Harem of Side Characters [Rewrite]

Ryoko Nishikawa - Thoughts

I stop by the cafe again today. Looking around, I spot Nishikawa sitting at a table talking with another girl. Usually I would just walk away because I don't want to bother them, but Nishikawa offered me free drinks.

Nothing gets in the way between me and free drinks.

As I approach, their conversation becomes audible to me.

"...Are you sure you're okay?"

"I am, really. Jeez, it's not like you to worry this much, Miki."

"...When you've been acting like a zombie for the whole day, of course I would be concerned."

"That's an exaggeration, I was just lost in thought for a bit. I'll come over after my doctor's appointment alright?"

"..." The other girl doesn't reply. At that moment, Nishikawa finally spots me. She quickly raises her hand to call me over.

"Hey, Ayanokouji! Over here! What's up!" She gives me a big smile, while the other girl stays expressionless. Nishikawa notices this and starts nudging the girl.

"This is Kiyotaka Ayanokouji. He's my experimental guinea pig! Come on, introduce yourself, Miki!"

"...Miki Yamamura. I was just leaving." Yamamura stands up from her chair, and quickly leaves the cafe. She does however, give one last concerned glance to Nishikawa before exiting.

"Ack, I'll bet that wasn't a good impression. That girl, honestly..." Nishikawa over-dramatically lays her head on the table.

"Don't worry about it. I came here to hang out with my favorite barista after all." Nishikawa lets out an exaggerated gasp while leaning back in fake shock.

"F-favorite!?... Wait, how many baristas do you know?"

"Just you. Well, technically you don't even count as a barista, but doesn't change anything." Her expression falls.

"Ugh, you're the worst. You're lucky I like you or I would've killed you with my can of pepper spray already."

"...You are aware that pepper spray isn't a lethal weapon, correct?" Wait, should I be concerned that this girl carries a can of pepper spray everywhere?

"Hehehe... You haven't seen how I use it!" I am now very concerned.

"Shame Yamamura didn't stay though. Would do her some good to meet some new people. You did get her to say her name though! That means she likes you."

"...Nishikawa, she took one look at me and left the cafe immediately after. Is that really a sign that she likes me?"

"Oho, definitely when it comes to her! Usually she'll leave without saying a word, so the fact that she spoke to you means there's a chance!"

"We just met, and you're already trying to set us up?"

"Of course! Although with a face like yours, you probably have a lot of options when it comes to girls. Oh, I'm obviously off-limits though." She sticks her tongue out at me.

"Damn. There goes my first choice."

"H-hey! That's not something you should be joking about when we're alone together, you know!" She's blushing. Cute.

"Who says I'm joking?"

"...Gah! I can't tell with your never-changing face! I'm just going to assume you're joking anyway!"

"In all seriousness though, I don't think I have a lot of options. I'm not very popular." Unless I do have a lot of options and I'm just dense. However I don't think I'm dense. Am I dense...?

"Really? Maybe its because you don't smile. Tip #1 for picking up girls, is that you have to smile!"

"...Remind me why you're teaching me how to pick up girls again?"

"I'm teaching you this because we're homies!" Ah, I see. So me and Nishikawa are homies.

"...What is a homie?"

"A homie is a homie, homie!"

"...That has to be the worst explanation you could have possibly given me." I will have to google that word later.

"You've wounded my poor heart!" Nishikawa doubles over in fake-pain. She quickly returns to her regular pose however, fixing me with a mischievous smirk.

"So, I assume you came here for a drink. What can I get you today?"

"...I appreciate that you still ask me that even though we both know you aren't going to listen to me."

"That's part of the job!" You're not even an actual barista, nor are you getting paid. I just asked for another black coffee and waited for Nishikawa to mix up whatever drinks she's going to use.

"Here ya go!" She slams down a drink in front of me yet again. Taking a look at it however, it is much more normal than the last drink she gave me.

"...This just looks normal."

"Yup! It's a caramel macchiato, though I did add a bit of extra chocolate syrup on top. Are you upset you couldn't taste a crazier Ryoko-special?"

"I wouldn't say upset, more surprised. I thought you enjoyed making weird drinks."

"I definitely do! I'm just not feeling that creative today, haha..." She uncomfortably looks away from me. Something is definitely off about her.

"...Are you okay?"

"Oi, oi, enough of that! I've heard that statement too many times from my classmates already. You don't have to worry about me."

"If most of your classmates are asking you that, it probably means you aren't acting like your normal self. Forgive me for eavesdropping, but I heard Yamamura say you've been acting like a zombie."

"You've caught me! I was bitten by an infected person and am turning into a mindless zombie! Tell the world my story-"

"I also heard you mention a doctor's appointment." She turns a bit more serious after I mentioned her appointment.

"...Oh, you heard that part as well. It's just a regular check-up, nothing serious." An obvious lie.

"...You don't have to tell me now. I'll keep coming to the cafe to meet up with you, so just take your time." Nishikawa stays silent for a while. I take it as my cue to leave.

"I'll see you again tomo-"

"...Have you ever had any thoughts that you wish you didn't?" She asks me.

"...What do you mean by that?"

"You know, stuff that pops into your head that you realize shouldn't be there, but you can't do anything about it."

...

"Maybe every now and then, sure." I answer her.

"Okay. Good. Well, not good. But at least I'm not the only one who it happens to."

"Do you want to talk about what you're thinking exactly?" Nishikawa looks down.

"I mean...not really. I'm sorry uh... I have to get to my doctor's appointment. Just...ignore all that creepy stuff I was saying before, okay? I'm totally fine." Nishikawa gives me a smile before quickly getting up, grabbing her bag, and rushing out the door of the cafe.