Spending A Lovey-Dovey College Life With A Spoiled Childhood Friend

It’s the 24th of April, Wednesday. It’s been almost a month since I started college. Despite Miyu’s problems, I’m getting used to college life. 

One day in the Byte editor’s office.

“Let’s go out to Ran Ran for dinner tonight.”

Shun-san suddenly called out to us.

“Wasn’t Ran Ran a Rice Bowl restaurant?”

I think it was written in the Byte article that I had read when I entered the University.

“It’s not like katsudon or oyakodon or anything like that. If I have to guess, I’d say Ran Ran is Ran Ran.”

Shun-san said something that sounded like an incomprehensible religion. I don’t really understand what he’s talking about.

“That sounds interesting!”

See? He said something incomprehensible that Miyu’s eyes….even lit up?

“The Abyss of Ran Ran. You have to go there to see it for yourself.”

Shun-san looked at us and mumbled something like that. What was that?, I thought to myself.

“I want to go!”

“Well then, me too.”

I don’t think that Shun-san is a bad person, but I’m worried about letting Miyu go with him alone. By the way, Miyu has been very proactive ever since joining Byte.

“I guess that’s settled.”

So, we decided to go to Ran Ran. Since it was far away from the university, Shun-san agreed to give us a ride. I was in the passenger seat and Miyu was in the back seat.

“So you have a driver’s license, Shun-san? I’m a little surprised.”

From the first time I met him, I had the impression that he was somewhat mysterious and unworldly, so I didn’t expect him to have a car.

“After all, Tsukunami is in the countryside, so without a car, it would be quite inconvenient.”

I thought I could get by with just a bicycle, since Midori and Amazun already had everything I needed. But, I want to take Miyu to a lot of different places, so maybe I should think about getting a license.

“Do you want to get your license, Miyu?”

“Yes, I want to get one.”

“Then, do you want to get your license with me?”

“Okay!”

“As always, you guys get along really well…”

After that, we safely arrived at Ran Ran. The car ride took us about 20 minutes to get there.

“I thought it was going to be a crazy looking restaurant, but it turned out to be normal.”

In the distance, Ran Ran was a house-like building with a simple exterior with a sign that says “Ran Ran” in front of the second floor. It’s a little strange that you can’t even tell what kind of store it is just from the exterior alone.

“Ryu-kun, Ryu-kun~ There’s a huge line, over there.”

I looked around and saw that there was a huge line from the entrance to the parking lot. They seemed to be the same students from our university.

“Is it a popular restaurant?”

“If there’s a student from Tsukuha University who hasn’t heard about Ran Ran, they’re unqualified.”

I don’t like waiting in line, but I guess it can’t be helped.

“I forgot to mention this, but you guys should start with smaller servings.”

“What do you mean by that?”

I felt a bit uneasy from those words.

“They put quite a lot of food, even for a regular serving. Their smaller serving is like a large serving at a regular restaurant.”

“I’m starting to get worried about that.”

“I don’t think I can eat that much, either.”

Miyu started to get anxious about whether she could finish it or not.

“If you’re worried about eating the small serving, you can order a mini one, so don’t worry.”

“That’s a relief. But that’s kinda rare, having a smaller version of the small serving, I mean.”

“And that’s what I call the Ran Ran quality.”

As we waited and chatted, the line gradually moved forward until we became the first in the line.

“By the way, there’s only one thing on the menu, it’s the BIG bowl.”

“”Eeeh?””

My and Miyu’s voices were in perfect sync.

“I know that you’re both worried, but I can guarantee you the taste is good.”

I had no choice but to resign myself in this situation. I bought a ticket for a small serving of BIG-don from the ticket machine near the entrance and handed it to the waitress. Shun-san got a regular-sized BIG-don and Miyu got a mini-sized BIG-don. We waited at the table and for about 10 minutes, “it” was brought in front of us.

“…Can we even still call this a Rice bowl?”

“You can practically call this a Wash bowl…”

Both of us were shocked. The BIG-don was served in a large bowl that looked like a washbowl. Stir fried vegetables, bean sprouts, meat, and fried tofu were laid out in such a cramped space that you could barely see the rice. It looked delicious, but I wondered if this really was a Rice bowl.

Then, I started eating after saying “Itadakimasu”.

“…Delicious.”

Miyu murmured, after taking a bite.

“I know right? I don’t really know why, but I’m going to eat more.”

It’s really delicious, and I don’t even know why.

“Same old Ran Ran.”

The three of us had different opinions. 

The next thing I knew, I had eaten it all in a flash. There were people waiting outside the restaurant, so we decided to quickly leave.

“–You know, it is said that once you try Ran Ran, most people become addicted to it. Do you understand it now?”

“Yes! I think I do!”

“Well, it’s delicious, after all.”

We exchanged such a conversation with each other.

Speaking of which, I’ll have to think about getting my license soon.