An Extravagant Day Off
takato's c87 story
Takato has earned a lot of money from his work, but because there are bad feelings connected to it, he wants to replace them with happier memories. To do so, he enlists Yuki's help in blowing lots of cash on a fun weekend date. ♥
WARNING! This story contains somewhat major spoilers for Takato's route!
click here for the full image!
An Extravagant Day Off
Umm. After all, I got the feeling it was different when it came to books.
I had gotten lost in reading the new volume of ZombieChan that went on sale recently, and before I knew it, it was time for roll-call. Even after curfew, I turned on the bedside light and got absorbed in reading the rest of the book. ZombieChan was always so interesting. I knew the story since I'd been allowed to read the manuscript, but I still ended up crying at the same parts.
Still, it was strange. What part of Takato-san had this story come from? As I was thinking about it, I heard a soft knock.
"Asahina, may I come in?"
It was Takato-san! I hurriedly opened the door and Takato-san was standing in the darkened hallway, dressed casually. Maybe he'd just showered, since his hair was a bit wet.
"...May I come in?"
That low whisper was, to put it simply, that sort of invitation.
At my small nod, Takato-san slipped inside. He closed the door behind himself, and after locking it, his gaze stopped at the bed.
"I was just reading."
"...Is that so?" Takato-san's face relaxed into a faint smile. "This is perfect. Asahina, will you accompany me for a bit this weekend? We'll go carousing using the royalties."
Carousing? I tilted my head at the unfamiliar word.
"Let's have a night on the town. It's all my treat."
"Huh!? Is that okay!?"
"Of course. I want to have a good time with you."
A date with Takato-san. And one with carousing. I couldn't refuse. At my deep nod, Takato-san smiled an unusually happy smile and embraced me.
~~~
And so, on Saturday, once classes were over, Takato-san and I left the school island and went directly downtown.
"Let's start with shopping for clothes," Takato-san said and took me into a specialty store with an all-glass shop front. The inside was quiet with Western music playing softly, and the slightly mature atmosphere made me excited. The subdued colors of the shirts and jackets on display gave them a very different look from the clothes I was currently wearing.
Oh, but this t-shirt might be nice. I causally picked up the shirt that had caught my eye and glanced at the price.
...I wish I hadn't looked. It said 30,000 yen.
I drew back my hand in a panic, and behind me Takato-san was also looking at the shirts. But unlike me, who was flustered, he looked as calm as ever. "Asahina, how do you like this shirt?"
"I don't know..." I was scared by the prices and didn't feel comfortable shopping in a place like this. Well, everything I was wearing from coat to shoes, altogether it was about 10,000 yen.
"Did you forget? Today we're out carousing."
"But..."
If I was going to pay 30,000 yen for something, I'd rather go ten times to all-you-can-eat yakiniku.
"Asahina."
I flinched and Takato-san's expression suddenly softened.
"I want to get closure."
"Closure?"
"Yes. The new volume that just came out is the last novel I wrote before we started dating. The one I wrote when I was desperate to keep my mother and myself from being consumed," Takato-san replied, lowering his eyes slightly.
What feelings were going through his mind? But he didn't put it into words and just smiled.
"It's all in the past now. So I want to spend this money foolishly. Please allow me dress you up the way I like and go on a date with you."
It was like playing at My Fair Lady. Takato-san smiled. That self-deprecating smile made something suddenly click.
"Alright! Then, I won't think about the money. Instead, let's make nice memories."
"That's the spirit."
Anyway, it looked like my answer was correct. This time, Takato-san's smile was genuine. "...Let's go here next."
As he spoke with the sales staff, Takato-san picked out clothes for me one after another. First I tried on a British style outfit. The slim fitted suit looked really sharp and even I looked mature in it.
"But it's not quite playful enough."
We switched to a shop with slightly more casual clothes. I tried on all sorts of things like street style, designer fashions, and we finally settled on refined casual.
With the clothes decided, now we needed shoes. Now that it's winter, let's make it boots, Takato-san said, and picked out some narrow short boots. Next was a bag and a watch. Once we had bought some accessories like a scarf, we headed toward a salon where Takato-san had made an appointment.
We went inside the stylish shop which had a unified monotone color scheme and the male stylist asked what would you like today? But I didn't know what hairstyle would be good, so I answered, "Please make it something that goes with these clothes!"
He took a good long look at my clothing from head to toe and nodded promisingly, "Okay!"
Two hours later. I stood in front of a mirror, but I was like a different person.
"Not bad." The stylist seemed satisfied with the outcome after an uphill battle styling my wiry hair, but I wasn't used to new clothes or a different hairstyle, and I couldn't stop feeling anxious.
"Are you done over there too?" I turned around at the voice and saw Takato-san standing there. His bangs which were always up were now falling naturally. Maybe it was because of that, or because of the clothes, but Takato-san seemed different too. It felt like seeing each other reflected in the mirror got us both excited, like we were a couple on a proper date and it was embarrassing.
"It really suits you. You look cute." Takato-san placed his hand on my shoulder and whispered in my ear while pretending to look at the mirror.
~~~
"Was it a successful mission?"
"Even better than I expected."
Once the discomfort I had at first with the unfamiliar hairstyle disappeared, I felt it really suited me. And if Takato-san thought it wasn't bad, then I was really satisfied.
Takato-san had used the word closure. The guilt he harbored about his mother, his disappointment with reality, if he could put those in the past, I wanted to help him however I could. Looking back, this would be a nice memory, the way Takato-san wanted.
And this game. I'd started to enjoy it.
"Come on, let's go. Next is your long-awaited dinner."
"Woohoo!" I set off down the street, led by Takato-san. Suddenly, someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind.
"Hey, excuse me, do you have a minute?" A man held out a business card as I blinked at him. "As you can see, I'm an agent. Would you like to try modelling?"
"Oh, no! No thanks!!" I flusteredly ran off in surprise. Takato-san was stopped a little ahead of me and I rushed up to him. "Ah, that startled me. What does he mean, modelling...?"
"What does it say on the card?"
The card I received had the name of a men's fashion magazine even I was familiar with. Did that mean something like amateur modelling? It was impossible. No one had ever said anything like that to me. "...These clothes are awesome," my true feelings unconsciously slipped out. This had to be because of the clothes and hair.
But Takato-san's brows drew together as if I'd said something upsetting. "No, it's not because of the clothes. It's because you're handsome, Asahina."
"Haha. No way," I laughed without thinking. Me, handsome. No matter how infatuated he was, that wasn't true.
"No, it's just hard to see because of your expression and bearing, but you have an attractive face."
"Don't you mean Kuya-san?"
"No, well, Kuya is the same way... but I'm talking about you."
"Takato-san, you need better glasses. Anyway, if we're talking about handsome, I think you're more handsome than me."
"Good grief, you need glasses too."
It didn't look like Takato-san would ever change his mind, but that's how I felt. I thought the word handsome fit people with faces like Joker-san and Kuya-san.
"Then let me put it another way. ...To me, your face is beautiful. It's just the sort I like."
"Ugh..." He said that so calmly right to my face, so I didn't know how I should react. It was the first time in my life someone told me they liked my face.
But, oh. So Takato-san liked my face. My cheeks grew warm and even my ears started to tingle.
"One of things that's interesting about you is how you get embarrassed."
"Normally, anyone would get embarrassed being told they're beautiful and you like their face."
"There's also the common reaction of getting angry because you think I just like your appearance."
"That may be true, but I'm embarrassed."
"You're so innocent."
"Well, excuse me."
"I like that about you too."
Ugh... Takato-san's attack power was high as usual. I turned away my reddened face and a soothing voice meant to cheer me up drifted to my ears. "We're here. This is the restaurant."
The restaurant had a facade that looked just like an art museum. The restaurant's name was written in small elegant letters on the snow-white wall and there was nothing else apart from a silver door. The theme was white inside the restaurant too, with a very simple interior. Only the inside was spacious, with a very high ceiling. I could tell at a glance that this was a high-class restaurant.
I still felt intimidated when we were shown to our table. I was looking forward to delicious food, but I still was a bit uncomfortable. But the moment I saw the appetizer placed on the table, that feeling was swept away. It was food so beautiful I'd never seen anything like it. The two small fried fish filets on the clear plate were arranged just as if they were swimming. Snow was represented by pure white mousse. It looked more like art than food. And it was really delicious. With just one bite, I felt like I had awakened, like something would erupt from the crown of my head.
I couldn't care less about how this place was high class, and how we were a little out of place. The world was as one before such deliciousness.
"It's awesome, it's awesome, Takato-san. Everything they bring out is so delicious it's like a dream come true!"
The abalone, whole chicken, and ham consomme soup was clear and sparkling, but the moment I put it in my mouth, the complex and rich flavor filled my whole body. The dish of foie gras with strawberries was rich, but I felt refreshed by the tartness of the fruit and it was delicious like nothing I'd ever eaten before.
"I'm in heaven..." I murmured in ecstasy and the corners of Takato's eyes crinkled with a soft smile.
"Yes, indeed."
"The horsemeat carpaccio was delicious too."
"The dressing was the best."
"It was! The parts with the walnuts inside were so fragrant and it went amazingly well with the meat..."
Eating delicious food with the person I loved, telling each other it was delicious, this was truly the awesomest luxury. Long live carousing!
It was too delicious and I ended up gushing about how impressed I was to the waiter who brought the main meat course. As we finished the course, the waiter brought a man in a chef's coat.
"I'm very happy you enjoyed it."
Was this man the chef-owner!? I was surprised but happy, since I wanted to show him my feelings of gratitude. And so I ardently went on and on about how delicious it was, far more than I told the waiter before. I thought he hadn't understood my feelings, but the chef smiled brightly and gave an instruction to the waiter.
"Bring the special dessert for my charming guest."
The special dessert was truly special. It was cake and ice cream magnificently decorated with various fruit.
"I'm astonished."
I leaned forward at Takato-san's murmur in a rare enchanted tone. "Me too. This special dessert is really amazing!"
"No, by you."
"Me?"
"Yes. By your enthusiasm. By your energy to move people. I find that part of you truly irresistible."
Unexpectedly, the eyes behind the glasses narrowed with passion. At that moment, I felt like the background colors had instantly faded. Only Takato-san's gaze, no longer hiding a sexual tinge, was extremely vivid. Suddenly, Takato-san extended his hand. The fingertips that reached across the table touched my lips. "There's cream on you."
There was a little whipped cream on the fingers which moved away. My eyes followed the white cream in a daze and in front of me, Takato-san's tongue stretched out to lick the cream off his own fingers. I got a peek of his red tongue. That crude gesture was extremely erotic. A shiver ran down my spine and I unconsciously lowered my eyes.
"By the way, Asahina. Shall we end dinner now?" Takato-san's voice was low. I was sure I already knew what came after those words. "Of course, we'll be staying at a hotel after this."
Saying 'shall we go?', Takato-san offered me his hand across the table. I could see his fingers at the edge of my vision and with a small nod, I took his hand with the knowing look of an accomplice.
FIN.