章 147: An Elderly Lady's Advice
Arata got himself ready in the morning for a nice day out with Akiba. For some reason, he was really excited over the prospect of being able to get away from everyone else to enjoy himself. However, he first had to pay a little visit to a certain elderly lady. After all, it was Sunday and his obligation for tea time had to be honored first.
"I'm heading out to meet with Hine." He told his parents as he was nearly out the door. "But I'm also going to hang out with some friends after that. So I won't be home for a while." The latter point was a lie, obviously it was only one friend he was hanging out with. However, he didn't want his parents to make a big deal out of it since he was doing it with a girl.
"Have as much fun as you want." His dad yelled out from upstairs. "Perhaps your mother and I will have plenty of fun with you out of the house." His laughter made Arata feel a little uncomfortable. On one hand, the statement indicated them doing a little bit of… Honeymooning. However, this was also his dad who was one of the most naive people he knew. So really they could be doing something a lot more innocent and wholesome.
"Try not to do anything too reckless." His mother reminded him. "Ayami's going to be coming back next weekend. So try not to get hurt and worry her."
"I won't." He answered as he put on his shoes. Now it was time to leave the house and make his way to the first destination. This part of the journey wasn't going to take long, but getting to where Akiba recommended them to meet was far from this spot. So he was going to have to cut his time short here.
"It's nice to see you as usual." Hine greeted him in her normal warm fashion. However, there was going to be one small difference for this bit of brunch. "Sorry, but unfortunately Hifumi couldn't make it today."
"Too bad." He did want to talk to her about Ichiri while they had some privacy. Plus they also could've had the help of someone plenty experienced on dealing with problems. Specifically his own as of late. "I guess I'll just see her in school anyway."
"Speaking of seeing someone, you look rather well dressed." She commented on his outfit. "Going on another date? Is it with Misei? Or perhaps someone different?"
"It's not a date…" Arata answered sheepishly. While this wasn't anything formal he had on, the boy certainly paid attention to what he was wearing for once. "I know you know about all the girls interested in me, but I'm just hanging out with Akiba."
"Ah, that girl." She remembered who that was. "Perhaps I should inform you she's kind of a toxic individual. After all, I hope you realize that those moments of hers weren't accidental."
"You figured it out too, didn't you."
"Trust me, as a lady. I'm quite aware to the pettiness of teenage girls." Akiba certainly wasn't the first time she had ever seen this behavior. Let alone the first time she was on the receiving end. "She's fairly jealous person despite her appearance."
"True, but the two of us have worked out our differences." Arata defended her. She had made massive strides in changing her behavior, at least around him. "Honestly, I understand how she feels."
"Don't get me wrong, I know she's not doing it for no reason, but that doesn't excuse harming others." She replied. "Still, it's not as if I can confront her on it, since she holds that side far away from others. She's still young, so there's lot for a girl like her to learn. I hope that you can help her grow."
"I'm glad you trust me so much." It filled him with warmth to be respected by someone he held in high regard.
"Well, you've had a lot of help from me and everyone around you. Just think of it as the fruits of that labor." She smiled at him as they sipped their tea. "I suppose you can't stay here long, can you?"
"Sorry, but I really don't want to be late." He responded and kept an eye on the time.
"That's fine. You mustn't keep a young lady waiting." She got up and grabbed a small wrapped box from the kitchen counter. "By the way, I've been meaning to give this to you for a while now. But you've been a pretty indecisive boy, that there never seems to be a good time for it."
"What is it?" He foolishly asked as it was handed to him. The thing was so tiny, that he couldn't imagine it to be something so important that it needed to be held back from. The boy even attempted to shake it to try and figure it out as she answered.
"I could be cryptic and say you can only open it after you decide on whose feelings you'll accept. But at this rate, I don't even know if I'll still be alive when you do." She laughed, and he nervously laughed at her joke. "What I'm giving you is my late husband's wedding ring."
"What!?" The revelation was so shocking that he nearly dropped her gift. Now he felt as though he was being very disrespectful for treating the box the way he did. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"It's fine." She held no hard feelings.
"But don't you think I'm a little too young to be making such a big decision?" Marriage was certainly far down the line for him. Though his parents did wed not too much older than he was now. "This will only make me even more indecisive."
"I'm not saying that you should give it to the girl you end up choosing." She giggled at the over-the-top nature that a teen's mind could go to. "Take it as my gift that you'll grow into a strong young man who can tackle anything thrown at you."
"Thank you so much." He didn't feel that he deserved this present at all. Not the way he currently was, but the boy took this as motivation to become the person that could honor something like this. "Oh no, I'm going to be late!" He realized that he forgot to check the time before it was getting late. Quickly, he hopped out of his seat and rushed for the door. "Sorry, I promise next time I'll spend more time with you." Of course with the weather getting warming once more, he was going to begin gardening for her again as well.
"No worries, have fun on your little date."
"It's not a date!" Soon enough, he had left the house. Now alone, the elderly woman took some time to contemplate his situation.
"I wonder if Akiba will realize just how fortunate she is to have you in her life." She murmured to herself, simply thinking out loud. "Hopefully her heart isn't so set on that Yogi kid that she'd be blind to you as a boy." She chuckled, of course if she changed her mind. That would only make things harder on Arata. It wasn't even who she wanted him to choose, but alas, it is his heart that should be heard.
"...Finally... Made it…" Arata ran to the front of the station. He bent over with hands over his knees in exhaustion. The boy had to run quite the distance just to not be late, and he still couldn't make it on time. "Where is she?"
"I'm right behind you." Her sudden words would've made him leap if he wasn't already so tired. "Don't worry, I'm a little late too. Looks like neither of us had to wait for the other." He was speechless when he took one look at her. And it wasn't because he still needed to catch his breath. Though part of the reason he felt breathless was from her drop dead gorgeous appearance.
She certainly made sure she was ready for their hangout time, just as he did himself. Her face seemed even cuter than the day before, most likely from smart application of makeup. While her outfit was coordinated in a manner that matched wonderfully with the colors, from her blazer all the way down to her skirt. This was topped with a scarf to combat the remaining Winter chill which remained, but was fading.
What was wrong with him? It was fine to consider a girl like her to be cute, but he knew better. Akiba had feelings for his friend, not to mention that his other friend had feelings for her. She was not the person to be viewed in any manner that wasn't just friends.
"That's good then." He regained his composure while responding to her. "It would suck to be stuck waiting in this kind of weather."
"Now that we're here, we should get this day started now." It was time to start that… He wasn't sure what to call it, but he wasn't going to give in to Hine's defining it as a date. Obviously two friends of the opposite gender can just hang out to avoid the troubles that the rest of their group brought. "Have you eaten yet?"
"Nope, I only enjoyed some tea with Hine." He answered her. Since he wasn't familiar with this spot of town, the boy was at the mercy of her recommendations. "Then I guess we're starting with lunch?"
"Of course." She took him by the hand to lead the way. "I know a great spot that I'm sure you'll love."
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