"I'm starving!"
Hearing Tobe's listless voice, Hayama Hayato gave a helpless little laugh. "If you're hungry, pack it up and we'll all go grab a bite."
"Let's hit that restaurant we went to before. I've been wanting to try their hamburger steak."
"Isn't that place kind of far?"
"It's fine. The train gets there fast."
Hayama checked quickly with the rest of the group, confirmed nobody had any objections, and led them out of the school, heading for the restaurant they'd visited before.
On the other side, Mio—guided by memory—arrived at the entrance of a family restaurant.
This was where the two of them were going to have lunch.
As for why she'd picked this place: well, the food was good, obviously, easily worth a second visit.
There was one other reason, too. Aki Tomoya worked here.
Pity that the one who'd come with her was Yumiko, and not Kato Megumi or Eriri.
Ahem.
Reining in her wandering thoughts, Mio walked into the restaurant alongside Yumiko.
"Welcome. Table for two?"
"Aki-kun, we meet again~" Mio greeted Aki Tomoya with a sunny little smile.
"Shirai-san, hello."
On reflex, Tomoya's eyes went to the Yumiko standing beside Mio.
As one of the school's well-known figures, Yumiko was naturally someone he recognized.
He hadn't expected Mio to show up with Miura Yumiko this time.
Wait—didn't Yumiko like Hayama Hayato? That was common knowledge across the whole school.
It was precisely because of that—plus the fact that Yumiko always came off so fierce—that nobody dared pursue her or Hayama.
So why was she here with Mio of all people?
While Tomoya was caught up in his wild guessing, he suddenly felt Yumiko's gaze land on him, brimming with wariness.
I literally haven't done anything. Why is she looking at me like that?
Unable to make any sense of it, Tomoya gave up trying. He simply led the pair to their seats and stood quietly to one side, waiting for them to order.
It was then that the System's voice abruptly piped up in Mio's ear, nearly making her jump.
She thought another task had triggered—then remembered she'd used her [Slacking-off Card] today. No task would fire for the rest of the day.
"You bubbling up out of nowhere—is something the matter?"
"Nope. I just got the sense Host really dislikes Aki Tomoya, and I was a little curious about the reason."
"Explaining it would be too much of a hassle. I'll tell you when there's time."
"Fair enough. Then—I hope you have a pleasant vacation."
"Why does that blessing of yours sound like you're up to no good?"
"As if. That's just Host's imagination." The System gave two dry little laughs, then sank back into lurking mode.
Figuring no tasks would trigger today anyway, Mio couldn't be bothered to deal with the junk System.
Just as Mio was agonizing over what to order, Hayama and his group walked in through the door.
Tobe was about to say something when he spotted Mio and Yumiko sitting in the corner.
He grinned. "Didn't think we'd run into them even all the way out here. Does this count as fate or what?"
He was just about to head over and say hi when Hayama Hayato caught his arm.
Tobe shot him a puzzled look. "We're not gonna go say hello?"
"Let's leave it. We shouldn't disturb them."
Since Hayama had already said as much, Tobe naturally had no objection.
Led by the waitress, they took seats in a different corner. From their spot, they couldn't make out what Mio and Yumiko were talking about—but they could see every bit of the two girls' interaction.
Tobe noticed that the Yumiko in front of him now seemed a little different from the Yumiko at school.
She looked a lot gentler, the corners of her mouth perpetually curved into a smile as she chatted with Mio.
And Mio, for her part, kept her eyes on Yumiko with a gaze as soft and tender as water, as if everything else around her had ceased to exist.
Even a complete stranger would have sensed there was something secret and unspeakable between the two of them.
"Ha—Hayato, don't you think the mood between those two is a little… off?" Tobe tugged dramatically at the hem of Hayama Hayato's clothes.
Hayama hadn't needed Tobe to point it out—he'd already seen it himself.
But what good would seeing it do?
"Yumiko, this hamburger steak is really good. Want a taste?"
Though phrased as a question, Mio had already forked up a small piece of the steak and brought it to Yumiko's lips.
Just as Yumiko was about to open her mouth, the corner of her eye caught a familiar figure—Hayama Hayato.
But she didn't hesitate over his appearance in the slightest. She opened her mouth and ate the bite Mio was feeding her, just like that.
Mm. The taste really was pretty good.
"So how am I doing as a girlfriend? Giving you all the good food."
"You're just full and can't finish it yourself, that's all."
"No. I'm not. I didn't." Mio slid her eyes sideways. Last time she'd come here she'd polished off her whole plate flawlessly—it was probably the crepe she'd had before this that left her with no room.
And with that sideways glance, she too caught sight of Hayama and his group.
The moment she saw them, Mio visibly froze. She'd specifically dragged them all the way out here to avoid those people.
And yet she'd still managed to run straight into them. What in the world is this?!
She had no idea whether they'd seen her feeding Yumiko a second ago. And if they had—how on earth was she supposed to explain it?
Mio absolutely did not want Yumiko getting misunderstood on her account.
The real problem was that she'd gotten a little too into character just now—so locked onto Yumiko while eating that she'd completely forgotten to keep an eye on her surroundings.
If she'd noticed sooner, she wouldn't have fed Yumiko at all.
Seeing Mio's brow knit up in distress, Yumiko let out a soft laugh. "I'm not even worried yet. What are you panicking for?"
"I'm worried about what happens if Hayama gets the wrong idea about you."
"Doesn't matter. Let him misunderstand if he wants."
"Hm?"
At Yumiko's words, Mio looked up at her in surprise.
"I've… already decided to give up on Hayama."
"Eh!? So suddenly?" Mio was stunned for a beat, then quickly moved to comfort her. "Well, giving up's fine too—with everything Yumiko's got going for her, finding someone even better than Hayama would be a total breeze~"
"I've already found someone."
"Don't be sad—huh!?"
"That person… is you."
······