Minami Shouji's rented apartment was tiny.
So small, in fact, that Ryo Yamada—her legs wrapped in black stockings—tried to stretch them out, only to frown in discomfort.
"Minami, it's too cramped."
"Yeah, well, who told you to suddenly show up in the middle of the night?"
Minami found her behavior far weirder.
Sneaking over to a guy's apartment this late at night?
Forget a girl—
If Ryo Yamada were a guy, people would still think it was beyond weird.
But Yamada-san was, as always, completely free-spirited.
No, actually—she was too free-spirited for her own good.
With a sigh, Shouji poured her a glass of water.
"I want coffee from PRONTO."
"No. I don't have money."
"I'll give you the money. Just go get it for me, Minami."
Ryo Yamada took out her wallet.
"...Tch… Do you have any idea how far the nearest café is?"
"It's at least a kilometer away. This isn't just about money anymore, okay?"
Minami flicked her forehead, unable to comprehend her train of thought.
"You can do it, Minami. Don't underestimate yourself."
"This has nothing to do with my self-esteem."
"You seriously want me to step out into the freezing autumn air, walk a kilometer to a coffee shop that might not even be open, and bring you back a single cup of coffee?"
Minami Shouji was not going to spoil her like her parents did.
"You get tap water. That's it."
Speaking of Yamada-san—she was absolutely spoiled rotten by her parents.
From his simulation memories, Minami clearly recalled—
Even if she caught a simple cold,
Her parents would go all out—
Bringing in renowned doctors, cutting-edge medical equipment, running a full body checkup…
That probably explained why she grew up so wild and carefree.
But—
After hearing what Minami said,
Ryo Yamada stood up without hesitation.
"...Then I'll just go by myself."
As she spoke, she slipped on her loafers.
Then, tilting her head slightly, she casually asked—
"Do you want anything, Minami? I'll bring something back for you."
"..."
Shouji stared at her in utter disbelief.
Miss Yamada, do you think this world is free of danger or something?
Going out once this late at night was bad enough.
But now you want to go out a second time?!
Watching as Ryo Yamada got ready to leave,
Minami sighed, grabbed his coat, and prepared to head out with her.
"What are you doing, Minami?"
"Going with you, obviously!"
Minami Shouji firmly smacked Ryo Yamada on the head.
Honestly, sometimes, he just had no way of dealing with this woman.
Leaving the rented apartment, the two of them headed toward the nearest café.
The distance wasn't that far.
In just about ten minutes, Minami led Ryo Yamada to the closest coffee shop.
Except—
"Closed, huh?"
Gazing at the 'CLOSED' sign on the door, Minami sighed.
"Well, can't really help it. It's already past nine."
Sure, Tokyo had 24-hour cafés—
But those were in places like Ginza or Shinjuku, not a quiet residential district like Meguro.
Cafés in areas like this operated more like 'Riko-Riko'—
Closing around 7 or 8 PM and relying mostly on regular customers to stay afloat.
"There's a self-service coffee station up ahead.
It's not as fancy as freshly brewed coffee, but wanna check it out?"
Since they were already outside,
Might as well walk a little further.
"Mmm."
Ryo Yamada nodded and—
Without any hesitation—
slipped her hand into the large pocket of Minami's coat.
"Ryo?"
Shouji turned his head slightly.
"It's cold."
Ryo breathed into her hands for warmth.
Minami didn't say anything—
Just let her keep her hand in his pocket.
Ryo noticed something.
As they walked forward,
Minami's pace seemed to slow slightly—
As if he was matching her steps.
Ryo Yamada blinked but said nothing.
She just kept walking beside him.
She was actually enjoying this moment.
Tokyo's 24-Hour Coffee Stations
Unlike traditional cafés, these places worked like vending machines.
Customers chose their cup size, inserted money, and received a paper cup.
Then, by placing the cup on a scanner, coffee would automatically pour from the machine.
To a coffee purist like Ryo Yamada,
Who was only used to handcrafted brews—
This was completely new and fascinating.
Self-service coffee was essentially a budget option,
Priced around 500–600 yen for a medium-sized cup—
A far cry from the tiny, delicate hand-dripped cups at fancy cafés.
Ryo even asked Minami a bunch of questions about the coffee machine.
By the time they were done,
Minami glanced at his watch.
It was already past 10 PM.
They had wasted quite a bit of time.
Leaning against the glass window of the coffee station,
Minami took a sip of his coffee and finally asked—
"So… why'd you suddenly show up at my place this late?"
Ryo Yamada didn't answer right away.
Sitting on the edge of the steps,
She cupped her coffee with both hands—
Taking small sips,
Watching the steam swirl upward.
Under the dim glow of the café lights,
Her pale, delicate side profile almost seemed translucent—
Like a goddess in the night.
After a moment, she finally said—
"I had a dream."
"A dream?"
Ryo Yamada hummed softly, breathing into her cup.
"I dreamt about you. Then suddenly… I really wanted to see you."
"..."
Shouji was speechless.
This reason was way too—
"Ryo… that's not a reason. That's just you being reckless."
Really.
Just because she had a dream about him?
She decided to go out in the middle of the night to see him?
This girl was way too free-spirited.
"Do you even know what time it is right now?"
Minami sighed.
"10:23 PM."
"…I wasn't asking for the exact time, Ryo."
Minami rubbed his forehead.
Sometimes, Yamada genuinely didn't understand basic conversations.
"My point is—
It's so late. Won't your parents be worried?"
"I didn't tell them I left. Aren't I smart? Praise me, Minami."
As she said this,
Her expressionless face showed a hint of smugness,
Even puffing out her chest slightly.
"..."
Shouji stared at her in pure disbelief.
Praise you?
You want me to praise you?
I want to squish your face into the ground.
Going out this late at night—
Without even telling her parents?!
"Call them. Right now."
Minami ordered firmly.
No way in hell he was letting this slide.
Shinjo Akane was a special case.
But Ryo Yamada?
Her parents doted on her like crazy.
If they woke up in the middle of the night and saw she was gone—
With how overprotective they were,
They'd probably call the police immediately.
Minami wasn't about to get arrested for "kidnapping a high school girl".
"Actually, I was thinking of staying over.
Wanna pick out pajamas with me later, Minami?"
"..."
Shouji stared at her in silence.
At this point,
They were having two completely different conversations.
But Shouji wasn't backing down.
Tossing his empty coffee cup into the trash,
He turned to Ryo and said—
"Call your parents. Now."
"Otherwise, I'm walking you home myself."
"Oh? So that means you'll be staying over at my house?
We have two guest rooms, you know."
Ryo Yamada tilted her head,
Her amber eyes twinkling mischievously.
"..."
Minami was at a loss for words.
He honestly didn't expect her to take it that way.
With a sigh,
Minami ignored her and started walking home.
Ryo Yamada quickly finished her coffee and followed after him.
This time,
She naturally slipped her hand back into his coat pocket.
Minami didn't say anything.
The two of them walked back toward the apartment.
...
Since they had coffee on the way back and wasted some time,
By the time they got home, it was already around 10:41 PM.
At Minami Shouji's insistence,
Ryo Yamada—who had already bought pajamas from a convenience store along the way—was now dialing her parents under his watchful gaze.
Seeing her make the call, Minami nodded in approval.
With this, he could finally wash his hands of this mess and send Yamada-san home.
Seriously—
A girl staying over at his place for no reason?
No matter how you looked at it, that was a bad idea.
Even if her parents spoiled her rotten,
There was no way they'd be okay with this, right?
Minami and Ryo waited for about thirty seconds before the call connected.
Then came the conversation between her and her father on the other end.
"Hey, Dad."
"Mm… Ah… I just remembered something, so I'm staying over at a friend's place tonight."
"Mm… I won't be a bother. Alright, that's it then."
Beep. Beep. Beep—
Call ended.
"All done, Minami."
Ryo Yamada turned to face him,
Her amber eyes blank and emotionless, as if nothing had happened.
"…Huh???"
Minami Shouji just stood there, utterly dumbfounded.
Wait—
That was it?
Watching her make that call the entire time,
Minami couldn't believe what just happened.
No, seriously—
Miss Yamada…
You being reckless is one thing... but your parents too?
Minami Shouji couldn't believe what he just witnessed.
Just to be absolutely sure, he double-checked the number on Yamada's phone—
Confirmed. It really was her parents.
He took a sip of water, took a deep breath, and tried to calm himself down.
Now he understood.
Ryo Yamada's absolute lack of concern for anything wasn't just her personality.
It was nurtured.
Her parents were way too laid-back.
They just agreed.
Like it was nothing.
They really just let her stay over?
No hesitation? No concern?
Minami stared at Ryo, stretching out her legs wrapped in black stockings.
He was seriously debating whether to kick her out.
But before he could say anything,
Yamada spoke first—
"It's already past the last train, Minami."
She wasn't wrong.
Tokyo's last trains stopped running around 11 PM. It was already 10:48.
Even if she ran to the station right now,
she wasn't making it in time.
Minami had a sinking suspicion—
Did she plan this?
Dragging things out with coffee…
Taking her sweet time picking out pajamas…
It was all too convenient.
"...There's still taxis."
Minami wasn't giving up that easily.
"I didn't bring enough money with me, Minami."
"..."
Minami sighed.
Yeah.
At this point, there was only one option left.
She had to stay over.
It wasn't like he could throw her out into the night.
Exhaling sharply, Minami stood up.
"Where are you going, Minami?"
"Getting you a futon."
"...We could just sleep together, right?"
"Do you even hear yourself, Yamada?"
"I was joking."
Her face remained completely expressionless.
Minami shot her a look but didn't bother responding.
Instead, he pulled out an extra futon from the closet.
It was the same one Shinjo Akane had used last time.
Minami only owned two futons—
One he aired out when the weather was nice,
and one that stayed on the bed.
Lately, though...
"...Whatever."
He decided not to overthink.
Right now, all he wanted was to get Yamada settled and go to sleep.
Following his instructions, Ryo washed up in the bathroom—
since she'd had coffee earlier—
Then sat down, hugging her knees, watching Minami's back.
He was carefully smoothing out the futon, straightening each fold.
Whenever he did something, he did it with his full attention.
It was oddly mesmerizing.
When he was frustrated, the way his brows furrowed looked good.
When he was relieved, the way his face relaxed looked good too.
Ryo tilted her head slightly.
She thought about the dream she had earlier.
It had felt so real.
In it, she had married Minami, had children, and fully achieved her dream.
Everything was perfect, happy, complete.
And at that moment—
She suddenly had to see him.
She wanted to check.
Was the Minami Shouji in her dream the same as the one in reality?
That was why she left home.
That was why she came here.
And now—
Watching Minami attentively smooth out the futon,
Ryo finally confirmed it.
Yes—
This was him.
The Minami in her dream.
The Minami who had always been by her side.
But…
A dream was just a dream.
Leaning on her palm, Ryo's expression remained neutral—
But a faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
She wasn't interested in the dream version of Minami Shouji.
What she wanted—
Was this Minami Shouji.
The one right in front of her.
That was all.