I Was Sleep-Deprived at a Matchmaking Meeting and Ended Up Engaged - Chapter 30

“Ah, this brings back memories. I wonder if this shop is still open. There was always this strange sound, like peero peero peero peero peee,” said Ayato as we came down from the mountain.

Before heading to the parking lot, we decided to stop by that shop. “…It’s not making any sound now.”

It was an old Japanese-style house. Beyond the large glass doors, it was dark inside. “Is it closed?” “Who knows? It always looks like this though. Since it’s not making that peero peero peee sound, maybe it is closed?”

Could that mysterious sound be the sign that they’re open?!

As I was thinking that country shops are hard to figure out, my phone rang. Looking at it, I saw it was Kai.

Despite the shop appearing unlit with no lights on, the shop auntie was properly inside. Ayato went into the shop and started talking with the auntie. I stood on the road with my phone, talking.

“How’s the grave visit going?” Kai asked.

Even if he asks how the grave visit is going. It’s not like I was looking for advice or anything. But since he went through the trouble of calling, I told him about the holy statue being nearby, meaning I’d lost my excuse to go on a trip.

“You worry too much about the small details. You don’t need to officially declare you’re going on a trip to go traveling. Just heading back from where you are now – that’s a trip in itself,” he said.

Thinking he’s as free-spirited as ever, I replied, “Well, this is a place you can get back from in about half a day though,” I said while looking toward the harbor where fishing boats were coming and going.

“Then just say the bridge collapsed and you can’t get back.”

Is this some kind of full-blown mystery…?

“I didn’t cross any bridges to get here though.”

“Then say you did. Oh, right. I’m at the office now, and Hanami happens to be here. I’ll put her on.”

Huh? What should I talk about? I panicked. It’s true we met the other day too. But I feel like all she said was things like “Ron” or “Chi”… I thought to myself, something Kai would probably say, “Does that even count as talking?”

While I was hesitating, Hanami had already come on the line.

“So? Keiki. Any progress with Ayato? That girl isn’t very proactive when it comes to romance, so if you don’t take the initiative and push forward, nothing will move along, you know?”

“We’ve mostly settled things like the wedding date and guest list…”

“Stop just arranging the formalities and capture Ayato’s heart!”

“…But, well, it’s just that, even now, just being near her makes me a bit nervous, you could say.”

“You don’t need to be so formal – she’s not that grand, she’s just my niece. But if you don’t make her happy, I’ll recommend a bad insurance plan to you.”

What’s a bad insurance plan? I wondered, and then she said, “The kind that makes you want to commit insurance murder…”

…What kind of insurance is that?

“Anyway, take good care of Ayato.”

Ayato was happily chatting about something with the shop auntie inside the store and came out having bought some dried horse mackerel. When she bowed her head politely to the auntie, the auntie smiled and bowed back from inside the shop.

There were no bridges that could collapse, and the car didn’t seem likely to break down. Ayato had even bought dried horse mackerel as a souvenir for home.

Thinking I guess we have to go back after all, I decided to go see the holy statue first.

“This is the statue of the holy man being attacked by the boatman,” Ayato said, pointing with her hand at the statue along the mountain road.

Since it wasn’t worth specifically getting out for, we’d parked the car on the side of the wide country road.

“Wait,” Keiki said to me. “Isn’t the boatman behind him just rowing the boat?”

“No~, depending on the angle, it looks like he’s attacking from behind with the boat oar~. When I first saw it, I was so surprised, thinking what a bold statue it was!”

“…Probably, you’re the only one who’s ever been surprised like that by this statue.”

He was about to say he’s more concerned about the mental state of someone who sees this as an attack.

To get everyone’s judgment on it, I got out of the car to take a photo of the statue. We also took photos of each other in front of the statue, taking turns.

…I ended up taking a photo of Shirakami-san, and Ayato felt a little nervous. Making an excuse that it wasn’t taken for her sake, “Ah, I’ll send you the photos later,” she said flustered, but Keiki, while checking how the photos turned out, said no.

“We have the one with you in it, so that’s fine.”

…It might not have any particular deep meaning. But isn’t that kind of embarrassing? I thought, when Keiki said:

“This angle shows the boatman’s oar looking more like he’s attacking.”

Ah, I see…