funbook-pk Chapter 4 Airi Gets New Clothes
Chapter 4 Airi Gets New Clothes
"Tsk, a fraudster, a fugitive, a member of a Southeast Asian telecom fraud ring, and an anarchist. I didn't realize your relatives were so resourceful."
The brightly lit clothing store was sparsely populated. Rito leaned against a counter, having dismissed the shop assistants. Suzuki Airi had just changed into her sixth outfit and stepped out of the fitting room to ask him what he thought of her when she heard his smirking teasing.
Although her parents hadn't explained her family situation in detail, Airi was already seventeen and naturally knew a lot about it. Hearing Rito say this, she wasn't too surprised. She just shook her head with a wry smile and whispered an apology. Although it wasn't her fault, she felt she should apologize for causing trouble. This was one of the few correct social rules she had learned from her impoverished family.
"No need to apologize."
Rito looked at her, tilted his head slightly, and smiled purely and brightly. Airi vaguely sensed that this was not his true self, but the sensible girl did not show any abnormality. She just returned a slight smile, with two conspicuous sharp little tiger teeth faintly visible between her lips.
Seeing this adorable scene, Rito suddenly felt a stirring in his heart, and some long-forgotten fragments of memory in his mind began to loosen. But when he tried to pick them up, the scene vanished without a trace, like a fleeting glimpse of a swan.
Hmm? Is she some kind of celebrity?
Rito looked at Airi with a puzzled expression. His knowledge of early 20th-century stars was mostly limited to the Sakamichi Series, and he knew very little about others. However, since she had left an impression on him, this cute girl with tiger teeth must have been someone special in the original timeline. At least she certainly wouldn't have been reduced to knocking on strangers' doors in the middle of the night.
Thinking this, Rito's gaze toward Airi took on a stranger meaning. Airi was confused by his gaze, but didn't know whether she should ask or not, and couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
"How are the clothes? Do you like them?"
The past didn't linger in Li Ren's mind for long. He quickly realized the trouble he had caused the girl, and promptly withdrew his gaze, asking casually, "What's wrong?"
Seeing that he had returned to normal, Airi silently breathed a sigh of relief. After thinking for a while, she pointed to a strapless dress she had tried on before and said that she still preferred that one.
Rito looked in the direction she was pointing, his eyebrows furrowing unconsciously. What kind of clothes should a seventeen-year-old girl wear? Different eras and different people will have their own answers. From Rito's perspective, he didn't really agree with young girls dressing too revealingly—although he also thought Airi looked beautiful in that long dress.
"If you like it, then change back into your original clothes. I'll wait for you at the counter."
Although he had reservations about the girl's choice, Rito, being from a future that emphasized individuality, quickly relaxed out of respect for personal will, waved to Airi, and headed towards the exit.
A short while later, Airi, who had changed back into her original clothes, came over and handed the selected clothes to the shop assistant. Just as Rito was about to take out his bank card to pay, he suddenly felt something was off in the corner of his eye. He looked up and found that, for some reason, Airi had not given the shop assistant the strapless dress she had just specified, but a more ordinary suit.
Seemingly noticing his gaze, Airi turned her head and met his eyes, but said nothing and obediently gave way.
Rito took out his card, paid the bill, and led Airi out of the store. This was already their fifth store visit, and naturally, they had quite a few purchases. The bags and packages they had were almost double digits in total, and they were now hanging on Airi's two slender arms, which obviously slowed down her pace. She didn't say anything, but passersby couldn't help but cast strange glances at the scene from time to time.
Rito forced himself to walk a little further, but eventually his defenses crumbled when he was met with the undisguised innocence in the eyes of a little boy walking towards him. He clicked his tongue, stopped in his tracks, and turned sharply to stand in front of Airi.
Airi Suzuki's official height is 1.61 meters, which is barely considered a small giant among Japanese girls. However, compared to Rito Kubo, she is still considered petite and delicate. To make eye contact with him, one has to use eye contact.
Compared to the pitiful, dusty mess she was last night, Airi, dressed in new clothes and with a fresh makeup look, was noticeably more beautiful today. Her whole demeanor seemed much brighter, and her large, round, black eyes stared directly at Rito, so clear they reflected his current appearance. Looking at her beauty, seemingly on a different level from the other pedestrians, Rito raised an eyebrow, even more certain that he had seen her somewhere before, but he was too lazy to recall. He reached out and gathered all the bags and packages into his hands, saying softly:
"If you really want to help me, then don't make me look bad in front of others."
Airi instinctively wanted to say no, but after hearing what he said and recalling the scene she had just witnessed, she immediately realized what he meant, stuck out her tongue shyly, and apologized.
"I understand. Also, when buying clothes, you should buy what you like, not what others like. I'm not as superficial as you think."
After hesitating for a moment, Rito lowered his head even further and whispered something in her ear. Upon hearing this, Airi looked a little surprised and covered her mouth. A few seconds later, she chuckled.
"I understand." She blinked and smiled brightly. "But there's something you didn't guess right, Kubo-san: this outfit is actually my type."
"Huh? Then why?" Rito asked in surprise.
"I thought you'd like that type, but I guess I was wrong. Sorry." Airi narrowed her eyes, a hint of something sinister suddenly appearing in her smile. Rito paused for half a second, then couldn't help but chuckle to himself, "Seriously, what exactly did your family instill in you?"
"They are nothing more than the rules for survival of people at the bottom of society."
"Don't make it sound so obvious, are you going to say next that we're all trying our best to live?"
You guessed it!
They exchanged a few words, then smiled knowingly at each other. After laughing, Airi lowered her head, rubbing her newly bought sneakers vigorously on the smooth, reflective floor tiles of the mall, then, as if making a decision, looked at Rito: "Um, Kubo-san, I never want to live that kind of life again. Can you help me?"