Joy Island Adventure, a Catalyst for Socializing

On Monday, Kenji sat in his office, his mind still racing with strategies for the First Super Robot Wars.

He flipped through page after page of documents, but his mind was filled with the majestic image of the Perfect Gundam. Should he rent a set of <Aura Battler Dunbine> videos and watch it again? Maybe he could figure out some hidden plot points.

Have you guys seen it? The guy in "Joy Island Adventure" is so cute!

"I saw it! My sister bought it last weekend. It seems to have a lot of mini-games, and four people can play together!"

"Kyoko, what do you think? How about coming over to my place this weekend?"

The chatter of his female colleagues was like a gentle breeze, dispelling the robot battle scenes in Kenji's mind. He abruptly looked up, his gaze passing over the office partition and landing on Kyoko's smiling profile. She was enthusiastically discussing with her colleague Rena which character in the game was the cutest, her face radiating a glow he had never seen before when discussing work. It made his heart race.

<The Joy Island Adventure>.

Kenji remembered. Last week in Akihabara, that brightly colored cartridge was sitting right next to the First Super Robot Wars. At the time, he and Tatsuya were only focused on the bunch of robots, completely ignoring the cute and round-looking game.

I never expected him to be so popular among the female employees in the company.

Four people playing together

An idea quickly formed in Kenji's mind. He felt his heart race. Wasn't this an opportunity?

This is an opportunity that is infinitely better than a chance encounter in the break room or on the way home from get off work.

During lunch break, Kenji mustered up his courage and, carrying his lunchbox, approached the table where Kyoko and another female colleague, Rena, were sitting.

"I overheard you guys talking about <Joy Island Adventure>." Kenji tried to make his voice sound casual. "My friend Tatsuya also has an MD player. How about the four of us play it together this weekend?"

Kyoko's eyes lit up. "Great! I was just about to play. Rena, what about you?"

Rena smiled and nodded, "Sure, it's more lively with more people."

Kenji felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. He immediately made an excuse to slip out of the company and rushed to a phone booth to call Tatsuya.

"Hey, Tatsuya, any plans for the weekend? Let's play games together."

"Another new discovery? Is it a hidden unit of the Danby or the L-Gaim?" Tatsuya's voice was full of anticipation on the other end of the phone.

"No, it's <Joy Island Adventure>."

"Huh?" Tatsuya's voice instantly turned cold. "That kind of childish stuff? No way. I'm going to stay home and figure out if I can save Feng."

"Stop researching," Kenji cleared his throat. "I've made plans to play games with my colleagues this weekend."

There was a three-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"Is that the female colleague you said was really cute last time? I'm speechless—is this your place or mine?"

"It's your family, right? I told them you bought it."

"Them? How many people did you invite?"

"Two of them. The other girl was Kyoko's colleague from the same year."

"You're not so bad, you still have a conscience! You'll have to treat us to a meal after this is done!"

"Sure, sure! Please! Remember to buy it after get off work, I'll pay you back later."

"I understand, I understand."

Over the weekend, the four of them met at Kenji's apartment. When the brightly colored TV show "Joy Island Adventure" appeared on the screen...

At the start of the lively music scene, Tatsuya's face still carried a hint of tragic heroism, as if he were saying, "I was supposed to be saving the universe."

On the screen, four round cartoon characters are hopping and jumping on a floating island.

"I... I choose this pink bunny!" Kyoko excitedly operated the controller.

"Then I'll use this little bear with a hat." Rena quickly chose her role as well.

Kenji chose a blue puppy and quietly moved his character next to the pink rabbit.

Only Tatsuya. He looked at the controller, then at the last unselected yellow chick on the screen, his face full of resistance. But seeing the two enthusiastic girls next to him, he finally pressed the confirm button reluctantly.

But the atmosphere completely changed as soon as the game started.

The first mini-game is "Fruit Snatching". Various fruits will randomly fall on the screen, and players need to see who can catch the most.

"Ah! My Apple!" Kyoko exclaimed in surprise. Her rabbit was bumped by Rena's teddy bear, and the fruit in her hand fell to the ground.

"Hehe, Rena, well done!" Tatsuya shouted instinctively. The chick he was controlling picked up all the fruit that Rena had knocked over in the chaos.

"Tatsuya- kun! You're so mean!" Rena complained with a laugh, but her hands were quick, controlling the bear to charge and knock Tatsuya's chick to the ground.

The room was filled with the girl's laughter and the boy's shouts.

Tatsuya initially tried to use his previous gaming experience to gain an advantage, but he quickly discovered that tactics were meaningless in this game; luck and sabotage were the only things that mattered. His competitive spirit was completely ignited, and he soon formed a "mischievous duo" with Rena, specifically targeting Kenji and Kyoko.

Despite being constantly attacked by them, Kenji wasn't annoyed at all. Looking at Kyoko beside him, who was laughing so hard she was doubled over because of a game, he thought that the little blue dog on the screen, which was being knocked around and was dizzy, was the happiest dog in the world.

Tatsuya had long forgotten his masterful demeanor; his eyes were wide open, his fingers were pounding the controller, and his shouts were louder than anyone else's.

In a race, his chick and Rena's bear crossed the finish line almost at the same time, using a bunch of items to leave Kenji and Kyoko far behind. The two instinctively high-fived to celebrate, only to realize they were standing a little too close, and then simultaneously pulled their hands back.

Sometimes, the four of them would even sway and lean to the left and right, bumping into each other, because of their body postures, and then they would blush and quickly sit up straight.

They played the game until evening, and all four of them were still somewhat reluctant to stop.

"That was so much fun! Let's play together again next time!" Rena said as she packed her things.

"You're welcome anytime," Tatsuya blurted out, then realized he might have been a bit too enthusiastic. He scratched his head, his gaze shifting slightly, but he couldn't help looking at Rena. "Um—let's exchange phone numbers, so we can keep in touch next time."

Rena generously recited a string of numbers, Tatsuya hurriedly wrote down in his notebook.

After seeing Kyoko and Rena off, Kenji and Tatsuya collapsed onto the sofa.

Tatsuya looked at the phone numbers in the notebook, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his face. "I didn't expect this kind of game to be so interesting."

Kenji didn't speak, but just recalled what Kyoko had said to him as she left, "I had a great day, thank you, Kenji- kun. Let's go to Saizeriya together next time."

I felt like I was floating on air, but after a while, I didn't see my best friend Tatsuya complaining about me.

It turned out that Tatsuya grinning foolishly at the phone numbers in the notebook.