Ranobe Mo Ore Mo Sukina Gyaru - Volume 1 Chapter 10.3

Gal and the Bakery 3

Saying words like that, Tsumakawa-san playfully hit my shoulder as usual.

However, her punch today lacked the usual strength, and it was more like a gentle tap, making a soft sound.

” ….. “

Is she getting a bit too fixated on someone like me…?

If Tsumakawa-san were to have a boyfriend, she’d likely be quite possessive… She might end up erasing all the contacts of other girls from his phone.

——No, stop! I didn’t back up any data, so please don’t delete my contacts!

…Uh, I apologize for interrupting the flow of the narrative, but I need to correct myself here.

Earlier, Ryosuke Yoda reacted as if he had multiple girls’ contacts in his phone, but that is incorrect.

My phone doesn’t have any contacts of girls other than Tsumakawa-san…I was just trying to sound cool…I sincerely apologize for that.

And thus, the conversation with Tsumakawa was interrupted because Tsumakawa’s Mom ran over to us, waving her hand.

Looking far younger than a typical mother, she approached us with a tray of several types of bread, innocently striking up a conversation with Tsumakawa-san.

“How’s this? Miona. I got Himeko-chan’s recommendation, and I also picked a few things. What else do you want?”

“…Yeah, I mean, I don’t eat more than four pieces of bread… This should be enough…”

“Huh? You usually eat more than that. You really like the bread here, and even though I’ve told you that you might gain weight if you eat like that, you still eat at least six, right? Don’t hold back just because Ryosuke is here; choose what you like.”

“Hey, shut up…!”

With a smile, Tsumakawa’s Mom exposed her daughter’s appetite, causing Tsumakawa-san to blush deeply and lightly hit her shoulder.

This parent and child have a friend-like relationship… It’s kind of heartwarming…

After that, Tsumakawa’s Mom added two more pieces of bread to their tray and took them to the cash register.

While Nakamachi was processing the payment, as I moved to replenish the bread that had run out, Tsumakawa suddenly grabbed the hem of my apron and quietly asked.

“Hey. Yoda, what time do you finish today?”

“Today, I’m scheduled to finish at around 5 PM…”

“Oh, I see.”

“…Considering you asked, isn’t that attitude a bit too much?”

As such conversation was happening between Tsumakawa and me, Tsumakawa’s Mom finished the payment, and the mother and daughter left the store.

As they were leaving, Tsumakawa’s Mom waved at us, saying, ‘See you later, Ryosuke, Himeko-chan! Come over to our place sometime!” with a friendly tone.

However, her daughter just ‘glanced at us and didn’t wave like she usually did.

***

“Well then, thank you for your hard work.”

“Yes, thanks for your hard work…”

“Thank you! Really, thank you so much!”

After Tsumakawa and her mom left the shop, about three hours later—after 5 PM.

With the number of customers having considerably decreased, Nakamachi’s mother told me, ‘It’s fine for you to leave now.’

I said goodbye to both her parents and was about to leave the store.

But then, still wearing her apron, Nakamachi came up to me.

“Thank you so much today, Yoda-kun! Next time, when my desire to thank you overpowers my desire to slack off…aside from your salary, I’ll also give you a personal thank-you, okay?”

“If you’re just giving a half-hearted thank you out of obligation, I don’t need it!”

“Hehe. …But really, thank you. Honestly, I don’t have many friends… So, when I asked you yesterday, I was really happy when Yoda-kun accepted me because I was afraid that I wouldn’t have anyone else to rely on if you didn’t accept me——So when you agreed to help, I was really happy. Yoda-kun is a very reliable person!”

“N-No… I mean, I just helped a little…”

“No matter if it’s a little or not, I was happy that you really helped me when I asked for it. ——See you later! Let’s laze around together in the clubroom again soon.”

“The clubroom isn’t meant for lazing around, you know… anyway, see you later.”

With Nakamachi in a cheerful mood seeing me off, I left the store.

Outside, the sky was already dyed a reddish color, and I felt the end of the day.

…I’ve been working the whole day today. But well, at least I got paid for it, and now I can buy some light novels or something.

While lost in thought, as I stretched my body widely, I felt a gaze coming from somewhere.

As I looked around… I noticed a girl sitting on the sidewalk curb, looking at me.

Moreover, upon closer inspection, the girl turned out to be none other than Tsumakawa-san, the white gal who should have left the store a few hours ago.

“Uh… Tsumakawa-san?”

Surprised by the unexpected sight, I involuntarily let out a voice.

On the other hand, Tsumakawa-san, who noticed I had come out of the store, came running towards me.

She then stood in front of me, gave a small bashful smile, and lightly touched my shoulder while saying, ‘Hey.’

“….Tsumakawa-san, what are you doing here…?”

“Uh, just passing by coincidentally, so I thought I’d say hi.”

“It feels more like you were lying in wait for me to finish work.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. Yoda, you’re taking the train back, right? Let’s walk to the station together.”

Saying that, Tsumakawa stood next to me.

…I don’t get it. Why did Tsumakawa-san wait for me to finish my shift here?

While I was pondering this question, she lowered her gaze to the ground and started speaking.

“My house is near here, close to ‘Nakamachi’s Bakery.’ But I never expected that the Nakamachi-chan you introduced me to would turn out to be the daughter of that bakery…”

“Ah, so Tsumakawa-san’s house is quite close to here… In that case, it’s not surprising to pass by this area.”

“Yeah. It’s not surprising, right? So, I just happened to pass by, yes…”

Having such a conversation, Tsumakawa-san and I walked side by side on the sidewalk.

——Normally, the sound of asphalt scraping against shoes that beat an irregular rhythm wouldn’t bother me so much. On my side, sneakers; on hers, heels.

Only the distinct sounds of the two different types of footsteps resonated from beneath our feet.