CH 19

Episode 19: “And on the Day of the Date”

“Good morning Nanami-san. I came to pick you up a bit earlier than the planned time.”

“…Good morning, Youshin. Thank you for yesterday.”

I contacted her from a place slightly away from Nanami-san’s house and met her as she came out. It was a desperate measure to avoid bumping into her family.

Today, her appearance is somewhat modest… She’s wearing a white blouse and a light blue long skirt. However, there are some elements of the gyaru style, I guess? She has exposed shoulders, and her accessories and small items are sparkling.

It’s like blending a modest style with a gyaru style… I don’t know how to express it with my vocabulary. What should I call this?

But what I do know is that she looks cute.

I’m wearing new clothes that I bought yesterday and I feel a little uneasy… But I think this outfit allows me to stand next to her without looking out of place.

I’m truly grateful to Baron-san and my senpai. If they hadn’t told me, I would have stood in front of her completely blacked out.

“Today, you have a different atmosphere again. It suits you.”

“Yeah… With this outfit, I don’t think my dad will notice I’m going on a date with a guy. He probably thinks I’ll be hanging out with Hatsumi, and Ayumu today.”

It seems that Nanami-san is keeping our relationship a secret from her family.

Well, I’m keeping it a secret too. It’s just somehow difficult to talk about. I understand how she feels.

However… My parents might have noticed something.

Yesterday, I bought clothes that were very unusual for me, and they were not black. They were surprised by that, but they didn’t say anything more. My dad just nodded and said, “I see, I see…”

And this morning… They were already away on a business trip, but there was a lot more money on the table for living expenses than usual.

This has never happened before… I’m grateful, but it’s scary that they don’t say anything…

No, let’s set aside my parents for now. Today, I feel invincible and omnipotent because I’m wearing different clothes. I have to escort Nanami-san properly.

“Well then, shall we go?”

“Yeah. Oh, by the way, Youshin… Your outfit looks good. It’s cool.”

…Oh no, she said it first. That’s unfair. And she did it in the morning. She shows me a radiant smile, but I can’t look back at her and my face turns bright red.

The sense of invincibility and omnipotence in my heart vanishes in an instant. Instead, it’s replaced by something else… a feeling of happiness.

“Nanami-san, you… look good in that outfit too… It’s… cute.”

I try my best to counterattack, but she just mutters, “I know,” and comes to stand next to me, taking my hand. Her appearance is different from usual, but her hand, which is always the same, gives me a sense of relief.

…I used to get nervous just by holding hands, but does this mean I’ve grown? Ah, Nanami-san’s ears are red, so she must be somewhat happy. Did my counterattack succeed?

“So, in the end, which movie did you choose for today?”

“Oh, today we’re going to watch the superhero movie you wanted to see, Nanami-san. You mentioned you haven’t seen it yet, so I bought the tickets online and reserved seats.”

“I didn’t know you could do that. We always bought tickets on the spot when we went together. So, did you get couple seats?”

“No, I didn’t. Besides, that theater doesn’t have couple seats, you know. Don’t tease me about it.”

Nanami-san smiles with her teeth showing next to me and lets out a somewhat mysterious laughter, “Nishi-nishi.” I can’t quite understand it. Despite her change in appearance, Nanami-san is still the same. She often teases me but also tends to make self-deprecating jokes.

Well, the seats are arranged next to each other, so it’s practically like a couple seat.

“By the way, I’ve never seen this series before. Do you think I can enjoy it even if it’s my first time?”

“Hmm, I think you’ll be fine. I got hooked on it even when I started watching it halfway through. I haven’t seen all the movies in the series either.”

I see, that’s good to hear. If we were to watch all 20 films together, it would be like a dream. It would take much longer than a month to finish the entire series, even if we pushed ourselves. But that’s not what she meant.

I wonder what she really thinks about this relationship.

Am I just a practice partner for her? Does she feel obligated to be with me as part of a punishment game, or does she genuinely have feelings for me? Sometimes, she wears a sad expression—is it out of guilt?

I know that this relationship is part of a punishment game, but she doesn’t know that I’m aware of it. She smiles at me without a hint of malice, completely unaware… Every time I see that innocent smile, I feel like I’m deceiving her.

I wish there was a way to accurately gauge a girl’s feelings or have a parameter that conveniently displays the nature of our current relationship. I’m so lacking in experience that I have no clue.

“I think she’s head over heels for you, even though you’ve only been together for less than a week. But, in your eyes, does she seem like the kind of person who would deceive a guy like that?

My answer to Baron-san’s question was a definite no.

I can answer that without hesitation. She’s not that… Well, to be blunt, she’s not that skilled. But that’s different from how I feel about her. I can’t help but think that my emotions of liking her are separate from that.

I’m overly negative, even though I realize it myself. I just can’t gather the courage for that final step, despite coming this far…

“Youshin…? Could it be that you’re the type who prefers watching movies alone?”

I snap back to reality at her words. Right now, I’m on a date with her. Setting aside my negative thoughts, I should just focus on enjoying this time with her.

“No, that’s not true. It’s just that when we watch a movie at home, it naturally ends up being just the two of us, and I thought I might get nervous and not be able to fully grasp the movie’s content. Besides, there are so many films in the series… It would take over a month to finish watching them all, right?”

At my words, a fleeting shadow crosses her face.

…Oops, I accidentally mentioned the word “month” because I was still thinking about the punishment game until just now. I tried my best not to bring it up, but I failed.

She quickly recovers from that shadow and closes her eyes for a moment, giving me a slightly sad smile that I almost don’t notice.

“…Well then, let’s at least… keep dating until we finish watching the entire series, okay?”

…Can I interpret her words as her being willing to continue dating me even after a month has passed? Can I allow myself to be self-conceited?

…Since the atmosphere has become awkward, I try to lighten it by making a joke. I shouldn’t make her feel sad. Today is meant for her to enjoy.

Today is her day.

“That’s harsh, you know? If we finish watching the whole series, am I going to get dumped? In that case, we should prolong the viewing as much as possible… As I declared before, I have no intention of letting you go, Nanami-san.”

After saying that, I feel a bit disgusted with myself, but Nanami-san returns to her usual smile in response to my words. That’s good, she didn’t get scared off.

“Don’t worry, the series will continue for a long time. They’ve already announced a new film for next year.”

“I see, the longer the long-running series goes, the more our relationship will be secure, huh?”

We laugh together. Finally, Nanami-san’s usual smile returns. I breathe a sigh of relief, pat my chest, and hold her hand as we head to the movie theater.

“…By the way, Youshin, you must have dated girls before, right? You seem oddly experienced, and you even bought new clothes specifically for this date. Unlike me, I’m wearing the same clothes as always.”

“That’s not true… Even today, if I hadn’t been told by my gaming friends and Shibetsu-senpai, I was planning to come on this date wearing the same clothes as yesterday. They told me it was unacceptable.”

“By the way, what did they say?”

“Senpai said, ‘Are you a ninja or an assassin?’ Isn’t that harsh?”

Nanami-san bursts into laughter at that point.

“…A ninja… A ninja, huh…”

It seems like I unintentionally hit the mark, as she bows her head, trembling slightly. Well, if she found it amusing, then it’s a good thing, even if I didn’t fully understand the joke.

“So, yesterday… you saved us with your ninja skills… Thank you again, Ninja-san…”

“…If I were a real ninja, I would have saved you in a much more spectacular way.”

It was a bit complicated to hear her thanking me with a voice trembling with laughter.

While we were talking like that and moving, we arrived at the movie theater in no time.

We exchanged our tickets, bought drinks and popcorn… We were fully prepared.

“Hey, I think I should at least pay half.”

“No, it’s a thank-you for the lunches I’ve been getting from you. If you pay half here, how am I supposed to repay you, Nanami-san?”

She reluctantly agreed with my words.

By the way, I’m also paying for today’s lunch.

At first, I thought maybe I should give her a present at this time? But Baron-san stopped me from doing that.

“Well, it might be too early for that. It feels a bit heavy. I think it would be better to give a present on the one-month anniversary or something like that.”

One month… One month, huh?

I’ll work hard to make that the anniversary.

So, I’ll cover today’s lunch, and then we’ll stroll around the shopping mall, and in the evening, I’ll take Nanami-san home… That’s the plan for today.

I was thinking that we should do more things, but apparently that’s not necessary.

As we were talking, the screening time approached, and we watched the movie together.

I had never seen a superhero movie before, but it had impressive action scenes and a deep storyline, making it quite enjoyable.

After watching the movie, Nanami-san was still excited, so we decided to share our thoughts at a nearby café.

“Oh man, it was so intense! It was just like that phrase ‘holding your breath in suspense.’ It was amazing! And that ending! It was touching but a bit bittersweet… Heroes really have to fight for the sake of the Earth!”

“Yeah, it was fun. But since I hadn’t seen the previous installment, there were parts where I was like, ‘Why?'”

“Same here. There were references to the series that I hadn’t seen, so I was curious… This movie helped me understand the significance of the series.”

“Oh, so there were parts you didn’t know either. You had such a delighted expression, I thought you knew everything.”

“…Wait, were you looking at me instead of watching the movie?”

Oops, I unintentionally confessed that I was looking at her face when the movie became confusing and I wondered what expression she had. With half-closed eyes, she glared at me, and I averted my gaze while trying to cover it up.

“Well, you know, you were sitting next to me, so it caught my eye… It was just a coincidence… Yeah, just a coincidence.”

She kept her half-closed eyes for a while, as if saying she’d forgive me, then smiled wryly.

After that, we shared our thoughts, had lunch together, and looked at clothes while she helped me pick something out. We were having a great time.

Time flew by so quickly that before we knew it, it was already evening.

I had planned to spend until evening with her today. I didn’t want to make her parents worry if it got too late, and honestly, I didn’t have the courage to have dinner together, just the two of us.

Having dinner together until late at night… That’s quite a high hurdle, I think.

“What should we do for dinner tonight?”

I was thinking about when I should start taking her home, and I unintentionally muttered those words, which Nanami-san heard.

“For tonight? Aren’t we going to eat at your place?”

“Oh, well, my parents are both away on a business trip today. They’re scheduled to come back tomorrow night.”

“So, what are we going to do for dinner tonight?”

“Well, I was thinking of just buying some ready-made dishes or ordering takeout or going out to eat…”

Upon hearing my words, Nanami-san showed a slight sign of pondering something before speaking up.

“…That’s not good. It won’t be balanced in terms of nutrition, right?”

“Hmm… But I don’t cook, so… Well, I guess it’ll be fine for one meal.”

“…Okay, I understand.”

I thought Nanami-san had agreed with me based on her words, but it turned out to be different. Her expression seemed to harbor a determined resolve, as if she had made up her mind about something.

“Hmm?”

“Today, I’ll go to Youshin’s house and make dinner for you!”

…Huh? Why would it turn out like that?

Interude : Nanami’s inner conflict after making the declaration.

I said it! I said it, didn’t I?!

But, you know, it’s a chance to let Youshin taste something other than my lunch, and having him eat dinner alone afterward…

Since it’s a special day for our date, I want it to end happily… Plus, I want to spend a bit more time together…

…Wait, hold on. Now that I think about it… His parents aren’t home, right? …Does that mean… just the two of us?!

Y-Youshin won’t do anything weird, right? Oh, but… a kiss on the cheek wouldn’t be too bad, right…? No, but… still, it’s too soon… But…