I Started a Lover-for-Hire Service, And For Some Reason, Only Beautiful Girls Are Requesting Me - Chapter 7: Ami, Fuuko, and the Secretive Nature

“Ahh, Ryoma-kun is leaving…”

Fuuko, standing in line at the bubble tea shop, pouted as she watched Ryoma walk off with Himeno, clearly expressing her disappointment.

“Fuuko. Don’t tease him too much, okay? It seemed like you were being a bit too serious there. If you’re gonna do it, at least make it more like a joke, or else Himeno’s gonna feel bad.” 

“Was it really that serious? I mean, I wouldn’t hit on a friend’s boyfriend… Well, I can’t hit on him, since I’ve got a boyfriend too.”

“Then, be more considerate.”

Ami’s reminder was typical for Fuuko, though.

“I wanted to be careful, I really did. But, when I saw Himeno-chan’s face, I just couldn’t help it. Ami, you saw it too, right? That face?”

“She looked super happy. The way her expression changed as soon as we showed up was hilarious.”

“Yeah, she went from that huge grin to suddenly a serious face. And then she looked really unhappy and said ‘what’ to us.”

“Exactly, exactly.”

“That’s a side of her you never see at school. Well, to be exact, you only see it when Ryoma-kun’s around.”

When Ryoma had gone to the restroom, Ami and Fuuko had been paying close attention.

They had seen Himeno, who wasn’t paying attention to anything around her, all alone, wearing a joyful smile. She looked like she was enjoying her date so much. It was a smile that spoke volumes.

In reality, Himeno was just happy to be praised for her hobby, hearing things like “envy” and “cool”, but if she had fully understood the situation, it would have been on a level that could only be explained by superpowers.

“Honestly, I didn’t think Himeno would make a face like that. If she had more expressive faces like that, she’d probably be more popular, don’t you think, Fuuko?”

“Well, I actually think Himeno’s quietness and lack of facial expressions actually work for her with guys.” 

“True, but I’m definitely more of a ‘smiley’ type. Seeing that moment just now made me change my mind.”

“I totally agree.” 

“Fuuko, you agree too?”

At just the right moment in their conversation, it was time to order.

Ami ordered a kinako milk bubble tea, while Fuuko went with a coconut milk bubble tea. Both had already had the seasonal chestnut smoothie bubble tea during their first round.

Ami and Fuuko then sat down at the same spot where Ryoma and Himeno had been, continuing their conversation.

“Now that I think about it, isn’t Ryoma pretty amazing? He was able to handle Fuuko’s aggressive teasing, but kept a distance so that Himeno wouldn’t get jealous. That’s not something everyone can pull off,” Ami said, sipping her kinako milk bubble tea.

“Plus… he was actually pretty cool. I was surprised. Do you think he could introduce me to some of his guy friends?”

“That guy? He’s pretty experienced, you know. Not someone you come across often.”

“Experienced? What do you mean?”

“Well, to put it bluntly, he’s had a lot of experience with women. He’s probably putting all of that into his relationship with Himeno.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Fuuko wasn’t pulling any punches, but that wasn’t completely wrong.

“In a good way, though. It’s like he only has eyes for Himeno. He’s acting like everything he does is for her.”

“Oh, I get it now.”

The first part? Zero points. The second part? 100 points. It was a mix of both.

But there was one thing Fuuko was missing. Ryoma’s devotion wasn’t because of love for Himeno—it was because of the money he was being paid.

Not a single person had figured out that Ryoma was technically “working” on these dates. He fit in so well that it was nearly impossible to tell.

“Well, in the end, I guess Ryoma’s really into Himeno, right? He accepts her hobbies and everything. He’s a really good boyfriend… Ugh, I can’t believe she kept her boyfriend secret from me!”

“I’m just saying, Ryoma is way cooler than my boyfriend. He was so stylish.” 

“If your boyfriend hears that, he might cry.” 

“I-I was just joking!” 

“Uh-huh, that tone definitely didn’t sound like a joke.” 

“B-Busted! But hey, being cool isn’t everything!”

It was one of Fuuko’s traits to say things that were a little out of line.

“But didn’t something feel off? When Ryoma said ‘I love you’, it felt kind of awkward, like it was more of a thing he’d say to a friend.”

“Wha—? You’re overthinking it. He’d get awkward saying that in front of his girlfriend.”

“But he’s supposed to be a player, right? Someone like him shouldn’t be acting so naïve.”

Fuuko got a little worked up here. The idea that Ryoma was a player was completely mistaken.

The real reason he was so good at acting and covering up his true intentions was because he was getting paid. That’s what was helping him improve his performance, staying ahead of Fuuko’s instincts.

“If it’s his beloved girlfriend, he’d show a little innocence, right? If he was totally used to everything, he’d be like a robot. It wouldn’t be fun even if you were dating.”

“Well, when you put it like that…”

“Jealousy is a really ugly thing, Fuuko-chan.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you, Ami! Seriously!”

“Haha, can’t deny it!”

The two of them continued enjoying their bubble tea while talking about Himeno and Ryoma. Conversations about love, the world, and complaints—though they often ended up hurting others—were simply the go-to topics.

“But where did Himeno find someone like Ryoma? I forgot to ask how they met, and she’s never really given off the vibe that she’s had a boyfriend before, right? Ami, you feel the same, don’t you?”

“Well, yeah, but I think that’s part of Himeno’s charm. She’s really secretive about things, and that actually fits her character really well.”

“Eh? Secretive?”

Fuuko had never heard of Himeno being secretive before.

“Oh, didn’t I tell you? There was this one time I peeked at her phone.”

“I had no idea… So, what happened when you peeked at her phone? Please tell me she wasn’t looking at adult sites or something!?”

“No, no, nothing like that. It was just around the time Himeno was on Twitter… and she had, like, 100,000 followers. Isn’t that crazy!?”

“Huh!? 100,000!? You’re not talking about her having that many people following her, right?”

“I only caught a glimpse, so I’m not completely sure, but the number of followers was in the three digits.”

So her following was in the three-digit range, with a max of 999 people. But her follower count was over 100,000. Even after subtracting those, she still had around 99,000 followers. It was clear she had quite a bit of fame.

“Hey, that’s probably just Himeno switching to someone else’s account. There’s no way that’s true.”

If Fuuko had picked up any kind of information that suggested otherwise, she wouldn’t have doubted it. But the idea that her friend was that famous was hard to believe at first.

“No, no, I saw her switch accounts. I’m sure of it.”

“Switch accounts…? Wait, so it’s for real…?”

“It’s real. There’s no point in making something like that up.”

With their tapioca in hand, the conversation continued, no longer in a joking tone but serious.

“So, what is Himeno? She’s basically a super famous person. You can’t get those kinds of numbers unless you’re doing something huge.”

“Right? I use Twitter too, so I can tell it’s a big deal.”

Anyone who used Twitter would understand how impressive that number was and how extraordinary it was.

“So, maybe she connected with Ryoma through Twitter? Honestly, that’s the only explanation I can think of. Himeno’s more of an indoors type.”

“That just adds more mystery… Wait, so Ryoma’s famous too?”

“Who knows…”

“I’m so confused now.”

While Himeno and Ryoma were out on their date, Ami and Fuuko were left pondering in confusion, their heads filled with question marks.