Chapter 11: Departure on the Hot Spring Trip

In the blink of an eye, the morning of the first day of the three-day holiday had arrived.

Yesterday, while I was packing my things into a carry-on bag in the bedroom, Kanata called out to me.

"You're in an unusually good mood. If you're that happy about it, then I’m glad too."

"Well, yeah. I mean, it feels like it’s been years since I’ve gone on a trip at all. And this time it’s a hot spring with an open-air bath! I want to soak until I’m wrinkled. Thanks for this."

"O-oh. I’m looking forward to it too."

"Anyway, I’m the one driving tomorrow, so I’m going to bed early. Good night."

"Mm, good night."

I checked once more to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything. With my conversation partner already asleep, I finally drifted off as well.

Well, I actually woke up a little while ago. I guess I was too excited—ended up waking up way too early. My mind was wide awake and it didn’t seem like I’d be falling back asleep anytime soon. So I just lay there, staring into space, lost in thought.

Recently, whenever I’ve been in a good mood, Kanata looks happy too, always smiling and cheerful. He must be trying to lift my spirits, since I still haven’t managed to find a job.

Even though he comes home tired from work, he still listens to my complaints about job hunting. He cheers me up, saying, "Nobu, you’ll be fine." Because of that, I can tell myself, "Okay, I’ll try again tomorrow."

Sometimes he teases me, but I think that kind of playful banter is necessary. It keeps me from dwelling on things.

Kanata really is a good guy. I’m glad he’s my best friend.

On top of that, he’s good-looking, too. Back in school, he was popular with girls. Before his distrust of women worsened, he had girlfriends, and when he was single, he seemed to have his fair share of fun. Looking back now, maybe all that "playing around" was just a symptom of his trust issues with women. Not that I’d know—having never had a girlfriend myself.

To be fair, he did say he never touched women who already had boyfriends. As long as they were both single, then no problem. But then, after he was cheated on by the woman he had seriously planned to marry, he gave up on "playing" with women altogether.

Since then, while he still interacts with them out of necessity at work or socially, he avoids any private involvement.

And yet, he accepted me—even though I’m a woman now—and went so far as to move in with me. It’s easy to imagine just how much of a burden I’ve placed on him. Honestly… paying him back for all this is going to be tough.

"Hey, it’s morning. Wake up! Breakfast is ready!"

"Mm… huh?"

I must have dozed off again without realizing it. I stretched and sat up.

"Hurry up and get ready. I’ll be waiting."

"Got it. Just give me a sec."

A little while ago, we decided to try and eat meals together as much as possible. It made sense, since cleaning up is easier, and more than that—eating together is just more fun, and food tastes better that way. We’d already been eating together most of the time anyway, but once we made it a rule, it became a habit to always share the table. And of course, fiddling with the TV or a phone during meals was strictly forbidden.

I quickly washed my face, made sure my appearance was at least presentable, and headed to the dining room. There, Kanata was already waiting, wearing an apron.

"Sorry to keep you. You’ve been waiting a while, right?"

"No, I just got here."

"What is this, a date? …Anyway, let’s eat."

"Let’s eat. Still, this is rare—Nobu, you’re usually up earlier than me."

"Yeah, well… I was too excited and woke up way too early."

"Ah, so you fell back asleep."

"Something like that."

After breakfast, we started getting ready to head out, double-checking to make sure we hadn’t forgotten anything.

Today’s outfit was, once again, in line with Kanata’s taste: simple, fresh, and elegant. Long straight black hair, a pale blue shirt dress… yeah, definitely a neat, clean look.

The way Nobuchika was staring, it was obvious she was captivated.

"Well? How do I look?"

"Beautiful… Beautiful and cute."

"See? I’m a bona fide pretty girl."

"Yeah. At least on the outside, you’re the picture of an elegant beauty."

"Hah? My insides are elegant too!"

"Says the one with the heart of a middle-aged man."

"Cheh."

"Alright, let’s go."

And so, we climbed into Kanata’s car and set off!

After a long drive on the expressway, with a stop at a service area for a short break, we finally arrived a little after noon. Since we’d agreed that lunch should be something local, we went looking for a spot.

We found a specialty restaurant known for its handmade soba, and ordered a set of zaru soba and tempura.

Mmm, the tempura was delicious! Kanata said the same—he seemed really satisfied.

Naturally, I still can’t cook fried foods like tempura, and Kanata only makes simple fried dishes in a pan. So usually we end up buying them pre-made, but the problem with that is they go soggy, which is a bit of a letdown. Freshly fried is always best—that was the clear takeaway today.

With our stomachs full, we discussed where to go next. It was still too early to check into the inn, and there were plenty of places we wanted to see.

I wanted to try the classic foot bath, stop by a roadside station, and see some tourist spots. Should we spread it over today and tomorrow? Or maybe just do a little sightseeing and spend most of our time relaxing at the inn’s hot springs?

Kanata suggested it would be better to take it easy and relax. He reminded me that the whole purpose of this trip was for me to refresh myself, so we should just do whatever I liked best—he’d go along with it.

That made me feel a little guilty, but I decided that a balance of light sightseeing and relaxing would be best. Eat the local specialties, soak in the inn’s hot springs, and maybe see a few tourist spots on the side. Honestly, unless a place is really something special, I don’t get much out of sightseeing anyway.

"That kind of balance sounds good to me."

"So basically, the best of both worlds, huh? Works for me. I don’t feel like moving around constantly either."

"Then first I want to go to a foot bath, and after that, grab something to eat."

"Got it. Let’s head out, then."

Before arriving here, we’d had a bit of an argument in the car. The issue was that Kanata insisted on covering all the expenses while we were here.

Of course, I said that wasn’t acceptable. But Kanata said that since he was the one who invited me, he wanted me to just relax and enjoy myself without worrying about anything. On top of that, he added that it would look pathetic to make a young woman pay. And… yeah, I had to admit, he wasn’t wrong.

Still, it didn’t sit right with me, so I insisted on paying for my own share. That led to a small back-and-forth.

In the end, the compromise was: Kanata would cover the cost of the trip, the inn, and our meals, while we’d each handle our own incidental expenses.

So, for this meal, Kanata was paying.

The balance still felt very lopsided, but Kanata refused to back down. He was adamant that the reason we were here was so I could enjoy myself without stress, and that was all that mattered to him.

And as he always says—like a catchphrase—"I’m only doing what I want to do, so don’t worry about it."

Yeah, well, that’s impossible, alright? Maybe a kid could accept that without question, but I’m thirty years old—I should have the sense of a grown adult.

Besides, we’re best friends. Shouldn’t we be equals?

…In any case, Kanata was the one paying here.

I stepped outside ahead of him and waited until he finished at the register. When he came out, I greeted him with the biggest, cutest smile I could muster, and thanked him.

"Thanks for the meal! That tempura was amazing!"

…Hm? No reaction from Kanata.

Why was he covering his mouth and turning away like that?

"Ahem. N-no, don’t worry about it."

Did something get caught in his throat? His face looked a little red, too. Seriously, he should be more careful.

Next, we headed to the foot bath.

We took off our shoes and socks and dipped our feet in.

Aahh… this feels so good… So this is what it’s like to soak just your feet…

I lifted my feet a little, opening and closing my toes, stretching them. Kanata was staring intently at my toes.

"Hm? What’s up?"

"…Huh!? Ah—ah, yeah, it’s just… If I tried doing that, I’d probably cramp up right away."

"Ah, yeah, true. Back when I was still a guy, I’d probably have cramped up too. But wow, being young really makes a difference. Look at how easy this is."

I flexed my toes open and shut—gup, gup—showing off how nimble they were. For some reason, Kanata quickly looked away.

"Uh… Nobu? Maybe don’t do that kind of thing too much. It’s… uh… you know…"

"What the heck’s that supposed to mean? …Well, I guess it is a foot bath. Splashing around too much would just bother people, huh?"

"Yeah, I’d appreciate it if you kept it to that…"

Right. Guess I got a little carried away, forgetting my age and the people around me. As an adult, I really shouldn’t be bothering others.

After leaving the foot bath, we passed the time snacking on local specialties like hot spring buns and hot spring eggs before finally checking into the inn.