Chapter 215 – Dating (4)

“Right? I was thinking so too. Let’s play another game!”

I quit the fighting game and grabbed Grape’s hand and jumped up from my seat.
No matter how much it’s a game, the character I’m a fan of is a character modeled after Grape… It’s embarrassing to see them beat and knock them down and play with them like that.
Fortunately, Grape didn’t get that angry yet, so he obediently took his hand and followed him.

Contemplating which game to play, I took Grape to the bike racing game.
If this is the case, you should know how to use your body and head to some extent.
I put coins into Grape and my machine, and started them at the same time to activate the battle mode.

“Uh? I’ve ridden Anger bikes before… ?”
“It’s a game, but you don’t have to ride a real bike… ?”
“I see… Do you like bikes?”
“Hmm… Do you like… ? Not sure… Something scary… If it’s safe to ride, I’d like to try it.”
“I see…”

After getting on the bike, I checked the strength of the accelerator, brakes, and the suspension that balances the left and right sides.
I’ve never ridden a real bike, but I’ve ridden quite a few times with this game machine.
Upon inspection, the condition of the game console was quite good.

“Uh huh? What is it?”
“If you turn the accelerator in advance at the right timing when you start, you can start quickly as soon as you start.”
“You can’t just tell me something like that… ?!”

As soon as the game started, I took the lead and ran ahead of Grape.
But after a while, Grape started to catch up with me.
Grape follows at a terrifying speed every time you turn a curve.

“For a moment… What! You ride well!”
“Actually, I ride a lot… Anger, aren’t you turning too far outward?”

There is not much difference in speed between them.
Rather, my side knows the acceleration timing and deceleration point as much as I am familiar with the game, so I maintain a faster speed.
Still, Grape lapped close to the end of the track at every curve, and on the last lap he overtook me altogether.

“Ugh… !”

I used the instantaneous acceleration technique after the curve that Grape had not taught me sparingly, but it was not enough.
I thought a bike game would be fair… Hiding the fact that I actually rode a lot of bikes…
Grape is a cowardly magical girl…

“Oh… I made a mistake…”

But, perhaps also due to her lack of game experience, Grape made an absurd mistake on her final curve right in front of her goal.
At the end of a curve, you accidentally step on the gear change lever, causing the bike to suddenly decelerate.
I passed Grape without missing a slight gap and narrowly scored first.

“I won!”
“Wow~ Anger is amazing~ Running well without a single mistake, it’s cool~”
“Whoa… Grape was good too… It was a very close match…”

I confidently got off the bike and looked up at Grape sitting on the bike.
Even though Grape lost to me, he was clapping with a bright smile on his face.
From the moment I was overtaken by Grape, I thought it was an unfair garbage game… It was such a masterpiece game that even the losers smiled broadly like that after it was over.
For making such a good game, this game company deserves an award.

“What game is next… Huh?”

After finishing the race, I was about to play another game with Grape, but I felt a strange gaze and looked back.
During the game, onlookers gathered behind Grape before he knew it.
They are all spectators watching Grape’s non-game butt from behind Grape.

“… Tsk.”

Was it driven like this because of the attitude of riding a bike? .
Well, it’s a little rude to lie flat on a bike, pull your butt back, and put your big breasts on top… The skirt is also short…
Feeling strangely uncomfortable, I lightly covered Grape’s butt with my hand and got off the bike.

“No way…”
“Chew…”

Then, nervous voices came from the onlookers standing right behind them.
Grape’s expression hardened when he realized that there were people gathered behind him and why.
Suddenly, a person came closer to Grape.

“Ah… Hey, do you have time?”
“Yes?”
“Do you want to play with us?”

Is it again…
I closed my eyes behind the bewildered Grape and sighed quietly.
Strangely, this kind of thing happens a lot when I go out with Grape.

“… I’m sorry, but as you can see, the two of us right now…”
“Ah~ Don’t do that, we’ll have a lot more fun than a guy like that, right?”
“Grape, let’s go.”
“… Yes.”

After having fun, I suddenly felt bad, so I patted Grape on the waist and chinned him toward the exit.
Hearing my voice sinking low, Grape shrugged his shoulders and nodded at him with an annoyed look on his face.
I looked around at the people around me, thinking intensely that I would like them to turn off.

“Uh…”
“Eww…”

Fortunately, today, people obediently moved out of the way, as if they hadn’t noticed at all.
I led the way in front of Grape and walked outside.
Grape seemed to want to go out too, and he obediently followed me as I was being led.

“I… I’m sorry, because of me… I feel bad… ?”
“No, it was better. Let’s go eat.”
“Yes…”
“And what is this about Grape? Guys like that are weird… Even if Grape is pretty, you shouldn’t be like that.”
“Yes? Yes…”

I calmed Grape, who suddenly noticed me, and went out.
While playing the game, it must have rained outside, so the ground was shining brightly.
Fortunately, the rain has already stopped, but the ground is still wet.

“It must have rained.”
“Oh… That’s right… They say they will be using artificial rain for the time being.”
“Artificial rain? Is it because of the fine dust caused by the raid? Or another virus… ?”
“Until then, I did not have the right to read information…”
“I wish I could give you a lot of things.”

The present city is washing the city down with artificial rain from the sky whenever necessary.
When a special monster spreads spores, when a toxic substance spreads, when a viral monster cell spreads…
And even when it is not, it rains when it is necessary, too hot, or there is a lot of fine dust.

“… Do you like raining?”
“I hate getting rained on… I don’t hate the rain itself.”
“I see…”

It’s good when it rains because there are fewer people on the streets.
The cooler air is good, and the clearer air after rain is also good.
But… I don’t like it when my clothes get wet or when the tiled floor becomes slippery.

“Where do you eat?”
“Oh, wait a minute… It’s over there, it’s a sushi restaurant over there… Is sushi okay?”
“Sushi is… Yes I’m fine.”

Seeing the ground in the direction Grape was pointing at, I answered with a little nervousness.
There are quite a lot of tiles, and there are many places that look slippery…
This is a problem with block-type assembly cities… Tiles made by reprocessing broken materials at high temperatures are used as flooring, so they become very slippery whenever it rains.

Of course, not all floors are made of tiles, but that doesn’t mean that only rough-surfaced flooring is used.
Shiny tiles and rough surfaces are mixed as if they were deliberately decorated.
I understand that the rough flooring generates too much dust when destroyed, and it takes a long time to dry after heating to a high temperature, so it is decided to use recycled tile flooring that can only be installed and dried.

It is understandable why you need to use tile flooring, which becomes slippery when wet, and why you are using it.
But apart from being understandable… Hate.
I’ve already sprained my ankle on tile flooring several times while leaving work on a rainy day, so I can’t like it even if I want to like it.

“You don’t like sushi?”
“No? Are you okay.”
“Hmm… All right…”

“It’s really okay. Than that…”

I reached out to Grape.
Then Grape blankly blinked, took my hand, and tilted his head slightly to the side.
I explained the reason to Grape, who didn’t seem to understand why they were holding hands.

“The floor is slippery. I am afraid I will fall.”
“Uh? I don’t slip like this…”

What… ?
She’s a magical girl so she doesn’t slip because of things like this, but are you teasing me as a normal person?
Hearing the unexpected provocation, I squeezed Grape’s hand tightly.

“Okay, so grab it.”
“Ah, yes…”

Holding Grape’s hand, I started walking slowly, thinking that I would cling to him as soon as I slipped.
Grape flinched at my hand several times, then opened and squeezed his hand again and again.
I slipped my grip on Grape’s hand, wondering why he kept moving my hand to increase my risk of slipping.

“Ah, uh, uh…”
“Stay still.”
“Yes, yes… Ugh…”

I braced myself on the grape handle and walked steadily along the road.
People on the road pass me and Grape, glancing at them once in a while.
Several of the men, distracted by Grape, step on the wrong tile and lose their balance.

Some people think it’s stupid to slip on tiles, but they’re harder to see at night than you’d think.
Especially when it rains, all the wet ground glows alike and is less visible.
I had no choice but to walk carefully and slowly in order not to fall suddenly.