173: Watanabe Takashi? No, it's Aki Tomoya!

'Who is he?'

Curious about what his sister's romantic life was like, Shijo Mikado secretly followed her.

He thought Maki's romantic partner was Tanuma Tsubasa.

Upon arriving, he realized it was completely different from what he expected.

Although Takashi and Tanuma Tsubasa looked incredibly similar, almost like twins, Shijo Mikado immediately recognized that the person in front of him was not Tanuma Tsubasa.

'Could it be that my sister is in love with someone she can't have and found a substitute instead?'

Shijo Mikado stared at the face that resembled Tanuma Tsubasa's so much, and a certain suspicion began to form in his mind.

At first, this truth seemed to align closely with what he thought.

Meanwhile, Maki had no idea that her annoying little brother had followed her.

After meeting with Takashi, the two began walking toward Roppongi Hills shopping center.

Roppongi Hills, located in the bustling Roppongi area of Tokyo, is another world-class urban complex, following the famous commercial centers of Ginza and Shinjuku.

The theme of Roppongi Hills' streets is to create a "vertical garden city" and a "cultural center," forming a "three-dimensional wandering" forest. 

Therefore, during development, the green spaces were preserved as much as possible.

With green plazas at different heights, it forms a new type of urban forest.

Walking through it feels like a completely different experience compared to Shinjuku and Ginza.

"Recently, I don't know what's got Nagisa all hyped up, but she and Tanuma Tsubasa started a supporter's club, and she even invited me to join."

"So, did you join?"

"Actually, I didn't want to at all, because I felt like Nagisa invited me just to flaunt her relationship."

"So, you knew you were just going to eat dog food in the club, but you still joined?"

"Yeah."

Walking through the streets on a summer day, with the breeze gently blowing and the leaves rustling, Maki spoke to Takashi about some of the recent events at school.

Although she now chats with Watanabe Takashi every day after school, telling him all the funny and frustrating things that happened that day, sharing things over the phone is not the same as in person.

The most important thing was that Maki realized she seemed to really enjoy talking to Watanabe Takashi, as if they had endless topics to discuss.

In the past, Maki felt like every day was the same, dull and repetitive.

There was nothing particularly interesting, nor anything that made her unhappy. 

It felt like every day was the same, except for the occasional posting on social media. 

She never shared much, nor did she accept others' shares. Even when someone would try to share, her indifference would usually scare them away.

She never understood why couples, especially girls, always talked about the smallest things.

After meeting Watanabe Takashi, she finally understood why.

Because she had developed a desire to share, a desire to tell the other person everything, to share with him.

Someone who always shares with you, even meaningless conversations, makes you feel cared for and special.

At first, she was also worried that sharing everything with Watanabe Takashi would become a burden to him.

After all, everyone has their own life, and no one wants to waste precious time on trivial matters.

But as long as Watanabe Takashi never showed even the slightest impatience during their chats, Maki would keep sharing.

Girls are very attentive to details.

But Watanabe Takashi never seemed impatient about her sharing, and he even carefully responded to every single thing.

For him, he truly made it a point to respond to everything.

Slowly, Maki began to open her heart to Watanabe Takashi and spoke to him without hesitation.

'Does my sister really only see him as a substitute?'

As Maki and Takashi walked, Shijo Mikado followed them.

At first, he thought his sister was just using this guy as a stand-in for her crush.

But the more he watched, the more he felt something was off.

Why did he get the feeling that his sister actually liked this guy, not just using him as a replacement?

But to say they were a couple, Shijo Mikado still felt that something was missing.

Their relationship seemed to be somewhere between friendship and something more, but not quite lovers.

However, if things continue this way, it might change.

'Who is this guy, really?'

Shijo Mikado became increasingly curious about Takashi.

He had never seen anyone who could handle his fiery sister.

Even in front of their parents, his sister only pretended to be obedient.

'I can't let this go. I need to keep watching.'

Ignoring the strange looks from others, Shijo Mikado continued his surveillance.

Takashi and Maki entered the first floor of Roppongi Hills shopping center. After walking around and finding nothing particularly interesting, they decided to head upstairs.

The second floor was the bookstore section.

When they arrived at the elevator, Maki immediately noticed a crowd gathered in front of the Kadokawa bookstore.

"Takashi, look, there seems to be a big crowd over there."

Kadokawa bookstore...

Takashi suddenly remembered that Utaha was an author for that very publisher.

Although he had only been apart from Utaha for less than half a month, Takashi felt like they had been 'broken up' for much longer.

So long, in fact, that unless he came across something related to her or deliberately remembered, Takashi almost forgot about her.

Actually, Takashi hadn't intentionally avoided anything related to Utaha, he had just naturally forgotten.

And that was the most frightening part.

Forgetting deliberately meant he still couldn't let go.

By now, he couldn't even remember the sadness he felt when he 'broke up' with her.

Humans really do have a strong ability to adapt.

"Takashi, what are you thinking about?"

Maki noticed Takashi zoning out and tugged at his sleeve.

"I was thinking about someone."

"Who? Are they very important to you?"

Maki was curious about Takashi's relationships.

"I'm not sure if they're important."

Takashi said slowly, "It's just that I can almost forget about her now."

Her?

In Japanese, the pronouns for "he" and "she" are different.

Maki keenly realized it was a girl, and her mood became slightly unpleasant.

Why think about other girls when you're with me?

Unknowingly, Maki had started to feel possessive of Watanabe Takashi.

In her heart, he had become someone she couldn't share with anyone else.

"Someone who can be so easily forgotten must not be important."

To stop Takashi from thinking about that girl, Maki said deliberately.

"That's true."

Takashi thought so too.

If she was really that important, he wouldn't have forgotten her so easily.

Then he suggested, "Do you want to wait in line? It seems like it's a light novel author's autograph event."

"Alright."

Maki looked at Takashi, who did not deliberately avoid it. Her slightly furrowed brows curved into a smile.

Looking straight ahead, this showed that Takashi had really let go.

The two of them walked over together.

A middle-aged woman, who appeared to be a staff member, appeared ahead.

Whether it was her first time hosting or her unfamiliarity with the event, the staff member spent about five minutes explaining the boring details. 

Then, the partition inside the venue opened, and the teacher holding the signing event appeared to applause.

Takashi was tall, and he immediately spotted Utaha, who was wearing a white summer one-piece dress.

She looked no different from before, but she seemed to have lost quite a bit of weight, and her temperament looked somewhat weary.

She was accompanied by a man and a woman.

The woman was Machida Sonoko, and the man was Aki Tomoya.

'Looks like she's already let go too.'

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