I Drink Every Night With a Lookalike of a Popular Idol on the Riverbank
Our usual meeting spot had recently shifted from the riverbank to Nanase’s room. The December night wind was simply too harsh, even for us.
“It really is warm inside, huh?”
“Right? Should we make this our official meeting spot for the winter? Yosuke can wait outside until I get home from work.”
“Wait outside!?”
“Well then, should I give you a spare key?”
Nanase grinned, picked up the key sitting on the table, and jingled it.
“N-no, no… That’s a bit much… I might drop it.”
“Then hang it around your neck?”
“That’s like a collar!?”
“Heh heh. My pet dog, my pet dog.”
Nanase-san laughed as she pulled the tab on a canned chuhai. A space just for the two of us, undisturbed by anyone. I was starting to get completely used to that comfort.
“Oh, right. I bought some snacks for Yosuke.”
“Really? Thanks.”
Nanase-san stood up, saying “Let me treat you~,” and brought cheese kamaboko from the fridge.
“Hey, look. It was half price.”
She proudly showed me the red “Half Price” sticker, as if she’d found a treasure.
That slightly childish gesture was inexplicably adorable, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Nice. Double the deliciousness, right?”
“Mm. Exactly.”
I gratefully took the cheese kamaboko, tore open the packaging, and popped a piece into my mouth in one bite. The mellow flavor of cheese spread across my palate, paired with the gentle springiness of the kamaboko.
Yeah, tasty. That’s what I thought—until the very next moment.
Tsuun!
A fierce green flash struck me right between the eyes, straight from the back of my nose. My mind went completely blank. Wasabi. An insane amount of wasabi.
“Guh-uh-uh-uh!”
My windpipe screamed in protest at the unexpected attack. Nanase-san rushed over in a panic and patted my back.
“Are you okay, Yosuke!?”
Her concern went unheeded as the burning wouldn’t subside. And that shock triggered a sneeze.
“A-achoo!”
The instant I let out that massive sneeze. A dull crack echoed through my skull.
“~!!”
A scream that couldn’t form words. The force of the cough triggered the sneeze, and with that momentum, I bit down hard on my own tongue. The stinging sensation and the throbbing pain played the worst possible harmony inside my mouth.
As I writhed in agony, tears welling in my eyes, Nanase-san hurriedly handed me a glass of water.
“This… wasabi…”
I pointed tearfully at the fish cake package. Nanase-san picked it up with a puzzled look, peeling off the red “Half Price” sticker I’d indicated with a peel.
From beneath the sticker, tiny text and a green illustration peeked out.
‘Wasabi Flavor’
“…It’s a trap… Yosuke… I’m so sorry…”
Nanase-san rubbed my back, her face looking like she was about to cry.
“I’m… I’m okay… but when I choked, I bit my tongue and it hurts like hell…”
As I pitifully complained about the lingering pain, Nanase-san nodded seriously.
“Let… let me see.”
“Huh?”
“Your tongue. Stick it out for me.”
Her words startled me. Show her my tongue? At this close range?
“N-no, it’s fine. It’s nothing serious.”
“No way. I need to see it properly, or germs might get in, right?”
With an odd, unquestioning force, she pushed herself up beside me, kneeling firmly. Her face was right in front of mine.
“Now, aahn.”
“N-no, I’m not a kid…”
“Just do it!”
I couldn’t resist her intensely serious gaze. Resigned, I suppressed my embarrassment and opened my mouth just a little, revealing the tip of my tongue.
Then Nanase-san brought her face even closer.
My field of vision filled with her face.
Long lashes. Large eyes narrowed slightly, looking a little worried.
Those eyes were fixed intently on just one point on my tongue. A sweet scent, from some unknown source, tickled my nose.
The pain in my tongue had vanished somewhere. Instead, maybe it was adrenaline, but my heart was pounding so loudly it was unbearable.
Close. Too close. Her gaze was so intense it felt like I’d been shot through, leaving me breathless and frozen, unable to move an inch.
“Ah… you’re blushing. But it’s okay, you won’t die.”
A few seconds later. Like a doctor delivering a verdict, she nodded with satisfaction, stroked my head, and slowly pulled away.
My heart was still pounding wildly, and I just stood there frozen, my face bright red.
The pain in my tongue and the pain in my heart. I couldn’t tell anymore which was causing which.
Maiasa