Living Normally In An Abnormal World - Chapter 17.2: Interlude - The Lady Longs for Her Distant Lover, Part 2

Chapter 17.2:  Interlude – The Lady Longs for Her Distant Lover, Part 2

We arrived at the game center, and before entering,

“Ah, just so you know, it can get quite noisy inside an arcade.”

He kindly warned me.

“I understand. Thank you for your concern.”

But when we stepped inside,

“~~~~~~!!!!”

It was like a bomb of sound going off. Probably a mix of sounds from various games. I had no idea it would be this loud.

I felt a little dizzy,

“Are you alright!?”

He supported me from behind and covered my ears with his hands. I was happy to be touched by him, but at the same time, I was leaning on him. I felt enveloped by him, and my heart started beating faster.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“I can’t believe the first floor is for rhythm and fighting games!”

“Are there any quiet places here?”

“No, arcades are noisy everywhere. For now, please use my earphones as earplugs.”

Saying so, he put the earphones in my ears. They were Bluetooth wireless earphones, which seemed to be able to play music. This made it a little more bearable.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. What about you, Minami-san?”

“I come here quite often, so I’m kind of used to it.”

“Then let’s take some purikura (photo booth stickers)!”

“Purikura? What’s that?”

“It’s a machine that takes photos and lets you decorate them, Okusama (a respectful term for a married woman).”

“Is that so? But isn’t there something else you want to play, Yuuto-san? Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“I am interested in other games, but it’s okay for now. I’d rather enjoy this with Erina-san and Minami-san.”

How happy I was to hear that!

“Thank you.”

“Hehe, thank you, Yuuto-sama.”

“No, it’s thanks to you, Erina-san and Minami-san, that I was able to come here.”

In front of the purikura machine,

“Shall we take a picture together?”

“No, let’s take one just the two of us.”

“Ah, yes.”

I blurted it out a little too quickly, but I couldn’t help it. If I missed this chance, I didn’t know when we would be able to come back together.

“Then, Ribbon, you go first.”

“Yes, it’s better to show them how it’s done first, right?”

“Okay, Okusama! Let’s go, Yuuto-sama!!!”

I decided to wait outside. Then,

‘I’m going to measure your compatibility as a couple~♡ Your compatibility is……75! You get along well, don’t you? Are you a fresh couple, by any chance? Keep improving that number and enjoy your LOVE life!

‘Tsk……you lovebirds.’

……

Calm down, Erina. This is just like an application. If we didn’t get along, we wouldn’t be taking purikura together. I’m easily swayed by random numbers, but

“This machine is the latest model and high-performance, so it’s supposed to be quite accurate in measuring how close you are with your partner.”

“Really? Let’s take one too!”

…… I hope the number for me and him is high too.

The two of them finished taking pictures and started decorating them. There were various decorations, such as hearts, sparkles, and face editing. He seemed to be doing this for the first time, as he wrote ‘Yuuto’ and ‘Ribbon’ in hiragana.

However, next to him, Ribbon was…

Using a lot of couple-like decorations, such as shared umbrellas and hearts. She didn’t edit their faces at all and only wrote text, such as ‘Lovely and charming us♡’, ‘※Our bond will never break’, and ‘Best friends forever!’. Hmph! I’m jealous. I’ll do the same.

Even the photos before decoration were full of personality. There were photos of them smiling and doing the peace sign, posing with their arms around each other, turning away with a hmph, and Ribbon lightly twisting Yuuto’s neck, making them both laugh.

…… They were really acting like lovers. Wasn’t Yuuto-san’s tolerance range too wide?

However, since Ribbon was doing this much, maybe it was okay for me to do the same.

“Now, Yuuto-san, let’s take one with me.”

“Yes, let’s do it! …Oh, wait!”

……

“Forget what you just saw.”

“I don’t want to!”

“I hate you, Erina!”

So cute.

Then, he and I entered the purikura booth.

“By the way, you don’t have your sword with you today.”

“Well, carrying a sword is technically against the law. I had to show my ID to the police several times today.”

“What are you doing?”

Sometimes, he drops the polite language. That’s probably his true self. He uses polite language because I’m older.

I wonder if he would speak to me more casually if I were his age.

“If polite language is difficult for you, you don’t have to use it.”

I would actually prefer that.

“…… For some reason, I feel like I must use polite language with people older than me.”

“Haha……what’s that about?”

“If you prefer casual speech, please wait a moment. I’m not used to it.”

“Okay, I’ll wait.”

“Yes, please wait a moment.”

“You mixed up the polite and casual forms there.”

“It’s not good to force yourself.”

“Then, let’s take a picture.”

“Oui, yes.”

For the photo, I asked for the same pose as Ribbon earlier. He readily agreed. Then,

‘Let’s measure your compatibility! Your compatibility is……60! Don’t panic, don’t panic! You’ve probably just met! Take it slow, and you’ll get there!

‘……I got rejected.’

“What’s with that last line?”

“Let’s just ignore the machine.”

Yes, indeed.

“That’s right. By the way, we have two more shots left. What pose should we do?”

“Just stay like this.”

“So, we’re just standing?”

“Yes.”

Yuuto-san, you are warm and very kind. Doing something together with you must be fun.

“Na……na……na……”

“Haha……what’s wrong?”

I kissed his cheek.

My first kiss.

Yuuto-san, I’ve decided to go this far.

I will definitely make you fall for me.

“Erina-san, please don’t tease me too much! I’m not used to this!”

“Hahaha, are you saying this when you charm so many girls at school?”

“Whaaat!?!”

He turned bright red and panicked. Maybe he’s not used to this kind of thing.

Seeing him panic calmed me down.

“I-I don’t charm them on purpose!”

“I know, but being too nice is also a sin, you know?”

“I know, but I always worry that someone will stab me in the back because of it.”

“I don’t like that idea. I don’t want you to be involved in a stabbing incident.”

“Of course, I value my life too.”

‘Let’s take the last one! Get ready!’

“This is the last one.”

“Ah! Can you crouch down a little when we take the photo, so we’re about the same height?”

“Yes, sure.”

My height is about 160 cm, and he is about 150 cm, so I only need to bend my knees a little.

I wonder if we’ll pose with our shoulders or arms around each other. Knowing him, he might come up with a new pose.

I waited, looking at the camera, for the shutter to go off.

Then,

Click!

At the same time, I felt something touch my cheek.

Since I was looking at the camera, I immediately realized what had happened.

He kissed my cheek.

“That’s payback for teasing me!”

He said, turning away.

However, I have no memory of what happened after that.

“Ugh……”

When I woke up, I was in a limousine, and we seemed to have just arrived home.

“Ah……good morning.”

“Oh, Ribbon? Where’s Yuuto-san?”

“I already sent him home.”

“I see.”

“It’s nice to have him kiss your cheek, isn’t it?”

“It wasn’t a dream, was it?”

“It’s definitely reality. Plus, he carried you like a princess. Oh, do you want to see the photos?”

“Eh? Why?”

“Because Yuuto-sama carried you, Okusama.”

My face naturally heated up.

“You look cute today, Okusama.”

“W-Wait, Ribbon! I’ll cut you!”

“You’re so flustered that you almost drew your sword.”

“Awawa……”

“Just like me, you’ve been charmed by Yuuto-sama, haven’t you?”

“I don’t know anything about what you’re saying!”

“Anyway, here are the purikura.”

I snatched the purikura from Ribbon.

I didn’t care about the decorations. What mattered was

“I found it!”

The photo of him kissing my cheek.

It wasn’t a dream after all.

I’ll treasure this.

“By the way, I gave Yuuto-sama your LINE account. He’s probably already contacted you, right?”

“Good job, Ribbon. Look forward to this month’s salary!”

“Yay!”

I checked the notifications on my phone.

[Kinoshita Yuto has sent you a friend request. Do you accept?]

Of course, I chose yes.

[Are you feeling well? I had a great time today. Thank you so much. Please reply if you can.]

…… So kind.

[I’m sorry I suddenly collapsed. I had a great time too. Let’s go out again next time. Maybe Maria, Mana, and Yuuna can join us too.]

The moment I sent it, it was read. Maybe he was worried and kept checking his phone.

[That’s a great idea! Let’s all go together.]

Ah, by the way,

[I still have your earphones. What should I do?]

Actually, I forgot to return them because I put them in my pocket when we took the purikura.

[I have a spare pair, so you can keep them. Don’t worry about returning them, Elina-san. I know you’re busy every day.]

Eh? Can I have them? I want them if I can.

[Can I have them? They seem very convenient.]

[Yes, please do. They don’t have a cord, so they’re not bothersome at all. (´∀｀*)]

[Thank you!]

Then,

“Hmm?”

I saw shoes at the entrance. The girls’ night must still be going on. In that case,

“I want to brag.”

But later, I realized that this was a foolish idea.