Who Are You Going to Choose?

She was only six, she was only six, she was only six, she was only six...

She was still a child. Please don't let her go.

A line suddenly popped into Shuya's head.

Mai-chan was too charming. He could barely hold out.

Shuya listened silently to Mai's contented little hums. After the coach left, Mai-chan abruptly asked, "Shuya, are you a foot fetishist?"

Shuya choked. "Holy crap, where did you learn to say things like that?"

Mai laughed and called him a pervert. "Pervert."

"What's wrong with a man being a pervert?"

Shuya's retort caught Mai off guard.

She had never met anyone so shameless.

Mai pouted, feeling thoroughly annoyed that she'd never once gotten the upper hand against Shuya.

"All right, calm down." Afraid she might cause a scene again, Shuya asked, "Did your mom find you a teacher?"

"She did. I just finished a lesson this morning."

Mai counted on her fingers. "Acting lessons in the morning, exercise at noon, and different classes every afternoon. Is that about right?"

"That's tough. Hang in there, future great actress."

"That's pretty normal, isn't it? What about you, Shuya?"

Mai sat up straight in her chair and swung her legs, her toes occasionally brushing the floor.

Shuya openly took a few glances and said, "It's about the same for me. My parents are contacting teachers. I'm mainly going to study acting and music."

"Music, huh? That's nice. I'm learning piano too, but it's really hard."

Mai sighed wistfully. "Being a kid is so difficult."

"No, no. Kids like us are pretty rare."

Shuya teased.

"Well, that's the fate of a genius, I guess."

Mai spoke like a little adult.

"Pfft."

Shuya couldn't help laughing. Mai thought he was making fun of her and flew into a flustered rage. "I know you're better than me! Damn you... Take this!"

She pounced on him, shoved him down, and tickled him as hard as she could.

Shuya hadn't expected Mai, who always seemed so composed, to have such a childish side.

He played along, laughing wildly.

Yes, he absolutely wasn't pretending to be unable to fight back, and he absolutely wasn't enjoying the soft, sweet-smelling little girl pressed against him. He was just playing with her, like a doting father.

Just so we're clear.

Inoue, an absolutely pure-hearted man, would like to make that clear.

After all that fuss, Mai climbed off Shuya and clenched her little fists. "I win."

Shuya said, "...Yes, you win."

But I never lose.

Shuya stood and straightened his clothes, then casually tidied Mai's hair too.

"Shuya, why are you so good at this?"

"Nothing special. Just practice."

Shuya said calmly.

"Oh."

Mai knew he meant the Quintuplets.

After they finished fooling around, there wasn't much time left before they were due to be picked up.

After sitting for a while, Shuya and Mai saw Mai's mother at the front desk. Mai said goodbye to Shuya, then left the gym with her mother.

As soon as they left, Maeda Saori came in to pick him up.

"Shu-chan, are you going home now? Or is there somewhere you'd like to go?"

Saori asked. Since it was still early, she wanted to see what Shuya had planned.

She couldn't say that she wanted to spend more time with Shuya, so she could admire his peerless, angelic face.

"Uh, well..."

Shuya had originally planned to go home and play with the Quintuplets.

There probably wasn't much time left for days this leisurely. They might find him a teacher tomorrow.

That would leave him less time to raise the Quintuplets' and Rena's affection for him.

But there was nothing he could do. He couldn't just skip learning.

So... was there something that could play with them in his place?

An idea came to Shuya.

A game console.

PlayStations, Game Boys, Dreamcasts, and all sorts of other game consoles were selling like hotcakes.

Shuya had played more advanced consoles in his previous life, but he hadn't bought any in this one. For the Quintuplets, though, it was different.

Even though they were girls, they'd probably like games like Pac-Man and Mario, right?

Shuya didn't think a PlayStation would suit girls very well, so he chose Folk Master's handheld console.

"Saori-chan, could you take me home first? I need to get some money to buy something."

"Buy something? What do you want to buy?"

Shuya explained his plan to her.

"I see."

Saori gave him a mysterious smile. "My, my, how lovely. That pure affection between childhood friends, ohohoho."

After her strange laughter, she said, "You don't need to go home first, Shu-chan. I'll lend you the money. Just pay me back after you buy everything."

Saori knew Shuya wasn't short on money, so she had no problem lending it to him.

"That works."

Shuya wasn't one to stand on ceremony, so he readily agreed.

Saori took Shuya to a nearby game shop, where he picked out five red Game Boy Colors and a pile of games.

Pac-Man, Story of Seasons, Mario, Kirby, and so on.

He bought a whole lot of stuff.

He even bought five copies of hits like Pac-Man and Mario, so the girls wouldn't fight over them.

Shuya was getting more and more into his role as a doting father (as he called himself).

25: Who Are You Going to Choose?

After buying everything, Shuya rode home and carried the pile upstairs. He counted out enough money from his little private stash to pay Saori back.

Then he carried the mountain of stuff next door.

"Come on out, you little ones! Time for presents!"

Shuya called out kindly, and the five little huskies came rushing out.

"Shu-chan, what did you buy?"

"Let me see!"

"I want to see too!"

"Me first!"

"I want to see it first!"

The Quintuplets took everything off Shuya and ran back to the living room to start unwrapping it.

Ichika asked curiously, "What is this?"

Itsuki stared blankly at the handheld console.

"It's not food!"

"It's a Folk Master game console," Shuya explained. "You use it to play games. Here, I'll show you."

He had each of the Quintuplets hold a game console and began teaching them how to play.

Before long, the Quintuplets were shouting and playing, completely ignoring Shuya.

For the first time, Shuya could drink tea in peace while the Quintuplets were awake. He was moved.

No wonder this business was booming. It really worked!

You could escape the kids' constant attention and give the adults some quiet time to themselves.

Shuya folded his arms and watched over the Quintuplets, wondering how Rena would praise him.

However...

"We can't accept these, Shu-chan. Please take them back."

Rena seemed... a little angry instead?

"Huh?"

Shuya froze. "Big Sis Rena, are you against video games?"

He tried to persuade her. "There's nothing wrong with games, really. As long as adults keep them under control, letting kids play a little to relax is pretty good."

Rena looked a little helpless. "That's not the issue. I mean, we can't accept something this expensive."

Honestly, one game console and its games weren't that much, but five sets added up to quite a lot.

The Quintuplets heard Rena and, though reluctant, put their consoles down. They watched their mother and Shuya talk with pleading eyes.

"You mean these?"

Shuya shook his head. "It's no big deal. I've earned a little money lately, so it's not a problem."

"It's not about whether you can afford it. We can't just accept things for no reason. I'm sure you understand what I mean, Shu-chan."

Rena's voice grew firmer.

"I understand."

Shuya sighed. "We've spent so much time together, and I'm still treated like an outsider."

"I'm not saying you're an outsider, Shu-chan. It's just..."

Rena said.

We aren't close enough to accept expensive gifts...?

Shuya knew Rena was stubborn.

But he liked her just the way she was.

"Actually, I had a reason for buying these," Shuya tried to explain. He felt like a husband who'd been caught spending money recklessly by his wife, and to his surprise, he felt a little happy about it. "I'm going to be busy for a while, so I won't be able to come by often. That's why I wanted to buy something to keep them company in my place."

Rena said, "But..."

Before she could finish, the Quintuplets jumped to their feet in shock: