novelWinning Conditions / Sprout
| ← Ch.270 | Ch.272 → |
Translator: Ranzan
Editor: ryunakama
Taiyou was taken aback.
The words he expected were not the words said.
That's why he was at a loss.
Noticing this, Akiha put on a questioning face.
「What?」
「No, I guess, nevermind. 」
「What? If you want to say something, go ahead. 」
「Your favorite phrase again...I guess. 」
「My favorite phrase...oh, yeah. 」
Aoba thought a bit, and slapped one hand in another.
「You mean the word『wonderful』?!」
「Yeah, that. 」
「Then, she's right. 」
「Right...what?」
Taiyou turned his head a bit.
The way she said it was slightly different, though.
「That's wonderful」and「It sounds wonderful. 」
With that much of a difference, even thought it was used the same and with the same positive nuance.
But still, it sounded a bit different to Taiyou.
「Natsuno-kun being weird again. 」
Aoba said with a snicker.
「Well, anyway, after all that, I'm never coming to this amusement park again. 」
「It's not that bad, right? Somehow that was all a trick to impress me?」Akiha said.
「Yeah, I think that it was just Youran messing with us...it'll probably be okay after this. 」
「Well, then who cares? Right?」
Akiha smiled and said with a light shrug.
After seeing her also give a mischievous wink, she seemed much more lively that usual.
After seeing this, Aoba seemed to get energized as well.
「Yeah, you're right. Let's just have fun!」
「Yeah!」
「Natsuno-kun, are you okay with that?」
「Huh? Oh, yeah, no problem for me. 」
「Then let's go!」
Aoba said, and grabbed the standing Taiyou by the arm.
He was still thinking things over, but he wasn't going to hold back if Aoba wanted to have fun.
He stopped with his worrying and decided to have fun in the park today.
After that, nothing extreme happened, they just had fun in the park together.
Aoba and Akiha, the two happily together, enjoyed going from attraction to attraction.
Taiyou thought that it was no different than how they usually were.
Two close friends, Aoba and Akiha.
If there was a change in them that he saw, when they went to ride a new attraction, if it was one where they had to ride two people with one staying behind, it was sometimes Taiyou alone, sometimes Aoba alone, and sometimes Akiha watching the couple.
Each of the three, changing roles as they changed rides, one watching while the other two rode.
The skycycle that Aoba and Taiyou rode together was thrilling because Taiyou's ability to get the speed to a thrilling level.
The Mirror House that Taiyou and Akiha entered together let her to tricking him into finding where she had disappeared to, again in a mischievous way.
At the merry-go-round, the two girls were pushed in by a enthusiastic Taiyou, as Aoba and Akiha rode the same horse together round and round.
Taiyou watched, and laughing, took pictures with his smartphone.
They kept going around the park, and after riding all the rides, the day had finally ended.
Taiyou and Akiha sat together on a bench.
Aoba had gone a long way to find a toilet, and left the two alone.
The park was about to close, and all of the customers were leaving group by group out the exit.
Akiba snickered to herself.
「You brought me here to help Aoba have a good time, right?」
「That was the plan. 」
「Well, Aoba really did, I can promise you that. 」
「You know she did?」
「We've been friends a long time. I know when she's really having fun. 」
「Well, then good. 」
Taiyou nodded, and then said:
「So, did you have fun?」
「Why?」
「Well, we haven't known each other long, right? I don't know if you had fun, so I thought I'd ask. 」
「That's not what I asked. It doesn't matter if I had fun or not, right?」
She was right, he guessed, after all, he had told her that himself.
After she said that, the conversation came to a close.
But he didn't want it to end, so he decided to make an apology for what one of his wives had done.
「Kohaku's a tough person sometimes. If you can't entertain a woman, you're not a man, or at least she thinks like that. 」
「Yeah, she seems like the type to say that. 」
「I mean, no joking, but it would be rough if you didn't have a good time here. 」
「And if I didn't?」
「I guess that would mean overtime until you did. 」
Taiyou said jokingly.
「So you're saying we can't go home until I have fun?」
「That's it. 」
「Then relax, I had fun. 」
「Really?」
「Yeah. 」
Akiha said, and winked.
「To be able to hang out with and have fun with Aoba for a day...of course it's going to be a blast. 」
「Really?」
「Yeah, but, there was one bad thing about it. 」
「What?」
「The fact that Aoba couldn't ride the ferris wheel. I invited Aoba to the school's roof before, but she never let me balance on the fence. After a ferris wheel I thought she would, so I was expecting her to ride, I guess. 」
After saying that, Akiha looked off at the biggest, most noticeable attraction at the park.
After the accident, all the riders had gotten off and the ride was closed.
「You...really like high places, right?」
「Well, people always say stupid people like high places, right?」
「Really stupid people don't call themselves stupid, then. 」
Somehow, they had a conversation like this before.
「I guess I had a really good time, so relax. 」
「Really?」
「Thanks for waiting. 」
While they were talking, Aoba returned.
They walked together again, left the park, and went back to the station.
After they arrived and were about to go home...
「Ah, dang it. 」
Akiha said as if she remembered something.
「I have something I have to do. 」
「What?!」
Aoba was surprised. Shocked, actually.
「Sorry, Aoba, I got to do what I got to do. 」
「Wait...Akiha?!」
「See ya. 」
She lifted her hand, spun, and sped off in a rush.
With no way to stop her, Aoba and Taiyou just watched Akiha speed off.
「What happened to Akiha?」
「...it was...strange. 」
「Yeah, different than usual, even for her. 」
He said, and Aoba nodded, even if it was a small one.
Different than usual.
Yeah, different than usual.
Taiyou thought so, and had been thinking it all night.
「That's wonderful」and「It sounds wonderful. 」
Taiyou had been thinking about that difference all night.
「Almost as if she wanted to say something else...」
| ← Ch. 270 | Ch. 272 → |