For Some Reason The Girl Who's Too Popular Only Drinks with Me - Volume 1 Chapter 2.4

June arrived. My rotation of casual clothes changed slightly, becoming lighter than before, but due to my forgetfulness about the rainy season, I often found myself feeling chilly and occasionally experiencing stomachaches.

“Today, we got some good whiskey.”

Our usual drinking session started at the circle’s favorite dining bar, “Gwendolyn.”

Hamasaki Mai engaged in casual conversation, with Sugino-senpai responding in kind. Occasionally, the conversation shifted to Sugino-senpai or Mikami-senpai, and I merely listened to the three of them talk. I didn’t mind. In fact, I’m somewhat relieved since I don’t really have any interesting topics to offer.

“Whiskey, is it? Is it a good one?”

Hamasaki Mai reacted to Sugino-senpai’s smug look. “Well, yeah,” Sugino-senpai said, standing up.

She spoke to the bartender at the counter and paid on the spot. The bartender accepted the money and handed a bottle of liquor from the shelf behind to Sugino-senpai.

Sugino-senpai returned with a bottle adorned with a label that screamed luxury.

“Sorry to keep you waiting~”

“This feels insanely expensive…”

“Really? It’s quite reasonable. Cheers~”

The expensive whiskey was carelessly opened right in front of us. Mikami-senpai and Hamasaki Mai, seated next to me, seemed indifferent about the whiskey’s price, cheerfully accepting their drinks with a “Cheers~”.

Before accepting the drink, I scrutinized the label and searched the brand on my phone. I browsed through one or two online shopping sites, and the number of zeros attached to the price made me freeze. It was definitely not an amount a student could casually afford.

“Aren’t you drinking, Kirishima-kun?”

Sugino-senpai swirled the whiskey. Please don’t handle it like that. It might spill.

“Um, then, I’ll have some.”

“Cheers~”

I received the whiskey from Sugino-senpai. The amber liquid emitted a rich aroma, and after knowing its price, it seemed to exude an even greater sense of luxury.

I hesitantly sipped the whiskey poured into the rock glass. The flavor exploded in my mouth, and as I swallowed, my throat felt warmly scorched.

I’m not averse to alcohol, in fact, I quite like it, but I honestly can’t distinguish tastes that well. They mostly taste good to me, and I don’t really get the finer flavors. However, this particular whiskey felt delicious. It had a strong presence, a robust flavor that wasn’t unpleasant.

“Man, the high price does make it delicious.”

Mikami-senpai muttered his impression while staring at the glass. Despite saying it was delicious, he didn’t go for a second round, returning to his usual umeshu rock. Well, Mikami-senpai does have a taste for liquor, but he has preferences and isn’t that strong of a drinker, so this whiskey probably didn’t suit him.

“Mm, this is delicious. I quite like this.”

Hamasaki Mai, sitting across from me, happily drank the whiskey. Having drunk with her several times, I’ve realized that Hamasaki Mai is quite the alcohol enthusiast. Not that she has a particular favorite, but she seems to drink anything available. Since Sugino-senpai brought various types of alcohol, she usually comments “delicious” or “I like this~”, so her saying this whiskey is delicious didn’t evoke any particular feelings in me. Just like her, I continued drinking as usual.

“By the way, have the approaches from the tennis club calmed down?”

As we continued drinking, the conversation shifted to the tennis club Hamasaki Mai used to belong to.

While various students pleaded to join our circle, the president of her former tennis club was different.

He kept approaching her, wanting her to return to the tennis club, and Hamasaki Mai, with a troubled smile, declined every time politely.

“Well, sort of…”

Hamasaki Mai gave a wry smile and emptied her glass of whiskey.

Seeing her smile, I suddenly remembered a recent memory.

Walking through the university corridor, I saw Hamasaki Mai surrounded by girls and the tennis club president surrounded by boys. He was begging Hamasaki Mai to return, causing quite a stir. Didn’t he realize that would only make it harder for her to return?

It didn’t seem like he had given up at all. He might continue to bother her in the future.

“I’ve heard a bit about those guys, and they’re probably persistent. Or rather, even if you clearly reject them, they might become even more fired up.”

“That’s… something I thought too…”

Hamasaki Mai sighed and poured more whiskey into her glass. So, dealing with such troublesome people is this bothersome, I thought as I drank, secretly impressed.

With my facial deviation value and communication skills both below average, being a level 2 human, such stories are unfamiliar to me. Well, it’s her business, so I probably have nothing to say.

“Hey, Mikami-senpai, what do you think we should do? If things continue like this, that guy might become a stalker, and our cute Mai-chan will be victimized. Someone might even steal her underwear.”

“Why do we have to worry about such things? Next time he comes close, just hit him with a stun gun.”

“That’s not good. You have to do it without getting caught.”

“You’re sending an electric shock, it’ll be noticed no matter how hard you try. Ah, maybe that’s it. Find a girl that guy will like more than Hamasaki.”

“More than Mai-chan?”

That would mean finding a woman more attractive than Hamasaki Mai. Honestly, I can hardly imagine that. Where one finds charm varies from person to person, but that sounds quite difficult.

What I think about Hamasaki Mai is irrelevant now. This is purely an objective discussion, but Hamasaki Mai is beautiful.

Her well-proportioned face, her height that doesn’t crush a man’s pride, and her bright, approachable personality. Her liking for cooking also scores points. This is all an objective perspective.

A woman more attractive than her. Honestly, I can’t really picture it. Well, in my case, it’s not like I have a wealth of experience with women to begin with, so I don’t have much to say.

“Hmm, should I attack the tennis club president then?”

Sugino-senpai suggests as she drinks. It’s probably better to stop her. After being rejected by Hamasaki Mai and then getting trashed by Sugino-senpai, I feel sorry for the guy, even as a fellow man.

“Stop it, if you attack him, I honestly feel sorry for him.”

Mikami-senpai says, gazing off into the distance, attempting to stop Sugino-senpai. He’s probably imagining the tennis club president, approached by Sugino-senpai, ending up unconscious and naked in the middle of a pedestrian bridge in the city.

Hamasaki Mai, envisioning the same grim future for him, lowered her gaze and nodded.

“Aww, it won’t be like that. I’ll make sure we have fun.”

Seeing our reactions, Sugino-senpai laughs heartily while downing her drink. It seems she has no intention of entertaining her target.

“But if he gets too persistent, let me know. I know a simple way to drive him off.”

Sugino-senpai smiles warmly at Hamasaki Mai. I can only hope that news of a missing university student doesn’t surface anytime soon.