Date Her Instead Vol. 5

Chapter Five: Unknown Changes

Unfortunately, doing that didn't make her life any easier. "I guess first up is Mi-chan on Saturday. I really hope we don't end up fighting again..."

*****

When Saturday came around, Kanako was a bundle of nerves. "Is this really a good idea?" she wondered. It felt only natural to doubt herself at the last minute. "It's really been so long since we spent any real time together... What if we can't fix things? Or, what if it gets worse? If that's the case, then maybe I should just stay home..." But as she thought that, Kanako shook her head. "No, that wouldn't be fair to Mi-chan. It's not like she doesn't have the same worries I have about this, and I'm sure it was hard for her to ask so sincerely like she did too. If I didn't show up, that would be more than rude..."

Kanako still had her doubts, but ultimately she decided to still go. The night before, Michi had sent a text saying to just come to her apartment. Kanako wasn't really sure what they'd do there. Really, the thought of going back there made her more nervous. "The last time I was there was Christmas night..." she remembered. Before that, she had still only been to Michi's apartment a few times, so that night stood out even more against the couple of other times she had been there. With some difficulty, Kanako did her best to put that out of her mind. "I just need to focus on today. If I think about the past, I'll just end up saying something I shouldn't."

The plan was to meet up in the early afternoon, so Kanako had to wait for a little longer before she could go, not to mention waiting on her mother who was going to give her a ride. "Y'know, it's been awhile since I've heard you talk about Mi-chan," she commented. "Y-Yeah," Kanako said, not having much of a response to that. After all, it's not like she could deny it.

Opening the door to leave, Kanako walked out and immediately froze. The winter air certainly played a role in this, but what was an even bigger factor was what was happening next door. Just as Kanako had come outside, Haruna had too at the same time. Hearing the doors close, they had both happened to look over at the other's house.

Seeing Kanako, Haruna's eyes went wide for a moment. Then, she hurried off. As she did, Kanako quickly put up a hand to stop her, but as she went to call her name, she found that she couldn't. It was like the girl's name got caught in her throat, refusing to come up any further. "Why can't I... call out to her?" Kanako wondered. "Is it because of what she said to me?"

Kanako wanted to give it more thought, but before she could, her mother was following her out the door and telling her to get in the car. "I guess I'll have to worry about it later," she thought. Currently, there was another girl that Kanako knew she needed to be thinking about. "Mi-chan... I really hope you're not planning something." It bothered Kanako to think of Michi that way, but with the way her friend had acted in the past, it seemed like it was a valid concern.

The ride to her destination was short, as Michi only lived a little ways away from Kanako by car. When she arrived, she stared up at the somewhat run-down apartment complex. It wasn't in poor condition, but it was clear that it had stood for quite some time, as the walls were weathered and the pavement surrounding it had many cracks. Checking the text she had gotten last night, Kanako went up to the third floor and specified apartment. Once she reached the door, she stood there for a moment in hesitation. With a small shake of her head, she sent that feeling away and raised her hand to knock.

"Coming!" a voice called from the other side. With a click, the door opened, revealing a Michi in a simple pair of jeans and a purple hoodie that matched her eyes. "Hey Kana-chan," she said. "Come in." "T-Thanks for having me," Kanako said, offering her formalities. "S-So, um, what are we going to do?" "Well, I know this was my idea, but I kind of wanted to leave it up to you," Michi said sheepishly. "Me?" Kanako said, surprised. "Yeah. I felt like it might be better if I let you pick," Michi explained.