"Hello?"
"Hey, President."
Takamine Rinji picked up his phone and called Shirogane Miyuki.
"Your little sister is in my hands."
"Please don't sound like a kidnapper," said Shirogane Miyuki over the phone with a tone of helplessness. "So you ran into her?"
"Yeah, here in Harajuku. She's with Secretary Fujiwara and her little sister. The original plan was for me to hang out with the secretary today."
"She told me. Said she was going out shopping with some classmates this Saturday. But since you're there, could I trouble you to look after Kei? I get a bit uneasy with a middle schooler out on her own."
"Don't worry, I'll protect her."
"Thanks, I appreciate it."
After ending the call with Shirogane, Takamine Rinji sent out a few messages from his phone.
Ahead of him, Chika Fujiwara was waving cheerfully.
"Rinji-kun! Hurry up~"
"I'm coming."
The moment they stepped into the shopping mall, the three girls made a beeline for the clothing section. Takamine followed behind, keeping a close eye on Kei Shirogane.
He wasn't particularly interested in shopping. If it were a weapons expo, maybe he'd be more enthusiastic.
"Rinji-kun, why are you just standing there?"
"Oh, you girls go ahead and shop. I'll just watch from here—"
"That won't do! Since we're out together, it's not right to just leave you out!" said Chika as she grabbed him by the hand and dragged him into the men's clothing area.
They were in a trendy fashion section that sold both men's and women's wear.
As Chika pulled him in, she gave his outfit a quick once-over.
Tracksuit pants and a jacket—a very average look.
"How about you try picking out something? Guys your age care about how they look, right?"
"Nope. I don't care."
"Eh~? Don't you want to be more popular?"
"Popularity doesn't concern me."
"Ugh..."
Chika looked a little troubled, but then she suddenly clapped her hands and grabbed a few pieces from the racks, shoving them into Rinji's arms.
"Go try these on!"
"Huh?"
"Come on, you look bored just watching us. Let me pick something that suits you," she said brightly, clapping her hands.
"...Fine, I'll go along with it."
Rinji didn't really mind. He wasn't picky about fashion. As long as it was safe on the battlefield and comfy in daily life, he didn't fuss. This was a pretty novel experience for him anyway.
He took the clothes and headed into the fitting room. Not long after, he emerged.
Light gray pants and a pure white shirt—subtle, tonal coordination. With his delicate features and blonde hair, the outfit gave him a clean and sunny appearance.
"Mmm! Looks amazing!"
Chika beamed at him like he was her masterpiece.
"If your expression weren't so sharp, it'd be even better. You still look kinda scary."
"Old habits. Can't really help it."
"Well then~" Chika smiled and handed him another set of clothes. "Try this combo next~"
"…Have you been playing too many dress-up games lately?"
He tried on several outfits one after another. Eventually, due to Rinji's resistance, Chika had to stop, though she looked like she'd been having way too much fun.
"Planning to buy any of those outfits, Rinji-kun?"
"Not really," he replied.
"Eh~ But you'd look so cool with just a little styling. Wearing those plain clothes is a waste of your handsome-boy attributes!"
"Don't go making up attributes I don't have. And what's wrong with dressing comfortably?"
"Doesn't your family care about how you dress?" Chika asked curiously.
"My family, huh... My mom used to buy me decent-looking clothes. My dad didn't care much. My grandma…"
When he mentioned his grandmother, a rare expression of fear appeared on Rinji's face.
"Your grandma? What about her?"
"Don't ask… I'd rather not remember…"
"Oh, okay then."
Since he didn't want to talk about it, Chika didn't push further.
"Come to think of it, you've been picking out clothes for me this whole time. Don't you want to buy something for yourself?"
"Eh hehe, I just enjoy the act of shopping itself," Chika giggled. "Besides, this is a 'date,' right? It's only fun if both people enjoy it~"
"You just mean you've been having fun messing with me."
Rinji shifted his gaze toward Kei Shirogane, who was off in the distance.
She was holding a dress at the counter, staring at the price tag and muttering something.
"That's… five hundred newspapers…"
"Hey, President's little sister. Planning to buy that?"
"Rinji-nii?"
Kei turned and saw Takamine, who had already changed back into his usual clothes.
"No… I'll keep looking a bit longer."
"Alright."
He watched as she hesitated and put the dress down. Rinji glanced at the price tag.
2,500 yen. Not expensive by most standards, but even that seemed like a tough call for Kei.
Takamine knew the Shirogane family's situation—her father had no stable income, and both Kei and her brother worked part-time jobs to make ends meet.
Kei delivered newspapers. She earned a few tens of thousands of yen a month, but after helping with the household expenses, she was left with maybe 5,000 yen in pocket money. She was likely calculating how many newspapers she'd need to deliver to afford that dress.
Thankfully, the Fujiwara sisters had been thoughtful enough not to drag her into the luxury section.
Seeing her hesitate again and again, Rinji instinctively reached for his wallet.
But just then, a small hand gently pressed down on his.
"That's not a good idea."
It was Moeha Fujiwara, Chika's little sister, smiling sweetly as she stepped up to him.
"Kei-chan has a lot of pride. If you do that, she'll probably get upset."
"..."
Rinji didn't say anything, but he withdrew his hand.
"Rinji-senpai really cares about Kei-chan, huh?"
"…The president asked me to look after her. And she did call me 'big brother,' so I should at least treat her like a little sister."