I Was Reincarnated as a Mob, and After I Kept Listening to the Losing Childhood-Friend Heroine’s Complaints, I Somehow Maxed Out Her Affection Rating - 11

Chapter 11: The First Time a Girl Picked Out Clothes for Me, and Shouma Went Berserk

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Yuuta’s POV

After that, we headed next to a men’s apparel shop. The interior of the shop was based on a white color scheme and they had unnecessarily handsome mannequins lined up in rows. By this point alone, the sense of me being out of place was at its most maximum.

“Hey, Yuuta-kun, what kind of clothes do you usually wear?”

“Eh? Ah… Umm..T-shirt and jeans?”

“Yeah, I knew it. You’ve got the aura of someone who wears nothing but that.”

“It was that obvious!?”

“Of course. You’re practically the template of a guy with zero interest in clothes.”

Saying that, Kaede lightly moved around the store, checking clothes. She looked as natural as a fish swimming in water. Anyone watching her choose clothes would probably think she looked genuinely happy.

“Let’s see… For you… This one, and this one”

Kaede returned with a chic black jacket and a casual checkered shirt. Both were from a completely different world than the clothes I normally wore.

“Try both of these on.”

“A-all right.”

Without room for argument, I was pushed into the fitting room.

A few minutes later.

“S-so?”

When I opened the curtain, Kaede’s eyes sparkled.

“Ohh…! It actually looks good. The calm colors really bring out your “quiet sincerity” feeling.”

“Quiet…? That’s harsh..”

“I said it’s a compliment. ……Yep, looks good. Next one!”

I was pushed back into the fitting room again.

Where is my free will?

Then the second outfit. It was a brighter checkered shirt with a jacket over it. The moment I stepped out, Kaede folded her arms and hummed.

“Hmm, this one works too…”

“Which is better?”

“Hmm… The first one looks more mature, but this one has a “comfortable to walk beside” kind of vibe.”

“Uh, is that a compliment?”

“About half of it.”

“What about the other half?”

“It means you have more “room to grow.” Not bad though.”

She was basically a stylist at this point. I never thought someone would take this much care choosing clothes for me.

“Well, if you can’t choose, just buy both?”

“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.”

“Eh, really?”

“Yeah. I don’t have any particular fashion taste, and I’ve got nothing but money saved up.”

When I said that, Kaede blinked in surprise, then smirked.

“Hee~ Yuuta-kun, are you secretly rich?”

“No, I just literally have nothing to spend it on.”

“Want me to manage your money for you?”

“Please don’t.”

While we exchanged that pointless banter, I headed back into the fitting room again. The face reflected in the mirror was faintly red. This was basically a date… My heart was about to bug out as I quickly folded the clothes and walked toward the register.

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Shouma’s POV

On a weekend afternoon, Mio and I were at a shopping mall two stations away. Amid the crowd, we split a slice of a specialty sweets shop’s new cake, and picked out clothes at an apparel store.

“Shouma-kun, this cheesecake is super rich!”

“Yeah, and not too sweet. …Mio, you’ve got cream on your cheek.”

“Eh, no way, where!?”

“Right. …Actually, now it’s on your left too.”

“Geez, that’s because you made me laugh!”

I couldn’t help snorting and quickly handed her a handkerchief. Mio took it with an embarrassed expression and gave me a small smile as she said “Thanks.” That smile eased my heart just a little. Because lately, my mind had been clouded.

…Because of Kaede. There had been distance between us recently. Before I knew it, her LINE replies had become curt, and we stopped going home together after school. Without knowing the reason, I felt like I was the only one being left behind.

“…Ah, Shouma-kun, that dress over there is cute, isn’t it?”

“Which one?”

“Look, the one the mannequin is wearing!”

The moment Mio pointed toward it…Something unbelievable entered my field of vision.

…No way, seriously?

Kaede was walking on the far side of the aisle. The familiar white knit sweater, the calm-colored long skirt. And that way she carried herself, there was no mistaking it. That girl was definitely Kaede, but next to her was a guy I didn’t recognize.

“…Eh?”

My feet stopped on their own.

“Shouma-kun?”

Mio tilted her head in confusion. I couldn’t form words. I just stared at the two of them.

The guy looked awkwardly embarrassed, while Kaede held a shopping bag with a delighted expression. It looked exactly like…. A date.

“…Kaede is walking with some guy.”

“Eh, really?”

“No mistake. …Because she’s making that face―”

I cut myself off mid-sentence. It was a face I hadn’t seen from her recently.

“…Hey, Mio.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think that guy’s just a friend?”

When I muttered that, Mio glanced sideways as if trying to think.

“…Probably? Maybe a classmate or something.”

A gritty sensation twisted in my chest. Saying the words out loud made me realize just how much I was hung up on it. Even so, I couldn’t stop.

“Kaede’s always been cautious. She’s not the type who goes out alone with a guy she just met”

“Well… Yeah, that’s true.”

“And it’s right after I turned her down, you know? For her to suddenly be out alone with some guy at the mall… Don’t you think that’s weird?”

Mio’s eyes widened a little. But she quickly forced a smile, as if trying to cover it up.

“Shouma-kun… I think you’re just overthinking it.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah. I mean, Kaede-chan isn’t that kind of girl―”

“―No, you’re wrong. I can tell!”

My voice came out sharper. Mio flinched in surprise. Even so, I couldn’t stop.

“He’s probably taking advantage of the “weakness” from when I rejected her.”

“…Huh?”

“You know the type. Someone who swoops in to act kind when a girl’s feeling down, to slip into her heart. Timing-wise, right now is exactly the―”

“W-wait, Shouma-kun, hold on!”

Mio frowned. Her reaction wasn’t agreement or denial, just pure confusion.

“I don’t think that’s…What’s happening…”

She said that, but her eyes wavered. Which meant she couldn’t fully deny it.

“It’s suspicious, I’m telling you.”

“It’s not about being suspicious! Shouma-kun, calm down!”

“I am calm.”

“You are not calm!!”

Mio’s retort hit me, but my brain was already spinning on its own. A strange urgency churned in my chest. Emotion came before logic.

“…I’m going to talk to her.”

“Eh? W-wait, where are you going!?”

“Where do you think? To her!”

Before I realized it, my feet were already moving. The surrounding crowd no longer registered in my mind.

“Shouma-kun! Wait!”

Mio’s voice echoed behind me, but I couldn’t stop anymore. Mio hurriedly grabbed her bag and chased after me.

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