Endless Chatters

Mitsuki and Nae went off to order there own thing, leaving me here along for a bit to collect my thoughts. Needless to say, the longer a celebrity like her stays with us, the more likely it is for people to recognize her. That'll become an issue for me, but I can't necessarily shoot her down either, especially when Nae wants her to come along.

Why is Mitsuki even tagging along? Doesn't she have better things to do? The more I thought about it, the more my head was hurting.

"Hey, bud," a stranger tapped on my shoulder and said. "Are you Yozora Noa?"

"Huh? Um... Who are you?"

"Just a random passerby. I think your name was called a while ago."

I looked over at the counter, where a lady was turning her head left and right while calling out my name.

"Oh," I mumbled. "Thank you, sir."

"Heh, not a problem."

I grabbed the takeout bag and began walking away. From behind, I heard the name of the man who helped me as the lady called it out.

"Sakuno?" she said.

"Here," the man replied.

For a moment, I turned around and saw him walking off with a black-haired woman after grabbing his order. He seemed like a nice guy.

I weaved my way through the bustling food court. The noise was overwhelming—people talking, trays clattering, chairs scraping against the floor. Times like these make me wish I had my headphones. I told myself I wouldn’t need them since Nae just wanted to grab some manga.

Who would’ve thought I’d run into Mitsuki? And that somehow led to us having lunch together. Hopefully, this doesn't take too long. It's not like I'm gonna do anything with the rest of my day. I just don't wanna do this.

"Brother!" Nae shouted.

I looked over my shoulder to see her waving at me. Mitsuki was sitting down next to her, and they both already had their food.

"What took you so long?" Nae asked as I sat down.

"The line was longer than I expected. What did you two get?"

"Look, look!"

She showed me her bento box, neatly organized with a variety of foods. The most noticeable was the pork cutlets on top of rice, all arranged so perfectly that it made me a little jealous.

I have to hold it back. One of the reasons I didn’t join them earlier was because Mitsuki offered to pay. As much as I appreciated the gesture, I didn’t wanna accept any kind of charity from her—or from any of them, really. I’m not sure why. I just don’t.

"Looks good," I said.

"What did you end up getting, Yozora?" Mitsuki asked.

I showed them my plate of fried rice mixed with thin sausage slices, and their expressions fell.

"You declined my offer... for this?" she muttered.

"What? This is my usual order whenever I eat here."

"Looks bland, just like you."

"Spoken like a true privileged woman who eats nothing but gourmet meals wherever she goes."

"Hey. I don't do that. You're just jealous that our food looks better than yours."

"Whatever."

I was about to scoop up a bit of my food until I saw Nae just sitting there, staring at us. Mitsuki noticed too, as she stopped herself from saying what foul words she had cocked and loaded.

"Nae?" I called out. "Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah... It's just... You two seem really close."

I swear I heard a vein pop just then, and it definitely wasn't mine.

"Little Nae..." Mitsuki smiled, though it was clearly forced. "I'm not sure what you mean, so could you tell me what gave you that idea?"

Nae lifted a finger to her chin. "Hm... Well, the way you guys talk to each other is kind of how I talk with my best friend. We throw around a bunch of insults, we rarely smile at each other, we always go back and forth. But, in the end, we still see each other just to do it all over again."

"That's not even the case," I sighed. "It's... It's just..."

The more I thought about it, the more it sounded kind of accurate. Every time Mitsuki and I see each other, there's no time for greetings. We just get straight to it, but she's the one who starts it. Likewise, we don't smile at each other, and when we do, it's more or less intended to mock the other person.

"Well, I guess we do seem kind of close, hm?" Mitsuki smirked. "Did you know that your brother is Sunayomi's personal assistant?"

"Eh? Eh?! Wait, what?! B-Brother... You're their assistant, and you never told me?"

I nearly spat my food out the moment I took a bite.

"Mitsuki. Hah... Seriously," I muttered. "Like, why? What's the point?"

She put on a playful smile. "Hehe. I just thought your reaction would be funny, and I was right. You're always gloomy and depressed, so it's nice to see you get flustered every now and then."

"You're part of the reason why I'm always gloomy and depressed."

"Aw, don't be like that. Little Nae here is a big fan of ours, isn't it? Wouldn't it be such a shame if she found out that her big brother doesn't feel the same way?"

Nae turned to look at me with big, anticipating eyes. What is this? She already knows how I feel about Sunayomi, and yet... It's as if she's expecting a different answer just because Mitsuki is here.

"They're alright," I said.

"W-wha..." they both mumbled.

"You know, Little Nae... Your big brother is kind of weird," Mitsuki said.

"I've always thought that," Nae replied. "How does a person live in this day and age without liking Sunayomi?"

"My thoughts exactly. He's always got this tired look on his face. What do you think we should do to cheer him up?"

"I mean, he get's to see Sunayomi every day. If he hasn't already, then I don't know what else we can do."

"Hm... True, true."

"Shut up. Both of you," I grumbled.

Finally, we got to eating, but that didn't stop Nae and Mitsuki from yapping away. Despite the age difference, they really do seem like longtime friends. At some point, I mentally checked out until they were done as well.

"I'm gonna run to the washroom real quick!" Nae shouted. "Don't leave without saying goodbye, Miss Mitsuki!"

"Don't worry. I won't."

Nae ran off into a little hallway that led to the washroom while Mitsuki and I hung around a small lounge area.

"Your little sister is so cute," Mitsuki scoffed. "I feel like she's exactly what I'd be if I wasn't an idol. No worries, no shame—just living in the moment. It's hard to believe that a lively girl like her is your sibling, Yozora."

"It is, isn't it?"

"How did you even end up the way you are when she's over here prancing around like an innocent child?"

"I wonder."

Mitsuki stepped over and stuck her head right in front of me, and I immediately stumbled back.

"Can you stop with the one-liners?" she sighed.

"W-what do you mean?"

"I'm talking about your lackluster responses to every question I ask you. Not just me, but all the other girls too. "

"It's just the way I am. I'm surprised you haven't gotten used to it yet.

"Just like how you haven't gotten used to being our assistant?"

"Well... Maybe."

Of course, she wasn't satisfied with that answer. It's not like I have a real reason why I keep my responses to a minimum. It really is just who I am and how I talk.

"Ah..." Mitsuki mumbled.

"Hm?"

Her eyes were suddenly fixed on something behind me, enough for her expression to shift entirely. My mind immediately jumped to the worst. The last time she did that, a fan had recognized her, and she was swarmed in a matter of seconds.

I turned around, bracing myself for it, but what I saw next shattered all the anxious that was built up just then. It was... an ice cream station.

"Ice... cream?" I said. "Did you wanna get one?"

"What? Of course not. As an idol, I need to watch my weight."

"One ice cream cone isn't gonna do anything to you."

"Yes, it will. I wouldn't expect you to understand."

"Hah. Suit yourself."