Chapter 58

"Rika!" The long-haired girl greeted as she sat down next to the short-haired girl.

"Kazumi." The short-haired girl smiled at the long-haired girl, but her smile seemed forced.

"Miss Ohtomi, you're here too! What would you like to eat? I'll treat you today." Kobayashi Masahiro immediately greeted his girlfriend's good friend enthusiastically.

"Thank you." The long-haired girl named Ohtomi Kazumi nodded and smiled, but it was a forced smile.

At this moment, everyone present could tell that the atmosphere between the long-haired girl Ohtomi Kazumi and the short-haired girl Rika was off.

Only Kobayashi Masahiro, perhaps because he was too involved, continued to happily order food for Ohtomi Kazumi.

"Miss Ohtomi, what would you like to eat?" Kobayashi Masahiro asked.

"Um, I'll have the same as you." Ohtomi Kazumi said.

"Got it, boss, another serving of chicken katsu and plum wine." Kobayashi Masahiro immediately called out.

The store manager, Oono, who brought the chicken katsu and plum wine for Kobayashi Masahiro and Rika, nodded and said, "Another serving of chicken katsu and plum wine, got it."

"Um, I heard from Rika that she and Mr. Kobayashi started dating, is that true?" Ohtomi Kazumi asked.

"Yes, we just started dating today." Kobayashi Masahiro nodded and replied.

"Is that so! Mr. Kobayashi seems like a very gentle person! If it's someone as gentle as you, I'm relieved." Ohtomi Kazumi forced a smile.

"Miss Ohtomi, is something wrong? Is there a problem?" Kobayashi Masahiro finally noticed something was off and asked tentatively.

Rika lowered her head, lost in thought, and didn't say a word.

"Um, no! I'm just happy for Rika!" Ohtomi Kazumi smiled, but her eyes were gradually welling up with tears.

"Please rest assured, Miss Ohtomi, I will take good care of Rika." Kobayashi Masahiro, though confused, immediately promised.

Beside him, Aoba and Nishida Natsu exchanged a puzzled glance, equally unsure of what was happening.

"Rika doesn't like the smell of cigarettes, so please don't smoke in front of her." Ohtomi Kazumi said.

"I don't smoke, so don't worry." Kobayashi Masahiro promised.

"Rika likes to have an extra slice of chashu when she eats ramen, but she's too shy to say it, so you should remember to order it for her." Ohtomi Kazumi instructed.

"Got it, I'll remember." Kobayashi Masahiro promised.

"Rika likes to watch late-night dramas, but she's afraid of waking people up, so you should watch them with her; she'll be very happy." Ohtomi Kazumi continued, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Okay, I will." Kobayashi Masahiro, though puzzled, mechanically agreed.

"Rika, Rika!" Ohtomi Kazumi couldn't continue; her tears had already overflowed, large drops rolling down her face and onto her clothes.

"Miss Ohtomi, you..." Kobayashi Masahiro's eyes were full of surprise, but before he could finish, Ohtomi Kazumi had already stood up and rushed out of the shop.

With Ohtomi Kazumi's departure, the short-haired girl Rika burst into tears, sobbing on the counter.

"Rika? What's wrong?" Kobayashi Masahiro quickly hugged his girlfriend's shoulders and asked.

Aoba and Nishida Natsu exchanged a glance and shook their heads; they had guessed what was going on.

Daii Saburo and Oono exchanged a look and sighed in unison.

Even the glasses-wearing girl, Kurokawa, looked enlightened, while the confused Kobayashi Masahiro remained clueless, a typical case of being too involved to see clearly.

Finally, under Kobayashi Masahiro's comfort, the short-haired girl Rika lifted her head, but she was still sobbing softly.

"If I'm not mistaken, you two were actually lovers, right?" The glasses-wearing girl, Kurokawa, said cautiously.

"Of course we are." Kobayashi Masahiro said, looking bewildered.

"I'm not talking about you, I'm talking about her and her." Kurokawa glanced at Kobayashi Masahiro and pointed to the short-haired girl Rika, then to the door, indicating she meant Ohtomi Kazumi who had just run out.

"You, what do you mean?" Kobayashi Masahiro looked utterly confused.

"Ah!" Nishida Natsu sighed, covering her face to avoid looking at Kobayashi Masahiro.

"Kobayashi-kun, the world is full of regrets. Try to be more open-minded." Daii Saburo patted Kobayashi Masahiro's shoulder and said.

"Do you mean that Rika and Miss Ohtomi were actually...?" Kobayashi Masahiro looked shocked as he turned to his girlfriend.

Rika silently nodded.

Kobayashi Masahiro stood up in surprise, even knocking over his seat.

"I'm really very sorry! I took advantage of you." The short-haired girl Rika immediately stood up and bowed in apology to Kobayashi Masahiro.

"What, what exactly is going on?" Kobayashi Masahiro's confusion deepened.

"I know, the section chief proposed to Kazumi, but she didn't agree, because of me! The section chief is a good person. If it weren't for me, Kazumi could have had a normal marriage and a happy life." Rika's eyes began to tear up again as she spoke.

"I understand, so you actually don't like me, right?" Kobayashi Masahiro's mind finally started working again, and he said.

Rika didn't speak, but bowed deeply again.

"I understand, please let me be alone for a while." Kobayashi Masahiro smiled, looking dejected, and turned to leave Oono-ya.

"Masahiro-kun! Please wait for me." Rika quickly took out money from her bag, placed it on the counter, and ran after him.

The people in the shop looked at each other, no one speaking for a long time.

"What will happen to them in the future?" Nishida Natsu murmured, half to herself and half to the others.

"I don't know. As long as they follow their hearts and cherish the happiness of the present, that's enough, isn't it?" Aoba shook his head. He didn't even use his spiritual power to predict their fates, because sometimes not knowing the outcome is better, as it allows us to strive for happiness.

"I always hoped to see love between men in real life, but I never expected to see love between women!" The glasses-wearing girl, Kurokawa, suddenly said.

"So you're a yaoi fan? Your doujinshi isn't that too?" Aoba asked curiously.

"Yes! But I suddenly realized that love between women is also very beautiful! Next time, I can try drawing a story about women." Kurokawa's eyes sparkled as she said.

"Are you saying you've awakened some strange attribute?" Aoba said with a laugh.

******

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