Actually, Kaito had already noticed Shiina Taki's presence quite a while ago.
At first, he didn't think much of it. After all, it was the weekend, and aquariums were indeed popular attractions among young girls. Running into someone by chance was completely normal.
There was also a woman he didn't recognize beside her, black hair, green eyes, wearing a punk-style leather jacket. Judging by her appearance, she was a beauty above average level, though her expression was indifferent, giving off a very cold vibe.
'Probably just friends hanging out?'
With that thought in mind, he merely gave them a glance before withdrawing his gaze, not intending to greet them.
After all, not everyone liked to be interrupted while out having fun. And strictly speaking, he and Shiina Taki weren't that close, only met a few times. Even calling her a "friend" was pushing it. There was really no need to butt in and risk an awkward situation.
But the other party didn't seem to think the same way.
He entered the aquarium, and Taki followed into the aquarium.
He came to the penguin section to see penguins, and the girl still trailed after him, keeping about one or two meters behind. Not too far, not too close.
Even if all this was just coincidence, hiding deliberately in a low-key corner and staring this way without blinking since earlier. This kind of totally unhidden reconnaissance behavior surely couldn't just be coincidence, right?
'Hmm… maybe this situation should be called "tailing" instead?'
Kaito wasn't sure what Taki was thinking, but before he could consider whether or not to expose her presence, Takamatsu Tomori had already followed his gaze and looked over.
"Is that… Taki?", The gray-haired girl tried hard to make out the figure in the distance before finally recognizing it and tilted her little head slightly.
———
Would staying here… be boring?
"Of course not."
In response to her friend's question, Yahata Umiri shook her head decisively. Her normally solemnly beautiful face even showed a hint of amusement, "In fact, I actually find it quite interesting. It's a kind of curious experience."
Shiina Taki: "..."
Some things are like this, when your emotions run hot, you don't consider the consequences. Only when you've cooled down do you realize how inappropriate your behavior was.
At first, due to being overwhelmed by emotion, she didn't even notice there was another familiar figure present. Her focus was entirely on Tomori and that guy, thinking they were dating behind her back and came to the aquarium for a date.
But after following for so long, especially after realizing the presence of Mutsumi, Shiina Taki knew she had misunderstood.
The reason was simple.
What kind of couple goes on a date and brings a third wheel?
Let alone two.
Not only do they get in the way, but they ruin the atmosphere.
Unless they had some sort of special fetish, like feeling excited in front of outsiders or something.
But based on what Taki knew about Tomori, that possibility was basically zero.
The more likely situation was, she'd misunderstood everything from the beginning.
Since it was all just a false alarm, there was no need to keep tailing them.
If Tomori and that guy did notice them, being socially dead would be the least of her concerns.
If she got labeled a "stalker p*rvert," her life as a functioning human would basically be over, right?
Thinking about that gloomy future, the drumline member nearly blacked out and urgently wanted to flee.
That test from earlier was supposed to be an escape route. As long as Umiri agreed, she'd use that as a cue to suggest they leave together and end this farcical pursuit.
Unfortunately, her plan fell apart.
Seeing her friend's face full of frustration and unable to argue back, Yahata Umiri's lips curled slightly.
Taki was a very stubborn girl, with a strong-willed attitude, and it was precisely that kind of personality that made people want to tease her more.
Of course, that was only part of it.
The more important reason was, Umiri was genuinely curious.
She wasn't unfamiliar with "romance."
Although she had no experience herself, she worked as a support musician for thirty bands, had witnessed all kinds of emotional entanglements, and even if she didn't actively want to learn about them, she passively absorbed a ton of related knowledge.
From that angle, maybe she could barely count as a theoretical master in the field of romance?
In Yahata Umiri's eyes, the word "love" was most often associated with "strange" and "troublesome."
She had seen plenty of teammates who were normally sharp and capable, turn into completely different people once they fell in love. Suddenly giggling to themselves, hugging their phones all day texting, and surrounded by an aura of pink bubbles.
Like a strawberry cake with way too much cream. Let alone eating it, even looking at it made her feel sick.
Usually, when dealing with temporary teammates she didn't know well, she could still maintain the stance of a respectful bystander who just watched the drama and minded her own business.
But now… watching even her best friend get infected by this virus called "love"… Umiri really couldn't imagine what kind of guy it would take to make the extremely straight Shiina Taki, whose level of straightness could rival titanium alloy, turn into this mess of doubt and anxiety, acting completely unlike herself.
'Love really is scary. It can turn a person's entire world upside down, this is already hypnosis… no, brainwashing-level transformation, isn't it?'
With that thought, the cold-beauty-type girl subconsciously looked again toward the distant penguin exhibit.
She was genuinely curious, what kind of guy could Shiina Taki like?
Unfortunately, separated by almost two hundred meters, visibility was limited, and she couldn't even make out his facial features.
They could try getting closer, but that would increase the chance of being discovered.
Looks like they were going to miss the opportunity this time.
Yahata Umiri was a bit disappointed, but quickly composed herself.
Her gaze once again fell upon the girl in front of her, and seeing Taki's face becoming more and more flushed and warm, in order to prevent both herself and the other from exploding, Sister Umiri decided to stop while she was ahead.
"I suddenly remembered there's a live show later, if..."
"Mm?", Shiina Taki looked somewhat confused at her close-at-hand friend, not understanding why she suddenly choked up, and the expression on her face was also a bit strange.
"Hey!", After waiting quite a while like that, still not seeing Umiri return to normal, Taki couldn't help crossing her arms and voiced her dissatisfaction, "What are you spacing out about?"
Umiri turned a deaf ear.
The girl's gaze went straight past behind her, not shifting for a long while.
'What on earth is going on?'
Taki grew even more puzzled in her heart, followed her gaze, turned around, and met a pair of light pink pupils.
A girl as cute as a small animal stood behind her at some unknown point, slightly tilting her head, revealing a confused expression.
Shiina Taki: "..."
'Oh no!'
GAME OVER!
[T/N: Guys, after grinding hard for months I have finally reached the latest chapter of this novel. It is currently ongoing and author is releasing chapters very slow, so next chapter will depend upon when the author Releases it. As soon as the new chapter is released I will translate and publish it immediately. So stay tuned~ and in the mean time try my other novels.]
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