I Asked A Beautiful Girl, Who Was About To Jump Off The School Rooftop, 'If You're Going To Die Anyway, Could You At Least Take My Virginity Before You Go?' To My Surprise, She Agreed.

Lovers Want To Be Together Forever.

In the not-too-spacious but not overly large kimono shop, we spent thirty minutes casually browsing through the displayed fabrics and traditional clothing, looping around the store several times. By the time I was starting to get a bit tired of waiting and running out of things to look at, Hatsune-san and the shopkeeper finally returned from the dressing area, separated by a screen in the back of the store.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Yakumo-kun,” Hatsune-san said.

She was now wearing a light blue floral-patterned yukata, tied with a soft pink obi. It seemed like she often favored outfits in shades of light blue, even in her regular clothes, suggesting that it might be her favorite color. In addition to the yukata, she had her long hair done up, different from her usual look of leaving it down. While her flowing black hair was beautiful, this new hairstyle also suited her perfectly.

“Your beautiful black hair goes wonderfully with the yukata,” the shopkeeper praised her.

Hatsune-san, looking pleased but slightly embarrassed, turned toward me, extending her arms. “What do you think, Yakumo-kun?”

“It looks amazing. You look great,” I replied.

“Fufu~~, then it’s settled,” she said, clearly satisfied with my response.

“Alright, Yakumo-kun, it’s your turn to try on a yukata. I think this one would be perfect,” Hatsune-san said as she walked over to the section of men’s rental yukatas, quickly picking one out. Unsurprisingly, it was a light blue yukata, similar in color to the one she was wearing.

It was a solid color, lacking any pattern, but it was in the same blue tones as Hatsune-san’s yukata. Whether it was a coincidence or a deliberate choice, I couldn’t say.

“Shall I go with this one, then?”

“I recommended it, but… are you sure you don’t want to pick something yourself?” she asked, slightly teasing.

“My main criteria for choosing something is whether you like it or not. If you’ve already chosen something, that’s good enough for me, Hatsune-san.”

“You know, Yakumo-kun, you always say these things with such a straight face, and it’s totally unfair…” Hatsune-san murmured, a bit flustered, as she handed me the yukata.

I also got dressed in the yukata in the tatami room at the back of the store, with the shopkeeper helping me put it on. Although I hadn’t worn a yukata many times before, it was more comfortable than I expected.

“Oh…!”

Hatsune-san, who had sneakily accompanied me into the room and stood off to the side watching, let out a sound of admiration when she saw me in the yukata. Without missing a beat, she pulled out her phone and started taking pictures.

“Having my photo taken is a bit embarrassing,” I said.

“In that case, I should take even more!” Hatsune-san teased. “Maybe I’ll send one to Mayuki-chan too…”

“Hey, don’t send it without asking!” I protested.

“Too late, sent!” she grinned mischievously, already pressing the send button on her phone.

I couldn’t help but wonder—did she really send it to Mayuki? It was a little embarrassing, but nothing too terrible… probably.

(Still, just letting her get away with it feels like losing…)

Determined not to stay on the defensive, I picked up my own phone, which had been left with my clothes, and activated the camera. Pointing it at Hatsune-san, I tapped the shutter button.

“Hey! Yakumo-kun, that’s sneaky—taking pictures like that is practically spying!”

“If that’s the case, you’re just as guilty,” I retorted with a grin.

Just then, a soft chuckle escaped from the shopkeeper’s direction. She had her hand over her mouth, clearly trying to stifle her laughter but unable to keep it in.

“Sorry about that. Watching the two of you, I’m convinced I made the right choice choosing you both as models,” she said with a warm smile.

Ah, I see. She had been watching our little exchange the whole time.

“Maybe we should’ve toned it down a bit in front of others…” I muttered, feeling slightly embarrassed.

“No, no. If anything, being this close is why we got the free fitting in the first place,” Hatsune-san said, completely unbothered. “Yakumo-kun, we should definitely act more lovey-dovey!”

She didn’t seem the least bit concerned that the shopkeeper had been watching.

“Speaking of free fittings… you don’t normally offer this kind of ‘model in exchange for free rentals’ service, do you?” I asked the shopkeeper, curious. There hadn’t been anything about free fittings for modeling on the poster outside the shop, after all.

“That’s right,” she replied. “We only occasionally make such offers. It’s not something we advertise widely. I just thought the two of you would make a great pair of models, and, well… you reminded me of myself when I was younger. Sorry, that’s probably a bit much to say in front of customers.”

Her words carried a touch of nostalgia, and she quickly apologized for speaking so personally.

The shopkeeper paused, clearly holding back more, but Hatsune-san, standing beside me, was clearly fascinated and eager to hear more.

“No, please! I’m really curious. Please tell us!”

As expected, she was keenly interested in the shopkeeper’s romantic past.

“Ah… Well, if you insist,” the shopkeeper replied, a little flustered, before clearing her throat and starting her story.

“Actually, I once went on a yukata date with a man I was seeing, right around here. It was such a wonderful memory that I’ve kept it with me all these years… That’s why I thought I’d like to offer you two a similar experience, one that you could cherish as a memory.”

“I see… So, you’re kind to students who don’t have much money, huh?” Hatsune-san asked, her eyes wide with interest.

“Even if you can’t pay the full price, I still want to make sure you have a good time. Of course, we can’t run a business without any compensation, but I always try to be as helpful as I can,” the shopkeeper explained with a warm smile.

“The spirit of hospitality… something like that? Thank you so much!” Hatsune-san responded, bowing her head slightly in appreciation.

“Yes, exactly,” the shopkeeper nodded, smiling warmly at Hatsune-san.

“By the way, what was the guy you went on the yukata date with like?” Hatsune-san asked, clearly still curious about the details.

It seemed that she wasn’t just interested in the story, but also in the kind of person the shopkeeper had been with. It was impressive how naturally Hatsune-san had struck up a conversation with a woman she had just met. Her communication skills seemed to have improved a lot recently.

“Well, unlike you two, who are about the same age, he was older than me—about a decade older, actually. In the end, we broke up because we lived in different places, but… it was still a meaningful experience,” the shopkeeper explained.

“Ah, that sounds bittersweet… I mean, maybe I shouldn’t have pried into the breakup part…” Hatsune-san said, realizing a bit too late that she might have crossed a line.

But the shopkeeper shook her head gently.

“It’s fine. I was sad at the time, but looking back, it’s just a good memory now. And actually, I’ve heard a rumor recently that he’s back around here again.”

“Oh? So you still have some kind of connection?” Hatsune-san blinked in surprise, clearly intrigued.

The conversation had turned into something much deeper than I had expected, and Hatsune-san seemed genuinely captivated by the shopkeeper’s past. I couldn’t help but feel that I was learning a bit more about both of them in the process.

The shopkeeper paused for a moment, before continuing with a slightly wistful smile.

“Well, it’s not exactly like that, but he’s quite a well-known person around here. Word travels fast.”

“Is he a celebrity?” Hatsune-san asked, her curiosity piqued.

“Something like that. He’s actually from a prominent family—one of the heads of a major conglomerate,” the shopkeeper explained.

“Oh… I see,” Hatsune-san’s voice faltered slightly, and I could tell from the way she responded that the mention of the family name had struck a chord with her.

I couldn’t help but notice the change in the air as I spoke up, finally joining the conversation.

“Could you tell us the name of the company?” I asked.

The shopkeeper replied without hesitation, “It’s the famous Ichigaya Group. They run multiple inns in this hot spring town as part of their tourism business.”

“Ichigaya Group…” I had heard of it before. It was one of those names you’d see everywhere—on billboards, in various business contexts, and among people you interact with on a regular basis.

At that point, I realized that the name “Ichigaya” matched Hatsune-san’s surname, something I had noted before but hadn’t thought much about. Now, however, the coincidence seemed more significant. The way she reacted made it clear—it wasn’t a coincidence after all.

The shopkeeper continued, slightly more frustrated, “Being from such a prominent family meant he couldn’t just pick anyone as his partner. He ended up marrying the daughter of another important company executive. It’s a shame, really. I mean, who does that in this day and age, right? Political marriages… They’re ridiculous.”

It sounded like the shopkeeper was reflecting on her past, and it struck me that her former lover must have been from an incredibly influential background—probably someone tied to Hatsune-san’s family in some way. It made sense now why she might have been reluctant to share too much.

Hatsune-san, who had been listening intently, suddenly asked, “Do you know where he is in the town now? Like, where he’s living?”

The shopkeeper hesitated. “Well, I’ve heard he built a summer villa somewhere in the town to use as a retreat, but I don’t know the exact address.”

Hatsune-san sighed, relieved. “That’s more than enough. Thank you.”

Her tone clearly indicated that she knew more than she was letting on. It seemed like she was familiar with the person the shopkeeper was talking about—and that she probably wasn’t too eager to meet him again.

The shopkeeper, noticing the time, shifted the conversation. “Ah, I’ve talked too much! Let’s take those photos for the shop promotion now.”

She glanced at the clock on the wall, and just like that, the topic shifted. It was clear she had been carrying around a lot of personal history that she wasn’t entirely comfortable discussing further.

***

After the promotional photo shoot, we received the pictures and their data from the shopkeeper. Hatsune-san and I put on the yukata we’d borrowed and stepped out of the shop. We had only walked for a little while when I decided to ask her about something that had been on my mind.

“That person you mentioned earlier, is he a relative of yours?” I asked.

“Yeah. Probably my uncle… He’s technically my guardian,” she replied, nodding with a somewhat melancholic expression.

“So it was him,” I muttered under my breath, piecing it together.

Hatsune-san’s uncle had been someone who never helped her when her parents went missing, instead taking advantage of his position as her guardian to seize her family’s wealth. To the shopkeeper, he was just a person from the past, but to her, he was a constant reminder of the bitterness that surrounded her family.

Hatsune-san tried to lighten the mood. “But the hot spring town is big, and he’s not staying at the same inn as we are. I don’t think we’ll run into him, so you don’t have to worry. It would be a waste to think about people like that while we’re having fun on this trip!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at her bright attempt to push aside the tension. “Yeah. But still… Hatsune-san, I didn’t realize you were such a big deal.”

She tilted her head, then seemed a little anxious. “Is that a bad thing?”

“Why would it be bad?” I asked, puzzled.

She frowned slightly, her unease evident. “Well, I didn’t really explain everything… I’m the daughter of the head of a pretty big company, you know?”

Earlier, Hatsune-san had told me her family was part of a sizable corporation, but the truth was, it was far beyond “just big.” In that sense, I realized she had indeed left some details out.

“I was surprised, but it’s an honor to be with someone as impressive as you,” I said, smiling.

She smiled back, her worry fading as she squeezed my hand. “Heh. You always say such nice things that make me happy.”

As I watched her smile, I couldn’t help but remember the conversation at the kimono shop. Hatsune-san’s uncle had been forced into a politically arranged marriage because of his family’s stature. He couldn’t choose his partner freely, which likely meant Hatsune-san’s family situation was no different.

If that were the case, I wondered… Was our time together limited? I couldn’t ignore the possibility that one day, we might not be able to be together anymore.

“Yakumo-kun…?” Hatsune-san’s voice brought me back to reality as she noticed I’d stopped walking. “What’s wrong?”

I quickly shook my head, forcing a smile. “Ah… it’s nothing.”

She seemed to see right through me. “No, it’s definitely not nothing. Were you lost in thought about me?”

“Something like that,” I admitted.

“Hehe, you must really love me, huh?” she teased, poking me in the side with her free hand.

I couldn’t help but smile at her playful teasing, but inside, I was still grappling with the thought of losing this—of losing her. The feeling wasn’t something I could just brush off.

But what could I do? I didn’t have an answer to that yet.