Autumn Festival and Baby Castella 10
§§§§§§§§§§
The festival came to an end.
The festival music that had been playing through the speakers stopped, and the light from the lanterns began to fade.
The stalls lining the street were either selling off their leftovers or starting to pack up.
The pedestrian paradise that had been swarming with visitors was now as empty as a deflated balloon.
“It was more fun than I thought.”
While watching the departing crowd, Miki muttered with a hint of reluctance.
“I came intending to keep an eye on Chika and Ichinose, but I ended up fully enjoying the festival atmosphere. Festivals really are wonderful, aren’t they?”
The four of us, who had safely met up at the shrine, enjoyed various stalls.
We ate frankfurters and grilled squid and had fun with goldfish scooping and ring tossing.
I had come for the baby castella, but I had a great time too.
I had been to festivals several times before, but I always felt like a guest since my companions would buy things for me or play games for me.
However, today, for the first time, I felt like I truly experienced the festival by buying things myself and competing on equal footing.
I wouldn’t say it to Sōma because he’d make a weird face, but treating someone to something after losing a challenge was a new and interesting experience.
Sōma, who had scooped up a hundred balls in the ball scooping game and won the giant super ball, was bouncing the super ball around and looked quite pleased with himself.
“Did you have fun, Sōma-san?”
“Of course. I learned a lot about baby castella, ate some, played around—couldn’t have enjoyed it more.”
Hearing him say that made me happy.
Knowing that the time spent with me was meaningful and fun for him made me feel truly glad to be together.
“I had a lot of fun too.”
But there was something on my mind.
Casually, I shifted my gaze from Sōma to another boy.
He was talking to Miki with a slightly nervous expression.
“Saito-san, it’s good that you enjoyed yourself. I’m happy we could all play together. After all, last time at Sōma’s house, Sōma and Chika were just studying.”
“Oh… you mean last month. That’s right, back then, Chika and Ichinose were just flirting under the pretense of studying, so they didn’t play with us at all. I see, Kikuchi suggested going to the festival with the four of us because of that. I was wondering why it was such an odd combination.”
“Ah, yeah. Well, that’s right.”
Miki nodded in understanding, and Shōhei smiled awkwardly.
“So, um, how about the four of us go bowling next time?”
Even a romance novice like me could tell that this suggestion took a lot of courage from him.
“Bowling? Come to think of it, it’s been a while… What do you think, Chika?”
“Ah!? Me?”
I was surprised to be suddenly brought into the conversation.
As Miki’s best friend, I didn’t necessarily hope that Shōhei and Miki would get together, nor did I wish they wouldn’t.
That was for Miki to decide.
However, I did think that I shouldn’t do anything that would hinder Shōhei’s love interests.
“Ah, um, I don’t mind at all.”
As Chika nodded hastily, Miki looked at her friend for a moment before slowly nodding as well.
“That might be a good idea.”
“Then, let’s plan it for another time!”
Hearing this, Shōhei’s face lit up with a smile.
I didn’t know much about Shōhei. We had only spoken a few times. But I could tell that the smile he showed at that moment was one of his brightest.
“――Well, shall we head home now?”
Sōma, who had grabbed the superball, suggested this, signaling it was time to disperse.
“Yes, it’s getting late. Shall we head home, Chika?”
As if it were the most natural thing, Miki suggested going home together.
“Ah…”
Since we lived in the same direction, it wasn’t strange for her to suggest it.
But I felt a bit troubled.
The unease that had formed in my heart today hadn’t yet cleared.
“Ah, um… Kikuchi-san, would you mind walking part of the way home with me?”
“Huh, me?”
The suggestion surprised not only Kikuchi but also Sōma and Miki.
It was to be expected.
It was the least likely pairing. I myself knew that this suggestion was quite forceful and contrived.
But I really wanted to talk to Kikuchi-san. If possible, today.
The air turned strange with the unexpected proposal, especially Miki, who looked at Chika and Shōhei with suspicion.
What should I do…?
New novel chapters are published on freewёbn૦νeɭ.com.
Was it too much after all?
But I really wanted to talk to Kikuchi-san…
As Chika began to panic, Sōma, sensing her intentions, threw her a lifeline.
“Saito, I also have something to talk to you about.”
“Huh? I don’t have anything to talk to you about.”
“Just be quiet and listen, Vice President of the Student Council. You see, about the budget for the cultural festival, we need to increase the funds for the baby castella ingredients. I went around the baby castella stalls today, and I realized that what we have now is nowhere near enough. Without good ingredients, we can’t make good sweets.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ve told you, the budget is twenty thousand yen per class. From that amount, we have to cover not just the cost of ingredients, but also containers and decorations, right? We can’t just funnel all the money into baby castella.”
“Even if the presentation looks good, it’s meaningless if the product itself is subpar.”
“You know our concept is a festival, right? Skimping on decoration costs is out of the question.”
It seemed that Miki had successfully captured Sōma’s interest, as they began a heated debate.
“Shall we head back now?”
“Ah, yes. Um, is it okay if we go as far as the station?”
“That’s fine. Please lead the way.”
Leaving Miki and Sōma to continue their discussion about the budget, Chika started walking with Shōhei.