I really don’t understand why I can’t seem to care about wearing new clothes.
It’s not like I’ve ever worn a dress like this before, so why isn’t anyone noticing?
“How’s the taste?”
“…It’s edible.”
“That’s a relief.”
“…Yes.”
I was casually chatting with the Commander while eating steak and soup.
Even though the Commander didn’t notice much, it wasn’t a big deal.
Honestly, aside from being a bit dense, he wasn’t a problematic person at all.
He had decent manners and a good personality, so I could enjoy a regular meal.
To be honest, I didn’t hate it.
“Still, I think this is better than when your mom came last time.”
“?”
“If it’s just the two of us, at least there’s no need to pretend. Except for maybe taking a few pictures.”
“That’s… true.”
“It was a bit awkward to pretend in front of your mom, especially for you.”
Me?
I don’t think I felt uncomfortable at all…
It was basically just a normal conversation.
The Commander’s mom wasn’t a bad person; in fact, she was really nice.
“I thought it was fine…”
“But wasn’t it uncomfortable? It’s not like we had met before, so it was our first time.”
“Um…”
“And having to keep pretending…”
Even so, it wasn’t that uncomfortable.
Really.
Sure, it had been a little while since I met his mom, but I actually had a great time.
She was just so nice that we had fun chatting.
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Uh… Well, that’s good to hear.”
“More importantly, let’s take some pictures. Like we did at the cafe.”
“Alright.”
The Commander calmly took out his phone after listening to me.
We had already taken a few pictures at the cafe, but we hadn’t shot any here yet.
I figured it’d be better to take some before we finished eating.
“Could you move a bit closer?”
“…Sure.”
The Commander moved next to me, and while it felt a bit awkward, I focused on taking the photo.
Right now, it was because of my mom, and I had to be more serious about this part.
-Thump.. Thump…
“…A little more to the side.”
“…More?”
“Yes, otherwise how can I take the picture?”
If we were going to pretend to be a couple, we needed to be a bit closer together.
Sitting side by side as we were now didn’t give off much couple vibe.
It was better to make it clear.
It wasn’t a photo for just anyone; it was for my mom.
It had to be perfect.
“And hold hands too…”
“…….”
I grabbed the Commander’s hand.
Unlike my small and somewhat petite hand, his was definitely more masculine.
It wasn’t like he was super muscular, but he had a firm and solid grip.
“Now… hmm.”
After intertwining our fingers, I thought about what to do next.
Maybe it’d be good to include some food in the shot?
I hadn’t even had a drink, but my head felt a bit dizzy.
But not so much that I couldn’t think.
It wasn’t a big deal.
“Let’s just take one like this.”
“…Alright.”
Well, we could take this picture with our hands held and think about the next shot afterward.
Just holding hands like this felt nice…
“…….”
“Can I take the picture now?”
“Uh, yes…”
The thought that hit my mind made me feel a wave of embarrassment, but it was too late to back out now.
No matter the reason, I had created this situation.
We were holding hands now, and saying not to take the picture would be… odd.
So we just took the photo together.
I had made a mistake, but I couldn’t suddenly stop.
-Click!
The Commander’s phone clicked, capturing the moment with the two of us.
In the photo, it showed me leaning against the Commander’s shoulder without even realizing it…
“…….”
“I think it looks good.”
“…Yes.”
It was definitely a decent photo.
No, it was a well-taken photograph for sure.
Of course, the lighting and a few other things could have been better, but the subjects were great.
“…….”
“Shall we take another?”
“…Yes.”
This was an important task…
I mean, the Commander needed to do this to work more efficiently in the long run.
So that’s why we were taking pictures, not for any other reason.
*
“Commander. Is there anything more you need…?”
“I think this should be enough. I’m not sending the pictures right now anyway. I’ll send them only when the topic comes up next time.”
“Understood.”
Somehow, I ended up taking a ton of pictures with the Commander.
Since I became Lindera, or even back when I was a man, I don’t think I ever took so many pictures in one day.
Some of them were even taken by me holding the Commander’s phone.
Thanks to that, I felt shy and my heart was racing.
But it wasn’t a huge problem… just a bit awkward.
“I’m glad the photos turned out well… and dinner was delicious.”
“That’s right.”
“By the way, when are we going to go see the dress?”
“…Pardon?”
Out of nowhere, the Commander threw that question my way.
I had clearly said I wouldn’t wear a dress.
“I’m not wearing one…”
“Really?”
“…Didn’t I tell you last time? I’m not wearing it.”
“You’d look beautiful in it.”
“Even if you say that… I’m still not wearing it…”
That was a huge blow to my identity.
I was certain I would look beautiful in a dress in this body.
But aside from that fact, I didn’t want to wear one at all.
It was clear that it would feel embarrassing and weird.
“Besides, you’ll probably wear your usual suit.”
“Hmm… Probably something like a tuxedo.”
“That’s practically the same as a suit.”
They were basically identical outfits.
The only difference was a slightly different tie and maybe a bit of a different inner composition.
That was no different from me wearing a dress.
“Really…”
“Are you sure you won’t wear it?”
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm…”
“I’m really not wearing it.”
Yeah, for real.
Why does he keep trying to get me to wear a dress?
It’s definitely not happening, but I feel pressured every time he asks.
“Hmm…”
“However you see it… I’m definitely not wearing one.”
The Commander hummed, but there was no way I was wearing it.
Even if we were going as partners… I didn’t have to be forced into wearing one.
“Hmm.”
“Could you stop making those sounds…”
“Hmm…”
“Seriously…”
“Hmm…”
At this point, it felt like he was just trying to annoy me.
Honestly.
I was baffled by the Commander.
If I say not to do it, why does he keep bringing it up?
“Sigh…”
“I’m just joking. Why would I make you do something you don’t want to do?”
“…That’s fine then.”
We were walking through the streets at night with the Commander.
We could’ve gone to the area with the ship, but it was windy there, and a lot of dirt was mixed in with the breeze.
So it was better to just walk through the ordinary part of the district.
There was no need to walk through a dusty road.
I’m not sure how we ended up walking like this, but… I didn’t hate it.
“…Lindera.”
“Yes?”
“Uh, do you have time tomorrow?”
“?”
Why is he suddenly asking about tomorrow?
I assumed I didn’t have any plans since it was the weekend.
“Why do you ask?”
“Well… I suddenly got a ticket for a musical performance, and I was thinking of going with you.”
“…With me?”
“…It’s a pair seat.”
“Oh…”
I was a bit taken aback by his sudden proposal.
I never imagined he would ask me to go with him just because he suddenly got tickets.
Of course, I didn’t have any plans tomorrow, and I had no reason to refuse.
But it caught me off guard.
“Uh, I think that would be fine. But why did you suddenly get the tickets?”
“…….”
“Commander?”
Why isn’t he responding?
He had been playfully answering me just a moment ago, so now that he was silent, I couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled.
“Well… a colleague from my previous job sent them to me.”
“Oh… was it a woman?”
“…I guess so?”
“…Is that so.”
Suddenly, my mood took a dip, but I quickly brushed away any strange thoughts.
Who was I to question the Commander about a colleague from his old job?
Even if he was a Vice Commander, this was a bit too much…
“It’s fine. Yes, when should we meet tomorrow?”
“Hmm… The performance starts at 3, so we could grab lunch beforehand.”
“Yes, then… I’ll keep that in mind.”
I felt a strange discomfort sinking in.
I didn’t know why I felt off, but I decided for sure to go tomorrow.
“I’m glad. If you hadn’t come, I was just going to skip it entirely.”
“Is that so? Can’t you go with the person who gave you the ticket?”
“Well… I thought about it, but it feels a bit awkward since it’s so last minute.”
That makes sense.
“…Is that so.”
But that meant that if I hadn’t been available, he could have invited that person to go together.
That made me feel even more uneasy.
*
“…Clothes.”
What should I wear?
I returned to my personal room to think.
The one who hasn’t said a word about the outfit I wore today was him.
He usually lacked awareness, but today he was particularly oblivious to the point it made me feel off.
He used to criticize me when I often wore the same things, yet he didn’t even comment when I wore something different.
To be honest, I had hoped that he might say something before we parted…
“…Tch.”
Because of that, I prepared to wear a new outfit tomorrow—something I normally wouldn’t wear and that would elicit praise for being pretty.
I was steeling myself for embarrassment, and even though I wore it, he still didn’t say a word.
“…Skirt.”
I spotted the skirt I bought last time.
The knee-length skirt that I hadn’t taken out since I hung it up in my closet was still there.
But…
“…Wouldn’t that surprise him?”
I had never worn such a short skirt before.
The skirt I wore today was definitely longer than that.
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