A Secret Between Two Friends/ Tama Perspective (Special Version)

Yes, it's true; I, Minami Nanami, am sitting in a café in

Omiya right now on a date. A coffee date, of course, with

someone I can always count on—Tama. I don't have a

boyfriend, so I always go out with a supercute girl like Tama

or Aoi. And that's enough for me. Aoi is so pretty, I could

watch her all day, and tiny Tama puts her all into everything,

which is so adorable. Just talking to her cheers me up. Heehee-hee, bet you're jealous!

"Hey, Minmi, are you listening?"

Sitting across from me at the table, Tama starts talking

to me. She just bought that bracelet, and she's already put it

on. So cute. But uh…what was I supposed to be listening to?

I was off in my own world and missed everything. When I

look up, I notice she's a little mad and pouty. Uh-oh. They

look so soft, I want to squish them.

"Huh?"

I give in to temptation and try an experimental poke.

Still springy, even when she's mad. I'm a bit surprised by

something else, though. They look so soft, but when they're

all puffed out, the skin is stretched tight, so they're actually

less soft than usual. Interesting! Some facts about cheeks

you'll never know until you touch them. Minami Nanami

just got a little smarter!

"Oh, come on! …Sheesh, never mind. I'm going to the

bathroom."

"What? You're leaving me alone? Don't go!"

"Stop being so selfish!"

My pleas are in vain, and she abandons me for the

bathroom. Ah, 'tis the fate of young maidens to suffer when

our plans are foiled. Also, Tama looks so tiny from behind,

it's adorable.

I sit alone waiting for Tama and the food we ordered. As

I do, someone approaches.

"Hey, it's Mimimi!"

"What? …Oh, hey, Kana!"

She's a friend from class. Behind her, I see a few more of

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our friends at the register. They wave in my direction as they

pay. I wave back. Hi, hi!

"Are you guys just hanging out?" I ask.

"Yeah, we're on our way to the karaoke place. How about

you?"

"Tama and I came here to eat. She's in the bathroom

right now!"

"Really? Why don't you guys come with us when you're

done eating?"

"Sounds good—," I start to say, then hesitate. I love to

cut loose at karaoke, but not Tama. She's not a fan of that

kind of thing. Technically speaking, she hates it.

"—but actually, we already have plans to go somewhere

else. Sorry, next time!"

"Okay!" Kana says and heads back to the register. That's

when Tama comes back.

"Hey, you took forever! Did you go number two or

something?!"

"Don't talk about that; it's rude! …Oh, everyone's here?"

"Yup! I just talked to Kana! They're done eating, and

now they're going to the karaoke place."

"Really? I've only tried it once, but I didn't like it."

See? Tama and I have a spiritual connection. Secretly,

I'm pretty proud of myself, but out loud, I say, "Thought so!"

I don't tell her I turned down their invitation. After all, I

didn't even ask her. This is Minami Nanami's philosophy of

kindness!

As we're chatting, our food arrives. Tama's having the

mushroom risotto, and I got the pasta with crab cream

sauce. I'm licking my lips. It's super creamy, and it looks

amazing. This is gonna be sooo many calories. I take a bite

and lose my mind.

"Wow! This is so good!"

"Really?"

Tama smiles like she's looking at a little kid. Must be

because I'm so worked up.

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"Yeah, it's incredible! I think I'll get this again the next

time I come here!"

Now Tama's smiling and shaking her head at me. Can't

imagine why. I stare at her, and she says, "Mine is good,

too." Is that an invitation?

"Gimme a bite!" I say, invading her plate with my fork

and helping myself.

"Hey! I'm eating that!"

"Oh yeah, yours is delicious, too! Lemme have some

more!"

"Normal people only take one bite!"

Enjoying Tama's scolding, I help myself to some more of

her risotto. Yum! Yeah, hanging out in a big group is fun, but

this is nice, too.

When our highly entertaining lunch comes to an end, I

leave the café with Tama, rubbing my belly.

"Where to next, Minmi?"

"Hmm…"

I'm not sure, but I have some thoughts. Today, I turned

down the invitation for karaoke, but one day, I hope Tama

will be able to come with us and go crazy. Meaning she'll

need some practice for that day…

"How about the two of us go to the karaoke place?! Just

to try it out!"

"What?!"

She looks at me, a little surprised. But for some reason,

when I smile back at her, she seems convinced.

"Okay…just for a little while."

"I knew you'd be up for it! Let's go!"

We walk toward the karaoke place. Hope this gets her a

little more used to it.

So goes another day in the life of Minami Nanami, the

bridge between Tama and the world!

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"And that's why even my mom calls me Tama now—Hey,

Minmi, are you listening?"

I'm at a café in Omiya. Minmi is sitting across from me,

but when I say her name, she just looks up at me in a daze

and freezes for a minute. She definitely wasn't listening. Not

that it really matters, because I wasn't saying anything

important, but she's so spacey. Wonder how she'll try to

cover up this time. I can imagine her being her usual silly

self: Sorry, Tama! Tell me again! Sheesh. Of course, I'm

used to it by now. Plus, I can never stay mad.

As I'm thinking about all this, out of nowhere, something

touches my cheek. At the same time, I hear her say "Huh?"

When I glance up, Minmi is rubbing her fingers on me with

an extremely solemn expression. She really is hopeless.

"Oh, come on! …Sheesh, never mind. I'm going to the

bathroom," I say, standing up. I'm not mad, I just have to go

to the bathroom. Plus, the timing is perfect because we

ordered a minute ago, and the food should be here by the

time I get back.

"What? You're leaving me alone? Don't go!"

"Stop being so selfish!"

I dodge Minmi's hand as she tries to grab onto the

bottom of my shirt, and I walk toward the bathroom. I hear

her calling my name and look over my shoulder with a little

smile. As I head down the hallway toward the bathroom, I

glance at the pictures on the menu tacked to the wall.

There's a big picture with the words New Menu Items!

written over it. The pasta with crab cream sauce that Minmi

just ordered is featured front and center.

"Uh-oh…"

That's when I realize: The sauce doesn't just have crab in

it—it's got shrimp, too. Minmi hates shrimp. She must have

gotten excited and ordered it without really looking at the

picture.

"…So hopeless."

Minmi really is impossible. I walk over to a waiter

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standing nearby.

"The girl sitting at that table ordered the pasta with crab

cream sauce, and I'm wondering if it's too late to get it

without the shrimp."

"Wait a second; I'll go check for you."

The waiter disappears into the kitchen and returns after

a minute or two.

"They said they could!"

He's so cheerful about it that it puts me in a better mood,

too. I bow slightly.

"Great, then could you ask them to take it out? Thanks

so much!"

I continue on to the bathroom and then go back to our

table. Minmi greets me with her usual laugh.

"Hey, you took forever! Did you go number two or

something?!"

"Don't talk about that; it's rude!"

I was expecting her to say something ridiculous when I

got back, but not that ridiculous. She caught me off guard,

but I'm not about to tell her that I took some extra time

because I was talking to the waiter about her shrimp. After

all, I didn't ask her permission.

Just then, I notice some vaguely familiar faces by the

register.

"…Oh, everyone's here?"

"Yup! I just talked to Kana! They're done eating, and

now they're going to the karaoke place."

"Really? I've only tried it once, but I didn't like it," I say,

thinking back to that experience. I remember I couldn't get

comfortable. It was too crazy, too much energy. Plus, I

wasn't really friends with everyone in that group. After that,

I've always turned down karaoke invitations.

A few minutes later, the waiter brings our food over. I'm

having the mushroom risotto and Minmi got the pasta with

crab cream sauce—no shrimp. As soon as the waiter sets it

down, Minmi takes a bite.

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"Wow! This is so good!"

"Really?"

She's greedily devouring her pasta. The sight is funny to

me for some reason, and I can't help giggling. Glad it didn't

have shrimp!

"Yeah, it's incredible! I think I'll get this again the next

time I come here!"

Hmm, guess I'll have to secretly ask the waiter to leave

out the shrimp next time, too. I smile and shake my head.

Then to cover it up, I look down at my risotto.

"Mine is good, too," I say.

As soon as I do, Minmi says, "Gimme a bite!" The next

instant, she's got a forkful of my risotto in her mouth. So

hopeless! She ends up eating about a quarter of it, but I get

the same back in pasta before the meal is over. We leave the

restaurant and breathe in some fresh air.

"Where to next, Minmi?"

She crosses her arms like she's not sure. Then after a

minute, she looks at me. Apparently, she thought of

something.

"How about the two of us go to the karaoke place?! Just

to try it out!"

I'm surprised, but I guess maybe she wanted to go to the

karaoke place with the others. Plus, last time, I didn't have

fun, but maybe it will be different with Minmi…

"Okay…just for a little while," I say.

"I knew you'd be up for it! Let's go!"

She looks genuinely happy, which makes me happy, too.

And since we're going anyway, I might as well try to enjoy

myself!