After they'd all eaten, Miura Yumiko quickly proposed the next activity—clearly she'd planned things out in advance.
During dinner, she'd asked Shirase and Nakano Itsuki for their preferences. After learning neither of them cared for karaoke, she settled on the mall.
At first, Shirase assumed "mall" meant clothes and bags, which would make him and Hayama the designated bag carriers.
But when they arrived, he realized Yumiko actually wanted everyone to have fun, not just shop.
"Ugh, failed again! So close that time!"
Nakano Itsuki and Miura Yumiko stood in front of a claw machine, grumbling.
Shirase and Hayama watched a coin-pusher game nearby.
"You want to try this?" Hayama eyed the machine. "Thinking you can score easy money is pretty unrealistic—even if that pile of coins looks tempting."
"I don't do guaranteed-loss activities," Shirase said, with no intention of playing.
Even though a big heap of coins teetered at the edge, as if one push would send them tumbling.
"Well, trying once or twice won't hurt," Hayama said lightly.
Shirase shook his head. "Forget it. Compared to this, pachinko looks way more interesting."
Hayama burst out laughing. "Come on, that's actual gambling. We're in high school—we shouldn't mess with it."
"I was only half serious," Shirase shrugged.
In truth, he was genuinely curious about pachinko—Sakata Gintoki's favorite pastime.
"Hayato! Your turn to shine!" Yumiko waved them over from the claw machine.
The girls had failed five times in a row; with each attempt, their confidence fell further.
"I'm not exactly a claw pro," Hayama said with a smile, stepping up to the controls.
Itsuki immediately started venting to Shirase. "There's something wrong with these machines! Yumiko-san and I tried two different ones and still failed every single time."
Shirase rubbed his chin. "I'm no expert, but I read that the success rate can be adjusted. If the shop's stingy, you might have to spend a fortune to win anything."
Itsuki puffed her cheeks. "I knew it! So it's not our skills—it's these crooked machines!"
Shirase chuckled. So you came to me for validation, just to make blaming the machine easier, huh?
Her scapegoat plan fell apart fast.
Hayama tried twice and promptly snagged a panda plushie.
He glanced back at Shirase. "Want a turn?"
Shirase was about to refuse, but out of the corner of his eye he caught Itsuki's hopeful look. He changed his mind. "Alright, just once."
The moment he agreed, Itsuki happily followed him to the machine.
"I want that starfish!" she said, already fishing out coins.
"I'll try." Shirase lined up the claw. "If the success rate isn't rigged, it's just judgment and reflexes."
Itsuki eyed him. "You sound awfully professional… You sure you're not bluffing?"
"Question me again and I won't help."
"…"
Flustered, she mumbled, "Of course I support you…"
"Did you skip dinner? Why are you whispering?" he asked, eyes fixed on the claw.
Itsuki bit her lip, so annoyed she almost wanted to kick him.
"Oh. Got it."
At his calm announcement, all her irritation vanished. She watched, wide-eyed, as the claw gripped the starfish plush perfectly.
As it lifted and slid toward the chute, she held her breath.
Thump.
It fell cleanly.
Itsuki scooped it up and hugged it to her chest, beaming.
Shirase put on a solemn face. "See? That's the difference between a claw-machine pro and mere mortals."
"Yes, yes, you're amazing," Itsuki said sweetly. Whatever—she'd gotten her plush; he could brag all he wanted.
"You're still doubting me, aren't you?"
"No way! I'm praising you!"
"Then why's your smile so weird?"
"This is a normal smile, Shirase-san."
"You switched to 'Shirase-san'—that means you're nervous… See? Now you're laughing nervously."
"Idiot."
Watching them, Yumiko whispered to Hayama, a little envious, "They get along so well, Hayato. Do you think they're already…?"
She didn't finish, but her expression made the meaning clear.
Hayama shook his head with a helpless smile. "I don't know. This is honestly the first time I've seen Shirase this close to any girl."
Then his tone shifted slightly as he looked at her. "By the way, Yumiko, you seem unusually friendly with Nakano Itsuki-san today."
"Really? You must be imagining it," she said quickly.
Hayama chuckled and let it go.
Yumiko turned away, a touch guilty. She had been extra friendly with Itsuki—friendly enough to want to be close.
When she'd first seen Itsuki's curves, she'd been rattled.
Yumiko was a beauty herself, great looks and a great figure. In the right outfit she'd be a full-on gyaru.
But Nakano Itsuki was different. Even without dressing to kill, she was, in Yumiko's eyes, naturally "insanely spicy."
Fortunately, Itsuki's attention was glued to Shirase. Once Yumiko regained her confidence, she decisively treated Itsuki like a sister—partly because she sensed Itsuki's special connection to Shirase, partly because Hayama was interested in Shirase as a friend.
As long as the four of them became close… well, proximity worked its magic.
"Hey, should we take some photos to commemorate today?" Yumiko pointed at a nearby photo booth.
Shirase glanced over. Those booths had vanished from China years ago, but here they were still popular—now with beauty filters and effects.
"Photos?" Itsuki's eyes lit up. With four friends together, there was no room for misunderstandings.
But Yumiko's real plan slipped out. "First we'll do one with all four of us, then we'll pair off—boy-girl pairs, of course."
Itsuki's face went scarlet. Wasn't that practically a couple's photo?
She sneaked a look at Shirase—only to find him staring, laser-focused, at a nearby pachinko machine, muttering, "Pachinko, huh… Pachinko…"
Are pachinko machines really all you care about right now?!
Flushed, Itsuki shot him an indignant glare.
---
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