behind Youhei just now."
"...I had no idea."
"You're a cat, after all. Stealth is your forte."
I wonder if he's used to people?
The fact that it was passing close to me is probably proof that it isn't very wary of humans.
That said, he was taking a break on a bench, so it would be best not to disturb him.
"...My dress is dirty. Mei-san is going to scold me later."
"Oh no. I got dirty on the slide."
"I messed up. I should have worn clothes that I didn't mind getting dirty."
"But the dress looks good on you and is cute."
"...Why does Yohei make me grin like that? I'm troubled by sudden compliments."
"Ahaha. Sorry, I did that on purpose."
"That's mean... but I'm happy to be praised."
As they were having a casual conversation, Hime took out a water bottle from her bag.
Then I realized I was also thinking about buying a drink.
"Hime, I'm going to buy a drink from the vending machine over there, could you wait a bit?"
"Yes. I understand."
With that, I headed towards the entrance to the park where the vending machine was located.
I walked quickly and bought two bottles, one for Hime, and quickly paid for them before returning to Hime.
I was thinking maybe I should give the drink I bought to Hime.
"... Meow"
The crickets were chirping.
She got off the tire and bent over, looking down. I looked over to see what was going on, and at her feet... was a black ball of fur.
"Meow"
This one is the real thing.
It was the soft meow of a cat.
It seems that Hime and the cat have become good friends.