Kato Yusuke asked casually: "Teacher, who did you mention before, who was the teacher who was originally in the same group as you?"
"Um?"
Hasumi Kanoko stirred the Matcha Frappuccino in the cup with a straw, smiled slightly and said, "It's Mr. Nakamura."
Before Yusuke, who was slightly stunned, could ask, she took the initiative to explain, "But because he is still in Okinawa, he can't come back yet."
There was a gap of one or two seconds.
Kato Yusuke twitched the corners of his mouth and said: "...Does that mean you were actually unilaterally forced to stay alone? This is a bit too much for you."
"No, no~ It doesn't matter. It's not a big deal anyway. Besides, Kato-kun is with us."
The other party waved his hand and said: "And if it were Mr. Nakamura, he would probably have missed this shopping trip. Although there was a little accident, I feel very happy."
Then he tilted his head slightly to one side, thought for a while and said: "Huh? If you think about it this way, maybe Mr. Nakamura's inability to come back unexpectedly turned out to be a good thing. In addition, as a gift of help, he also said that he would bring us local
Souvenirs are back.”
"It's a souvenir of Okinawa." Yusuke Kato frowned slightly and said, "If it's bitter melon, just take it all."
"Huh? Isn't your reaction too exaggerated, Kato-kun?"
"To be honest, I just don't like natto and bitter melon."
"Hey, but I heard that you brought a lunch box to school..."
"Although it's not impossible, my girlfriend usually helps me make my lunch boxes. Whether I eat these two things depends on the situation."
"Eh--?"
"Except when we first started dating, if these two things appear in the lunch box later, it probably means that there is something about me that makes her unhappy."
Having said this, Kato Yusuke showed a soft knowing smile on his face, and his expression looked very warm.
"That's it..."
Teacher Hasumi who was sitting opposite couldn't help but look at him, holding the straw with his green-white fingers, and then asked with a smile: "Why didn't you bring your girlfriend today? Kato-san."
Kato Yusuke, who took a sip of black tea and coffee, nodded and responded: "After all, we are here for work, so it doesn't feel good. In addition, her temperament is also... reserved, so we didn't come together."
After thinking for a moment, he finally replaced the word "shy" with "reserved."
For Sayu, it's not that she's not good at getting along with others, but it's because of her nature... or the influence of her growth environment.
Not only is he very good at reading people's faces, but he also has a very sensitive antenna for sensing other people's atmosphere or expressions.
Therefore, if you really want to interact with others, although you are not a good dancer, you will not easily arouse the dislike of others.
Just like when she first met Yusuke, the girl has a typical pleasing personality.
But after they met day and night for nearly half a year, they got along.
Even though he was once very indifferent to everything around him, he gradually became enlightened under the influence of the other party.
It would be fair to describe the relationship between the two as being dependent on each other.
Kato Yusuke was thinking about this in confusion.
Teacher Hasumi nodded in understanding, brought the straw to his lips, and sucked it in.
Click, click, click
The ice cubes made a sound as they collided with the wall of the cup, and the cool Matcha Frappuccino was slowly sucked into her mouth through the straw.
"Huh...it's so cold."
The other person let go of the straw with a "pop" sound and let out a light breath.
A nude lip mark immediately appeared on the front part of the transparent straw, which was exactly the same as the lipstick on the red lips of its owner.
Inexplicably a little sexy.
"but."
Hasumi Kanoko took out tissues from the small lady's bag she carried cross-body, took one out and wiped her lips.
He smiled bitterly and said, "I really didn't expect to meet Kato-san and the others here. Should I say it's because it's so close to Tokyo?"
"Is this..." Kato Yusuke's eyes flashed twice and he said yes, but in the end he did not tell anyone about the invitation before the holiday.
It should be said that he himself did not expect that he would collide with Hui and his party on the same day, and the Mangkhut brothers did not tell him this specifically for some well-known reasons.
That's why this kind of coincidence occurs.
But as Mr. Hasumi said, Saitama City is only a 40-minute drive from Tokyo.
Since such a large shopping mall has been newly opened, the prices are relatively cheap, and it is summer vacation, it will naturally attract people to shop here.
Although he didn't think there was any problem, in order to avoid complications, Kato Yusuke decided to finish shopping as soon as possible and then go home.
I took out the floor map and studied it for a while.
Considering that the girls said they were going to the store on North Street, he decided to change his original plan to go to a store in the same direction and instead go to a comprehensive store on South Street.
Although the variety of products there is not as comprehensive as that of professional stationery stores, you can still buy some basic items. Even if there are some items that you cannot buy, you can still buy them again when you return to Tokyo.
So I prepared to tell Teacher Hasumi my thoughts.
At this moment--
"Kato...classmate?"
A gentle and gentle voice faintly came into my ears.
Although the sound was not loud, it made people feel dazed for a moment.
The surrounding noise seemed to quiet down instantly.
Immediately afterwards——
"——Ah! It's indeed Hasumi-sensei."
Teacher Renjian's body couldn't help but stiffen, a moment of panic flashed in his eyes, and then he turned around with a puzzled and slightly confused expression.
He opened his eyes slightly in surprise, "Hey, Himekawa-san, and Kato-san? Are you here to buy things too?"
There was nothing unusual about the expression of surprise followed by a bit of curiosity, just like an accidental encounter.
Kato Yusuke, who witnessed this scene, couldn't help but secretly praise this astute reaction.
But when I think about it, this place is different from the predicament in the fitting room just now. Even if the two of them are seen together, there is a good reason to explain it.
It is reasonable for the other party to behave this way.
Then she turned around a beat slower than her, and the sight that caught her eye caused someone's pupils to dilate and then shrink in an instant, and she felt a moment of astonishment in her heart.
Two girls were standing not far away, looking at them.
One wears a translucent white lace short-sleeved top over a bright-colored vest, and wears a slightly larger sailor hat on her head. The thighs exposed from under the mini skirt of her lower body directly show off her fair and eye-catching complexion.
Outside.
Look youthful and beautiful.
As for Ling one, she was wearing a printed short-sleeve shirt and denim shorts.
But this was not the reason for his surprise.
What really stopped Kato Yusuke's thoughts was that the former's long black hair, which had originally grown to the back of his shoulders, had now returned to the short hair it had when he first saw it.
There was a moment of silence in my heart.
Then he quickly adjusted his mood.
He greeted the two of them in the same tone as usual: "...Good morning, Kako, Megumi."
The girl whose name was called moved her black eyes and nodded in response: "Well, good morning. Kato-san."
What followed was a blank silence.
Neither party spoke for a while.
Kako on the side looked at him for a while and then at Hui, her brows couldn't help but frown slightly, as if she was thinking about something.
Seeing this, Teacher Renmi intervened at the right time: "Well, since it's a rare encounter, would you like to sit down and have something to drink first?"
"Thank you, teacher! Then I'll excuse you." Kako responded happily, and then without any explanation, she took the girl next to her and sat down in front of the round table.
I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional.
She helped Kei sit next to Yusuke, while Kako herself sat next to Hasumi Kanoko.
Kato Yusuke moved his chair a little further in the opposite direction to make more space, but she gave her a fierce look.
Someone seemed unaware of this and just stood up from his seat holding on to the armrest, "What do you want to drink? I'll buy it."
"Then I want the Vanilla Frappuccino." Kako glanced at their cups and said, then turned her eyes aside, "Where are you, Xiaohui?"
"Well, just a cup of mocha, thank you."
"You're welcome." After writing down the drink, Kato Yusuke nodded to Teacher Hasumi and walked towards Starbucks.
About ten minutes later.
After buying the drink, he returned to his seat.
I heard Teacher Hasumi asking: "Speaking of which, why did Kato-san want to cut his hair? Long hair suits you very well."
"Sure enough! Even the teacher thinks so, right!?" Kako nodded her head and echoed: "They say you are too wasteful, Xiaohui. Won't you lose your presence in school like this?"
Then he seemed to have thought of something and asked: "I said, although I asked you when I was at the station, is there really no reason? For example, it is because of a broken love..."
While talking, he looked towards Kato Yusuke intentionally or unintentionally, but the other person's expression was as straight as a lake, making it difficult to see through what was going on in his heart.
The girl waved her hands and responded: "No. If I have to say, I just think this is more suitable for me."
During this time, his eyes were not directed toward anyone.
Yusuke then shared the drinks between the two of them.
"Your Mocha and Vanilla Frappuccino."
"Thank you."
"Thank you, how much is that?" Hui turned around and tried to take out her wallet from her bag.
Kato Yusuke shook his head at this, "It's okay, no need."
Then he silently drank the coffee he had left on the table.
It's just that some people don't want to let him go so easily.
"So what do you think, Kato-san? Megumi's new hairstyle." Kako said bluntly as she inserted the straw into the drink.
"It depends on what kind of Kato-san she likes. It's more important to express your own thoughts, right?"
"Ah, this is not an answer at all, is it? Let's put it another way." The other party asked: "Just speaking from your personal point of view. The long-haired version of Xiaohui or the short-haired version of Xiaohui, which one do you like better?
?”
This kind of question full of language traps made Kato Yusuke frown.
As soon as these words came out, not only Teacher Hasumi cast a subtle look, but even the girl herself couldn't help but look at him, and then reached out to pull the hem of Kako's clothes in an attempt to stop the topic.
It's a pity that the other party didn't respond. He just stared at Yusuke for a moment, as if he was exerting pressure with his eyes.
Kato Yusuke pondered "Hmm...", picked up the cup and took two sips of coffee, and then said casually: "Whether you have long hair or short hair, I shouldn't be the one to comment on this kind of thing, right?"
?”
There was no fluctuation in his voice, just like his calm face.
There was silence for ten to fifteen seconds.
Several people chewed these words silently in their hearts, and each gained something.
Then——
"You lied. And..." Jiazi suddenly sneered, "Aren't you the one who said that long hair is more suitable for Xiaohui in the first place?"
Kato Yusuke did not argue, but simply replied: "As I said just now, this kind of thing depends on one's own wishes, and other people's thoughts are not important."
"But you-"
"Now, it's ready, isn't it, Kako?"
Megumi on the side interjected: "I just cut my hair short because I wanted to. This matter has nothing to do with Kato-san, so don't interpret it specifically."
Then he looked at Yusuke on the left, "I'm sorry for causing you any trouble."
Kato Yusuke shook his head and whispered no.
"Speak of it."
Teacher Hasumi, who was sitting opposite, smiled and said, "It would be a bit monotonous if you drink coffee all the time. Why don't you, teacher, invite you to eat together?"
"Eh? Want to eat...?" Hui couldn't help but tilt his head slightly after hearing this.
"Yes, you can eat whatever you want! What do you think, Kato-kun?"
Hui: "Yes?"
"No, you are calling me."
Kato Yusuke looked at the time on his phone and said what the girl wanted to say: "It may be a bit early to have lunch now, but let's wait until we finish shopping, teacher."
As he spoke, he showed the phone screen to the other party. The digital clock on it clearly displayed the time [10:30].
The three of them also saw a photo of a certain girl on the lock screen at the same time.
Hassan Kanoko's eyes moved, and Megumi quickly looked away.
"Speaking of which..."
Yoshiko, who heard the familiar tone of the two people, couldn't help but ask: "Why are Mr. Hasumi and Mr. Kato here today?"
"……Huh?"
Teacher Hasumi took a leisurely sip of the drink and said slowly: "Well, actually, it was because the teacher wanted to purchase the materials needed for the sports festival, and Kato-san also wanted to buy things for the student union, so he was asked to help.
.”
"Hmm... do you want to buy something?"
His eyes naturally moved down and landed on the bright orange bag behind the opponent.
Before she could react, Kako, who seemed to have discovered something, raised her head with blinking eyes, and blurted out involuntarily: "Well——! Could it be that you two are dating??"
After speaking, he immediately covered his mouth and his eyes widened, as if he realized the inappropriateness of his words.