CH 36

— And as soon as the festival started.

While Mitoma-san and I were eating at a food stall as we still had some time left before our first shift, we received a message on LINE.

“The Yakitori grill isn’t working!”

Given that our circle’s food stall was a Yakitori and Kushiage store, if we couldn’t use the grill, there was no way we could serve anything. Moreover, for our university festival, we were required to invest some money to earn profits from our own products as part of our social study program. Therefore, if we couldn’t serve Yakitori, everyone’s wallets would take a hit.

Formally, the person in charge of this food stall was Mura and me. So, what I should have done first was to contact Mura and hurry to the location of the stall.

I couldn’t pretend that nothing had happened. I turned to Mitoma-san, who was eating the parfaits she had just bought, and said,

“… Hey, something just came up.”

“What is it?” she asked, munching on her parfait

“It’s a bit urgent… There seems to be trouble at the food stall.”

“To LOVE Ru? The manga?”

“Yeah, I like Nana-chan. She has small b***s and is tsundere, which is my type.”

“I see! But I prefer Yami-chan, the enhanced version of Kurosaki-san. I really like her erotic side.”

“If you like Yami-chan, then wouldn’t Momo-chan or Lala-chan be better?”

“I like small b***s… But wait, are you a fan of small b***s too, Senpai? That’s terrible… I’m so big, and yet, well… Fine, I’ll just have to kill all the girls with small b*****s in the world—”

“Hey, stop that! That’s not what I meant! Why are we even talking about To LOVE Ru? We have a serious problem here at the food stall.”

“Eh? I thought you were paying attention only to me.”

“That’s not it. The situation is critical, and we might have to pay for a lot of things out of our own pockets. I need to check it out.”

“Pay for it ourselves? Why?”

“I don’t have time to explain it all. Anyway, please wait here while I check it out!”

It was already 10:00 AM. We were approaching the time when people other than university students would start coming for lunch. We needed to fix the problem in the next 30-40 minutes.

We couldn’t afford to talk any longer.

“Seriously, are they already trying to call me? As expected… hah, hah.”

It’s annoying how they only act quickly at times like this, but I have to admit it’s rush hours so I had to hurry up now.

Muttering to myself, I recalled my movements from my active days and started running.

— And so, despite various sudden changes, it’s now exactly 12:03 noon and I was able to fix the broken grill somehow.

It seems that the stove itself was weak and couldn’t be repaired, so the repairman borrowed a new one and brought it over. This time, it was the repairman’s fault, so he said he wouldn’t charge any money, and fortunately it was settled without any problem.

“Phew, they sure keep me busy.”

Seeing off the repairman, Mura, who had bought the first skewer of grilled chicken, wipes his sweat and speaks up.

“Well, don’t say that.”

“But, man, I was in the middle of thinking about dating Akane-chan, you know? The timing couldn’t be worse!”

“Ah, idiot. Stop it. I feel the same way, and look, our kouhais are going to feel awkward now!”

“I got it. But hey, you too!”

“Yeah, I know. I’ve prepared myself for it.”

“Hehe, you’ve finally shed your skin, huh? Even though I ate it, if it had lasted a little longer… Hahaha!!!”

Mura laughs while holding his belly. I glared at him in annoyance.

Seriously, what a pain this guy is. This is why playboys are troublesome. Well, since it’s about Mitoma-san, she’ll probably hit him once and send him away.

“Okay, okay. That’s enough. Besides, you still have work to do, right, Mura?”

“Work? What work?”

“You know the regulations that say you have to submit it to headquarters if there’s any trouble, right, idiot?”

“Huh, really?”

“Yeah, really.”

As I said this, Mura’s face gradually turned pale.

I’d like to express my condolences to Shiina-san, but this is the chairman’s duty. We have to make sure he does it properly.

“Well then, I’ll go back.”

“Huh? Hey, wait!”

“You’ve already decided on a lot of things, so do this by yourself!”

“Hey, that’s not fair!”

Mura’s voice fades away in the distance. I can’t help but smile while heading to where Mitoma-san is.

Oh no, it’s been quite a while… I’ll have to apologize.

And so hurried on the way back to her.

At the bench by the university grounds…

Mitoma-san sat alone, perched on a bench overlooking the outdoor live performance by the music club and others on the special stage on the grounds that began around 11 o’clock.

When I messaged her on LINE, she replied with only a “MM” which was so unlike her that I had become a little scared. But seeing her lonely back made me feel a little relieved.

She didn’t seem angry.

Slowly approaching her with a fearful voice, I called out, “U-um, Mitoma-san?”

At that, she turned around abruptly, revealing her sad, tearful eyes.

“Oh… um, sorry. For leaving you alone so suddenly.”

“Muu… it’s terrible. You left me all alone!”

Then she stood up from the bench and threw herself in my embrace.

“S-Sorry… I really feel guilty for leaving you alone like that.”

“It’s okay. I’m not angry anymore.”

“S-So you were angry before?”

“I was mad at those people who stole you away, but it’s fine now. I’ve calmed down.”

“Oh, I see.”

“By the way, Senpai. This is your last shift, right?”

“Uh, yeah… but you’re starting at 3 PM, right?”

“That’s right. Please take me with you until then!”

She murmured in my ear with teary eyes, her voice uncharacteristically devoid of composure.

I felt my heart race at the sight of her emotional vulnerability that she rarely displayed.

Thinking that she was probably looking forward to it, I nodded, not wanting to reject her outright.

“Okay, let’s go then.”

“Yes!”

As I tried to move and break away, however, Mitoma-san tightly grasped the festival parka I was wearing.

“Um, Mitoma-san?”

“My name…”

“Your name?”

“Last time, you called me Suzune in a hurry, didn’t you?”

“Huh…”

Honestly, I didn’t remember.

But her tone left me with no choice but to nod in agreement.

“W-Well…”

“From now on, please call me by my name. If not, I’ll kill you instead, Senpai.”

“I-If that’s the case… Mito—”

“I’m serious. Please call me by my first name.”

I didn’t want to be stabbed to death by her so I agreed to her antics.

“…S-Suzune-san….”

“Please drop the honorifics.”

“Suzune…”

“Fufu~… Now that’s good.”

“You look happy all of a sudden.”

“Yes, because I am. You did a good job too, Senpai.”

“Thanks. So, are you not going to call me by my name?”

“Uh, well, you’re still Senpai. I’ll save that for when we’re together.”

With a smile on her face, she released my hand, and I couldn’t help but feel my face heat up at her adorable expression.