Cheated and Restarted Chapter 4

My Girlfriend Works at Her Own Pace

On Monday morning, I reunited with Yuzuriha on the same train on the way to school. Her hairstyle had changed a little. Her bangs were neatly arranged, and the back of her hair, which had been unkempt, was also neatly styled. Her glasses had changed to stylish frames with thin lenses. Her outfit combined a cute one-piece dress with a gorgeously designed cardigan. Overall, she looked cute and beautiful. There was absolutely no dowdiness left.

"Yuzuriha, did you cut your hair?"

Unlike before, she had become a "Sparkly Girl" who gave off a gorgeous impression.

"Ah, you can tell? Actually, I went to Harajuku with Ayashiro-san yesterday! She introduced me to a beauty salon and picked out clothes that would suit me at a vintage clothing store. Ayashiro-san really is a kind and wonderful person!"

She seriously takes good care of people. Contrary to her Jirai-kei (Landmine) appearance, that woman keeps piling on the "Gap Moe." What a terrifying girl!



"That's great! Yes. You really have become gorgeous. Yes, yes. But be careful. ...The guys in your department will definitely be bloodshot with excitement."

Every guy in her department must be thinking, "She's the plain-girl-type heroine whose beauty only I know about!" But developments like those in light novels don't exist. In reality, she was nearly devoured by a playboy on Saturday. Reality is utterly irrational.

"I'll be fine. As long as I have this photo I got from Ayashiro-san!"

She showed me the photo taken at that billiards hall. Looking at it as objectively as possible while sober, it was a photo that looked like nothing other than a tough guy keeping a woman as his mistress.

"Just please stop calling yourself a 'Second'! I beg you! Please say we're friends! Please!"

"Ehh? What should I do? It's such a dilemma, isn't it? Ufufu."

Yuzuriha, wearing a bright smile like a mischievous child, no longer had any negativity about her. It was a wonderful smile.

We arrived at Komaba-Todaimae Station, passed through the ticket gates, and went outside. The Komaba Campus is right in front of the station, but I noticed that the Number 1 and Number 2 people I didn't want to encounter were at the lottery stand in front of the station.

"Ah, I lost again!"

My wife had bought a scratch card and lost. Buying lottery tickets was her hobby. Well, for some reason, she quit cold turkey a while after we started dating.

"Ahaha! Ririse, you really have bad luck with lottery tickets. Look! I won two thousand yen!"

"Ehh, that's unfair! Jeez! Hiroto, you always win the lottery! Are you sucking away my luck or something!?"

"That's not it. So, let's use this money to go to the more expensive cafeteria today! It's my treat."

"Yaaay! I wanted to go there. Can't wait... Oh? Tokiwa-kun? Yahoo."

I was trying to sneak past them to head to campus, but my wife noticed me. She greeted me cheerfully, but Hagiri, her childhood-friend-slash-lover, just frowned in displeasure. I only gave a slight bow and continued walking toward the campus with Yuzuriha.

"Ah, wait a sec!"

As soon as we entered the campus, my wife caught up to my side. So, reflexively, I stopped walking. Ah, can I not go against my wife's orders, being the ATM of a married life? I hate these ingrained habits. Furthermore, since Hagiri came along as a set behind her, my hatred wasn't just doubled; it squared.

"What?"

My wife was dressed gorgeously today too. A bright knit shirt paired with a flared skirt—a "Female Announcer-style Pure Bitch" coordination. The shapely huge breasts popping out against the knit shirt had outstanding destructive power. A virgin would be instantly killed, let alone knocked out.

"No, don't 'What?' me! Just say hello normally! It makes me sad when you just walk past me!"

My wife was pouting in anger. This is the face she makes when she's not fatally angry yet. Specifically, the face she made when I forgot to take out the trash. The aftermath of this is annoying. She'll nitpick and nag. I mean, I rejected her with all my might the other day, yet she talked to me again. Her memory really is bird-brained as always. It's too much of a mystery how she got into our university.

"Hey, hey, is Tokiwa-kun shy? But for someone shy, you're always with a beautiful girl."

My wife looked with interest at Yuzuriha, who was next to me.

"She's such a cute girl! I am Ririse Igarashi! I'm in the same Architecture Department as Tokiwa-kun! What department are you in?"

My wife introduced herself to Yuzuriha with a full smile, acting very familiar. She always marches right into other people's personal space. Yuzuriha flinched a little and hid behind me. She was gripping the hem of my jacket tightly. Those from the shadow fear the light of the sun. Because it's scary. But Yuzuriha managed to muster her courage and spoke up.

"I am Yuzuriha Kouyou from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science..."

Amazing progress! She introduced herself! I want to hug her tight for that effort!

"Math Department, huh. That's amazing! You must be smart! I hated math super much, so I respect that! Limits and stuff make no sense, right! Ahaha!"

But that was the limit. Yuzuriha's eyes were spinning. She probably didn't know how to respond. That must be why Yuzuriha took out her smartphone for some reason and...

"I am! A 'Second'!"

She showed that photo to my wife. My wife looked at the photo, widened her eyes, and tilted her head. And Hagiri seemed surprised.

"Second...? Baseball? If this girl is Second, then Tokiwa-kun in the photo is First? Pitcher? Catcher?"

My wife didn't seem to understand the meaning of "Second." I don't think it's strange for young people today not to know.

"Search the meaning of 'Second' later or something... That's a photo taken as a memory on Saturday. We were playing billiards. That Ayashiro girl was there too. Yuzuriha is a new friend I made."

Why am I explaining this so defensively? I shouldn't care what my wife thinks.

"Billiards! Wow, looks fun! Invite me next time you play!"

"If there's an opportunity."

In In-kya grammar, "opportunity" means never. Besides, when my wife plays billiards, she sometimes gets cocky, tries to do weird shots, fails, and rips the table felt with her cue, so I don't want to play with her.

"I'll be looking forward to it! Ufufu."

"That's enough, Ririse! I told you! You shouldn't get involved with him!"

Hagiri, who had been silent the whole time, finally cut in. He was glaring at me a little.

"You really are a shrewd person. I never imagined you would have established a pipeline with Yuzuriha Kouyou-san from the Math Department!"

"Hah? What? Pipeline?"

What is this guy saying? I tilted my head. Yuzuriha also tilted her head in wonder.

"How dare you interfere with Ririse's future chance the other day while establishing a connection with Kouyou-san yourself! Have you no shame?"

"I still don't understand what you're saying. Not at all. I understand it about as much as Fermat's Last Theorem."

And my complaints against this "cheating partner" are too numerous to fit in the margin.

"Kanata-san! Fermat's Last Theorem has already been proven!"

"Eh? Is that so? Math Department is amazing."

Thanks to Yuzuriha's retort, I became a little smarter.

"It seems you are deceiving Kouyou-san quite skillfully. How can you get along with people while hiding your vile ambitions? You truly are a bad person."

Hagiri was directing a look of utter contempt at me. You're the one who deserves contempt.

"Like I said, I don't know what you're talking about?"

I was getting irritated too. At that moment, my wife spoke up.

"Hey, Hiroto. Is Kouyou-san famous? Come to think of it, you showed me a picture of Kouyou-san at the entrance ceremony, right? You said to talk to her if I found her."

The day of the entrance ceremony. This guy had formed a group. That group is still alive. In fact, it seems to be gaining more and more power among the first years. Their influence is starting to show, to the point where some cynics call them the "Student Council."

"Yeah. Kouyou-san is famous in a certain field. Have you heard of electronic currency?"

"What's that? The money charged to the commuter pass magnetic card?"

Come to think of it, electronic currency wasn't famous among the general public yet at this time. If I buy some now, will it become a fortune?

"No. It's a new currency system applying P2P blockchain technology."

"Pee-two-pee? A game console?"

Even when electronic currency became famous, my wife showed no particular interest. Actually, surprisingly, she was the type who didn't obsess much over money itself. From the beginning of our dates, she was the type to strictly split the bill. She was the type to split it down to the single yen, so it was actually annoying. And she didn't want expensive presents. But her successive ex-boyfriends all had higher incomes than me. She seems to like men who can earn.

"Like I said, no. I'll explain it properly next time! Anyway, Kouyou-san is amazing. Mining is essential to obtain electronic currency. But that requires a massive amount of calculation. The electricity bill for computers is no joke. That electricity usage also has a negative impact on global warming. Kouyou-san is a genius hacker who developed an algorithm to compress that calculation amount by 3% and released it to the world for free! She is a wonderful talent who contributed to the world!"

I wasn't just a little surprised; I was super surprised. Yuzuriha was an incredible person.

"Heh, so Kouyou-san knows a lot about computers. Come to think of it, Mom said the old consumption tax was 3%! She said it was hard to calculate!"

My wife wasn't listening to Hagiri's story at all. There's no point in talking about difficult things to this woman. She ignores everything. Despite being a female announcer, she's the type of woman who watches news programs or information programs with me, says they're boring, and changes the channel. She forgets the news she explained herself by the next day. How did she become a female announcer? Is this world just about looks after all?

"Yuzuriha, you're amazing. You did something like that."

"That man... I want to stab him..."

Yuzuriha was muttering something incredibly dangerous while looking at Hagiri. She was looking down with very dark eyes. Wow, she's entered negative mode.

"What's wrong? Yuzuriha, you look down."

"I hate that algorithm. In the first place, its use is trivial. P2P electronic currency is, after all, just recreating the existing currency system in electronic space, isn't it? Currency already exists everywhere, so isn't it a waste to recreate it?"

"Well, if you put it that way, maybe."

Even in the future, electronic currency was ultimately just one asset for investment, and it was hard to say it had widely penetrated as a currency settlement system. Maybe it will be different if it spreads further, but for now, it's just a gambling toy. In the end, everyone converts it to dollars.

"Besides, I didn't make that because I wanted to. In high school class, there was comprehensive learning where we had to think of and execute ideas to solve global warming even a little. It was a group practice, but... the people in the group pushed the idea creation onto me... I heard that electronic currency mining was a waste of electricity, so I just made it for the time being. Then it became a little famous on the net, and the school teachers praised me... and the other kids hated me... Even though I worked hard..."

What is this? Everything this girl does backfires... It's so pitiful I want to protect her.

"Kouyou-san! You must not get involved with that man!"

Hagiri approached Yuzuriha. Yuzuriha flinched and trembled.

"A person with wonderful talent like you tends to be used by bad people. Like that man! He surely deceived you with sweet words! Rely on me! I will save you from that man!"

Why am I being made out to be the bad guy? Why does this man shelve his own faults and verbally abuse me like this?

"Come to my group! I can prepare facilities for you to utilize your talent! I can procure as much material and money as you need! I also have connections with the university's venture capital! Let's change the world together with your talent!"

He's giving a passionate speech. Hagiri's eyes were shining suspiciously. His eyes are like the president of a workplace that claims in here "we’re family."

"Ahaha... sorry. Hiroto always gets excited like a child when he gets heated up. Forgive him."

My wife stuck her tongue out and put her hands together in a half-joking apology to me. My wife is already in the mode of tuning out what Hagiri is saying. If girls in the world heard this conversation, they would say, "This person has big dreams, how wonderful!" But she has absolutely no interest. That just now was an invitation to establish a venture anticipating Yuzuriha's talent. True, in the future, this guy was a venture president despite graduating from med school. Was he active enthusiastically from this period? Beyond disgust, I might even feel admiration for his ambition. Well, thinking that he ran to cheat with my wife because of his high status and earned money, I still just get angry.

"Um... excuse me. I'm not interested in that kind of thing."

After listening to Hagiri's story, Yuzuriha said coldly. But Hagiri continued his persuasion.

"Kouyou-san. Interest comes later. Your technology can change the world. If you do that, many people will become happy."

"Hah... is that so... Happy?"

"That's right. I want to become a human who can supply what is lacking in this world. I want to create things that can supplement what is missing in this world and supply them to the world. I want to create new value in this world and create lots of happiness."

He's spouting terribly nauseating pretty words. Or rather, what about stealing my wife from me, causing a lack of affection, and destroying my happiness? What he's saying and what he's doing are completely different.

"Hah... that's enough. I'm not interested. Please do it with other people."

Yuzuriha refused Hagiri's proposal. It's a mean feeling, but I thought I was happy. Yuzuriha is not Hagiri's ally. That makes me very happy.

"Did that man say something to you after all? Or were you made to sign a contract or something first? I can provide a lawyer."

"...I don't need a contract. Between Kanata-san and me, there was kindness, not a contract. ...ahh enough. That's enough now. The value of your dream has nothing to do with me. But if I get involved with you, I'll be separated from Kanata-san. I understood just that. So I say this."

Yuzuriha took a deep breath. And shouted loudly.

"I don't want to (Iya de gowasu)! It has nothing to do with me (Ate ni wa kankei naka)! I don't like you (Ate wa wai o sukan to)! ...Ahem! If you invite me persistently any further, I will stab you. I will stab you with all my might."

It was a clear refusal. Looking clearly into Hagiri's eyes, Yuzuriha refused with a strong gaze. Well, looking closely, her legs were trembling, and the hand gripping my back tightly was trembling too.

"But your talent..."

Hagiri still tried to continue persuading her. But Yuzuriha immediately interrupted him and said.

"You only see my talent. That is creepier than a person who only looks at my chest. Please don't talk to me anymore!"

And Yuzuriha hid behind my back with a whoosh. Good job. From here on, it's my job.

"You get it, right? Not everyone will follow you. Give up on Yuzuriha."

Hagiri was glaring at me with an indescribable face. Being refused by a woman like this is probably a first in his life. That will undoubtedly become a memory of humiliation. Only a woman's actions can deeply wound a man's heart.

"...Understood. Let's stop for today. Ririse. Let's go. If you stay near this person, you'll catch something bad."

Then Hagiri turned on his heel and left toward the lecture building where his class would be.

"Yuzuriha. You did well. Good girl, good girl!"

I patted Yuzuriha's head. Yuzuriha was smiling.

"Ehehe. I did my best!"

And after a while.

"Well then, my lecture building is that way! See you later!"

"See ya!"

Yuzuriha and I waved to each other and parted ways. And I walked toward the lecture building with light steps, feeling satisfied alone... or so I thought, when a voice I knew well came from next to me.

"Then let's go together! This might be the first time! Heading to a lecture room with someone from the same department like this! I was always with Hiroto. Somehow it looks fun! Ufufu."

"Whoa!? Why are you here! Weren't you going with Hagiri!? Given the flow of that conversation, you'd usually follow Hagiri, right!?"

"Eh? Because Tokiwa-kun and I are in the same department and have the same class, right? Hiroto is in Medical Science. To begin with, my classes are different from Hiroto's."

T H A T ' S R I G H T !

Am I an idiot!? My wife and I were in the same department. What is this stupid flow? When I casually looked toward where Hagiri went, Hagiri had stopped and was looking this way with a stupid expression, his mouth gaping open. You too, Hagiri. Being swung around by my wife's "my pace" attitude...

"See you later, Hiroto! Don't forget you're treating me to lunch! Then let's go, Tokiwa-kun! Let's go early and take good seats!"

My wife pulled my hand and started walking. Truly at her own pace. But since Hagiri had a frustrated look on his face, I thought that just for today, it was okay to get swept up in this pace.

In the end, I was dragged by my wife, still holding my hand, all the way to the lecture room.

"Isn't it about time you let go of my hand?"

"Ehh? Sure, but you won't run away?"

My wife tilted her head cutely.

"...I won't run."

When I said that, she smiled, seemingly relieved, and let go of my hand.

"Then where should we sit? Where would be good? Fufufu."

She looks so happy just choosing a seat. Always optimistic and smiling. That part of her hasn't changed. No, wait, she wasn't really like that for a while after we started dating. She had a mysterious atmosphere, and I couldn't really tell what she was thinking. Before I knew it, she had turned into a clumsy, scatterbrained woman, though.

"Why do you look so happy?"

"In high school, I was always in the hallway-side seats close to the teacher, so they weren't fun seats! So I thought university, where you can sit wherever you like, is fun."

"Is that so. Well, because of that, loners become even bigger loners. If you don't make friends, you end up taking classes all alone forever."

A common university trope. The more of a loner you are, the closer to the front you sit; the more of a Riajuu (normie) you are, the further back you sit in groups.

"That's certainly true. But we're friends now, so you don't have to sit alone, right! Good for you, Tokiwa-kun! You're not a loner anymore!"

"I am extremely, incredibly, super not on good terms with your childhood friend, though?"

I tried to imply, We're not friends. But...

"Eh? Does the fact that Hiroto and Tokiwa-kun don't get along have anything to do with me?"

It's actually a huge mystery why she thinks it doesn't have anything to do with her. I'll stop thinking about it. I'll just keep her company for this lecture, then foist her onto some guy from the department or a girls' group.

For the time being, the window seat in the very back was empty, so I sat there. My wife also sat next to me and gazed happily out the window.

"Our university campus is beautiful, isn't it? There are lots of trees, and it has a gentle feel."

"I guess. It's pointlessly huge, though, so moving around is a pain."

"Totally! Maybe I should bring a bicycle? Walking to the grounds for club activities is such a hassle!"

My wife had joined the cheerleading club. Apparently, she's been doing it since high school. In high school, she went to nationals, and she also cheered for her soccer-playing childhood-friend-slash-lover who went to nationals. Incidentally, I naturally never had my wife cheer for me in a cheer outfit. When I asked her to wear a cheer outfit for our night activities, she refused with a face like a Noh mask. I guess she treasures her memories of youth. As an In-kya, I don't really get the preciousness of club activities.

"Is that so. Cheer club must be tough."

My reply naturally became noncommittal. I know my wife well. There aren't any topics worth discussing anew. The conversation was naturally going to wither away. Or it was supposed to.

"Huh? How did you know I joined the cheer club? I only submitted the form on Friday."

Crap!? I accidentally blurted out something I knew! Bad, I have to cover it up!

"Ah, w-well, that is..."

"Everyone knows that if they're a guy! Riri is super famous, after all!"

A woman's voice rang out. When I turned toward the voice, there was a girl. A varsity jacket and denim shorts. A lively-looking girl with her hair tied in a bun at the back. She had features that would pass for a beauty. And I know this woman well.

"Yahoo, Tomoe! Why are you here? You're in a different department."

"You're as scatterbrained as always, Riri. This class is common to the Faculty of Engineering. It's not just Architecture; us in Bioengineering are in it too!"

The woman called Tomoe sat next to my wife. Then she looked at me with suspicious eyes.

"Who's this guy? No matter how I look at it, he looks like a dangerous thug."

"Calling him a thug is mean! This is Tokiwa-kun! He's a new friend from the same department!"

I believe friendship cannot exist between men and women. Especially with my wife, it's absolutely impossible. Even after dying once, unfortunately, it seems impossible.

"But he only looks like a thug. Sorry, Tokiwa-kun! I just say whatever I'm thinking immediately!"

"Tomoe is the 'Saba-saba' (blunt/outspoken) type! Forgive her, Tokiwa-kun. This girl is my precious best friend!"

This has become a bit troublesome. I didn't think I'd end up making contact with my wife's best friend. In the first world, I hated this woman about as much as I hated her lover.

"I'm Tomoe Mashiba. You can call me Tomoe."

"Nice to meet you, Mashiba-san."

I hate "Saba-saba" girls. First of all, I hate how they force a sense of familiarity onto you. That's why I will absolutely not call her by her first name.

"What? Ah, could it be you're embarrassed to talk to girls? Ahaha. For your looks, you have a cute side."

No, I just hate you. If only I could say that, it would be so easy. There's no shortage of reasons to hate "Saba-saba" types. Like how they immediately try to tease people like this.

"But it's rare. This might be the first time I've seen Riri next to a guy other than Hiro!"

Conversely, I've seen plenty of guys other than me next to my wife, though? Enough ex-boyfriends to form a soccer team. Incidentally, I'm on the bench. That "cheating partner" is surely the captain. I'd very much like to move to the spectator seats.

"But you'd better not get the wrong idea! There's no man who can beat Riri's childhood friend! You can be friends, but being her boyfriend is absolutely impossible! In high school, I saw tons of guys confess to this girl only to get flatly rejected and sink! Ahaha!"

The wife I know would basically date anyone for the time being if they confessed. Though she was famous for her relationships not lasting long at all. Everyone ended up getting dumped unilaterally by my wife.

"Jeez! Stop it, Tomoe! That makes me sound like a cold girl! I just didn't understand romance, couldn't imagine dating, so I had no choice but to refuse!"

"That's not it. Hiro is always in your heart, so no other man can enter. That's what it is. A woman can only love one man at a time, you know! Riri especially thinks only of Hiro single-mindedly!"

My views and Mashiba's don't align in the slightest. Far from single-minded, my wife cheated on me. Furthermore, one of the things that pissed me off about my wife was that after coming home from being held by her lover, she would have sex with me normally. A single-minded woman wouldn't do that. I just don't understand that part of her.

And I hate "Saba-saba" girls. The way they talk about baseless things as if they were facts or famous quotes, acting like the "woman who knows." Mashiba didn't understand anything about my wife.

"I'm not aiming to be her boyfriend or husband or anything. Mashiba-san, your worries are unfounded."

"But didn't you get close thinking, 'If I get lucky, I want to have sex with Riri!'? Aiming for a 'One Chance,' right? Kyahaha!"

"Not everyone thinks only about romance and sex like you do."

"What? Are you trying to say I'm a love-brained bitch? That pisses me off."

You were love-brained. In the first world. After my wife's cheating was exposed, this woman kept telling me, "Riri is pitiful, so rebuild the relationship. You actually love her, right? Being able to forgive a girl is the mark of a good man!" constantly. I think calling her a "girl" when she's a grown adult is painful! Incidentally, my wife sensed that I was genuinely irritated by Mashiba constantly stalking me to persuade me, so she cut ties with Mashiba. Ignoring the parties involved and intervening to complicate the situation is the shame of "Saba-saba" types itself.

"Tomoe! Stop it! That wasn't good of you just now, Tomoe! Tokiwa-kun is a good person! Suspecting him of ulterior motives is wrong! Apologize!"

My wife was quietly but seriously angry. This anger voltage is on the pretty high side. Specifically, about as serious as the time in the first loop when Mashiba came to the apartment where my wife and I were living together before marriage, got drunk, slipped up, and started blabbing about my wife's ex-boyfriends, angering my wife. Mashiba seemed to sense this, as expected, and deflated. But she didn't say sorry. Because she's "Saba-saba."

"Well, I provoked you too much too. Calm down. I don't mind."

I admonished my wife, who was glaring at Mashiba.

"If Tokiwa-kun doesn't mind, then fine..."

An awkward atmosphere flowed between the three of us. This is a chance. How about leaving using this as an excuse?

"Well, things are awkward between you two with me here. I'll go for a smoke, so in the meantime, make up..."

"Tokiwa-kun! I brought coffee in a thermos today, want some?"

Ah, my "smoke break escape operation" was blocked in a roundabout way. She was pulling the sleeve of my jacket tight with a smiling face. This woman has gotten smarter!

"Come to think of it, my thirst was just my imagination. Sigh... How long have you two known each other?"

I know the length of their relationship, but I asked anyway. I want to bring up a topic to get out of this awkward atmosphere.

"Since junior high! We went to different schools, but we were in the same cram school class, and our target school was the same, so we became friends! We got into the same high school, were in the same class for three years, and the three of us, including Hiroto, often hung out together! Ufufu."

Together with the "cheating partner" anytime, anywhere! I wish they'd at least been in different classes. Feels like "the destined two," huh.

"That's right. Riri, me, and Hiro are best friends. There's no room for anyone new to enter."

Mashiba proudly displayed the solidity of their friendship. But after Golden Week, my wife and that "cheating partner" will become boyfriend and girlfriend. No one new will enter, but someone already there will be kicked out.

"Really? Isn't a circle of friends something that expands? Even Hiroto is noisy about 'Connections! Connections!' every day since entering university. Ah, that's right! Hiroto is treating me to lunch today, so do you two want to come? Let's all sponge off Hiroto's lottery winnings!"

My wife made a smug face as if to say she had come up with a great idea. But what that guy won earlier was merely around two thousand yen. It wouldn't be nearly enough at that expensive cafeteria. Or rather, she seriously doesn't understand—or is ignoring—that Hagiri and I are on bad terms. For her lover, it's surely supposed to be a lunch date. Yet she casually invites others to trample all over it; isn't my wife actually the "Saba-saba" type?

"Eh... you intended to... have lunch just the two of you originally?"

I sensed a slight shadow in Mashiba's complexion. My wife didn't seem to notice and continued talking.

"Yeah. This morning, we drew lots at the lottery shop in front of Komaba-Todaimae Station, but only Hiroto won... isn't that terrible!? Why do I never win? It's so sad."

"...Huh...? Could it be you two came on the same train today?"

"Yeah. That's right. Our houses are next to each other, after all. Recently, Hiroto bought a car, so he drove me to the local station! It was super easy! Fufufu."

My wife was talking happily, completely normally. Mashiba was listening with a smile, but she looked somewhat stiff and sad.

"I-Is that so... A... haha..."

I could clearly tell she was dispirited. My wife didn't seem to understand at all, though. Two best friends having a Riajuu drive date from the morning. And the other best friend left behind. Getting "Saba-saba'd"! Pitiful! No, seriously, that is pitiful.

"I'm not going. You three go ahead."

Naturally, I don't want to see that guy's face, so there's no way I'm going.

"Ehh! Tokiwa-kun, you're not going! I heard the expensive menu there is delicious!"

"I already went, so I'm good."

By the way, it was normally delicious. I'll take Yuzuriha there next time.

"Ah, is that so. Hmm. Even though I went to the trouble of inviting you. Tomoe. I'm going to stop having Hiroto treat me to lunch."

Hah? What is she starting to say? Seriously, I can't read her thoughts!

"Eh? Riri. You promised Hiro, right?"

"It wasn't really a promise or anything big. Rather, you heard what Tokiwa-kun just said, right? If I go to lunch when the person I invited isn't coming, don't I look like a bad girl? Like I'm leaving someone out!"

I don't know where to start retorting. I don't want to think about anything anymore.

"But it's frustrating that the winnings will become Hiroto's pocket money, so Tomoe, you go! Tell me what kind of menu they had later! Ufufu."

"Eh... u... yeah, just me and Hiro, the two of us... Okay. I'll tell Hiro. But what will you do for lunch, Riri?"

Mashiba's cheeks looked very slightly red. Conversely, my wife had a loose smile on her face.

"Hmm? I'll think about it when the time comes!"

Too irresponsible! I wanted to hold my head in my hands. But immediately, the warning bell for the lecture rang, and the lecturer in charge entered the room. Thus, the encounter between the three of us ended in a chaotic mess.

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