Chapter 92 The Adult World

"Miss, do you know Miss Suginohara? We would like to ask something about her..." The noisy inquiries came one after another, which was very annoying.

At the theater's backstage entrance, several people armed with cameras and cell phones had blocked the entrance, leaving only a narrow passage. Actors trying to enter or exit could only lower their heads and try to ignore their inquiries, squeezing through the door with the help of staff. As one of the actors participating in this open rehearsal, Hinata Rio naturally had to endure this ordeal as well.

The heavy iron door in the backstage closed, and the chaotic and noisy sounds were completely isolated.

Hinata Rio tidied her clothes and hair before heading to the dressing room.

"There are so many random media outlets coming to a public rehearsal. We really need to capitalize on Hanyu's popularity this time~" Today's dressing room chat started with this sarcastic remark.

"These people aren't really here to see the ballet, they're here to gossip."

"That's also traffic. Look how happy the group is! They've found a gem... So they immediately took the opportunity to imitate Emperor Entertainment Group and hold a public rehearsal."

"What do you think? Are Suginohara-san and Hanyu a couple?"

"Who knows? But her relationship with Tohara is unclear. I see Tohara driving her to and from school every day!"

The girls in the room were all conscientiously fixing their hair and makeup in front of the mirror, talking here and there, and it was hard to tell who was talking first.

Li Xu stayed silent inside, quickening the pace of her hair-do, wanting to leave this place of trouble as soon as possible.

"Hinata, aren't you very close to Tohara and Suginohara? Do you have any explosive news to tell us?" The girl next to her came over and winked at Rio in the mirror.

"There's no explosive news at all. Even if Suginohara-senpai and Hanyu are dating, it's a normal thing. Stop gossiping. I'm going to warm up first." After she said that, she ran out of the dressing room with her sports bag. However, the discussion in the room did not subside after she left.

She sighed.

These discussions are probably unavoidable, after all, so much has happened recently.

A few days ago, Senior Suginohara had a serious talk with her.

"We might find a chance to go public soon." That day, Suginohara-senpai was in the cafe, calmly sipping his coffee as if he were talking about tomorrow's rain, reminding her to bring an umbrella. "You're the one who knows about our situation, so I think I should tell you so you can be mentally prepared. There might be a lot of questions, and there might be a lot of speculation about us. It doesn't matter, just do what you want to do and say."

"Have you thought about how to make it public?" she asked nervously, feeling a little bit of excitement that she couldn't suppress.

"Not yet, actually," Le said, lowering his head and laughing self-deprecatingly. "To be honest, we have no experience in this matter, so our minds are really blank. But maybe we don't have to wait for us to come up with any solutions. We can just deal with it as it comes. These things will probably just happen naturally..."

The phrase "when an enemy comes, the general will fight back" immediately made Lio understand their current situation, taking into account the events of the past few days. Being followed and speculated about by paparazzi, not knowing what else they might have, must have been very insecure.

Moreover, they didn't expect that the so-called natural thing would come so soon.

The weekly magazine suddenly and subtly linked Yuzuru Hanyu and Suginohara Raku. There was no definitive conclusion, but the first article in the issue compared Hanyu's schedules in Yokohama and Sendai, followed by an introduction to the choreographer of a Yokohama-based ballet company. Rumors circulating within the company were embellished in the weekly's pages.

Speculations swirled online, and media outlets eager to learn more about Suginohara's music suddenly surged. For several days, Suginohara-senpai hadn't been seen in the group, and even the original rehearsal schedule had been temporarily rescheduled. Just when Rio thought their "fight the enemy with all their might" strategy meant hiding and waiting for the storm to settle, a public rehearsal announcement dropped everyone's jaws.

Under such circumstances, we actually have to rehearse publicly?

With mixed feelings, Rio finally waited for the day of the open rehearsal and stood at the door of the rehearsal room. The sounds of people practicing were already inside. The clatter of pointe shoes against the floor blended harmoniously with the notes, without the harsh, thumping thud of landing, making it particularly easy on the ears of ballet dancers. Rio pushed open the door and saw Suginohara-senpai, whom she had worried about for days. Practicing with her was also Tohara Kazuki, another figure at the center of public opinion.

She didn't make a sound to interrupt their practice, but sat in a corner, changing into her pointe shoes while watching them practice. Although it was only a private practice, the two of them maintained the integrity of their dance and performance, even bringing their emotions into it. Lix, sitting nearby, couldn't help but sigh, what a strong mental fortitude this must be.

Such sentiments continued throughout the entire public rehearsal.

On a stage devoid of scenery and simple lighting, Suginohara's steady and sharp direction, coupled with a precise and full-bodied performance, demonstrated her professionalism and excellence as both a choreographer and a ballet dancer to all who had gathered to watch the rehearsal. She secretly surveyed the audience, not only the theater's high-ranking VIPs who had drawn tickets to watch, but also the staff responsible for the live broadcast of the public rehearsal and the small number of media outlets, who were all applauding and praising.

And in the audience, she vaguely saw a familiar person.

[Hinata Rio: ??? Hanyu is here???]

Morimoto Kosuke: Haha! Did you see him?

【Hinata Rio: You should tell me! 】

On the other end of the phone, Morimoto Kosuke pursed his lips. He couldn't say anything. Besides, the development of the matter was beyond his expectations, and he needed to digest it.

A few days ago, Yuzuru Hanyu was lying on a massage bed in Sendai, sighing.

Let’s make it public.

These words are easy to say, but when it comes to planning, they become extremely complicated.

"Ah..." Yuzuru Hanyu let out a long sigh as he lay on the massage bed. Before he could relax, the pressure on his legs made him gasp, "Hey! Be gentle!"

"You sighed so loudly, I thought you thought I wasn't using enough force." Xiaojie relaxed his grip a little, "What's wrong with you? You've been sighing these past two days. Did you have a fight with Le-chan?" Seeing that this guy was about to sit up to argue, he quickly held him down, "Okay, okay, no, you definitely didn't have a fight. Just lie down."

"We want to make it public..." He lay down, his voice buzzing.

"Oh? Le-chan agreed? Doesn't this fulfill your wish? Why are you sighing?"

"What do you mean by just my wish..." Yuzuru Hanyu protested softly, burying his face in the massage bed.

He does occasionally have the urge to tell the world, for example, when he sees others randomly shipping couples in the comment section of Le's YouTube channel, the way they seem to enjoy eating anything makes him want to say, "Eating everything will only harm you." For example, when he sees news about celebrities getting married or announcing their relationships online, the happy expressions on their faces make him hope that will happen to him and Le.

Impulses will always be suppressed by reason when you calm down.

"If you've all discussed this, it means you're all prepared. What were you worried about before, the public opinion and malicious speculation? You've already prepared yourself mentally. So why sigh? That's not like you." Xiao Jie slapped his plump butt, signaling the end of the massage for today and that he could get up. Not surprisingly, he swiftly got up, grabbed his arm with his backhand, and slapped him back.

“It’s because I don’t know how to make it public.”

"What's there to not know? Just submit an article." Xiaojie said while washing his hands.

“Who will send it?”

"Agent... Oh right... You don't have an agency..." He wiped his hands and thought for a moment, "You used to be promoted by ANA, so what about ANA?"

"It's not a good idea to deal with such a private matter."

"Then your own social media."

Yuzuru Hanyu silently took out his mobile phone from his pocket and opened his Twitter account which he had just opened. The bright words "official" made Morimoto Kosuke shut up.

Hasegawa had proposed this plan, but the moment he proposed it, he started to wonder, "It seems a bit strange to make such a formal announcement on SNS just because we're dating... Let's leave it for the wedding announcement..." This plan was rejected that day in the face of Yuzuru Hanyu's approving eyes.

"I never thought it would be so troublesome for you not to have an agency..." Xiaojie sighed speechlessly, and suddenly a random idea came to his mind, "Why don't you just go watch Le-chan's performance again, and then rush up to the stage and kneel on one knee!"

He remembered that Yuzuru Hanyu rolled his eyes at him that day.

The result was what happened today: a public rehearsal suggested by the dance troupe, purportedly to be a demonstration of Suginohara's professionalism, led to a special contact with Yuzuru Hanyu.

"This is the adult world." Yuzuru Hanyu suddenly sent him a message that day and sighed like this.

Yes, this is the adult world. It seems complicated, but the logic behind it is always so simple, crude and naked.

Morimoto Kosuke laughed sarcastically and clicked on the live broadcast link that Rio had given him.

The scene just happened to show Suginohara Raku finishing her rehearsal segment, bowing to the stage and looking up for a second. As if by design, the camera cut directly to the audience. Yuzuru Hanyu, seated in a corner, wearing a mask and a hat, was standing and applauding. The comment section of the livestream exploded with comments rapidly scrolling up. Xiaojie could only catch everyone's disbelief in the rapidly scrolling subtitles.

The live broadcast screen switched back to the host and the dance troupe director.

"Thank you for your interest in K Group. We've also noticed the questions you've been discussing recently. We'd like to share a collaboration announcement with everyone: K Group is honored to have partnered with Mr. Yuzuru Hanyu. We have plans for some creative projects in the future, so please stay tuned."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yuzuru Hanyu also entered the picture and greeted the audience with a smile.

"Hello everyone, I'm Yuzuru Hanyu, and I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to cooperate with K Team. In the future, our collaboration will probably be mainly on artistic creation using ice performances as a medium. You don't have to worry about a layman like me dancing ballet. That's impossible." He joked with a smile.

"Mr. Hanyu, how did you get involved with K-Team?" the host asked politely.

"Well, because I first became acquainted with Director Suginohara," he replied with a smile. "Figure skating involves a lot of artistic expression, and Le has given me a lot of inspiration and support in this regard. Also," he dragged out the words, forgetting to look off-camera. The camera followed his gaze and moved to Le, who was already wearing a sports jacket. "Regarding the issues that everyone is concerned about, hehe, it's exactly what everyone thinks. I didn't think it was time to report it to you yet, so I didn't tell you. Please give me a moment~"

"This guy is really good at acting like a spoiled brat in front of the camera." Morimoto Kosuke rolled his eyes and turned off the live broadcast.