While I was still mesmerized by Yona’s appearance—I noticed she was looking back at me, and our eyes met. I saw her cheeks flush red, and she gave me a faint smile.
“Morning... Ren. You’re here pretty early, huh?”
“…I should be the one saying that to you.”
It was still only half-past eight, and I had just arrived. As for Yona, she was already there, sitting by the fountain—who knows since when.
Yona scratched her cheek, looking a bit shy.
“I… got a little excited earlier.”
“...”
Her honesty caught me off guard. I was momentarily speechless. Scratching my neck for no reason, I looked away.
“Well then... Shall we get going?”
“...Yeah. We’re going to the game store, right?”
I nodded in response and began walking—inviting her along to buy tickets while continuing the conversation.
“I’ll just drop by for a bit. After that, we’re free to go wherever. Um, though... if it’s somewhere that costs money, as long as it’s not too expensive, I can come with.”
It felt a bit embarrassing to admit.
But it’s not that I’m stingy—I'm just kind of tight on money right now. Sure, I do have some savings in this world, but that doesn’t mean I can just blow it all. Just buying a PSP the other day... that was basically my limit.
If not for a game I remembered that might run on my current PC, I wouldn’t even be spending more today.
Yona just chuckled softly at my words.
“Don’t worry, Ren. I’m already happy that you invited me out today. It feels nice to take a break from the club and get some fresh air. Plus, I already have a place in mind we can go today. And it’s free.”
“Really? Where?”
Now I was intrigued. Free? She doesn’t mean just going to a public park, right? Though I guess that wouldn’t be too bad since we’re just hanging out.
“That’s a secret.”
Hearing that, I fell silent. Looks like I need to buy the game I want quickly if I want to find out.
After we bought tickets and got on the train—which thankfully wasn’t too crowded, though we still had to stand—Yona spoke again, averting her eyes, making it hard for me to see her face.
“By the way, Ren. You… you look really handsome today.”
The train started moving, and I felt a burning heat rise in my face.
No, Yona. The one who looks handsome today isn’t me—it’s you.
---
This is heaven.
Browsing shelves lined with thousands of games, I scanned through the titles one by one. Even though many of them had their names or synopses altered, I could mostly recognize them with just a glance.
Like the DOOM series, where the original male protagonist had now been changed to a female character named Doomgirl.
“Too bad my computer can’t run this DOOM series…”
Even though it’s great, only the first in the series would probably run on my PC. If only I had more money right now...
Putting it back on the shelf, I heard Yona—who had been browsing behind me—speak up:
“Hm, so you like girl games like this too, Ren? When you said you wanted to go to the game store, I thought you’d be looking for more boyish games.”
It was hard to understand what Yona meant. She said DOOM was a girl game? Ugh, well, I guess the main character is female now, and this is a world where gender roles are flipped...
After a two-second pause, I tried to come up with a reason to explain.
“Actually, I wasn’t really into games at first. But after getting introduced to them by a junior at school... I’ve come to like them.”
“One of those first-year girls fighting over you?”
Yona immediately looked into my eyes—making me regret not coming up with a better excuse. I ended up bringing up something totally unnecessary.
“They—They’re not fighting over me. But yeah… one of them introduced me to these kinds of games.”
“Hm…”
With just that hum, Yona continued browsing the games, her expression unreadable.
All I could do now was pray. Hopefully this wouldn’t turn into something worse...
Eventually, after browsing enough, I picked out the game I wanted, paid for it at the counter, and left the store with a satisfied smile.
Even though I only bought one, it was the game I’d been eyeing since yesterday. I was torn on whether to buy it or not since I had already played it a lot before.
But I figured it wouldn’t hurt to see what this world’s version was like, so I decided to go for it.
Mission accomplished.
“Is that all?”
Yona, noticing how short my visit to the game store was, asked me.
But I nodded.
“Yeah, I think that’s enough. There are a lot of good games here, but if my computer can’t run them, it just hurts to look.”
“…If I weren’t so busy with club stuff, I’d want to play games too, Ren. I haven’t touched my console at home in ages either.”
So Yona plays games too, huh? As a girl in this world, I guess it’s pretty normal for her to have one or two consoles from childhood.
Knowing we were about to continue our outing, I put Skyrim in my bag.
“So... where are we going next?”
Hearing me ask, Yona smiled and reached into her bag.
“Hehe, I’m glad you’re looking forward to it. I told you it’s free, right? That’s because… my mom gave me this!”
Yona pulled out two rectangular papers.
Leaning closer, I tried to read the writing on them.
“Tickets for... an amusement park?”
“Exactly. My mom said she won them in a company lottery. Since my parents like relaxing at home on Sundays, she gave them to me.”
It’s been a long time since I went to an amusement park. Since my childhood was basically filled with games, I rarely went even when my parents invited me. My last memory of going to one was probably during an event featuring my favorite game character.
Still, I should probably thank Yona’s parents later… maybe. Though to be honest, I’d still feel kind of awkward meeting her mom.
Before I could respond to Yona, I suddenly felt my right hand—free until now—being held by hers.
Naturally, I was startled.
“What is it?”
“So... Um, Ren. We’re heading to a crowded place next, right? So I think … we should hold hands so we don’t get separated.”
I nearly choked, my brain not responding. It felt like time had stopped altogether.
Her hands on mine were warm. Not too tight, but firm enough that, for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to pull away.
But... it’s not like I have to let go, right?
“...You’re right. Let’s hold hands. It wouldn’t be funny if we suddenly got separated.”
“...”
For a brief moment, I saw her expression shift from nervousness—to pure joy.
And so, we walked toward the station again.
The day was still young, and our date was far from over. As we boarded the train, our hands remained held together.
But after the train started moving—why does my head feel a little dizzy?
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