I couldnāt get any ideas out of Saito other than the book she wanted, so I wanted to try asking another girl, unfortunately, I donāt have that many connections of that sort.
The only person I could think of was the girl at my part time job. I canāt say that weāre close, but Iāve talked to her about Saito before, and sheās easy to talk to.
I thought that I could get her opinion because she might have a similar taste to Saito. After my part time jobās shift ended, I approached her.
[Hiiragi-san, may I have a word?]
[Yes, what is it?]
When I called out to her, she gave me a strange look.
[Actually, Iād like to ask you somethingā¦]
[ā¦ Go ahead]
I thought she mightāve refused, since we werenāt so close to begin with, but she nodded and accepted my request, though there was a strange pause before.
[Itās almost the birthday of someone Iāve been close to recently,but Iām not sure what to get herā¦]
Hiiragi-san reacted to my words with a jolt and froze.
[ā¦. Did the person in question say anything about what she liked or wanted?]
[Sheās always been a book lover, and when I asked her today, she said she wanted a new book]
[You are, after allā¦]
[Whatās wrong?]
Her eyes behind her glasses stared at me.
She opened her mouth and wanted to say something, but hesitated and closed it.
[ā¦ No, itās nothing. If thatās the case, I think a book would be fine right?]
[Hmmmā¦]
I know itās the safest option, but itās still quite tricky.
Itās a birthday present, and so I thought that a book felt a bit dull as a present.
[If it bothers you so much, you donāt have to actually get her anything, you know?]
As I was lost in thought, she suggested that I just donāt buy a present in a cold voice, as if she ran out of patience.
But I couldnāt do that.
[No, I want to give her a present. Iām really indebted to her. Even though she has no obligation to lend me books, she still does so without hesitation and with a happy expression too. Sometimes sheās a bit nosy, but Iām grateful towards her. Well, Iām too embarrassed to say this to her directly thoughā¦. Is something wrong?]
Itās not like I donāt want to tell anyone, but itās still embarrassing to talk about my true feelings to others.
As I spoke more and more, and started to feel embarrassed, Hiiragi-san froze, rolling her eyes behind the lens.
She lowered her eyes and her gaze wandered around as if she was looking away from me.
Her cheeks seemed to be tinted with a bit of color.
[ā¦.. Donāt worry about me, go on]
I tried to ask how she was doing, but she responded in her usual cold voice.
She sounded unconcerned, so I thought there would be no problem and continued talking.
[Is that so? Well, thatās why I want to give her something in return. I want her to be happy as a way of returning the favor sheās done for me so far. I like it when she smiles happily]
Sometimes she narrows her eyes and smiles happily, which is very alluring, and also soothing to watch and I want to see it again and again. I rarely see her smile because sheās usually expressionless, but it makes me happy whenever I see her smile.
Whenever she smiled, she looked pleased, and there was something about it that charmed me.
[I seeā¦ then a book would be insufficient, maybe add an accessory as an extra gift for her]
She told me in a more uptight voice than usual.
[Thereās no rule that says you canāt give two]
I wanted to give her the book because I want her to be happy.
I know that she will really like the book if I get it, but the reason I was hesitant was because thereās something she hadnāt shown me a lot.
Sheās also a normal girl. The evidence is the fact that she likes sweets such as ice cream.
I also feel like she loves cute and pretty things.
Iāll give her another present. I think itās a good idea to have a backup gift as well.
[Yes, I think it would be a good idea. Then, Iāll be going now, bye]
[Ah, yes, thank you very much]
After giving me some advice, she quickly left. I watched her leave while thinking to myself.
As she walked away, I thought her ears were dyed a bit red..