The Beautiful Girl Who Asked Me to Pretend to Be Her Boyfriend Didn’t Want to Break up With Me for Some Reason - Chapter 74

Chapter 74: It’ll Be Useful for the Future

So, she wants me to continue both publicly and personally…

I know that Shirafuji still wants me to play the role of her boyfriend—or rather, a shield against other guys.

Since I’ve already gotten involved, I want to cooperate.

But I don’t really see the need to keep it up when it’s just the two of us.

“Tell me your reason.”

“Because I don’t like it.”

“…So you want to keep playing pretend lovers for a while?”

“Don’t look at me like that. I’m half-joking.”

So, the other half is serious.

…It’s rare for me to struggle this much to find a response.

“I do have a proper reason. Even if we don’t realize it, there’s a higher chance that we might slip up and reveal it’s fake. Right now, we’re lying to everyone in school. We’re already walking on thin ice, so we should minimize the risks.”

“…Well, you’re not wrong.”

The thing we should both avoid is having people find out that our relationship is fake.

If that happens, I could end up being ostracized.

As for Shirafuji, she’d be swarmed by guys making a move on her.

This kind of thing gets more dangerous the more you get used to it.

She means that there’s no need for us to increase the risk ourselves.

“Let’s say we decide to end our fake relationship, just between us. What would our relationship be then? The most natural choice would be friends, but don’t you think we’re a bit too close for that?”

“Isn’t it a little late to be thinking about that?”

Both of us have been using this fake relationship for convenience.

It’s not like I’ve ever heard of a guy and a girl, who are just neighbors and “friends,” living together during summer break.

This whole thing only worked because of a contractual trust between us.

And if we strip away the pretense, what’s underneath is far from being a real couple.

“Just so you know, even if we stop this, I’m not going to say you can’t come over or anything.”

“…If I said I wasn’t worried about that, I’d be lying. I’m still not very confident in my ability to take care of myself, and I’d miss the peaceful moments we have.”

“I was thinking the same thing. We’ve grown close, and it’d be a shame to distance ourselves now. Not to mention, I’d still be worried about your daily life.”

“I’ve gotten better at housework than before, though. That aside, I don’t think I could handle a life without Hakuto’s cooking.”

“That much?”

“That much.”

Shirafuji insisted, staring at me intently, but there was no lie in her voice or expression.

Well, I can’t deny that I might have played a role in that.

“That reminds me… Don’t you think we don’t really act like a couple when we’re alone?”

“Then what about when you use me as a backrest?”

“I think that’s within the level of closeness childhood friends might have. The same goes for sleepovers and sharing a bed.”

That seems like a pretty high standard, but in Shirafuji’s mind, it doesn’t fall under “exclusive to couples.”

Anything beyond that would naturally lead to… well, that.

…Better not let my mind wander down that road.

“Now that I think about it, it’s not such a big deal. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to reset our relationship.”

“Publicly, things will stay the same, though.”

“Still, don’t you think this is a big emotional shift? It’s a declaration that we won’t treat each other as a couple anymore.”

“If you put it that way, it just sounds like we’re going back to normal.”

“Now I can observe things to my heart’s content.”

“…Observe what?”

“It’s a personal matter, so don’t worry about it.”

That sounds a little scary, but I don’t think Shirafuji is plotting anything sinister.

And since my reasons for ending this are different, I won’t question it.

“So, from now on, we’ll maintain the public image of being a couple, but when we’re alone, we’ll be just friends and respect each other’s personal choices. Is that fine?”

“That works for me.”

“Let’s say all the restrictions only apply in public. Otherwise, it wouldn’t feel right for a friendship.”

“…If you’re fine with that, then sure.”

It feels like a heavy level of trust, but it is what it is.

It’s a small yet significant change.

Now that things were more or less settled, Shirafuji finally smiled.

“Thank you for everything up until now, Hakuto. And from here on, I’ll be in your care as well.”

“Same here. Fake boyfriend, and next-door friend, I guess.”

“A friend who’s close enough for sleepovers, though.”

“If you’re fine with it, you’re always welcome.”

“I never planned on holding back in the first place, so don’t worry.”

Judging by the way we could joke like this, our daily lives probably wouldn’t change much.

When the second term starts, Shirafuji will probably still come over for breakfast every morning, we’ll stay together at school, and we’ll hang out at home until bedtime.

…Can we really call this “just friends”?

If not lovers, then best friends?

Or maybe trying to label our relationship is the mistake itself.

At the very least, Shirafuji is someone important to me.

“By the way, what should I do with the stuff you’ve left in my room?”

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to leave it there. I’ll still need my clothes for future sleepovers, and my entertainment stuff will be useful since I’ll be spending time in your room anyway.”

“Got it… but could you at least take back your underwear? I won’t say why, but I feel like it could be a problem in various ways.”

I’ll say this as many times as I need to—teenage boys’ self-control is as thin as paper.

Leaving a girl’s underwear out in the open could be dangerous.

But Shirafuji just tilted her head with a slight smirk.

“Seeing my underwear wouldn’t embarrass me, you know?”

“I’M the one who would feel awkward!”

“You’re overthinking it. Underwear is just fabric. Or are you saying that Hakuto gets excited over just a piece of cloth?”

“Excited… I wouldn’t, but still. Aren’t you worried about me misusing it?”

“If that happens, it’ll be useful for the future.”

…Yeah, I think I’ll stop questioning her there.