chapter3 · 033-ep33
Episode 33: Date
The next day.
I was beneath the clock tower in front of the station.
It was 10:50 in the morning.
Ten minutes before our meeting time.
Maybe I got here too early.
But I didn't have the courage to be late.
After all, the other person was Mibu Iroha.
Even though we'd talked a few times at school, this was the first time the two of us had gone out together on a day off.
And according to her, it was a date.
A date.
That word had been lingering strangely in my head since yesterday.
No, I got it.
It probably didn't mean anything deep to Mibu.
A boy and a girl go out together on a day off.
By classification, that was a date.
That was probably how Mibu processed it.
Which was exactly why it was troublesome.
It made it look like I was the only one conscious of it.
If anything, I felt like I'd already lost just by being conscious of it.
No, who was I competing with?
I let out a small breath and checked the time on my phone.
10:52.
Eight minutes until our meeting time.
There were a decent number of people in front of the station.
Sunday morning.
Groups that looked like students.
Families heading out shopping.
People who looked like office workers walking while looking at their phones.
Until a little while ago, it probably would've been an entirely ordinary holiday scene.
But now, something different was mixed in among it.
The long signs above the station pillars, walls, and ticket gates used to be lined with travel agency ads and new-movie ads.
But now, Awakener-related ones were mixed in normally.
『New insurance to prepare for damage caused by Awakeners』
『Covers sudden accidents, assaults, and property damage too. Awakener-Related Damage Compensation Plan』
『Why not put your power after awakening to work? Hiring for warehouse work, construction assistance, and heavy-load transport』
『Awakeners with high Strength welcome. Certification-acquisition support available』
They were tough in their own way too.
The speed at which companies adapted to changes in the world was honestly impressive.
While the country was putting systems together, the private sector had already started bringing them into real life.
Insurance for when an Awakener attacked you.
Job listings for people who had become Awakeners.
A little while ago, those ads would've sounded like jokes.
But now they were posted normally inside the station.
“Himura-kun.”
Just then, I heard a familiar voice.
I turned around.
Mibu Iroha was standing there.
She was in casual clothes.
A white blouse with a light-colored cardigan.
A skirt in a subdued color below.
Nothing about it was flashy overall.
It wasn't, but she still normally stood out.
That was just an issue of her aura.
It was like that even in the classroom, but Mibu floated oddly apart from those around her.
Like an actress or model was mixed in with ordinary students.
Her features were well proportioned, and her posture was good.
Her expression was calm too, with little unnecessary movement.
Maybe because of that, just standing there naturally drew eyes.
I wondered if she'd eventually get picked to do a commercial for an Awakener-related private company.
Like Awakener insurance.
No, I couldn't really imagine Mibu smiling and advertising insurance.
She'd probably hold a pamphlet with a blank expression.
That might have a strange kind of persuasive power too.
“Morning.”
“Ah, yeah. Morning.”
“You're early.”
“Well, I didn't think being late would be great.”
“I see.”
With just that, Mibu gave my clothes a quick look.
Today, I'd made sure not to dress like I was trying too hard.
Clothes that were easy to move in, but wouldn't look strange for going out on a day off.
In other words, safe ones.
They weren't particularly stylish.
Or rather, I had no idea what the right answer for a time like this was.
I'd never been on a date even once.
No, stop being conscious of it.
“Let's go.”
“Where?”
“First, we'll look at clothes.”
“Yours?”
“No, Himura-kun's.”
“...Mine!?”
The words slipped out.
Mibu tilted her head curiously.
“I said that yesterday, didn't I?”
“I heard that we'd look at clothes, but I didn't hear that we'd look at mine.”
“Didn't I say that?”
“You didn't.”
“I see. Then I said it now.”
Was that really the issue?
While I struggled to respond, Mibu started walking toward the commercial complex in front of the station.
Without hesitation.
I fell a little behind, then came up beside her.
The place Mibu entered was a clothing store on the fourth floor of the complex.
A shop for young people.
Bright music played inside, and autumn clothes lined the walls.
It was fairly stylish.
The kind of store I would never enter alone.
Actually, I was confident I'd turn back once at the entrance.
Without looking especially concerned, Mibu walked through the store.
With the face of a complete chaperone, I walked behind her.
“Himura-kun.”
“What?”
“This.”
What Mibu picked up was an outer layer in a very plain color.
A gray close to black.
Very little decoration.
A small logo.
It had a hood, and from a distance looked very ordinary.
“For me?”
“Yes.”
“Isn't it plain?”
“Yes.”
“Yes?”
“I think plain is better.”
Mibu said it as if it were obvious.
I took the outer layer and spread it out a little.
It wasn't bad.
It wasn't, but it was very inconspicuous clothing.
More than stylish, it had the feeling of blending into the people around you.
No, maybe this was what girls liked these days?
That simple, calm feeling was good, or something like that?
“This too.”
Next, she handed me pants that were also plain.
They were a dark color.
They did look easy to move in.
Then a simple cap.
A thin inner layer.
There wasn't a shred of flashiness.
Amazing.
Thoroughly inconspicuous.
At this point, I could feel a concept behind it instead.
“...Mibu.”
“What is it?”
“Is this kind of thing good?”
“I think so. It's plain.”
“I see.”
“At least, it fits today's purpose.”
“Today's purpose? The date?”
“Yes, that's right.”
Mibu nodded like it was obvious.
Once she put it that way, it was hard to object any further.
Or rather, if someone said plain was better for date clothes, what was the correct way to take that?
No, I didn't know.
I didn't know, but since Mibu was picking them, they probably weren't strange.
Well, there was no point thinking about it.
For now, I went into the fitting room.
When I changed, it wasn't as bad as I'd thought.
In the mirror, I looked a little more subdued than usual.
But it was still plain.
Not in a bad way.
It was the type of outfit that blended completely into the background.
I opened the fitting-room curtain a little.
“How is it?”
Mibu looked me up and down.
Her gaze was weirdly serious, and it made me a little uneasy.
What was this?
She was only looking at my clothes, but I was normally nervous.
“Not bad.”
“Not bad?”
“Yes. Natural.”
“Natural.”
“You don't stand out.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?”
“Of course.”
Apparently, of course.
I looked at myself in the mirror once more.
Inconspicuous.
Natural.
In other words, I passed by Mibu's standards.
...Well, getting clothes picked out by Mibu was an experience I wouldn't have often.
Was this also a kind of date?
A girl picking clothes out for you on a date.
The words alone made it sound pretty date-like.
Except the clothes she picked were excessively suited for going undercover.
“Then I'll go with these.”
“I see.”
Mibu nodded, seemingly satisfied.
Her expression was almost the same as always.
But she did seem satisfied somehow.
I paid at the register.
My wallet hurt a little.
Clothing costs were heavy for a high schooler.
But now that Mibu had picked them, there was no option of putting them back.
No, it wasn't like she pressured me.
She didn't, but the moment Mibu said, “These are good,” it somehow became the flow where I bought them.
Scary, Mibu Iroha.
Her control was quiet.
“What next?”
When I asked after leaving the store, Mibu made a show of thinking a little.
“We'll go to a café.”
“We really are going?”
“I said so yesterday.”
“Well, you did.”
Mibu started walking just like that.
I changed into my new clothes, put what I'd been wearing into the shopping bag, and walked along carrying it.
This really was a date.
I thought that.
Meeting up.
Having her pick out clothes for me.
Heading to a café.
It was completely a holiday outing.
If I were a third party, I'd normally think we were that kind of two people.
No, people around us might actually see it that way.
I'd been feeling faintly watched for a while now.
Who the hell's that guy?
It felt like I could hear someone saying that from somewhere.
No, I couldn't actually hear it.
I couldn't, but it wouldn't be strange if they were thinking it.
Mibu came up in conversation often at school too.
I've heard people say things like, Mibu Iroha's a little weird, but she's insanely cute.
And I was walking alone with Mibu on a day off.
Normally speaking, it was a situation people would be pretty jealous of.
Normally speaking.
But so far, it really only looked like a normal date.
And because it looked that way, it made me uneasy instead.
“Himura-kun.”
“Yeah?”
“You've been quiet for a while.”
“Well...”
“Are you nervous?”
“I'd be lying if I said I wasn't.”
“I see.”
Mibu answered shortly.
That was the end of it.
Normally, you'd expect some reaction here. Teasing me a little, laughing, something like that.
But Mibu didn't do things like that.
She just confirmed the fact and was satisfied.
It left me with an indescribable feeling, like I was the only one being conscious of it on my own.
After walking for several minutes, we reached the café we were headed for.
The third floor of the station building.
It was a shop with big windows and a slightly subdued atmosphere.
Several groups of customers were lined up in front of the entrance.
Mibu looked at the line, then lightly swept her gaze around us.
“Mibu?”
“Let's go in here.”
“Yeah.”
When I nodded, Mibu took a step toward the entrance.
“Oh, and Himura-kun.”
“What?”
“Today's a tail, so don't let them notice. Thanks.”
Saying that, Mibu lined up at the end of the queue as if nothing had happened.
I stood there looking at her back, frozen for several seconds.
A tail.
Did she just say a tail?
We'd picked clothes normally, walked normally, and were about to go into a café normally.
And the word that came out at the very end was tailing someone.
Just as I thought.
...This date wasn't normal after all.