“Lindera.”
“…Yes.”
“…Something feels a bit… strange.”
“Isn’t that right?”
Following Midori, the commander finally acknowledged it.
Because the way Nana treated Midori didn’t feel ordinary at all.
It was too close to be just friends.
– Gah!?
– Midori, be careful.
– Ah, thank you… I didn’t notice people passing by…
– No need to thank me. I just didn’t want you to get hurt.
“……..”
Nana was holding Midori close to her body.
Of course, it was true that Midori almost bumped into someone else.
But the problem was the way she was helping; it was a bit too much.
It wasn’t just a shoulder, arm, or hand hold; she was outright hugging her.
Since Midori was shorter than Nana, it made her look like she fit perfectly in Nana’s arms…
“Let’s… keep following them.”
“Sure.”
For now, I didn’t have to help with anything.
They were having a perfectly normal date.
It didn’t seem like my involvement was necessary here.
Actually… it felt like letting them handle it themselves would create a better atmosphere.
I had told Midori I would help and give advice, but there was no need for that at all yet.
Honestly, Midori just seemed excited to hang out with Nana, and it felt better to leave it at that.
“Do you want a hot dog? Or maybe churros?”
“I’m good with anything. What are you going to eat?”
“I was thinking about churros.”
“Then I’ll take a hot dog.”
Before riding the carousel, Midori and Nana took a quick break, so we decided to grab a light snack.
A full meal would take too long, so just something light.
“But if you’re not going to say anything to Midori, why are you wearing those?”
“………..”
That’s a point.
I was wearing in-ear headphones as the commander suggested, but I wasn’t even talking to Midori.
But there was nothing I could do… giving advice felt kind of awkward.
“But they’re having a good date on their own, so I really don’t see why I should…”
“That’s true…”
“…Honestly, I don’t think we’re at the stage of confessions or anything this early. Their date feels pretty normal…”
I genuinely had nothing to say to Midori.
After all, I had to go on a date with the commander, too.
I felt a bit guilty towards Midori, but I didn’t have zero interest in dating the commander either.
I had to help them with their date, but it felt better than expected.
So, without realizing, I was starting to focus a bit more on my date with the commander…
“…Oh, they’re moving. Let’s follow again.”
“…It feels like I was about to say something.”
“It’s just your imagination.”
“Uh… Okay.”
Anyway, we started moving again, following Midori from behind.
I held hands with the commander, still wearing the non-prescription glasses.
“Nana! Should we ride the teacups?”
“If Midori likes it, why not!”
“Then let’s get in line! It’s not too crowded, but still!”
“Okay.”
We were almost right behind the two of them.
Our original plan was to stand back a bit, but since not many people were at the teacup ride, we had no choice.
Besides the group of five right in front of us, there was hardly anyone else.
So it was clear enough that we didn’t need the in-ears at all.
“…Let’s keep it quiet.”
“Sure.”
That was said with a hint of caution, as there was a possibility our conversation might be overheard.
Even though I was wearing glasses and dressed differently than usual, Nana had seen me before.
I couldn’t help but be cautious.
“Nana, aren’t you hungry? You’ve just been sipping drinks the whole time.”
“Hmm… I’m not that hungry. I think I’m too busy having fun to think about it?”
“Really…?”
“Yeah, why? Are you hungry?”
“A bit…? But if it’s okay with you, we can eat later!”
“Then let’s just ride this and then hit a restaurant to grab a bite!”
“If you want to eat, I really don’t mind!”
“……….”
“……….”
I was listening to the conversation with the commander.
At the same time, I had a thought.
Was this how Dolores felt listening to me talk with the commander normally?
“…Let’s be a little careful going forward.”
“Yeah, just a bit… I feel a bit bad.”
“…Let’s grab a gift on our way back. Since we’re at the amusement park, they must sell plenty of those.”
I felt a bit bad about Dolores.
Somehow, we decided to buy gifts.
Even though it was somewhat noisy from the people already riding the teacups, I could hear Midori and Nana perfectly.
That made me feel more guilty as I listened.
“Ah, let’s go in.”
“Okay.”
So quietly,
While I was silently apologizing to Dolores in my mind, we finally got back in line for the teacup ride.
The people who had been in line before us were gone, and it was our turn, again riding alongside Midori.
Of course, we didn’t announce we were getting on; we just quietly sat inside the cup.
“How fast do you want this to go?”
“You know it can get dizzying, so let’s not go too fast. Slow is better, right?”
“That’s true. Honestly… don’t you think we’ve done a lot of rides today?”
“Exactly, so that’s why we should take it slow.”
Could my tiredness show too much?
I hadn’t really let the commander know how tired I was after resting a while ago.
But I wasn’t planning to refuse the commander’s kindness.
I was actually a bit tired.
“So let’s take it slow… let’s rest for about five minutes before we go out.”
“Okay.”
So, we fastened our safety belts and stayed still while the teacup started spinning.
Slow, at a gentle pace.
While it was possible to speed up, maybe because I was tired, the commander just left it as is.
Thus, our cup went around at a regular speed.
Facing each other, we slowly turned around, but it didn’t make me dizzy at all.
I could see the commander more clearly than the surroundings.
“Ah…”
“Feels like we’re finally getting a proper rest, huh?”
“Yeah, it does.”
I was just watching the commander while slowly spinning in the teacup.
Because I had to be attentive to those I was meant to…
“Kyaahhh!!!”
“Ugh, I’m so dizzy…!”
“But Midori said we should spin faster!”
“I didn’t think it would spin this fast… Uuuuu…”
They were having way too much fun.
I mean, they were really having an absolute blast.
With the commander and me, and the groups aside from Midori and Nana, but especially they seemed overly loud.
“…Commander.”
“Yeah?”
“How about we just let them have their fun and we go on our date?”
Since they were so into their own fun, they wouldn’t pay us any mind anyway.
“Honestly, from what I’ve seen, it doesn’t look like we’re needed.”
“That’s true…”
“So how about we just enjoy ourselves separately?”
“That sounds perfect.”
I had no concerns with that.
I figured the commander would want to stroll around just the two of us anyway.
While it had been nice dating together up until now, I had to consider Midori’s pace, and honestly, I was tired.
Now, I wanted to have our date at a more relaxed pace, just like we usually did.
After that, not much happened.
The teacup ride ended, and we moved in the opposite direction from Midori’s group, casually communicating that fact through the in-ears.
And that was that.
Midori made a silly remark, but she couldn’t ask much in front of Nana.
“Pfft…”
“What’s up?”
“I couldn’t say anything. I mean, how could I answer there’s someone next to me?”
“That’s true. If you responded, it would have been entertaining.”
“Yeah, well… it would have been fun, but I still prefer being on a date with you, commander.”
I said that while holding hands with the commander.
Hearing me, the commander tightened his grip just a little.
But I didn’t dislike that bit of pressure.
“Oh, there’s one thing I want to ask.”
“What?”
“What do you think of my glasses? They’re non-prescription, but since it’s my first time wearing glasses…”
I was curious.
I just wanted to know how they looked.
There was no other intention; I simply was slightly curious about whether they suited me.
They weren’t even regular glasses but event glasses sold at the amusement park.
“I think they’re pretty. They give you a slightly different vibe—maybe a bit more intellectual?”
“Is that so…? You look great in glasses too, commander.”
I gave him a compliment since he had complimented me.
Honestly, he looked good in anything.
He could pull off sunglasses that a rich kid would wear or the glasses of a studious, model student.
It was only natural.
“…So, what do you want to do now?”
“For now, let’s skip the roller coaster.”
“I agree. We’ve been on way too many rides since the beginning…”
Since I had taken off the in-ears and wasn’t trailing Midori anymore, it felt so much more comfortable.
But there was a problem.
That was, both the commander and I were real introverts when it came to amusement parks.
So…
“…What ride should we go on?”
“…I know, right?”
“……”
We were struggling to decide on what to do next.
When Midori was around, we could just follow her.
“…From now on, I think we should do a bit more research before coming to an amusement park.”
“…Right.”
Seriously… we should have gone to amusement parks more often.
Coming aimlessly like this, despite being more accustomed to amusement parks in games than in reality, was definitely a problem.
One thing was clear… I’d occasionally tease the commander about being an introvert, having no friends, and being a homebody.
But today, I honestly felt that was not quite fair.
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