"Is it a coincidence?"
Megumi looked at the time on her phone, then glanced at Mio beside her.
When Mio had been leaning on her earlier, Megumi had fully expected her to stay that way through the entire meal. After all, even when Megumi was trying on clothes, Mio had kept a hand on her shoulder and never let go.
Yet the moment the clock struck twelve, Mio had pulled away.
It was almost as if something had been compelling her to maintain physical contact until noon on the dot—and now that deadline had passed, it was no longer necessary.
Then again, maybe she was overthinking it.
Sensing Megumi's gaze, Mio swallowed the food in her mouth before tilting her head curiously. "Megumi, why are you staring at me instead of eating? I know I'm gorgeous, but you can't exactly eat my face."
Megumi had been about to roast Mio for being narcissistic, but on second thought… she wasn't exactly wrong.
For once, even she was at a loss for words.
While the two were eating and chatting, Aki Tomoya—also in the restaurant—suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to find a coworker he was on decent terms with, who'd taken advantage of a lull to sidle up to him.
The guy's face was practically glowing with excitement. "Tomoya, did you see those two girls who came in earlier?"
"Yeah, what about them?"
"I got a good look when I was bringing food over. That silver-haired girl is insanely pretty. If I could find a girlfriend like her, man, I'd die happy."
Tomoya's mouth twitched. "I'd suggest you give up on that completely unrealistic fantasy."
"Yeah, you're right. Those two are obviously a thing. Don't think there's any room for me." The coworker sighed dramatically.
"A thing? A thing as in what?"
"A couple, obviously. What else? You're the one who seated them—didn't you notice? The silver-haired girl was glued to the other one the entire time. If that's not a couple, what is it?"
"Maybe they're just really close friends?"
Even as he said it, Tomoya couldn't help glancing in Mio's direction, mulling over the nature of her relationship with the other girl.
From where he stood, all he could see was the two of them chatting and laughing together. No especially intimate gestures at the moment.
But now that he thought about it, Mio had never been linked to any guys at school. On the contrary, he had heard someone mention that she seemed a little too close with a certain girl.
Close enough that it went beyond the normal bounds of friendship.
Not that many people actually believed rumors like that.
As if sensing something, Mio turned and glanced in Tomoya's direction. When she noticed him looking her way, she flashed a faint smile—then scooted a little closer to Megumi.
What Mio was actually doing was testing out what it felt like to be a phantom NTR villain. But from Tomoya's perspective, it looked like she was sending him a clear message: I'm taken. Don't get any ideas.
Tomoya had the distinct feeling he'd been misunderstood. He honestly had zero interest in 3D girls—no matter how pretty Mio was.
Just then, he suddenly remembered—his childhood friend Eriri seemed to get along really well with Mio. Should he find a chance to give Eriri a heads-up, maybe suggest she keep some distance?
Before Tomoya could think any further, his shift manager's voice exploded in his ear: "Tomoya! Why are you standing there spacing out instead of greeting customers?!"
"S-Sorry, I'm on it!"
Tomoya scrambled to answer, then hurried to the entrance to attend to the incoming customers.
Watching the scene unfold, Mio pursed her lips, then straightened up in her seat to get back to eating. But that's when she noticed Megumi staring at her with a puzzled expression.
"Megumi, what's up?"
"That's what I should be asking you. Why did you suddenly lean closer just now?"
She'd thought Mio was about to pull some weird stunt, but after leaning in, she'd just… done nothing. Which left Megumi confused.
"I-It's nothing, don't worry about it."
Mio let out an awkward laugh. The reason behind what she'd done—even if she explained it, Megumi probably wouldn't understand. After all, Megumi and Aki Tomoya were still complete strangers at this point.
Still, in the original story, Megumi and Tomoya were supposed to be in the same class. She wondered how their story would unfold from here.
Mio even had her doubts—after her own interference, would the encounter from the original even happen at all?
Maybe because she'd gotten used to Mio's spontaneous behavior, Megumi found it a little odd but didn't press further.
Seeing that, Mio quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
I wonder how things are going between Miura Yumiko and Hayama Hayato?
Mio pulled out her phone and sent Yumiko a message, asking about her progress.
On the other end, Yumiko—in the middle of having lunch with Hayama—read Mio's message and replied with a guilty conscience: "Some progress, I guess. More or less."
That's what she said, anyway. In reality, she felt like her dynamic with Hayama was exactly the same as when the entire friend group hung out together—zero difference.
Probably because she hadn't made any moves.
Which was strange—before Mio's coaching sessions, she'd actually been more proactive. But for some reason, after going through Mio's hands-on training, she'd only gotten more hesitant.
She had a feeling it was because she just couldn't bring herself to pull a Mio—throw away all shame and wage a relentless soft-and-sweet offensive on Hayama.
Normally, reporting progress would've been the end of it. But after a moment of hesitation, Yumiko sent another message asking about Mio's plans for the afternoon.
"This afternoon? I'll probably keep hanging around the shopping center. Need help with anything?"
"Not at the moment."
Right after replying, Yumiko heard Hayama speak up: "Yumiko, is there somewhere you want to go this afternoon?"
This was the perfect moment to suggest a movie or karaoke—something that would actually push things forward. But as if possessed by something, the words that came out of Yumiko's mouth were: "Let's go back to the shopping center. There's still some stuff I want to buy."
...