My mouth was gaping, unable to form any words.
"Y—You created this club, Yuri!?"
"Um, yeah ... Do you want to join, Ren?"
My fists clenched, my voice raised, the passengers looked at me—but I kept my gaze on Yuri.
"That's the club I've dreamed of since I entered high school! I've tried to create it but I was never approved by the student council. I'm surprised you were able to create it, Yuri."
"A—Actually, it hasn't been fully approved yet... Because the minimum requirement for a club is to have four members, we're one short. S—So Ren, this club will be officially launched right away if you join!"
"Ah—but I have a part-time job after school. So ... I might not be able to stop by right away. I work Monday through Thursday, though."
Rubbing my chin, I pondered. I wanted to join the Game Club but part-time was also important since I wanted to restore my collection.
"Friday and Saturday are fine! I'm happy that Ren wants to join! Honestly, I thought you would reject me ..."
"How could I refuse! Part-time work might cut my time, but my love for games is greater!"
"By the way, have you found a teacher who wants to be a club administrator? I failed to start a Game Club before because no teacher wanted to. You've found one, right?"
Because from the expression Yuri gave, I immediately knew that she hadn't gotten a club manager yet.
".... I'll ask my homeroom teacher and ask if he wants to be an administrator."
"I—I'm sorry, Ren! I ... My friends and I will find a teacher who is willing to be an administrator as soon as possible!"
... It seems that Game Club still has a long way to go to make it happen.
Ended with awkwardness—we decided to just continue playing MonHun until the train stopped.
"Sorry, Ren. Looks like we can’t eat lunch together today! My friend from yesterday asked me to come to his class again to ask about the hair oil he's using."
Putting his hands together, Kaito spoke to me with an apologetic look.
"Oh, it’s fine. I actually planned to have lunch with Yona today anyway."
I shrugged at him, not minding at all. Honestly, I didn’t even care whether we had lunch or not. We’re both guys—no need to stick together every day, right?
As if surprised by something, Kaito's eyes widened. He then lunged at my shoulder—almost knocking me over.
"Ren, don’t tell me ... You’re dating Yona!?"
"First my mom, and now you? No, I'm not dating her. My dad asked me to help him make lunch this morning but we ended up making too much, so he suggested I share lunch with Yona again."
Although I'm sure, this is really my father's plan now.
From the start—how did he “accidentally” buy too much bread and ingredients, then immediately invite me to cook everything? Couldn’t he just save it for tomorrow or later?
After hearing me out, Kaito’s voice got louder.
"‘Again’!? Don’t tell me, when I had lunch in the other class yesterday, you had lunch with her!? How cruel of you, Ren!"
As if holding back tears, Kaito continued.
"Your friend here is struggling to get a girlfriend in a school full of wild female. And you ... You go and enjoy a happy lunch with your childhood friend!?"
"Um, if you want to get a girlfriend and still look down on them like that... I think you'll be single forever, Kaito. Honestly, they're pretty nice in my opinion. By the way, I'm going first."
Leaving behind a heartbroken Kaito over the fact that he's single (even though I'm not even dating anyone myself), I walked out of class, feeling the respectful gazes from the girls around me.
Since Yona’s class wasn’t far from mine, I arrived pretty quickly.
Standing in front of the door, I took a deep breath and exhaled.
I’d spent the whole night thinking about how I should face Yona today, and now, I had my answer.
Because I didn’t want things to always be awkward between us—instead of apologizing or doing something equally cringey, I decided ... to just pretend it never happened.
Yes, nothing weird or humiliating happened yesterday.
"Yesterday was just a normal lunch with Yona. Nothing more, nothing less."
With those words strengthening my resolve, I opened the door.
Yona was right in front of me the moment I opened the door. Seems like my timing was perfect—she was about to head out too.
Our faces were close. I could almost hear her breathing, and faintly, I saw her cheeks redden as her eyes met mine.
Surprising, but a real man doesn’t back down from this!
"My dad made too much food again today. Yona, do you want to eat lunch with me again? I helped cook a little today, so maybe ... you could give me a review?"
Unlike yesterday when she kept coming up with excuses, Yona agreed right away this time.
And with that, we went to the same place as yesterday.
"It’s ... delicious!"
That was the first thing Yona said after trying my lunch. Her eyes sparkled, and she quickly continued eating until she finished everything.
"Heh heh, of course. I made that part myself. I’m not great or anything, but I’ve been helping my m—I mean, my dad cook since I was a kid. Thanks to that experience, I even got hired part-time at a restaurant as a kitchen assistant."
"... Hm? But aren’t you working as a waiter, Ren? Did you change jobs?"
Hearing what I just said, Yona tilted her head.
Thanks to my stupid brain and mouth, I forgot I’ve been working as a waiter ever since I got this part-time job in this world.
"Actually, at first I got hired because of my cooking skills. But after the manager saw I was better at customer service, they switched me to a waiter."
"Why do I feel like you’re lying, but at the same time, you’re not?"
Because the truth is, I kind of mixed both.
Suddenly dropping her shoulders, Yona then looked a bit regretful.
"... No. I just ... I've lost count of how many days I haven't visited you at work. The track club tournament is coming up soon, and only day off I have is Sunday."
That explained why I never ran into Yona after school. So she’s part of the track club in this world.
A tournament, huh ... I could relate—back in middle school, I was on the soccer team and had to join a tournament too.
The month leading up to the match was pure hell. With how competitive my teammates were, I was forced to play every single day. To make it worse—at night, I also barely had the energy to even play video games.
Thinking of that made me want to help Yona in any way I could.
I crossed my arms, brainstorming ideas.
"Hm, that means you have the same day off as me, huh? Then how about we go out that day? For a change of pace and take break from your training."