The next day, I was at the same shopping mall as before. "Good morning~!"

Before I knew what that loud voice was, Akari came running over from the train station gates. "Sorry for making you wait! Did you have to wait long?" "Nope, I just got here." Why was I hanging out with Akari?

Yesterday, I had come here with my older sister, Nanako.

As a way of saying thanks for always being there for us, I gifted her a dog.

'That's just a date with your big sis! So unfair!'

'I'll buy you a present too.'

'Really? Then tomorrow! Same spot, it's a date!' That was the deal. "Are you done with your shift?"

"Yeah! The cafe job usually wraps up pretty early~. Ah-ichi."

For some reason Akari was wearing her school uniform.

She had the top of her short-sleeved shirt unbuttoned, fanning herself with a folding fan to beat the heat.

Naturally, the generous cleavage between her breasts was on display.

"Hm~? Ah-ichi is looking at me with dirty eyes, aren't you~? Are you really that interested in Akari's valley? Kyaa~♡ Pervert~♡"

I poke Akari’s forehead, which holds an oddly pleased expression.

"It's tacky, so quit it." "Yessirree♡"

No matter what I say, Akari acts all happy about it.

"We haven't eaten yet, right? Let's grab lunch first and then tour the inside." "Okay!" "What do you want to eat?"

"I know a place that serves really good pasta, so let me show you!"

Akari grabs my hand of her own accord and starts walking ahead.

I end up following behind her.

"Hey, you don't need to hold hands..."

"It's totally necessary. It'd be a pain if I got lost~?"

"You're smart, so you wouldn't get lost."

"That's not really the issue here, ya know." Akari walks ahead.

"…Wtf, that girl is super pretty." "…Small face. Long legs." "…Big tits."

A beautiful girl with blond hair and blue eyes, wearing a school uniform, was walking by. She was drawing a lot of attention. "...Who is that old guy next to her?"

"...Maybe he's her boyfriend? Envy me!"

"...Idiot, it's clearly her father. Anything else would be weird."

...I'm standing out just as much.

But I see... by wearing a uniform, people assume I'm her father, so even though we're conspicuous, it doesn't really cause a problem. "Not bad, Akari."

"Right? I thought about all sorts of things too!"

"You've always been surprisingly quick-witted."

Holding Akari's hand, I walked past the food court and arrived at the back of the shopping mall.

In a rather inconspicuous location was the pasta restaurant we were looking for. We sat in a booth by the window.

"Oh, A-karin. The B lunch special is recommended~" "Then we'll have two of those."

The waiter took our order, bowed his head, and left.

"It's quiet here, cheap, and delicious, so I recommend it~"

"Hm... so you know a lot, huh?"

"Well, kind of. I look at all sorts of things for reference when working on recipes."

I see... So that's why the meals she makes taste better than what they serve in restaurants. It must be thanks to all that effort she puts in.

"Do you work part-time at places like this one, Akari?"

She actually juggles two part-time jobs: a cafe and a Western-style restaurant.

"Yeah, I do. Ah, but the locations are top secret. Though the cafe location got out." "Why is it a secret?"

"Mmfu~♡ A woman's beauty comes from keeping her secrets, you know!"

"You've been into that manga since forever, haven't you?"

I used to get roped into playing Detective Conan at cram school all the time.

And I was usually stuck in the role of the guy who gets knocked out.

"Of course! Manga and anime are cultural treasures that Japan can be proud of! Ah, Karin-chan, what manga have you been reading lately?" "Blue Lock is pretty good."

"Right?! That series is just sooo awesome right now!"

For work reasons, I often watch anime and read manga in addition to light novels.

Akari enjoys watching anime and reading manga as a hobby.

"No matter how much my older sister tries to recommend them, she just won't read them..."

"Is Nana still not reading manga?"

"Yeah. She says she doesn't know how to read manga. Apparently, there are too many panels. She claims you have to number each panel specifically for her or else she can't read it. It's like talking to a grandmother."

Just then, our pasta arrived. "Okarin, Okarin ♡" "What?"

She wound up the pasta on her fork and held it out to me. "Ahn ♡" "Don't get cocky. This is outside." "Is it okay inside then~?"

"That's bad manners, so stop doing that." "Chew..."

Akari ate while brushing her side-tail hair up to keep it from falling on the plate.

That movement had become strangely sensual.

"Oh my~? Seems like our Okarin is getting all flustered by this sexy action of mine, huh?"

Akari said that with a mischievous grin.

"No, I actually got a little emotional seeing how grown up you've become."

"That's just your parental instincts showing! Ugh, stop it!"

She flailed her legs around under the table.

"Until you break that habit, you're still just a kid."

"Mmm... That's way too hard to overcome... So disappointing."

After the pasta, tiramisu was brought out. It seemed to be part of a set dessert course.

When she came over for "ahh~♡" again, I just poked her forehead in dismissal.

Akari took a bite of the tiramisu, then pulled out her smartphone to start typing on the keypad. "What are you writing down?" "The recipe."

"You can tell what it is from just one bite?"

"Yep. One bite is usually enough to recreate it mostly. If I finish it all, it'll be perfect."

"You've got some pretty incredible skills, you know that?" "Heh~♡ Right?"

Satisfied with her notes, Akari happily finished off the rest of the tiramisu. "I'll make it for you at home next time!"

After that, I wandered through the shopping mall looking for Akari's present.

"Ahh! Okarin! You can pre-order the new volume of Delicious in Dungeon! Can I place an order?"

"Okarin, look at this! A brand-new bag! It's super cool~! Can I take a look at the others too?"

"Okarin, there's an arcade here. You should come check it out!"

I was tracing the same route my older sister, Nanaiko, used to.

Nanaiko would never state where she wanted to go on her own; she just followed behind me.

Even when asked what she wanted, she seemed unable to find it for quite some time.

But Akari was different. Her interest jumped from thing to thing, and she seemed to have a lot of items she wanted—this one, that one.

She was the complete opposite of my timid older sister... ...but unexpectedly.

"Okay, I'm satisfied! Let's go to the next store." We were in a general goods shop.

Akari picked up a cute trinket because she found it adorable. But that was all.

Hey, Akari. You haven't bought a single thing so far. Is that okay?"

"Did you make a reservation for Dungeon Meshi?"

"No, that's the only reason. You're working part-time, so you must have plenty of spare change. Why didn't you just buy it?"

Akari made a grim face, humming in response.

"Akari-chan, promise me you won't laugh." "Ah."

"And don't think I look the part." "Got it." Akari cleared her throat.

"It's just... a waste of money, isn't it?" "A waste?"

"Yeah. I save all my part-time paycheck for the future." ...That was unexpected.

I had assumed she worked to buy things she wanted. Saving for the future instead. "I see. That's admirable."

I patted Akari's head lightly, pon. "Eh...?" Akari stared, mouth agape. "What's wrong?"

"Ah, no... I mean, usually when I say stuff like this, my classmates tease me, saying it doesn't suit me or that I'm too serious and stiff."

Akari blushed, fiddling with the ends of her hair as she shuffled her feet, unable to meet his eyes.

"Getting praised... a little, no, I'm just really happy about it."

Akari let out a small, "heh."

This was how Akari truly expressed happiness: modestly and elegantly. So this must have been genuine.

"It's in the way if we do it out front, so shall we go somewhere?"
"Yes!"

Akari reached out her hand, and this time, I took hold of it.
"Eh...!?"

Eyes wide, Akari let out a strange squeak.
"What's wrong?"
"W-Well... I mean..."

Her face flushing red all the way down to her neck, Akari stammered.

"We were holding hands just moments ago, and now you're acting shy?"

"D-don't catch me off guard like that! It's fine if I tease you, but it's strictly forbidden for you to tease me!"
"Is that so? My apologies."

"A-actually never mind! Catching someone off guard is... okay, but... let's do it somewhere out of public view... right?"

I had known both Akari and Nako since they were little.

There were parts of them that hadn't changed in ten years, and parts that had.

And then there were aspects I simply couldn't have known about them a decade ago... Every time I discovered one, I felt the weight of how much they had grown.

She must have grown up, too. It feels that way, at least. So what about me... am I any different? ★

In the end, we bought nothing and Akari and I headed home.

"Are you sure you didn't want to buy anything?" "Yeah. It's fine." "Don't be modest, okay?"

Akari let out a mischievous giggle, teasing me like a naughty child. "Heh heh~ Sweet, sweet Kaji-kun." "Who are you calling Kaji-kun, Team Leader?"

She smiled at me with a playful smirk.

"Hmm~ I mean, if we have an excuse to buy presents, we can just borrow that as a reason to go on another date alone, Kaji~♡"

Akari hugged my arm tightly.

"To me, the best present isn't anything material... it's just going out somewhere together like this and having fun with you."

Hearing her perspective, I felt compelled to ask.

"Won't a date be over if you don't have something you want?"

"No, that's not right. We don't need money or gifts. As long as you're there, that's enough."

...Women really do have all sorts of values. "Was it different with my ex-wife?"

Akari, who was sharp on the uptake, seemed to realize right away who I was comparing her to.

"Ah, so every time you left, someone would tell you to buy something for them?"

"Ugh, that’s the worst. Seeing nothing but a man’s wallet... What kind of upbringing turns someone into like that? Who were they raised by?"

"Misae’s dad was a pretty strict guy. He refused her hand in marriage over and over again." "No way... seriously?"

"Yeah. I figured it was rare to see such a stubborn old man these days."

"How does a stubborn dad end up with such a piece of garbage for a daughter? Wait, Karin? Is there someone out front at my house?"

At that moment, Akari pointed ahead. "Mitsuhiko-kun!"

Upon noticing me, [that person] came running toward me.

"Mitsuhiko... wait, Karin, do you know him?" "...Yeah, I know him well."

He stopped in front of me and dropped into a deep bow, touching his forehead to the ground with a thud.

"Please! Mitsuhiko-kun! Will you please reconcile with my daughter?"

"My daughter... someone I know... reconcile... No way."

Akari seemed to have caught on.

I sighed and spoke up to the person in question.

"Please look up, Mrs. Nagano." Nagano… Misae's maiden name.

In other words, this was the aforementioned man—Misae's father.