"I'm going to grab a drink... You two should eat first. We can figure out the important stuff slowly after we get back. Want anything?"
Having wrapped up the serious conversation, Kuroha Akira began eating on his own. Feeling thirsty midway through, he decided to get a beverage and turned to ask the two across from him.
"Ah, I'm fine..."
"Me neither."
As expected, both of them still seemed subdued and not particularly enthusiastic about the meal. Kuroha Akira simply said "Got it" and headed toward the drink station by himself.
Aside from his occasional smoking at work, Kuroha Akira had virtually no bad habits. The one thing that might count as slightly unhealthy was his tendency to drink sweetened beverages like they were water.
It wasn't that he disliked plain water—more that drinking only water left his mouth feeling bland, like something was missing. Call it a minor indulgence.
And since this was a rare opportunity with unlimited refills, he intended to make the most of it. He still remembered that first encounter with the class president back then, when he didn't even have enough money for a proper drink. That memory alone made him appreciate moments like this.
Kuroha Akira arrived at the self-service drink dispenser when a familiar voice called out from behind him.
"Huh? Isn't that Akira-kun? What a coincidence! You eating here too?"
"Uh..."
There weren't many people in this world who addressed Kuroha Akira that way. Just his two fellow transmigrators at home, and then...
Sumitomo Ryota.
Turning around, he saw the guy in ripped jeans and a black graphic tee staring back at him with wide-eyed surprise.
He hadn't expected to run into this guy outside of school... Serendipity really seemed to have it out for him where Sumitomo was concerned.
But Kuroha Akira wasn't exactly thrilled about this encounter, mainly because this guy was overly familiar and had a curiosity that bordered on nosy.
And sure enough, Sumitomo Ryota immediately slung an arm around his shoulder with evident interest and launched into his usual interrogation.
"Akira-kun, why're you wearing your school uniform on a day off? You're just like my serious childhood friend—what's with you people and school uniforms? I seriously don't get the appeal."
"..."
I like it, okay?! Mind your own business!
"Are you here with your parents? Or by yourself?"
Oh no, here we go. If this kept up, the guy would never stop prying.
So Kuroha Akira decided to counter with a question of his own, steering the conversation back toward him.
"What about you? Who're you with?"
Sumitomo Ryota, blissfully unaware of the deflection tactic, took the bait without hesitation and answered honestly.
"Friends, obviously. Meeting up with some old pals today."
"Oh, those guys from your class?"
"Nah, not school friends today... Well, actually, one of them goes to our school, just not in our class. Haven't been in touch with her for ages either..."
Sumitomo scratched his head, looking a bit sheepish.
He remembered how he'd once bothered Asato Hitomi under the pretext of being her childhood playmate while completely neglecting another good friend from those days. Looking back now, wasn't that blatant favoritism?
Claiming he was looking out for childhood friends had just been an excuse—he hadn't fully let go back then. Honestly, he felt pretty ashamed about it now... though he'd completely moved past those feelings.
"Ah, so you're on a date with Hitomi today?"
"No way, that'd be weird—wearing school uniforms on a weekend date."
Kuroha Akira rolled his eyes at the suggestion.
Besides, dating the class president? As if. Did this guy's brain only run on youth drama scripts?
"Just out eating with friends too... friends from outside school." Kuroha kept his explanation vague.
"Ohhh, so you escaped too? I totally get it—I had to get out of that suffocating atmosphere for some air myself."
"Love triangle drama?"
"Not at all! Remember I told you before how when I was little, Hitomi and I and a few others were super close? It's those friends from back then. Haven't seen them in years."
"Ah, right..."
Kuroha vaguely recalled it now—the class president's so-called Four Yonkos of childhood.
She'd mentioned before that there were three girls and two boys who used to play together back then. After entering high school, she'd run into Sumitomo Ryota and another girl... what was her name again? Takanashi?
Sumitomo sighed and launched into his tale of woe.
"So one of those friends—she goes to an all-girls school now—organized this get-together today. But after we met up, she wouldn't say why she called us all here, and the atmosphere's super gloomy... I seriously can't figure out why she suddenly wanted to meet after all these years. I mean, we've barely kept in touch since elementary school! If you've got something to say, just say it! How am I supposed to guess?!"
"Well... good luck with that."
Kuroha Akira had zero interest in their childhood nostalgia trip. He gave a noncommittal reply and prepared to make his escape.
But Sumitomo grabbed his arm from behind, pleading desperately.
"Hey! Wait, Akira-kun! Don't abandon me! Let me hang at your table for a bit! Or you could come sit at mine! Without anyone familiar there, I'm seriously gonna die of awkwardness!"
"Aren't they your childhood friends? That's not familiar enough?"
"We haven't seen each other in over three years! I have no clue what they're even doing now! Even if we were close back then, once you're separated, it's impossible to just pick up where you left off!"
That much was true.
As an adult, three to five years might not seem like much, but during school years, three years was an eternity—more than enough to completely upend social dynamics.
Add in the physical separation from moving from elementary to middle school, then middle to high school, and unless you ended up at the same schools, even the closest friends inevitably drifted apart.
But... what did any of this have to do with him?
"Annoying. Deal with it yourself."
"Nooo! Akira-kun, you heartless monster! Just help a guy out! Aren't we friends?!"
Who said we were friends? You're the one who unilaterally decided that... though, grudgingly, Kuroha supposed he could acknowledge the guy as an acquaintance at best.
Still, Kuroha Akira had zero desire to get tangled up in what sounded like a messy situation. But Sumitomo clung to him with the tenacity of a limpet, and eventually Kuroha had no choice but to drag this shameless nuisance back to their table.
Shinomiya's face brightened with a welcoming smile as Kuroha Akira returned—but the moment she spotted Sumitomo Ryota trailing behind him, her expression shifted to cool indifference in the blink of an eye.
"Akira-kun, you're back… Who's this?"
"A classmate."
"We're friends! Hi there! I'm Kuroha Akira's best buddy, Sumitomo Ryota—"
He'd intended to deliver a cheerful greeting, but the instant Sumitomo got a clear look at Shinomiya's face, his words caught in his throat. His mouth hung open mid-sentence, completely frozen.
Sumitomo had seen plenty of pretty girls in his life—Asato Hitomi and Shirai Shiori from school, not to mention some of his own childhood friends who'd grown up quite attractively.
But this? This was his first time encountering beauty on Shinomiya's level in real life. He'd only ever seen this caliber in movies—like that rising star everyone called "Angel," who was supposedly just a year above them yet already dominating the entertainment world.
In that frozen moment, a single thought crystallized in Sumitomo's mind:
So Akira wasn't lying about not dating Hitomi! He's got a girlfriend this gorgeous!
Was Hitomi about to join the ranks of the brokenhearted like him? Did childhood friends always lose in the end?
His emotions churned with conflict. Did Hitomi know about this? If she knew, why would she still hang around Akira-kun? Or maybe she didn't know... in which case, should he tell her?
"Before you get the wrong idea, let me be clear—she's not my girlfriend."
"Oh... oh..."
Thank goodness... So Hitomi still has a chance...
Sumitomo breathed an internal sigh of relief, grateful that Asato Hitomi's romantic prospects remained intact.
Meanwhile, those words struck Shinomiya like a knife to the heart.
Even though it was technically true, hearing him say it so plainly still stung. Her expression grew even frostier than before.
"Oh? Akira-kun's friend, why not have a seat?"
Tashiro Kurenai slipped into her mature older-sister mode, offering Sumitomo a warm smile and a gesture toward an empty chair.
The sight of Tashiro seemed to snap Sumitomo back to normalcy.
This older sister type was definitely attractive, but compared to the girl beside her, she didn't quite have that same breathtaking quality.
Besides, having two annoying older sisters at home, Sumitomo was pretty accustomed to—and comfortable with—the "older sister" archetype.
She was probably Kuroha Akira's actual sister, here to treat them to a meal. The real mystery was the relationship between that stunning girl and Akira-kun...
He was dying to ask! But now wasn't the time... He'd corner Akira about it later.
"Thanks, but I shouldn't stay long—my friends are waiting for me over there."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than another girl's voice chimed in from behind.
"What's going on, Ryota-kun?"
"Nothing, just spotted a school friend and came over to say hi."
But the girl had already walked over, and Kuroha followed Sumitomo's gaze toward her.
Appearance aside... that school uniform looked awfully familiar. Wasn't it the same sailor-style uniform Shinomiya used to wear?
Was she from Shinomiya's school?
The girl glanced briefly at Kuroha, then turned toward the table—and the moment her eyes landed on Shinomiya, they went wide with shock.
"You're... Shinomiya Shion!"
Huh? So they really did know each other?
Small world, or was Tokyo just this tiny?