Chapter 145. The Emergency Boyfriend Summit

The bar was dimly lit, tucked into a quiet alley in Shibuya, the kind of place that catered to off-duty professionals who just wanted good whiskey and no judgment.

The leather seats creaked, the air was heavy with laughter, and the table in the far corner was buzzing with the sound of clinking glasses and male frustration.

"Okay, let me get this straight." Kazumi said, setting down his glass and leaning forward like a drunk detective piecing together a case.

"You dragged all of us out here—on a weeknight, mind you—because you need advice on how to handle your angry girlfriend?"

There was a beat of silence.

Then the table exploded in laughter.

Even Makoto, who had been nursing his drink with his usual princely poise, cracked a grin. "I don't even dare to cross the line with Ayaka."

He said, shaking his head. "And you two just started dating. Impressive."

Akihiko scowled and leaned back in his seat, arms crossed, looking more like an annoyed CEO than a man nursing a bruised heart.

"I didn't do anything wrong." he said flatly.

"Sure, sure." Takeshi muttered, already stirring the ice in his bourbon like a therapist gearing up for a breakthrough. "Let's hear it, Nakamura. Lay out the crime scene."

Akihiko sighed. "We spent the night together—"

Kazumi choked on his drink. "Already?!"

"No—not like that." Akihiko shot him a glare.

"We just slept. Slept, as in unconscious. We talked. I kissed her. We were fine. And then this morning... she avoided me. She dropped off my clothes and left before I could talk to her. Wouldn't respond to my messages."

Makoto raised an eyebrow. "So what happened before the sudden mood shift?"

Akihiko hesitated. "One of my patients—this girl—was being a little... clingy. Ayaka walked in while we were talking."

Kazumi leaned forward, interest piqued. "Clingy how?"

Akihiko shrugged. "She was flirtatious."

"And you were charming, huh?" Makoto teased, swirling his wine.

"I was being professional."

Kazumi snorted. "Your face isn't. That's your problem."

Takeshi's eyes suddenly lit up, like the metaphorical lightbulb just popped above his head. "She's jealous."

Akihiko blinked. "What?"

"She's jealous." Takeshi repeated, slapping the table.

"Think about it. You just kissed. You're in that fragile stage. And then she walks in and sees some young, flirty patient leaning into you, Tokyo Medical Center's Ice Prince-slash-heartthrob-slash-top surgeon. Of course she'd get insecure!"

"She's not the insecure type." Akihiko muttered.

"She's not usually." Makoto agreed. "But this is different. She's not just Ayaka, Ms. Midnight anymore. She's your girlfriend. First love brings out things we don't expect."

Akihiko's lips parted.

And Kazumi, always the grenade-thrower, dropped the next bomb with a cackle.

"You're acting like Ayaka's your first girlfriend or something!"

The table erupted again.

But Akihiko didn't laugh.

Instead, he calmly picked up his glass and sipped it. "She is."

Silence.

Utter silence.

Takeshi stared at him.

Kazumi's jaw dropped.

Makoto's wine paused halfway to his lips.

"…Wait, what?" Kazumi said slowly.

"You're kidding!" Takeshi breathed.

"Tell me you're joking." Makoto said, eyes narrowing.

Akihiko blinked at them, utterly unbothered. "Why would I joke?"

"You're Akihiko freaking Nakamura!" Kazumi shouted, throwing his hands in the air. "The man who has a fan club made by doctors. The guy whose scrub selfies accidentally went viral on health blogs!"

"And Ayaka is your first girlfriend?" Takeshi said, stunned. "Not even one fling? A date? A kiss before her?"

Akihiko shook his head. "Never had time. Never wanted to. No one really held my interest."

Makoto leaned back in his chair, exhaling. "Damn. That explains so much. You're a newbie in love."

Akihiko frowned. "I am not."

"You are!" Kazumi howled.

"You're making all the classic mistakes—defensiveness, not reading the room, not reassuring your girl that the clingy intern isn't a threat. This is Rookie Boyfriend 101!"

"I was being professional—"

"Doesn't matter!" Takeshi said. "You've got the face of a villain in a medical drama. You don't even need to flirt—your existence is flirtation."

Makoto chuckled. "That's true. Even your neutral expression looks like you're plotting to kiss someone senseless."

Akihiko pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, okay. I get it. I'm terrible."

"No." Takeshi said. "You're not terrible. You're just... new. So let's help you fix this."

"Alright." Kazumi said, smacking his hands together. "Time for Operation: De-Jealousify Ayaka."

Makoto raised a hand like a student. "Step one: Validation. Text her. Call her. Tell her she's the only one you see. Reassure her before she has to ask."

"Step two." Takeshi added, "is clarity. Make it obvious to everyone around you that you're taken. That intern girl? Nip that behavior in the bud."

"Step three." Kazumi said with a wicked grin, "do something dramatic. Girls love drama. Something public, but not tacky. Like... I don't know, bring her lunch at work and say it's 'girlfriend privileges.'"

Akihiko looked mildly horrified. "That's embarrassing."

Kazumi laughed harder. "Exactly. Suffer for your sins, you beautiful idiot."

Akihiko ran a hand through his hair, sighing. "You guys are insane."

"And you're whipped." Makoto smirked.

Akihiko didn't deny it.

Instead, he glanced down at his phone, where Ayaka's last "Read" message still stared back at him.

Then he looked up, eyes cool but burning with resolve.

"I'm fixing this."

Kazumi raised his glass. "To our boy's first mission as a boyfriend."

Takeshi clinked his glass. "To his emotional growth."

Makoto smirked. "To survive Ayaka's wrath. Barely."

And Akihiko?

He downed his drink.

Let the mission begin.

------

"Seriously, Akihiko?!" Kei hissed, his voice teetering between frustration and panic.

"Ayaka is going to kill me if she finds out I lured her to the hospital for no reason! This is a trap. A death trap."

Akihiko didn't even flinch.

He stood by the window of the hospital lounge, one hand casually tucked in the pocket of his white coat, the other swirling the coffee in his mug like this was just another Tuesday.

His expression?

Calm.

Deadpan.

Calculated.

"Just tell her you're giving her something." he said, barely glancing over his shoulder.

"Make something up. You're smart. And remember—" he added, eyes narrowing with a smirk, "you owe me one. I covered your night shifts for three days straight last month while you were off trying to impress that dental intern who ghosted you."

Kei scowled. "That's below the belt."

Akihiko took a sip of his coffee and smiled, all teeth and sarcasm. "And yet true."

"Ugh!" Kei groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Fine! I swear, if she stabs me with a pen, I'm haunting you in the afterlife."

Akihiko simply gave a smug nod.

Muttering curses under his breath, Kei fished out his phone, took a deep breath like he was preparing to defuse a bomb, and dialed.

It rang once.

Twice.

*Click*

"What?" Ayaka's voice came through, sharp and clearly annoyed.

Kei winced and immediately turned toward Akihiko, whispering through clenched teeth, "She's already pissed! This is a terrible idea!"

"Just go with it." Akihiko whispered back, dead serious now. "Stick to the plan."

Kei shot him a glare, then cleared his throat and brought the phone back to his mouth. "Uh—hey, Ayaka! So, um… I got your package. It was delivered here to the hospital."

Silence.

"…What package?" she asked, suspicion heavy in her tone.

Kei swallowed. "It—it had your name on it. I think it got mixed up with mine by the courier or something."

"Why the hell would I address a package to the hospital, Kei?" Her voice sharpened, clearly skeptical. "You're not even in my delivery address list."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Weird, right?" Kei laughed nervously. "It's probably one of those mix-up errors. Some online delivery mistakes. Anyway, I figured I'd give it to you today."

There was a long pause on the other end.

"…Can't you just bring it to my place after your shift?" she asked, tired.

Kei glanced at Akihiko. His cue.

"No can do." he replied quickly. "I'm swamped today. Plus, I've got post-op rounds until late. No chance I'm getting out of here. But if it's urgent, maybe… I dunno—should I ask Akihiko to drop it off instead?"

Akihiko, mid-sip, choked on his coffee.

He spun around, eyes wide, shooting Kei a betrayed glare. "That wasn't part of the script."

Kei held back a grin and turned away, smug now.

There was a beat of silence on the phone. Then—

"N-no!" Ayaka snapped, too fast, too reactive.

Bingo.

"I'll get it myself. I'll stop by after work." she muttered, flustered, and then—click.

Call ended.

Kei slowly lowered the phone from his ear, staring at the screen with a dazed expression.

Then, ever so slowly, he turned to Akihiko and raised both hands in a triumphant thumbs up.

"Mission accomplished."

Akihiko blinked. "You used my name as bait."

Kei shrugged, smug. "She took it. Hook, line, and boyfriend."

Akihiko shook his head, sighing deeply. "She's going to murder both of us."

"Probably." Kei agreed. "But at least she'll see you first."

Akihiko didn't reply.

He just stared down at the coffee still trembling in his cup.

He wasn't nervous.

He didn't get nervous.

But she was coming.

And he had no idea what she'd do… or say.

But one thing was certain—he wanted her to come.

He was going to fix this.