Our Dating Story: The Experienced You and The Inexperienced Me - Volume 6 - Chapter 2.5

My situation wasn’t getting any better in the slightest, but somehow, I felt happy anyway.

Nishina Ren: Anyway

Nishina Ren: There’s something I want to talk to you about, Kasshi

Nishina Ren: Can I call you now?

Yusuke: What? You’re leaving me out?

Yusuke: Is it because I’m a creep among the active Kids?

Nishina Ren: It’s about Nicole

Nishina Ren: Take a hint lol

Yusuke: Of course, I should’ve known

Yusuke: So you’re still at it

Yusuke: Good luck

Nishina Ren: You don’t sound like you believe in me!

Nishina Ren: Have a little faith, yeah?

Ryuto: Sure, I’ll be waiting for your call

As we stopped messaging and waited, Nisshi’s call came in.

“Hey, Kasshi. Man, it’s been so long.”

“Yeah, sure has. Are you doing well?”

“More or less. Anyway, I got my driver’s license during summer break.”

“Oh yeah?”

“I’ve gotten used to actually being behind the wheel, so I want to take Nicole out on a drive. But you know how cars are enclosed spaces and all? I figure she’d be on her guard if we were alone together.”

“Oh...”

He had a point. Maybe it wasn’t so easy to invite a girl who had a boyfriend out somewhere.

“So I was hoping you and Shirakawa-san could come too. Nicole should feel safe with Shirakawa-san there, right? And you have your license too, don’t you? If something happens, you can take the wheel, so that would be reassuring for me too.”

“I hardly have any experience driving, though.”

I’d gotten my license during spring break before I’d started going to university. That had also been the starting point of Runa’s constant busyness, so I hadn’t had much to do after going through my entrance exams. On top of that, my family didn’t own a car, so the last time I’d driven one had been during my final driving test about two years prior.

“Well, anyway, ask Shirakawa-san to come. Please,” said Nisshi.

“Okay,” I replied.

I did want to see him after all this time, and it was a happy coincidence that I’d get another opportunity to see Runa too. Plus, I was curious about Yamana-san’s current situation.

Once I got off the phone with Nisshi, I called Runa right away.

“Sure!” she replied. “I’ll see if I can get half a day off on Sunday and invite Nicole! I’m really looking forward to it!”

While I’d grown estranged from Icchi and Nisshi, Runa still kept regular contact with her close friends from high school.

It didn’t take long to arrange things with Yamana-san, and so the four of us ended up going on a drive two weeks later.

***

“Wow, that’s a nice car,” I said upon seeing Nisshi in the driver’s seat of a silver sedan.

We’d agreed to meet up at the roundabout in front of Station A at 3 p.m.

“It’s used, though,” replied Nisshi. “My dad’s into cars, so after I asked enough times, it worked.”

The car was indeed a discontinued model that was popular with middle-aged people and the elderly. As someone who liked cars too, I could tell this was the choice of a real connoisseur.

“Man, it’s been so long,” I said.

In the span of over a year that I hadn’t seen Nisshi, he’d become a little fashionable. While he hadn’t shot up in height despite how much he’d wished for it, he was wearing a modern, oversized top that suited him well. His thick-soled sneakers were from a popular brand too. And sure, maybe he’d simply chosen his best outfit for going somewhere with Yamana-san, but he looked really stylish.

Runa and Yamana-san appeared together shortly after.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!” Runa exclaimed.

“Wow, Kashima Ryuto,” Yamana-san said. “I can’t believe how long it’s been.”

Apparently, she went out to eat with Nisshi every now and then. I hadn’t seen her since the graduation ceremony, so it was a surprise to see how much more adultlike her appearance had become in two years. While she was still a gyaru, her look was now more refined and mature.