"I see. So your little sister ran away from home, came here all by herself from outside the prefecture, and that's why you want to buy her some daily necessities, Gotō-senpai."
Toyokawa Sakiko lowered her head thoughtfully, curling a finger against her chin.
Beside her, Gotō Hitori subtly looked away. This was the best excuse he could come up with.
He did feel a little bad about it—describing Gotō Hitori as some rebellious runaway kid without permission—but as long as he avoided letting Toyokawa Sakiko meet her in the future, it would be fine.
Anyway, that girl was basically another him. He could practically guarantee she hated going out just as much as he did.
Now that she'd ended up in another world, she didn't even need to go to school. She could stay home nonstop with complete justification. There was no way she'd run into Sakiko.
Unless Sakiko came to his place on purpose someday.
But even without thinking, he knew that would never happen.
He and Sakiko were just normal senpai-and-kōhai. Normal senpai-and-kōhai didn't go to each other's homes.
Gotō Hitori shook his head lightly, thinking that if he exchanged a few more pleasantries, he could probably leave.
However, just as he started forming the words for goodbye, he saw Sakiko place a hand on her—rather impressively sized—chest and say,
"If you don't mind, Gotō-senpai, how about Mutsumi and I help you? When you're buying things for your little sister, having girls along to give advice would be better."
Gotō Hitori froze, blinking in bewilderment. He never would've imagined Sakiko would offer to help.
Normally, if a girl went out with another girl, they had their own plans. Even if they ran into someone they knew, they'd usually just say hello and move on—not invite the person to join them.
So why was it different with him?
Seeing how happy Sakiko looked, Gotō Hitori suddenly remembered what she'd told him yesterday—
"You used to be in a band, right, Gotō-senpai? To be honest, it was after I saw your performance that I wanted to start a band myself… I've always looked up to you as a senpai I truly respect…"
Ah…
Gotō Hitori turned to stone on the spot.
He'd literally just said they were "normal" senpai and kōhai, and now that conclusion had been smashed to pieces.
A normal junior wouldn't watch a senpai's performance and then go start playing in a band.
But a fan absolutely would take real action to imitate their idol.
Now Gotō Hitori finally understood why Sakiko treated him so well—and why she kept using honorifics.
They weren't just "junior and senior."
They were "admirer" and "the admired."
He'd done something similar himself back then. Because he idolized Takizawa Satoru, he'd gone and studied broadcasting for a whole year, dreaming that one day he could become a legendary voice actor famous nationwide—like the "Little White Dragon."
But once he realized that voice acting wasn't the kind of job where you just read a script at home and call it done—
That you had to keep going to auditions, and perform anime character lines in front of a crowd with your emotions turned all the way up—
Gotō Hitori never said he wanted to be a voice actor again.
A socially anxious person would break into a cold sweat just being called on in class. How could he possibly have the courage to interview?
Wanting to perform and being able to perform were two completely different things.
Nearby, Sakiko saw that Gotō Hitori still wasn't responding. She assumed he was just embarrassed, so she leaned in again, raised one hand to cover her mouth, and whispered as if sharing a secret:
"Gotō-senpai, you don't want to see your little sister forced to use things that don't fit her… but too embarrassed to trouble you again, so she just grits her teeth and says nothing… right?"
"..."
What terrifying thing was this kid saying all of a sudden?
Looking at Sakiko's bright smile, Gotō Hitori felt that rather than a cute junior, she was more like a demon who, on a plague-ridden land, crushed enemies with overwhelming stats.
"Then… I'll be counting on you two. I'll treat you to a meal afterward." Under the demon's silent pressure, Gotō Hitori chose the path of the wise.
"Thank you, Gotō-senpai." Sakiko smiled sweetly.
"Thanks." The girl beside her—Wakaba Mutsumi—also offered her thanks.
And so, the mysterious part-time-working junior, the cool-toned beauty, and the Shimokitazawa club-headed snake formed a three-person party and entered a clothing store together.
Before coming, Gotō Hitori had already prepared himself to hemorrhage money.
He'd heard girls' clothes were expensive—easily thousands, even tens of thousands of yen.
And Sakiko and Mutsumi both looked like kids who'd grown up pampered. There was a real chance they'd drag him into some outrageously overpriced brand boutique at a glance.
Then he wouldn't be able to say, "That's too expensive," without making Sakiko lose face in front of him and Mutsumi—she'd sworn she'd help, yet hadn't considered reality at all…
Just imagining that scene made Gotō Hitori's features start to distort.
But to his surprise, the store Sakiko brought him to was actually quite affordable. After looking at several items, everything was still within a reasonable range.
That only made Gotō Hitori more confused.
This junior of his had a very "rich young lady" look and aura… but her lifestyle seemed oddly down-to-earth. Just who was she?
Could she be one of those rich kids whose family had fallen from grace?
If that were true, then if there was ever a chance for him to help her in the future, he should help her as much as he could.
After all, by Sakiko's own account, it was because of him that she'd stepped into the bottomless abyss known as "bands"…
He couldn't help feeling a bit guilty toward the poor kid.
Family troubles alone would've been bad enough—now she'd also caught something as terrifying as "band life."
He didn't even want to imagine how "beautiful" her mental state would be when both problems blew up at once.
Gotō Hitori shook his head, forcing himself to stop thinking, and focused on picking clothes.
Not long after, he picked up a red T-shirt printed with meaningless English letters and covered in chain designs.
He pictured Bocchi wearing it in his mind, and found himself nodding again and again.
Bocchi would definitely look good in this.
Just look at that marvelous red—pure hue alone already crushed those other pointless everyday outfits. And with these extremely "practical" chain designs, Bocchi could hang keys, earphones, and other small items on them when she went out.
More importantly, the "don't talk to me" vibe this shirt gave off would effectively prevent unnecessary social interaction…
Perfect. Absolutely perfect.
This was the ideal outfit for Bocchi.
Gotō Hitori sighed to himself, proud that his sense of style hadn't dulled with age.
But for some reason, Wakaba Mutsumi—standing beside him—kept staring at the shirt in his hands.
Her gaze was too intense.
Impossible to ignore.
"…Um, is something wrong?" Gotō Hitori tried asking.
Wakaba Mutsumi lifted her eyes, meeting his. After a moment, she opened her mouth slightly.
Her voice was airy and delicate—just listening made your heart feel refreshed, like an angel descending from heaven.
But her words were brutally sharp, and with just one sentence, she slapped Gotō Hitori's confidence flat:
"This kind of shirt… is usually something chūnibyō kids like to wear."
-------
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