My Childhood Friend, a Cool, Beautiful Girl With a Pure Face, Is a Monopolising Yandere
On Saturday morning, we headed to an unusual meeting place.
“I think it would be more reasonable to meet at the station.”
A LINE message arrived first thing in the morning. It was an unusual suggestion from Ran, who usually comes to pick me up in front of my house.
In front of the station ticket gate, I found Ran in the meeting space. Unlike her usual school uniform, she was dressed in plain clothes today.
White blouse and gray skirt. Simple yet sophisticated, she looked as if she had just stepped out of a fashion magazine.
I have always thought she was beautiful since junior high school, but today’s Ran is a little different. She has a more mature look, and I couldn’t help but admire it.
Her hair is softer than usual today, and the lightly curled hairstyle gently wraps around her face. She was also wearing a little makeup, which gave her a different look from her usual school uniform.
“Yuto, you’re late.”
“I’m sorry, sorry. …… Today’s fashion looks good on you.”
“Of course it does. There is no reason to choose clothes that don’t suit you, right?”
She replied smoothly, and I smiled bitterly. Ran is this kind of person.
“If we take the next train, it will take just 31 minutes to get to the cafe. It’s perfect because we only have to change trains once.”
“The café you were talking about the other day?”
Ran said after school. It seems that a collaboration cafe with a certain mystery writer is being held at a store in the city center.
The mystery writer is the author of a series that I was crazy about when I was in junior high school, and he is known for his comical characters and carefully calculated mysteries that mystery novices can easily get used to.
Thorough advance preparation that is typical of Ran.
Frankly speaking, as a person who likes to take care of things, I appreciated the fact that she planned everything like this.
“I want to get in before it gets too crowded, so we’ll get there early.”
We get on the train and go a few stops.
Ran stares out the window and doesn’t talk much. I sit next to her, looking at my phone or at the hanging advertisements.
It is a quiet time, but strangely enough, it is not uncomfortable.
I get off at my destination station and walk down the shopping street to find a café with a relaxed atmosphere. When I opened the door, the store was empty because it was still before noon.
“Look, there’s a seat by the window with a nice atmosphere.”
Ran had done her research beforehand and immediately secured the best seat in the café.
I take a seat by the window and look at the menu, which includes sweets and drinks themed on mystery writers. Remembering the works and characters I had remembered, I smile spontaneously.
The waiter approached me and offered a suggestion with a smile
“Would you like to try our special drink for couples only? It’s a romantic drink, served in one cup with two straws.”
I was taken aback and tried to deny it, saying, “No, no, we …,” but Ran responded calmly
“We’ll have that drink. That’s all we have to order.”
“Eh? Really?”
I was surprised, but Ran added calmly
“If we both drink one drink, it will save us the trouble of ordering and picking up our drinks, right? It’s cost-effective, efficient, and scientifically the best choice.”
“S-scientific ……?”
Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?
I want to poke at it, but Ran is quick to argue with me.
“There is no need to follow the formal rule of ‘couples only,’ right? If you’re just going to have a drink together, it doesn’t matter if you’re not in a relationship.
I don’t understand why you are embarrassed. It’s a plan that the restaurant recommends, so there’s no need to be embarrassed about it.”
“Well, that’s true, but ……”
It’s a problem.
It’s hard to argue when Ran says this. The clerk was also smiling and waiting, and it felt awkward to be the only one panicking.
“Or what? Yuto doesn’t want to be seen as a couple with me?”
Ran looks at me with cold eyes. Snake-like eyes,…… I hurriedly corrected
“I-I don’t …… mind at all! It’s more like an honor,…….”
“That’s good.”
I wonder if it’s okay? Really……?
Ran is right. But the act of drinking this drink together seems to have a special meaning.
“Here you go.”
The waiter brings the drinks.
It is a strawberry-flavored drink in a cup with two straws in it, clearly “for couples”. The rim of the cup is decorated with a mysterious design that looks like a motif from a mystery novel.
It is very photogenic. The visual is very photogenic. If only the couple were drinking. ……
I am overwhelmed and stunned, but Ran is unconcerned.
“If we drink at the same time, there will be no waste. Let’s drink it quickly.”
“Yeah, I know, but our faces are so close together…”
“So what? The longer we take, the worse it tastes, so we should drink it quickly.”
“All right, then, let’s drink at the same time…”
When I contemplate, Ran makes a small gasping motion. It was as if she was saying, “That’s what you should have done from the beginning.”
“Okay, so you want a drink at the same time?”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
I put my mouth on the straw.
C-close…..!
Ran’s cool and beautiful face is right in front of my eyes. I can clearly see her cheeks, eyelashes, and lips. My heart is restless.
As I inhale, a sweet and sour and refreshing taste spreads in my mouth. The sweetness of strawberries and the slight coolness of mint are delicious.
However, the situation is too exciting …… than delicious!
“It’s more refreshing than I thought it would be.”
“Y-yes, very tasty.”
A jerky voice comes out.
“I’m glad. Now I don’t have to order two dishes.”
I can only laugh at Ran’s calm words.
Even though she got this close, she didn’t collapse. I feel like I’m the only one who’s nervous inside, and I can’t say anything.
But was it my …… imagination that I felt a slight reddish tinge in her ear?
When Ran looked at the puzzle sheet that came with the drink, she immediately showed interest.
“you like to solve puzzles, don’t you? Would you like to try?”
The riddle-solving kit on the table was a collaboration with a mystery writer, and included an A4-size sheet of paper and several hint cards.
“If you can solve it in 20 minutes from the time you order, you get an original souvenir.”
Ran flips through the hint cards with her fingertips, casually leaning on my shoulder. A little different from the usual “efficient” reasoning, a softer distance.
In order to proceed with the mystery-solving event, look for little decorations and hint cards in the store.
“Is this painting modeled after the museum in the book?”
“Maybe it is. The clue card says, Count the birds”
“Well, are there ……4 birds in the picture? Oh, here’s another one.”
The drink I ordered earlier had a bird pattern on it.
“The total is five. So the next clue would be to check the name of the fifth item on the menu.”
“Oh, this is based on the story in volume 3, isn’t it? That’s why there was a drink for couples. ……”
In the meantime, the mystery was solved, and when I told the waiter the answer, he gave me a small prize. and was given a small prize.
“Congratulations! Here is your prize, a matching key chain.”
The clerk handed me two key chains decorated with motifs from mystery novels. It was more sophisticated than I had expected.
The couple’s drink was still half full, but we shared it and drank it down.
I am afraid that the act of emptying a cup together has somehow become second nature to me.
When we left the restaurant, the sun was shining brighter than in the morning.
I walk with Ran. Standing side by side in plain clothes, would we look like a couple to those around us?
…It doesn’t matter anymore. Even the embarrassment is becoming numb as Ran’s pace drags me down.
“Next, let’s go to the aquarium.”
“Eh, now?”
“Of course. I’ve already checked out the best route to visit the aquarium in advance.”
Typical Ran expression. But today was a little different. I could sense a different, slightly heightened tone in her voice.
“You can count on me.”
Ran told me with a twinkle in her eye.