"Yuta's house is especially close to Shinomiya's house, you know," Nanao Akane said. "They can greet each other from their balconies every day."
"It's not that close! There's still a distance of one kilometer between us!" Yamano Yuta quickly explained.
"..." Hayato fell silent.
"Just because someone is called 'Natsuha of the Town West' doesn't mean she has to live in Town West. I'm called Nanao, but I don't have seven tails, and Kobayashi-chan, you don't have the character 'Hayato' written on your face," Nanao Akane said.
Hayato remained silent, holding his elbows suspended in the air, adopting the classic thinking pose of Commander E.A.
Classic.
Damn, what a surprise... As a Huaxia person, he actually forgot this principle.
The veteran driver's methods are still reliable.
The ride went smoothly.
After passing a few stops, Nanao Akane tugged on Hayato's sleeve:
"We've arrived."
Sure enough, Shizunomiya Natsuki and Yamano Yuta got off the bus with them.
However, after getting off, they had to go their separate ways.
Nanao Akane went one way.
Shinomiya and Yamano Yuta went the other way.
"Thank you for your hard work today," Yamano Yuta said as he bid farewell. "Rest well. We'll welcome you properly next time... Oh, and Akane, why don't you bring Little Hayato Ge to my house for dinner sometime? My mother misses you too."
"Sounds good," Nanao Akane replied, her smile radiant.
Yaso Inaba was just as she had described; the neighbors were all very close.
Things like dropping by for meals were common occurrences.
"Bye-bye," Yamano Yuta waved.
"Bye-bye," Nanao Akane said.
Hayato also moved his wrist in a slight wave before lowering his hand.
He watched the retreating figures of Yamano Yuta and Shizunomiya Natsuki, waiting until he was sure they couldn't hear their conversation before asking:
"Your relationship with Shinomiya... seems just average."
It was obvious from the way she addressed her.
Nanao Akane called Yamano Yuta, whom she grew up with, "Yuta."
But Shizunomiya Natsuki was just "Shinomiya."
Yet Shizunomiya Natsuki also called Yamano Yuta, "Yuta."
"It's not that great," Nanao Akane said, hands clasped behind her back, without trying to hide it. "But it's not bad either. I'd just say we aren't close. I used to play with Yuta more often. I wasn't very familiar with Shinomiya back then... You know, I went to Tokyo before finishing elementary school in Yaso Inaba. I haven't seen Shinomiya much since then. As for Yuta and Shinomiya, they probably got closer during that period."
"...Oh," Hayato nodded.
Nanao Akane covered her mouth and giggled:
"What's wrong, Kobayashi-chan? You're not jealous of Yuta, are you? After all, he saw me when I was a child... Hehe."
"..." Hayato didn't speak, just continued staring down the road.
Of course, by this point, both Shizunomiya Natsuki and Yamano Yuta had disappeared from his sight.
Nanao Akane was surprised, and her laughter stopped.
"...Eh? No, it can't be true, right? Kobayashi-chan, Yuta and I only have a friendship dating back to when we were seven and a half. It's been so long since we last saw each other... Even when I came back before, I rarely sought him out to play. I didn't even expect him to come pick us up this time. Are you, you, you... are you really angry?"
She cautiously studied Hayato's expressionless Sima face.
She truly couldn't read his mind.
While Hayato being jealous would definitely make Nanao Akane happy, she was genuinely afraid that he might misunderstand her... "Shinomiya..."
After a few seconds of silence, Hayato finally spoke: "She has a great figure."
Nanao Akane:... Nanao Akane:...?
Nanao Akane:???
"What's so great about it?! At most, we're six of one, half a dozen of the other! Her bust isn't as big as mine, and her butt is... Her legs, well, her legs are indeed longer, but mine aren't short either... A-and, her waist... Huh? Is the problem really with my waist? I—I've just been eating a bit more recently, that's all. If I stick to it for a while..."
Nanao Akane pinched her stomach, and while explaining with a mix of grief and indignation, she noticed the faint smile playing on Hayato's lips.
"...Kobayashi-chan, you did that on purpose." She puffed out her cheeks.
"Does Yaso Inaba produce a lot of lemons?"
"...What's wrong?"
"It's so sour."
*Snap.*
Nanao Akane lightly kicked Hayato's shin and muttered resentfully, "...Despicable."
"You were the one who got ahead of yourself first," Hayato said.
He did have a mediocre opinion of Yamano Yuta, but that had nothing to do with whether he was Nanao Akane's childhood friend or not.
He just felt... well, he hadn't known him long, so he wouldn't comment for now.
"Let's go, home," Hayato patted Nanao Akane's shoulder.
Nanao Akane immediately wrapped her arm around his, holding him tightly, as if afraid he would run away.
"Hey, it's hard for me to walk like this," Hayato said helplessly.
"Hmph."
"...Akane, could you loosen up a bit?" Hayato said again.
"Hmph hmph."
"Miss Nanao?"
"Hmph hmph hmph."
No choice.
The station wasn't far from Nanao's house, only a five-minute walk. That was the original plan.
But because Nanao Akane used her "hug skill," the walk felt like a three-legged race, taking twice as long to complete.
Fortunately, once they reached the doorstep, Nanao Akane finally let go of his arm.
Then, taking advantage of the last rays of the evening glow, she pressed the doorbell.
"Ding-dong"
------------------------
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