(You's POV)
I was helping mom with the groceries as usual. We both have both hands full of groceries when I spotted a familiar blue haired girl, whose familiarity caught my attention. Her long hair is tied to a single long ponytail, which flowed along with the direction of the gentle breeze and the simple beauty of her magenta eyes caught me off gaze.
Forgetting about my previous task, I was distracted by her and went towards her.
"It will be a quick one, mom." I got closer to her. It did not take me long to realise that she was my childhood friend, former schoolmate and member of the same idol group: Kanan Matsuura.
"Kanan?" I looked at her and smiled. I knew very well that I have been attracted to other girls ever since I've moved on from Aqours, but I tried to keep everything casual. After all, we were kinda like besties growing up. She looks almost identical to her younger self, except for having a slightly darker than her's some 4 years ago. Aside from the skin tone, she looks almost like a carbon copy of her old self.
"You Chan." She smiled and offered her hand for a handshake. Steadily, I reached out and shook her hand in return. It has been a long time since we met in person, but we kept each other's contact numbers from our high school days.
"I gotta go. Mama is waiting for me. We'll talk on the phone tonight." I excused myself and headed back to mom.
Later that night after a run in with Kanan Chan, I decide to catch up with her. It's been a while since we've met and let's see how she was doing.
I dialled her number, which was saved on my phone and got a positive response from her. We talked about what we have been up to after we have graduated and our future plans. I was pretty excited to catch up with my childhood friend after so long.
I stopped for a few moments to think about it, but she jumped to another question. She seems to want the both of us to meet for a drink when we're free and I accepted her offer before we ended the call and I went to bed.
(A few days later)
I waited outside the cafè that we both agreed to meet at. We had booked our reservations and we would only be seated if the whole group is here, in this case, the both of us. When Kanan arrived, the waitress led us both to our table and when we got seated, we ordered and paid for our drink.
"How's things in the last 4 years?" Kanan asked. "I'm curious to hear."
" Hmm... Exercizing isn't the the same when I'm on my own. It's much better to have someone by my side."
"Didn't you ask Chika or Tsuki San to accompany you?" Kanan asked as she slurped her drink down.
" Hmm, they're both sleepyheads, not helping that Tsuki Chan is usually very busy." I added.
"I see." Kanan added.
'I think you're cute.' I whispered.
"What?" Kanan gave me a mysterious look.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just waiting for our drinks to arrive." I blushed as I look away, hoping that Kanan will not notice.
"Oh. Guess what." Kanan added, changing the subject as I turned to face her again.
" Eh?" I tilted my head curiously.
"I'm staying in Uchiura to manage my family's dive store! I'll be working there and taking over the business when my grandfather and parents retire." Kanan exclaimed. " That means we can hang out when we're free. I guess that helping my father look after the dive store while his bone heals is paying off."
" Cool!" I clapped excitedly, knowing I won't be exercizing alone anymore, for the most part.
"I've recently graduated with a degree in fashion designing, though I will love to explore the sea from time to time, just like how my dad is a captain of a ship." I shared. " Finding a job will be quite hard, especially how competitive the fashion business is." I tapped my fingers on the table. " Would be lucky to find one that combines a good pay and enjoyment out of the job."
"Have you started launching an online store?" Kanan asked? "I know you love fabric designing and it seems like a good way to make a quick buck."
"Hmm.. I'm not able to keep with with a high demand, so I'll let it pass." I replied as the waitress approached our table and served us our drinks. I got a Blueberry smoothie with ice cream while Kanan got a chocolate frappe, which we began slurping down once we got them.
"The drinks here are nicely brewed!" Kanan exclaimed as she got a mouthful of the chocolatey beverage.
"Mhm." I hummed as I slurped down some of the Blueberry smoothie.
"It's a good thing we're early." I said as I pointed at the snaking line outside.
"Imagine if we arrive just a few minutes late." Kanan laughed as she slurped down the last drop of the chocolate frappe and I returned the smile to her.
"Well, that was delicious." Kanan said as we both got up from our seats and left the café.
"I better head home now." I glanced at my watch. "Mom wants me to be back early today as I promised to help out with the chores."
"Bye, Kanan, I'll talk to you later." I added.
"Bye." She replied as we fist bumped before parting ways.
