chapter 347: Normie?
During the conversation, Eriri and Yui Yuigahama did most of the talking, while the others listened, with Kaede occasionally adding a sentence or two.
Even Kawasaki Saki, who was working as the bartender, listened in out of curiosity. It was quite a shock when she realized that Kaede and Eriri were not only the same age but were already engaged.
Seeing Kawasaki Saki's expression, Yui Yuigahama laughed and said, "Hehe, Saki, you didn't expect that, did you? We were all shocked when we found out this afternoon too!"
Nodding, Kawasaki Saki said, "I was indeed shocked. Although I occasionally see news about high schoolers getting married and having children, this is the first time I've encountered it in person."
Being talked about like this made Eriri a little embarrassed: "It's not that exaggerated. We just naturally reached this point. Fortunately, our families didn't object to our relationship. In fact, they were the ones who first proposed the engagement during the New Year. Kaede-kun and I were both startled when we heard that!"
"Aww~~~ That's wonderful!"
Yui Yuigahama cupped her cheeks with both hands and said dreamily, "When will something like this happen to me?" Taking a sip of her drink, Yukino said calmly, "Yuigahama, for you, it would be good enough not to get tricked by someone. It's better to stay grounded."
"Hey! Yukino, don't discourage me like that!"
Pouting, Yui Yuigahama shot a dissatisfied look at Yukino, then leaned closer to admire the ring on Eriri's hand, asking curiously, "Eriri, when are you and Asakura-kun planning to get married?"
"Marriage?"
Eriri and Kaede exchanged glances. After thinking carefully, she said, "We haven't thought about a specific date, but it will be at least after we start university, or maybe after we graduate? After university, even though we'll have relatively more free time, Kaede-kun and I might both get busier with work. Things are good now, but we haven't reached our initial goals yet, so we still need to keep working hard. Also, regarding marriage, Kaede-kun still owes me a proposal ceremony! He has to get that done first, hehe!"
Kaede smiled helplessly, raising his hand to rub Eriri's head as he said, "Don't worry, I will prepare an unforgettable ceremony for you."
The sight of the two acting as if no one else was around left everyone else speechless, and even Yukino and Hachiman Hikigaya couldn't stand it.
Hachiman Hikigaya couldn't help but say, "Ugh, you guys are too normie! Give the rest of us a break."
Hearing his words, Kaede laughed and said, "Why are we normies? I've always been skeptical of the term 'normie.' Just dating makes you a normie? Isn't that a bit pessimistic? If we're really talking about it, Hikigaya, you appearing here with two beautiful girls, regardless of the purpose, looks like a normie to everyone else. Besides, Eriri and I live pretty much the same lives as everyone else. We never flaunt the money we earn. The most we buy are games and figures, and then Cat food and toys for the Cat at home."
"A Cat?!"
Yukino didn't pay attention to anything else, but upon hearing the word Cat, she instantly brightened up, her eyes sparkling with an inexplicable radiance.
Eriri saw this and asked curiously, "Huh? Yukino-san likes Cats too?"
"Ah, well..." Yukino, whose thoughts had been exposed, turned her head away awkwardly and whispered, "It's not that I like them *that* much, but I don't dislike them either."
What is that, tsundere?
Eriri was very familiar with tsunderes. She smiled and took out her phone, finding pictures of the Cats: "Hehe, let me show you! These are the three Cats we have at home. The big one is named Camearra, and the two little ones are her children, Golza and Melba. We found them on the way home and brought them back to adopt them!"
What bizarre names, Yukinoshita and the other two thought in unison.
Although she said she was just so-so, once the pictures were brought out, Yukino still followed her heart and looked at them, her eyes truly shining.
Eriri realized that Yukino was an extreme Cat lover, so she proudly found pictures of the two little Cats when they were younger.
"These, these are what the two little guys looked like when we first adopted them. They were a bit dirty at first, but after they were wiped clean, they were super cute, right?"
Looking at the two pink and tender kittens in the photo, Yukino nodded repeatedly: "Mhm, so cute! Uh..."
Raising her head, Yukino looked at everyone's expressions, a shameful blush appearing on her face: "I... I was just making a completely normal evaluation, an evaluation!"
Everyone nodded in perfect synchronization.
Yep, those who know, know.
Eriri then asked, "Yukino-san, if you like Cats, why don't you keep one?"
"The apartment I live in doesn't allow Cats."
Speaking of this, Yukino became a little disappointed: "Also, due to family reasons, it's unlikely I'd be able to keep a Cat. The way things are now is fine."
"Oh~ Is that so?" Eriri understood. It seemed the other party had her own difficulties. Flipping through the photos on her phone, she said, "Originally, when I was at home, I also wanted to keep a Cat, but I still needed my family to take care of me, so keeping a Cat was just a thought. Later, I moved out with Kaede-kun, and we happened to run into them, so we adopted them without hesitation. Hehe, now both little ones have grown up and are running around happily all over the house. Yukino-san, if you like Cats, don't worry. After all, you're only in high school now. You'll have plenty of chances to keep a Cat later on."
Yukino nodded, thinking the same thing. Although she had moved out now, her living expenses were still supported by her family. Strictly speaking, even if the apartment allowed Cats, she didn't really have the right to keep one. At the very least, she had to wait until she had a stable income in the future before she could consider it.
It's just that the situation with her family... Yukinoshita didn't know if she could handle it. It was a headache.
After chatting for a while longer, the time reached ten o'clock at night. Although tomorrow was Saturday, they still couldn't stay too late.
Before leaving, Yui Yuigahama looked at Kawasaki Saki and said, "Saki, don't forget to tell your brother!"
Shaking her hand helplessly, Kawasaki Saki really couldn't stand Yui Yuigahama's personality, although she knew the other party meant well: "Ah, I know, I'm not going to forget to go home."
Kaede and Eriri had also stayed long enough and left together.
After leaving, they walked toward the elevator together, and Yui Yuigahama asked, "Eriri! How many days are you planning to stay in Chiba?"
"Currently, we're booked for one week," Eriri said. "You know, with the school and the media stuff, we need two days to calm down before going back, so we just took time off to come out and play."
"Hmm~~ It looks like being famous isn't always a good thing."
Yui Yuigahama nodded and said, "Then let's exchange Line IDs! Since we've met, if we have time over the next few days, we can hang out together!"
"Sounds great!"
Eriri naturally didn't mind, smiling as she took out her phone to add them as friends.