Chapter 3: Amusement Park and Bag

Amusement Park and Bag

When I arrived at the station plaza ahead of schedule, Miyuki-san was already there, waiting for me.

I had shown up a full ten minutes early myself, so technically, there was no need to apologize—but as a proper working adult, offering a light apology felt like the right thing to do.

“Sorry, did I keep you waiting?”

“No, I was simply too early.”

Wow—Miyuki-san had really gone all out with her outfit today.

Her usual, understated appearance was completely at odds with the skintight ensemble she had chosen—an outfit designed to put her chest on full display.

She also wore an incredibly short skirt, leaving her thighs fully exposed. Yet, despite the boldness of her attire, she kept her gaze lowered, her face flushed red.

The disconnect between her revealing outfit and her shy demeanor was almost comical.

Her voice was so soft, so quiet, that I had to lean in just to catch her words—and in doing so, I inadvertently caught a glimpse of her pale cleavage.

The contrast between her modest personality and her provocative appearance only made the whole thing feel even more suggestive.

If I hadn’t already known about her affair with Manager Machida, I might have thought she was just a timid girl pushing herself to dress boldly in an effort to impress me.

But if this was all just an act, then Miyuki-san was far more calculating than I had given her credit for.

Even the bag she carried contributed to the overall sense of dissonance.

With that mini skirt, a small handbag would have suited her look better—but instead, she had brought along an unusually large one.

And from the way she carried it, it was clearly quite heavy.

Taken as a whole, she looked less like a stylish young woman and more like an overexposed runaway girl.

I made a conscious effort not to let my eyes linger on her thighs or her chest. After all, this was probably Manager Machida’s design.

More than just being rude, staring at her would mean walking straight into Manager Machida’s trap.

The thought of playing into that sleazy baboon’s scheme was more than irritating—it was infuriating.

“As I mentioned in my message, I was thinking we could go to the amusement park. Does that work for you?”

“Yes, that sounds fine.”

And so, we boarded the train and set off for the amusement park.

I was never much of a talker, and Miyuki-san wasn’t exactly known for being chatty either. That was precisely why I had chosen the amusement park for our first date—there’d be plenty to do, even if conversation ran dry.

Despite her cunning, Miyuki-san lived up to her reputation. She didn’t make any effort to start a conversation.

Her persona seemed to be: I’m actually a pure, timid girl, but I pushed myself to dress sexy just for you.

If this were a genuine date—if she had truly picked such a provocative outfit for my sake—I would’ve been a nervous wreck, fumbling over my words, unable to handle the situation.

My mind would have been drowning in indecent thoughts, leaving me flustered and embarrassingly obvious about it.

But knowing that this entire date was nothing more than Manager Machida’s twisted game of stolen woman, I felt nothing. I was perfectly composed.

There was no need to force conversation, and silence didn’t bother me in the slightest.

Once we arrived at the amusement park, the first thing she did was shove her ridiculously heavy bag into a coin locker.

Now, the only thing Miyuki-san carried was a small shoulder bag, slung diagonally across her torso.

However, the way the strap ran between her cleavage pushed her br🬀🬀sts apart, making them stand out even more.

They looked bigger than I’d expected—almost unnaturally so.

This felt like cheating. Even a man out with his family couldn’t help but stare, his wife’s expression darkening by the second.

No matter how much of this was Manager Machida’s doing, this was taking things too far.

You shouldn’t go around wrecking other people’s marriages.

“Are you okay with thrill rides?”

“I’ve never been on one before, but I think I’ll be fine.”

Miyuki-san’s face was pale, her eyes glistening as if she were on the verge of tears.

Damn, she could summon tears at will and even change her complexion?

She might as well be an actress.

Clutching the safety bar with all her might, Miyuki-san was giving a performance worthy of an award.

Her eyes were already wide with fear, and her body trembled in small shudders.

“Are you really okay?”

For a second, I almost fell for her act and found myself genuinely concerned.

That’s how convincing she was.

“Fwah! I-I’m fine!”

She even made her voice crack. Her commitment to the act was impressive.

“You’re amazing.”

The word slipped out before I could stop it.

“Umm, would it be alright if I held your hand? I’m a little scared.”

Oh? She was going for physical contact now? And in a completely natural way, too.

The enemy was a seasoned pro.

Miyuki-san’s hand was small, her palm damp with nervous sweat.

She could even sweat on command?

As the ride began to move, Miyuki-san let out a soft, adorable “Hya!” and clutched my hand even tighter.

Her tightly shut eyes and barely suppressed screams were all too perfect.

For a moment, I actually started wondering if she really did have a fear of thrill rides.

Even when the ride came to a stop, Miyuki-san still clung to my hand tightly.

The ride operator was giving us an impatient look, so I had no choice but to lower the safety bar and help Miyuki-san down, practically carrying her.

“I’m sorry. My body was frozen in fear, and I couldn’t move.”

The way she kept up the act made me want to tease her a little.

“What do you think? Wanna try bungee jumping next?”

“Wha—!? You mean actually jumping off? No way, that’s impossible!”

Her immediate, slightly indignant response told me that she genuinely despised the idea.

Honestly, I didn’t get why people would willingly pay money to do something like that either.

“Haha, yeah, it’s basically just jumping off a ledge. I have no idea why anyone would pay for that.”

“Fufu, I think so too. The ones who actually do it must be crazy.”

Miyuki-san chuckled, completely dismissing the idea of bungee jumping.

Now that she knew we wouldn’t be doing it, she looked absolutely delighted.

When I asked where she wanted to go next, she said she’d like to visit the haunted house.

Seriously? A haunted house at her age? That’s just child’s play.

“Kyaa! So scary!”

“Aah! Wait for me!”

The moment we stepped inside, Miyuki-san clung tightly to me.

So this was why she chose the haunted house.

It felt too staged, but even knowing that, I couldn’t ignore the sensation of her chest, emphasized by her snug outfit and crossbody bag.

It was too dark to see, but I was pretty sure I had a stupid grin on my face.

She wasn’t huge, but she definitely had some volume.

I wasn’t an expert, but if I had to guess, she was probably a C-cup—maybe around 80 centimeters.

With my arm around her, I led Miyuki-san deeper into the haunted house.

She was incredibly soft, and I caught the faint scent of shampoo—light, fresh, and intoxicating.

She might be plain, but she wasn’t nearly as unattractive as people claimed. If I hadn’t known about her affair, I might have fallen for her easily.

It’s not like I was popular with women, so if someone clung to me like this, I’d usually be over the moon.

In fact, I’d never experienced anything like this in my life, and I was sure I never would again.

I wasn’t in a position to judge other people’s looks, and if we were dating for real, it wouldn’t feel strange at all.

But this kind of over-the-top flirting? That was something only airheaded, lovestruck couples did.

“I’m sorry for clinging to you like that. It’s not that I’m scared of ghosts… I just don’t like it when strange men touch my legs or my body.”

Miyuki-san blushed, looking flustered.

…Wait, what? You’d rather be touched by that greasy, baboon-faced boss, Manager Machida, than some part-time haunted house worker? Seriously?

Around noon, when we were about to grab lunch, Miyuki-san suddenly announced that she had made us a homemade bento.

I’d thought her bag was big, but I hadn’t expected this.

Bringing a homemade bento on a first date? That’s way too much—it’d feel heavy.

I figured she probably just repackaged some store-bought food from a convenience store, but when she pulled it out, the bento was tiny—and overwhelmingly brown.

It was small for someone like me, and except for a couple of cherry tomatoes and some broccoli, everything was varying shades of deep, charred brown.

But when I took a bite, I was shocked. It was delicious—simple, comforting, like something made with real care.

The kind of taste you could eat every day and never get tired of.

Lightly seasoned, yet rich with dashi—it was the kind of flavor only homemade cooking could achieve.

“Wow… You’re really good at cooking. This is amazing.”

“Fufu, thank you. I appreciate the compliment. I was raised by my grandmother, so people often tell me my cooking tastes old-fashioned, but I’m glad you like it.”

As she poured tea from a thermos, Miyuki-san smiled, her expression blooming like a flower.

“Cute.”

Even though I knew she was trying to deceive me, the words slipped out before I could stop them.

“Wha—?!”

She froze, still holding the thermos, her face turning bright red as she fidgeted.

Damn. The way she reacted was almost too effective. Her acting skills were insane.

Maybe to cover her embarrassment, she suddenly changed the subject with an unexpected question.

“You seem close to Manager Machida. What kind of things do you two talk about?”

Hmm… How should I respond?

Miyuki-san was clearly involved in Manager Machida’s scheme, but she didn’t seem to know much about me.

Since he only cared about seducing her after she got married, I guess he never bothered telling her anything about me.

If that’s the case, I don’t have to try too hard. There’s no point in coming up with an elaborate story.

“Oh, actually, we’re not close at all. He’s my boss, but we barely talk.”

“Oh… Is that so? But then, why—”

“I was the only single guy in the sales department. Manager Machida probably just picked me because I was convenient. Miyuki-san must have found this whole thing bothersome, right?”

“Oh… Convenient, huh. So that’s how you see Manager Machida…”

“Ah, sorry. You like him, don’t you? I shouldn’t have spoken badly about him.”

Tch. Let me badmouth that sleazy b🬀🬀tard at least a little.

As if I’d ever praise him. Even as a joke, I’d choke on the words.

Miyuki-san stayed quiet for a moment, lost in thought, before suddenly snapping back to reality.

“Oh, no, there’s no need to apologize. I was just… surprised. And I’m really not bothered at all.”

Her face flushed red again.

That last sentence could easily be taken as her hinting that she liked me.

After that, we spent the rest of the day trying out non-thrill rides and playing racing games.

Miyuki-san laughed with a light, bubbly tone and even said things like, “I won’t lose!” in the cutest way possible.

Finally, we got on the Ferris wheel.

“This is my first time going on a date with a guy. I had so much fun today.”

She tugged at the hem of her short skirt as she spoke, making it really hard not to look at her thighs.

It felt like a trap—if I looked, I lost.

A girl who’d never been on a date wouldn’t just waltz into a love hotel and sleep with some middle-aged man. Cut the crap.

“I had fun too. I thought you were the quiet type, but you have a different side to you.”

…Did I just say ‘I’?

Ugh. Even I cringed at my own words.

That “different side” I mentioned? I meant how she shamelessly used seduction tactics. It was sarcasm.

“Thank you for today. Would you… meet with me again?”

“Yeah, sure. I’ll reach out soon.”

With that, we parted ways at the station. But just as I arrived home, my phone buzzed. A message from Miyuki-san.

It was a simple text, thanking me for today and saying she’d be waiting for my call.

I sent back a quick reply, then let out a long sigh, a strange feeling creeping over me.

Why was Miyuki-san following that damn baboon’s orders?

Why was she playing this twisted game?

Did she really love Manager Machida that much?