Chapter 23 - Date (3)

'It's really nice, being able to talk to each other about books like this...', Kawajima, with a happy heart, thought to herself. With her current state, she knew that even small talk like this would definitely stay in her heart for a long time. With all the things that happened to her, she couldn't help but think that, even in a cruel world like this, there was still someone who could accept her. A man who... Didn't even look at her with the slightest disdain or rejection.

'... I hope this lasts forever'

Inside the dimly lit city library, a man and a woman, sitting opposite each other, were enjoying their good time. There was no one else in sight, the world seemed to contain only the two of them.

Uhum! Although, they still lowered their voices when speaking. After all, library manners must be maintained.

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At 12:15, the two of them realized that it had been a while since the two of them had talked about their hobbies. With the lunch hour have arrived, the two of them walked out and were about to go to the eatery suggested by Ryousuke.

"The shop we're going to is actually a coffee shop. But there they also serve various dishes for lunch. The place is also cozy and relaxing. I've been going there many times as a regular customer. So I'm sure you'll like it too, Kawajima-san" Ryousuke said.

Hearing his words, Kawajima looked forward to their lunch time even more. "Is that so? Un! I think I'll like it too!" she replied. Smiling happily, after what happened earlier in the library, Kawajima now felt that she knew the man beside her better and was even more happy because of their compatibility in the same hobby. So, without realizing it, Kawajima was currently walking beside Ryousuke more closely than before.

"hahaha, good. I think we only need to walk another five minutes from here. See there? On that street, we turn left and you'll see the shop" Ryousuke explained, with Kawajima nodding in return. They were currently at the crossroads, after the pedestrian light turned green, they immediately crossed the street and turned left.

Walking slightly forward, he and Kawajima finally arrived at their next destination, which was Amaki's coffee shop. The jingling sound of a bell could be heard as the two of them entered, signaling a new customer to the shop staff.

"Welcome" a female shop assistant approached them, dressed in typical shop assistant attire, she welcomed them.

"Table for two, please" Ryosuke with a two-finger gesture, said to her.

"Ah, Toru-kun. Okay, over here" The clerk guided them to a table with two chairs near the corner of the room. "Then, please have a look at the menu, call me when you've decided".

"Yes, thank you."

They both held the menu book to decide on their lunch. "What would you like to order Kawajima-san? "

Pointing towards the most common menu in the shop, Kawajima decided, "I think omurice... And for the drink, a latte."

"Okay. Excuse me~ please order two omurice, one latte and one iced milk coffee" he raised his hand and ordered.

The store clerk immediately came and wrote down their order. After that they were told to wait for a while for their food to be ready.

"What do you think, nice place?" Ryousuke asked the girl in front of him. Who after finishing ordering, began to look around the inside of the shop.

It was quite large, although by now some of the tables were already filled with customers who were also spending their lunch time here. Unlike the library, here the sounds of chatter could be heard rather loudly, but even so, the cool air indoors on a hot afternoon, as well as the cozy atmosphere provided by the shop, made Kawajima like this place. "Yes... This is indeed a nice place. Maybe I should go here again sometime? "

Ryousuke smiled, nodding in satisfaction at her answer. "That's good."

After a while, the food they ordered finally arrived.

""itadakimasu"" the two of them ate their lunch in a cozy atmosphere. Apparently, there was no awkwardness between them. Usually, when one doesn't know the other person well enough, when faced with a situation like this, silence would only make things more awkward. But right now, that was no longer the case with them.

'Yup, today's omerice is also delicious as usual' Ryousuke thought.

Devouring the delicious food in front of him quickly, he soon finished his meal. Kawajima seemed to have a small mouth, as her eating speed would always be slower than him. So, while waiting for her to finish, Ryousuke passed the time by silently stealing glances at her while drinking the iced milk coffee in his hand. The refreshing coffee really felt great for this hot day.

Maybe it was a habit, but after he had eaten with her these two times, every time, he would see Kawajima eating her food while bowing her head. What the reason was, he did not know. But anyway, the bright side was that because she lowered her head, Ryousuke could automatically see the beauty in front of him freely. Kawajima wouldn't notice anyway.

Little did he know, although Kawajima always lowered her head when eating in public places, her sense of feeling was still very sharp, and she had realized earlier that Ryousuke had been looking at her secretly.

She would not reprimand him. Ryousuke had no ill intentions in his gaze anyway, so she just left it as it was, although in truth, she was very embarrassed to be stared at.

Finally, Kawajima finished her meal. Picking up the coffee in front of her, she drank it quietly. She thought, 'after this, are we going straight home? Or...' she seriously thought about it. Today had been fun, Kawajima had no doubt about that. But she didn't know whether after lunch, they would still continue their activities or decide to call it a day. She hoped it was the former, though the decision was all in Ryousuke's hands, after all he was in charge.

It wasn't even long while she was thinking about that with a puzzled look on her face, when Ryousuke said, "Are we done? Then let's move on. Time to go to the game center!"

Instantly, Kawajima felt a great sense of relief that this wonderful activity was not over yet. "Un!" excitedly, she nodded in agreement.

Paying for their respective meals, Ryousuke and Kawajima walked out of the coffee shop feeling satisfied.

Walking towards the nearest game center, Ryousuke asked Kawajima with some curiosity, "Kawajima-san, have you been to a game center before? "

"Umm... No. I've never gone before"

Kawajima, with her dark past, had no friends at all. And the game center, in her mind was a place where friends usually went to play. It was unimaginable for her to go alone to such a place.

But now that she had a friend, she hadn't thought about going to the game center with her new friend. Today would be her first time going there. She wasn't a gamer like Ryousuke, so she didn't really understand the issues about game-related things, but she was still interested in going. 'If it's with him... ' she thought, with a flushed face.

"Okay. I'll guide you there, we'll play a lot of different games, so prepare yourself!"

"U-Un!"

Entering the game center, Kawajima looked at everything curiously. People were gathered together with their friends, playing and relaxing. The entire room was decorated with various game posters and colorful lights. The room was filled with various game machines ready to be played, all of which looked new to her.

"First, we'll exchange coins" Ryousuke explained. Guiding Kawajima to the money changer. After getting a small bucket full of coins, he proceeded to guide her towards the actual section.

"Okay, now we're here. Pick a game that interests you, we'll try to play it" he said.

With round eyes full of curiosity, Kawajima began to look around the room to see which game caught her attention.

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Zombie shooting game.

"Watch out, there are traps!"

"Eh? Kyaa?! He-help me!"

"hahaha! Wait a minute, I'll defeat these zombies and save you!"

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Racing game.

"Yes, right there. Turn left!"

"e-this way? Ah! I caught up with him!"

"Good job, keep going like that! Maybe you're talented as a racer, Kawajima-san? Hahaha"

"What are you saying Toru-san? Mouu~~"

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Fighting game.

"Here, we will become each other's enemies. Choose a character you like, and we'll begin."

"Hoooo... Kanpachi huh, then... "

"Toru-san, I won't lose!"

"Let's see"

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And many more games.

Time passed, until it was already 4pm. In the end, Kawajima was too excited and curious about all the games in the arcade and played them all. The bucket that had been full of coins was now empty. Ryousuke was very satisfied to see that she seemed to be having fun.

"Well, the coins are gone. There are only these two left. How about it, want to play one last time?" asked by him with a question like this, Kawajima somehow suddenly blushed and looked both embarrassed and reluctant about something.

"Mmmn, about that. A-ano, Kawajima-san, how about we go to the photoboot... Together... " Kawajima replied. Her voice got smaller at the end. As if she didn't want Ryousuke to hear it. Of course, he heard it. And why not? Taking a picture together with a super beautiful girl wasn't a bad experience right? It was the opposite!

So, without missing this opportunity, he immediately agreed to her suggestion and walked towards the photoboot. Entering the small room where they would be photographed together, he inserted a coin.

Now, the two of them were very close to each other. Their shoulders had practically touched each other. If others saw this, they would undoubtedly think the two of them were a couple.

The sound of the camera counting down was heard. Awkwardly, Kawajima posed as formally as possible. As if this was some kind of formal photo. As for Ryousuke, he posed with his thumbs up, with a happy smile on his face.

*crack!

The results of the photo can be seen on the screen, where they can edit their photos with various filters, stickers, and so on. Looking at their photos, Ryousuke gently suggested, "Kawajima-san, you should calm down more. Look, you look too stiff here. For next time, try posing okay?"

Kawajima was also clearly aware of her behavior. She looked at their photos and felt she was taking herself too seriously, so she immediately nodded. "W-well, I'll try"

Even though she felt embarrassed, she would still give it a try. After all, a moment like this might never happen again.

Shyly, Kawajima struck a peace pose while smiling nervously. Ryousuke decided to imitate her, and they were once again photographed.

Perhaps the first two photos were the most normal. Because the rest of the photos they did all ended up weird. Kawajima posed strangely, like she was forcing herself, and Ryousuke followed her, making it look even weirder. But yeah, at least they could laugh about it.

Finished with their photo session, they proceeded to edit the photos. Not too many things were changed, they just added their names and today's date as a reminder of the photo. Once done, they printed out the photos.

"Good. This, Kawajima-san, for you.", Ryousuke took the set of two printed photos, and gave one to her.

Kawajima received it and after looking at their photo for a while, she put it into the bag. "Thank you."

At this time, it can be seen that many people in the game center are starting to go home. It's not good to be here at night. Because usually an arcade that should be bustling with many people playing, would turn into something else. So, Ryousuke immediately took Kawajima out with him. "It's already evening. Why don't we call it a day? Let's go home."

The sky was a bright orenge color, the sun was beginning to set, and finally this day would end, replaced by a new day. "Okay", Kawajima replied.

Even so, the two of them did not immediately part from each other. For some reason, Ryousuke felt that he wanted this time to last longer, even if just a little. So, he suggested they take a little rest in the park before they went home.

The city center park was obviously very beautiful and well-maintained. With some cherry blossom trees yet to bloom, the two of them sat down on the lawn chairs they saw. However, it seemed like this place had something surprising in store for the two of them. From the garden, they could see the setting sun a little more clearly, and it looked beautiful. The two of them admiringly watched the scene until the sun was no longer visible to them.

"Toru-san, today was really nice. Thank you very much" but after all, time must go on. Kawajima, with her eyes looking straight at him, stood up.

Ryousuke also stood up. Looking at her, he said, "I had fun too. Maybe we can do it again sometime", he said. Smiling seductively.

Looking down shyly, Kawajima did not shy away this time and just nodded her head with her red face.

Satisfied with their conversation, they finally decided to say goodbye. Back to their respective homes, with a new mood, and a new closeness.