Volume 6 - CH 25

Tanikawa Sakuya Refuses

The day after I met Tatsuyuki-san.

It’s already Thursday.

If I want to rent the coffee shop then I will have to tell Master today.

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“O~~i, Sakuya!”

“What do you want, Mongrel?”

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I walked up to Sakuya who was reading a book alone in the classroom.

I could tell Master directly but I don’t want to go out of my way to stop by his place. Besides, if the request comes from his daughter, he would be more likely to listen.

My meeting with StarChild depends on this.

I need to make sure I secure our meeting place.

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“I have a favor to ask you.”

“I refuse.”

“Hah?”

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Sakuya coldly turned me down and shifted her eyes back toward her book.

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“Wait! Wait a minute! At least listen to me first.”

“Why do I have to entertain Hideyori’s request though.”

“Why are you in such a bad mood…….?”

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It’s been a while since I’ve seen Sakuya this foul-mouthed.

Maybe it’s that day of the month so she’s easy to irritate?

It can’t be helped, guess I will have to ask Master directly huh?

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“Even if you go to Master I will tell him to not listen to Hideyori’s request.”

“Seriously, what’s with you today, Sakuya!?”

“You can’t tell?”

“…….is it that day of the month where you can’t participate in the swimming class?”

“It seems I really should give you a punch today.”

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My apologies for my rudeness.

Still, I don’t know what’s up with her……

I just can’t tell why she’s in such a bad mood.

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“Do you think of me as a convenient woman?”

“……ha?”

“I’m asking if Hideyori thinks of me as a convenient woman. What’s up with you recently!? You’ve only played with Takeru and Yamamoto but when you come to me when you want something!? Are you looking down on me?”

“Sorry…….”

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When she puts it like that I do get some ideas.

It seems like I was only hanging out with Takeru, Tatsuyuki-san, or Yamamoto’s group lately.

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“Sa, Sakuya-san? Would you like to hang out with me after school…….?”

“Of course! Hideyor~~i!”

“I’m really sorry…….., making you feel lonely like that…….”

“I don’t have many friends, I’ve been holding myself out for you, Hideyori.”

“Uuuuu…….I’m so happy you said that. Everyone hates me after all…….”

“I think it’s the opposite though?”

“You’re so kind. I’m so happy that Sakuya’s always gentle with me.”

“Hideyor~i.”

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I didn’t really see Sakuya as a woman but this gap is so cute.

I want to spoil her and when she leaped into my chest she was just like an adorable puppy.

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“By the way, where did you get that [Convenient woman] thing from?”

“Master said that I should try saying it when I want Hideyori to spoil me.”

“That old man……..”

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Should I start spreading a rumor that his place only serves instant coffee?

That should give a nice finishing blow to his deserted coffee shop.

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“Then see you after school okay. I will listen to your request then.”

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Still, it feels bad when others think that I treat Sakuya like a [Convenient woman].

I like Sakuya and everyone.

They might have a foul mouth but I do like the Tsugaru sisters too.

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Maybe I should put in an effort to deepen our friendship even if I have to cut down my me-time huh.

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“Mmff, after-school date.”

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With a pep in her step, Sakuya kept trying to link her arms with mine and I had to shake her off a few times.

“Mongrel, what are you doing?”

“It’s hot……”

“Hideyori is so shy! You’re blushing!”

“Shaddap……..”

“Your retort is unusually dull, you know, Hideyori.”

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Recently, I feel that Sakuya’s body is changing from a girl to a woman.

Even if I’ve never seen her that way before, there’s no guarantee that I won’t start now.

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[[Hey, Tanikawa is dating Akechi right?]]

[[Ehh, I feel bad for her.]]

[[She must have been forced into it by some punishment game right.]]

[[Poor Tanikawa-san…….]]

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Such rumors might start spreading if I hang out with her. I want to avoid that kind of relationship with Sakuya for her own sake too.

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This is not limited to Sakuya but I don’t even know how long I can stay with her like this after all.

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“Hideyori, buy me a crepe.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“I want that strawberry one! Strawberry! Strawberry!”

“I got it, I got it.”

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I always freeload Master’s coffee after all.

Paying for Sakuya’s crepe here is too cheap compared to that.

In the end, I bought a Strawberry crepe for Sakuya and bought myself a banana crepe.

After that, we sat down on a bench and started eating our crepes.

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“So, what did you want to ask me?”

“You have cream on your cheek.”

”Ohh, sorry about that. I’m not used to eating this.”

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I wiped the cream off Sakuya’s cheek with my thumb and licked it.

Yep, it’s sweet and delicious.

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“………..”

“What? Why are you staring like that?”

“…….no, it’s nothing.”

“………..”

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There’s no way that was nothing right.

She’s fidgeting around like she’s embarrassed about something after all.

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“……Ahh! That’s it huh!? My bad, my bad.”

“You finally noticed huh.”

“You wanted to try mine too right? It’s a bit embarrassing to ask, isn’t it? Here, you can try mine. Strawberry for banana.”

“…….swing and a miss.”

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I take the strawberry crepe from Sakuya and I hand her my banana crepe.

Yup, the banana was nice and sweet but the sour+sweet combo of strawberry is nice too.

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“Hideyori……, you should try to learn to have some more common sense you know.”

“What, at least I’m confident I have more common sense than you okay!”

“……..I didn’t even try to make a joke but I got a retort.”

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I enjoyed 3 bites of her strawberry crepe before we changed back.

Yeah, I’m a banana person after all.

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“So? What do you want to ask me, Hideyori?”

“Ahh, I want to rent out Master’s shop this Sunday. Tatsuyuki-san’s paying…..you remember him right, the amazing Nii-chan who visited the shop back then.”

“I think it’ll be fine but, what are you planning to do?”

“Tatsuyuki-san will……..that strange Nii-chan is going to invite StarCha over you see.”

“I get who Tatsuyuki-san is so you don’t have to correct it every time…….wait, eh!?”

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“What did you say!?” Sakuya yelled in surprise.

Right, StarCha will be visiting her place after all.

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“StarCha is coming to my shop…..you say……?”

“It’s normal to be surprised huh…….”

“Then I can have a duet between StarCha and CoffeeCha right!?”

“You are still doing that CoffeeChild thing……..?”

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That said, when I imagine Sakuya standing next to StarChild, there’s so much contrast that I kind of wants to see that now.

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“In the first place, do you even like StarCha?”

“Not really.”

“Not really!?”

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You’ve never talked about StarCha before but you’re obsessed with that CoffeeChild stuff? I don’t get her…..

Still, it would be a mistake to ask Sakuya to be logical so let’s just ignore it.

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“Alright, I understand. If that’s Hideyori’s request then I will talk to Master for you.”

“Thanks.”

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And thus I secured the meeting place.

After that, I started thinking about who I should invite, and our after-school date came to an end.

TLN: Next, two weeks of pain…….