The cowbell that's on the door gave away a ring as we walked into the café, and I looked around at the familiar scenery, "Pour it out." The place has dark, clean-wooden counters, floral wallpaper, the pendulum clock that would slip five minutes everyday, and the one and only bearded owner, who looked like an antique from a different area. This place also plays some jazz over the speakers, this sure brings me back.
"Hello! And welcome to- Oh! You're here!" Miyuki excitedly welcomed us and sat us at a table.
Seeing her in the white shirt, vest, apron reminds me of how shy she'd get every time we'd see her in uniform, always blushing, fidgeting, constantly tugging at her apron, and adjusting the collars of her shirt.
It seems that we're the only customers so far.
"Thank you very much for visiting our café. Will it just be you two gentlemen?"
"Yeah, just the two of us.." Yoshito looked around.
"Very well.. thank you for visiting our café- oh wait I've already said that! Silly me…" Miyuki lightly tapped her forehead.
I notice Yoshito trying not to laugh.
"Th-then, I will g-go and get the water for both of you right away!" She stumbled over her words and leaves.
She really must be embarrassed, her smile and movement appear very stiff.
"Hey, is Miyuki okay? She wasn't acting like this yesterday." Yoshito expressed concern.
"She's probably nervous, being seen in uniform by people she just met, but there's still something adorable about it, right?" I chuckled.
"Well, she spilled the water." Yoshito pointed behind me.
"Have you two gentlemen decided on your orders yet?" She took out a small notebook and pen, acting as if nothing happened.
"I'll have the curry, is it spicy?" Yoshito looked up from the menu.
"I'll check. Sir! Is the curry spicy?" She hurriedly asked the owner.
"N-no it's fine, there's no need to go that far." Yoshito raised his hand to get her attention.
"And I'll have the pancakes." Looking up from the menu, I see Miyuki looking at me with a beaming smile.
"Oho! You sure do have a discerning eye, Yasuhito, pancakes it is." She wrote on her small notebook.
She's getting a bit too carried away, this isn't good. If she starts acting a bit odd, it'll ruin Yoshito's interest in her.
"Our pancakes are absolutely simple, but their gentle flavors are so delicious that you'll possibly eat them all the time. They may not look the best, but they have depth and grace."
"Wow… really?" Yoshito appears a bit worried.
"M-Miyuki! You're going to start drooling." I waved my hand in front of her.
"Huh? Ah! Sorry about that, it seems that I got a little carried away." . She wiped the corner of her mouth.
"Curry and pancakes, right? Wait just a moment!"
"Man she sure is an interesting girl, no frills, and she's honest. Now that's what I call an amazing personality." I spoke with encouragement.
"Yeahhh…sure." Yoshito nodded.
A little while goes by and the pancakes arrive. It's really nice being able to taste them again, gives me so much nostalgia and I nearly form tears in my eyes.
"You know, when you mentioned that you were too embarrassed to tell us about your uniform, I was kinda expecting a miniskirt, I feel scammed." Yoshito expressed disappointment.
"Oh, is that what you were hoping for? You perv!" Miyuki pouted, returning to her usual mood.
This only proves how well these two amazing people are suited for each other. They then begin to speak about random things, like where to get the best ramen, and what their favorite activities are. The owner isn't really bothered by the lack of customers, he never was, and is just sitting back on his chair, relaxing at the back of the counter. I wonder what he's been up to, after we graduated college, Miyuki stopped working here and all of us stopped visiting this café.
"You'll go as well, right?"
"Huh? I'll go where?" I asked, feeling flustered from being caught off guard.
"Haven't you been listening to our conversation?" Yoshito laughed and shaked his head as he asked.
"Rafting! Taking a boat down the raging river where you could overturn at any given moment!" Miyuki slammed her hands on the table.
"Oh… rafting at Bigsmile rafting, right?"
"So you were listening." Yoshito sounded a bit in disbelief.
Nope, I wasn't paying attention, I just remember we all went rafting at the beginning of summer during this time. We all went to Bigsmile rafting, which is one of my best and most cherished memories, but I don't recall their conversation about it beginning this soon.
The cowbell at the door rings and we all look at the entrance where Eri appears.
"What are you two doing here?" Eri asked, looking anxious.
"Perfect timing, Eri! You should come rafting with us!" Miyuki enthusiastically said.
"Huh? What? Hey what's this about?" Eri turned to Yoshito and I.
I should probably explain everything to her.
At first she resisted the idea of going with us, but in the end she said this.
"Well, there's no way that I could let Miyuki go on her own, so fine, I'll go.." She didn't appear to be too happy about it.
Now that I'm reliving this, I realize that Miyuki was never too cautious when she barely met Yoshito and I. Makes me see why Eri has always, anxiously, looked after Miyuki often. This is just how Miyuki is, she has always wanted to have fun, basically she has just always wanted to enjoy every single day as much as possible. All of those things, and many other things, were the reason why I became attracted to her, but this time I can't let that happen. This time she'll spend these fun moments with the right person by her side.