I asked him to be my pretend-boyfriend but after a while I fell for him, but I can't seem to admit that fact! - Chapter 7: Uncontrollable feelings...

—It was a shock.

Seeing Asai and that woman happily walking arm in arm.

Why?

Who is she?

Did he reject my invitation because he had a promise with that woman?

…They’re in a relationship.

Then… why did he agree to play the role of being my pretend boyfriend?

The more I think about it, the more my chest tightens.

“Wait, Itsuki, wait!”

Yuka grabbed my shoulder to stop me as I walked briskly.

“…You finally stopped.”

Yuka was out of breath.

…I realized we had walked quite a distance without even noticing it.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Hey… is this okay?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Asai was about to say something… you need to talk it out properly.”

Right… Yuka was right.

I should have listened to him back there.

It might have been a misunderstanding… if I had listened, I might have avoided thinking about strange things.

“…Itsuki?”

But I couldn’t ask.

Because I’m not… his real girlfriend.

At times like this, a real girlfriend would be allowed to feel jealous, allowed to get angry, and even allowed to question the relationship.

But I’m not his real girlfriend.

So… I can’t ask.

After all, I was the first one to even ask him to be my pretend boyfriend.

I wished for this kind of relationship… so why am I feeling so sad?

“…Are you okay? Itsuki.”

I wasn’t okay.

I realized it.

I wasn’t truly devoted.

Somewhere along the line, Asai had become… more important than Akira-sama to me.

***

“I see… So that’s how it was.”

“Yeah…”

I had a calm conversation about Asai at a cafe. I felt bad for him, but I let Yuka know the truth.

“It’s true, it’s difficult to draw a line when you’re not really a couple.”

“Yeah… That’s why I didn’t know what to do and ended up running away.”

“But why did you make things so complicated? It would have been easier to just be a couple with him from the start.”

“…Well, at that time, I didn’t even know if I really liked him.”

Honestly, I did have feelings for him, but I didn’t think it would develop into romantic feelings.

Yuka looked at me with a grin as I squirmed uncomfortably.

“W-What?”

“Ah, well, it’s just that Itsuki here…”

“What about me?”

“Your face is totally that of a blushing maiden in love!”

…A blushing maiden in love.

“Considering that I’ve known you since middle school, it’s nice to see this side of you.”

…What do you mean?

“Well, forget the details! Anyway, you do like Asai, don’t you?”

Liking… It’s embarrassing to say it out loud.

“Yeah…”

These feelings are genuine. I can’t deny them.

“For now, you guys promised to meet after the live performance, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Make sure to talk to him then…”

“Yeah, I guess so… But will he show up?”

“Why?”

“Well… I ran away without listening to Asai’s side of the story.”

“It’s probably fine. I think Asai has a pretty forgiving heart.”

“Is that so?”

“Otherwise, he wouldn’t go out of his way to be a pretend boyfriend, especially for someone like you, Itsuki.”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just kidding, just kidding… Well, for now, let’s enjoy the live performance since we’re here.”

“Yeah…”

…That’s right.

Let’s think positively.

After all, this situation helped me realize my feelings.

…But what if that woman from earlier really was his girlfriend?

She was a really beautiful woman.

…I couldn’t quite muster a positive mindset.

***

But in reaction to that, I let loose during the live performance, as if releasing all my pent-up frustration.

I never thought I’d become like this.

Perhaps because of that, I made eye contact with Akira-sama on the stage a few times. Akira-sama waved at me from up there.

Even though I had realized my feelings for Asai, I couldn’t help but still feel happy about that.

With Yuka by my side, we got so carried away that our voices were nearly gone by the end of the concert.

“Well then, do your best, Itsuki.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

After the live performance, I sent Yuka off to the station and headed to the meeting place with Asai.

…But, even when the time came, Asai didn’t show up.

Did I anger him after all?

There were no new calls or messages on my phone, only the ones from right after the performance.

…I’ll wait today, wait until the last train, no matter what.

I decided to trust Asai and wait.

——20 minutes of waiting.

I saw someone approaching me.

I thought it was Ashi… and for a moment, my heart felt a bit lighter.

But, who actually stood before me wasn’t Asai, it was—

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Imamura-san.”

It was Akira-sama.

…Why? How?

“I’m sorry… The stage ran late.”

Why is Akira-sama here—–

Despite all the thoughts swirling in my head, in an instant, my mind went blank.