Am I being simulated by their love affair?

Page 485

"There's the Tokyo International Film Festival at the end of October, I want to go!" Natsumi Imokawa glanced at the boy's right hand resting on the grass.

"Also, I've finished editing the short film 'White Line Flow,' and I uploaded it to my YouTube account as soon as I woke up this morning."

"So fast?" The boy turned his head. "Why do you seem to have so much going on this morning?"

The girl smiled. "Good news always comes at once!"

She forgot about passing the audition because she had to release a short video in the morning.

"Can I see it now?" Jun Matsue was about to take out his phone when the girl next to him stopped him.

"Let's look at it when we get back." Natsumi Imokawa put her hand on his wrist. "Let's enjoy the scenery in front of us now."

"……it is good."

The boy silently moved his hand away, secretly observing the girl sitting next to him out of the corner of his eye.

Why does it seem like Imokawa has suddenly become so quiet and reserved...?

"Where's the pine branch?" Natsumi Imokawa stared at the blades of grass lying in front of her feet. "You guys have been busy with the cultural festival lately, haven't you?"

“That’s right.” Jun Matsue secretly moved to the side, and only after finding that Imokawa did not react did he feel relieved.

"We've already submitted our application to open a coffee shop this year, so other classes won't snatch it away."

"A coffee shop?" The girl looked up. "Our classroom is a candy shop, they even sell cookies and other small biscuits."

The boy watched a couple walk by, with a short-legged corgi following behind them.

"Isn't that a perfect match for coffee?"

"Hmm~"

The playful tone of her voice revealed Natsumi Imokawa's cheerful mood. She picked up her camera and took a picture of the silhouettes of the two people and the dog opposite her.

After glancing at the screen, the girl turned to the side and pointed the camera at the boy beside her.

"Pine branches?"

"Hmm?" The boy turned his head, his eyebrows and eyes bathed in sunlight, showing a clean and warm color that had nothing to do with autumn.

"I like you."

That's how Natsumi Imokawa started speaking.

She pressed the shutter, capturing the boy's surprised expression at that moment.

It turns out that even pine branches can show such an unexpected expression... The girl even had time to think about this kind of question.

A brief, profound stillness descended upon the riverbank; the wind of Arakawa swept away the noise from the shore, leaving only the sound of the river's waves crashing against the shore.

This was not the time Natsumi Imokawa had originally envisioned for her to confess.

As originally planned, after watching an enjoyable underground performance with the boy, the two would chat casually about their day's events. As they walked past the streetlights, she would, as if playing a prank, boldly take Songzhi's arm and confess her feelings, saying, "I like you."

However, it doesn't matter now. The wind in Arakawa is refreshing enough to blow away people's worries and anxieties, allowing the girl to openly express her feelings.

Natsumi Imokawa blinked, openly looking at the boy's face so close to hers.

"Didn't you hear me, Pine Branch? I like you~" she repeated, with a slightly mischievous smile.

“…I heard you.” Jun Matsueda waved his hand, looking at the girl in front of him with a natural expression.

"Imokawa is serious?" he asked again.

"Of course I'm serious!" Natsumi Imokawa puffed out her slightly chubby cheeks.

"I asked you out today, and I've been hiding it all this time, just to say that I like you."

"..." The boy remained silent for a while.

To be honest, when he heard Imokawa's confession, his first thought was not, "The worst has happened."

Instead, it was a somewhat unexpected and delightful surprise.

After all, he had never disliked Natsumi Imokawa, and he was well aware of the girl's unique charm and extraordinary abilities—any normal person would not feel any resentment at being liked by such a special and adorable girl.

"Is Imokawa referring to romantic feelings between men and women?" Jun Matsueda wanted to confirm.

“Of course!” Natsumi Imokawa puffed out her chest.

"The kind of liking where I want to be with you, go on dates with you, and sleep with you!"

"Don't try to deny it, Songzhi! You just told me what 'liking' is like!"

This is troublesome... The boy blinked.

This kind of straightforward and naive girl is actually the one he finds most difficult to deal with.

But the two people on the grass remained seated, like two pebbles on a riverbank, their distance unchanged.

"Imokawa, do you remember what my current relationship status is?" Matsueda Jun asked cautiously.

"I know." The girl drew flowers on the grass. "You're two-timing, and you're thinking of stepping on a third one."

"..." The boy nodded somewhat awkwardly. "Have you thought about how I would respond?"

"Will you go out with me?" Natsumi Imokawa blinked at him.

Jun Matsue shook his head again.

"Can we still be friends?"

Jun Matsue hesitated for a moment.

"Of course, but—"

"No buts!" The girl immediately reached out and covered his mouth with both hands.

"I just confessed my feelings to you, I didn't expect you to respond!"

The wind by the riverbank ruffled their bangs, and the boy, whose mouth was covered, looked at her with a bewildered expression.

"If you like someone, you should say it. That's just what I think."

Natsumi Imokawa released her hand, her palm still warm from the boy's breath.

"If you're going to distance yourself from me because of this, then please pretend you didn't hear me!"

"...Do you think I can ignore it just because you said you didn't hear it?" Jun Matsueda's tone was somewhat helpless.

"What should we do?" The girl's clear black and white eyes flickered; she was a little nervous.

"If you like someone, you should say it. Is that wrong?"

"...Imokawa is not wrong." The boy composed himself and smiled reassuringly.

"But I really don't have any plans to date you right now."

“…Oh.” Natsumi Imokawa nodded.

She stood up and patted the blades of grass off her sundress.

"Where do we go now? Straight home?"

The girl asked in a natural tone, as if nothing had changed.

The boy remained seated on the grass, looking up at her.

"What's wrong?" Natsumi Imokawa bent down. "Doesn't Matsueda want to come with me anymore?"

"..." Jun Matsue got up from the grass and picked up his chestnut milk.

"Let's walk along the Arakawa River a bit more; I haven't calmed down yet."

"Oh~" The girl nodded. "Would you like me to get you a drink?"

"……Need not."

Jun Matsue opened the beverage bottle, and the sweet milk with the rich flavor of chestnuts slid down his throat.

He looked up and glanced out of the corner of his eye at the girl waiting for him on the slope.

Seemingly noticing the boy's gaze, Natsumi Imokawa tilted her head and looked at him with a puzzled expression.

This guy, Imokawa, seems almost flawless...

Chapter 737 "I like you," how many times do I have to say it for it to reach your heart?

As he strolled along the riverbank, passing two bare soccer fields and walking under the bridge spanning the Arakawa River, Jun Matsueda couldn't help but take a closer look at the girl beside him.

Natsumi Imokawa gripped the strap of her bag in one hand and held a black point-and-shoot camera in the other. Her smooth face, which usually showed a touch of innocent naivety, now appeared melancholic and serene under the shadow of the bridge, revealing a touch of artistic temperament.

The pale yellow floral sundress appeared dull in the shadows, but her eyes still sparkled as she gazed ahead, as if anticipating the autumn light after the brief darkness.

Although there was a busy road and traffic right above them, the area under the bridge was unusually quiet—so quiet that even the sound of a girl's hair brushing against the air when she turned her head could be clearly heard by a boy.

"Has Matsue adjusted her mood?" Natsumi Imokawa asked directly.

The girl's tone remained unchanged, just as it had been when she confessed her feelings and was rejected, and when she asked him where he was going next.

“…Hmm.” Jun Matsueda nodded, trying his best to appear as normal as ever.

Imokawa acted so calmly; if I cared too much, it would feel like I had lost.

"Can we continue chatting now?" the girl blinked.

"...No problem." The boy nodded again.

Just as the two returned to the sunlight, Natsumi Imokawa's expression became lively again, and she turned to look at the dark space under the bridge.

"I've seen scenes of the male and female leads kissing under bridges in teen movies so many times..."

"Does kissing under a bridge feel any different?"

The girl turned her head again and cast a curious glance at the boy's lips, which were neither thin nor thick.

"...Do we really have to talk about this?" Jun Matsue subconsciously pursed his lips.

"Oh..." Natsumi Imokawa's eyes showed a hint of regret. "So, what does Matsueda want to talk about?"

The boy's gaze wandered again, but finally returned to her face.

"Why... did Imokawa suddenly have the idea of ​​confessing?" He decided to have a proper talk with him.

"Because I suddenly realized that I like pine branches."

The girl clutched the strap of her handbag tightly. "That day when I went to the Shanghai Oriental Art Center audition, the interviewer suddenly asked me—"

"Why is Matsueda always in my portfolio? Is it because we're lovers or because I like him?"

“That’s definitely not it!” Jun Matsue said without hesitation.

“I thought so at first too!” Natsumi Imokawa nodded in agreement.

She looked at the riverbank in front of them, where a boy and a girl in high school uniforms were sitting on the shore—they were doing nothing, just quietly leaning against each other and chatting.

“But—” The girl looked away and tugged at the hem of the person next to her.

"But didn't Songzhi just tell me about your feelings a while ago?"

Jun Matsue blinked, his expression subtle.

“I’ve realized that I’m actually just like what Matsue said before.” Natsumi Imokawa gently shook the hand she was holding onto her clothes.

“I never decided whether I liked pine branches or not—I had already fallen for you before that.”

"When we're together, when we're apart, when I think of you... it's exactly the same feeling as what Songzhi said back then."

“So I’m sure!” She looked at the boy next to her.

"I just really like pine branches!"

So, did I say too much in front of Imokawa? Matsueda Jun's feelings were complicated.

"And it's all the pine branch's fault!" The girl glared at him again.

"I want to spend more time with Songzhi, I want you to look at me more and talk to me, but Songzhi can't do that! You only have eyes for the girl you're dating!"

"That's why I want to date you too!"

It was rare for her to say so much in one breath, and Natsumi Imokawa's breathing became a little heavy. The girl patted her heaving chest, silently took out chestnut milk from her canvas bag, and gulped down a big mouthful.

The boy stopped while waiting for her to drink water. A bus drove by on the outer side of the road, and the green grass between the road and the walkway swayed.

After the girl licked her lips and tightened the bottle cap, Jun Matsue carefully spoke.