The Charm of the Popular Beautiful Succubus in Class Doesn't Work on Me ~ For Some Reason, This Beauty Keeps Trying to Hold My Hand ~

Please rate this novel 5★ on NovelUpdates!

Chapter 49: Our ‘Pretending to Be Lovers’ Ends Here

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Carp~♪ Carp~♪”

Kisara and I had come to a karaoke place downtown. The room we were led to had the unmistakable feel of an old-school karaoke joint—small and stuffy, with the lingering smell of cigarette smoke.

“Haha! Singing the Carp fight song at karaoke is seriously hilarious! And the fact that you’re actually kinda good at it makes it even funnier!”

Kisara kicked her feet against the sofa, laughing so hard she was practically convulsing with laughter.

“Ugh… I might’ve gone a little too hard. My voice is shot.”

“Yeah, you might have overdone it a bit. My throat is starting to hurt too.”

Nodding along, Kisara wiped away the tears spilling from her eyes from laughing too much. We had already been singing nonstop for nearly two hours. As a result, while we’d managed to relieve some stress, our throats were on the verge of giving out. Our stamina was reaching its end too.

“Huh? It’s your turn next, Kisara, but you haven’t put in a song?”

I handed her the mic.

“Hey, I’m kinda tired from all the singing. Since we’re here, why don’t we just talk for a bit?”

Taking the mic, Kisara casually set it down on the table with a soft clunk and gave me a look as if she was gauging my reaction.

“Talk about what?”

“Yeah… I was thinking we should talk about what’s coming next.”

Saying that, Kisaara pulled her legs up onto the sofa, sitting cross-legged like a child, and took a sip from her orange juice. Condensation dripping down the glass.

“Hey, if you sit like that, I can totally see your underwear.”

“Since Michihito-kun is a gentleman, that means you will avert your gaze, right?”

“And you actually think I will let a chance to sneak a glance at your underwear slip past me?”

“Fufu, I know you too well. You may say that, but you won’t actually look.”

“You’re getting way too used to dealing with me.”

With a sigh, I shifted my posture, turning away so I wouldn’t be facing her directly.

“I do. I see you nearly every day after all.”

There was something vaguely sentimental in Kisara’s voice, but I watched her every day too, so I knew. She must be smirking at me, like she was making fun of me. For some reason, at this moment, it felt like I could read her mind—I didn’t even need to look to know exactly what she was doing.

“Alright, back to the main topic.”

Kisara said, cutting to the chase.

“Do you remember the promise we made when we decided to ‘pretend to be a couple’?”

“…Of course I do.”

“There were two promises we made that day.”

I could tell she had just raised her index finger.

“The first one was ‘Act perfectly as if the other person is your true lover.'”

“Yeah, and the second one is…”

“‘The deadline is set until the start of summer vacation.’”

Kisara and I spoke the second promise in unison. This rule was something Kisara had come up with. Originally, this whole “pretending to be lovers” thing was meant to protect Kisara from the guys in our class. So, in reality, there was no need to set a deadline at all. But when we first started this arrangement, Kisara had said that she couldn’t rely on me forever. She said that if she didn’t eventually handle things on her own, she wouldn’t be able to move forward. And besides, summer vacation was an ideal time for a couple to break up. Summer vacation was long and there was a saying that rumors only lasted for 75 days. By the time summer break was over, the gossip about Kisara and me would probably have died down to nothingness.

Besides, if a couple that had been all lovey-dovey until yesterday suddenly broke up today, it would seem weird. If anything, it might make us the center of attention again. But if we quietly separated over the summer, no one would find it strange. Kisara really thought things through and she was truly serious about it. Hence I accepted her terms. To be honest, I was worried about letting Kisara fend for herself in that class full of vultures. I didn’t mind pretending to be her boyfriend. In fact, I felt responsible for her in a way. So I thought there was no need to set a deadline at all, but Kisara had insisted. She said that she would be fine and she wanted to try her best too. After she said all that… Of course I had to respect her wishes.

“The rainy season has ended, final exams are over, and summer vacation is just around the corner…”

Kisara spoke calmly, as if she had reached a greater level of understanding of something.

“That’s why…”

“…………”

“Our ‘pretending to be lovers’ ends here.”

I instinctively lifted my head and looked at Kisara. At some point, she had lowered the legs she had propped up on the sofa, and now, she was looking straight at me. Our eyes met—her gaze was deep and clear, as if it could draw me in.

“Thank you for making me your girlfriend. I really had fun with you…”

Kisara tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled. But that smile… Felt unbearably lonely. On her left ear, the earring I had bought her on our first date gleamed softly. Kisara said nothing more after that.

“Thank you for making me your girlfriend.”

“I really had fun.”

I repeated her words over and over in my mind.

I had known all along… I had truly known all along… When summer break came, the act of “pretending to be lovers” would come to an end. But… Now that this moment had finally arrived, I never expected it to feel like this. I was overwhelmed by an immense sense of loss. I couldn’t get the expression Kisara had just shown out of my head.

Ah… I’m really an idiot.

Kisara had understood it all along. She knew exactly what emotions this moment would bring. She understood what ending our “pretend relationship” would mean for us. Maybe I had misunderstood something all along. In the end, our relationship was just an act—”pretending to be lovers.” We were never truly together. So even if we were to “break up,” there wouldn’t be any major changes. I had assumed that we could still go out together. I thought we could still walk home together. But when I thought about it rationally… Of course we couldn’t do that. The end of our “pretend relationship” meant that Kisara was becoming independent. And that meant… That she and I… We should never cross each other’s path anymore. This was truly the last time Kisara and I could spend time together as “lovers.” She had understood that from the very beginning. That was why she had gone out of her way to invite me to karaoke today—so she could bring closure to her role as “my girlfriend.”

And yet… I… I hadn’t done anything for her as her “boyfriend.” I… I…

“Hey… Kisara.”

Before I even realized it, I had called her name and was looking straight into her eyes.

“…What?”

Her gaze wavered at my words.

“I’ll keep my promise.”

“…Yeah.”

“But there’s still one more promise left, isn’t there?”

“…One more?”

Kisara tilted her head slightly in confusion.

“You know… That one.”

“…………”