Kenji had been out buying additional ice to put in the cooler. Having lost to Koutarou in rock paper scissors, he had to take up that job. The five members of the cosclub joined him. Since they had brought their cosplay outfits with them, they brought less food and drinks.
“Mackenzie, that's what you get for acting cool”
”Shut it! How can I refuse when my senpais asks me to carry it!”
“You're soft but for some reason you still think you're well trained. Anyways, drink this and rest up”
“Ah, thanks”
Having bought ice and returned to the beach, Kenji was lying spread out under a parasol. Since he hadn't just carried the ice but also the luggage of the five girls from the cosclub he had used even more stamina. Kenji was currently resting, drinking the water out of the bottle he had gotten from Koutarou. By the way, the cosclub girls had already met up with the girls of room 106 and were currently playing. So Koutarou and Kenji were the only ones still around the parasols.
“I'm going to go play with everyone else. You should come too once you've recovered”
“...That's unusual, Kou”
Koutarou was about to leave the shadow of the parasols, but stopped as he heard Kenji speak. He felt something serious in the words he had spoken. When Koutarou turned back to look, Kenji had risen his body and was looking at him.
“You actually getting along well with others is... it's something I can't imagine the past you doing”
“Mackenzie...”
“You used to reject others before your relationship reached a certain point. The past you wouldn't have come to the beach if you got an offer”
“That... might be true”
Koutarou obediently nodded. He almost hadn't last year. Kenji took a sip of water to refresh himself and stared at Koutarou.
“Kou, what happened between you and those girls?”
“That's...”
Kenji didn't have his usual gentle smile. He was staring straight at Koutarou with a serious expression. Kenji knew everything about Koutarou. Since half-assed excuses wouldn't work, Koutarou would tell him part of the truth.
“Since this is about their personal life I can't go into details, but... something like what happened between you and I happened between me and them”
“I see. So that's why...”
There, Kenji finally showed a smile and nodded repeatedly. Koutarou's short explanation was enough for him. The reason for that was that Kenji had gotten an understanding of who Koutarou was after several fierce collisions between them. At the same time, Koutarou had accepted Kenji for who he was. That's why, hearing that the same thing had happened between Koutarou and the girls was enough for Kenji to understand. While he didn't know the details, he realized that the essence was the same.
“That's too bad. I was after one of the girls in that group, but if something like that happened, I'll have to give up”
Kenji returned to his usual self. He had his normal gentle smile as he looked at the girls.
“If you're serious I don't mind. I like them, but... it's not like I'm going out with them. Besides... I have nothing to worry about if you're serious”
However, Koutarou still had a serious expression.
Koutarou had sworn to make sure the invading girls lived a happy life. If possible, he wanted to make that happen on his own, but he realized that would be difficult. Koutarou wasn't that selfish, nor was he that much of an idealist.
Moreover, if he had to leave something he couldn't do himself, Kenji was ideal. To Koutarou, Kenji was just as special to him as the girls of room 106. Since the first one to save him had been Kenji, in one way, he trusted Kenji more than himself. That said, that only applied when Kenji was serious.
“And if I wasn't serious?”
“I'd beat the crap out of you”
“You answered that one without missing a beat, Kou. Haha, I'm scared, so I'll wait until you make your decision”
“Mackenzie...”
“Kou, don't get scared and run away, okay? You can only walk forward”
“I know, thanks”
“Yeah”
Kenji took another sip of water and laid back down under the parasol. Having had a direct talk with Koutarou he was a little embarrassed about looking at him after they were done talking.
“Then I'm going”
“Yeah. I'll see you later”
The same was true for Koutarou. That's why he turned his back towards Kenji and headed towards the girls. However, this was just a temporary thing as the next time they meet they would be back to normal.