"What was I about to do again?"
After Shirai Mio and Kato Megumi left, Miura Yumiko blinked a few times, feeling like her brain had just blue-screened.
"Weren't you going to try on clothes? By the way, the outfit you wanted to try is still in your hands."
It wasn't until Hayama Hayato pointed it out that Yumiko finally snapped back to reality. She glanced down at the clothes in her hands and walked back to the fitting room line.
Watching how absent-minded Yumiko looked, Hayama couldn't help but feel puzzled. She'd seemed perfectly enthusiastic when Mio was around—so why did she turn into this the moment Mio left?
Yumiko's spaced-out state lasted all the way until they left the clothing store before it finally improved, even if only slightly.
She was still curious about the relationship between Mio and Kato Megumi, but she understood she couldn't keep going like this.
Today was a rare chance—she'd finally managed to ask Hayama Hayato out. No matter what, she needed to make some progress to justify the results from her two practice dates with Mio.
And there she went, thinking about Mio again…
At this point, she'd given up fighting the fact that Mio kept popping into her head. The more she tried not to think about her, the more she did. Besides, she needed the techniques she'd picked up from Mio, so not thinking about her was basically impossible.
Pulling her scattered thoughts together, Yumiko looked at Hayama. Originally, she'd planned to copy what Mio did during their dates—link arms with Hayama, flash him a sweet smile.
But imagination was one thing. Reality was another.
Yumiko discovered her skin was still too thin. She simply couldn't pull off what Mio did so effortlessly. She couldn't even manage the sweet smile, let alone the arm-linking.
She genuinely wondered—how on earth did Mio do all of that with such a straight face?
Left with no choice, she fell back on her usual approach and said to Hayama, "We're done with this store. Let's check out the next one."
"Sure." Hayama nodded lightly, then matched Yumiko's pace as they walked. "Yumiko, is it just me, or have you been kind of out of it today? Something on your mind?"
"N-No, not at all." Yumiko denied it reflexively.
But with Hayama's observational skills, he could still tell that something was clearly bothering her. However, judging by her reaction, it probably wasn't something she wanted to share with him, so he didn't push it.
Though, in the past, if something was on her mind, Yumiko would've told him right away.
...
Meanwhile, after Mio had led Megumi a good distance from the clothing store, she finally turned to her with an apologetic expression. "Sorry about that. You barely got to look at any clothes before I dragged you out."
"It's fine. You left to give Hayama-kun and Miura-san some alone time, right?"
"As expected of you—seeing right through my noble sacrifice."
Even someone like Megumi still wasn't entirely used to Mio's over-the-top praise. She averted her gaze and murmured, "It was pretty obvious."
"Actually, I wasn't just giving them alone time—I was also creating alone time for us~" Mio said with a mischievous grin.
Hearing that, Megumi discovered yet another one of Mio's flaws: sometimes it was genuinely impossible to tell whether she was being serious or joking.
The time was a little past 11 AM. In less than an hour, the task would be complete.
To avoid any accidents, Mio scanned their surroundings, then pointed to a rest area nearby. "We've been walking for a while. Let's go sit down over there."
"Sure."
The two made their way to the rest area and sat down. Just as Megumi expected, even while resting, Mio's arm stayed firmly looped around hers—like it was glued there.
Whether it was because she was getting used to it, or because having Mio hold onto her arm actually felt… kind of nice, Megumi didn't bother commenting on it this time.
After resting for a bit, Megumi seemed to sense something. She quietly stood up and said, "Mio-san, I need to use the restroom."
"Oh, perfect timing—me too." Mio stood up as well.
Megumi raised an eyebrow. "You're not planning to follow me into the same stall, are you?"
"I mean, it's not like I'd say no, but I'm guessing you would, so never mind."
"Your honesty is genuinely a little terrifying. If the students at school who have a crush on you heard you talk like this, their reactions would be priceless."
"Who knows~" Mio tossed back carelessly, then turned to Megumi with a beaming smile. "Can Megumi call me by my first name? I feel like it'd make us closer."
"You were just saying something outrageous, and now you're asking me to call you by your name? That topic transition was really rough." Megumi said this while pulling Mio toward the restroom.
Unfazed by the roast, Mio simply swung Megumi's arm gently and said in a sugary voice, "Pleeeease~?"
Even the usually unflappable Kato Megumi shuddered at that tone. She even resorted to something rare for her—a threat: "If you use that voice with me again, I'm recording it."
"If it's Megumi who wants to record it, that's fine by me."
Megumi's mouth twitched. She'd finally figured it out—Mio was the type of person who'd roll with absolutely anything you threw at her.
Once inside the restroom, this marked the first time Mio had been separated from Megumi.
She rushed through her business, then stood at the sink pretending to check herself in the mirror, while her attention was entirely focused on Megumi's stall.
A five-minute countdown was ticking away in Mio's field of vision. If she didn't make physical contact with Megumi before it hit zero, the task would fail.
Fortunately, Megumi emerged from the stall fairly quickly. The moment she finished washing her hands, Mio swooped in with practiced ease, looping their arms together again. "It's almost lunchtime. Let's go find somewhere to eat."
"I know a really nice family restaurant nearby. Shirai—…Mio, want to check it out?"
Mio looked at Megumi in mild surprise. After all that roasting, she hadn't expected Megumi to actually start using her first name.
...