Sawamura Haruno shrugged and joked,
"Don't waste it on me, okay? Mangoes are expensive."
"It looks like nothing more than a regular drink."
Miyazawa Maki eyed the sweet liquor in her hand suspiciously.
She couldn't help feeling that Sawamura Haruno might be underestimating her a little. Sure, she'd never drunk alcohol before—but even so, a small glass should be fine, right?
Besides, she couldn't smell any alcohol at all. Instead, there was a faint blend of vanilla and mango.
"You'll taste it once you drink a bit more,"
Sawamura Haruno said bluntly.
"Be grateful I even let you have some. And you're still being picky."
He was busy mixing himself a cocktail and didn't bother paying attention to whatever Maki was thinking.
After all, with the combined experience of his past and present lives, how could he possibly mess up a drink?
Once the mango ice cream floating on top was eaten, the alcohol flavor underneath would naturally come through. When he'd made it earlier, he'd deliberately matched the proportions to Miyazawa Mana's tolerance. There was no way Maki wouldn't notice it—unless her taste buds were broken.
"Is there a spoon?"
As long as there was something to eat, Maki didn't bother dwelling on Haruno's "complaints." After grabbing a small silver spoon, she happily carried her drink to the living room and sat down to eat.
Tokyo in July could only be described as murderously hot. Even though Haruno's air conditioner was working overtime, as long as you stood somewhere the airflow didn't reach, irritation would creep in. The kitchen was exactly that kind of place.
Maki had stood there watching the whole process just now. She hadn't broken a sweat, but she could still feel the difference in temperature. Now, with a cold, sweet drink topped with mango ice cream sitting in front of her, it was practically impossible to resist.
"Ah—"
"What's wrong?"
When Haruno came out after finishing his drink, he immediately saw Maki scrunching up her small face.
"My teeth are frozen. I shouldn't have eaten such a big bite."
She looked slightly annoyed, but quickly added,
"The taste is fine though. It just tastes like ice cream."
"If you're eating ice cream, what else would it taste like?"
Haruno sat down, lifted his own fizzy cocktail, and took a light sip.
The stimulating liquid entered his mouth, instantly dispelling the summer heat. The comfort that welled up from within made him unconsciously narrow his eyes.
This really is how a second life should be enjoyed.
"What's in your glass?"
While digging into her ice cream with the spoon, Maki cast a not-so-innocent glance at Haruno's drink.
It looked just as tasty—and it was still bubbling. Had he added soda water? Or cola?
"Mine's stronger than yours,"
Haruno replied flatly.
"Drink your own."
His drink really was stronger. The main issue was that he hadn't paid close attention to the exact proportions while mixing it—after all, in his previous life, he wouldn't have used cola at all. On top of that, imported brands tended to have subtle differences.
An average person might not notice, but Haruno could tell immediately.
"Next time I should switch to a different cola. Sugar-free ones here are way too common."
He felt an itch in his nose and scratched it lightly—but just as he raised his hand, his phone rang.
The lit-up screen displayed only a simple label—
Mom.
Haruno paused briefly, then immediately set his drink down and picked up his phone, walking toward his bedroom.
Once inside and after loosely closing the door, he answered without hesitation.
"Hello, Mom?"
Talking to family naturally softened his tone.
He had been reborn into this parallel world, which meant he'd grown up under his parents' care. The bond he felt was naturally deeper than that of a typical transmigrator. Especially since, before he entered university and began living independently, his family had provided him with substantial support.
Even though they now lived apart—his parents in Osaka, himself in Tokyo—the affection he'd received hadn't faded in the slightest.
That said, his feelings didn't necessarily reflect his mother's current mood.
Because on the other end of the line, she was speaking in an unmistakably reproachful tone:
"Why haven't you come home in so long?"
"Mom, it's not vacation yet."
Just hearing that made Haruno's head start to hurt.
"There's still a while before the next long break. Even if I wanted to go back, I couldn't."
"Did you come home during Golden Week last time?"
Hearing him explain, his mother immediately flared up.
The reason she was so angry wasn't simply because he hadn't come home for a long time—it was because the last time he had gone home, he was still dating Miyazawa Mana.
Back then, during Golden Week of their third year in high school, before heading to Atami, Haruno had brought Mana back to his parents' house for a night.
Even though it was only one night, his mother had been deeply impressed by the well-behaved, gentle girl—and was immensely proud that her son had found such a good girlfriend at such a young age.
But before the next long holiday even arrived, Haruno had already broken up with Mana, nearly giving his mother a heart attack from anger.
It was precisely because of that that Haruno hadn't dared to go home recently.
Of course, he couldn't say that outright, so he braced himself and lied through his teeth:
"I didn't come back during Golden Week because I was busy helping my seniors and my advisor at school. Didn't I already explain that?"
"You just started university—what could you possibly be helping with?"
His mother immediately saw through it and snapped back.
"You're a humanities student, not a science major. What help can you give anyone? You're taking general education classes—do you even have any specialized knowledge yet?"
I do! I really do…
Haruno didn't dare say it aloud and could only take the scolding in silence.
There was no helping it—his mother absolutely adored Mana. When she first heard about the breakup, she'd called him every day to sigh dramatically, giving him a splitting headache.
If he argued now, there was a very real chance his family would come straight to Tokyo to "teach him a lesson."
"I'm telling you,"
His mother, unaware of his internal struggle, began another long, earnest lecture.
The gist of it was that Haruno had already been accepted into the University of Tokyo, so his future was secure. The only thing she truly worried about was his relationship with Mana.
She went on and on for quite a while, until even she started to feel tired and was about to stop—
When suddenly, from Haruno's side of the line, she heard another unfamiliar sound.
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