Harem of Side Characters [Rewrite]

Kokoro Inogashira - Late Night Cafe

Tonight, I am feeling a bit brave. By that, I mean that I decided to go and visit the cafe at night. Very out of character for me, I know. The cafe is pretty high-class and very crowded in the afternoons, but it should be empty at night.

Walking in, as expected the cafe was almost devoid of students. I approach the counter and skim through the menu.

"Ah..." I heard a soft voice from behind me. Turning around, I was face to face with a brown-haired girl with violet eyes. I recognized her from our class introductions.

"...Inogashira?" She looked surprised, but slightly relieved that I remembered her name. Her introduction wasn't great, but mine wasn't any better. So honestly I can sympathize with her a bit, I doubt a lot of people remember me anyway.

"Umm... h-hello...Ayanokoji..."

"I'm surprised to see you at this hour." It wouldn't hurt to start a conversation. I need to live my life here to the fullest after all.

"Its much quieter here at night, so I enjoy it." She bashfully replies.

"I see, I had the same idea. Being around a lot of people makes me uncomfortable, so getting some peace and quiet like this is very nice."

"Y-yes, it is..." Inogashira doesn't seem very different from my first impression of her. She was very shy during the introductions, and she is still as quiet as ever here.

"Do you mind if we chat for a bit? I messed up my introduction in class, so its not often I get an opportunity to talk with a classmate like this." I offer.

"I-I don't mind... but I'm not very good at socializing..."

"You and me both. I don't talk much either."

"I don't think that's t-true. You're talking to me just fine e-even though this is the first time we talked."

"I suppose you're right. I guess I feel comfortable with you because we're both shy. I'm not usually good at talking with strangers." Though the difference being that she has a group of friends to hang out with, while I don't. Such a sad life I live.

"I see... I'm the same. Talking with other people makes me nervous..."

"Its a necessary skill to have though. We can't just avoid talking to people. If life were that simple, we wouldn't need jobs or school or anything of the sort."

"I... guess you're right."

"That being said, I think this is a great opportunity for both of us." She tilts her head slightly in confusion.

"Huh?"

"We can talk to each other since we're bad at talking with strangers. It will help us with our social skills so we can talk to others easier. Right?"

"Umm... I'm not sure..."

"We'll just do it occasionally, if we ever coincidentally meet here at night. Unless you don't like my company and want me to leave you alone...?" I try to feign a hurt expression. I don't know if I succeeded, but Inogashira quickly shook her head from side to side.

"N-no! Its not that at all! It's just... you're going out of your way to come here and talk to me..."

"Think nothing of it. Like I said, I come here for the peace and quiet. If we somehow meet up, we'll chat for a bit. It benefits both you and me. Besides, if I'm friends with you, I might be able to get you to pay for my drinks." I joked. Her expression turned deadpan.

"...You're just trying to befriend me so I buy things for you? Is that what you're keeping me around for?"

"Only partially." If I could smirk, I would be smirking right about now. Unfortunately I have lost the ability to do so.

"Heh... We'll see about that..." Inogashira gives me a mischievous but somehow still shy smile. Its a rare expression, and very adorable. I'm happy she understood my joke and wasn't offended. Eventually we both ordered our drinks and went to an empty table.

"I assume you don't come here every night. What do you do usually at this hour?" I try to steer the topic to learn more about her.

"I sometimes knit things. Scarfs, sweaters...but my favorite thing to knit is stuffed animals...As long as I have enough thread to make one."

"Hmm, yes. I do recall you saying you were an expert at knitting and sewing during your introduction." I rub my chin in thought.

"A-a-an expert!? I'm nothing of the sort! I just do it as a hobby, and my work isn't even that good-"

"I kid, I kid. However, it could do you some good to work on your confidence a bit. I'm sure anything you knit would look lovely."

"How can you say that when you haven't even seen anything I made..."

"Well then we'll just have to change that, don't we?"

"H-huh?" Inogashira jumps back a little in surprise. "Y-you want to see the stuffed animals I made?"

"Only if you'll allow me to, of course. You could even give me one as a gift and I wouldn't complain. But only when you're ready, we're probably not close enough for that yet." I brush off the suggestion with a wave of my hand. I don't want to overstep my boundaries after all.

"Maybe when we're close enough, then..." Inogashira mumbles to herself.

"But, knitting can't be the only thing you do, right? Is there anything else you enjoy doing?" I ask. Inogashira seems to ponder her answer for a bit, and it looks like she's almost reluctant to answer.

"Well... umm... this might be a bit unusual... but I like to play games..." She fidgets with her fingers, clearly extremely nervous talking about her interests.

"When I'm not going out with Kushida and the others... I sort of just, play to pass the time." She continues.

"..."

"...Y-you think it's weird, don't you?...Y-you think I'm weird and won't want to meet up anymo-"

"No, that's not it. I was a bit surprised yes, but I don't see a problem. You shouldn't let anyone dictate what you like or don't like. You should do whatever you like to do, or at least that's what I think. If anything, learning this makes me want to get to know you more." I gave her my honest opinion.

"Th-thank you, Ayanokoji... That's... actually really nice." She mumbles with a slight blush.

"I actually rarely play any games. If I do try to play them, I'll go to you for advice."

"O-of course! We can play together..." Inogashira seems excited at the prospect.

"I'd like that." I'm just hoping she doesn't completely annihilate me in whatever game the two of us decide to play...

We talk about a few more miscellaneous topics before we are eventually kicked out by the staff. We shrug it off, and decide to meet here again on another day before returning to our seperate dorm rooms.