Chapter 72: A Beautiful Girl Spends Her Birthday with Her Best Friend (Part 3)

After having a great time at the arcade, the two of us are now wandering around in front of the station. Honestly, we hadn’t planned anything beyond the arcade. After re-parking our bikes at the station’s bicycle lot, we’ve just been drifting around without any destination in mind… that’s our situation right now.

"Hey, Ryouji, what now?"

"Hmm. Is there anywhere else to hang out around here…?"

I doubt it. Mikawa City, where we live, is big, but the level of development varies a lot from area to area. Our neighborhood has a decent number of houses and office buildings, so it’s relatively developed, but when it comes to entertainment, it’s pretty lacking.

"Doesn’t look like there’s anything. Should we just go home?"

Wandering around aimlessly won’t get us anywhere, so I’m already half prepared to give up. Honestly, it might be better to just go home and play games.

"No, not yet! There has to be something left!"

Why is he so fired up today of all days? I can’t help feeling a little exasperated at this slightly-more-stubborn-than-usual Ryouji.

"Ayumi, wanna check out that shop?"

After walking for a bit, Ryouji suddenly points to a store up ahead. The sign reads “Fancy Shop.” I couldn’t imagine what they sold, so I peeked inside. The shelves are packed with colorful items—so bright it almost doesn’t feel like Japan anymore. Plushies, cute trinkets, all lined up.

So a place like this existed in our hometown… Well, when I used to be a boy, I never would’ve come to a store like this—or even noticed it existed.

Inside, there are all kinds of plush toys and mascot figures. When I look toward the back of the store, I spot a fairly large teddy bear. From the angle, it looks like it’s staring straight at me. If it looks at me with those round innocent eyes, I’m done for. And it’s bigger than the bear Sakurako-chan and the others gave me—if I put them together, they’d look like siblings.

I want to go inside… but if I do, I’ll definitely want something. And I don’t have much money… ugh. Besides, Ryouji probably won’t find this place interesting. Although… he’s the one who suggested coming in. So maybe it’s fine.

Alright. Just looking. Just looking.

"…Ryouji, can we go in?"

I ask him timidly.

"Yeah, sure."

He gives me a wry smile, as if he saw right through my internal struggle.

When I open the door, a cute little bell jingles. Looks like we’re the only customers.

Ryouji and I walk slowly around the store. It’s small, so I expected we’d finish quickly, but the shelves are crammed with items, so it actually takes time. And most of all, I keep stopping every time I find something cute, so our pace is painfully slow.

"Look, isn’t this adorable? It’s a music box!"

"Yeah, KAWAII N JA NAI KA."

Ryouji answers in the flattest, deadest tone imaginable.

"Hey! Why are you reading it like a robot!"

"Come on, how many times have we had this exact conversation?"

Umm… maybe five times? As I’m thinking that—

"Seventeen."

Ugh, what an annoying guy! You don’t have to keep count! But… yeah, seventeen times. Even someone other than Ryouji would be fed up by now.

"Still, I didn’t expect you to get this excited."

It seems I got carried away and wasn’t paying attention to anything around me. Back when I was still a boy, I didn’t particularly like cute things. But when I visited Sakurako-chan’s and Moeka-chan’s homes a few times, I experienced a “girl’s room” for the first time and thought it was really nice—cute and coordinated. Then I realized how barren my own room was, and I started picking up little decorative items to fix that. That was the beginning. And that’s how I ended up liking plushies and cute things.

And now here I am.

Even in this tiny store, I’ve dragged Ryouji around so much he looks a little tired. Maybe I caused trouble by getting too excited on my own.

"…Sorry."

"My bad. I phrased that wrong. You don’t need to apologize. I’m the one who suggested coming in."

Ryouji lightly pats my head. Thank goodness—he’s not mad.

As I relax, he continues.

"We’ve looked around a lot, and you found plenty of good stuff. So, was there anything you actually wanted?"

I think it over. The music box was cute, and I liked the stationery from earlier too. There were a lot of things I wanted, but the prices are surprisingly high, so I can’t buy anything casually.

But the one thing I wanted the most was probably that teddy bear I saw when we first peeked inside.

I walk toward the back of the store. Ryouji follows me.

"This one!"

I point at the teddy bear.

It sits by itself on a shelf that doesn’t stand out much. Even though the shelf is tucked away, you can see the bear from outside because the shelf is tall. From far away it’s surprisingly visible, but once you’re inside—where it gets buried among all the other colorful items—it barely catches the eye. That’s probably why such a cute bear is still unsold.

"Another plush? Wasn’t that calico-cat teacher earlier enough for you?"

Ryouji says with a small laugh.

"It’s not about ‘not enough’! I just thought it was cute."

I wonder if I sounded greedy.

But I’m pretty sure I won’t be buying the teddy bear today. Plushies are expensive, and bigger ones cost even more. When I think about the bicycle payment I still have to make, I can’t afford a large purchase.

So today… I’ll just settle for giving the bear a little pat.

Ryouji listens to me and just goes, "Hmm," like he’s thinking something over. He’s not into plush toys, so that reaction makes sense.

"Excuse me, can I buy this?"

Before I can react, he grabs the teddy bear lightly with one hand and calls the clerk over.

"Eh…?"

I’m so startled I can’t say anything.

"Ryouji, you want it?"

Wait… does Ryouji actually have a secret plushie hobby!?

"No, no, what are you talking about? I’m buying it for you."

"Ehh!? No way, you can’t!"

"Why not? If someone offers you something, you should just take it."

"B-but that plushie’s pretty expensive… I feel bad letting you buy it for me."

Of course, I’m really happy he offered, and I won’t deny that I feel a little “yay!” inside.
But this plushie must cost quite a bit. It doesn’t feel right to have Ryouji buy something that pricey. It’s not like he has a ton of money either.

"It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s your birthday—think of it as a present."

He’s not backing down.

Even if it’s a present, I wasn’t planning on receiving anything expensive. Until last year, I’d never gotten birthday presents at all, and just because I became a girl doesn’t mean I can suddenly start accepting expensive gifts from Ryouji…

"I already got a plushie from you at the crane game, so that’s enough for a birthday present."

"That was just the usual thing I give you—not specifically a birthday present."

"Ugh… why are you so fixated on giving me a birthday present?"

No matter what I say, Ryouji won’t budge. I ask him directly.

Something’s off with him today. He insisted on riding double on the bike, wouldn’t go home even after we left the arcade, and now he’s obsessed with getting me a present… What’s going on?

"…Well, you know… all the girls are giving you gifts today. It’d feel wrong if I gave you nothing. I mean, we’ve been friends forever."

"Really…? I was already happy just having you hang out with me today."

And… going to the arcade together, then browsing shops like this, and on top of that getting a present—no matter how you look at it, even if the other person is Ryouji, this is basically a full-on date course.

Normally, just a boy and girl going to an arcade alone already counts as a date. But since Ryouji and I used to come here even when I was still a boy, just going to the arcade still felt “like always.”

Yesterday, Ryouji joked, “Well, it’s a date,” then laughed it off. I tried not to think about it too much, but maybe it really is a date. Maybe even Ryouji himself is aware of that…?

A date with Ryouji… it feels strange. We’ve gone places alone countless times, but just by thinking about it this way, everything suddenly feels embarrassing.

If I accept this present after coming here like this, our relationship might change.

But even if I refuse it, our relationship might change anyway. Now that things have gone this far, something is probably going to shift no matter what.

Ugh… at this rate, I won’t be able to hang out with Ryouji alone anymore. I’ll get too self-conscious. I don’t know what Ryouji is thinking, but I’m the one who’ll get awkward and ruin things.

"Here."

Ryouji holds out a neatly wrapped bag to me.

While I was busy overthinking, he already paid. What a blunder…

At this point, I can’t refuse. It’s wrapped so cutely—if I said I didn’t want it, that would honestly be too cruel to Ryouji.

"…Okay. Sorry."

I accept the package and end up apologizing without thinking.

"Why’re you apologizing? Don’t worry about it so much. It’s just a birthday present."

"Yeah…"

Maybe Ryouji really did just want to give me a birthday present. Maybe I’m the only one overthinking everything.

Ryouji can be weirdly stubborn, and yeah, he’s a little pervy, but he’s attentive and kind. Maybe he’s been acting normal all along.

Thinking alone won’t get me anywhere. Worrying now won’t help. And if it’s just my misunderstanding—if I’m the only one spiraling—that would be pointless too.

We came out to have fun. If I keep brooding, I might make Ryouji uneasy. Smile. Smile! Come on, me—focus!

"Thank you. I’ll treasure it."

I turn to Ryouji and do my best to smile. I’m pretty sure I pulled it off!

Ryouji looks away, muttering a shy, "Yeah."

We leave the fancy shop and head home.

I still have a family celebration tonight, so I can’t stay out too late.

When I tell Ryouji that, he looks just a little disappointed.

I wonder… what does Ryouji think of me?