Mall mingling

Airi couldn't speak anything as she stared at Koi head to toe; her face was expressionless, her mouth slightly opened as words denied coming out of it; Koi took her silence otherwise and asked with an awkward expression,

"Do I look bad? I told them not to wash my face or comb my hair, but they insisted."

Airi's thoughts were filled with only one line,

'He shouldn't meet Kawaguchi senior!! Disastrous if he learned from him!!' she finally calmed herself and sighed as she spoke,

"It looks very pleasant on you, Mr Yamamoto, but I don't think that hairstyle suits your personality very much."

"I'll comb my hair normally then", Koi replied, not knowing Airi's hair comment had a hidden intent,

'If he went to college like this, he'll be flocked.'

After Koi changed back into his casual clothes, they were sent off by the lady as she spoke,

"Visit again, Young miss, Young mas…!!" but before she could complete, Airi shut the door fast with one swing of her hand,

In the dark of night, both made their way towards the Supermarket; it was a first for Koi as the village he is from only had seven eleven shops which can be nearest to the Supermarket he had experienced,

As the Supermarket came into sight, there was a visible excitement on Koi's face, which made Airi smirk a bit as she looked at Koi's facial expression, which looked like a little kid,

"Mr Yamamoto, is this your first time visiting Supermarket?" she asked with a curious voice, and Koi nodded as he replied with a bit embarrassed yet clear voice,

"It is… I am nervous. How'll it be."

"Don't worry, I'll be your guide then", Airi replied with a simple smile; as they entered the Supermarket, Koi was shocked to see this grand building just meant for shopping; quite a few people were coming out and going it. Even though it was already dark in the night was something Koi's villager mindset couldn't comprehend,

Airi poked a bit at Koi's side as she spoke,

"Mr Yamamoto, you are troubling people" As Koi noticed he was standing in the way, he hurriedly entered the gate and apologized to the people who were waiting for him to get out of the way.

As they made their way inside the Supermarket, Airi unconsciously walked in the familiar way that led to the snack and instant food section. Koi followed her as he didn't know his way around, but as they neared the snack section, Koi couldn't help it as he spoke,

"Ms It… Mikan, that board says snack section" Although his voice was low, Airi heard it clearly, and her neck moved slowly and gracefully as if she was prepared for this,

"I intentionally brought you here, Mr Yamamoto; I wanted to check if you'd speak up or not" Even though she said this, her thoughts weren't aligned with it,

'What have I done!! I habitually came to the snack section… what if he thinks I am a glutton.'

Koi sighed as he realized he was just being tested and spoke in a pouty voice,

"It wasn't nice…." But he proceeded to follow Airi as she spoke,

"Let's go to the vegetable section now!!" as she walked in another direction, five minutes passed, ten minutes passed, but she couldn't figure out the vegetable section location, and she realized something,

'Aren't I a beginner at the Supermarket too?' she realized that she had only been to the Supermarket with school friends, only ever entering snacking section, and it was more so troublesome as this Supermarket was bigger than the average one,

"Miss. Mikan, is it far?" Koi asked as he noticed Airi seemed tense. He assumed it was due to walking,

"No, it is fine, just my mobile is ringing," Airi said with a business smile as she pulled out her phone and went aside to receive the phone. Koi, who looked at Airi receiving a phone call at this hour of the day, thought with admiration,

'Heading an NGO seems like hard work... Miss. It must be really talented to do it at this age' What he didn't know was Airi didn't receive a call; instead, she was calling someone,

"Miss. Fumiko!! Where is the vegetable and meat section in the Supermarket near the station!?" Airi roared into the phone in a hurried manner, and Miss Fumiko, who was tucking her child to sleep, felt a sense of urgency as she asked,

"Airi, what happened? Are you fine?"

"It is just… just", Airi embarrassingly explained her position as to how she didn't want Koi to know she didn't even know her way around the Supermarket; a little laugh came from the other side of the call,

"Fufu… Airi, you're strangely childish when it comes to things like this; I was really afraid that an emergency happened."

"What do you mean? It is an emergency; I can't let my image fall on the first day" Miss Fumiko couldn't help but find an Airi like this adorable as she explained the directions to her; Airi, finally satisfied, spoke,

"Thank you, Miss Fumiko" As she cut the phone and walked towards Koi, who was waiting for her, she finally began heading to the directions as instructed by Miss. Fumiko and Koi thought,

'Didn't we already cross this lane thrice' but he didn't put much emphasis on it as he concluded it to Airi's stress from working hard. He asked with a concerned expression,

"Miss. Mikan, it must be hard leading an NGO."

Airi just nodded as she apologized to everyone in her core team that always made her work easy, but she needed this moment to stabilize her impression.

Finally, in the Vegetable and Meat section, Koi feel excited at the prospect of shopping that he could've just jumped on a shopping spree; taking care of his sister and household had made shopping one of his hobbies, but he was considerate and waited for Airi as he knew she was the one going to pay,

"What would you like to eat tonight, Miss. Ito?" as Koi turned back and asked this question in Airi's mind, his silhouette merged with another in her memory for a moment, and as the illusion broke, she spoke with a happy voice,

"Let's have curry!! If it's a feast."

--to be continued