36 Looking for a present

(Ryoto's pov)

A week has passed since my unfortunate reunion. Thankfully Akiho didn't do anything crazy and didn't come to my school, but now I have another problem. Rito's birthday is coming up soon, 16th October to be exact, and I don't know what present should I give him.

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*PING*

*NEW QUEST*

Mission: "Finding a gift"

Objective 1: Find a present for Rito's birthday that he'll like

Reward: 30 SP, one random item (item will be kept in an inventory-like place until the user wants to use it. It can't be put back, so be cautious.)

Failure: 'Spring of Drowned Girl' curse.

Duration of punishment: one month

__________

'What is this curse?'

Karen: "You'll turn into a girl every time you're splashed with cold water. The effects can be reversed by being splashed by hot water."

Having found a new determination, I started my journey to find the best possible gift.

---

Four hours and zero progress later, o still didn't find anything. I could buy him a plant and call it a day, but it would be too easy, and I'm not risking failing this mission.

I was walking through the town deep in my thoughts. I wasn't panicking as I still had a few days, but time was running out slowly, and every moment without the gift was a moment closer to being cursed.

As I was walking around, I was stopped by a familiar voice.

Kyouko: "Em... Excuse me."

Ryoto: "Yes?"

I turned towards the voice source and saw someone I didn't expect to meet so soon again. It was Kyouko Kirisaki, a famous actress. She is best known for her role as Magical Kyouko.

Kyouko: "I noticed that you were walking around for a while, and I wondered what you were up to."

I then proceeded to explain my situation to Kyouko.

Kyouko: "I see, so you are searching for a gift for your younger brother."

Ryoto: "That's pretty much it, but I have no idea what to give him."

Kyouko pondered about for a while and said with a smile.

Kyouko: "Then I'll help you. I may not know what the boys will like, but it's always easier to buy a gift with someone else's opinion. You can think of it as me repaying you for the help the last time."

I wanted to refuse at first. I know that she's busy with her job, and she probably doesn't have a lot of free time without her fans flooding her, but if she wants to do it, who am I to stop her.

Ryoto: "Sure, thank you for the help, Kirisaki-San."

Kyouko: "You're welc-. What did you just call me?"

She was shocked by what I called her, but I don't recall saying anything weird.

Ryoto: "I said 'thank you for the help, Kirisaki-San'. Did I say something wrong?"

Kyouko: "How do you know my name?"

I was confused by her question.

Ryoto: "You introduced yourself the last time we met, did you not?"

Kyouko: "No, I said that my name is Kyouko Kerisaki."

The realization hit me. So that's what she meant.

Ryoto: "Oh right, you did. Sorry, I forgot, but you need a better fake name to fool anyone. You barely changed it."

Kyouko looked embarrassed by it.

Kyouko: "Well, excuse me, I panicked! But if you knew, why didn't you say anything."

Ryoto: "What should I say? OMG, it's Kyouko Kirisaki! Do you have a boyfriend!? Where do you live!? Can I have an autograph!? "

I faked my excitement through the whole sentence. It shocked Kyouko a little, not because of my sudden change but because of my acting. As a professional actress, she can tell if someone's acting is good or not, and mine was great if I can say so myself. Thanks to wearing a metaphorical mask for a long time, I am pretty talented at faking my emotions.

Kyouko: "Are you an actor Yuuki-kun?"

Ryoto: "I don't think so."

Kyouko: "Do you want to?"

Ryoto: "No."

Kyouko: "Why? With your talent, you could be a great actor, I guarantee it!"

She gave me a thumbs up.

Ryoto: "Thank you for the compliment, but I must still refuse it. You see, I don't like being in the spotlight very much."

Kyouko: "I see... I'll respect your decision then, but if you change your mind, call me but don't spread it. It's my private number."

She gave me her phone number with a wink. I'm starting to understand why she is so popular.

Kyouko: "Well, now that this is out of the way, I should probably help you with your original problem."

Ryoto: "Right, the present."

Kyouko: "How about you tell me what he likes and your ideas for a gift as we start looking around."

Ryoto: "My first thought was a plant. Rito always took care of flowers at school, and he even is a member of the gardening club at our school, but we already have a rare plant in our garden, and I won't find a better one easily. In middle school, he enjoyed football a lot, but he stopped playing it in Highschool so I wouldn't go in that direction. Otherwise, he doesn't have any major interest, and that's why I'm lost."

Kyouko: "I see, it's certainly difficult to choose a present for someone like him. Why not just give him a plant you like. It's the thought that counts after all."

Ryoto: "No! This present must be the best he ever got!"

Kyouko got startled a bit by my outburst, but I couldn't guess in a million years what she thought about it.

Kyouko: 'He must really care about his brother to get so emotional over a present. I'll help him to the best of my abilities!'

Kyouko seemed pumped about something while I smiled wryly.

We walked for a bit, took a break at a local cafe, and talked about trivial stuff.

Kyouko ordered an iced coffee at the cafe while I chose black coffee. I wouldn't say that I love this drink, but something about drinking something bitter and then tasting slowly disappearing makes me want to drink it.

At some point, I took a sip out of Kyouko's straw that she used to drink, but after I did that, she became red and started mumbling something about an indirect kiss.

We had a great time overall, but we still didn't find anything that would make a great gift for Rito.

Kyouko: "Are you sure your brother doesn't have anything he likes besides the things you mentioned?"

Ryoto: "Well, it's not a thing, but he likes..."

The realization hit me the second time today. I finally had an idea for a great present for Rito.

I thanked Kyouko for her help and a great date by shaking her hand a tad too vigorously. Hearing the word date, she became red once more, but before she could say anything, I quickly ran towards my new destination to prepare the gift.

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END

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