Yamamoto was stunned for a few seconds. Judging from Ringo’s wary tone, he quickly realized that she’d mistaken him for a scammer.
“Hahaha, you don’t have any money?” he asked lightly, half-joking, half-serious. “Then I’ll just give you some spending money when we meet.”
“…Huh?”
Now it was Ringo’s turn to be dumbfounded.
Give her money?
Wouldn’t that make her the scammer instead?
Would she get arrested for reverse fraud?
She could already picture herself being taken away by the police while her parents looked at her in utter disappointment. Shaking her head frantically, she blurted out, “N-No, it’s okay! I have money!”
Yamamoto laughed.
“So… do you have money or not?”
“I-I…”
For a moment, Ringo had no idea how to answer. Her palms were already damp with sweat. Hanging up abruptly would be rude, but she didn’t know what else to do.
Seeing her trapped in awkward silence, the man on the other end spoke again.
“Alright, I’ll stop teasing you. It’s Yamamoto. Yamamoto from Take Sushi. Remember now?”
Take Sushi was just around the corner from Ringo’s house. Her father was good friends with the restaurant’s owner, so she’d often gone there for sushi growing up.
But the voice on the phone sounded much younger than the owner.
Then it hit her.
The owner had a son who was a few years older than her. When they were kids, he’d often play with her.
“Takeshi… Big Brother Takeshi?!”
Her voice rose several octaves in surprise, causing passing pedestrians to glance her way.
Being stared at by strangers made her scalp tingle. Clutching her phone, she hurried into a secluded corner where no one could see her before cautiously asking,
“Is… is it really you?”
“You guessed right,” the young man replied, sounding noticeably more cheerful than before. “As a reward, I’ll give you some spending money.”
Remembering that she’d just mistaken him for a phone scammer, Ringo was so embarrassed she wished she could build a house on the spot and hide inside it.
In a tiny voice, she pleaded, “C-Can we just skip that topic…? Um… Big Brother Takeshi, why did you suddenly call me?”
She wasn’t being unreasonable.
Even when Yamamoto was still in middle school, he was rarely home. She’d heard he’d started working after graduating high school.
The last time they’d met was when she graduated from high school. She’d just gotten into university, while Yamamoto happened to be home on vacation and had even given her a congratulatory gift for getting accepted.
After that, they’d lost contact.
Just as Ringo was wondering about it, Yamamoto explained,
“I came to Yokohama for work. Your mom asked me to bring you some things. Are you free to meet up?”
Only then did Ringo remember that he’d mentioned giving her spending money when they met.
But…
Wasn’t this all happening way too suddenly?!
Before she could answer, Yamamoto thoughtfully added,
“If it’s inconvenient, that’s fine too. You can just send me your address, and I’ll bring everything over.”
“N-No, that’s not necessary!” Ringo said hurriedly. “I’d be troubling you too much!”
The moment Yamamoto mentioned her mother had asked him to deliver something, she’d already felt guilty for inconveniencing him.
But he simply replied matter-of-factly,
“It’s no trouble. My schedule this afternoon is completely free. So just send me your address. Are you at school?”
“O-Okay. I’m not at school,” Ringo answered immediately. “I’m out by the roadside.”
“Should I send it to this number?”
“Yep, this number.”
“I’ll send it right now.”
After hanging up, Ringo immediately sent Yamamoto her live location, then saved his number and added his contact name.
The moment she put her phone back into her backpack, it vibrated twice.
Yamamoto had sent her two messages.
【I’ll be there in about twenty minutes. Wait for me.】
【If there’s a café or somewhere nearby, go inside and wait. I’ll message you when I arrive. Don’t wait on the roadside.】
Phone calls always made Ringo nervous, but texting was a different story.
Holding her phone, she quickly replied.
【Okay, got it! (≧▽≦)】
After sending the message, she waited for a bit. When no further replies came, she finally put her phone away.
Remembering what Yamamoto had told her, she looked around.
She couldn’t find a café, but she did spot a fast-food restaurant and headed over.
Before going inside, Ringo took her earbuds out of her backpack and put them on.
After entering, she ordered a drink from the self-service kiosk. The only time she had to speak was when she quietly thanked the staff member while picking up her order before hurrying to a seat in the corner.
Once seated, she carefully surveyed her surroundings.
After confirming that no one looked like they were about to approach her to promote something, she finally relaxed.
Taking out her phone again, she sipped her drink while trying to find someone who could go see the movie with her that afternoon.
…
No one.
Ringo silently shed tears.
She didn’t have many friends, and even fewer classmates she was truly close to.
Trying to find someone willing to watch a movie with her on such short notice was nearly impossible.
The only friend she could call at any time replied to her message with:
Did your boyfriend stand you up again?
That was enough.
If the conversation continued, she’d really start crying.
She wondered whether her boyfriend’s work was going smoothly.
The coworker who’d come to pick him up today hadn’t seemed to get along with him very well.
After thinking about it, Ringo took out her phone and sent Dazai a message.
【How’s work going today?】
Her boyfriend’s job was so strange.
Sometimes he’d disappear for days without any contact.
Oddly enough, he was more likely to have time to go on dates during weekdays than weekends.
It felt incredibly unreliable.
Remembering that Dazai was two years younger than her despite claiming he’d been working for quite a long time already, Ringo opened her phone again and started looking up information.
Dazai didn’t reply to her message.
By now, Ringo was completely used to that.
She became so absorbed in her research that she lost track of time.
Only when Yamamoto suddenly called did she realize she’d already been sitting in the fast-food restaurant for twenty minutes.
She took a deep breath and was about to answer when Yamamoto hung up.
A moment later, she received a text.
【I’m here. Where are you?】
【I’m in the fast-food restaurant! I’ll come out right away! ヽ(〃▽〃)ﾉ】
【No rush. I’ll wait.】
After replying, the black-haired young man put away his phone, glanced along both sides of the street, spotted the only fast-food restaurant nearby, and slowly drove over.
As soon as Yamamoto parked, the restaurant door opened, and a slender young woman stepped outside.
Her expression was a little tense as she looked around, clearly searching for someone.
Rolling down the car window, Yamamoto called out,
“Ringo! Over here!”
Hearing someone suddenly call her name, Ringo instinctively flinched. Even the little cowlick on top of her head bounced.
She then noticed the car closest to her lowering its window. A black-haired young man inside waved at her.
Ringo hurried over, bent down slightly by the window, tilted her head, and cautiously asked,
“Big Brother Takeshi?”
“What? Couldn’t recognize me?” Yamamoto laughed. “Well, I guess it has been a long time.”
“No!” Ringo shook her head vigorously. “I just wanted to make sure.”
The young man’s appearance hadn’t changed much since the last time they’d met.
He simply seemed more mature and dependable now.
Gripping the straps of her backpack with both hands, she awkwardly brushed at her hair.
When she noticed Yamamoto looking at her, she smiled.
…Oh no.
That smile probably looked really stupid.
Just as Ringo was inwardly cringing, she heard Yamamoto say,
“Hop in first. You can sit in the front.”
The back seat had things he couldn’t let her see.
“O-Okay!”
Ringo quickly walked around to the passenger side, opened the door, and climbed into the front seat.
“Fasten your seatbelt,” Yamamoto reminded her thoughtfully.
“I know.”
Although they’d known each other since childhood, they hadn’t seen each other often after growing up, and they were no longer as close as before.
So after getting into the car, Ringo couldn’t help feeling nervous.
Clutching the seatbelt with both hands, she asked stiffly,
“Big Brother Takeshi… what brings you to Yokohama?”
“Didn’t I tell you over the phone?” Yamamoto checked the traffic behind them while patiently answering her question. “I’m here for work. Before coming, I stopped by Namimori. Your parents happened to be at my house, and when they heard I was coming to Yokohama, they asked me to bring you a few things.”
“Honestly, Mom…” Ringo frowned. “You’re here for work, and she still asked you to do something like this.”
“It was on the way. It’s no trouble.”
Ringo asked cautiously,
“It won’t interfere with your work, will it?”
“Hmm…” Yamamoto thought for a moment. “I’m pretty sure I also told you my afternoon was completely free.”
“Did you forget?”
Ringo’s face went blank for a split second before she hurriedly apologized.
“I’m sorry! I forgot!”
“It’s alright. Don’t worry about it.”
Ahhh…
What should I say now?
Ringo Shirakawa mentally put on a mask of agony.
This was exactly the kind of situation she dreaded most.
Someone she wasn’t unfamiliar with…
…but not close enough to talk freely with either.
She couldn’t just ignore him like a stranger, yet they also weren’t close enough to chat about anything and everything.
If they shared a hobby, she could at least talk about that.
The only thing she remembered was that Yamamoto loved baseball.
She wasn’t sure why he’d stopped playing later on.
Maybe she should ask.
“Big Brother Takeshi, do you still play baseball?”
“Sometimes, if work isn’t too busy.”
“Then… did work go well today?”
“Hmm… I’d say it went pretty smoothly. We were mostly just talking.”
“Oh… then it wasn’t too tiring?”
“But the other party was a real handful, so it wasn’t exactly easy either.”
“I see…”
No more topics.
Ringo racked her brain but couldn’t squeeze out another word.
Then she suddenly heard Yamamoto call her name.
“Ringo.”
“Yes!”
She immediately straightened up, looking a little nervous.
“What is it?”
Yamamoto glanced at her and gave her a reassuring smile.
“If you don’t feel like talking, or you don’t know what to say, you don’t have to force yourself.”