The next day on the way to school, Kai messaged Jun on LINE so they could meet up and take the same car on the same train. It was rush hour and the passengers were packed like sardines. And so began their daily four-stop, twelve-minute endurance test to reach Sakata, the closest station to Asagi High School. As usual, Kai let Jun stand by the window at the entrance. He supported himself with an arm against the door, which he used to create a wall to protect his friend from the squeeze of the cramped car.
Incidentally, while Jun did agree to meet up with Kai that morning, she started getting pouty the moment their eyes met. Kai figured she was still holding a grudge over not being able to hang out with him and Kotobuki. She even snidely asked if he “had any fun last night.”
“Like hell. We ate dinner and split up at eight. Our day was completely wholesome.” Frankly, it was a good deal more wholesome than the many days Jun spent eating dinner at Kai’s house and staying over past nine.
“Kai, you wuss.”
“Could you at least call me a gentleman?!”
“How about you come clean with me first?”
“Well...to be honest, I’m not sure if I like her as a woman or not yet.”
“Yeah, figures. You can’t know that stuff unless you try going on a date first.”
She really told him the same thing Kotobuki did...
“Anyway,” he continued, “I figured dates were for people who already liked each other. I didn’t think they were such a casual thing.”
“Hah, that’s just in the world of manga.”
She really told him the same thing Kotobuki did!
“Okay, fine, sorry for being an otaku. My apologies for going this long without ever having this experience.”
“I mean, I’ve never gone on a date either.”
“You haven’t? And you’re still talking like an expert here?!”
“I get kinda grossed out when guys make it too obvious what they’re after.”
Ah, figures, thought Kai. Guys probably feel a little pressured when asking out someone as popular as her.
“And besides,” said Jun, “it’s way more fun to hang out with friends, isn’t it?”
“I feel this on a deep, spiritual level,” concurred Kai as he gave a large nod. Friends were, in fact, good. Even now, it was comforting to have someone he could casually spill his guts to.
“Anyway, that’s how it went. Hanging out with Kotobuki was fun, but we didn’t do anything even remotely inappropriate.”
“Kind of a waste with a girl that cute, if you ask me. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind going on a date with her myself.”
“Right, right, another one for the Miyakawa harem.” Jun got a kick out of Kai’s moping self-deprecation. “Actually Jun, that’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.”
“What’s that?”
“You’re always saying you want to ‘smooch’ and ‘marry’ 2D girls, but do you feel that way about Kotobuki? Would you go for the real thing?”
“Well, 2D and 3D aren’t the same thing for me. I wouldn’t be serious if I said I wanted to marry a real girl.”
“Huh, is that so?” Kai nodded along, but he didn’t quite take that at face value. The state of mind that could make her so attached to Kotobuki was just a bit beyond his imagination. Sure, Kai had his moments too; he’d admired how hard-boiled and cool Makina Kaizu from A Sister’s All You Need before and he’d even swooned a little when Bell from DanMachi shot off all those Firebolts to save Lili. But he’s never wanted to smooch a male character. Not once. And if he found himself with a real-life male coworker, even one on the cuter side, he’d never feel compelled to nuzzle his cheeks against him.
“Are you trying to say I’m weird?” accused Jun as she puffed out her cheeks.
“No, I’m just trying to understand,” said Kai in an attempt to calm her down.
“Well, I guess it’s not exactly universal. That’s why Reina tells me I’m weird right to my face. I don’t think it’s weird at all, though.”
“Do go on.”
“Look, girls just like cute things! It doesn’t matter how old we get. Mascot characters, stuffed animals, I love ’em all. And when it comes to girls, real or fictional, cuteness is justice!”
“I see, I’m starting to get it.”
“But it’s like how some people say high schoolers aren’t supposed to like stuffed animals since those are for kids, so you have other people who hide the fact that they really like that stuff because they don’t want to get made fun of.”
“Ah, totally! They’re everywhere! There are even guys who like stuffed animals and mascot characters but act tough and hide it.”
“Right? But I don’t hide it. I’d rather be open about everything! It’s love!”
“I see. So to you, Kotobuki falls into the same category as a stuffed animal?”
“It sounds a little rude when you put it like that, but yeah, to be honest, it’s a similar state of mind. Just don’t tell her I said that.” She sealed that final plea by adorably sticking out the slightest tip of her tongue. “But for real, if we’re talking about cuteness, I’ve never seen a girl that cute before! Can you blame me for falling head over heels and wanting to cuddle her?”
“I don’t think passion gets you out of this one...”
“It’s love!”
“Anyway, are you sure you’ve never seen a girl that cute? Aren’t you surrounded by cute girls?”
“If we want to get technical, Reina’s group is more in the orbit of Planet Beauty. They’re not Cutelings. They don’t make my inner Kanroji start blushing.”
Jun could have said “struck a chord” or something, but she replaced her metaphor with a manga character. She was an otaku, if it wasn’t obvious.
“Not much you can do when Kanroji goes silent.” Kai understood her perfectly. He was an otaku, if that wasn’t obvious. “But yeah, now that you mention it, Reina’s group definitely fits that bill.”
“They all say I’m the biggest baby face in the group!”
“Ha ha, compared to them, you might be. Wait, what about Mihara? She’s definitely a Cuteling, right?”
Kai brought up his classmate, Momoko Mihara. She was more bratty-faced than baby-faced, but she undoubtedly held the class’s crown for cuteness. She also held the crowns for most annoying, most irritating, and most likely to get punched if she weren’t a woman.
“Oh, no way with Momoko!”
“Ah, so Mihara’s a no-go.” Kai reflected on just how perfectly their wavelengths matched.
“Even mascot characters live in a dog-eat-dog world these days. They can’t survive on looks alone. Personality’s just as important, I’ll have you know.”
“I feel that. Like how I can go for Sumikkogurashi.”
With that said...
“Okay Jun, I can understand why you’d want to cuddle Kotobuki. I don’t think you’re weird for it.”
“Kai, my man! How ’bout I cuddle you as a reward? Here comes the cuddle!”
“Cut it out, there are people watching!”
“Just a widdle cuddle?”
Not taking no for an answer, Jun nuzzled her cheeks against Kai’s chest. Kai wished that this could have happened after they switched to their summer uniforms instead of while he was in his thick blazer...though he didn’t tell her he thought that.
“Hey, I’m gonna head to the staff room,” said Jun the moment they arrived at school.
“What, did a teacher call you for something? Are you in trouble?”
“Oh, please! Broyalty just forgot his lunch and I’ve gotta drop it off for him.”
“For real?” Kai was at a loss.
“Aww, you down about somethin’? Let me guess, did you perhaps want to walk to class with lil’ ol’ me?”
“Well, maybe I did! You’re really gonna tease me when you already know, huh?”
“Well, I’d be so embarrassed if my friends started any rumors over us coming to school together, so I’ll be off to the staff room now. Toodles!”
“Why you...”
Kai gave an unamused glare, but Jun just giggled and went on her way. With nothing else to do, he headed to Class 2-1 alone.
Yes, he had a reason for going through the effort of meeting up for their commute, but it wasn’t that Jun was begging to hear about Kotobuki (and if she were, that could wait until after school). No, he had a different, far more pressing concern.
I hope she hasn’t arrived yet, prayed Kai. Heck, might as well hope she’s late.