The sun slowly set, and a crescent moon overtook the sky. Stars were very visible at the little spot where we were recording, which made the diversity increase beautifully. Plus, I'm sure people will love to see the stars shine above.
"I-I'm going to go now!" Kana ran off in a hurry, and strangely, Aqua followed after her. It made me think something was wrong, but I didn't know the two like that, so I didn't butt in. Ruby was the only one I felt comfortable enough with, and Frill was second.
Speaking of Frill, her yellow-green eyes lingered on me and Ruby for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then, she gave a small nod like she had just come to some sort of decision. I wasn't sure what was going through her head, but something about the way she nodded felt more deliberate than usual.
"I'm going to go as well." With few words and an even shorter departure, Frill was no longer with us. I glanced over at Ruby, and she was sprawled on the grass, looking up at the numerous stars shining in the clear night sky.
Rustle~
Copying her, I got down on the grass and did a starfish on the ground! Today had been so eventful and random that I felt like resting like this was a privilege I had earned.
'The whole thing with that thief and S-Shizuka's deadly fist!' I shivered just remembering it.
"What do you think?" Ruby pulled me away from the thought of my deadly sensei. Her head turning which I could tell from the rustling grass, but I didn't look her way. I kept my eyes on the beautiful sky above me!
"Well, I think it's beautiful!" The stars were just like that.
"I-I—Ah. I didn't mean the stars; I meant the recording! Did you have fun? Do you feel it was worth it?"
'I see, so that's what she's worried about!' Her voice, even though she tried to hide it, did have some anxiety, but I could understand why. I easily gave her $3,000, which, from her perspective, seemed like way too much. Unlike me, who knew I was going to get that money back at some point!
After contemplating, I turned my head so our eyes could meet. Her ruby-colored eyes, especially the one with the six-star pattern, shined passionately. She was simply...
"Pretty, indeed. I knew I wasn't wrong when I said it!" I chuckled a bit, remembering her surprise phone call from the morning.
"H-HEY! THAT WASN'T THE QUESTION! HYAH!"
'Eh?'
"..."
"Bwahahaha!" Uncontrollable laughter spilled from me. The adorable little move that I had just witnessed was just that funny, and the pink embarrassment on her face made it even better!
"Mou~! Don't laugh at me!"
"T-T-Bahaha! That was such a horrible excuse for a forehead chop!"
She pouted and returned to being a starfish, but the pink remained on her face. It felt good hanging out like this—alone and away from her group. I enjoyed it way more!
'I should introduce her to my group or maybe just another group entirely. Maybe Frill as well? I'll think about it later.'
I returned my eyes to the stars as well, but that didn't last long.
Hmm~ Hmm~ Hmm~
"A phone call?" Ruby questioned, and I was equally curious. With one swift motion, I checked the caller ID, and seeing the name, I answered faster than lightning!
"Hey, love!"
"HUH?!"
I ignored Ruby's reaction for now, but I was sure I'd be questioned right after this.
"Hehe~, I got some free time!"
Hearing her words, I felt my smile widen. She got a little free time, and instead of doing something else, she called me! I don't know a man who wouldn't be happy about that!
"Great! What'd you think of my message earlier?"
"The one where you were hanging out with that Ruby girl?"
"Yeah."
"It's fine. Why even bother asking?"
"Because you're my girlfriend, and you should know, right?"
"..."
"Love?" She went silent for no reason.
"S-Shut up! Let your words marinate a bit longer, dummy!"
"Is that how it works?"
"No! I just want it to work like that right now!"
"T-That's..."
"That's what?!"
"Cute!"
"G-Gosh, stop it!"
"Pfft~, wanna talk to Ruby?"
Ruby jumped in surprise at my words, but she wasn't getting out of this. I would save Ruby and Frill—if she wanted—from Aqua and Kana. Mainly Kana, because I really didn't like her for some reason.
"Sure, it'll make my heart calm down."
"Ouch..."
"That's what you get, bweeee~"
'She's like a little kid, hehehe~.' I kept that thought to myself and handed my phone to Ruby. She definitely wanted to avoid this situation, but she also didn't want to get up from being a starfish. So, she could only lament her exhaustion and enjoy some girl talk.
"H-Hello?"
I couldn't hear Sawako, so I just listened to Ruby speak.
"Yes."
"I love that show too!"
"Awww, that sucks."
"E-EH?! REALLY?!"
'Now I'm really curious.' Watching Ruby's ever-changing expressions, I couldn't deny that I regretted not putting the phone on speaker.
Ruby's eyes locked with mine, but she quickly turned away with an even deeper shade of pink than earlier! I paid even closer attention, trying to figure out what was going on.
"I would like that, but are you okay with that?" She slowly turned back toward me but avoided direct eye contact, only glancing at me with her still-flushed face before focusing back on the call.
"Wow! Thank you so much! B-But what about the future? Don't you think he'll..."
"I'll" what?
I ignored Ruby for a moment. The possibilities behind her pause and words were numerous, but one little devilish thought came up and stuck.
'There's no way... it's what I think it is, right? No... it just can't be.' I awkwardly chuckled, pushing that thought away as quickly as it came.
There was just no way that Sawako was giving Ruby permission to pursue me! That was just ridiculous.