The aftermath

The Teruhashi household had never been silent for long, but that morning was particularly tense.

Bai Ying—no, Makoto—leaned back against the couch, arms crossed as he watched his sister pace across the living room like a miniature typhoon. Kokomi was in full interrogator mode, magazine clutched tightly in her perfectly manicured hand.

"So? Care to explain this?!" she snapped, holding up the tabloid. On the cover, a photo of Makoto and Saiki side by side at the festival was blown up across the front page. Saiki looked as unamused as always. Makoto—himself—was caught mid-laugh, handing Saiki a blue alien plushie.

The headline read: Makoto Teruhashi's Mysterious School Romance?!

"It's not what it looks like," Bai Ying said lazily, even though he already knew how suspicious that sounded.

Kokomi's eyes narrowed. "Really? Because it looks a lot like you're dating Saiki. And it also looks like you're suddenly not in love with me anymore—which is suspicious! And you've been acting different for weeks."

She paused, staring at him hard. "What's going on with you?"

He sighed, dropping the sarcastic act for once. "Look. I wasn't lying when I said I realized how gross it was to be obsessed with my own sister. That wasn't fake. I meant it."

She blinked.

"And Saiki... he doesn't treat me like some celebrity. He's the first person who makes me feel—normal." His voice softened at that. "Not Makoto Teruhashi the star, or the perfect brother. Just me."

Kokomi stared at him, stunned into silence. For a moment, the whirlwind energy around her stilled.

"So you are dating him," she said slowly, a strange mix of disappointment and something unreadable in her expression.

He hesitated. "No. I mean—not exactly. It's... complicated."

SYSTEM: Status: Complicated. Relationship progress with Saiki Kusuo: 64%.

Before she could press him further, his phone vibrated against the coffee table.

He glanced down. His agent.

With a sigh, he picked it up. "Hey."

"Makoto, what's going on?!" came the sharp voice of his manager, clearly on edge. "Why didn't you tell me you had a boyfriend? The internet's having a meltdown."

Kokomi's head snapped toward him like a hawk. "Boyfriend?!"

SYSTEM: Caution. Kokomi Teruhashi is entering Boss Battle Phase 2.

Bai Ying rubbed his temples. "I don't. Not really. It's just rumors."

"Do you want to deny them? We can draft a post, do a short press release—"

SYSTEM: Public image metrics spiking. Trending tags: #MakotoTeruhashi, #FestivalBoyfriend, #GreenGlassesGuy. Congratulations, Host. You've gone viral!

"No," he interrupted, surprising even himself. "Don't deny it."

On the couch, Kokomi gasped.

There was a beat of stunned silence on the other end.

"You don't want to deny it?"

"I like him," Bai Ying said simply. "So I'm not going to pretend I don't."

SYSTEM: Direct confession detected. Mission milestone unlocked: "Acknowledge Feelings Out Loud" — +500 Emotional Maturity Points.

SYSTEM:Host you've finally matured!

His agent let out a long groan. "You're going to give me a heart attack, you know that?"

"Yeah, yeah." He hung up before the rant could continue, his heart still beating a little fast from his own confession.

A pause.

Then he scrolled to Saiki's number and hit call.

The dial tone barely rang twice before Saiki picked up. "What."

Bai Ying exhaled through his nose, not sure why he was nervous. Probably because this was the closest thing he'd done to a real confession since coming to this world.

"So... you've seen the news?"

"Obviously."

"Right. Dumb question."

Kokomi leaned closer, blatantly eavesdropping now. She had her arms crossed, pretending to be uninterested, but Bai Ying could see her eyes tracking every word from his mouth.

There was a short silence. Bai Ying began pacing, hand over his chest like it would stop his heart from pounding. "Everyone's going crazy. My agent wants to know if I'm denying it. I told him no."

"You didn't have to do that," Saiki replied, voice flat. But Bai Ying caught the faint shift underneath it.

"I know," he said, then smiled faintly. "But I wanted to."

SYSTEM: romance progress +1

Another pause.

"Do your parents care?" Bai Ying asked carefully. He didn't want to cause problems.

"No. My mom thinks you're cute and wants to invite you over."

Bai Ying nearly choked. "Seriously?"

"Unfortunately."

From the side, Kokomi's mouth dropped open. "His mom likes you?"

Despite everything, he laughed. There was something absurdly comforting about the way Saiki always responded to everything like it was a mild inconvenience.

"Tell her I'm free tonight," Bai Ying said without thinking.

"She already made dinner for three."

And just like that, he was smiling again.

"Dinner?" Kokomi repeated, incredulous. "You're going to dinner with him again?!"

Bai Ying didn't answer—his smile said enough.

Kokomi groaned, flopping dramatically onto the couch. "This is the worst timeline."

SYSTEM: Correction: This is the best timeline. Romance level +1

Kokomi was still dramatically sprawled on the couch, one arm flung over her face like a tragic heroine from a soap opera. "I can't believe this. I can't believe you. You're ditching your sister for a boy who wears green glasses and never brushes his hair and also the love of my life!"

"You're being dramatic," Bai Ying muttered, flipping his phone in his palm. "And his hair is fine. I like it."

Kokomi peeked at him from under her arm. "You used to say you liked my hair."

"I said it was shiny. That's not the same as like-like."

Her mouth dropped open. "You little traitor!"

SYSTEM: Sister ego severely bruised. Prepare for emotional counterattack.

Sure enough, Kokomi sat up with new intensity. "If you're really serious about him, then prove it. You can't just go around smiling and making cryptic comments like you're in some mysterious boy-love manga. You need to say it clearly."

Bai Ying raised an eyebrow. "You want me to confess? Out loud?"

She hesitated. "I... I just want to know if this is a phase or not."

He met her gaze. "It's not a phase."

That shut her up again.

SYSTEM: Emotional weight achieved. Dramatic pause triggered. Kokomi Teruhashi.exe has momentarily stopped responding.

"But fine," she said after a long beat, grabbing the nearest pillow and hugging it tightly. "If you're gonna date him, at least do it properly. Be the best boyfriend in Japan or whatever. You are a celebrity, after all."

Bai Ying tilted his head. "Is that... approval?"

"No," Kokomi said quickly. "It's... reluctant tolerance. Conditional. Very conditional."

"I'll take it," Bai Ying muttered, sliding his phone open again. "Anyway. I need to let Saiki know what time I'm coming over."

"You're so casual about this," Kokomi mumbled, shaking her head. "Like you're going to meet his parents after only two rumors."

"Got it," Bai Ying said aloud, earning a weird look from Kokomi. He waved it off. "I wasn't talking to you."

"Okay, see, that's another thing," Kokomi said, pointing at him. "You've been doing that a lot. Talking to yourself, spacing out like you're having private arguments in your head. Are you okay?"

SYSTEM: She's onto you. Emergency distraction suggested. Maybe… compliment her again?

Bai Ying smiled, sweet and practiced. "Your hair really is shiny today."

She squinted. "Hmph."

But she said nothing more.

Bai ying sent a quick text to Saiki before his nerves could catch up to him:

[Makoto to Kusuo]: tell ur mom i'll bring dessert tonight. thanks for inviting me again. try not to look too annoyed when i get there lol.

[SYSTEM]: Message sent. Romance level +1 . Anxiety level: rising. You're doing great.

He looked up to find Kokomi staring at him.

"You really like him, huh?" she asked quietly.

"...Yeah," Bai Ying admitted, softer this time. "I really do."

"Are you seriously not done?" Kokomi asked from behind him as Bai Ying stood in front of his closet, trying to decide if he should dress like he was going to a dinner or a second date… or both.

SYSTEM: Host has changed outfits four times. Estimated time wasted: 27 minutes.

"I'm being polite," Bai Ying said without turning around. "If someone invites you to dinner, you bring dessert and don't look like a slob."

"You never cared about impressing people before."

"That's not true," he said. "I cared about impressing the camera."

SYSTEM: Correction. Host previously optimized appearance for public consumption. Current motive: One (1) Psychic Boy with Trust Issues. Progress noted.

Kokomi stared at him from the doorway. "So you're serious, then. You really like him."

"I've said it three times now."

"You say a lot of things. Sometimes with weird sparkles in your eyes."

"That's just good skincare."

SYSTEM: False. Host is glowing with affection. Hydration level irrelevant.

He finally picked a sweater that looked both casual and thoughtfully chosen, grabbed the box of coffee jelly he'd made—extra smooth, not too sweet—and headed toward the door. Kokomi didn't follow, but her voice did.

"If you break his heart, I'll break your legs."

Bai Ying smirked as he stepped into his shoes. "I'd see it coming."

It wasn't until he was halfway down the street, dessert box in hand, that the weight of it all hit him again.

He was really doing this.

Not acting. Not performing. Just being… him.

SYSTEM: Host is approaching emotional vulnerability goodluck.

The Saiki residence was modest, quiet, and utterly normal-looking. Bai Ying hesitated for a second outside the gate, then took a breath and rang the bell.

The door opened almost immediately, revealing Saiki's mother, beaming.

"Oh, Makoto-kun! I'm so glad you could come!" she chirped, ushering him inside like they were old friends. "We're just setting the table—do you like curry?"

"I love curry," Bai Ying said with a smile, handing her the box. "I brought something sweet for afterward. Thank you for having me."

Behind her, Saiki was standing stiffly in the hallway, arms crossed, expression as unreadable as ever.

"Yo," Bai Ying greeted him, giving a tiny wave.

"You're overdressed."

"You're underdressed."

Saiki's eyes flicked down to the box in his mom's hands. "Is that coffee jelly?"

"Made it myself," Bai Ying said with a small grin. "I figured you'd like it."

For just a second, Saiki faltered.

SYSTEM: Critical hit. Heart rate spike detected in Target. Facial expression: 0.3-second flicker of surprise. Romance points +1

Mrs. Saiki cooed happily. "Makoto-kun, you're so thoughtful! Come in, come in!"

And just like that, he was in.