Time passed, and July arrived.

The costume exchange that the manager had come up with on a whim had ended, and I was finally back in my familiar suit. I had long since stopped feeling out of place in a maid outfit, but this definitely felt much more natural.

“Iori-sama, you really do look better in a suit!”

“Oh? Thanks, Ririmu. You look cuter in a maid outfit too.”

“Hehehe…”

In front of the changing room, Tachibana Iori and Kobayashi Ririmu were getting along as usual. Well, maybe “getting along” wasn’t the right phrase. Tachibana Iori was simply stroking Kobayashi Ririmu’s head. Perhaps because they were back in their uniforms after a month, they both seemed to be in a good mood.

“Natsuki, you too. I still think that suits you better.”

As I was using a lint roller to clean my suit, Tachibana Iori approached me. Since I had just finished, I handed the lint roller to her, and she smoothly continued rolling off the dust from my suit.

“Well, compared to a maid outfit, yeah. I was getting used to it, but it was definitely weird.”

Thanks to that, my classmates had been teasing me, saying things like, “Let’s do a maid café for the cultural festival!” Who the hell would come to a maid café at an all-boys school? If anything, a butler café would make more sense… No, wait, our faces aren’t good enough for that. Well, if it were Tachibana Iori, it would be perfect.

“The manager was all fired up, saying next would be swimsuits. I wonder what’s going to happen?”

“What? He said that!?”

“Eh—?! No way, I absolutely refuse to wear a swimsuit!”

Kobayashi Ririmu vigorously ran the lint roller over her maid outfit, baring her fangs in protest. I wasn’t too keen on swimsuits either.

“If it comes to that, let’s all protest together. You wouldn’t want that either, right, Iori?”

I no longer stumbled just calling her name. Though I still felt a little self-conscious, I could shake it off quickly.

“Me? Hmm…”

Even though the answer should have been obvious, Tachibana Iori put on a serious expression and started thinking. Just as she raised her head, the manager entered the back room. Unusually, her long black hair was tied up in a ponytail.

“Good morning, everyone. You all did well in June despite the unfamiliar uniforms. Thanks to your efforts, we achieved 160% of last year’s sales. I appreciate your cooperation. July doesn’t have anything special planned, but with final exams and summer vacation for high school students coming up, let’s stay focused.”

“Got it.”

“Yeees!”

“……”

I had been bracing myself, thinking the swimsuit issue would come up, but the manager’s speech was completely normal. I let out a small sigh of relief.

“Hmm? What’s wrong, Natsuki? If you miss the maid outfit, you’re welcome to keep wearing it in July.”

“No way. I’m never wearing that again.”

“That’s too bad. It really suited you. Well then, let’s have a good day today.”

With the morning meeting over, the manager turned to her computer. After washing my hands, I stepped out into the hall, where Tachibana Iori quietly moved closer to me.

“—About what we were talking about earlier.”

“Hm?”

What were we talking about earlier…? Oh, right, the swimsuit thing. Whether Tachibana Iori was okay with serving customers in a swimsuit. Not that I needed to ask—of course, she wouldn’t be.

Tachibana Iori’s doll-like, beautiful face twisted into a mischievous smirk. Even broken things can be beautiful, but in this case, it was a warning sign. That smile meant she was about to tease me.

“—If Natsuki picks out the swimsuit for me, I wouldn’t mind.”

Tachibana Iori… in a swimsuit.

“Ugh…!”

A sound slipped from my mouth. That was how much my brain was overheating. I had been trying not to think about things like that. I needed to, in order to stay friends with Tachibana Iori.

Don’t think about it.

Don’t think about it.

The more I told myself that, the more my brain started picturing her in imaginary swimsuits. Her slender frame, her modest but noticeable chest, her small, rounded hips, her long, graceful legs… My entire mind was desperately constructing an image of a version of Tachibana Iori I had never seen before.

“Heh, your face is bright red. Aren’t we just friends?”

No, even if we’re friends, it’s normal to get flustered seeing someone in a swimsuit.

…Right?

I wouldn’t know. I had never seen one outside of swimming class.

“Well, think about it. We still haven’t even gone on a casual date yet, after all.”

“Think about…? Think about what?”

A customer entered the vestibule. Tachibana Iori walked off to greet them.

As I watched her retreating figure… I couldn’t shake the image of swimsuit strings tied behind her back.

“…What the hell am I thinking?”

Shaking my head, I tried to clear my thoughts. Getting worked up over a coworker wouldn’t do me any good.

Besides, it wasn’t like it mattered. It’s not like I was going to the beach with Tachibana Iori this summer or anything.