A few days after drinking with the prince. Mid-August.
I was set up on a date with Akari.
Apparently, the manager at my part-time job gave her free movie tickets. I was at Kawasaki Station.
The shopping mall nearby was our destination for today’s date. “Akari~n!”
Stepping out of the ticket gate was Akari, dressed up to the nines.
She wore a pristine white blouse and a mini skirt that was so short it practically defied gravity.
Her long, slender legs were encased in knee-high socks.
She had her long, fluffy blonde hair tied up into side tails. “Sorry to keep you waiting~!” “Ah.” However, a question lingered.
“Why did we meet here? We live in the same house.”
I had left home after Akari told me to go ahead without her.
“Can’t you guess? Girls take a while to get ready, you know?” “Ah, right…”
“And besides~. Even waiting around is part of the date, right? ♡”
Pachi. Akari winks.
Her blue eyes are as beautiful as this summer sky.
…Thinking about it again, she’s really a beauty. Even today…
”…Whoa, that girl is super hot.” ”…No way. Long legs! Tiny face!” ”…Dating a beauty like that… I could so get used to that…”
And yeah, we’re getting absolutely drenched in attention from everyone around us.
She’s too beautiful for someone like me.
…But getting insecure when someone treats you kindly is disrespectful to them. So I say, “Let’s go.”
“Nonnono, Okarin, you’ve forgotten something, right? Mm~?”
Akari looks at me with an expectant gaze.
In moments like this, she’s kind of kid-like, huh.
“You’re even prettier than usual today, Akari.” “Mm~♡ 99 points!”
Puff! Akari breaks into a smile and asks me, “What about the last point?”
“It’s just that I was pressured by girls to praise her.”
Akari closed her eyes and turned away with a huff.
She wasn’t truly angry; she just wanted attention.
She kept glancing over at me to check my reaction.
“I see, I’m sorry about that.” I reached out to Akari.
“Next time, I’ll say it sooner.”
“Mm♡ Then a bonus 100 points♡”
Akari grabbed my hand tightly. “Let’s go♡” “Yeah.”
We headed toward the shopping mall, holding hands.
Every man and woman walking by turned to look at Akari’s beauty.
But seeing a guy standing next to her, they let out a sigh of disappointment.
Of course Akari is beautiful. It’s no wonder she turns heads.
“O Karin-chan is getting this kind of attention, but how are you feeling about it?” “How… meaning how?”
“Like, ‘I’m happy,’ or ‘You’re jealous,’ or ‘My girlfriend’s hot, right? That kinda thing.” I paused for a moment. Hmmm…
“I feel the passage of time seeing that naughty kid back then turned into such a respectable adult lady.” “You’re so old-man about it.” Akari burst out laughing.
I thought she’d get angry at being treated like a child, but surprisingly, she was in great spirits.
“But~ ♡ It means you see me as a sophisticated lady~ ♡ Makes me so happy~ ♡”
Akari smiled with elegance, yet clearly delighted.
I really felt sorry for only seeing her as a kid at first—more than that, I was thinking, “What the hell is he looking at?”
She was this beautiful and grown-up all along. “Guess I didn’t have an eye for it either.”
“Well~ He picked Mi-sa-nee (an older/withered woman), so obviously he doesn’t have any eye for it, right?” “I have no reply to that.”
“Hee-hee~ ♡ But well~ Next time you’ll be happy~ ♡ Since I’m here~ ♡”
Akari stopped walking and, despite being on the street, pecked me lightly on the lips.
I stood there frozen in confusion.
「You… people are watching…」「Sorry♡」
Akari narrowed her eyes with a mischievous glint and flicked out her tongue.
“C’mon, let’s go to the movies!” “Ah.”
Her carefree, bright smile heals my heart.
So much has happened, and there have been plenty of terrible things in the past too. Even now, the situation remains chaotic.
And yet, I am most alive and happy right now.
I definitely think that’s thanks to Akari. ★
After we had lunch at the shopping mall, we headed toward the theater. “Here you go, Karin, your tickets.”
“Are these the ones they gave you from work?” “Yeah. From Manager Shirosaki!”
It sounds like a good job. That’s the most important thing.
Akari is relying on them, so I should probably go introduce myself and say hello next time.
I bought drinks with Akari.
Time to head into the theater. The place was pretty packed.
“By the way, are you cool with it being an anime movie?”
“Yeah. Digimass is awesome. And there aren’t any romance movies playing right now anyway.”
The film we were about to watch was Digimass.
It was a movie adaptation of a light novel by Kamimatsu-sensei, the strongest light novelist around.
“This movie has been showing for freaking long, huh.”
“I guess it must be that popular.” We looked for our seats. And just then— ”$<`”{%“L$"" “Huh? What…?” Someone had called out to me. I turned around and…
There was a silver-haired woman. She was stunningly beautiful. ”%#MO…%#%%｀” “Uh… I…” She probably wasn’t Japanese.
Judging by the way she spoke, maybe Russian?
“A-no, Ma-sen. 5-ban… Doko?”
“Oogarin. Isn’t this person lost?”
The presumed Russian beauty nodded vigorously.
“Theater Number Five… Theater Five, yes?” “Yes, it is.”
It seems she can understand Japanese just fine.
“Ahari. I’m going to show this person where we’re sitting. Go ahead and get seated.”
“Eh? I’m coming too. It’s scary with just O Karin there.”
And so, I head out of the cinema with the Russian beauty. …She really is beautiful. Long silver hair. Silver eyelashes. Eyes.
She’s the kind of beauty you’d think was a snow spirit.
“Theater Number Five… Which one is number five again…?”
“Oooh, O Karin, this way! This side!” “Oh, that one.”
“Nngh~ I’m so needed when you’re not around~ ♡” She laughs cheerfully.
The Russian beauty watches the scene with a smile on her face. “Like wings, is it not?”
“Hiiyoku? What’s that, O Karin?” Ahari asks me. “It just means you’re close.” “Whoa~ That sounds like editing.” “It is editing.”
The Russian beauty chuckles softly. “Well-matched, couple, it is.” ”…Nope…”
We led her to Theater 5, feeling a bit sheepish. “Do you have company with you?” “My husband. He exists.” “Where’s your husband, then?”
She scanned the area, looking around for any trace of him, but there was no sign of such a person.
“He is sitting in his seat. Waiting. He will return soon.” “Ah, I see.”
Akari nodded, and the beautiful Russian woman flashed a smile.
“But, thank you. Very much gratitude. You are kind.”
She closed her eyes and gave a deep bow. “May happiness be yours.”
“Thank you so much,” we said. “See ya!”
We parted ways with the beauty and were just about to head back into the theater… when that happened.
“Waaah! Tanya! Tanya, aaaaaah!”
The voice of a large man echoed through the movie theater. “W-wait, what’s going on?”
“Hmm? I’ve heard this voice somewhere before.”
Looking toward the source of the sound, we saw a massive giant standing there.
“Excuse me! Have you seen a Russian woman? She’s the most beautiful in the universe, so she should be easy to spot!”
The giant seemed to be looking for someone, hollering at passersby. “Yikes! Terminator!” “Scary! Gotta run, gotta run!”
Maybe it was because of his terrifying expression, but everyone ran away.
His shoulders slumped in defeat…
I overlapped the image of Ichika Nierika’s younger brother onto him.
“Ah. You’re Jirouta-san… or were you?”
I had met this man once before. It was when we were going to Karuizawa.
We had asked him to look after Nanaiko’s Chobi (their pet dog).
That was when I met Ichika’s brother, Mr. Jirouta.
”! You are… Sister Ichika’s boyfriend?”
“Hello. Is something the matter?”
Mr. Jirouta looked at me with a panicked face and asked.
“Actually, my wife has gone missing.” “Your wife?”
When Akari said this, Jirota nodded.
“She’s tall, with silver hair, and she’s the most beautiful woman in the entire galaxy, my precious wife, you see.” “Not ‘most beautiful in the galaxy,’ but…”
While Akari was left speechless at his exaggeration, Jirota broke into a cold sweat and continued.
“The thing is, her Japanese isn’t quite good yet, and the moment I looked away for a second, she just vanished… Oh no, what am I supposed to do!”
“Try to stay calm. She’s probably already back.” “Huh…?”
If she was blonde and beautiful, it must be the person they had met earlier.
“Akari-chan, let me go get her for a moment.”
Akari headed toward the theater where they had been just now and came right back. “You?”
The person Akari brought was the Russian beauty from before. “Tanya!”
Jirota rushed over, his footsteps heavy and urgent.
“Thank goodness! Thank goodness! I was so worried about you!”
Jirota tightly hugged Tanya.
“I thought when you disappeared… me… waaah!”
Tanya patted Jirota’s back rhythmically. “You. Loud.” “Wha…?”
Tanya sighed, ya-ya. “Public place. Shouting. No good.” “Mmph… but you see…” “Bad manners. No good.”
”…I suppose so. I’ll be careful. I just couldn’t stay calm when you were gone, and I ended up…” Jirota released his wife from the embrace.
Tap-tap-tap. Tanya approached us and bowed her head.
“Husband. Caused disturbance. Sorry.” “Ah, no, it’s not like that at all…”
“Glad we could rejoin!”
Tanya smiled, “Yes.”
Behind her, Jirota hunched his shoulders slightly.
“Excuse us both. We made quite a scene.”
“Not at all.” “Your wife is so lovely, isn’t she? ♡”
When Akari asked, Mr. Jirota nodded vigorously several times.
“Of course! So, how was it for the two of you? My wife is the number one beauty in the solar system, right?”
Mr. Jirota usually wears sunglasses. But today he had taken them off.
His surprisingly large eyes were sparkling brightly.
“Excuse me. This guy is… a bit of an idiot. He’s crazy about his wife.”
Mrs. Tanya said, exasperated.
“No way! I’m not being a silly fool over my wife! Isn’t it a fact that you are an ultra-beauty?”
“You’re loud again. And besides… it’s bad timing. You two. In the middle of a date.”
“Ah… I’m sorry… please forgive our intrusion.” “No, not at all.”
Mrs. Tanya smiled and bowed deeply. “Thank you very much.”
“Really, thank you so much. We will repay this kindness eventually.”
The couple bowed once more, waved to us, and headed off.
Mr. Jirota tightly grasped his wife’s hand.
Tanya squeezed back, leaning in close to him.
Watching the pair, Akari murmured softly. “What a devoted couple.” “Yeah, they really are.” “Are you jealous?” “Well… sure I am.” Akari flashed a bright smile.
“We should want to be a couple like that someday, too.” “Ah, yes… we should.”
And so, we headed toward the theater.