Today is Saturday.
Yesterday, I somehow managed to ask for Ayame-san's phone number. But the moment I got home, I was so tired I just ate dinner and collapsed into bed.
Now I'm planning to send her a message—after all, we're friends now. Just a quick hello should be fine.
[Good morning Ayame-san! I meant to message you yesterday, but I passed out before I could hit send]
Since I went to bed early, I woke up around 7 AM. Feels like a good day to make breakfast and finally watch some anime again.
Notification received.
That was fast. I hope my message didn't sound weird.
[Good morning, Tomoki-kun! No worries—your speech yesterday was excellent. You deserved the rest. Are you feeling okay?]
She's always thinking about me… That makes me kind of happy.
[Yeah, I'm feeling great. Slept like a log!]
[I´m glad!]
[I'm about to have breakfast. See you later!]
[See ya! 🤍]
Looks like the conversation went well. Alright, breakfast time.
Today, I'm going with bread and fried eggs. I'll show Mom I can handle a basic meal.
"You forgot to put oil in the pan."
"... Like this?"
"Yeah, you doing great. Now the eggs."
"Leave it to me."
crack
"How did you—? Well, patience is the key to learning... and teaching, too."
"Don't worry, Mom. I have a plan. If I crack the egg over the fridge, it won't go to waste."
"Wait! Just use a bowl—"
crack
...
And now I'm eating bread and eggs… with a bit of eggshell crunch. Not bad for a beginner.
However my mother said that if I want to be a cooker or chef, I still have a very long way to go.
Well, at least I'm full.
Time to head back to my room and finally catch up on anime.
Last week, I didn't get to watch anything thanks to homework. But this weekend? Totally free.
...
Apparently, every anime I knew from my old world is gone. Some titles are vaguely familiar, but the stories are different now.
Guess I'll never know who the MC ended up with in that dumb rom-com I was watching. Too bad.
But on the bright side, I get to experience all the classics here from scratch.
Since I like rom-coms, I'll start there.
...
It felt more like watching a shoujo anime—which makes sense, since most viewers here are girls.
Normally, a good rom-com balances the protagonist's reactions with the heroine's. Even side characters get decent screen time.
But every show I've seen so far revolves around one girl collecting a harem of boys in like... two episodes. And every episode has fanservice. Every. Single. One.
Maybe I should check out some older anime—or try manga. Or even light novels?
Actually, I don't feel like reading right now.
I've spent the whole day watching anime, searching for something decent, and burning my eyes with fanservice-filled disasters.
Dinner's coming up. Maybe I should try gaming instead. At least if I find a good one, I can continue tomorrow.
...
Turns out, there are some cool games here. I don't have a console, so I stick with PC. Mostly MMORPGs.
Just like anime, the games I used to know are gone—but some have similar vibes. That's good enough.
I'll try this new MMORPG that seems popular.
I'll be a warrior with a two-handed axe. Male character.
While grinding, I ran into a priest girl.
[Can we team up?] - she said
[Sure]
...
We, somehow, ended up clearing the first dungeon together.
[Hey, You're a great frontliner. And that gear switch? Smooth.] - the priest girl said.
[I´m a pro gamer after all. Lol!]
[I knew it. You´re play like a girl. Do you like hot guys with big axes~?]
Wait... IS THIS GUY TAUNTING ME!?
[What do you mean? Are you blind or just brain-damaged?]
[?]
[I guess it´s both.]
[Wait, are you a guy?]
[Yeah?]
[Prove it. Turn on your mic.]
No way. This guy's totally messing with me.
[You need some help] - Party disbanded.
[You're not even a guy, right? You´re just a girl who dreams about holding a BIG weapon! F... U!]
This guy is insane, I´ll just report him for verbal abuse. Actually, I've got a better idea.
[.I.] - The player log out.
'You play like a girl', huh... No matter how well you play, trash talkers always find you.
Just when I thought I'd found my new favorite game, that guy ruined everything.
Even in another world, jerks exist.
Wait...
Now that I think about it, isn't it normal for most gamers here to be girls?
Great. I probably just crushed the hopes of some girl who was genuinely complimenting me...
Guess it's time for dinner.
...
What now? I'm not in the mood for anime or games anymore.
Maybe I'll scroll through everyone's social media.
I grabbed my phone and started browsing the accounts I knew.
Let's see what Ryuichi posted.
Since we're friends, I can access his private posts.
"First day at co-ed Sakurazai Academy."
It's a photo of him with his parents. The comments are full of support and congratulations. I'll at least give it a thumbs-up.
Most of his posts are photos with family or friends, or book reviews I probably wouldn't understand.
Let's check Ayame-san's profile.
[Notification: You do not have permission to view this post.]
Ah, right. Gotta send a follow request.
Done.
Guess I'll just go to sleep—tomorrow I'll try a different anime or find another game.
[Notification: Edomae Ayame has accepted your request.]
That was quick. Wait—is Ayame-san still awake?
Maybe I should message her and thank her.
[Good evening Ayames-san, talk about coincidence! Thanks for grant me the permission to see your secrets.]
[Good evening Tomoki-kun, yeah talk about coincidence. So are you so interested to know about myself?]
[Totally. Who knows—we might have the same hobbies!]
[I hope so too. Do you like romance books?]
So she's into books. Honestly, she and Ryuichi would probably get along.
Should I lie? No. She'd figure it out eventually. And besides, I don't want to lie to her.
[Not really into reading. I prefer video games.]
Telling her I like anime and rom-coms probably wouldn't help my image.
[What kind of games? Do you play visual novels?]
[Never tried them. Do you have any recommendations?]
[Unfortunately not. I just guessed you'd be into them.]
Huh. So most guys into games play visual novels here?
I guess we don't share the same hobbies—but hey, maybe I could give reading a book a try.
[So Ayame-san, about romance books. Any recommendations?]
[I do! But give me a little time to pick a good one for you.]
[Okay, I'm looking forward to it!]
[Leave it to me!]
And that's how my Saturday ended.