Chapter 12 Having a Drinking Party with Shijou-san for the First Time in a While
Having a Drinking Party with Shijou-san for the First Time in a While
A few hours later.
““Cheers!””
Shijou-san and I went to a pub near the university to have a drink. I ordered a beer as usual, and Shijou-san ordered a non-alcoholic cocktail, and we drank together.
“Nkk, nkk… puhah! Well, drinks after a long time are delicious…!”
“Fufufu, then I’m glad I invited you. Oh, then, Sawashiro-kun, you can drink as much as you want without worrying about me, okay?”
“No, no, it’s been a while since I had a drink, so I’ll be careful today. Besides, I’m hungry, so let’s just have a normal meal today. So Shijou-san, you can order whatever you want, okay?”
“Really? Fufufu, I was a little hungry too. Yeah, well, let’s eat a lot today since we’re here.”
“Ahaha, that’s good! It’s been a while since we had a drink, so let’s eat a lot today!”
“Yeah! Got it!”
So Shijou-san and I ordered a variety of foods we wanted to eat, and we chatted happily while I drank alcohol and Shijou-san drank non-alcoholic drinks.
A while after the fun drinking party started.
“Ah, yes! By the way, I know it’s a little late, but there was something I wanted to ask Sawashiro-kun….”
“Yes? What thing? Ask me anything!”
While I was happily chatting with Shijou-san, she suddenly said she had a question for me with a mysterious look on her face.
I felt so much better after a long time, thanks to the drinks and the delicious food, so I smiled and told Shijou-san to ask me anything.
“Yes, thank you, Sawashiro-kun! Well, I’d like to ask you something right now… By the way, do you have a girlfriend, Sawashiro-kun?”
“Eh? Girlfriend?”
“Yes. Well, today I suddenly invited Sawashiro-kun to a drinking party, just the two of us, right? But if Sawashiro-kun had a girlfriend… I thought I might’ve done something bad to your girlfriend by having a drinking party with just the two of us….”
“Oh, I see what you mean….”
It seems that Shijou-san asked me that question because she thought that if I had a girlfriend, it might be unethical for us to have a drinking party like this, just the two of us….
(I see, it’s a serious and kind-hearted question, just like Shijou-san’s.)
I thought about it and answered Shijou-san’s question with a laugh.
“Haha, you don’t have to worry about that at all. I don’t have a girlfriend. In fact, I’ve never had a girlfriend in my entire life.”
“Oh, really? I’m glad to hear that. But Sawashiro-kun is so kind; weren’t you popular with the girls in your hometown?”
“No, that’s not true. I lived in a rural area with a very small population to begin with, so I didn’t have many friends my own age. Haha, but I wish I had dated girls when I was in high school and had a lot of youth….”
“Hmm… I see… I see… Fufufu… I see…”
I lived in the countryside all my life and never had any adolescent events like getting a girlfriend or going on a date.
Well, it can’t be helped since it was a rural area with a small population, but still, I wish I could’ve gone on an after-school date with a girlfriend in a school uniform at least once in high school….
“…Ah, that’s right. By the way, if Sawashiro-kun were to go out with a girl, what kind of girl would he like?”
“Eh? If I were to go out with a girl, Well, let’s see… I think I’d like a girl I could get along with. I’d like a girl where we can respect each other and continue to talk openly about different things.”
No matter how beautiful or cute a girl is, it’s hard to have a relationship if you don’t respect each other. That’s why I don’t like people who are high-handed or have an overbearing attitude.
“Oh, yes, I see! That was a very helpful reference; thank you, Sawashiro-kun!”
“Ea? Reference? Uh, yeah, that’s good….”
When I said that, for some reason, Shijou-san smiled with a satisfied smile and said so.
I don’t really get it, but… well, if Shijou-san is happy, that’s good.
“…Oh, that’s right. Now that I think about it, Shijou-san, was it okay for you to go out drinking with me alone? If Shijou-san has a boyfriend, I feel sorry for him….”
“Eh? No, don’t worry about it. I don’t have a boyfriend either. In fact, I’m just like Sawashiro-kun; I’ve never had a boyfriend in my life.”
“Eh?! Is that so?”
Shijou-san told me such a shocking fact that I was so surprised that I said it out loud.
“…Eh? Why do you look so surprised? Is it because I look like a bad woman…?”
“Eh? No, no, no…!”
I was so shocked that Shijou-san puffed out her cheeks and acted a little cute, a little sulky.
Shijou-san is really beautiful, but she also has a lot of cute, childlike sides to her. But this is not the time to think about such things! I have to explain myself quickly!
“Well, uh, no, the… reason I sounded so surprised was because….”
“Sniff! Sniff! I’m so sad… My best friend, who I’ve been so close to since first year, has always thought of me as a bad woman… Sniff! Sniff!”
“Eh… What?! No, no, that’s not what I meant!”
I was about to explain myself when Shijou-san suddenly started crying. Well, no matter how you look at it, it was fake crying, but I didn’t want to be misunderstood, so I quickly denied it in a panic.
“No, no, you see…! Shijou-san is incredibly beautiful, and guys often confess their feelings to you, right? So I just thought you must’ve been in a relationship before. So I didn’t think you were a bad woman or anything like that!”
“Pfft, that’s a lie, ahaha! I know for sure that Sawashiro-kun doesn’t think such terrible things, but Sawashiro-kun’s panicked face was really cute, so I just teased you a little.”
“Eh? You were just teasing me? But I was really surprised though. I almost cried too, because I didn’t know what to do if my good friend Shijou-san hated me….”
“Ahaha, it’s okay! I would never hate Sawashiro-kun! So… let’s be good friends forever from now on, okay? Fufufu…”
“Eh? Uh, yeah…?”
I said this with a feeling of relief, and Shijou-san said such happy things to me with a smile on her face. But….
(…Hmm, what’s that?)
But what’s that? Shijou-san’s smile seemed a little different from her usual soft smile… Ummm… well, is it my imagination?