CH 22

I couldn’t get any ideas out of Saito other than the book she wanted, so I wanted to try asking another girl, unfortunately, I don’t have that many connections of that sort.

The only person I could think of was the girl at my part time job. I can’t say that we’re close, but I’ve talked to her about Saito before, and she’s easy to talk to.

I thought that I could get her opinion because she might have a similar taste to Saito. After my part time job’s shift ended, I approached her.

[Hiiragi-san, may I have a word?]

[Yes, what is it?]

When I called out to her, she gave me a strange look.

[Actually, I’d like to ask you something…]

[… Go ahead]

I thought she might’ve refused, since we weren’t so close to begin with, but she nodded and accepted my request, though there was a strange pause before.

[It’s almost the birthday of someone I’ve been close to recently,but I’m not sure what to get her…]

Hiiragi-san reacted to my words with a jolt and froze.

[…. Did the person in question say anything about what she liked or wanted?]

[She’s always been a book lover, and when I asked her today, she said she wanted a new book]

[You are, after all…]

[What’s wrong?]

Her eyes behind her glasses stared at me.

She opened her mouth and wanted to say something, but hesitated and closed it.

[… No, it’s nothing. If that’s the case, I think a book would be fine right?]

[Hmmm…]

I know it’s the safest option, but it’s still quite tricky.

It’s a birthday present, and so I thought that a book felt a bit dull as a present.

[If it bothers you so much, you don’t have to actually get her anything, you know?]

As I was lost in thought, she suggested that I just don’t buy a present in a cold voice, as if she ran out of patience.

But I couldn’t do that.

[No, I want to give her a present. I’m really indebted to her. Even though she has no obligation to lend me books, she still does so without hesitation and with a happy expression too. Sometimes she’s a bit nosy, but I’m grateful towards her. Well, I’m too embarrassed to say this to her directly though…. Is something wrong?]

It’s not like I don’t want to tell anyone, but it’s still embarrassing to talk about my true feelings to others.

As I spoke more and more, and started to feel embarrassed, Hiiragi-san froze, rolling her eyes behind the lens.

She lowered her eyes and her gaze wandered around as if she was looking away from me.

Her cheeks seemed to be tinted with a bit of color.

[….. Don’t worry about me, go on]

I tried to ask how she was doing, but she responded in her usual cold voice.

She sounded unconcerned, so I thought there would be no problem and continued talking.

[Is that so? Well, that’s why I want to give her something in return. I want her to be happy as a way of returning the favor she’s done for me so far. I like it when she smiles happily]

Sometimes she narrows her eyes and smiles happily, which is very alluring, and also soothing to watch and I want to see it again and again. I rarely see her smile because she’s usually expressionless, but it makes me happy whenever I see her smile.

Whenever she smiled, she looked pleased, and there was something about it that charmed me.

[I see… then a book would be insufficient, maybe add an accessory as an extra gift for her]

She told me in a more uptight voice than usual.

[There’s no rule that says you can’t give two]

I wanted to give her the book because I want her to be happy.

I know that she will really like the book if I get it, but the reason I was hesitant was because there’s something she hadn’t shown me a lot.

She’s also a normal girl. The evidence is the fact that she likes sweets such as ice cream.

I also feel like she loves cute and pretty things.

I’ll give her another present. I think it’s a good idea to have a backup gift as well.

[Yes, I think it would be a good idea. Then, I’ll be going now, bye]

[Ah, yes, thank you very much]

After giving me some advice, she quickly left. I watched her leave while thinking to myself.

As she walked away, I thought her ears were dyed a bit red..