Chapter 35: False Date

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: False Date

Inosuki’s monologue, POV

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The group gathered near the entrance to the Thunder Dolphin roller coaster.

I hate unnecessary situations like this, I was against this but still went along

"According to the schedule," Mataguchi announced, pulling his own device from his pocket and acting as the group’s clinical timekeeper.

"we have precisely three hours of park activity remaining before we must transit to the movie theater downtown. The evening slots are highly optimized for crowd avoidance."

"A movie after this? Perfect!" Aki shouted, throwing a heavy arm around Oota’s shoulder. How can he be so full of energy after all this. I’m tired.

"I’m gonna need a dark room to recover from all these churros."

Whatever that must mean in society. I think I feel my body aching, or I’m I overthinking it. Should I tell them?

They’ll think... yeah forget it.

"It’s cool Oota came up with the idea" I muttered. In a movie theater, one are to sit and just watch. No need to move around, now that’s what a trip or outing is all about.

While Aki rambled on about film genres, i quietly fell back a few paces, my eyes narrowing as i observed the couple leading the march. I wasn’t stalking, I was too tired to even faster but more importantly I wanted to observe them.

Earlier the moment she was introduced to the group, her interaction was suspicious. Her interactions with Oota was off in many ways.

Junpai was sweating through his denim jacket, desperately reciting trivial pop-culture facts to keep the conversation flowing. Beside him, Nanami walked with an ethereal, practiced grace. Her nods were perfectly timed, her smiles were flawlessly sculpted.

To Aki or Oota, it looked like a highly successful date.

It’s an asymmetrical equation, I calculated silently, taking a slow sip from my cold drink. After a few observation it was clear to me

I didn’t wnat to think of it like this cause it’s draining but..

Junpai is burning through his emotional reserves, operating on pure, frantic adrenaline just to match her baseline. But Nanami isn’t actually engaged. She’s accommodating him out of pure politeness mirroring his pacing like a professional caretaker or a social psychologist studying a subject.

What a drag...

I’m not hating, just facts. This is the way I’m brought up, and I’ve lived with it since birth.

Nanami is mentally and socially miles ahead of Junpai.

The moment the artificial high of the amusement park wore off and reality settled back in, the gap between their emotional maturities would collapse inward. Junpai is setting himself up for an absolute psychological devastating rejection.

I would differently hate to see that happen but based on how the day is going there us no escaping it.

"...." I remained silent all though.

She clearly doesn’t want this, but playing along means she has some plan to pull off from the group.

Should I talk to her directly.

Should I help?

I glanced over at Aki’s bright, carefree face.

Should I tell Aki? .... i thought

Explaining to that imbecile will only make things worse, potentially ruining my mental health.

Besides she has no interest on Junpai, her true objective is to break up, it must be Junpai’s desperation that forced this outcome. Well for now everything points to that direction.

My eyes directed to Oota who was having a conversation with Shion as they walked forward.

I immediately discarded the idea.

Aki is driven by pure loyalty and high emotional volume, if i told him, Aki would either accidentally let it slip through his lack of a filter, or he would try to aggressively intervene, causing a massive, public scene that would humiliate Junpai right in front of Nanami.

After all these date set ups, what a waste. If it was me I’ll rather just stay at home.

No...

I concluded, my eyes cooling as i came to a definitive strategic decision. Well I wasn’t going to plan anything big, just wanted to resolve it with no issues or concerns, I know it’s selfish.

I have to break them apart myself...

I need to engineer a subtle, completely bloodless social friction that dissolves this match before Junpai gets deeply attached and seriously hurt.

Easier said than done...it seems impossible...

And being direct will only put me on Junpai’s rage radar...

To the right , the massive structure of the Big O Ferris Wheel loomed against the sky, its giant glass pods rotating in a slow, majestic orbit over the Tokyo skyline.

Up ahead, the Thunder Dolphin roller coaster towered over the amusement park. The train roared overhead before climbing the towering lift hill once more.

"Oh, the Rollercoasters!" Shion chimed in suddenly, her voice adopting a sweet, remarkably fluid tone.

Too bright and energetic, don’t tell me she wants us to ride that.

She stepped forward, smoothly cutting into the front of the group and linking her arm directly through Nanami’s.

A plan like mine will take time and patience to execute, I should wait or just forget it.

"Nanami-senpai, the boys are being way too loud today. Why don’t you and I take a ride together... then we can have some real girls talk?

"We’ll take one ride together. You boys can catch the next one."

Junpai blinked, caught entirely off guard by the sudden separation from his date.

"Wait, Shion, I thought-"

"Don’t be a hog, Junpai-senpai," Shion interrupted with a perfectly practiced, playful pout that left no room for legal argument.

"You’ve had her all morning."

Nanami’s light brown eyes widened by a single millimeter as she looked down at Shion’s locked arm. She didn’t resist. Instead, her smile widened just enough to accommodate the new dynamic.

"I don’t mind at all," Nanami said softly, her voice entirely poised.

"It sounds lovely, Shion-san."

Shion shifted to me for a sec, all most impossible to catch but i caught it.

I don’t know what she was upto, but it seemed as if she wanted backup.

Right, right I guess I’ll help out.

"I think it’s okay, we could need the breather...just us boys" i uttered, turning to face the others.

"Right?" I added.

"I mean we shouldn’t forget about Oota’s well-being" I don’t knownif that was a good enough reason but this morning I’m sure most of them had noticed Oota reaction after the group picture and underling stress.

"Ugh, yeah I totally forgot...though he’s been acting normal all through the day I couldn’t tell" Aki said, a bit shocked. Then again I guess he had noticed it as well.

"Okay you girls can have your time, we the boy will go have some catching up. Okay?" He added.

"Thanks Aki" Nanami replied her smile still on.

"Make sure not to be late Shion!" Aki shouted as the girls walked away.

"Yeah sure, gorilla" Shion replied immediately. A gorilla actually suits him, he should think of this as a compliment.

As the two girls moved toward the turnstile, leaving the boys in a state of mild, disorganized confusion, Mataguchi stood perfectly still by the queue railing. His lifeless eyes tracked the movement of Shion then subtly shifted to look at Nanami’s retreating posture before facing away.

I wonder what he was thinking.

I shouldn’t think much of it now, it wasn’t the time for it. More like I don’t even what to know.

"Okay so.... what should we be doing now? Wait?" Aki asked, he was the one who agreed but he is now asking this now?.

​Aki folded his arms behind his head, shifting his weight from one worn sneaker to the other. "I mean, waiting around for twenty minutes while they have their small talk"

"....seems like a waste of optimal amusement park velocity. We could go grab another round of churros."

Wait was that a impression of Mataguchi? Cause he sort of nailed it.

​"Your dietary choices operate on zero long-term thermodynamic efficiency, Aki," Mataguchi muttered without looking up from his device. His thumb rhythmically tapped the glass screen, logging data points only he cared about.

"What was your plan after this?" Mataguchi asked.

​"You talk like a textbook that got dropped in a blender" Aki groaned, slouching. "Junpai, tell him he’s being a buzzkill."

​Junpai didn’t immediately answer. He stood near the metal safety barrier, his eyes fixed on the roller coaster station where attendants checked each rider’s restraints.

Maybe he’d pictured sharing the ride with Nanami from the start.

The persistent, nervous tension that had gripped Junpai’s shoulders all morning had settled into a sullen, exhausted quiet. He pulled his phone from his pocket, stared blankly at the dark screen as if expecting a message that wasn’t coming, and shoved it back into his pocket.

I’m too stressed to get myself involved in this drama.

​"It’s fine," Junpai murmured, his voice flat. "Let them have their talk. I don’t care."

​I watched the subtle shift in Junpai posture. The micro-expressions were unmistakable. The tight set of his jaw, the rapid, shallow cadence of his breath, the subtle tremor in his fingers as he adjusted his collar which in short says he was in a state of hyper-arousal, his ego completely raw after two hours of trying to force a connection with a girl whose social standing far outclassed his own. He was desperate for validation, which made his cognitive framework exceptionally fragile.

Perfect,

I thought, keeping my expression entirely neutral as I took another slow sip from my cup.

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"Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth."

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