Chapter 33 – Operation: Roleplay Romance Café

If anyone ever says “Let’s all vote on it!” run.

Because that’s how Class 1-B went from “Christmas Café” to “Romance Fate Café Featuring Roleplay and Potential Secondhand Embarrassment.”

And guess who got chosen as co leader?

Yup, Me.

And of course... Airi.
“C’mon, it’s not that bad,” Daiki said, slapping me on the back as we helped set up the tables. “Think about it, Christmas, romance, costumes. This is peak romcom setup!”

“It’s peak disaster,” I muttered, watching Kenta hang fake mistletoe from literally everything that had a hook. Including the classroom clock.

“Don't knock it till you act it,” Kenta grinned. “Come on! It's about fate, love, and awkward confessions!”

…And chaos. Don’t forget chaos.

The idea was simple: customers draw a Romance Fate Card
like childhood friend, secret admirer, or one-sided crush and we, the café staff, have to roleplay the scene as their assigned character.

To make it worse, Airi and I were voted as the main pair for demos.

Because of course we were.

“‘You two have chemistry,’” I muttered, mimicking Daiki’s voice under my breath. “More like ‘you two have tension that's higher than Mt.Fuji.’”

“Still better than Mika and Kenta,” Daiki whispered, nodding toward Kenta, who was currently pretending to be a tsundere reindeer.
Mika looked like she wanted to disappear into the floor.

Meanwhile, Hina silently handed me a script with the title: ‘Scene: Secret Lovers Who Can’t Confess Before Christmas.’

I squinted at her. “Why is this so specific?”

Hina just looked at me. “No reason.”

Suspicious.

After two hours of setup and character assignments, Airi and I finally got a break.

We sat behind the counter, sipping cocoa from paper cups.

She was staring at her script. I was pretending not to.

“…You’re really reading it,” I said.

“I don’t want to mess it up,” she muttered.

“It's not a real confession, you know.”

“I know that,” she snapped, then paused. “…Still.”

She glanced at me, Our eyes met for a second before we both looked away.

Cue awkward silence.

“…So,” I started, trying to sound casual. “This whole... couple café thing... You think it’s dumb?”

“…A little,” she said. Then added, “But kind of fun, too.”

That... wasn’t the answer I expected.

She stared down into her cocoa. “Just saying, Not everything about this is annoying.”

I wasn’t sure if she meant the café, or... us.

Before I could ask, Daiki dropped into the seat next to me and slammed down a bag of candy canes.

“Emergency sugar supply,” he said. “For when people start fake confessing and then realizing maybe it’s not so fake.”

I stared at him. “…What are you talking about?”

“Nothing.” He stood up again. “Absolutely nothing. Carry on.”

Airi had a weird expression which to this day I still don't know what it is.

When rehearsal started, Airi and I stood in front of the class for the demo roleplay.

Kenta clapped like a proud parent, Hina somehow held up a sign that said CONFESS LIKE YOU MEAN IT in all caps.

“This is stupid,” I whispered to Airi.

She didn’t respond, She just looked at me and said, “…Let’s do it properly.”

Then she reached out, grabbed my sleeve, and went full drama mode.

“I’ve liked you since forever,” she said, eyes sparkling. “But I didn’t know how to say it... So I wrote you this letter. And… Merry Christmas.”

She held out a folded napkin.

The class went silent.

I just blinked. “You made up a new line?”

She turned red. “I-I improvised, okay?”

Kenta exploded into applause, Mika squealed, Even Hina smiled just a little.

“Alright, next couple!” Daiki shouted, stepping in before I could say anything else. “Good job, you two. Real couple energy.”

We stepped off to the side, still red faced. Airi stared straight ahead.

“…Why a letter?” I asked quietly.

She shrugged. “Because maybe… some things are easier when you write them.”

I wasn’t sure if she meant that as a joke or not.

After clean up, I walked home with Daiki and Hina trailing behind me like smug bodyguards.

“You gonna do it?” Daiki asked.

“Wh-what?!” I choked on my breath.

He laughed. “Come on, man. Do I have to say it?.”

“I… I dunno,” I muttered. “I was thinking maybe… Christmas…”

“Then don’t wait too long,” Hina added softly. “Fate cards or not, some things don’t come twice.”

That night, I found another note tucked in my pencil case.

It said:

“You better not chicken out before I do. Christmas is a race, dummy.”

I stared at it.

Then smiled.

Challenge accepted.

Yuuji’s Mental Diary – Day 33

Airi Status: Secretly plotting something again
Mental State: Emotionally flustered, romantically doomed
Hina & Daiki Wingman Power: Scary effective
Kenta’s Roleplay Rating: -15/10