Hey, Best Friend. How About A Kiss Today Too? - Chapter 84: "Mmph?!"

“Mmph?!”

“Oh, this is delicious! Renji, Renji, try this, it’s so good!”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full.”

We were at a trendy café in the shopping mall. Both Sagiri and I aren’t very familiar with these kinds of places, so we just picked one that looked stylish.

“Renji, you’re being noisy. Hey, Renji.”

“To an outsider, you’re pretty intense, you know.”

“We’re in a booth, so only Renji can see us.”

“I’m right here, you know.”

Sagiri bought the wolf stuffed animal she liked from that shop. I can’t forget the serene smile on the old man’s face from back then.

Now, she’s sitting next to the unapproachable wolf she named Renji, striking up conversations with it. It felt like there was nothing but malice emanating from it.

“You know, stuffed animals are more expensive than I thought.”

“Renji, talking about money all of a sudden isn’t cool. But yeah, they were pretty pricey. Maybe it’s because they come with a lot of battle scars? Like distressed jeans.”

“What should I even say to that?”

She just finished telling me not to talk about money, then compared the scars on the wolf’s face to battle scars and equated them to distressed jeans. It’s hard to know what to do with a childhood friend who says things like that.

She’s now happily eating a pancake that’s generously doused in syrup and topped with a massive scoop of ice cream, enough to give anyone heartburn just by looking at it. This might be the epitome of evil in the world.

“You’ve got a lot of stuffed animals in your room, don’t you?”

“It’s not ‘you’ve got,’ it’s ‘you have.’ Good job, Sagiri-chan, you get points for that.”

“What happens when you accumulate points, then?”

“You get to kiss the adorable Sagiri-chan.”

That’s some shady business model.

I just earned a Sagiri’s-evil-meter point.

“I got double points now, and since Renji paid in cash, it’s doubled again! Congrats, Renji! You’ve earned points!”

“…?”

I grabbed a fork, speared a piece of pancake, and pushed it into Sagiri’s mouth.

“Mmph?!”

“That brings your points back to zero.”

“That’s so mean!”

She was eating her pancake with such gusto, and then she got angry. She’s always switching between being happy, eating, and getting mad.

“So, about that question from earlier.”

“What question?”

“The one about all the stuffed animals in Sagiri’s room.”

“Oh, that.”

Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?

“I felt like I saw some unfamiliar stuffed animals last time. Are you still buying new ones?”

“Yeah, I am! I save up my allowance, and for birthdays, Christmas, whenever, I’m always welcoming new members into the family! Hehe!”

“What’s there to be proud of… Anyway, why don’t you buy some loungewear or something practical for a change?”

“Loungewear? As long as I can wear it, isn’t that good enough?”

She would be the epitome of a cute but clueless girl if her schoolmates heard this conversation.

“Weren’t you wearing that thing last year too?”

“You remember that? Yeah, I’ve been wearing it since the year before last.”

“Why are we counting the years?”

“I bought a really big one when I was in junior high, thinking ahead!”

“And you think that’s something to be proud of?”

“Well, it’s not like I’m showing it off to anyone.”

“And yet you’re showing it to me… How many times do I have to see it before you’re satisfied?”

“That’s just you, Renji.”

We’re speaking the same language, but it’s not quite meshing.

“Anyway, what about the old ones? You’ve been welcoming new ones, but what about the old ones?”

“They’re still here, of course! Right now, they’re in Mom and Dad’s bedroom… Wait, let me show you a photo from the other day… Here!”

“Wow…”

The photo Sagiri showed me on her phone was impressive. It was a double bed surrounded by countless stuffed animals in a calm-looking room, with Sagiri’s father, a gentle-looking man with white hair and glasses, smiling brightly in the center, flashing a double peace sign. He looked incredibly happy, surrounded by the things his daughter loves, all at her request.

“…Wait, did you say your parents’ bedroom!?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“And your dad sleeps here?”

“So does Mom!”

“That’s not what I meant by that!”

It’s even fancier than Sagiri’s room. Who said it was a calm room? Me?

“At this rate, won’t you eventually fill the whole room with stuffed animals?”

“That’d be cool!”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course! Because all these toys are gifts from Mom and Dad for me! When I become a mom someday, I’ll give them to my daughter too!”

She’s beaming with happiness as she talks about it. In Sagiri’s mind, she’s already decided she’ll be a daughter.

“…What if you have a son?”

I asked on a whim, not really thinking much about it.

“Huh? Well, if that happens, then maybe I’ll have a daughter later… Uh, ahh!”

Suddenly, Sagiri’s face, which had been lost in thought for a moment, turned bright red.

“Ouch!”

I felt a sharp kick against my shin under the table.

With her toes, from a completely unexpected angle, she really put her all into it…

“What the heck are you doing!?”

“…Pervert.”

“What!?”

Sagiri, still looking down, stuffed her mouth full of pancake and refused to look at me as I protested.

“…Your… perviness.”

With a puffed-up and intensely red face, she continued to stuff herself with pancake without even acknowledging my presence, except to call me a pervert.