Makoto's eyes went wide, matching the waitress's shocked expression.
Recognition hit him like a punch to the gut, followed immediately by the sinking feeling that everything was about to go horribly wrong.
"Ayane? Is that really you? You already found a new part-time job?"
Now that he has a chance to look at her closely, he can recognize it's indeed his classmate, the girl who never missed an opportunity to tease him during lectures.
She had long, messy dark brown hair tied in a loose, chaotic bun with strands framing her face, and stylish glasses perched on her nose. The waitress's uniform suited her, a fitted white blouse with a black bow tie showing off her huge breasts, tucked in a short black skirt, paired with black stockings.
He waved vaguely at Yuna and Mika, scrambling for something normal to say. "I just took my stepsister and her friend out for breakfast."
Ayane's brown eyes sparkled as she looked from him to Yuna, then to Mika.
A slow grin spread across her face. "Little stepsister?"
Her voice dropped to an amused purr. She leaned in closer, resting her hand on his shoulder with the kind of casual familiarity that was definitely not casual at all. "Since when did you have such a cute little stepsister?"
Yuna's whole body went stiff. She stared at Ayane's hand on Makoto's shoulder like it might bite her.
Meanwhile, Mika kept smiling sweetly, though her smile had gotten a bit too bright, a bit too fixed.
Ayane didn't notice or didn't care. She winked at Makoto, and Yuna's grip on her fork tightened until her knuckles turned white.
"So," Ayane said, her voice carrying across the suddenly quiet booth. "Which one is the stepsister, and which one is the friend?"
She looked between Yuna's furious glare and Mika's serene smile, letting her gaze linger just a beat too long on each of them.
"Or," she added, her voice turning into a sweet purr designed for maximum chaos, "are you just showing off your harem, you sly dog?"
Makoto let out a nervous chuckle. "Come on, stop it with your obsession with those cheesy harem anime."
He pointed at Yuna. "This here is my cute little sis."
Then he gestured at Mika. "And this is her friend."
He paused, and something wicked flashed in his eyes. Something self-destructive. "And hey, I don't mind if you want to join my harem or something, Miss Waitress. But my guests are starving here."
A soft gasp rippled through the booth. Yuna looked ready to either throw up or commit murder. Maybe both.
Mika's sweet smile had frozen into something brittle and fake.
But Ayane just threw her head back and laughed. The bright, unrestrained sound made heads turn throughout the small cafe.
"Oh, Makoto," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "You never change."
She gave him another slow, deliberate wink. "Maybe I'll take you up on that offer later. If you're lucky."
She pulled out her notepad, suddenly all business. "So, what can I get for the harem?"
Yuna glared at her, eyes like ice chips. "I'll have the deluxe pancake stack," she growled. "With extra bacon. And scrambled eggs on the side. Large coffee. Black."
Mika's smile looked painfully forced now. "I'll just have the parfait, please. And green tea."
Ayane scribbled away on her notepad. "And for the master of the harem?" Her eyes sparkled with pure amusement.
Makoto grunted. "Just one egg sandwich and a coffee latte, please."
He looked up at Ayane with a pathetic, pleading expression. "Any chance for an employee discount to help out your old mate? My financials are not too good lately." He glanced sideways at Yuna, who had turned away in a huff.
Ayane let out an exaggerated sigh. "Oh, you poor thing."
Her voice dripped with mock sympathy as she patted his cheek, letting her touch linger.
"Are you struggling to support your hobbies?" Her gaze flicked pointedly to Yuna, then back to him.
Yuna flinched. Her knuckles went white around her fork. Mika took a slow sip of water, her eyes unreadable over the rim of her glass.
"Well," Ayane continued with that dangerous purr in her voice. "I suppose I could see what I can do."
Another wink. "But you'll have to make it up to me later. I've got a project I could use your help with."
She sauntered off, swaying her hips just a bit more than necessary.
The silence she left behind was thick with unspoken tension.
"Well," Makoto said, too loud in the quiet booth. "She was just my classmate." He spoke slowly, carefully.
"There is totally nothing between us. Aside from the few times I lent her some of my manga and anime Blu-rays. I swear!"
Yuna let out a sharp laugh with zero humor in it. "Oh, is that all?" Her voice turned sweetly dangerous.
She picked up her fork and stabbed it into the wooden table. The tines vibrated from the impact. "Just lending her some of your mangas and Blu-rays?"
She leaned across the table, eyes cold as winter. "What kind of anime, onii-chan?" The words came out in a venomous whisper. "The kind with a lot of 'plot'?"
Mika just took another sip of water, then set her glass down with a gentle click.
A thoughtful smile played at her lips. "She seems nice. Very friendly."
She looked at Makoto with wide, innocent eyes that had fire burning in their depths. "You must have a lot of classmates like her."
The accusation wrapped in polite curiosity was somehow worse than Yuna's obvious rage.
Without speaking a word to each other, they'd both declared him guilty.
And honestly, he was not.
Makoto shrugged, trying for casual as he avoided their eyes. "Come on, Ayane only hangs out with me because she can't find any other weeb in our class."
"And I just happen to have a lot of harem, ecchi, and action anime for her to borrow."
Yuna slowly set down her fork. Her face went blank, unreadable, but her eyes burned with cold fury. "Harem and ecchi anime."
Her flat monotone was far scarier than shouting would have been. "So you're sharing your special interests with your classmate now?" The way she said 'classmate' made it sound like a disease.
Mika tilted her head thoughtfully. "Does she have a favorite?" Her voice stayed soft and innocent. "I've always been curious about those kinds of genres. Maybe you could lend me one sometime?"
Before Makoto could navigate that particular minefield, Ayane returned with their food balanced on a tray.
"One deluxe pancake stack for the little stepsister," she chirped, setting the plate in front of Yuna with a flourish.
"And one parfait for the friend." She placed it before Mika.
Then she leaned close to Makoto as she set down his sandwich.
Her voice dropped to a whisper just loud enough for the others to hear. "By the way, I just finished that volume of 2.5 Dimensional Seduction you lent me."
"You were right. The part where Okumura helps the cosplayer Amano with her measurements was very, very educational."
She winked and straightened up, sauntering away and leaving Makoto in the smoking crater she'd created.