Ruka headed for the food truck, and Ginka followed her. When Ruka looked back, she saw a ton of people staring at Ginka. Both men and women were walking slowly with their mouths hanging open because they couldn’t tear their eyes away, and it was starting to cause a scene.
“Wow, the makeup’s seriously working. Everybody’s looking at you, Ginka.”
“The makeup?” Ginka glanced around. “This is the same as always, though...”
“Huh? Oh yeah...” Ruka had thought Ginka was getting those reactions because of her makeup, but that was probably how things were for her every day.
It’s way too hard to tell if the makeup’s working! Ruka complained to herself while ordering crepes for both of them.
“M-M-Mori... I-I mean, Ruka...” Ginka seemed to be having trouble getting her words out. “They seem to be looking at you too.”
Ruka stood up straight and threw her shoulders back. “I mean, I went all out with my clothes and makeup and everything today.”
“I know it’s a little late to be bringing this up, but aren’t you showing too much of your legs?”
“Nah, the more legs you show, the cooler and cuter you look.”
“Is that how it works?”
“For sure.”
Their order was ready, so Ruka grabbed her strawberry tiramisu crepe and handed the chocolate banana one to Ginka.
“Let’s dig in!” Ruka took a big bite.
The sour strawberries, sweet cream, and warm crepe were all so satisfying and put her in a great mood already, and she was with an adorable cutie getting all flustered trying to eat her crepe. If this isn’t heaven, I don’t know what is.
But it only took a few seconds for something to ruin all that satisfaction and bliss.
That something was a group of guys, maybe high school or college students, creeping behind them. They had been following Ruka and Ginka since the department store. Ruka had ignored them because she’d figured they would give up at some point, but they were starting to get closer and closer. She didn’t hate guys hitting on her, but she just wanted to have fun with Ginka right now.
“Hey, Ginka...”
“I know. We’re being followed.” Ginka had finished eating and was crumpling up the paper her crepe had been in. She was back in hunter mode, and the look on her face was intense. “We can’t cause trouble. Let’s find somewhere to hide.”
“For sure.” Ruka sighed, finished her crepe, and started walking down the street next to Ginka.
Getting stalked didn’t feel great. Fortunately, there were a lot of people out and about, so it would probably be pretty easy to lose those guys. All the people who kept staring at Ginka would probably help get in the way too.
“Let’s head in there.” Ruka made sure their stalkers were out of sight before grabbing Ginka’s arm and pulling her into an arcade with a big sign out front.
Intense music and dazzling lights washed over Ruka and Ginka as they hurried up the stairs. The guys seemed to be gone by the time they made it to the second floor, though Ruka still wondered if they should stay on guard. On the third floor, where the coast was clear, Ruka had a new idea.
“Since we’re at an arcade, why don’t we get something to remember today by?”
“What do you mean?”
“Just follow me.”
Ruka led Ginka around until she found the booth she was looking for. She pulled the curtain open—inside, the light was even more dazzling than the rest of the arcade.
“You gotta hit up purikura when you go to an arcade!” said Ruka.
Why do I get so excited about taking pics and drawing on them? Who knows...
Ginka looked confused. “Purikura...”
“Oh, it means—”
“I know that much. These machines print out something akin to ID photos, correct?”
“Heh, that’s not all there is to it!” Ruka wagged her finger. “You gotta pose too!”
“Pose?”
“Yeah, like this, or this.”
Ruka posed with both hands out in front of her, then again with a peace sign over her eye while twisting her hips. Ginka looked like she was watching something bizarre.
“Oh, the pinkross is super popular right now,” said Ruka.
“Pinkross...?”
“It’s when you use your pinkies to make a cross shape like this. Two people can do it together too, so hold yours out.”
Ginka did, after a little hesitation, and Ruka added her own to make a little cross—one pinkie with silver glitter nail polish and another in a black glove.
The hunter looked at their fingers and murmured, “I have to hurry up and get used to things like this too.”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Ruka asked.
Ginka didn’t answer, at first. Ruka watched her press her glossy lips together, and she wasn’t sure what that meant, but eventually Ginka started to explain.
“Once this incident is resolved, I will no longer be a vampire hunter. So I need to stop being surprised by every little thing I come across... I don’t want to make Hayami-san cry again, after all.”
After all that fighting, it was clear Ginka was having trouble adjusting to her new life. Being blunt to Chinami Hayami and making her cry was a good example of that. Of course Ginka would want to get used to everyday life, and Ruka wanted to support her, but...
“Nothing wrong with getting surprised, right?” Ruka said. “Wanting to get used to a normal life is great, but there’s no rush. Honestly, I like you the way you are right now. So take your time, ’kay?”
She’s got plenty of problems but more than enough good in her to make up for that. If she tries to force herself to change, she’ll cover up all the stuff that makes her so great. I don’t think that’s the right way to go... And I would really miss her if she did that.
Ginka seemed to be deep in thought.
“What, did you think I said something surprisingly sensible again?” Ruka asked.
Ginka shook her head. “No. I was impressed.”
“Impressed...? For real?”
“Yes.”
“Jeez. Gonna make me blush!”
I have no clue what impressed her, but I’m not gonna ask. I don’t wanna do anything to make her smile go away.
Ruka pulled Ginka in close and brought their pinkies together again.
“Let’s take the pic. Pinkross time!”