Shoutout to polarishyn on tumblr for proofreading


"Aww man, the restaurant's already closed!"

Ako whines in front of the family restaurant that Roselia usually hangs out in after band practice. Usually they'd have an hour or so after arriving before the restaurant closes, but for undisclosed reasons the restaurant closed early today.

"Looks like...we'll just head home today," Rinko says, comforting her friend. "See you online later, Ako."

"Hold on a minute Rin-rin." Ako grabs Rinko's arm, pouting as she pulls the pianist back. "We can't just go home without doing anything! We have to eat fries after band practice! It's, like, tradition at this point."

Yukina shakes her head. "I've never heard of a more ridiculous tradition."

"Ako has a point though." Lisa smiles. "Besides, it's not like any of us are in a hurry. We can spend some time at a cafe or something while Sayo eats all of our fries."

"I would not." Sayo huffs, glaring at their youngest member. "I'm not Ako."

"I didn't even eat any last time!"

"That's enough, you two," Yukina says, putting herself between the two. "I hate to admit it, but Ako's right for once." She promptly ignores the 'hey!' coming from her, looking around at the rest of her bandmates. "So, should we look for a different restaurant? It's still quite early."

"I agree." Sayo nods, walking towards a certain direction. "I know the perfect place."

"These fries better be amazing if we're walking all the way here."

Ako's grumbling can be heard by all the members of Roselia as they walk towards Sayo's chosen restaurant, and for the second time today, Yukina has to admit that Ako is right. Their usual restaurant is located between the station and Circle, so it's not like they went out of their way to get to it. But now they've been walking for a good while, and they still haven't reached their destination.

"Their food is good, and it's not much longer until we get there."

"You said that ten minutes ago, my legs are killing me!"

Unseen by everyone, Sayo rolls her eyes. Then, she points at a building where they see a person walking out of the door. "It's right there."

"Isn't it kinda...small?" Lisa asks curiously as they walk up to the entrance.

Sayo shrugs before pushing the door open. "It's homey. And it's quite cheap for what it's worth." As they walk into the small restaurant, they see that there aren't many people besides them, and whoever are there can be counted with one hand. All in all, not exactly convincing that this is a good restaurant.

"Welcome to Hazawa Cafe." A voice from another part of the building shouts out. The source appears soon after, revealing herself to be a young girl with shoulder-length brown hair and amber eyes. Said eyes light up when she sees the person who had arrived. "Sayo! And the rest of Roselia, too. Eve just left, but if you're okay with it I can take your order."

"You would be love- I mean, that would be lovely." Sayo stutters. Yukina blinks at her in confusion. Did she imagine that, or was Sayo blushing?

She's probably imagining it. After all, why would Sayo blush from seeing the keyboardist of Afterglow?

The five of them are led to an empty table before Tsugumi offers them the menus. Sayo doesn't take one, and instead gives her order immediately. "Large fries, please. And do you still have those icing cookies?" Tsugumi nods. "I'll have some of those, too."

"Okay then! Any drinks with that?"

"Black coffee." Tsugumi frowns as she jots that down. "Do you...not like black coffee, Hazawa-san?"

"I'm not a fan of it. Way too bitter," she says.

"Oh. I don't like black coffee, either." Tsugumi stares at her for a few seconds before laughing. "Wait, that's not what I meant." As Sayo tries to explain her words, Yukina hears someone whispering her name. She turns to face Ako, who quickly mouths out a few words.

'Are you seeing this shit?'

Yukina nods, her eyes going back to Sayo who's finished saying her order. The rest of them give out their orders as well before Tsugumi leaves to make their food. One thing that doesn't go unnoticed is that Sayo's eyes continue to follow the brunette until she disappears behind the kitchen door.

"...I didn't know you're friends with Hazawa-san." Sayo nods, smiling.

"I drop by here every now and again. Afterglow holds meetings here, so I like to listen in on their conversations about their next songs."

"You say that," Ako starts, grinning at Sayo, "but I think you'd be too distracted by Hazawa-san to listen in on anything."

"Ako-chan...that's not very nice." Rinko, who's been quiet since they got here, attempts to control the situation. Much to her dismay, Ako likes saying whatever she thinks, and she continues even when Sayo is glaring at her.

"What do you think, Rin-rin? I think Sayo might have a cru-"

"What Ako means," Lisa immediately cuts in when she notices the killer look Sayo has, "is that you seem to be staring at her a lot."

"There's no reason for that, I assure you."

"Whatever you say..."

Soon, Tsugumi returns with their food. The basket of piping-hot fries in the middle, a plate of cookies for Sayo, and drinks for everyone else. Sayo's gaze continues to follow Tsugumi as she starts cleaning up for the night, collecting small tips from other tables and bringing dirty plates to the back.

Yukina feels a tap on her shoulder. Lisa gives her a knowing look, and she doesn't have to say anything for Yukina to know what she means.

Whether she admits it or not, Sayo definitely has a crush.

Minutes pass as Sayo takes sips from her coffee while she continues to look at Tsugumi, only breaking away whenever they accidentally make eye contact. It's almost hilarious how she insists that she feels nothing other than platonic friendship. Even Rinko can't help but giggle at Sayo's actions.

Ako lets out a satisfied sigh, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "Those fries were the best! I don't think I've ever had so many without Sayo hogging them all for herself." Sayo looks at her in confusion before realizing that the entire basket of fries is now empty, without her eating a single one.

"We should come here again, sometime." Lisa giggles, giving Sayo a teasing smile. "What do you think, Sayo?"

"I...," Sayo tries to look nonchalant about it, but the blush on her face gives it away. "I wouldn't be opposed."

Before they leave, the five of them chip in for Tsugumi's tip, with Sayo giving the most. She stammers on her words when Tsugumi thanks them, and she has a goofy smile on her face as they make their way to the station.

Yukina smiles; either way, she hopes Sayo will be happy.