Am I being simulated by their love affair?

Page 524

The senior student sent me a video, which she probably filmed on the Ochanomizu campus when she finished class in the morning.

Under the gloomy sky were the dark exterior walls of the teaching building. Girls going to and from get out of class walked along the swaying tree-lined path, all of them lowering their heads in unison. Some reached out to press down their hats, while others shivered and wrapped their collars and scarves tightly.

The girl who was filming did not appear in the frame; only her gentle voice could be heard through the wind.

"It's terribly cold today. I have to tuck my neck completely into my trench coat to keep the cold wind out."

"..." Jun Matsue imagined his senior walking on the road, looking timid and hesitant—she would look like a silly quail.

"It's really cold today." He put down his spoon and typed, "There were far fewer people in the cafeteria at lunchtime."

Even though the reply was to a message from two hours ago, the pale yellow parrot avatar on the screen immediately showed as read, and then quickly changed to "typing".

“Winter is coming soon~” Yamami Maki sent him a voice message, and the sound of trams running around could be heard.

"When I got up this morning to collect the laundry, it felt slippery and cold to the touch. I almost thought it wasn't dry yet."

"I understand." The boy nodded at the screen. "The scariest thing is having to wear clothes you just put away."

A shivering little yellow bird popped up in the chat box, it seems the senior student felt the same way.

Just as Jun Matsuoka was about to continue typing, a commotion came from the dining table—someone sat down opposite him with a tray, and a warm, rich aroma wafted over.

The boy looked up. "You're finally here. You're so slow."

Instead of a sizzling hamburger patty on a hot plate, what appeared before him was a steaming bowl of mushroom and chicken soup with rice—

"What's slow?" Natsumi Imokawa put down the tray and blinked in confusion.

Is Songzhi waiting for someone?

"..." Jun Matsueda tilted his head back a little higher and looked behind the girl.

Kenjiro Sakamuro left the window with his hamburger patty and turned to walk this way.

His steps quickly came to a halt. The tall, imposing boy made a "I understand!" gesture, then casually turned and walked to the other side.

Jun Matsue opened his mouth, then looked at the girl in front of him.

Natsumi Imokawa tilted her head. "Hmm?"

“…It’s nothing.” Jun Matsueda lowered his head and picked up his chopsticks. “It’s so cold today, why did Imagawa come to the cafeteria?”

The girl blinked blankly, "Didn't Songzhi come to the cafeteria too?"

"That's still different." The boy glanced under the table—

He was wearing trousers, while Imokawa was wearing a plaid uniform skirt. She wasn't even wearing cotton stockings; she was still wearing white calf socks.

Aren't you cold on the road?

"It is a bit cold." Natsumi Imokawa nodded. "You should put on some thigh-high socks."

“But in order to take good photos—” She took the camera off her chest and put it aside.

"It's worth enduring the cold!"

So that's why it was for taking pictures... Jun Matsue picked up a piece of udon noodles covered in broth with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth along with the vegetables.

"So, Imokawa wanted to see me about something?"

The girl first tidied her wind-blown hair, brushed aside the strands of hair hanging from the corner of her lips, picked up a spoon and took a sip of the hot soup in the large bowl, then contentedly squinted her eyes and looked up to speak.

"Can't I look for pine branches if there's nothing wrong with it?"

Jun Matsue blinked and stopped chewing.

"Didn't we already say that we should at least treat each other like good friends?" Natsumi Imokawa looked at him, puzzled.

"I saw my good friend alone in the cafeteria, so it's perfectly normal for me to come over and eat with him, right?"

"..." The boy turned his head to look at the table in the distance.

Ken Sakamuro was gesturing wildly at the hamburger patty, seemingly enjoying his meal immensely.

"Is the pine branch curry udon soup delicious?"

Matsueda Jun turned around, and Imokawa looked at the thick, oily soup in his bowl with a curious expression.

"This flavor is a bit strong, and it's spicy, but it's perfect for this kind of weather."

"Oh..." The girl scooped up a spoonful of her soup and rice, "Is it the Hokkaido style?"

"almost."

"Then, as a good friend, can I have a bite?" Natsumi Imokawa asked with an expectant look.

"Actually, I wanted to try it before, but I didn't know if I could handle the spiciness, so I gave up."

"..." Faced with her bright gaze, the boy turned his head and looked at the few people sitting around him.

"Even good friends won't work, or people will misunderstand."

Just as the girl's eyes were about to dim, he continued.

"But there aren't many people here today, so feel free to try it if you want."

Natsumi Imokawa's eyes lit up again, and she shook the spoon in her hand.

"Then I'll eat it?"

Jun Matsue nodded, watching the girl's spoon reach for his bowl.

Imokawa can easily become happy or sad because of a single sentence from him. This puppy-like reaction always makes people want to tease or bully her.

—Not long after he met Natsumi Imokawa, he and his classmate Yumi reached a consensus on this matter.

Natsumi Imokawa lifted the spoon handle and carefully put the soup curry into her mouth. The girl's eyes widened in surprise and wonder.

"The spices are so complex! The flavor is so rich!"

She then stuck out her tongue and spoke to the boy with her eyes lowered.

"It is indeed a bit spicy..."

“I ordered medium spicy.” Jun Matsueda tapped the rim of the girl’s bowl with his spoon, indicating that she should have something milder.

"In this chilly weather, it's only satisfying to eat something a little spicy."

"Then I'll order the mild version next time." Natsumi Imokawa gulped down several mouthfuls of mushroom and chicken soup.

"I don't want my nose to run from the spiciness!"

The boy smiled, lowered his head, and picked up a piece of udon.

"Since there's nothing else, let's eat while it's hot."

And so the corner of the long table fell silent, with only the boy slurping his noodles, the girl blowing on her soup to cool it down, and the two of them letting out satisfied sighs after swallowing the hot soup.

After finishing the udon in his bowl, Jun Matsue picked up the large bowl and drank the soup, then exhaled the spiciness and heat from his mouth.

He put down the bowl, wiped his mouth, and looked to the other side.

Sakamuro has already left—he probably figured there was no need to wait for him.

The boy turned around, and Imokawa Natsumi blinked in front of him, subconsciously speeding up her chewing.

"Is Songzhi leaving?"

"It's okay, I'll wait for you." Jun Matsue took out his phone and slowly ate the few side dishes left in his bowl.

"Okay~" The girl smiled happily. She picked up her chopsticks and took a piece of pumpkin floating in the boy's bowl.

Jun Matsue looked at the new message he received on his phone—his senior had arrived home.

"I'm having homemade stew for lunch today~"

The girl sent another video; the stew in the pot was steaming, and the milky white broth was thick—it looked delicious.

"Now I can make delicious stews without watching tutorial videos—I'm sure I'll feel even happier eating them in winter!"

"..." Jun Matsue recalled what Kokoro Kuroba had said during the cultural festival.

"Senior, have you already gone home? Don't you have classes this afternoon?" He naturally changed the subject.

"I don't have any classes, but I was supposed to help the teacher out, so I asked for leave."

"The senior actually asked for leave?"

The boy looked up after sending the message and saw that Imokawa had almost finished his soup and rice.

He wasn't in a hurry, but he still had to bring lunch for Mochizuki, otherwise the young lady would go hungry if he went back too late.

"Yes, because I'm going back to Yuqiu High School tomorrow afternoon for a lecture, so I need to prepare."

During the lecture… Jun Matsueda looked up at the cafeteria ceiling, searching for his memories.

There was indeed a notice on the corridor bulletin board about a lecture for second-year students—"Graduate Student Experience Talk." He had only paid attention to the activity schedule for third-year students and hadn't looked at it carefully before.

"Oh, it's at the same time as the parent-teacher conference..."

"What?" Natsumi Imokawa raised her head and licked the soup from the corner of her lips.

"It's nothing." Jun Matsueda sent the message "Good luck, senior" that he had typed and put his phone away.

"Have you finished eating at Yuchuan?"

"I'm full." The girl nodded obediently and scooped up the remaining rice from her bowl.

"Because I stole some vegetables from the pine branches, I couldn't eat my rice—but I did finish the side dishes."

"Not bad, not bad~"

The boy's tone was like a parent praising a picky eater, but Natsumi Imokawa smiled with satisfaction.

"Let's go then."

Let's go~

After sending the dishes containing leftover food onto the conveyor belt in the recycling area, Jun Matsueda first went to the window to buy a salmon and mentaiko rice ball, and then walked out of the cafeteria with the girl.

On the way, Natsumi Imokawa stopped taking pictures and instead pressed down on her shoulder-length black hair, which was being blown by the wind, occasionally stealing glances at the boy next to her.

Jun Matsue clutched the rice ball wrapped in his arms and turned to look at her.

"No matter how you hold it down, it'll still get messed up by the wind, right?"

"no way."

The rosy blush from lunch hadn't faded from her face yet. Natsumi Imokawa touched the sunflower hair clip on her side and looked at the person next to her with a slightly shy gaze.

"I'm afraid the pine branches won't think it looks good..."

The boy's expression faltered for a moment, and the sound of the wind in his ears and the chill in his face seemed to vanish for a instant.

He turned around and looked at the avenue where fallen leaves were flying everywhere.

"...It's okay, messiness has its own kind of beauty."

"Mmm!" The girl's smile drifted away on the wind.

Back in the teaching building, Jun Matsue first went to the vending machine to buy the hot chocolate milk that Mochizuki wanted, and Natsumi Imokawa also bought a box.

"Delicious..." The girl sipped through the straw, her eyes squinting happily.

The boy walking down the street glanced at her and thought the milk was just so-so, a bit too sweet.

However, perhaps Imokawa would enjoy anything related to milk?

The two continued upstairs, and as they passed the corner of the stairs, Natsumi Imokawa glanced out the window at the campus where a chilly wind was blowing.

"In this weather, does Songzhi still have to go to her part-time job?"

Now, she often lingers around the school after school, and naturally figured out the pattern of Matsueda Jun and Tomatsu Yuka leaving together on their bikes.

The boy took out a rice ball from his pocket—it was still warm.

"If I don't go, I won't get paid."

"Wow, that's amazing~" The girl let go of the straw, seemingly marveling at something.

"I have so much free time now, should I try finding a part-time job?"

"Does Imokawa have no experience with part-time jobs?"

Natsumi Imokawa nodded. "Is the literature museum where Matsue works still hiring? I think I could do exhibition photography or something."

Jun Matsueda shook his head. "Probably not."