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Well, there was no helping it.Hina had been pestering her about doing something together for New Year’s Eve for the better part of November, so Sayo had gone ahead and gotten aquarium tickets for that date, since there was a special event and the tickets would certainly be sold out if they waited any longer.Except Hina had been forced to bail out with just under a week to go, because neither had thought Pastel*Palettes would be invited to an important private function on the very last day of the year and Hina did not have the option to refuse when it came to her agency. Not when the whole band had cleared their whole schedule to attend.Not when she could incur Shirasagi Chisato’s wrath, Sayo thought, a small sigh escaping her lips as she looked down at her phone to reread a text that had been left unanswered since sometime that morning.
What should she even tell her now, when she had already told her it was all right in person? Hina could be so overbearing at times. Sayo’s lips curved slightly at the thought. Even if that was the case, she was grateful Hina would always give her opportunities to keep trying, despite her being the one to refuse outings most of the time.“Thank you for coming!”Sayo felt a slight rustle of wind and heard the chime of a bell as a door opened a few paces ahead of her, followed by a pair of footsteps going the opposite direction of hers.“Ah, Sayo-san, welcome!”It seemed her feet had instinctively carried her to Hazawa Coffee while she pondered on the answer to that text message, and a familiar voice had drawn her inside before she had managed to think twice about it. The other girl’s greeting had just pulled her back to reality.“Hazawa-san. Good afternoon.”Tsugumi gave her one of those smiles that seemed to jolt her whole body and that made Sayo feel unfit for that kind of attention. Not that she particularly minded, though. In fact, the more she could get of it, the better.Her time at the cooking class had spoiled her. When had she become so greedy?“Sayo-san, would you like to take a table? The booths near the back should be quieter, if you and the members of Roselia have any matters you need to discuss when they arrive-““It should be all right, Hazawa-san. I am here on my own today.”It seemed to her that Tsugumi had frozen for a split second – going to a café on her own was probably a bit strange, after all – but she had recovered just as quickly and put on that perfect smile again. Sayo couldn’t help but wonder whether that was her customer service smile or whether that was just her usual temperament. Or whether that was a smile for her…Greedy, greedy thoughts.“All right, then! Please take any seat you’d like! I’ll be with you shortly.”“Thank you, Hazawa-san.”Sayo looked around the café in time to catch Tsugumi slip into the kitchen out of the corner of her eye. She took a glance at the booths Tsugumi had mentioned. Some peace and quiet would be nice, but it would be troublesome for the business if she took a spot that could sit so many customers for herself. In the end, she settled for a small two person table, conspicuously near the center of the café.It was not like it was really strange for a person to go out to eat on their own; people working a full time job probably did it all the time. Still, she could not help but feel as if there were eyes on her, despite the café being crowded enough for nobody to take notice of her, so she took out her phone to at least pretend she was waiting for someone.She caught sight of Hina’s message again.
Sigh…
“Thank you for waiting, Sayo-san!” Tsugumi placed a tray on the table as she slid into the seat in front of Sayo’s.Sayo looked at the items in front of her for what felt like an hour and was definitely longer than appropriate. A glass of iced cola, a small cup of tea, a generous slice of strawberry shortcake, and a serving of fries topped with a fried egg.“Um, Hazawa-san…?” Sayo fidgeted with the hems of her skirt under the table. “I didn’t order any of this…”Tsugumi flashed another one of those bright smiles at her. Sayo could swear she could read her mind and was doing it on purpose at this point.
“It’s fine! Today it’s on the house! I’m on my break now,” Tsugumi said, crossing her ankles under her seat as she leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table and resting her head on her hands, “so, what’s the matter?”Sayo blinked a few times in surprise. Was she really that easy to read?At the very least, she could try to bluff.“The matter?”Very slowly, Tsugumi reached for her cup of tea, as if completely entranced by the simple action. Then, she looked at Sayo directly in the eyes.“Sayo-san, you’ve been sighing and looking at your phone ever since you were outside the door,” she stated plainly, "and I apologize for the assumption, but you don’t strike me as the type who could easily sit alone for a meal in a crowded place."
Ah, so she had been seen; and what was more, she had been seen through. She had probably taken her break now just to help her out. Despite the crisp winter
chill, Sayo could feel a surge of warmth creep up her cheeks and even the bridge of her nose, so she looked away, despite knowing that would not do to hide her blush. It did not mean she could not try, though. She reached for a fry and chewed on it slowly, thinking over her answer.“Guess there’s no point in hiding it,” she said at last, after realizing there was no way she could run away from this. She crossed her arms and leaned back on her chair. “I had planned an evening out with Hina for New Year’s Eve, but an engagement with her band came up, so now I have a spare ticket to an event and somehow, an apology to make to her, even though it’s not her fault at all and I don’t really have anything to apologize for, either. Now I don’t really know what to tell her so she won’t feel bad. I’m usually the one who can’t hang out, so I think she feels guilty that she gave up our one chance to do so… Hazawa-san, what’s the matter?”She had finally looked back at the other girl directly, only to find her trying to hide her giggles behind her hand. Tsugumi exploded in a small fit of laughter upon being caught. Despite being puzzled, Sayo could not help but find it rather endearing.“Sorry, sorry!” she said, catching her breath. “Is that all?”Sayo was slightly taken aback. All? It had been troubling her since the day before, when Hina had talked to her before going to bed.“I don’t understand what you mean,” Sayo replied, feeling the redness threaten to come back to tint her cheeks, “is that really not a problem?”Tsugumi raised her eyebrows slightly as she rested her arms over the table. “I think Hina-senpai would be happy just knowing that you cared so much about this that you were concerned about a simple message for so long,” she started; “and as for the tickets, if she can’t go at all, wouldn’t she prefer if you could put them to good use? I’m sure she wouldn’t want you wasting them or having to make you find something else to do on a day you’d already planned off…”It sounded really simple when someone else said it. What had she been so worried about? She sighed again.“Hm, Sayo-san?”“I’m sorry, Hazawa-san. I just… you’re right, but I’m still wondering who could come with me in her place…”“Hmmm…” Now it was Tsugumi’s turn to lean back on her chair. “Wouldn’t Lisa-senpai like to hang out with you? Ako-chan definitely would…”Sayo shook her head.“About that. I believe Minato-san and Imai-san already had plans for the New Year’s Eve, as did Udagawa-san and Shirokane-san… something about a special event in their game? Our parents will be out to visit some relatives. They didn’t make accommodations for Hina and me because they knew we had plans, so at this point it would be troublesome if I went… but that means that neither of them can come with me either…”It was somewhat lonely, Sayo realized.“I see… I know what it’s like,” Tsugumi said, sighing dejectedly.Sayo had to pause to take it all in. She did? Someone like her?“Haven’t you girls in Afterglow been together all your lives?”“Hehe…” Tsugumi nodded with a fond smile. “We have, but I had a shift on New Year’s Eve that my parents canceled just earlier so I could go have fun… By then, Ran-chan and Moca-chan had planned on doing their own thing, and Himari-chan and Tomoe-chan had plans too… None of them would mind me joining in, I’m sure, but I didn’t want them to have to adjust for me either, so I haven’t told them I’m free… Ah, Sayo-san, I’m sorry for laying all my troubles on you! W, where were you taking Hina-senpai, anyway?”Tsugumi was clearly trying to divert the topic, Sayo mused. By then, they had finished the fries, and Sayo had started to dig into the cake. It was perfectly flaky, with fluffy cream and wonderfully sweetened strawberries. Was this Tsugumi’s work? She really ought to come here more often. Maybe ask for some more cooking lessons. But right now, there were more urgent matters than epicurean appreciation. Those thoughts would not do.“Hazawa-san. You are selling yourself short. Far from a bother, anyone would be happy to have you. You just need to give them a chance. But regarding your question,” Sayo took a careful sip of her cola – other people always told her she scared others with her intensity –, “Aqua Park Shinagawa had a special event to welcome the New Year. The details were not fully revealed so there could be an element of surprise, but I thought that kind of unpredictable thing would suit Hina…”Sayo looked at Tsugumi to see her positively beaming this time.“Aqua Park Shinagawa? The aquarium? I wonder what kind of event it could be! Wouldn’t it be so exciting if it were a special dolphin show? Ah, but would the dolphins be okay with a performance a night…? Or maybe something at the Jellyfish Ramble! Maybe they’ll be unveiling a new attraction?-” Tsugumi stopped suddenly. “Ah, Sayo-san?”At some point, Sayo had stopped eating and had gotten caught up in Tsugumi’s enthusiasm instead. Really, she could light up a whole building with her brightness.Sayo had not really realized she was staring, nor had either of them realized they had been leaning in closer and closer until their faces were just a few inches apart.Until they did.“Ah, uhm, I’m sorry, Sayo-san,” Tsugumi said, jolting back slightly, “I got a bit too caught up in the moment.” Now it was Tsugumi’s turn to blush, and she covered one of her cheeks with her hand, giving a small apologetic smile.Sayo cleared her throat and leaned back slightly as well. The answer to her troubles had been easier than she could have expected at the beginning of the day.“I don’t mind. Could it be you enjoy this sort of thing?” Tsugumi replied with a shy nod. “Then, Hazawa-san, if I would do…” Once again, her hands instinctively went to fidget with her skirt under the table, “would you like to come to the aquarium with me on New Year’s Eve?”Tsugumi’s earlier eloquence vanished completely in that instant, and she looked at Sayo as if she had talked to her in another language. Her? Spending the evening with the guitarist of Roselia, who she had only been alone with on one other occasion, on an important day like New Year’s Eve?“Haha, if you would do? That should be my line… I would love to, but I wouldn’t like to intrude…”“Hazawa-san, I wouldn’t mind. In fact, anyone would be happy to have you.”In an unusually bold move, Sayo moved a shaking hand from under the table to reach for the other girl's, and she could see her smile.Perhaps there were some things she could help after all.