There were many crossed branches in the bush. Ryou was dressed lightly, and the exposed skin on her face and arms had red scratches, likely left by her earlier struggles.
Kaito didn't refuse. He crouched down and began carefully moving aside and breaking the obstructing branches, very gently.
Their bodies were very close, separated by only a tiny space. Ryou couldn't move and was still lying on the ground with her butt up. She couldn't see what was behind her and could only feel the unfamiliar masculine presence enveloping her, carrying a faint grassy scent, refreshing and pleasant.
Though it smelled nice, this was her first time being so close to a boy. Naturally, she felt uncomfortable and could only stay silent, pretending to be a Buddha statue.
Fortunately, the awkwardness didn't last long. Soon, all the obstructing branches were cleared by Kaito.
Yamada Ryou cautiously tested her movement. There was no more stuck sensation. Her pretty face lit up with joy, and just as she was about to climb out of the bush, a surprised voice came from behind.
"Kaito-san, and", A blonde girl with a floating ahoge suddenly widened her eyes, "Ryou?"
Looking at the two people stacked tightly one on top of the other, she went into a system crash.
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Chapter 49: Embarrassing! Get off the battlefield right now!
"What the heck, so it was just a misunderstanding. I thought...", Five minutes later, at the park swings, Ijichi Nijika patted her flat and rather barren chest, genuinely letting out a sigh of relief.
'You can't blame e for overthinking. Those two just now were way too... the morals of society are going downhill.'
'Come to think of it, although Ryou always acts unreliable and scatterbrained in front of people she's close to, she's also the kind of scummy woman who likes to borrow money and not return it, always freeloading off others, with a laundry list of flaws that can't even fit in one basket. But in front of outsiders, she's got that ice-cold beauty image, she won't act so casually.'
'As for Kurumizaka-kun... even though we haven't met many times, Bocchi will occasionally bring him up when talking about the band. Aside from club members, no one has ever said he was especially close with any girls.'
'These two together don't seem like they'd spark some kind of fiery romance no matter how you look at it, right?'
"Thought what?", Scummy Ryou had already gone back to her usual self and said seriously, "You immediately jumped to lewd conclusions. Nijika, have you been secretly peeking at the R18 manga I left at your place, mhm... mmph..."
The red-faced, flushed blond girl clamped her mouth shut with both hands, shouting things like, "How could you slander me like that?"
And "I-It was just during cleaning, I saw it by accident so that doesn't count as peeking,"
And "Wait! I didn't even look at it!", all sorts of confusing stuff, filling the air with a cheerful atmosphere.
The girl's still too naive. Clearly a joke or two would've let her skate past the topic, but instead she had to get all serious about it.
Still, Nijika quickly realized, this kind of denial was pretty much the same as admitting it.
Her delicate features flushed red at a visible speed, like blazing sunset clouds in the sky, and those wine-red eyes seemed to be spinning in circles.
Seeing that she looked like she might faint from embarrassment any second now, Kaito gave a light cough and changed the subject, "Anyway, it's a good thing the misunderstanding's cleared up. But Ichiji-san, what brings you here?"
Gentle, thoughtful, and always smoothing things over, that's always been Nijika's role. It was her first time being the one getting bailed out by someone else.
She let go of Ryou's mouth, now a little embarrassed, and fiddled with the ponytail beside her ear.
"I was out shopping with a friend, but then my sister called and asked me to help out at the store, so I was planning to take a shortcut from here to catch the train home..."
Saying that, she turned to look at her friend, those wine-red eyes flashing with a dangerous glint, "Since I ran into you like this, Ryou, you're coming with me too!"
"W-Wait a sec!"
She hadn't expected karma to strike so quickly.
A rare flash of panic swept across Yamada Ryou's usually calm, pretty face, "I just remembered Kita moved into the ICU..."
"You already used that excuse once! And I literally talked to Kita-chan on the phone just thirty minutes ago to ask her to help at the store!"
Nijika ruthlessly exposed the scummy woman's lie and slammed down the verdict, "No escaping! You're coming with me to the store!"
No one knew where Ryou pulled it from, but she took out a handkerchief and wiped at the corners of her eyes, her fragile look pitiful and tearful.
Unfortunately, Nijika, who knew her true nature all too well, wasn't moved at all. Heart of stone.
After suppressing this scummy Ryou, Nijika once again showed a brilliant smile, turning toward Kaito and inviting, "Kurumizaka-kun, would you like to come along too? There's going to be a super popular band playing at the store tonight, it's a rare opportunity!"
"You're not trying to rope me in as a laborer, right?"
"O-Of course not!"
Nijika waved her hands in a panic, "You're a guest, and also Bocchi-chan's friend, so we have to treat you right."
Kaito thought for two seconds. Since there was nothing to do at home anyway, going to check it out sounded fine, "Then I'll be imposing, Ichiji-san."
Forty minutes later.
At STARRY in Shimokitazawa.
The store usually starts selling tickets at 5 p.m. It was currently 4:12 p.m., so there weren't many customers yet.
After descending the stairs and entering the underground live hall, there was a woman with waist-length blonde hair who looked ninety percent like Nijika sitting next to the counter, sipping apple juice through a straw.
Hearing footsteps, the swivel chair under her did a 180, and she turned sideways to greet them, "Yo, you're finally back."
"Let me introduce you," Nijika took the lead but ignored her sister's greeting, instead turning around and introducing, "This is Ijichi Seika, my older sister, and the manager of this place."
Kaito took a quick look at the manager Seika in front of him. He hadn't seen her last time he came here, but now that he did, she looked just like Nijika was made from the same mold. Even the flat chest ran in the family. The only difference was that she was a size taller.
Unlike her charming and gentle younger sister, Ijichi Seika had no expression on her beautiful face and carried an intense aura of world-weariness. She didn't seem easy to get along with.
"Bringing another new friend...", Seika followed her sister's gaze and happened to meet the eyes of the handsome young man on the stairs. The boxed apple juice in her hand"plop"dropped straight to the floor.
"Sis! That's so rude!", Nijika hurried to grab a broom and dustpan, cleaning up the trash on the floor.
After finishing that, she put the tools away and then pointed to the long-haired woman sitting at the table nearby, "That's the store's sound engineerjust call her PA-san~"
PA-san was also a stunning beauty, sporting traditional hime-style long black hair, like a princess from the Sengoku era. She wore a loose, ultra-long-sleeved coat and at the moment had her mouth slightly open, revealing a rare sight, her snake-like, forked pink tongue.
"Hello, I'm Kurumizaka Kaito, Nijika's friend."
Kaito only glanced briefly and then looked away, offering a plain and simple greeting.
"Ahem, Kurumizaka-kun, was it?"
Seika came back to her senses and awkwardly coughed. A suspicious blush remained on her cold, world-weary pretty face, "Nijika's friends are my friends too. Want some apple juice?"
'You're already that old, stop acting like a lovestruck schoolgirl, Sis!', Nijika held her forehead in exasperation. Nearly thirty years old and still going all starry-eyed over a hot guy.
'Embarrassing! Get off the battlefield right now!'
But then again, thinking back to how she acted the first time she saw Kurumizaka-kun... maybe she wasn't any better than her sister.
Shimokitazawa's Archangel quickly shifted the topic with a guilty conscience, "Oh right, Sis. Kurumizaka-kun's ticket money can be deducted from my staff pay. Same for any extra drink purchases."
STARRY may be a live house for watching performances, but it actually operated under a restaurant license.
In other words, it was technically a restaurant by name. Customers who wanted to watch a show had to order a drink, basically a clever little legal loophole.
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Chapter 50: Four Members, Three Flat Chests
"No need to waive the bill," Kaito gently refused. He wasn't short on money right now, so there was no need to take advantage of the girl.
"Just treat it as an apology for last time! Please, please!", Nijika put her hands together in a pleading gesture, just as she was about to say something else, the wind chime hanging at the entrance rang, and two girls walked in.
One had medium-length red hair and vivid green eyes full of vitality. Her aura was so intense it almost hurt to look at her.
The other wore an old-fashioned tracksuit. Her long pink hair had a cowlick on the right side, and a blue hair accessory shaped like hard candy. Her whole body emitted a gloomy aura of "I don't want to be here."
As Kita entered and was about to greet them, she saw the back of someone she admired. Her face lit up instantly, "Eh? Kurumizaka-kun, why are you here?"
Hearing that familiar name, Bocchi, who had been downcast, also suddenly looked up. Her blue pupils sparkled, "Squad leader!"
Little Bocchi looked just like a puppy seeing its owner, too cute. If she had a tail, it would definitely be wagging happily right now.
Kaito smiled slightly too, "Good afternoon."
That smile was like the moon breaking through clouds, spring snow melting, reminding one of the mythological beauty Adonis, whom even the goddess of beauty fell for.
Nijika clutched her chest, struggling to look away. She was honestly a little worried about her own heart.
Taking this chance, she glanced around at the other people in the store. As expected, everyone's face was red, like they could bleed from it, yet no one was willing to blink even once.
'Seriously can't let my guard down even for a second...'
Thinking this, Nijika pulled a drumstick from under her skirt and gently tapped the bar. A crisp sound echoed in the narrow studio.
"Hey hey hey~ Snap out of it, everyone!"
Like a grand bell echoing.
Everyone was startled by the sound of the drumstick and tacitly chose not to mention their lovestruck expressions from a moment ago. The atmosphere in the studio seemed to return to normal.
"Long time no see, Kurumizaka-kun. What brings you to the shop today?", The first to speak was Kita. The cheerful girl's friendliness had long reached MAX level. Though she had been stunned for a moment, she quickly bounced back, full of enthusiasm.
"I heard from Nijika that there's a performance tonight, so I came by," Kaito didn't hide his reason and then looked at Bocchi, who was standing beside her.
"I just didn't expect... that even when coming to the shop on the weekend, you'd still be dressed like this. That tracksuit look is really recognizable."
"Ehehe, I think so too."
Kita chuckled a bit, then couldn't help but comment, "Bocchi-chan is so cute, yet she's always in that tracksuit. Is there something special about it?"
As the conversation turned to her, the little socially anxious girl got a bit nervous. But since everyone here was a familiar face, it was still within what she could handle. She hesitated a bit, then softly said, "If there's anything special... it's probably that it's especially expensive?"
That seemingly plain pink tracksuit was actually a high-end item she had bought on impulse for several hundred thousand yen. A major brand. But she regretted it right after buying it, and couldn't return it either.
Impulse buying really ruins lives.
That was the shopping decision Bocchi regretted most. At first, she wore it thinking "I bought it already, might as well wear it." After a while, she just got used to it.
"Boyfriend-kun must want to see Bocchi in other outfits, right?"
Gremlin Ryou suddenly spoke up, "I remember we still have a maid outfit in the shop. Kita wore it last time!"
"You're the one who wants to see it! Don't drag Kurumizaka-kun into your fantasies, you jerk!", Nijika's hand itched. She really wanted to bonk Gremlin Ryou on the head, but worried it would make her look like a violent girl, she barely held herself back.
"Actually", Kaito pondered for two seconds, then said seriously, "I'm kind of curious too."
It was understandable.
That unflattering tracksuit had almost become part of Bocchi's core identity. Since he met the shy girl, Kaito had never seen her wear any other type of outfit. At most, she changed the bottom half. Sometimes she wore a skirt over the tracksuit pants, sometimes just the skirt.
"Nijika, say something!", Gremlin Ryou crossed her arms proudly, with a "I totally called it" expression.
The angel looked a bit awkward and whispered, "Sorry for misunderstanding you."
'Still a maid outfit is just way too much...'
Gotou Hitori's instinct to escape kicked in, and it felt like she was about to turn into a soft-bodied creature and slide under the table.
Her blue eyes wandered around, soon locking onto a nearby box labeled "Mango Mask."
If she could just hide in there...
"Bocchi, you don't want to disappoint Boyfriend-kun, right?", Gremlin Ryou stared at her with shining eyes, perfectly exploiting the weak point of the little introvert. An effective and precise critical hit.
"Uuu...", Bocchi let out an adorable whimper.
But still, she braved her shyness and softly said, "I-I got it!"
Ten minutes later.
Kaito sat at the bar, sipping on the apple juice Manager Seika had generously provided.
Bocchi had gone into the back room to change, with Nijika and the others helping her. They still hadn't come out.
From the dressing room, muffled squeals and laughter could be heard, mixed with Bocchi's shy, trailing voice, making people even more curious about what was happening inside.
