Volume 2 - CH 31

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Yuzuru-san.”

“No, I just got here too.”

The meeting place was a certain station in the city center.

When Yuzuru saw Arisa’s outfit …, he was a little bit relieved.

This time, she wasn’t wearing something that would show off her body lines like last time.

She wore a black long-sleeved shirt with a thin white cardigan and wide pants.

And on top of that, she was wearing an autumn coat.

It was less stimulating, and Yuzuru felt a little more relaxed.

“Where’s Ayumi-san?”

“She’s late. But, I think it’s about time. ……”

At that moment.

With a thud, he was hugged from behind as if he were being hit by something.

“Niisan!”

“You’re late, Ayumi.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I got stuck in traffic.”

Apparently, she had come by cab.

She probably avoided coming by train because of the risk of molestation.

“It’s been a while, Arisa-san.”

“It’s been a while, Ayumi-san.”

Ayumi ran up to Arisa and grabbed her hand.

” I’m sorry I forced you to go out with me.”

“No, it’s okay. I would be happy to be of assistance.”

“I’ve always thought that Arisa-san’s clothes were fashionable. I’m counting on you!　…I’ll tell you what my brother prefers as gratitude.”

“Hahaha ……, please do!”

Arisa replied to Ayumi’s words with a wry smile.

Yuzuru, on the other hand, raised his guard at the mention of Ayumi’s “brother’s preference”.

He had to be careful that she didn’t say anything strange.

“It’s going to be a long day ahead of us anyway.　Let’s go quickly.”

Arisa and Ayumi nodded in agreement to Yuzuru’s words.

Yuzuru and company entered a shopping mall near the station that had a variety of stores, including high-end stores.

“Hey, hey, Arisa-san. Which one do you think looks better on me?”

Ayumi said while holding two different winter coats in her hands.

One was beige and the other was gray.

Yuzuru would say that both look good on her.

…… In fact, Ayumi, who is a beautiful girl, would look good in both.

“I think they both look good on you… Let’s see. The former gives off a cute image, while the latter gives off a beautiful image.”

“Hmm, so the former is more childish?”

“Yes, I suppose so. Well, I think it’s pretty cute.”

“…Is the gray more mature?”

“Yes, it looks more mature. It makes you look a year or two older.”

Ayumi pondered for about a dozen seconds before deciding …

It seems that she has decided to go with gray, and Yuzuru put the coat in the basket in his hand.

(…I wonder if she’s concerned about it)

In Yuzuru’s mind, Ayumi will always be his cute little sister, so the image of a child is firmly established.

So it was a little surprising that she was concerned about her being childish.

She’s still in the second year of junior high school, so it’s fine to be childish.

However, she probably wants to grow up to be taller and more mature.

“Anyway, are you done?”

A woman’s shopping trip is a long one.

And there are two of them. It was even longer because they were chattering away.

Yuzuru was already getting tired.

“With clothes, yeah. But after this, I want to look at shoes. Don’t you want to check them too, Arisa-san?”

“That’s right… I still have some money left, and I want to buy some boots.”

“I see.”

No matter what he said, it would only prolong the process, so Yuzuru decided to go along with them.

For the time being, he finished paying for the clothes.

(… Let’s invite Soichiro or Hijiri next time.)

He wondered if three men would be enough to alleviate some of this boredom.

But when he thought about it, calling those two guys meant that Ayaka, Chiharu, and Tenka would be there as a set.

A shopping trip for five women.

The sun would probably set.

Yuzuru stopped thinking about it because he was horrified just by the thought of it.

“Well, Niisan. Let’s go to the shoe store.”

Ayumi invited Yuzuru to go to a store that sold shoes.

In response, Yuzuru held out the paper bag to Arisa and Ayumi.

“Sorry. Mind if I take a quick side trip?”

In other words, the washroom.

Then Ayumi puffed out her cheeks.

“Ew!　Make it quick.”

“It’s faster than your shopping.”

Yuzuru said and began to search the bathroom with a short run.

It took about fifteen minutes because the bathroom was hard to find.

Ayumi must be in a bad mood…

Yuzuru sighed inwardly as he hurried to the meeting place.

(I mean, why should I be blamed for being a little late when I’m accompanying them on their shopping trip?)

He felt that it was a little bit unreasonable. But he couldn’t leave the two princesses waiting, so he started running.

Then…

Arisa and Ayumi were talking about something with a boy who seemed familiar.

However, it seemed that it was mainly Ayumi and the boy who was talking.

Arisa was a little behind Ayumi and seemed to be overseeing the situation.

(Just when I took my eyes off them for a moment, …… it turned out to be troublesome.)

Yuzuru sighed inwardly and approached them with a short run.