[Warning 15+]
Part Five
―Even If, I Can't Treat You with That Same Energy Anymore
Chapter 192
The Clincher
―Even If, I Can't Treat You with That Same Energy Anymore
Chapter 192
The Clincher
The inside of the exhibition hall servin' as the bargain sale venue was crazy crowded.
Various shops lined the neatly partitioned space. It was a sight to behold. Apparently, brands outside of the City's specialty store district were set up here too.
If Hayato didn't watch out, he'd bump shoulders with people passin' by, but even so, he couldn't help lookin' all around.
Not just Hayato, but both Kazuki and Iori were also lookin' around with curious eyes. That just showed how big of an event this was, even for the City.
Just lookin' around at the yukata, you could see quite a wide variety dependin' on the shop—from simple ones, cute ones with soft shades, to ones showin' off flashy colors and eccentric patterns.
Oh, so that was what set the brands apart from each other.
On top of summer clothin', accessories like parasols, sandals, hats, and foldin' fans were well-stocked too.
Just browsin' around was a treat for the eyes, and Hayato felt like he understood a little bit why Himeko and the girls were so hyped up.
Eventually, they came across a section marked as the men's area.
Compared to the other areas, it felt like there were slightly fewer customers, but it was still plenty crowded.
"Oh, what's that?"
As soon as Iori spotted the mannequins near the entrance, he ran right over. Hayato scrambled to follow behind Iori.
"Whoa, super flashy... ...The Kabuki Series section?"
"The one next to it looks refined, or like a Samurai and Ronin section... ...Ahaha, it definitely fits that vibe, though."
"This one's the matchin' couple outfit section... ...How about it, Iori?"
"Gah!? Like heck I could wear somethin' like this!"
"Eh~ since we're here and all, right?"
"Then Hayato, could you wear this together with Nikaidō-san?"
Sayin' that, Iori pointed at the yukata on a certain mannequin. It was a yukata adorned with a white and orange rounded lattice pattern, a design that was a bit too cute for a boy to wear. But it would probably look great on Haruki.
Hayato tried imaginin' himself wearin' a matchin' outfit with Haruki.
That would be like broadcastin' to everyone around them that they were super close. Hayato could easily picture Haruki flashin' her usual mischievous smile despite bein' embarrassed, gettin' more and more hyped up—and imaginin' that, he hurriedly shook his head.
"...M-My bad. No way."
"Haha, right?"
"Besides, why me and Haruki? ...We're just childhood buddies."
"Huh?"
"Wh-What?"
When Hayato let out that complaint-like remark, Iori's eyes widened in disbelief.
Then Iori's face shifted as if he'd just realized somethin', his mouth twistin' into a smirk shaped like a crescent moon.
"So you'd rather go matchin' with Miko-chan?"
"Huh!?"
Drawn in by Iori's words, Hayato ended up imaginin' himself wearin' a matchin' outfit with Saki.
In that moment, Hayato's heart skipped a beat.
Before—or more accurately, up until last night—Hayato probably would have pictured Saki's face with that dignified, cool smile from when she was performin' the Kagura dance.
But for some reason, Hayato ended up picturing Saki's blushin' sheepishly and lookin' bashful instead—and SLAP!, he smacked his own cheeks with both hands as hard as he could.
"H-Hayato!?"
"Ow~"
In an instant, Hayato's brain went totally chaotic.
Along with a faint sting of guilt prickin' Hayato's chest, an indescribable feelin' was swirlin' inside him.
So Hayato hurriedly darted his eyes around the store, blurtin' out words to cover it up.
"A-Anyway, there sure are a lot of options, huh?"
"...Yeah, it's definitely way more than I expected, makes it hard to know what to choose."
"I'm not really knowledgeable about this stuff... ...wait, where's Kazuki?"
"Huh? Come to think of it, where'd Kazuki go?"
Although Hayato thought Kazuki was right beside them, Kazuki was nowhere to be seen.
Steppin' deeper into the store to see where Kazuki went, they found him almost immediately.
However, just as Hayato was about to call out to Kazuki, he hesitated.
"..."
With a strangely solemn gaze, Kazuki was carefully inspectin' the yukata hangin' on a rack.
Every now and then, Kazuki's hands would pause, a crease formin' between his brows.
Kazuki probably didn't even make an expression that serious durin' club activity practice.
Just as Kazuki picked up one of the yukatas, Iori spoke up.
"Kazuki, you gonna go with that one?"
"Oh, Iori-kun. And Hayato-kun, too. Nah, this is just one of my options... ...look."
""!?""
Sayin' that, Kazuki lifted up a basket at his feet.
It was filled to the brim with yukatas.
Did Kazuki pick all these out in that short amount of time?
Both Hayato and Iori blinked in surprise.
Ignorin' the two of them, a smilin' Kazuki pulled out yukatas from the basket one after another, unfoldin' them and thrustin' them toward them.
"How about somethin' like this for Hayato-kun? I think brighter colors like this would actually suit you really well. As for the pattern, I thought somethin' modern would be nice... ...look, like this one."
"O-Oh."
"As for Iori-kun, how about a darker fabric with a flashy pattern? Or I think somethin' a bit cute like this would pop too. This one as well... ...look, this one too."
"I-I see."
Both Hayato and Iori recoiled a bit.
But Kazuki's eyes were sparklin'.
Kazuki definitely loved doin' stuff like this.
In fact, every single yukata handed to them clearly showed great sense.
These were definitely things Hayato wouldn't have been able to find on his own.
It seemed Iori felt the same way, groanin' softly as he carefully inspected the yukatas Kazuki picked out to decide which one to choose.
"I see, well since you went through the trouble, I'll definitely pick one from these."
"I'll do that too. Thanks, Kazuki."
"You're very welcome."
Receivin' their thanks, Kazuki let out a sigh of relief, and seein' that, Hayato let out a dry chuckle too.
"So, which one are you goin' with, Kazuki?"
At that, Kazuki knit his brows, looking troubled.
"Honestly, I'm actually torn. Go with somethin' simple and safe, somethin' chic and subdued, or try pushin' the envelope with a little personality... ...I can't even lock down a direction. Which one do you think is good, Hayato-kun?"
"...That's tough."
Even though Hayato'd asked simply out of curiosity, there was no way he, with his overwhelmin'ly lackin' fashion experience, could give a proper answer. Besides, someone like Kazuki could probably pull off anythin'.
Still, it wasn't like Hayato could just come out and say 'Any of them works fine'.
As they exchanged dry laughs, Hayato realized he was feeling a strange sense of deja vu.
Suddenly realizin' what it was, Hayato nodded in understandin', and the realization blurted right out of his mouth.
"Oh, Kazuki, you're a lot like Himeko in situations like this."
"...!? R-Really?"
"I mean, we have exchanges pretty similar to this at home all the time."
"H-Huh..."
Kazuki looked surprised, showin' a bit of agitation.
Seein' that reaction, Hayato, realizin' that comparin' a male buddy to his little sis might've been goin' a bit too far, scratched his head with an awkward expression.
As Hayato rolled out an "Ugh~" sound under his breath tryin' to find somethin' to cover for himself, Iori stepped in between them with a troubled look.
"Hey, got a sec? Do you think I should match with whatever Ema's likely to pick?"
"Oh, yeah, that actually makes sense."
"I see. Knowin' Ema, she'll probably go with somethin' with subdued colors, so I'll go with this darker fabric. The flashy pattern gives it a fun touch, which is pretty nice."
Iori flashed a satisfied grin as he picked out his yukata.
Then Hayato said with a slight tinge of admiration,
"Iori, you really know Isami-san's taste inside out, huh."
"Well, we've known each other for a long time, after all. Don't you know what Nikaidō-san would pick too, Hayato?"
"...Haruki always goes for jokes or tries to surprise people, so I can't imagine what she'd choose at all."
When Hayato shrugged while sayin' that, a burst of laughter "Ahaha" came from the two of them.
After laughin' for a moment, Kazuki threw out a question, "In that case..."
"Then what kind of stuff do you think Himeko-chan would pick?"
"Hmm, Himeko chases after trends, so it's hard to say. Though lately she tends to pick stuff that's a bit beyond her age, I guess? Y'know, like she doesn't wanna be looked at like some countryside bumpkin."
"Yeah... ...I see."
Hayato had meant to get a laugh by pointin' out his little sis' embarrassin' side, but instead, Kazuki placed a finger on his chin with a thoughtful look.
"I'm gonna go look for something else."
"Oh, hey Kazuki?"
Sayin' that, Kazuki disappeared toward the back of the store.
As Hayato watched Kazuki's back with a somewhat caught-off-guard look, Iori, who had finished payin' before anyone noticed, spoke up to Hayato.
"Btw, which one are you goin' with, Hayato?"
"Hmm, which one should I go with...?"
In reality, it was hard to tell which one was better than the rest.
And unlike Iori, Hayato didn't have a solid decidin' factor.
After furrowin' his brows and weighin' them against each other for a moment, Hayato realized somethin'.
"Alright, I'll go with this one."
"Oh, that one?"
"Yeah, 'cause it's the cheapest."
Statin' Hayato's reason in an unusually serious tone of voice, Iori blinked for a second before burstin' out into a loud laugh.
"...Pfft, ahahahahahahahah! That's so like you, Hayato!"
"Shut it!"