Am I being simulated by their love affair?

Page 237

Even if Songzhi accepts everything and stays with you, is that a good outcome for him?

"Even if you don't know how your actor brother-in-law is wasting his time, you should at least know whether your sister is happy or not, right?"

"If you have even the slightest sense of responsibility, please think this through and stop putting pressure on the pine branches."

"But it's okay if you can't figure it out. I've told you all this just to let you know that I can't possibly give up on Songzhi."

"I will prove to him then what kind of future he deserves."

Mochizuki Haruka stood up in the sunlight and walked past Yamami Maki, who was slumped in the shadows.

"Someone like you, whose life has been too easy, shouldn't get involved in our affairs."

Chapter 421 Mental Illness

On the night Mochizuki Haruka visited the Yamami family, Matsueda Jun was packing his things for his overnight training in the apartment's living room.

"Songzhi bought a new backpack?"

Yosuke Kurusu, who was lying on the sofa, leaned out and picked up the deflated backpack from the floor, shaking it in his hand.

What's more eye-catching than the backpack is the girl's round, white skin swaying with gravity.

"It's not a new one; it's a hiking backpack that I won in a supermarket raffle before."

Jun Matsueda usually carries the school-issued uniform bag to and from school—the kind of rectangular shoulder bag that often appears in anime, which is definitely not suitable for use during his overnight training program.

The boy, who was tidying up outdoor gear on the floor, stood up and took the backpack from the girl's hand. "It's getting cold, remember to wear more loungewear."

Kurosaki Yosei glanced down at her short-sleeved shirt, the drooping neckline revealing an alluring curve. She casually stretched, walked over to the boy, squatted down, and watched him stuff his gear into his backpack one piece at a time.

"Why is it that your school allows us to go on trips every year?" the girl asked, counting on her fingers.

"Sports meets, cultural festivals, skiing studios, nature studios, opera studios, and all sorts of training camps, school trips, and off-campus learning opportunities..."

"High school education in Japan is too easy!" she concluded.

“That’s how it is in Japan.” Jun Matsueda was still focused on packing up his gear. “Not everyone goes to university. High school is the last time we all spend on campus together, so of course we have to make it as fulfilling as possible.”

"Moreover, many activities are not part of a unified event; you have to pay to register yourself, so there aren't actually that many."

"Hmph..." Kurusu Yosei stared at his profile. "All I know is that while I'm still working, you're going out to play again..."

"When I go to school, don't you also sleep soundly at home or lie on the sofa watching TV?" The boy rolled his eyes at her.

"Want to be a high school student again?"

The girl nodded honestly, "I want to be a high school idol."

“Wake up,” Jun Matsueda said mercilessly. “The Showa era, when high school idols could still shine, is long gone.”

"It's already the Reiwa era, so you should just focus on your idol career."

"Ugh~" Kurusu Yosei seemed to have been shot in the chest, sobbing as he collapsed onto the sofa.

The boy zipped up all the compartments, picked up his bag with one hand, stood up, and looked at the girl acting strangely on the sofa. "I need to prepare breakfast for tomorrow. What kind of sandwich do you want?"

"I'm not eating!" Kurusu Yosei jumped up from the sofa. "Matsue won't be here tomorrow, I'm going to sleep in!"

"Alright then." The boy sighed, took out toast, ham and eggs from the refrigerator, and went into the kitchen.

When Jun Matsue walked out of the kitchen, the girl in the living room had disappeared, and the sounds of humming and showering came from the bathroom.

The boy put the sandwich in his hand into the refrigerator, picked up his phone from the sofa. The phone screen was still lit up, showing a message from Yamami Maki.

"Is Matsue-san free right now?"

He glanced in the direction of the bathroom. "Are you free, senior, want to video chat?"

"Voice communication is fine."

On the other side, Yamami Maki sat in the dark room, staring at the cold light of the screen in front of her. She didn't want her sweetheart to see her looking so dejected.

So Jun Matsue went back to his room and put on his headphones.

"Hello?" A girl's voice rang in his ear, "What are you doing right now, Matsueda-kun?"

"I just finished making breakfast. I'm going straight to the station tomorrow morning, so I want to save some time."

He sat down by the window. "Why does your voice sound muffled? Do you have a cold?"

"I just lay in bed for a while, so my body probably hasn't woken up yet," Yami Maki said with a smile.

In fact, after Mochizuki Haruka left, she locked herself in her room and even used the excuse of feeling unwell to skip dinner.

The girl felt like she was really sick, even though her physical discomfort was just an excuse.

"So, has Matsueda-san already packed her luggage?"

"Yes, all sorts of cups, coasters, and stoves were stuffed into my backpack."

Jun Matsueda originally wanted to film a video of his senior organizing things, but Yosei Kurusu, who was always around, made him give up.

"I see..." The girl's voice sounded like a dream, which made the boy feel that something was wrong.

"Are you in a bad mood, senior?"

The street where the Yami family lived was too quiet; there wasn't even the sound of passing cars. All he heard through the receiver was pure silence.

"...Dad brought up family matters again today." Mochizuki Haruka's words still echoed in Yamami Maki's ears, and she chose to lie again.

"I'm wondering, is Matsueda still happy being with me?"

"Of course I'm happy," Jun Matsueda replied without hesitation. "Otherwise, why would I choose my senior?"

"But all I've brought you are unhappy things." The girl's voice trailed off.

"They made you quit the band, and now you even have to report to Dad when you go back to the orphanage..."

"Senior, these are all temporary," he immediately reassured her. "Have you ever read Norwegian Wood?"

The girl didn't speak, she just nodded, but the boy on the other end of the phone seemed to sense her movement.

"There's a guy in there whose goal is to become a gentleman: he does not do what he wants to do, but what he ought to do."

"It's impossible for everything we do to be something we enjoy and that makes us happy."

"In most cases, the feelings of pain and pleasure are short-lived, but we often do many things that make us unhappy in order to achieve that goal of making ourselves happy."

"For example, if you want to get into a good university, you have to study hard at all times and suppress yourself when everyone else is having fun. But can you say that such a process is not worthwhile?"

"This is the process we are going through, and what I want to achieve is to be with my senior."

"I'm willing to endure these unhappinesses so that I can be happy with my senior."

"You don't need to feel guilty or anything."

"...Matsueda-kun is always like this." A smile finally appeared in the girl's voice, like a starlight drifting from a hearth fire.

"What?" Jun Matsuoka breathed a sigh of relief.

"No matter what troubles you have, as soon as Matsueda-kun talks about it, it all seems to become insignificant."

"That's because my senior cares about me," he said with a smile.

A few minutes later, Yamami Maki hung up the phone, and the faint smile on the girl's face vanished along with the sound in her ear.

Perhaps what the boy said made a lot of sense. She looked out the window at the night sky, and her eyes became melancholy again.

"But Matsueda did not deny that he is not happy right now."

Will Matsueda be happier if she joins the Yami family?

The next morning, Jun Matsueda got up earlier than usual and arrived at Shinjuku Station without incident.

He, who didn't need to go to school, was unaware that Yamami Maki hadn't come to school.

She took sick leave.

Chapter 422 Departure

At 7:30 a.m., Jun Matsueda appeared on time at the entrance of the Shinjuku Express Bus Station.

"Pine branch!" Kominato Shoko, dressed in a teacher's uniform, stood on tiptoe and waved to the boy.

Pushing through the crowd, Jun Matsueda stood next to his homeroom teacher, "Good morning, Kominato-sensei and Hirouchi-sensei."

This year's homestay training for Class 2-6 was once again led by their homeroom teacher, Shoko Kominato, and music teacher, Aya Hirouchi. The bus was scheduled to depart at 8:30, and Jun Matsueda and the other teachers arrived so early simply because they had to take attendance and maintain order.

So when he saw Tomatsu Tomoka standing to the side, he was not surprised at all.

Good morning, Tomatsu.

The girl smiled and said, "It's great to see Matsue-san today."

There weren't many people around yet, so he had some free time. Jun Matsue opened the bag in his hand and took out a sandwich cut in half. Eating on the train would draw disapproving looks from others, so even though he didn't want the food to get cold, he could only wait until after his stop to eat it.

"Did Matsugi make this herself?" Hirouchi Aya asked curiously from the side.

"I made this last night." Jun Matsueda shook the other half of the sandwich in the bag. "It got cold and then reheated, then cooled down again. It's past its best-before date. Would you like to try it, teacher?"

The woman shook her head decisively. "Shengzi and I have already had breakfast."

"Can I have it?" Tomatsu Yuka, who was standing next to the boy, suddenly spoke up. "I only ate fruit before I left home, and I think I might get hungry on the way."

The girl hadn't taken the initiative like this in a while, and Jun Matsue looked at her in surprise.

"...The sandwich is cold, but it's fine if you don't mind."

"Why would I mind?" The girl shook her head. "It's a rare opportunity to eat food made by Matsueda-san."

This time, it was the two teachers on the side who looked over. Their gazes darted back and forth between the boy and girl, but they did not observe any further action.

"What's going on?" Hirouchi Aya asked her best friend with her eyes. Kominato Shoko blinked, indicating that she didn't know.

Jun Matsue slowly finished his sandwich. More figures in school uniforms appeared in front of him. Just as he put the last bite of toast into his mouth, Yuka Tomatsu was standing in front of him again.

"Does Matsueda need to take out the trash? I'm going too, you can give me your trash."

"..." He stared at the girl's smile for a second. "Thank you. I'm going to buy a bottle of milk. Do you want me to bring it back for you?"

Tomatsu Yuka shook her head. "I'll be fine with water."

So the boy went into the convenience store next to the station alone, bought the milk in thirty seconds, and then stood in the convenience store thinking.

Why has Tomatsu Yuka become proactive again? He unscrewed the cap of the carton of milk, looked up at the sky, and pondered this question.

Is it because the overnight study program offers opportunities for solitude that she has new ideas?

Or is it simply that her period of lethargy has ended, and the Tomatsu Tomaka of the past is about to return?

Jun Matsueda believed he needed to be more vigilant.

What are you doing standing here?

A cool voice interrupted his thoughts. The boy looked up and saw Mochizuki Haruka getting out of the car.

The girl was carrying a small backpack in her right hand. Ignoring the curious glances of passersby, she looked at the boy standing in front of the convenience store.

“I’m drinking milk.” Jun Matsue held out his hand to show the Meiji milk carton in his hand. “The class assembly is right at the station entrance. You can just go there to assemble.”

Mochizuki Haruka didn't listen to him. She waved behind her, the car started and drove away, and the girl walked to the boy's side and leaned against the wall with him.

Matsueda Jun could only clench his straw tightly and silently speed up his drinking of milk. He counted the heads of people passing by the convenience store until the wind passing through the station lifted the girl's black hair and put it on the boy's shoulder.

It was a little itchy, so he turned his head and brushed away the unruly long hair. The girl's bright eyes suddenly came closer, gentler and more aggressive than the sudden breeze.

"You haven't said good morning to me yet," Mochizuki Haruka said, enunciating each word clearly.

Her tone suggested she was angry, but seeing the tears welling up in the girl's eyes, Jun Matsue knew she wasn't.

"Good morning?" Jun Matsue loosened the straw he had bitten flat.

"Good morning."

Mochizuki Haruka nodded in satisfaction, then pulled back, leaning against the wall as she gazed at the milky-white clouds and hummed a song softly.

"You don't seem to have brought much," Jun Matsue said, glancing at the girl's backpack. "Is that alright?"

"What does it matter?" Mochizuki Haruka glanced at him. "Anyway, I'll definitely be in your group. You'll definitely consider everything we need, right?"

"..." The boy shook the cardboard box; there was hardly anything left. "You seem to be in a good mood today?"

"Shouldn't you go out in a good mood?" the girl asked him back.