Chapter 266: Chiaki's Request
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 266: Chiaki's Request
Before I knew it, it was the middle of December.
With winter break only about a week away, the classroom was buzzing with a restless energy.
"So, Yoo-Sung, what are you doing for Christmas?"
During a rare lunch with Satoru at the school cafeteria, his sudden question made me pause, my chopsticks hovering in front of my mouth as I thought.
"Hmm… I'll probably be on a date."
It was the first Christmas since I'd started dating both the President and Rika.
Whatever else happened, it was my first time ever having a girlfriend, so I wanted to spend a cozy Christmas with them.
Hearing my answer, Satoru leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms and legs out.
"So jealous~! I want a girlfriend too~!"
He'd been trying to get a girlfriend all year, but in the end, Ryuji and I were the ones who succeeded. The sense of deprivation he must be feeling was probably no joke.
Still, the fact that he just grumbled to himself and never showed any real negativity toward us made me think Satoru was a pretty great guy.
I guess that's why he was cast in the role of best friend to Ryuji, the so-called Harem King, in the original story.
"What are you two up to?"
Speak of the devil.
Just then, the final member of our Class 2-B trio, Ryuji, walked over to our table.
He was holding yakisoba bread, which looked to be his entire lunch for the day.
I pulled out a chair for him and asked, "Where are Yaguchi and Hattori? You're all alone."
"When I told them I was going to eat with you guys today, they let me go without a fuss."
Ryuji said, casually sitting down next to me. He tore open the bread wrapper and asked, "I overheard you guys talking about Christmas. Are you two planning to hang out alone?"
Satoru shot Ryuji a deadpan look.
"Are you crazy? Why the hell would I spend Christmas with a guy?"
"……."
I take back what I just said.
He's a good guy, but that damn mouth of his is the problem.
He's a decent-looking dude, but every time he opens his mouth, he loses points. He was the poster child for putting his foot in his mouth.
"But why are you suddenly so interested? Don't you have plans for Christmas?"
"Nah, not really."
Ryuji's casual reply made Satoru and me ask in unison, ""Why?!""
Ryuji looked at us, slightly taken aback.
"What's with you two? Am I supposed to?"
"No, no, but you're a guy with all your parts in working order, and you're not doing anything with your girlfriend for Christmas?"
At Satoru's question, Ryuji waved his right hand dismissively.
"Come on~ What's the big deal now? I've known her for over ten years. I doubt Yaguchi even cares about that stuff anymore."
"……."
Even to a dating novice like me, it was obviously the wrong move, but the man himself seemed completely oblivious to his blunder.
As if speaking for me, Satoru chopped the back of Ryuji's head with the side of his hand.
"You've only been dating for three months. Why are you acting like an old married couple who's been together forever? Take her on a date for Christmas. I'm telling you this for your own good."
Ryuji replied with an awkward expression.
"I don't have any money."
I was shocked to hear that.
"What? What happened to all the prize money you got a while back?"
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa!!"
Ryuji panicked, trying to cover my mouth.
Ah. Right, that was a secret.
As I belatedly realized my mistake and shut my mouth, Satoru tilted his head, confused.
"Prize money? What prize money?"
"Uh… well, I won an amateur game tournament a while ago and got some prize money."
"What? You should've reported that to your big bro!"
Fortunately, Ryuji's quick thinking fooled Satoru, who naively fell for it.
Anyway, now that the prize money was mentioned, the topic of conversation instantly shifted.
"So what did you do with all the prize money that you don't even have enough for a date?"
Ryuji averted his gaze and answered, "I pre-ordered a limited edition game a while back and spent everything except my food money."
"…Are you an idiot?"
"I have no excuse…."
I mean, it wasn't my place to criticize him for buying something with his own money, but to think he'd blow it all without even saving enough for a Christmas date with his girlfriend.
"How about finding a short-term part-time job? There are a lot of those these days."
"Our school is a college prep school. Part-time jobs are forbidden."
"Ah, right."
I'd completely forgotten, probably because I was so used to seeing Fuma-senpai secretly working at the convenience store.
"Then what about getting an advance on your allowance from your parents?"
"They're in the Amazon rainforest right now."
"Borrowing from a friend?"
"Will you guys lend me some?"
Suddenly, Ryuji's hands were stretched out toward us.
"……."
Satoru and I simultaneously looked away from his open palms.
"Honestly, there's no way."
"Well, it's Ryuji who's going to get an earful for not going on a Christmas date, not us."
"Please! Just ten thousand yen! I'll pay you back as soon as I get my allowance next month!"
He even resorted to clasping his hands together—the ultimate move of a shonen manga protagonist—but our gazes remained icy cold.
"My mom told me friends shouldn't trade money."
"Sorry, man. I need a lot of money for Christmas, too."
Having flatly rejected Ryuji's plea, we made a hasty escape from the school cafeteria before the desperate guy could cling to us any further.
*
「Hey! Kim Yoo-Sung! Wait up!」
As Satoru and I were fleeing the cafeteria, Chiaki's distinctly sharp voice suddenly stopped me in the middle of the hallway.
Talking to her in the middle of a crowded hall would make me look like a crazy person, so I told Satoru to go back to the classroom ahead of me and moved to a more secluded, empty spot.
"What is it?"
When I asked with a sullen look on my face, Chiaki, floating in mid-air, tilted her head.
「What's with that expression?」
"Let me say this upfront, I'm not lending Ryuji any money."
As I raised both my hands in surrender, Chiaki let out a small, incredulous laugh.
「That's not why I'm here. It's not like I'm Ryuji's mom.」
"Then why are you here?"
Instead of answering my question directly, Chiaki kept fidgeting with the hem of her skirt and avoiding my gaze.
It seemed to be a very difficult request for her to make.
But after a moment, as if she'd made up her mind, Chiaki looked at me with a serious expression.
「Could you help me with something this Saturday?」
"This Saturday?"
「Yeah. I want to buy a Christmas present for Ryuji.」
Thankfully, it was a much more normal request than I had expected.
With Chiaki cleared of suspicion, my expression softened, and I lowered my crossed arms.
"I don't mind helping, but where did you get the money to buy a present?"
Chiaki grinned.
「I split the prize money I got from the beauty contest with Ryuji.」
As far as I knew, Ryuji had placed third in the beauty contest.
That meant he'd won ten thousand yen, and if they split it, Ryuji only ended up with 5,000 yen.
…That guy sold his male pride for 5,000 yen.
Knowing the full story somehow made it feel incredibly sad.
「So, what's your answer? Will you do it? Or not?」
I shrugged and replied, "What are we, if not friends? Of course, I can do that much for you."
After all, she was like a little sister I'd lived with in the same room for a while.
Besides, she was trying to do something thoughtful for once. I had no intention of ruining it; if anything, I should be helping her.
"Alright, I'll help you this Saturday. Where should we meet?"
Chiaki tilted her head as if she'd heard something incomprehensible.
「Why do we need a meeting spot? I can't go, so you have to come find me.」
"…What?"
*
Saturday, December 23rd.
The weekend just before Christmas Eve.
I left my house early in the morning and headed to Ryuji's place nearby.
This place is as fancy as ever.
This was my fifth visit to the tower mansion, a place that looked incredibly expensive at a single glance.
The first four times, I had come over to hang out with Ryuji and Satoru. Today, however, I was here for a completely different reason.
Ding-dong!
After a short wait, the first-floor intercom connected, and I heard the voice of Ryuji's younger sister, Yuika, through the speaker.
「Yes~ Sakamoto residence~ ...Huh? Yoo-Sung Oppa? What brings you here on a weekend morning?」
"Ah, I came to return some manga I borrowed from Ryuji last time I was here."
「One moment, please.」
Click! The intercom cut off, and the automatic door slid open.
I walked casually into the lobby and got on the elevator heading up.
The doors opened, and I walked down the long hallway. I rang the doorbell at the entrance to Ryuji's apartment once more, and I heard light footsteps from inside.
A moment later, the heavy front door opened, and Yuika, with her usual twintails, greeted me.
"Hello! Yoo-Sung Oppa! Please, come in!"
"Ah, thanks."
I said, bowing my head slightly as I stepped into the tower mansion where the two siblings lived, carrying a bag full of manga.