174 - Each of Their Feelings

RAW

After finishing all the popular attractions, Haruto and the others gathered at the central plaza of the amusement park to discuss what to do next.

"Should we ride the Giant Spark Mountain again?"

"I kind of want to go back to Aqua Mountain," Shizuku suggested after Saki posed the question to everyone.

"Hmm... What about you two, Ayaka?" Haruto asked.

"Oh, we're thinking of taking Ryota to Kids World for a bit," Ayaka replied, making eye contact with Haruto.

The amusement park they were visiting had distinct zones, each with attractions tailored to different age groups. 'Kids World' was the area filled with rides meant for younger children.

Haruto gave Ayaka a slight nod and then turned to Ishikura.

"What about you guys, Kazu-senpai?"

"Well, we could come along... but..." Ishikura trailed off.

There were a few attractions in Kids World that adults could enjoy, but they were mostly meant for families with children, so it wouldn’t be very exciting for Ishikura and the others.

"How about we split up for now and meet back here later?" Haruto suggested.

Ishikura nodded in agreement. "Sounds good. Everyone okay with that?"

"I'm in!" Saki replied cheerfully.

"Works for me," Tomoya added.

"Hmm, I shall take responsibility for watching over the Little Pig-Eared Chaos Overlord," Shizuku chimed in.

With everyone in agreement, Haruto headed off with Ayaka and Ryota toward Kids World.

"See you later!"

As Haruto and Ayaka walked side by side with Ryota between them, Shizuku watched them from behind and murmured,

"A picture-perfect happy family."

"Those two are definitely going to end up married," Tomoya said with conviction.

"Shuuichi-san and Ikue-mama both like Otsuki-kun, too. The Tōjō family isn’t going to let him get away," Saki added with a laugh.

"Haruto’s completely surrounded," Ishikura said, watching Haruto’s shrinking figure with a wry smile.

Once they'd all come to the consensus that Haruto and Ayaka’s future was practically guaranteed, Saki shifted the conversation to themselves.

"Okay, so what should we do now? Ride Giant Spark Mountain again?"

"You really want to ride that one so badly, Saki-senpai?" Shizuku asked.

"I just like it. You prefer Aqua Mountain, right?"

"I do. But with the wait times, it might be hard to ride both... Kazu-senpai, which do you prefer?"

Debating between Giant Spark Mountain and Aqua Mountain, the two girls turned to Ishikura for his opinion.

"I'm fine with either. What about you, Tomoya?"

"Same here. Actually, if that’s the case, why don’t we just split up and go on whichever one we want?"

"Good point."

"In that case, Aizawa-san, wanna go ride Giant Spark Mountain with me?" Tomoya said with a grin.

Saki tensed for a split second, wary. But after glancing at Shizuku and Ishikura standing side by side, she nodded.

"That makes sense. I’ll go with Akagi-kun then. Shizuku, you go with Kazu-senpai to Aqua Mountain."

"Understood. We'll meet back at the plaza later, right?"

"Yup."

Shizuku froze for a moment, expressionless, then gave a small nod.

And so, the group split into two pairs: Tomoya with Saki, and Ishikura with Shizuku, heading toward their respective attractions.

Walking side by side, separated from the others, Ishikura asked,

"You really like Aqua Mountain?"

"I’m addicted to that floating feeling right before the final drop," Shizuku replied, still expressionless and staring straight ahead.

Ishikura glanced sideways at her, then looked ahead as he spoke in a calm tone.

"Hey, Shizuku."

"What is it?"

"Are you... enjoying our date today?"

"...Yes, I am."

"Glad to hear it."

"Yes."

Their conversation was brief and quiet.

After a pause, Shizuku looked up at him.

"Are you enjoying it, Kazu-senpai?"

Even with her blank expression, the question seemed earnest. Ishikura’s lips curved gently.

"I'm with you. Of course I'm enjoying it."

"Hmph... Just so you know, cheesy pickup lines like that don’t work on me."

"Wasn’t meant to be a pickup line. Just saying how I feel."

"Ryota-kun barrier—activated!"

Shizuku suddenly held up her half of the heart-shaped keychain Ryota had given her, like it was a holy cross, and thrust it toward Ishikura.

"Is that really a barrier?"

"Yes. Ryota-kun’s pure, innocent heart will ward off your evil aura."

"Evil aura? Come on..."

Chuckling in exasperation, Ishikura pulled out the matching keychain from his pocket and stared at it.

"Well, it’s a gift from Ryota-kun. It probably brings some kind of good luck."

"You’re staring at an offering from a child and grinning like a villain. You really do look like a demon lord."

He let her teasing roll off him with practiced ease. "Yeah yeah, sure I do."

Shizuku pouted slightly when her jab didn’t land.

"But seriously, being with you in a crowded place like this is actually really convenient."

"Yeah?"

"Yup. People naturally move out of the way when they see you. Makes navigating crowds much less stressful."

"...You’d better be grateful, you know?"

"I'm eternally grateful."

Chatting like that, the two reached the end of the Aqua Mountain line.

"180 minutes, huh? Long wait."

"It’s Sunday, so that’s pretty normal."

Shizuku didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the long wait as she stood in line. Glancing at her, Ishikura noticed that, although her face was as expressionless as always, her eyes held a trace of warmth.

"With 180 minutes, I could probably defeat you with ease."

"Don’t defeat me."

Ishikura stepped up beside her.

"No matter how many times I look, that pig-ear headband does not suit you."

"Shut it."

"Whereas mine is unquestionably cute."

"Yeah yeah, you’re always cute."

"Ryota-kun barrier—activated again!"

As the long line slowly inched forward, the two of them continued on cheerfully, side by side.

— • — • — • — • —

Meanwhile, Tomoya and Saki, having split from the others, were waiting in line for Giant Spark Mountain.

"Man, it’s seriously packed. Where do all these people come from?"

"From all over the country, obviously. This is the most famous amusement park."

While watching the endless line of people ahead, Tomoya spoke casually, and Saki, standing beside him, answered while looking in the same direction.

"Hmm..." he hummed, then changed the topic.

"You think Kazu-senpai and Shizuku-chan will work out?"

"Hard to say. They’ve always been too close, you know?"

"Isn’t that a good thing?"

"Usually, yeah. But when it comes to romance, being too close can sometimes make things harder."

As the line moved forward slightly, they stepped ahead.

"If you’re used to being close like siblings and suddenly that person says they like you, you’d be confused, right?"

"Hmm... not really?"

Seeing Tomoya wasn’t quite getting it, Saki offered an example.

"Okay, imagine I was your childhood friend. We grew up like brother and sister, always together."

"Alright, I’m imagining it."

"Then one day, I suddenly confess to you. Wouldn’t that throw you off?"

"Nope. I’d say YES immediately."

Tomoya’s answer made Saki falter.

"Having someone like you as a childhood friend who confesses to me? That’s like winning the lottery in life."

"..."

"No confusion there at all."

"...Sorry, bad example."

She quickly turned her face away, half covering her mouth with her hand.

"Hmm? Anyway, Kazu-senpai and Shizuku-chan won’t be easy, huh?"

"Exactly."

Tomoya nodded, seemingly satisfied, and then shifted the topic again.

"Hey, Aizawa-san? Watching Haru and Tōjō-san together, don’t you ever wish you had a boyfriend too?"

"Why?"

Saki’s expression turned serious as she answered carefully.

Tomoya, in contrast, spoke as casually as if they were talking about the weather.

"They’re always smiling, right? Like they’re wrapped in this happy aura or something."

"Yeah. Ayaka does always seem blissfully happy when she’s with Otsuki-kun."

"Right? Seeing that up close makes me think, 'Man, it’d be nice to have a girlfriend too,' you know? Says the lonely single guy."

"True. Watching them, it does make you think being in a relationship might be nice."

"Right?"

But then Saki shook her head slightly.

"But that’s not quite the same as just wanting a boyfriend."

"What do you mean?"

"For Ayaka, Otsuki-kun isn’t just any boyfriend. He’s her perfect boyfriend. To put it in cheesy terms, he’s her 'fated one.'"

"Huh. Yeah, she’s totally head over heels for Haru."

Tomoya nodded as he pictured the two.

"I’m not jealous that she has a boyfriend. I’m jealous that she found someone she loves that deeply."

"I see. So that’s why you’re not just gonna settle for some random guy."

"Exactly."

Hearing that, Tomoya nodded thoughtfully. Saki gave him a light jab.

"I mean, not that I could just get a boyfriend easily anyway. I’m not as popular as Ayaka, and I’m not the type who can just casually go for someone."

"Huh? I think you’d be pretty popular, though."

"Yeah yeah, thanks."

She brushed off the compliment and stepped forward as the line moved.

Tomoya followed behind her and pulled the heart-shaped keychain Ryota had given him out of his pocket, showing it to her.

"But hey, since I got this from Ryota-kun, maybe I’ll find the perfect girlfriend someday..."

Tomoya said with an innocent grin as he clasped the keychain in both hands and raised it above his head, beginning to pray.

"Oh angel Ryota! Please bless this poor soul’s love life with a miraculous boost!"

"What are you doing?"

Saki looked at Tomoya's antics in disbelief, but a smile tugged at her lips as she watched, amused. She slipped the matching heart-shaped keychain back into her pocket and gently held it there.

"I told you… it’s just a keychain."

Her soft words, carried on a faint smile, drifted into the crowd without reaching anyone’s ears.

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Here SLT, I'm going on holiday from July 13th to 27th, so the chapters posted during this time will be available when I return, also the first volume of the manga (in japan) which will be released on the 26th of July, look at this very nice cover