Be careful with the laid-back beauty who took a liking to me. Otherwise, it will be too late! - Chapter 3: Sharing Delicious Things

Episode 3: Sharing Delicious Things

We decided to take our crepes to the park and sit on a bench to eat them.

I ordered chocolate and whipped cream, while Koga-san ordered strawberry caramel and custard.

*Nom nom…*

The moment she took a bite of her crepe, her mouth puffed up like a chipmunk, and she looked at me as if trying to convey something.

She was doing something with her free hand, but I couldn’t figure out what she wanted to say.

(Is she trying to say it’s delicious…?)

Eventually, after finishing her crepe, Koga-san told me her thoughts on the taste.

“The custard is delicious! It’s so good, Hinata-kun!”

Looking at her like that, I couldn’t help but wonder if the Koga-san lying on the bench and the one in front of me were the same person.

I didn’t know if she liked sweet things, but her excitement when eating was beyond what I imagined from her at school.

“That’s good. Do you like custard?”

“Yeah, I love it.”

*!*

Since I was asking if she liked custard, of course, her current “like” referred to custard.

I knew it wasn’t about me, but her saying she liked me with that angelic smile made me feel like she did.

“I love custard so much that if I had to choose between custard and red bean paste in a taiyaki, I’d choose custard without hesitation.”

“Is that so?”

You could tell from her smile that she loved custard.

As I ate my chocolate and whipped cream crepe, Koga-san looked at me with sparkling eyes.

(Maybe… does she want some?)

“Wanna try some?”

“Really!?”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

I tried to hand her the crepe, but Koga-san whispered “thank you” and took a bite of my chocolate and whipped cream crepe.

She ate it happily, with cream sticking to her lips, looking adorable.

“It’s delicious… Your chocolate and whipped cream, Hinata-kun.”

“That’s good. You’ve got cream on your mouth.”

“Huh, where?”

Koga-san tried to lick off the cream with her tongue, but she couldn’t reach and struggled.

“It’s here.”

I used my index finger to remove the cream, and Koga-san’s face turned bright red.

“T-thanks… Use a tissue.”

Koga-san took out a tissue from her skirt pocket and handed it to me.

“Thanks.”

I wiped off the cream from her mouth with the tissue, unable to eat it myself, and disposed of it.

Then, Koga-san offered me her strawberry caramel and custard crepe.

“Here, have some.”

“Can I really?”

“Yeah… because I want to share delicious things.”

I could empathize with wanting to share delicious things. It’s nice when people who like the same things as you increase.

“Then, I’ll have a bite.”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

I took a bite of her strawberry caramel and custard crepe.

“It’s sweet and delicious.”

“I know, right?”

Excited, Koga-san leaned in close to me. When her hair brushed against me, I caught a sweet scent from her.

“Now Hinata-kun is also a custard fan… Hmm, thank you for the treat, I’m really satisfied.”

“Wait, I’m not done yet!”

I had only eaten about half of it, but she had already finished hers.

Since I didn’t want to keep her waiting, I picked up my pace, and when I finished, Koga-san plopped down on her knees.

“Koga-san?”

She seemed sleepy after eating. Remembering what happened this morning and before our detour, I became worried about her.

“Let me check on you…”

I said, then gently placed my hand on her forehead.

(It’s warm… So she does have a fever.)

“It feels nice and cool…”

“Since you have a fever, it’s better to go home early. Can you make it back? If you’re not feeling well, I can walk you home.”

“…Yeah, I can make it… I had a fever, didn’t notice…”

(You didn’t notice…)

Koga-san got up unsteadily, seemingly feeling dizzy, and stood up from the bench.

She said she could go home alone, but it looked dangerous to me.

“Alright, Hinata-kun, thanks for…”

“No, it’s dangerous! It’s dangerous to let you go home alone!”

As she seemed about to collapse, I quickly supported her.

“I’ll walk you home.”

“Thank you… Please.”

She clung tightly to my arm and leaned against me.

I naturally didn’t know where her house was, so I ended up carrying her to her home while she directed me.

We took the train, and I carried her on my back while walking.

It seemed she lived alone. She lent me the keys to her house since she seemed too weak to walk further.

“I’ll be intruding.”

“Please… The bed is over there.”

“Got it.”

I entered the room she pointed to and laid her down on the bed.

“I’ll go buy some things from the convenience store. Rest and wait for me.”

“Mm…”

After tucking her in, I hurried to the nearby convenience store to buy fever patches, sports drinks, and other necessities for when you have a fever.

When I returned, Koga-san was asleep, so I applied the fever patches and placed some food within her reach.

As I was leaving, she woke up, so I called out to her.

“Take care. Lock the door.”

“Thank you, Hinata-kun…”

She had been absent from school for about two days since the opening ceremony. Since we hadn’t exchanged contact information, I couldn’t contact her even if I was worried.

Her friend, Maruyama-san, and classmates were also worried about her absence.

(I wonder if she’ll come today…)

Since the friend I usually went with had gone ahead today, I went to school alone. When I arrived at school, I saw Koga-san waiting in front of the gate for someone.

Thinking she was waiting for her friend, I decided to go talk to her out of concern. She noticed me approaching, and then she hugged me.

“K-Koga-san!?”

“I missed you, Hinata-kun…”

“Um… doing this in front of the school gate is a bit…”

Feeling the gazes of people passing by, I felt embarrassed and distanced myself from her.

“Ah, sorry… I was just so happy to see you, Hinata-kun… Good morning.”

“! Uh, good morning, Koga-san.”

Her smile, like an angel’s, made my heart skip a beat as I saw it for the first time since the opening ceremony.

While I was captivated by her smile, several girls ran up to us from behind.

“Ah, Koga-chan! Are you okay?”

“Good morning, Sayo-chan, we were so worried~”

“Good morning. Thank you for your concern. I’m fine.”

Koga-san, who usually had a soft demeanor, chatted with her classmates and walked into the school building with them.