Chapter 283

After returning the shopping cart to his friend, Ishikawa Hayato strode towards the restaurant they had just chosen.

He walked in and past the front desk, and had barely looked into the restaurant when he heard Ikuyo's greeting.

"Hayato-kun, over here!"

Ishikawa Hayato looked in that direction and saw his four girlfriends sitting in a booth. He quickly walked over.

The four of them split into two rows, but Ishikawa Hayato didn't hesitate much and sat in the row with Hitori and Ikuyo.

Sitting down among them, Ishikawa Hayato asked.

"Have you ordered?"

"Not yet, waiting for you to come back, Hayato-kun."

Ikuyo handed the menu to Ishikawa Hayato Ishikawa Hayato took it, glanced at it, and said...

"It's okay, you can just order whatever you want, I can eat it all."

I already said so.

Liang wore a helpless expression, realizing he couldn't persuade the other three.

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled, and after confirming with the four women that they had all made their choices, he called over a waiter.

"Grilled Eel Rice."

Liang spoke first without hesitation.

Next, when it was Nijika, she smiled brightly and called out the menu she had been longing for.

"Tomato Cheese Minced Rice with Shirasu-don!"

But the waiter paused, his hand holding the pen on the writing board, and he smiled apologetically at Nijika.

"I'm sorry, sir, we've sold out of baby bream."

Nijika's expression froze, then she scratched her head and gave an awkward laugh.

"Haha, well then, it has to be Tomato Cheese Minced Rice."

"Senior Nijika..."

Ikuyo noticed Nijika's disappointment and called out softly. Not only her, but the others also noticed Nijika's emotions.

Nijika had been saying all morning that she wanted to eat this.

At this moment, Ishikawa Hayato, seemingly oblivious to Nijika's disappointment, calmly spoke to the waiter.

"I'd like to order the Seafood Spaghetti and Pizza Set. By the way, can we bring food in here?"

"Ah, sure, that's fine."

After confirming with the waiter, Ishikawa Hayato then asked the other three people.

"Does anyone else want to eat Shirasu-don?"

Nijika immediately understood the situation and hurriedly waved her hand.

"Hayato-kun, there's no need to trouble yourself. There might not be any other places that offer this."

But not only Ishikawa Hayato, the other three also ignored her.

Liang: "I want one too."

Ikuyo: "Bring me one too!"

Hitori: "Me too."

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled, tapping his forehead with his finger in a Polish military salute, but then casually lifting it up.

"Learn."

After he finished speaking, with a move reminiscent of Jackie Chan, he lightly jumped and slid out of the booth while pressing down on the back of the chair.

"Please continue ordering."

He left a message and ran out.

While Hitori and Ikuyo were ordering, Nijika smiled but said...

"Honestly... I already said I didn't need it..."

"At this point, even the arrogant one wouldn't know."

Liang looked at Nijika with amusement, while Nijika crossed her arms in dissatisfaction.

Before long, Ishikawa Hayato returned with a five-minute Shirasu-don, before the meal was even ready. He placed the takeout bag on the table and sat back down between Hitori and Ikuyo.

Nijika had already taken out her wallet, ready to ask him.

"Hayato-kun, how much?"

"No need, she's my girlfriend now, don't worry about this little bit of money." Ishikawa Hayato saw that Nijika wasn't going to let it go, and added with a mischievous grin.

"You can bully me from now on."

Ishikawa Hayato didn't mean it that way, but Ryo, Ikuyo, Hitori couldn't help but think of the same thing and showed varying degrees of embarrassment.

Only the serious Nijika understood his true meaning, and was puzzled by the strange expressions on the three people's faces. Because of their strange expressions, she didn't say anything more.

Seeing that the three had misunderstood, Ishikawa Hayato chuckled mischievously and didn't explain. He then continued distributing the food.

"You're welcome."

After everyone received their share, they began to enjoy it as an appetizer.

"So delicious!"

After taking a bite, Ikuyo exclaimed excitedly.

Ishikawa Hayato knew that as long as it wasn't too bad, Ikuyo would still patronize it, since she had said, "When people happily say it's delicious, the food seems to taste even better."

But he could also tell just how much Ikuyo was pretending.

This time, however, she didn't pretend.

Ishikawa Hayato responded with considerable pride.

"Hmph, I asked a local acquaintance about this shop and went all the way to buy it."

As he spoke, he glanced at Nijika and saw a hint of worry on her happy face. He understood what Nijika was thinking and said...

"Is Nijika thinking that she's going to be bullied terribly in the future?"

Nijika, who was hunched over eating fish, shuddered, hesitated for a moment, and then raised her voice slightly to sound intimidating.

"Just don't bully me too much!"

His forced composure and lack of confidence only made Ishikawa Hayato want to bully him even more.

Hitori looked at Nijika, who was also being "mind-read," with a sense of empathy.

When it was time for the main meal, the five of them started fooling around again.

Ryo looked at the shrimp on Ishikawa Hayato's plate and said, "I feel like I haven't had enough seafood yet." As she spoke, she picked up her chopsticks.

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled.

Before Liang could even put the shrimp back, he had already used his fork to grab the eel slices from Liang's bowl and even put them directly into his mouth.

Ryo looked at the shrimp in her hand and the large slice of eel that belonged to her in Ishikawa Hayato's mouth, and feeling cheated, she went to Ishikawa Hayato's pizza and started eating.

"Hello..."

Nijika had just turned to complain to Liang when she felt her rice bowl being moved. She looked in the direction of the hand.

As Ishikawa Hayato picked at her food with his fork, he weakly tried to please her.

"Let's try different flavors."

Nijika gently pushed the bowl forward a little to make it easier for Ishikawa Hayato to take a bite. While looking at what was in Ishikawa Hayato's bowl, she was too embarrassed to take a bite directly from the bowl, so she took a slice of pizza instead.

"That's too cunning! I want one too!"

"I'd like to try pizza too..."

Ikuyo and Hitori also joined the fray.

After having a good meal, the five of them strolled along the Shonan Coast, chatting and walking on the beach, and then Komachi Street.

Here, Ishikawa Hayato witnessed firsthand the exhausting feeling of girls only looking and not buying. However, Ryo and Hitori were not as troublesome as Nijika and Ikuyo; they bought what they liked right away.

After spending the entire day wandering around the area, and then being dragged by Ishikawa Hayato to a high-end restaurant for dinner, the five of them finally went home exhausted.

We went back to the same home.

"I can't go on, I can't walk at all."

After changing her shoes inside the house, Nijika staggered ahead and plopped down on the sofa, her casual attitude making it seem like she already considered the place her own.

Meanwhile, Ishikawa Hayato walked behind, supporting Hitori while carrying Ryo on his back.

One of the two fell asleep on his back, while the other swayed and leaned against him.

He glanced at the group and chuckled.

"Let's rest for a while before taking a shower. Nijika, why don't you stay tonight too?"

As he spoke, he walked to the sofa and placed Hitori and Liang, who were completely unwilling to move, on it.

"Uh... okay."

Nijika agreed after only a slight hesitation. She took out her phone to tell Seika that she wouldn't be going back tonight, and was prepared to be scolded by Seika.

Ikuyo, carrying some things, hesitated for a moment when she saw Nijika pleading pitifully with her phone on the sofa, before walking into the hall.

After Ishikawa Hayato placed Hitori and Ryo on the sofa, he was about to pour water for them when he noticed Ikuyo's hesitant expression as he turned around.

He took drinks from the refrigerator, poured a few glasses, placed them on the coffee table, and said to the three people sprawled on the sofa.

"Everyone, take a rest for a bit, then take a shower and get some rest. You have school tomorrow. I'll get Massage Bed for you all, otherwise your bodies will definitely be sore tomorrow."

"Good..."

They had all witnessed Ishikawa Hayato's Hitori massage during the seaside training camp, and although they knew it might make some strange noises, they were too exhausted to resist.

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled softly, walked down the corridor, glanced at Ikuyo, and waved to her.

Hesitant at first, Ikuyo quickly followed.

In the passageway wide enough for two people to pass, the two did not walk together. Ishikawa Hayato walked in front, Ikuyo followed behind at a slower pace, but gradually quickened her pace to get closer to Ishikawa Hayato.

After playing all day, only Ikuyo was still able to walk calmly.

Ishikawa Hayato turned and looked at her. She noticed his gaze, smiled, and asked him the question.

"What's wrong with Hayato-kun?"

Although Ikuyo said this, her face showed undisguised worry, which was obviously very obvious to Ishikawa Hayato.

She still doesn't know how to hide her feelings, but that's what makes Ikuyo endearing.

"Is Ikuyo also feeling a bit homesick?"

Ishikawa Hayato smiled and exposed the fleeting thought that had crossed her mind.

Running away from home and going out to play are different experiences. Even if she goes to a faraway place and stays for several days, she certainly won't worry.

But this was running away from home, and Ikuyo wasn't such a willful person; she always worried about how her family felt.

Ikuyo stopped in her tracks, looking at Ishikawa Hayato with an expression that said, "I knew it," before complaining.

"When Hayato-kun gets serious, he's just like a middle-aged detective in a TV drama; he can see through everything."

Complaining, she stepped forward, took Ishikawa Hayato's arm with obvious dependence, and asked him with a smile.

"So, what does Hayato-kun plan to do?"

"I'll go home with you after school tomorrow."

As Ishikawa Hayato spoke, he noticed the worry in Ikuyo's heart and bent down to touch her head.

"I'll try my best to make sure Ikuyo doesn't get criticized too harshly."