A Monster's Influence: Route C

Chapter 13

Ayanokouji's POV

Manabe had led me to one of the few benches in the middle of the boutique near the changing rooms before she ventured deeper into the realm of couture. I honestly felt out of place and a bit uncomfortable about this situation, but there was little I could really do besides fiddling with my phone while I await my imminent doom. I had already texted Yoshimoto my further instructions for his group's assignments along with a scheduled meeting for the reports. Nishino and Tokitou were doing alright, further exploring the campus and the other facilities in their assigned area while they searched for the locations of cameras.

I could hear numerous whispers around me, but I couldn't exactly decipher the topic of their conversation, or whether it was positive or negative. Perhaps the girls were uneasy that a male was in the boutique with them? I suppose it is strange considering how early it is in the school year. People in a previous relationship before coming to campus are rare, considering the selection process, and a couple forming early is rather odd, too. I didn't really feel like moving from my seat, so I decided to ignore the glances and stares.

A few minutes later, Manabe finally came around with quite a selection of clothes in a basket. Maybe I'll get off scot-free if I just talk about some random things about the clothes complementing her features or something.

"Hey, Kiyotaka," Manabe said, sounding slightly miffed, "Sorry I took so long. Some of the clothes I saw the other day were taken, so I wanted to look for more garments that I could wear. Let's see..." she trailed off. She dug through her basket and pulled out two sleeveless blouses. "I'm having trouble deciding between this red one and the blue-green one," holding each of them against her face as she said each choice.

I scratched the back of my head as I examined the blouses, pretending to actually care. Well, I guess this topic was rather interesting. I didn't really understand much about matching the colors of the body with the colors of clothes. Considering her rather unique platinum hair color...

"Both the clothes you picked are rather rich shades of their respective colors. The raspberry-colored blouse is vibrant, so it makes your hair look like has more depth and brightness. The cool tone of the blue-green blouse brightens your complexion, but I'm not exactly sure if you want that, considering how fair your skin is." I wondered if that was a convincing analysis of clothes. For all I knew, this analysis could be completely misleading because I only really used descriptive terms from the novels I have read.

My eyes returned to Manabe's, only to be met by a look of... wonder? It was a rather unusual expression, to say the least. I'm not sure if she looks like that because she discerned the nonsense that came out of my mouth. Wordlessly, she placed the two blouses off to the side and pulled out a sundress. She went into the changing room, quickly putting on her outfit before returning to where I sat. I guess she's curious about how long I can continue pushing this drivel?

"The warm color of this rose-gold sundress adds some color to your skin tone while making your platinum hair pop, providing a perfect backdrop to showcase your argent tresses. It also accentuates the attractiveness of your stunning eye color as well."

Manabe brought out a pink strapless dress and returned to the changing room to swap articles of clothing. I could feel my palms becoming clammy and considered running away. I could only bullshit for so long. Was this intended to be a form of torture? Is this the 'in' thing that popular girls do? Stressing out impressionable young males like myself with helping them decide between choices? How cruel. No wonder why that place was built. That man likely was trying to keep the children safe from these cold-blooded and unfeeling monsters. Oh wait, that's supposed to be me.

"Hm... I guess many shades of pink complement your hair color. The shade of pink you chose makes you seem more approachable to others, while also giving off a cheerful vibe." I closed my eyes, lying in wait for my imminent judgment call. Is this what it feels like to be on the gallows, or waiting for the guillotine to fall, delivering an undeserved beheading?