I Reincarnated as a Mob Character in a Romcom Manga—After I Kept Comforting the Third “Fanservice” Heroine When She Got Dumped and Cried, I Feel Like She’s Started Directing Some Seriously Heavy Feelings at Me - Chapter 03: Lunch with the Fanservice Heroine

Chapter 03: Lunch with the Fanservice Heroine

Lunchtime arrived.

Before anyone could stop me to ask something, I slipped out of the classroom and headed—almost at a jog—to the back of the school building, the very place where Mitsushima had been brutally dumped yesterday.

Even though summer was just around the corner, the poorly sunlit courtyard behind the building felt damp and a little chilly.

Still, I was more than satisfied.

Back in my “previous life,” I hadn’t even been allowed to take casual walks outside, let alone step out freely and feel the seasons change.
It seemed Reiji Jeromiya might be low on presence, but at least his body was perfectly healthy.

I could jump, run, and move around without my heart hurting or my breath giving out—and honestly, that alone felt like a blessing.

As I was savoring that quiet sense of satisfaction…

Step.

I heard footsteps and turned toward the sound.

Chloe Mitsushima—the girl who had lost the love of her life right here yesterday—was walking toward me with an awkward-looking expression on her face.

“Uh,” I muttered softly, not sure how I was supposed to react.

Mitsushima, holding what looked like a wrapped lunch box behind her back, answered with an equally unsure, “Yeah…”

“So… this is our second time meeting here since yesterday.”

“Ah, yeah. I guess it is.”

“Thanks for comforting me yesterday.”

“It’s fine. I just did what I felt like doing. If anything, wasn’t it a bother?”

“No, not at all. I was actually really grateful. Though… having someone see me at my most pathetic like that was pretty humiliating.”

“Haha…” Mitsushima laughed, but her voice sounded dry and weak, clearly lacking any real energy.

Well, of course it did.

Her intense one-sided love, which had lasted for over a year, had only just ended in defeat yesterday.

“By the way, what was it you wanted to talk about?”

“Ah, right. Um—here.”

When I prompted her, Mitsushima held out what she’d been keeping behind her back.

It wasn’t the handkerchief I’d given her yesterday.

Still wrapped in its packaging was a brand-new men’s handkerchief.

When I looked up at her in surprise, Mitsushima gave a small, awkward smile.

“You told me I didn’t have to return it, but I didn’t feel right just taking it. And honestly, even if I washed it, giving back a handkerchief soaked with tears and snot felt kind of wrong.”

“…You really didn’t have to go this far. Getting a brand-new one and all…”

“Just take it. It’s my thank-you for yesterday. That handkerchief really saved me, you know. Without it, I don’t think I could’ve made it home properly.”

“If you’re going to say that much, then I’ll accept it gratefully. Thanks for being so thoughtful.”

I wondered why, but… had Mitsushima always been this considerate?

In the story, she was more the bold, carefree type—someone who charged ahead without worrying too much about the little details.

So when I accepted the handkerchief, quietly impressed by this unexpected side of her that I was seeing for the first time, Mitsushima smoothly changed the subject.

“Anyway, Jeromiya—what about lunch? You didn’t bring anything?”

“Ah—yeah. I guess I’m just the type who doesn’t really get excited about food.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. There’s… kind of a reason. I don’t really know what I should be eating.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? What kind of life do you have to live to turn out like that?”

I thought about it for a moment.

But in this world—in this story—I was nothing more than a background character. Even if I said something a little different from the original, it probably wouldn’t affect anything.

In the end, I decided to tell her the truth.

“When I was little—or, well, ever since I was born—my body was pretty weak.”

“Huh…?”

“I grew up knowing nothing but hospital food. Even now that I’m healthy, I just don’t feel that urge to eat on my own anymore.”

I kept it vague, but what I said was honestly how I felt that morning as the “me” who had reincarnated into Reiji Jeromiya.

In my previous life, I had a serious defect in my heart, and ever since I was born, all I’d ever eaten was tasteless hospital food, over and over again.

So even after reincarnating as Reiji Jeromiya, I didn’t really know what I should eat—or even what I was able to eat.

In the end, I’d gone to school empty-handed.

Just as I expected, my explanation made Mitsushima lower her gaze, her shoulders drooping slightly.

“…Sorry. I didn’t know it was such a heavy story.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not really the kind of thing you tell people anyway.”

“T-Then, Jeromiya…”

“Ah, yeah?”

After hesitating for a moment, Mitsushima moved and sat down beside me on the steps.

Instantly, a bright, unmistakably feminine scent drifted close, and I felt my newly healthy heart give a sharp, startled thump.

“Do you… want to try a little of my lunch?”

I froze in surprise, but Mitsushima hurriedly piled words on top of each other.

“Um—see, I actually eat a lot at lunch, despite how I look. I make way too much. So it’s fine if it’s a bit less, okay? And, you know… this is also kind of a thank-you for yesterday. So… yeah?”

The way she rushed through it left me no room to argue, and in the end, I gave in to her momentum.

“Ah—uh, thanks. Then… I’ll just try a little.”

“Thank goodness,” Mitsushima said, letting out a small laugh that looked like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

That delicate expression—one I had never seen in the original manga—made my heart tighten again in a way that wasn’t unpleasant at all.

“Alright then. Here you go.”

When Mitsushima unwrapped her lunch box—

Inside was a colorful spread of dishes, so vibrant it looked like a little treasure box.

Back in my previous life, I had never seen anything like it.

“Oh…”

The moment I saw it, I couldn’t help but voice my genuine amazement.

“Wow… that’s amazing. Compared to the hospital food I used to eat, it’s like a whole different world.”

“H-Hey, don’t get that emotional over a bento. So, what do you want to try?”

“L-Let’s see… could I have this rolled omelet? I’ve never eaten it before!”

“Huh? You’ve never had tamagoyaki?”

“I don’t even remember if I ever did. S-So… is it okay if I eat it?”

“Yeah, yeah. Go ahead.”

Mitsushima placed the piece of tamagoyaki gently into my palm.

I examined it carefully, then—nervously—brought it to my mouth.

“…It’s good.”

The very next moment, those words slipped out of me without even the slightest hesitation.

“Whoa—what is this… it actually has a real taste…! Is this oil? Or—no, it’s more complicated than that…!”

“Hey, hey, you’re getting way too moved over a single rolled omelet. So you really had never eaten one before.”

“This is amazing… it’s good! So this is what it means when people say food tastes good…!”

For a while, I was left trembling from that overwhelmingly vivid sensation when—

“…Huh?”

Suddenly, something clicked.

“Wait… don’t tell me. Did you make this bento?”

“Yeah. Being a gravure idol isn’t easy, you know? If I put on even a little extra weight, my manager scolds me right away.”

Saying that, Mitsushima popped a piece of tamagoyaki into her own mouth.

I sat there for a moment, still stunned by the revelation, before the words slipped out on their own.

“I—I see… I didn’t know… You’re actually really skilled.”

“Hey! Was that just now kind of rude!? Were you thinking I was the type who couldn’t cook at all!?”

“N-no, that’s not it. It’s just… in the story, the heroine known for her cooking is Kanade Nikaido, right…?”

“Huh? Nikaido-san? Jeromiya, do you know Nikaido-san too?”

The moment I heard Mitsushima say that in surprise—

Ah—!? I instantly realized I’d said something I shouldn’t have.