After Story: Determination

Chapter Twenty-Two: Meal Deal

"Well, this is nice," Tomoyo said as we settled into our seats. The girls had chosen a different restaurant than the ones we were familiar with, apparently so I could see how they'd react to new and unfamiliar environments.

"Yeah," I agreed, looking around at the inside. "It looks...cozy."

"I like the soft colors they utilized," Kotomi remarked as she sat next to her rival. Thankfully they had chosen to sit on the same side again, just like last time. My circulation was safe for the time being. "Green and brown are colors of intellect, so this restaurant feels like a library, even without the books."

"You would like that, wouldn't you?" I commented with an understanding smile; she was a bookworm, all right. "What about you, Tomoyo? What do you think?"

She took a moment to look around. "It's not my thing, really," she said as she readjusted her headband, "but I could see myself getting used to something like this." She nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah. Cozy. I see it."

We took the next few minutes studying the menu, learning what the place had to offer.

"Are you ready to order?" a polite female voice asked, interrupting my studies.

I lowered the menu to better see our server; I didn't want to be rude, after all. "Not yet ma'am, I...hey, it's you!"

Our server's eyes bugged out as her hair 'antennae' nearly stood straight up. "O-Okazaki-san! It's been a long time!"

"Yeah," I said, smiling warmly at my old 'tardy buddy'. "How have you been? Did you ever get the Theater Club going again?"

"I...I'm sorry, I can't talk about personal stuff while I'm working," she said.

"Tomoya? Who's this?" Tomoyo asked.

I gestured to our server. "This is Furukawa. We met each other at the beginning of last year, and started going to school late together."

"So you were a delinquent, too?" Tomoyo asked, narrowing her eyes.

Furukawa instantly turned beet-red, and I found myself missing that part of her. "She's not a delinquent, Tomoyo; calm down. It's not my story to tell, but I can say that her reasons for being late were a lot better than mine."

"If you say so," Tomoyo said, visibly relaxing. "Wait, haven't I seen you at school?"

"You have," Furukawa admitted. "But...I'm sorry, I-"

"You can't talk about yourself on the job," I finished for her. "We get it."

"I'm sorry..." she repeated. "Oh! I'm supposed to take your order!"

"Could we have a few more minutes?" I asked.

"O-Of course!" she squeaked. "Take your time! I'm sorry for rushing you!" Before I could get out another word, she hurried off to another table, glancing back at us the whole way.

"What a nice girl," Kotomi said as we watched our server scoot away. "She seems kind and considerate."

"I think 'timid' would be a better word," Tomoyo remarked, carefully flipping her hair.

"Yeah," I snorted. "I see what you mean. I wonder how she ended up with a job like this with as shy as she is?"

"She is not as shy as you might think," Kotomi said. "One would not be able to hold employment in the services industry with a reserved personality. Interaction with the public would eliminate those unsuited for the positions."

I picked my jaw up from the table. "Could some-no, I'm not going to ask for a translation, but...I never thought of that."

"Me neither," Tomoyo grunted. "That's...really impressive, Ichinose."