Chapter 4

The next day.

I left the house a little earlier than usual. I figured it would look suspicious to Yuni-san and the others if we went out together two days in a row. 

We’d planned to stagger our departure times by about an hour. By the way, the reason I left first was simple: girls take more time to get ready.

I headed to the same large commercial complex we went to yesterday and stopped by the bookstore on the third floor. I’m the kind of guy who can kill infinite time in a bookstore. 

Reading novels is a hobby of mine, but I don’t have any favorite authors in particular. So when I go to the bookstore, I play this game where I randomly pick a novel off the shelf and buy it. I don’t even read the synopsis. Until I actually start reading it, I have no idea what the story is about. That sense of surprise pulls me into the story.

But when I told my friends about this, they cut me down, saying it was a complete waste of time. According to them, life is short, so there’s no point wasting time on books that might not even be good. They’re not wrong, but I enjoy the randomness of these encounters. That’s enough for me. I enjoy those once-in-a-lifetime encounters.

I wandered around the store until a title caught my eye and picked up a book. I also grabbed the latest volume of a light novel series I’ve been reading.

Even though I choose books randomly, I still glance through the titles one by one, so I managed to kill a good chunk of time. Eventually, it was time to meet up with Yuina.

I went up to the fourth floor where the movie theater was and waited for her. While waiting, I browsed the flyers for upcoming films. It looked like they were showing some anime movies too, so I checked out the voice cast. It didn’t look like one of those movies where celebrities get hired to do voice acting—it seemed like they’d cast proper voice actors.

As I was browsing like that, someone suddenly tapped me on the shoulder.

When I turned around, there was Yuina, fully dressed up.

She was wearing the black shirt dress and white cardigan I had picked out for her yesterday. With makeup on, the already cute Yuina had taken on a more mature aura. It was kind of surprising.

“Did you wait long?”

“Nah, I was killing time in the bookstore, so not really.”

“So, how do I look? Cute?”

“You’re cute. I picked the outfit, so obviously.”

“Thanks. You look cool too, Hotaka.”

We exchanged the kind of cliché lines you’d expect at a date meetup, then headed to the ticket machine at the theater to print our tickets.

The theater was already open, so we quickly made our way to the drink stand.

“What do you want to drink, Yuina?”

“You’re treating me?”

“It’s my way of saying thanks for helping with the outfit yesterday.”

“Thanks! Then I’ll have orange juice.”

I ordered an orange juice for Yuina and a ginger ale for myself. A few minutes later, the clerk handed us our drinks. With those in hand, we headed toward the theater entrance.

We picked up our admission bonuses and went into the theater. Inside screen #9, the pre-show videos were already playing. We took our seats and turned off our phones.

“Nice spot, huh?”

Yuina nodded with satisfaction. Maybe because we reserved in advance, we managed to get great seats. They were almost dead center—perfect for watching the movie.

The pre-show video transitioned into the trailers for upcoming movies.

Since we were here to watch a Western film, most of the trailers were for other Western movies. After a solid lineup of interesting trailers, the anti-piracy ad with the camera thief played. Then the movie began.

The movie was about a Hollywood stuntman. It told the story of an ordinary stuntman searching for his missing girlfriend, a mix of action and romance. It offered a glimpse into the hardships and resolve of stunt performers and was honestly pretty engaging. As far as action films go, I thought it was top-tier.

When I looked over, Yuina was leaning in, watching the story unfold with bated breath. Then the scene shifted to the long-awaited reunion between the stuntman and his girlfriend, and so the two began making love.

It was an intense scene. I felt a little awkward watching it, but Yuina didn’t seem to care at all. If anything, her eyes lit up like she’d been waiting for this part.

Suddenly, Yuina placed her hand on mine. Her palm was slightly damp with sweat as she slowly intertwined her fingers with mine, holding them tight. Her fingers slid in between mine and moved, almost suggestively. Combined with the mood of the movie, it was hard not to think about something indecent.

As I struggled to stay composed, Yuina leaned in and whispered in my ear.

“Hey, what are you thinking about?”

Her husky voice struck my eardrum and sent a shiver through my brain. I took a deep breath to calm myself, then shot her a glare.

“You’re making it impossible to focus on the movie.”

“You were thinking naughty thoughts, huh?”

“…”

Yuina gave me a knowing smile like she could see right through me. And until the end of the movie, she never let go of my hand.

After the credits rolled, we stood up from our seats. Many people began talking, unable to wait to share their impressions.

Honestly, it was a great film. The action scenes were intense, and the love story was compelling enough to keep your attention.

Yuina seemed satisfied too, her expression glowing.

“Hey, let’s grab something to eat before heading home. I want to talk about the movie more.”

“Sure. How about a family restaurant?”

We headed down to the first floor, to the restaurant area, and walked into a family diner. There were open seats, so we were seated right away.

Looking at the menu, I ordered risotto, and Yuina went for pasta.

“The movie was great, huh?”

Yuina immediately launched into her thoughts.

“Yeah. The action scenes were super impressive, and the lead actor did a great job too.”

“Right? And the behind-the-scenes footage during the ending was cool too, with all the real stuntmen.”

“Yeah, that part could only work in a movie about stunt performers.”

The ending showed actual stuntmen doing their thing. Yuina and I were both glued to the screen during that part.

“And I really liked the love scene too. The actress was amazing. It was super intense.”

“I figured you’d say that.”

There were plenty of steamy scenes in the movie, from deep kisses to full-on lovemaking.

Just as we were chatting about the film, our food arrived. We each picked up our cutlery and dug in.

“But honestly, the best part was watching you during that love scene. Your face totally froze up.”

“Shut up. That’s because you started doing weird stuff with my hand.”

“I was just holding your hand! If that was enough to get your mind going, maybe you’re way too pent-up. Want me to help you take care of it?”

“No thanks.”

Give her even a small opening and she’ll turn the conversation dirty in a flash.

Does Yuina really want to sleep with me that badly? I don’t think I’m particularly skilled in bed. Honestly, I think I’m probably bad at it.

But for some reason, Yuina still wants to do it with me. Maybe it’s just because she hasn’t been with any other guys.

“Anyway, we’ve got school starting tomorrow.”

“Ugh, don’t say that. I was enjoying the good vibe.”

Yuina stuck out her tongue and made a face.

“No, seriously. We should talk about how we’re gonna handle school.”

“Why? We could just tell everyone we became siblings.”

“That might work for you, but I’d be in trouble. You have no idea how jealous guys can get.”

Yuina may act like this, but she’s super popular at school. Even at the mixer where we first met, every guy was there for her.

Somehow, I ended up taking her home instead, but yeah—Yuina is definitely popular.

She’s got confessed to often, and there are tons of guys secretly crushing on her.

“If you’re that eager for sex, why not just get a boyfriend?”

When I said that, Yuina let out a heavy sigh and made an obviously displeased face.

“I told you already. I don’t like sex in general—I just like having sex with you.”

“I don’t get what’s so great about doing it with me.”

“You’re kind. You’re gentle when you touch me, and you kiss me a lot. You make me feel fulfilled.”

“I honestly don’t get it, but… thanks, I guess.”

At the very least, it was clear that Yuina liked the way I did things.

“Besides, I’m not really into the whole romance thing right now. And stop acting like I just sleep with any guy.”

“You kind of did with me, though.”

“That was because I was heartbroken. And also, you were my type, so it’s fine.”

I don’t get it. I really don’t understand what part of me she likes.

I never imagined I’d end up in a physical relationship with the most popular girl in school.

“Wait, Hotaka, don’t you get any attention from girls?”

“Nope. I don’t really stand out, and I like it that way.”

“But like, you’ve been confessed to before, haven’t you? Why didn’t you go out with her?”

“How do you know that?”

“Don’t underestimate the girl gossip network.”

Yuina was right. About a year ago, a girl did confess to me.

I don’t even remember her name anymore—she was a plain-looking girl who worked up the courage to tell me she liked me.

That was the one and only time a girl had ever confessed to me.

And I let that one chance slip away.

“Why did you turn her down?”

Yuina asked, clearly interested. I took a sip of my drink and rested my cheek on my hand.

“I guess… I just didn’t have any confidence in myself.”

At that time, I was barely holding myself together. The idea of dating someone was beyond me.

On top of that, I think I had trust issues with women.

Ever since my mom left us for another man, I couldn’t really trust women anymore.

It felt like her new boyfriend meant more to her than her own family, and that made me sick.

That feeling hasn’t changed even now.

So I couldn’t imagine dating anyone, even with Yuina I’d kept things strictly physical.

In my mind, women always betray you in the end.

That bias has stuck with me.

“If you’d dated her, maybe you would’ve ended up liking her.”

“Maybe. But with how I feel about women after what happened with my mom, I doubt it would’ve worked out.”

“…So you were never even really looking at her in the first place.”

For some reason, Yuina seemed a bit down after that.

Did I say something I shouldn’t have?

“Well, don’t worry about it. That’s my issue. Let’s just finish eating and head home.”

“Yeah, okay.”

And so we finished our meals and went home.

Yuina didn’t say a single word on the way back.