Ryugi was beyond the moon at she was going to be sharing a birthday party with Ishi. Somehow, despite his poor attitude on these matters, he found a way to make things funner for her. Though, she couldn’t deny her growing feelings for him.

There was something about him that was hard to describe. Originally, she had only checked him out more intently ever since Rinse showed up. That idol seemed to be very interested in him for some reason, despite the boy being a major downer. So she had to find out what he was doing to that poor girl. Perhaps he had even put a spell on her?

The reality was that he didn’t act any differently compared to anyone else. So there was nothing special he was doing that was unique to Rinse. However, slowly even Ryugi began to fall for that charm. He was a boy that always fought her on everything. The others would just listen to what she had to say and do it, like with the culture festival. Everyone was perfectly fine with her suggestions without question. Yet he defied her and showed them that they could do more than just that.

So in a sense, he was the type of boy she never knew she wanted. Ishi was the one person out of everyone to stand out to her, but her friends would never accept that relationship.

“I don’t know why we couldn’t have just talked over the phone.” Right now, she was taking advantage of the situation to get him alone with her. Ishi complained about being a part of the planning, since he personally had no opinion on anything special for that day.

“I’m sure there’s something you want.” She responded. “So don’t be afraid to throw out any suggestions.”

“I’m starting to feel like you only wanted me to come so you could have someone else doing all the dirty work.” He quipped as they scoped out the location. She had wanted to have their part at the mall, where they could rent out a room for themselves that looked over where the giant Christmas tree was going to be set up.

“That’s not true.” She jokingly slapped his back. “We all really wanted you to come.” It was obvious from the near unanimous vote, where the only ones opposed were Ryugi’s friends. “But… If people voted no?”

“I still would’ve went.” He admitted to her. As he had told them before, Ishi was waiting to see what his schedule was going to be for that day. Though he was still on the fence on the matter before the voting. Birthday parties for yourself sound a lot less fun when you think most of the people there are only there because it’s for another person’s birthday, or they hate you, or both. “Actually, if we’re only inviting the class, does that mean Chinae’s not coming?”

“You… Want to invite her?” The idea had slipped out of her mind after the way that girl saw them laying on the ground. Personally, she had viewed Chinae as a bit of competition, or perhaps it was more Chiana that she was afraid of. An idol was hard to go against in terms of attraction. Especially one as pretty as that girl.

“She’s a friend of mine. And if this also going to be considered my party too, then I’ll extend the invitation.” He answered.

“Sure, that’s fine.” She nervously allowed it. There was no way she could reject the suggestion without giving away the reasoning. First because she wasn’t confident in confessing to him right now. Aside from her friends, ever since he uttered those words back during their little camp escape, Ryugi knew that he currently had no feelings for her. The second major reason for not going against Chiane was that it made her seem weak to feel threatened by a loner girl like her.

“Anyway, looks like we’re done here.” Ishi determined that the location they scouted out would be more than good enough for their classmates and under their budget.

“Since we’re already here.” Ryugi couldn’t just allow him to leave now that she had him all alone like this. This opportunity never came up often, so wasting would be stupid. “How about we grab a bite in the food court?”

“Sure I guess.” He accepted her offer as they exited the room. “But I hardly hang out here, so I don’t really know what’s being offered.”

“Even better!” She replied. This meant he was left to her mercy at choosing the best table and lunch. Now was the best time to impress him with her tastes. “Then let’s go eat out here.” Ryugi led them to one of the available options at this mall.

“Hamburgers?” It was rather nontraditional to what he would normally eat. She had selected that they go to a western place for their meal. “I guess coming from a girl like you, I shouldn’t be surprised.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” She got insecure from his comments. It was one thing if he insulted her, since he already did that all the time. More so the concern came from how unimpressed he was about the choice.

“Well, you already try to dye your hair blonde to look more like the people from the states.” So her enjoying the same foods they ate wasn’t all that much of a stretch for him to believe. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d almost think you were from there and not here.”

“Look, do you want to eat here for not?” She asked, trying to ignore his comparisons. Right now, she wasn’t certain if those were simple observations or if he might have been insulting her appearance. She might be prideful about her looks, but if he didn’t like it, then it was over for her.

“I’ve never had this before, so I guess I’ll give it a shot.” So they both got the same thing. It was a cheeseburger with fries and a soft drink.

“So, what do you think?” She had already began chowing down on her fries as he took his first bite. “It’s really delicious, isn’t it?”

“It tastes good, but I feel like I shouldn’t have these too often.”

“Sure, it’s not totally healthy.” She agreed with him on both points. “But, I eat out with my friends all the time and I’m perfectly fine.” True, Ishi certainly would never say that she was overweight by any means. However, that was probably because she was blessed that all that food went to some very fortunate spots boys went crazy for.

“I’m sure you’re used to it.” Apparently her eating out all the time also removed any sense of table manners she should have. Ryugi was a much messier eater compare to Ishi, as he gently took bites of his burger and took out one fry at a time. The girl was finished well before he even reached halfway.

“Gosh, can you eat any slower?” She whined now that there was nothing left for her to do with her meal finished. “I think I’ll graduate school by the time you’re done.”

“I just prefer to savor my food.” He countered. Plus, he was fine with keeping her a little longer to talk about things he was thinking about. “Say, what do you think everyone around us thinks we’re doing?”

“Huh? I never took you for a person to care…” She responded, confused as to what would prompt him to ask. It wasn’t like him to note their surroundings like this. Especially caring about others’ thoughts like this. Then it hit her. The people around them most likely thought the two were on a date. They did come here together and pick out a room to overlook the Christmas tree before stopping for lunch. “What are you trying to say?”

“I just noticed how bewildered everyone around us.” The two of them appeared to be complete opposites, so obviously people who thought they were on a date might wonder how exactly a relationship like this could form. Honestly, even if they thought it was just a couple of friends, that still would confuse them. Ishi and Ryugi were two people from different worlds, yet here they seemed to be very close.

“I still don’t understand.” That didn’t answer her question about how uncharacteristic this was of him. Why would Ishi care about how people perceived him now?

“With my birthday coming up, I’ve just been doing a lot of thinking.” He knew that meant college was in the cards for him soon, provided he didn’t accept the job offer. This meant the plans he had since starting high school were beginning to take effect. That was going to be the time where he would find himself a nice and quiet girl to date and then marry later on.

But with everyone wondering how he was on a date here. Would that even work out? People were even shocked when he asked Chinae out, but at least that was a girl he already knew. In a sense, despite not personally caring about others’ perception of him, he should care if he wanted someone to date him. “Since I’ve never worked towards making myself attractive, can I even pull that off?”

“Heheh.” She giggled at seeing him finally struggle with a personal problem like this. Finally, she had some knowledge, or rather her feelings, to impart on him. “I wouldn’t worry about that.” Ryugi told him. “Just the way you are, I’m sure plenty of college chicks will like you.”

“But, would they be willing to admit it?” He gave her a retort that made her heart nearly stop. “Is there anyone who would be willing to tell me they loved me, no matter what anyone else thinks?”