Hearing Hayashi Shuichi call her lazy and stupid, Yukiko couldn't take it anymore. She abruptly ripped off her sunglasses and slammed them onto the table with a loud thwack.
Accompanying the crisp sound was her angry, questioning shout: "In what way am I lazy? Where am I stupid? And when have I ever been just preening?"
After firing off her questions, she suddenly noticed the amused look in Hayashi Shuichi's eyes.
Yukiko paused slightly, finally realizing the truth. "Y-You recognized me?"
"How could I not?" The corners of Shuichi's mouth curled up. "If you wanted to come back, just come back. Why disguise yourself as a customer?"
"Bullying me again..." Yukiko pouted and muttered softly. She then took off her hat. "I thought you were angry because I went off to film, so I wanted to see how things were first."
"What is there to be angry about?" Shuichi shook his head with a laugh. "Although customer traffic has dropped temporarily, when you become famous in the future, won't you bring even more customers to the shop? Or are you saying that after you went to film, you didn't plan on coming back?"
"Of course I'm coming back!" Yukiko said hurriedly, then asked in confusion, "Since you weren't angry, why did you say earlier, 'If Yukiko really wanted to cling to me, she wouldn't have gone to Takasaki to film'?"
"That was..." Shuichi was just about to explain when Kisaki Eri and Reiko, having seen the girl's face clearly, walked over.
"Yukiko-nee!" Reiko cheered excitedly and rushed into the girl's arms.
Eri, on the other hand, frowned slightly and let out a cold snort. "Back already? You weren't fired by the production crew, were you?"
"That's impossible!" Yukiko lifted her chin triumphantly, her eyes full of pride. "I'm very popular with the crew. I nailed many of my audition scenes in one take. Even the director kept praising my talent for acting!"
"Yukiko-nee, then why did you have to be so sneaky when you came back?" Reiko looked up and complained. "I thought a bad person had come into the shop."
"Well..."
Yukiko gave a dry laugh, a trace of embarrassment flashing across her face. There were some things she could say to Hayashi Shuichi, but couldn't say to others. She quickly changed the subject.
"By the way, did something happen to 'Four-Eyes' these past few days? Why does she look a bit strange?"
"Yukiko-nee, you noticed it too?" Reiko agreed. "I also think something is off. It's like Eri-nee suddenly... became more mature?"
"...What nonsense are you talking about? That's just your imagination," a hint of unnaturalness flashed across Eri's face, and her eyes dodged theirs. "Since you're back, hurry up and get to work. We're short-handed anyway!"
After saying that, she turned around and hurriedly went to settle the bill for a customer, her retreating figure looking somewhat flustered.
Seeing Yukiko's gaze turn toward him, Hayashi Shuichi immediately felt a bit guilty. "Eri is right. Let's take care of tonight's business first. We can talk about other things later."
With that, he also rushed toward the cooking counter, his steps urgent, as if trying to escape Yukiko's scrutiny.
"So suspicious..."
Yukiko glanced at Hayashi Shuichi, then at Kisaki Eri, narrowing her eyes slightly. Her gaze held a trace of suspicion. She was becoming more and more certain that something must have happened between these two.
"Hey, Reiko, has there been anything unusual about Shuichi lately?"
"What could be unusual about Big Brother?" Reiko tilted her head slightly, looking puzzled. "Other than him hiding the fact that he went to Tsukikage Island with Eri-nee yesterday."
"Oh, I know about that," Yukiko waved her hand indifferently.
"What? You know too?" Reiko gritted her teeth and waved her small fist in anger, her face full of dissatisfaction. "So I'm the only one who didn't know? Big Brother is too much!"
"You can't really blame Shuichi for that..." Yukiko realized she had let something slip, and a trace of panic flashed in her eyes.
That was part of her deal with Kisaki Eri; she wouldn't make a fuss about Shuichi taking Eri to Tsukikage Island.
In exchange, Hayashi Shuichi had to take leave from school to drive her to the film set.
Seeing the little girl's enthusiastic attitude toward her, it seemed the fact that Shuichi drove her to the set hadn't been exposed yet.
Otherwise, if Reiko found out her brother had driven her to the set and nearly got buried in a landslide on the way back...
Given this little girl's personality, she probably would have hated Yukiko to death by now.
Thinking of this, Yukiko quickly tried to salvage the situation. "When Miss Tomizawa Suzuki came to the store last time, you just happened to be out. Shuichi probably forgot to tell you, hehe..."
"Your reaction is a bit off too, Yukiko-nee!" Reiko narrowed her eyes slightly, a hint of wariness in her gaze. "Normally, hearing this, shouldn't you be joining me in denouncing Eri-nee? But your reaction is so bland. Are you two..."
This little girl is really sharp...
Yukiko quickly laughed it off, plastering a smile on her face and clapping her hands. "Shuichi is right, let's take care of the shop's business first. I'm going to get changed now."
"Damn it, everyone is hiding things from me!" Reiko looked at the girl's back, biting her lip in annoyance, her face full of grievance.
Just as Yukiko finished changing, Mouri Kogoro walked into the shop, beaming with joy. "Shuichi, your method really worked! Once Ruri saw that I had called her so many times, she really didn't blame me anymore..."
Speaking up to this point, he finally noticed the girl who had returned and paused slightly. "Yukiko, you're back?"
"Yeah," the girl nodded and scolded him, "The shop is short-handed, where did you run off to?"
"Sorry," Kogoro hurriedly pulled on his work clothes in a panic and started working.
With the shop's traffic down, the only reason they had been overwhelmed was the lack of staff. Now that Yukiko and Mouri Kogoro had started working, Hayashi Shuichi instantly relaxed.
"Hey," Yukiko took advantage of a quiet moment to nudge Hayashi Shuichi with her elbow. "Did something really not happen between you and 'Four-Eyes'?"
"You've asked this question several times already," Shuichi shook his head helplessly. "What do you think happened between us?"
"How would I know!" Yukiko glanced at Eri sitting behind the register not far away and muttered softly, "I just feel she's different from before. Could it be that her chest has finally started developing..."
"Yes, I did that..." Shuichi casually went along with her words, but halfway through, he realized something was wrong. A look of awkwardness appeared on his face. "No, wait, not 'did', I mean 'rubbed'... no, that's not right either..."
"So it is true! Between you two, sure enough..." Yukiko looked at Eri in the distance unwillingly.
Thinking about how she still had to stay with the production crew for two or three months—such a long time away—and considering Hayashi Shuichi and Kisaki Eri were childhood friends to begin with, their relationship would inevitably...
The more Yukiko thought about it, the more threatened she felt. Looking at Hayashi Shuichi, who was sitting down for a temporary rest, the girl gritted her teeth, a trace of resolve flashing in her eyes. Fine! You can't catch the lover if you spare the first kiss!
She absolutely could not let that "Four-Eyes" completely snatch Hayashi Shuichi away while she was gone.
With this thought in mind, Yukiko patted Shuichi on the shoulder. "We're out of onions. Go get some from the storeroom."
"Don't you know where the onions are kept?" Shuichi frowned.
"I've been gone for a week. Who knows if you moved things around?" Yukiko urged. "Hurry up and go."
"Alright!" Shuichi nodded resignedly and got up to walk to the storeroom.
As soon as he entered the room, he noticed someone following him in. Turning his head, he saw it was actually Yukiko.
"You..." Shuichi started to speak, but saw the girl turn around and swiftly lock the storeroom door from the inside.
"What are you..." Shuichi looked surprised.
"I don't want to lose to 'Four-Eyes', or that Miss Vineyard. Last time in the sports car, you guys definitely did something, right?"
Yukiko bit her lip, stepped forward actively, wrapped her arms around Hayashi Shuichi's neck, and clumsily offered her lips.
"Mmph..."
In his heart, Hayashi Shuichi actually wanted to refuse. After all, they were in the izakaya right now. If Eri and Reiko saw them, he would definitely be tormented so much tonight that sleep would be impossible.
But feeling the girl's precarious emotions, he knew that if he refused, there was no telling what Yukiko would think.
Thinking of this, Shuichi let go of his reservations and began to respond actively.
Although Yukiko had heard some kissing experiences from her best friend Takahashi Yuka and had seen plenty in movies and TV shows, she had never practiced it herself.
Before this, her boldest move toward Hayashi Shuichi had merely been actively kissing him on the cheek.
Hayashi Shuichi didn't have much experience either, but he couldn't help that he had had too many opportunities to practice recently.
Once he took the lead, Yukiko was quickly kissed into a daze.
Just as she felt her head spinning, she suddenly felt a cold hand slip under her clothes, moving with practiced ease straight for the clasp on the back of her bra!
Stimulated by the cold hand, Yukiko's fuzzy consciousness instantly cleared up significantly.
Her eyes snapped open wide. Remembering something suddenly, she immediately pushed Hayashi Shuichi away.
"What's wrong?" Shuichi asked in surprise.
"That was my first kiss," the girl kept a straight face, her eyes holding a trace of dissatisfaction and grievance.
"I could feel that," Shuichi nodded, not understanding the issue.
"Before, when I got close to you, you would get nervous and uncomfortable. But what about now?"
Yukiko's eyes turned red as she questioned him angrily.
"I originally thought that even if something happened between you and 'Four-Eyes' during this week, it would at most be hugging and cuddling. But just now... why were you so skilled! During this time, just how many times have you and 'Four-Eyes' kissed lately?"
"Well..."
Hayashi Shuichi gave a dry laugh, just about to find an excuse to gloss over it.
But the girl, eyes red, had already opened the storeroom door and ran out.
Shuichi hurriedly chased after her, only to see the girl run out of the shop without looking back.
"Shuichi, what's wrong with Yukiko?" Mouri Kogoro, who was standing at the door greeting customers, asked in surprise. "She seemed to be crying just now. Did you make her angry?"
"We're closing for tonight," Shuichi didn't even take off his chef's uniform before rushing out to chase her.
"Closing?" Kogoro was stunned, a look of astonishment on his face.
"Both chefs have run off, what business is there to do!" Eri untied her apron with a blank expression. "I'm going back too."
"...Me too," Reiko huffed unhappily. "I'm going back upstairs as well."
"You two, at least hold on for a little longer, don't leave now! There are still customers in the shop..."
Mouri Kogoro watched helplessly as the two girls walked out of the izakaya. He felt completely numb. Everything was fine, so how did it suddenly turn into this?
...
When Yukiko ran out, she was still wearing the shop's uniform. At night, a beautiful girl running on the road dressed like that was naturally very conspicuous.
It didn't take much effort for Hayashi Shuichi to find her in a nearby small park.
The small park was empty at night. Yukiko was sitting on a swing with her head down, looking lonely. She wasn't swinging, just staring blankly at the ground beneath her feet, lost in thought.
Shuichi quietly walked up behind her and gave the swing a push.
The girl yelped in surprise and hurriedly reached out to grab the ropes on both sides.
"Kogoro said you were crying," Shuichi leaned over to look. "There are tear stains on your face. Did you really cry?"
"None of your business!"
Yukiko swung her legs in annoyance, wanting to kick Hayashi Shuichi, but instead, her ankle was caught directly by him.
"Don't think about kicking people while sitting on a swing. Be careful, you might flash someone."
Yukiko kept a stern face, pulling hard to retract her foot, but she couldn't budge it at all.
"Let go!"
"No!"
"Hayashi Shuichi!"
"What?"
"Y-You're already with 'Four-Eyes'," Yukiko's voice trembled slightly, her eyes full of grievance and anger. "Why did you come looking for me? I had just made up my mind to ignore you forever!"
"I don't know either," Shuichi let go of the girl's ankle, looked into her eyes, and said with full sincerity, "Seeing you run out just now, I suddenly felt a wave of worry. I felt like you were gone for good, so I chased after you..."
"You..."
Seeing that his expression didn't seem fake, and thinking of her time with Hayashi Shuichi, Yukiko's heart trembled. The resolve she had just hardened immediately began to waver.
Her expression shifted for a while before she suddenly asked, "Don't lie to me. You and her... exactly how far have you gone?"
If this jerk dares to say he slept with 'Four-Eyes', then I really will never speak to him again!
Yukiko swore secretly in her heart.
"Compared to you," Shuichi awkwardly thought about his wording, then gestured with his fingers, "We went a little deeper?"
A little deeper?
She had just kissed him. Going deeper would mean being touched by him a few times, right?
No wonder this jerk was so skilled at unhooking a bra earlier, and he even said 'Four-Eyes' was rubbed bigger by him!
Thinking of this, Yukiko clenched her fist and hammered Hayashi Shuichi hatefully a few times.
How could she have guessed that the "a little deeper" Hayashi Shuichi mentioned was in the physical sense, and not just a figure of speech as she had imagined?
"...Not angry anymore?" Shuichi asked cautiously.
"Hmph, if I kissed another boy, you..." Before Yukiko could finish, she was interrupted by Hayashi Shuichi.
"If anyone dares to kiss you, I'll knock every single tooth out of his mouth!"
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