Love at First Mishap (Chapter 5)

Vol. 1 — Chapter 5: A Bench Full of Noise and Warmth

The wooden bench under the tree creaked slightly as Yuto adjusted his seat. Beside him, Yuna was smiling gently, and across from them, Rika had just finished her last bite of lunch.

"That was really good," Rika said, letting out a small sigh as she leaned back and patted her stomach. "I haven't eaten that fast in a while."

"You always eat fast," Yuna replied, giggling. "Even in class, you're always the first to finish snacks during break."

"I just don't like wasting time," Rika shrugged. "Food is serious business."

Yuto gave a small laugh, feeling relaxed. Sitting under the tree with Yuna and Rika felt nice. It wasn't quiet since Rika liked to talk but it wasn't loud either. It was comfortable.

He looked at Yuna. She was eating slowly, savoring her food with a calm expression. Her hair moved gently with the wind, and her eyes sparkled when she smiled. Yuto quickly looked away.

Why does my heart keep doing that?

He shook the thought away and tried to focus on his own food. But before he could take another bite, Rika turned toward him.

"Hey, Yuto."

"Huh? Yeah?"

"Do you like spicy food?"

"Spicy?" Yuto blinked. "Uh… not really. I mean, I can eat a little, but I'm not good with really hot stuff."

"I knew it," Rika said, pointing at him. "You have the face of someone who eats sweet curry."

"Sweet curry's good!" Yuto defended himself.

Yuna covered her mouth as she laughed. "You really do give that kind of vibe, though."

"I do not," Yuto mumbled, puffing out his cheeks a little. "I can handle a bit of heat…"

"You're cute when you're flustered," Yuna said casually.

Yuto froze.

"Wha-" he muttered, turning bright red.

Rika chuckled. "Yuna, don't tease him too much. He might melt."

"I'm not teasing," Yuna said with a soft voice, looking at him kindly. "I meant it."

Yuto's heart skipped. He couldn't bring himself to reply, so he just looked down and poked at his food.

Before the silence could grow too awkward, a familiar voice called out from behind them.

"Oi! Found them!"

Yuto turned and saw Daiki walking toward them, holding his lunch in one hand and waving with the other. Souta and Ren followed close behind.

"There you are!" Souta called. "You ditched us, traitor!"

"Yo," Ren greeted simply.

"W-Wait, you guys are done cleaning?" Yuto asked, surprised.

"We rushed it," Daiki said, grinning. "Can't let you eat in peace without us, right?"

"We were hungry too," Souta added, opening his lunchbox dramatically. "Also, Rika said she'd share snacks."

"I did not," Rika frowned.

"You will, though, right?" Souta gave her puppy eyes.

"Tch. You're annoying."

But Rika still opened her bag and handed him a small wrapped treat.

"Thanks!" Souta cheered.

The once quiet bench quickly turned noisy. With some effort and a bit of squishing, everyone found a spot. Yuto ended up in the middle, with Yuna on his left and Daiki on his right.

Souta sat beside Rika, chatting with her and trying to steal more snacks. Ren sat at the end, listening quietly while occasionally adding in a dry comment that made everyone laugh harder.

Yuto couldn't help but smile.

A while ago, he was nervous about eating with just Yuna. But now, everyone was here. It felt right.

He glanced at Yuna. She looked at him, too.

"I'm glad they came," she whispered.

Yuto nodded. "Yeah… me too."

The group shared stories about what happened during cleaning, like how Daiki almost fell into a bush chasing a runaway broom. Souta kept doing impressions of their teacher, and Ren pretended not to laugh though he totally did.

It wasn't anything fancy.

Just lunch under a tree.

But it was warm. Loud. Full of life.

As the sun peeked out from the clouds, casting a gentle glow over their little circle, Yuto realized something.

Even if he didn't say much, just being with them like this made him happy.

And maybe just maybe he was getting a little closer to everyone.

Especially… to her.

End of Chapter 5.