Things They Want to Talk About
The day after Yuuki harshly dumped Ayaka.
Yuuki once again left the house without saying anything to his mother or sister and walked to school without thinking about anything in particular. On the way, just like yesterday, he tried to buy breakfast and lunch, and as he hesitated over what to get in the bread corner, someone came to stand beside him.
Since the convenience store was small, it was not unusual for someone to be right next to you.
Still, being in the same place as someone else felt uncomfortable, so Yuuki decided to hurry and buy something, reaching for a melon bread.
“Ah, if Yuuki-kun is buying that, then maybe I’ll buy it too.”
Hearing his name suddenly called, he looked to see who it was. It turned out to be Yume, who he had also seen at work yesterday.
“Good morning, Yuuki-kun.”
Yume smiled brightly and greeted him.
Yuuki still felt uneasy around Yume, around women in general. But even if it was forced, she had taken him on a trip, and her father Kyousuke had even paid for him. He also saw her at work. Besides, she had never done anything to him.
After hesitating over whether to return the greeting, Yuuki finally opened his mouth.
“Good morning.”
“Hehe, so you won’t ignore me. Thanks.”
Yume once again smiled happily as she looked at him.
Yuuki gave no reply, bought some random food along with the melon bread, and left the store.
Immediately after, Yume came from behind and walked beside him.
“Geez, Yuuki-kun, you’re fast.”
“There’s no need for you to wait for me.”
“Since we ran into each other, let’s go together at least part of the way.”
Yuuki ignored her again and kept walking.
Yume, unfazed as always, continued talking to him.
“Yuuki-kun, have you been buying your meals at the convenience store lately?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
As if she had figured something out, Yume said that and opened her mouth again.
“Then how about I make you a bento every day?”
“I don’t need it.”
To her sudden suggestion, he shot back without hesitation.
“Yuuki-kun, you’re still a high schooler, so you should save your money, you know?”
“That may be true, but I have no obligation to accept that from you, Yume-san, and I don’t want to be indebted either.”
“You don’t need to think about it that way, though.”
She paused there and turned her face toward him.
“Like I said before, I like you, Yuuki-kun. That’s why it’s not about obligation or debt. I’m saying it because I want to make it for you.”
“I see.”
Yume’s wholehearted confession was ignored as always.
“Could it be that you just don’t want to eat food made by a girl? Or is it only me?”
“That too. But I’ve already had your cooking a few times at work, so it doesn’t really bother me.”
When Yuuki said that, Yume deepened her smile and nodded.
“I see, I see. Then I really should make it for you, right?”
“I don’t need it.”
Yume slumped her shoulders and trudged along beside him.
“Then should I ask my dad to make it for you?”
“That’s no good either. I don’t want to trouble the Master too much. I already caused him trouble before.”
“I don’t think Dad would mind at all. He probably thinks of you like his own son.”
At Yume’s words, the corners of Yuuki’s mouth lifted slightly.
“I see. Please tell the Master thank you for me.”
“Hmm, I think that’s something you should tell him yourself.”
She was happy her father was praised, but still, that was that.
With Yume’s slightly sulky reply, Yuuki thought she might be right and simply answered, “Understood. I’ll tell him myself.”
Still not giving up, Yume seemed to think hard as she walked, then turned her face toward him as if she had come up with an idea.
“Then how about we deduct the food cost from your pay and I make your meals? That way it wouldn’t be a debt, and it would still be cheaper than buying from the convenience store.”
“It would still be a debt. There’s also the labor you put into making it.”
To his cold words, Yume replied with a smile.
“Yuuki-kun, you’re misunderstanding. It’s not that I’m doing you a favor by making it, I’m the one who wants to make it. So if anything, I’m the one in your debt.”
“That’s just sophistry.”
“Sophistry or not, an argument is still an argument. Go ahead and refute it.”
Faced with Yume’s strongest position, grounded in her feelings for him, Yuuki could not come up with anything to counter and had no words ready to respond.
“Then starting tomorrow, I’ll make you a bento. I’ll wait at that convenience store every morning.”
She said that quickly, not even waiting for Yuuki’s answer, and walked faster.
“I have first period, so see you tomorrow.”
“Wait a second.”
Without waiting for his words, Yume left.
What should I do? Yuuki wondered if he could come up with some kind of rebuttal to Yume as he hurried to school.
Even after entering the classroom and sitting at his desk, he could not find an answer.
As he sat there brooding, someone came over to his seat.
“Hey, Mikage.”
Yuuki looked up to see who it was, and it turned out to be one of the guys who hung around Ayaka.
“There’s something I want to talk about.”