The Golden Pear [YA - Featured]

♫~Notes 133~♫

Meanwhile, Ueno needed to catch a breath sitting on a bench. Around fifty of them were distributed along the road where visitors could sit down, enjoy the scenery, the murmur of people, and eat and drink if the restaurant was packed. Given what great reputation it had, there was a little doubt about how hectic it would be.

"... Yes, alright, that's perfect. I'm counting on you."

She had just ended a call with the company distributing balloons. Listing in her notepad, she found the checklist of everything she needed to do. Half of it was already done, and now she could cross another item.

'This organizing is so hard.' She stretched her sore and not exactly lady-like smelling legs. She could tell. By the evening, the socks would crawl on their own.

The mere picture of it made her giggle. She leaned backward, watching the sky through green leaves. The breeze rustled among them, and for a moment, she thought she had seen a tiny head popping out.

Something wrapped landed on her lap. She yelped and curled her body. Her head snapped, watching dashing Kagetsu.

"W-What?"

Did he prank her? Checking her arms, she found a neatly folded paper bag. Opening it assaulted her nostrils with a delicious aroma of muffins, panini sandwich, and cold drink sat in the corner next to a pack of biscuits.

Her stomach demanded her attention in the next second. Digging into the simple meal, she teared up a bit. Nobody before brought to her lunch. The students usually asked her for paying for them after she had invited them.

She didn't mind. It was one of her ways to make them indebted to her. Ueno did nothing out of kindness. Everything had a purpose, a hidden meaning to strengthen her position and pull strings.

However, this sandwich and bottled ice tea tasted like no other meal in a ten-star restaurant could. The ham, cheese, lettuce, or cucumber couldn't be of top quality, yet she wanted another one once she took the last bite.

'Why did he bring it to me, anyway? Was he worried about me?'

She remembered how he rescued her. She didn't ask for his help, yet she stepped forward. That boxer could seriously hurt or even kill him.

She shuddered, and the sun needed a few minutes to warm her up.

'I wonder when I can see Taiga. Rigaku messaged me that the kittens are all right at their home in the morning. Aiyoku is keeping an eye on them.' The half-eaten muffin sat in her hand for a short while. 'I miss them.'

Finishing her meal a few minutes later, she stood up full of energy, but her feet reminded her she wasn't used to manual work.

"What is next?" Her eyes trailed the list. "Dreamy Boys, huh?" She almost puked.

This group was also well-known and offered a unique service. They had their stall by the entrance, decorated with hearts and flowers and an enormous table with photos of gorgeous boys and a brief text about them.

There were ten to fifteen of them, and the leader picked the candidates from the best of the best. In a nutshell, every girl could rent a boy to be her partner for an hour, taking selfies, visiting stalls, chatting, and pampering her.

Naturally, nothing was so rosy. They were expensive, but girls eager to appear to have a gorgeous boyfriend to gush to their friends didn't hesitate to pay. Ueno had noticed a few members scammed the trusting girls into giving them more money, pretending to be seriously interested in them or telling them sweet lies.

And ironically, Nobu Mori had been the leader for being the most popular boy. This was a confrontation Ueno didn't look forward to, but it was an unnecessary evil.

"Ueno-san," the second-in-command called her.

He was a familiar face to her as she used to consider him her prince charming. With his name Katsuo, features of a dreamy prince, and rich background alongside a good brain, he was a perfect match. However, by now, she didn't remember why it didn't work out. Perhaps she got bored with him.

"Hello," she greeted him, her eyes searching the pink stall. "Where's Mori-san?"

He flashed her a toothy smile. "By the stage, checking the preparations. Everybody is eager to know the winner of the Garden Parade and what type of speech he will give."

"True," she dully noted, finding the stage at the bottom of her list. "So, do you need anything extra? Is everything going smoothly?"

She eyed the few boys sitting around. It seemed the youngest ones were training their smiles to charm girls.

"Actually,"—he lowered himself a bit as he was a head taller—"I was wondering if we could get a special drink here for our guests to enjoy."

Ueno's nose wrinkled. "You know the rules. No sake or alcoholic beverage."

Katsuo straightened up. "Don't be so cold. Some girls are so shy, they need a bit of encouragement."

"Maybe, but the answer is still no. Try to smuggle anything here, offering anything else except for tea and fizzy drinks, and you can forget your brownie points," she said, staring right into his eyes, reminding him how fearsome she could be. "Or get detention," she added in a whisper.

He gulped. "Alright, it was just a suggestion." He turned around, joining his friends.

Ueno circled the stall, checking if everything was in the order. The fat cupids aimed their arrows, piercing girl's hearts. She heard the boys determining the prices, how they should act, and other sweet-talking stuff. Behind the stall, Ueno rolled her eyes.

'Poor girls that fall into their traps.'

Finding no flaw, she proceeded to another one.