Am I being simulated by their love affair?

Page 263

"It's definitely fake!" the girl said angrily. "Don't let her tempt you!"

After finishing the last sip of his coffee, Jun Matsuoka put the cup back on the tray, the pattern remaining on the bottom of the cup somewhat dirty.

"There's one more thing..."

"I broke up with my boyfriend."

The room was quiet for two seconds, then a few seagulls flew past close to the outer wall, their flapping wings muffled by the windowpane.

Yosuke Kurusu put down her coffee, a genuine smile of joy on her face, her silvery laughter echoing in the private room.

"I...I'm sorry," she said with a smile to Jun Matsue, whose expression was strange.

"Although saying this in front of Songzhi is a bit much—"

"But I'm extremely happy right now!"

Chapter 465 The Success Story of Fish Cake

Yosuke Lai laughed for a long time, until tears streamed down his face, before he finally stopped.

"I know why you're laughing, but isn't that a bit much?" Jun Matsue looked at her helplessly.

"So, I'm sorry~" The girl took a sip of coffee, trying to suppress the upturn of her lips.

"How did you and she break up?" she asked with great interest.

"In short, it was because of my leaving the band and other things that my senior felt guilty."

Matsueda Jun wouldn't reveal the whole story—unlike Imokawa Natsumi, who was like a confessional, Kurusu Yosei certainly wouldn't have a good opinion of Yamami Maki, as if he were criticizing his senior, and he didn't want to do that.

"She didn't want to see me change myself against my will, but she didn't want to change herself, so she made the decision to break up."

The girl opposite blinked. "You're greedy and not willful enough. No wonder you broke up."

Jun Matsue neither nodded nor shook his head, his expression neither agreeing nor disagreeing. The room fell silent for a while, and Yosei Kurusu turned his head to look at the water outside the window.

It wasn't exactly shimmering, nor was it completely dark; it simply undulated with just the right amount of cyan-blue.

She sighed regretfully, "If only you had broken up with him sooner."

“If it were earlier, there might be a difference, but not much.” Jun Matsue stared at the empty coffee cup in front of him. “You can’t keep putting things off at the company indefinitely, can you?”

“…That makes sense.” Yosuke Kurusu finished his coffee. “So it’s better if you two break up, then I can leave Tokyo with peace of mind.”

"Hey."

The girl laughed again, "Okay, okay, I won't say anymore~"

She stood up and stretched, revealing her perfectly toned waistline. "You've consumed too many calories, want to come for a walk with me?"

Jun Matsue nodded, and the girl picked up her coat and mask that were placed aside and pushed open the door to the private room.

It wasn't even 4:30 yet, but the sunlight was already setting in the west, casting long shadows of trees and telephone poles along the road. The two left the road and walked along the edge of the dock.

"Have you already left work today?"

"Not yet, I'm just taking a break because I came to pick you up. I have to work overtime tonight."

The waters of Tokyo Bay bobbed up and down between the boy and girl and the white moored boat, and the sound of the tides added a touch of tenderness to their conversation.

"Is he really that busy?" the boy asked, a little doubtful.

"You think so! The tour starts in December, and I need to familiarize myself with all the songs for the performances. This isn't like the recording studio where there's a chance for mistakes!"

"All the stage movements also need to be rehearsed in advance. I plan to be able to move around in them with my eyes closed..."

The girl seemed to want to make up for all the time she had wasted, or perhaps she just wanted to vent her emotions in this way.

So how long will the tour last?

"At least two or three months, and if the situation is good in the middle of the season, a few more games might be added."

"Are you planning to dye your hair back to pink? It's all pink at the end now."

"I won't dye it anymore. I might do a temporary hair dyeing for the performance, so black hair is more convenient."

They walked to the end of the pier, where there was a restaurant next to the pier. It was almost five o'clock, which was dinnertime.

It was still Yosuke Ichi who treated them. She ordered seafood rice for two people. Jun Matsueda sat at the outdoor table, with the girl's beautiful face in front of him and the delicate blue of the sea and sky behind her.

"Didn't you pay for me at the coffee shop earlier?" Yosuke Kurusu put a spoonful of rice into his mouth and suddenly remembered this.

The boy nodded. "I paid for it when I went to order coffee."

"You're acting on your own!" the girl snorted. "Don't try to take it from me this time!"

The rice was cooked to the perfect firmness, the shellfish were fresh and sweet, and the sauce was thick and rich. As it got dark, our taste buds became even more sensitive, and the two of them enjoyed their meal very much.

"Actually, I originally wanted to take you to see the apartment you're currently living in." The girl wiped her mouth, "but the celebrity apartments are very strict about outsiders visiting, so I'll pass."

outsider.

Even though neither of them had such thoughts after leaving 507, the distance between them inevitably changed.

What time are you leaving this weekend? I'll come see you off.

Jun Matsuoka put down his cutlery; his intuition told him it was time to part ways.

"No need." Yosei Kurusu shook his head. "There will be fans and all sorts of people at the airport, and the company team will be quite strict with them. Even if you come, you'll probably only be able to catch a glimpse of me from afar."

"And I prefer a more ordinary farewell," the girl smiled. "Let's celebrate properly after I return victorious!"

The two walked out of the restaurant and then walked along the other side of the road back to the building of the Laixi Yangshi Company. The night breeze changed direction and carried the unique scent of the high-rise buildings.

Kurusu Yosei's long hair billowed in the wind, and the girl's eyes shone in the night as she gazed intently at him.

“Matsue, you’re my number one fan, but you’re going to miss the tour this time. Shouldn’t you say something?” Her words were tinged with teasing.

Jun Matsueda thought for a moment, "This tour will definitely be a great success."

The girl snorted and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Even though it's a matter of course, we still need to give a reason!"

Do you remember the first night we met, when we ate oden together at the back door of the supermarket?

"Of course I remember!" For Yosei Kurusu, it was the oden that changed her life.

"Why did you buy fish cakes in your oden cup back then?" Jun Matsue continued to ask.

"The supermarket was having a sale. I think I bought three or four."

“Four,” the boy added for her. “This stuff is a fish cake product. It looks like a big white steamed bun soaked in water. Taking a bite is like a dream, like biting into a styrofoam box.”

The girl giggled, "It really wasn't very tasty, I still remember it."

A look of reminiscence appeared on Jun Matsuoka's face.

"I used to work at a convenience store, and it was always the last one left. That night, watching you eat four in one go, I just thought to myself—"

"A person who can eat four of these things will succeed in anything."

Kurosaki Yosei bent over, clutching her stomach and laughing so hard that even the security guards on the first floor of the building were startled and peeked out from the doorway to watch the two of them.

"I didn't expect this reason." The girl straightened up and wiped her eyes. "Songzhi is so strange!"

"Meeting Matsue today was definitely worth it! I got the good news about the breakup and heard so many interesting things!"

“Breakup is not good news,” Jun Matsueda emphasized once again.

"Okay, okay~" Kurusu Yosei tucked her hair back one last time. "I have to go back to work now. If I have time next time I'm back in Tokyo, I'll come visit you."

The boy nodded. "Have a safe trip."

After watching the girl walk into the building, Jun Matsueda was driven home by his manager, who had received the news.

That night before going to bed, he received a picture from Lai Qiyang, showing a full cup of fish cakes.

"To ensure success, I'll eat a few more before I set off!"

Chapter 466 Fluctuations

"Now that things have come to this, I've fallen for my friend's lover, and that's how it ends."

During Monday's lunch break, Jun Matsueda, carrying the school newspaper, walked out of the newsroom with Natsumi Imokawa.

“Mmm…” The girl next to him nodded. “Dad said the ratings are pretty good, and there’s hope for a second season.”

"I just don't know when it will be."

The two walked through the long corridor connecting the teaching building and the activity building. The clear, white sunlight, like curtains faded by the summer sun, hung on the windows on both sides.

"There's only one month left until the holiday. Time flies." Jun Matsue sighed, smelling the faint scent of ink from the newspaper in his arms.

"How do you plan to spend your winter break, Yuchuan?"

"..." The girl looked up and began to think, "Studying, making films, watching movies."

"The same old three dishes."

"Hmm!" Natsumi Imokawa showed no sign of getting bored. "We might need to ask Matsueda for help then, you know?"

"No problem." The boy nodded.

As the two turned at the intersection and passed the third-year classroom, before parting ways, Natsumi Imokawa called out to him, and Jun Matsueda turned around.

"It feels like the pine branches lately have turned back into the old pine branches?"

The girl's eyes were free of any impurities, and it was this pure innocence that allowed Jun Matsuoka to confide so much to her without any reservations.

“…It’s impossible to be sad about breaking up forever.” The boy laughed.

Upon entering his classroom, Jun Matsue distributed several newspapers to the students in the front row, keeping one for himself and posting it on the bulletin board next to the blackboard.

"The cultural festival has successfully concluded..." He smoothed out the creases on the pale yellow paper, his gaze sweeping over the words.

Today is November 17th, and the cultural festival was held a week ago.

Last weekend, Lai Qiyang sent him a message with a photo of herself wearing a trench coat and walking gracefully toward the plane.

The girl left Tokyo.

That same evening after receiving the message, Jun Matsueda was recording the final episode of "Now That Things Have Come to This" in the living room while reading a book, and he also finished reading the previous episodes—Kurusu probably wouldn't mind him finishing it first, since they could just watch it together later.

Recalling the content of the TV series, Jun Matsueda stepped down from the podium.

Half the season focuses on the protagonist's past and present with his childhood friend, and the other half on his romance with his senior and how the senior and childhood friend became friends. By the end of the first season, we hadn't even seen the women fight. Mr. Imokawa's suspense was really annoying.

"What are you thinking about, Matsu-san?" Tomatsu Yuka asked the boy who had returned to his seat with a smile.

"I watched this TV series when I was bored, and I feel like I was fooled by the director." Jun Matsueda tidied up the books on the table.

"Who told you to watch TV dramas?" Mochizuki Haruka looked at him from her black cat-shaped pillow, the girl with a sleepy expression. "You'd be better off playing games with me."

The students in the back of the classroom were already used to this kind of conversation between the three of them—everyone had been speculating lately whether Matsueda was in a relationship.

This news wasn't unfounded. Over the past week, Jun Matsueda's presence has been almost entirely associated with girls—he's accompanied by Haruka Mochizuki on his way to school, and either Haruka Mochizuki or Tomatsu Tomoka on his bike ride home. Although it's supposedly due to class affairs, the class president and vice president have been seen together more often these days.

Of course, a small number of people who have learned to think independently also think that the atmosphere when Matsue and Imokawa are together is quite nice.

However, no one ever got to hear the official announcement of the relationship. The third-year students, busy preparing for exams, quickly shifted their focus to the more patient first- and second-year students. After various inquiries yielded no results, people could only come to one conclusion—

Jun Matsueda's love life will surely come to light by the end of this school year.

Because by the time the third-year students graduate, someone will definitely confess to him. Before that, launching a final offensive or accepting the girl's love is the most reasonable outcome.

The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch break, and the classroom became lively. Tomatsu Yuka, who had just woken up, looked up, rubbed her eyes, and glanced at the boy at the next table who was yawning.

"Matsueda-san, are you working today too?"

Jun Matsue nodded. "It seems a batch of new books is arriving today; we need to get there early."

"So I'm going home alone today? My aunt is coming too." Mochizuki Haruka was still lying on the cushion, the girl showing half her face to him.

"Then let her keep you company."

"She said she wanted to try your cooking." The girl sat up and stretched.

"We'll see how things go after I finish my part-time job." The boy picked up his textbooks, preparing to head to another classroom. "You can cook, don't you? Aren't you going to show her?"

"We'll see." Mochizuki Haruka stood up with him. "I only know how to handle vegetables; she won't be satisfied."

The two afternoon classes ended quickly, and Jun Matsue and Yuka Tomatsu rode their bicycles to the Literature Museum together.