"Tomori, why are you here?"
At the corner of her eye was a beauty mark of tears, strong-willed by nature, a black-haired shop staff who rarely smiled. Yet at this moment, all the usual coldness was completely gone. Those violet-like beautiful eyes were filled with surprise and concern, grabbing the gray-haired girl's hand as if afraid she might run away.
"Ever since then I haven't seen you for so long, have you been doing well lately? You look like you've lost some weight, could it be you haven't eaten properly? It's all because I didn't take care of you…"
"Ta-Taki?"
"Mm mm, it's me!", Shiina Taki held her hand, her eyes and brows all softened together. But soon she recalled something, and her gaze suddenly turned cold, like an unsheathed sword.
"You were in such a panic just now, not even watching the road, could it be someone was trying to bully you?"
"N-no, not this time…"
The girl named "Takamatsu Tomori" had a hard time dealing with her enthusiasm, and could only awkwardly and stammeringly reply, "It was… my own reason…"
But Shiina Taki didn't take her words seriously at all.
In her heart, Tomori was a weak and pitiful girl like a small animal, someone who needed to be protected and cared for, also a dandelion to be carefully cupped in the palm of her hand. Even the slightest breeze could hurt her, so cherishing her this much wasn't over the top.
She looked toward a seat around the corner, the direction Tomori had run from, and there sat a tall and slender figure, 'Should be a boy, vaguely looks a bit familiar?'
Shiina Taki didn't think much and strode over, the softness in front of the gray-haired girl now clouded into darkness.
"It was you, huh? How dare you bully—"
'Eh?'
The rest of her words got stuck in her throat. When the boy turned his head, the setting sun outside the window just happened to spill across his brow, and the shadow of his black lashes cast crow-feather shapes on his pale skin. That face, soaked in the glow, reminded her of a holy son's painting hung high in a chapel, making the girl subconsciously take half a step back, her voice softening.
"How… is it you?"
"Shiina-san."
Kaito nodded at her, greeting in a neither cold nor warm tone, "Good afternoon."
"G-good afternoon…", All the anger vanished without a trace. Shiina Taki now looked slightly embarrassed, not knowing what to do with her hands.
The thought of seeking justice for Tomori was thrown to the back of her mind. She suddenly realized she might have misunderstood.
'After all, he… ahem, doesn't look like a bad person at all, so how could he possibly bully Tomori?'
At the same time, the little penguin who had reacted a beat too slow finally came to her senses.
She hurriedly stood in front of Kaito, arms spread wide like a mama hen defending against an eagle, her face full of anxiety, "Kaito-san… didn't bully me, Taki… please don't…"
Shiina Taki: "..."
Facing Takamatsu Tomori's anxious expression, the girl felt like an arrow had struck her knee.
'What the heck is this atmosphere that makes it seem like only I am the bad guy?'
"Eh eh eh?", Before she could stay sulky for long, Ririko hiding behind the bar also heard the commotion. Seeing the spilled tea and cake all over the floor gave her a headache, but she immediately pulled Taki aside and turned to the guests to apologize.
"I-it's all my fault…", Takamatsu Tomori flusteredly waved her hands, "It was me, I bumped into Taki…"
"Actually, it was also my fault."
Shiina Taki was silent for two seconds, but still spoke up, taking part of the responsibility onto herself, "It was because I didn't dodge in time. Otherwise, this wouldn't have happened."
This scene, like a blame-sharing party, made Ririko not know whether to laugh or cry. But since even the guests said so, she didn't dwell further on the topic.
She and Taki first cleaned up the messy scene, then sent the girl to change into clean clothes. Only after that did she apologetically express that this accident had disturbed the two guests' mood. All losses would be covered by the shop, and they'd prepare a fresh new order for them shortly.
Flawless handling and kind attitude, no wonder she was already a store manager at such a young age.
Kaito nodded and gave Ririko a polite smile, which earned him a blushing flustered response, "N-n-n-no need to thank me! It's all what I should do!"
After the embarrassed manager fled the scene, he looked again at the girl in front of him.
Because of this small episode, Tomori, who had originally wanted to run away, was forced to stay behind. Now, she was quietly lowering her head. Her gray short hair under the sunset looked fluffy, making her look even more like a dazed, isolated baby penguin.
Kaito rubbed his brow.
He had only casually asked earlier, wanting to know whether she was connected to his little secretary. Who would've thought this girl would react so strongly, like a wound had been poked, with her first instinct being to run.
In such a situation, he couldn't forcibly continue the topic.
'Forget it, I can just ask Sakiko myself later.'
'As for now, just treat it like a regular afternoon tea outing.'
Kaito didn't bring up any topics that might hurt the girl. They just chatted casually, and before long, he had gathered about 70–80% of Takamatsu Tomori's situation.
Like him, she studied at Shuka Academy, a first-year from Class D, also the astronomy club president, with a hobby of collecting various strange little trinkets.
It was his first time meeting such an honest girl. Whatever you asked, she answered. It made one suspect that if he asked her what color pant*es she wore today, she might unguardedly tell him too.
"Um, Kaito-san," After chatting a while, the girl in front lowered her head like a small animal who had done something wrong, muttering, "I should… go home…"
"Now?", Kaito glanced at his phone, 'Just past 6 PM. Still early, actually.'
But he could understand. After all, not everyone was like him. Take a family photo and that's your whole household, no one above to discipline you.
Tomori looked like the obedient type who lived under her parents' wings. After school, she'd go straight home and never linger outside unnecessarily.
So he just nodded without stopping her, only asking, "Do you need me to walk you home?"
Takamatsu Tomori hesitated and shook her head, then paused and fished out a round object from her school uniform pocket, "This, for you."
Kaito took a glance, turned out to be a smooth pebble, warm to the touch, as if it still carried the girl's body heat.
Felt just right for skipping stones.
"Then I'll accept it."
He flipped the pebble into his hand, then said goodbye, "Takamatsu-san, see you."
"See… you."
The gray-haired girl gave one last reluctant look, then trotted away.
After she left, a little more time passed.
Having changed into clean clothes, Shiina Taki came back over again with a tray.
"Tomori, I came to find you… huh?", Not seeing that familiar figure, the black-haired girl paused slightly.
'Tomori? Where's my big Tomori? Where did she go?'
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