Be careful with the laid-back beauty who took a liking to me. Otherwise, it will be too late! - Chapter 34: Sweet Treat Tour

Chapter 34: Sweet Treat Tour

[Sweet Treat Tour]

1. Custard Cream Puff Ice

• Located about a 5-minute walk from the nearest school station.
• A place filled with memories for Hinata.
• Had a custard cream puff before; it was deliciously gooey.

2. Custard Waffle

• Recommended by Akari.
• Located near the school.
• Supposed to bring happiness when eaten.

3. Custard Cream Sweet Potato

• Near Hinata’s house.
• No one has tried it yet, so the taste is still unknown.

The message detailing this sweet treat tour was sent from Sayo to both me and Shiina on July 30th.

I’m not sure if we can visit all three in one day, but they all sound delicious.

I sent a message to our group asking if we’re going to try them all, and the organizer, Sayo, responded with a cute stamp of a bear saying, “Yes!”

This stamp is adorable. It seems to be free, so I should get it too.

While we’ve been messaging, Sayo is actually sitting next to me, leaning against my shoulder.

“What do you want to eat, Hinata?”

“I want to try them all! But I’m especially curious about that Custard Cream Sweet Potato.”

“Oh! I’m curious about that too. I love sweet potatoes!”

Sayo always seems so happy when talking about her favorite things, especially custard sweets. It makes me feel excited just listening to her.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow…”

Her eyes sparkled as she gazed dreamily at the custard cream puff on my phone.

The next day, we met at the nearest school station, where Shiina had already arrived.

Wearing a white T-shirt and denim shorts, she looked up from her phone as I approached.

“Good morning, Hinata!”

“Yeah, good morning, Shiina!”

Seeing Shiina’s bright smile made me feel awake, even though I was tired.

“It’s so hot today! Here, use this!”

She offered me a small portable fan.

Having walked here in the heat, the breeze from the fan felt wonderful. After cooling off a bit, I returned it to her, thinking she must be hot too.

“Thanks, Shiina.”

“Already done? You can keep using it!”

She said that, but since I saw Shiina fanning herself with her hand, I thought it was better to give it back.

“No, it’s fine.”

“Okay, then let’s do this…”

Shiina moved closer, positioning the fan between us.

“Uh, Shiina?”

I was taken aback by the closeness. Is this the usual distance for friendly girls? It still felt a bit too close.

As a boyfriend, I shouldn’t be looking, but I found myself glancing at her chest.

“This way, we can both stay cool!”

“Uh, yeah…”

Even when I tried to move away a little, Shiina followed me, keeping the distance small.

“Now we just have to wait for Sayo.”

“Right. I got a message saying she missed her train, so she might be late.”

“I see. Well, let’s chat until Sayo arrives. I don’t know much about you, Hinata, so I’d like to get to know you better!”

I realized I didn’t know much about Shiina either, so I nodded.

“You mentioned you’re in the light music club and do vocals. Have you performed live?”

I had seen them perform during the freshman orientation but hadn’t gone to their cultural festival or regular courtyard shows.

“I have! The next one is during the cultural festival. I’d love for you and Sayo to come watch!”

“Sure, I’ll invite Sayo.”

“Yay, I’ll be waiting! So, Hinata, you’re not in any clubs, right? What are your hobbies?”

Hobbies—what I like to do. Before answering, I thought for a moment.

“I like basketball, reading, and I think I’ve started to like chess since Sayo taught me.”

“Were you on the basketball team?”

“Yeah, I was, but I quit. I still play with Asahi every Sunday.”

“Oh, with Kubo-kun? I’d love to see you play basketball!”

She leaned in, staring at me intently. Her silky hair fell over her shoulder, and I saw my reflection in her beautiful eyes.

“I don’t think it’d be that interesting to watch.”

“Really?”

“Ah, Sayo’s here!”

Shiina moved a little away from me and waved her hand high.

Sayo, realizing she was the last to arrive (not that she was particularly late), rushed through the ticket gate.

“Sorry for the wait! I’m really sorry I’m late!”

Panting, she hurriedly apologized without taking a moment to catch her breath. I gently reassured her, “It’s fine.”

“Good morning, Sayo! Hinata and I just got here too, so don’t worry about it.”

“Thanks! Well then, shall we go on our custard tour?”

We walked about five minutes from the nearest school station to the Custard Cream Puff Ice place. This was where I had previously come with Sayo and a place filled with childhood memories.

Last time, we had a regular cream puff, but since it was summer, we decided to try the cream puff ice instead.

We took it to go and found a shaded bench to sit together.

“Nom… Mmm! So good!”

Sayo beamed at me after taking a bite. Her adorable eating style and her smile made my heart race. What’s happening? I can’t stop thinking about how cute she is.

I wasn’t the only one who thought so; Shiina did too.

“Sayo-chan, you’re an angel. This cream puff ice is delicious!”

“Yeah, it’s really good! Can both of you manage to eat more custard waffles and custard sweet potato after this? I’m planning to!”

It seemed we all had the same thought as we exchanged glances.

“I’ll stick with you till the end!”

“Me too! I could eat custard sweets all day!”

I wanted to accompany her till the end, knowing how much effort Sayo had put into researching and organizing this day.

“Thanks, you two…”

“Today was so much fun!”

“Yeah! All the custard treats were delicious. Thanks for suggesting this sweet tour!”

That night, I talked with Sayo over the phone, recounting our day.

“No problem! By the way, Hinata… are you free tomorrow? My mom said she can meet then.”

“Tomorrow… yeah, I’m good.”

I felt nervous thinking about finally meeting Sayo’s mother, who I had heard was a cold person.

“Glad to hear that! Well, I should go to bed now. Good night, Hinata!”

“Good night.”