I Started a Lover-for-Hire Service, And For Some Reason, Only Beautiful Girls Are Requesting Me - Chapter 64: Aira Wants to Do That

“Ugh… I’m so full… I can’t eat anymore.”

Ryoma rubbed his bloated stomach, his face scrunched up in discomfort.

Anyone who didn’t know he had just finished eating would probably think he was in a terrible mood.

“Ryoma-senpai, you’re way too easy. You said you’d eat three gyoza, but you only had two.”

“I let you have the extra one.”

“Well, I mean, it was delicious, so whatever.”

“Still, Aira, you’re seriously impressive… You even finished the ramen broth. Just what kind of stomach do you have? The other customers started watching you toward the end, and when you finished, they actually applauded.”

Given the sheer size of that ramen, it was impossible not to attract attention.

Ryoma never imagined that Aira would actually manage to finish it all—or that she’d receive a round of applause from everyone in the restaurant for doing so.

And Aira, for her part, responded to their praise by wiping her mouth with a napkin and waving at them.

However, in the midst of that warm atmosphere, Ryoma remained aware of his surroundings.

Because he could feel it—hostile glares, particularly from the beaming waiter who had brought over the gyoza.

The difference in attitude toward Aira and toward him was striking.

Humans could be terrifying sometimes.

“Jealous, huh? I get to eat all the delicious food I want.”

“Honestly, yeah. Especially since you don’t gain weight. But I’m sure that comes with its own struggles too.”

“Yeah, like at school, I have to hold back a lot because of how people look at me. But as long as there are people who actually understand what I’m like and don’t judge me for it, I don’t really mind.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Aira’s face lit up with a bright, toothy grin.

Having just one person who understood her—that alone was reassuring.

“‘That’s good to hear’, huh? Don’t just brush it off. Be happy for me!”

“Huh? Why?”

“Because I just said I—”

—SMACK!

“Ugghh!”

A sound rang out, followed by a noise that barely sounded human as it escaped from Ryoma’s throat.

Because Aira had done something utterly inhumane—she had punched Ryoma’s already bloated stomach.

Setting aside the fact that it wasn’t illegal, this act had to rank in the top 20 of “Things You Should Absolutely Never Do.”

“Ahaha! What was that? You sounded like a pig just now!”

“You idiot…! Who the hell punches a guy’s stomach when he’s full?! What if I throw up?!”

“Well, I did. Oh, and cleanup duty? Not my problem.”

“That’s not what I meant! …Wait, Aira, hold up for a sec… That actually did some damage.”

Ryoma staggered over to a nearby utility pole, placing his hand on it as he bent forward.

He rubbed his stomach, trying desperately to calm it down.

“Ah… wait, no way… I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine. It’s my fault for not training my abs.”

“…You’re way too nice.”

Aira muttered the words, her voice tinged with guilt and remorse.

“As if! Obviously, you’re the one at fault here!”

Ryoma shot back, not having heard her response.

“Hah?! Give me back my admiration just now! I swear, I’ll hit you again! With how weak and defenseless you are right now, I might actually win.”

“No way. A hit for a hit—that’s fair. No follow-up attacks.”

“That rule doesn’t apply to girls, dumbass.”

“I really don’t care right now.”

“You should care! And stop casually copying how I talk!”

“You’re annoying.”

“You’re so irritating, seriously!”

The fact that Ryoma could even have a petty argument like this with Aira meant that while the hit had hurt, it hadn’t been too bad.

Their lighthearted exchange was proof of how well they understood each other.

Neither of them was actually upset.

And then—

—pitter, patter.

“Agh, it’s raining.”

Aira held out her palm toward the dark sky, confirming the light drizzle.

“This is karma for punching me… Actually, it looks like it’s going to get heavier soon.”

“How do you know that, Ryoma-senpai?”

“Just a hunch.”

“If it were women’s intuition, maybe I’d believe it, but your hunch? That’s the least reliable thing ever.”

There was a reason why people say women had sharper intuition than men.

It was because their brains were wired differently.

It was also believed that, evolutionarily, they developed a heightened sense of danger to protect their children.

Compared to men, they tended to have a stronger interest in and awareness of their surroundings.

“So, Aira, from your place to here, what—about ten minutes?”

“Hmm… More like between fifteen and twenty. Want me to check a map app to be sure?”

“No need. I’ve already decided—we’re stopping by a convenience store.”

“To buy an umbrella?”

“What else? I’m not letting you catch a cold.”

“…You’re way too nice.”

Worrying about everything—and taking action because of it.

Aira had never received that “obvious” kind of concern from her parents, who had grown busier with work.

And now, coming from someone she was interested in—

It was more effective than it would be on an average person.

“It’s not about being nice. It’s just common sense. Should’ve checked the weather forecast properly.”

“Wait, you didn’t check the weather forecast, Ryoma-senpai? That’s no good.”

“Wow, talk about a boomerang. You didn’t check it either.”

“I did check. That’s why I wasn’t surprised when it started raining.”

“And yet, you didn’t bring an umbrella?”

“Yeah, so?”

Aira tilted her head slightly as if to say, What’s your point?

She looked effortlessly cute doing it.

“You knew it was going to rain, but you didn’t bring an umbrella. Doesn’t that make checking the forecast completely pointless?”

“…Well, if it’s you, Ryoma-senpai, of course you’d say that.”

“Huh?”

“Come on, let’s hurry to the convenience store before the rain gets worse. That is, if your hunch was right.”

“Can you not emphasize it like that with weird sentence structure…?”

“Heh-heh.”

Aira was sharp and good at playing things off.

She had known it would rain, yet hadn’t brought an umbrella.

The reason she had invited Ryoma for ramen at that particular time—

That, too, was part of it.

＊＊＊

“Welcome! We recommend our umbrellas!”

The convenience store clerk must have seen the rain from inside.

As soon as they entered, they saw a display of rain gear set up right by the entrance.

The greeting was a bit odd, but the employee was clearly competent—

They had deliberately moved the items to a more visible spot.

“Vinyl umbrella, 65 centimeters… Yeah, this size should be fine.”

Ryoma already knew what he had come for.

Without hesitation, he checked the size and grabbed two.

“Need anything else?”

“I want a hot drink, but… wait, why’d you grab two umbrellas?”

“Huh? One for each of us.”

“I don’t need one.”

“Hold on, you just now decided to tell me you have a folding umbrella?”

“No, I don’t have one.”

“Okay, now I’m really confused. But I don’t care what excuse you come up with—I’m not letting you walk home in the rain.”

Ryoma wasn’t trying to flirt or act clueless.

He simply hadn’t realized Aira’s real intention.

And as a side note—

That last line was the kind of thing the author would love to hear from the opposite sex.

“I’m not planning to walk home in the rain. Getting soaked in this cold? No thanks.”

“Then just tell me the answer already…”

“Ryoma-senpai, you want to save money, right? We just had ramen today, too.”

“Well, yeah, but an umbrella is a necessity.”

“No, it’s not. We can just share one. It’s still drizzling, and the chance of rain isn’t even that high. It’s because you waste money on unnecessary things that your savings keep disappearing.”

If it were pouring, that would be a different story.

But since it was only a drizzle, if that was an option, then it was also the most cost-effective solution.

“Oh… Ohhh! You’re right! That’s a great idea! Aira, you’re okay with that?”

“Of course I am. That’s why I said it.”

“Alright, one umbrella it is.”

Why hadn’t he realized it sooner?

No—he wasn’t just not realizing it.

Ryoma simply thought it was too good of an idea.

“And as for the hot drinks…”

“Over here.”

“Oh, that section?”

Following Aira’s gesture, they moved to the hot drinks corner.

“What are you getting?”

“Straight black tea, I think.”

“Wow, classy. I’ll go with honey lemon.”

Ryoma picked up Aira’s black tea and his honey lemon—

And then—

“…Huh?”

His brain finally caught up with the implications of sharing a single umbrella.

“Wait… Aira… Sharing an umbrella means—”

“U-Ugh, shut up! Don’t say it out loud! Hurry up and go to the register!”

Aira turned her face downward to hide her expression, then grabbed Ryoma’s arm and practically dragged him toward the counter.

A sharp-eyed store clerk noticed Aira’s ears had turned red.

Flirting in the store? Give me a break… the clerk thought, feeling slightly annoyed.

Still, as a professional, the clerk maintained a perfect customer service smile while opening the umbrella’s packaging and swiftly bagging the hot drinks.

And as a final touch—

They discreetly slipped a packet of mustard into the bag, nestled between the drinks

A harmless little prank.

It wouldn’t lead to complaints, since it was a condiment, after all.

For the store clerk, it was a subtle act of petty revenge.

For the customers, it was a “Huh? What’s this?” moment.

A perfect win-win.