After a not-so-good night's rest, it's finally Saturday. At this rate, I might develop some sleeping problems. Well, anyway, I need to get ready for today's party. I wonder if those two are up already.

As mentally exhausted as I am, I got out of my bed and proceeded to the kitchen. And as usual, Chiaki is preparing breakfast for us three. We ate, got dressed, and headed out.

"You sad the place was small, right? Are you a hundred percent sure that you went to the correct location?" Daichi asked.

"No mistake about it."

"Maybe the dude who invited us said the wrong address?"

"I mean, it's the only pub in that area. Let's go there and see for ourselves instead."

As we got near our destination, there was a crowd of people gathered around the venue. I didn't expect this many people to come. Even the pub over there could only accommodate a fraction of the people out here. Then I saw the person who invited us. He stood on a makeshift pedestal made out of wooden crates.

"Everyone! May I have your attention! I am Suzuki Haruto, the person who invited you all today. It seems I have made a mistake in announcing the venue for today's event. Please forgive me. As a solution for my blunder, I have rented out six buses to give us a ride to the correct venue. Once again, I apologize."

Woah, how rich is this guy? And how could he confuse the location? But well, the problem's already been resolved, so there's no point in worrying about it.

When the buses arrived, all of the people gathered out in the open got in, and for a second, I saw someone with long blonde hair amongst the crowd, although I couldn't see her face. That was most likely Rina.

"What are you standing around for? Get in!" Chiaki said as she pulled me by my hand.

Even with six buses, there are still too many people. Some were even sharing a seat for one person. Just how many people came?!

It took us about 20 minutes before we arrived at the destined location. When we got there, I was surprised. I thought we were going to a traditional Japanese restaurant? This place doesn't look like one. It's more like a luxurious hotel than a regular restaurant. Now, I really want to know how he confused the venue.

As I took my first step into the building, I saw white marble floors, majestic pillars, a beautiful fountain, and a crystal chandelier in the middle. No matter how you look at it, it doesn't look like a restaurant.

Then I saw Suzuki Haruto again, but this time on a proper pedestal.

"Good morning, everyone. Once again, I am Suzuki Haruto, the host of today's party. I thank everyone who came here today. Some of you might be wondering about this current venue. Well, originally, I had planned to hold the event at a regular restaurant. But due to my error of giving out information, I chose this place instead as an apology to those who were inconvenienced. So, please enjoy yourselves at today's party."

At this point, I'm not going to be surprised if he drove to school in an expensive car. But aside from his wealth, he does seem kind of nice. Well, time to get back to my main goal, finding Rina. It should be fairly easy to find her in a crowd of black-haired people.

"I'm off to find Rina."

"Rina's the only thing in your mind, huh..." Daichi responded with a smirk on his face.

"Oh, shut it!"

"Chiaki and I will look around the place then. And good luck." he winked.

As I went looking for Rina, I felt someone tugging on the hinge of my shirt. For a second, I thought it was Rina, but I turned around and saw Chiba-san.

"Chiba-san? You really came?!"

"What's wrong with that?"

"This is a college part. Well, I'm not that much older than you, but still."

"I just wanted to see what this college party of yours is like, and I wasn't disappointed."

"Did you come here with anyone else?"

"No, it's just me."

"You could've at least told me that you were coming."

"If I did, you'd reject the idea."

"You may be right about that, but I'm looking for someone. So, if you could go elsewhere for the moment, it would be helpful."

"What if I help you find that person?"

"There's no need to. Now, go."

"Jii~ Fine."

I get the feeling she's going to tail me. But I guess that's better than having her by my side. Now... there! It's Rina. I approached her casually.

"Hey, Rina."

"Oh, Kota-san, how are you?"

"I'm doing great. I never expected this many people to show up."

"I was also surprised by how many people came."

"Did you come here with anyone?"

"Oh, yeah, speaking of which, here he comes."

It's him! The person I saw on the first day of class!

"Oh, hello there. Could you be one of Rina-chan's friends?"

Do they go on a first-name basis?! Could it really be that they're... No, maybe they're just relatives like Chiaki said.

"Uh, technically, yeah."

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Hayashi Ren."

"I'm Inoue Kota. It's a pleasure to meet you."

What should I say? What should I do?

"If you'd like, we can go sit somewhere and have a chat."

"Uh, su-sure..."

What's with this atmosphere of awkwardness. But I must not succumb to it. I still need to ask what his relationship with Rina is.

We sat by the lounge area of the building.

"So, Inoue-san, is there anything in mind you'd like to talk about?"

This is my chance! I'll ask him, right here, right now!

"Uh, yeah, are you also a friend of Rina?"

When I said Rina's name, he looked confused.

"Oh, Rina-chan, well, I wouldn't say friends is the correct term since I'm her boyfriend..."

[AT: After the long delay I finally release chapter 10. My updates won't be as frequent as before, but I'll try to post as many chapters as I can quickly. In the meantime, try to join my discord channel https://discord.gg/7E75M6CfkJ.]