Chapter 19

I walked through the store with Yuu.

The place was a department store near our house.

There were lots of shops lined up around us, and the area was lively. It looked like there was some kind of event going on today—a clown was dancing just at the edge of my vision. A few people were watching and cheering. On a normal day, I might’ve stopped to watch too.

But I didn’t have the mental space for that right now.

“Is there a clothing store here?”

“Ah, yeah. There is.”

An awkward atmosphere hung between me and Yuu.

I knew exactly why. It was me.

This was my first time going shopping with someone else, and I was so nervous I couldn’t think straight. Yuu had been trying to talk to me for a while now, but I hadn’t been able to respond properly.

She looked at me with a puzzled expression.

I didn’t get it either. Usually I could talk to her just fine, so why was I this tense just because we were out together?

…Then again, maybe it wasn’t that strange.

If I could talk to anyone, anywhere, without a problem, I wouldn’t have had such a tough time during my school years. My issues with people ran deep—if they didn’t, I wouldn’t have spent over ten years alone.

…Maybe I’d started to think I could talk to Yuu anywhere, anytime, just because we got along well at home.

We were walking toward our destination, one step at a time, but the remaining distance felt way longer than it should have.

I started sweating, even though it wasn’t hot.

Wait… what kind of things do I usually talk about with Yuu?

I knew, up until we left the house. But now I couldn’t seem to remember.

By the time we finally reached our destination, I was already exhausted.

Yuu glanced at me, looking concerned.

“This is the place…”

I led her to the floor where I usually bought clothes.

They also carried some women’s clothing nearby, so I figured she’d be able to find something too.

Yuu checked the price tag on a nearby item.

“Um… isn’t this kind of expensive?”

“…Is it?”

Clothes are something you wear for a long time. This seemed pretty standard to me.

Besides, this was the first time Yuu had ever asked me for something. I wanted to get her something nice.

I picked up another tag and checked the price.

“Looks pretty normal to me.”

“There’s no way that’s normal…”

Yuu said in a half-exasperated voice.

Crap—did I mess up somehow? I started to panic.

“…Come with me.”

Suddenly, Yuu took my hand.

I was caught off guard by the feel and temperature of it. Her hand was cold and soft.

She pulled me along and sat me down on a nearby bench.

When she let go of my hand, I felt a twinge of disappointment.

“Here, drink this.”

She took a thermos out of her bag, poured some into a cup, and handed it to me.

I looked down. It was tea.

I drank it as prompted.

The taste was familiar—just like what we always had at home.

…

The dryness in my throat eased.

The cool tea passed through me, calming my overheated head.

“Feeling better now?”

“…Yeah. I think so.”

My head had finally cooled down a bit.

When I looked up at Yuu, she was still watching me with a worried expression.

…What was I doing? Making her look like that…

“Um, I do want clothes, but they don’t have to be expensive. I’d feel bad if you bought me something so pricey—I just couldn’t accept it.”

“…You’re right.”

Thinking calmly, it was obvious this would happen. I knew Yuu was the kind of person who always held back.

“I’m sorry.”

I was so nervous I couldn’t even keep track of what kind of person she was—someone right in front of me.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Yuu said with a smile and stood up.

I stood up too, following her lead.

Strangely enough, all the tension I’d been feeling before had vanished.

After that, we visited a few stores that carried more affordable clothes.

I learned something new—apparently Yuu wasn’t the type to take long shopping. She picked things surprisingly quickly, and we ended up with time to spare.

So we decided to walk around the department store together afterward.

We didn’t have anything specific to buy—we just wandered through the stores, browsing casually.

We looked at food and alcohol too, and ended up buying some.

Apparently, Yuu had never tried alcohol before.

She’s the same age as me, so she should be able to drink now. We decided to try drinking together sometime soon.

On the way back, we passed by the clown we’d missed earlier.

Compared to a professional circus I’d seen once, it wasn’t much—but it seemed to be Yuu’s first time seeing something like that. She was watching with genuine amazement.

And now, we were almost home.

The sun was starting to set, casting everything in the golden light of dusk.

The sunset turned Yuu’s hair a brilliant shade of gold—it looked beautiful.

“Yuu… thank you.”

Just one word of thanks.

Today was honestly a lot of fun because of her. No amount of gratitude felt like enough.

“Huh? I should be thanking you. You bought me clothes.”

Yuu pointed to the paper bags in both my hands as she said it.

But really, it was no big deal.

“Come on, let’s go inside.”

Yuu said, stepping into the house.

I followed close behind her.