Chapter 12
To ensure the date went perfectly, Yuko and Nono went to Emma's house on Friday to help her decide what to wear and how to dress for the next day.
Not only must it be beautiful, but it must also be a natural, effortless beauty.
Emma, who wasn't nervous at first, became nervous because of these two.
"It's just going to a concert!" Emma muttered.
"But honestly, you two have very few opportunities to be alone. Ryuguji is always hanging out with Sano and Kei, so you have to seize the opportunity, Emma!" Nono encouraged her. "If the atmosphere is good, then confess!"
Emma was terrified by her words and screamed, "I don't want to! What if I get rejected!"
Nono really wanted to tell her that her worries were unnecessary, and that Ryuguji also liked her, she just didn't know it. But this was just her guess; she hadn't heard Ryuguji say it himself, so she couldn't be sure.
Fear of rejection may be the reason that kills off many relationships.
Yuko looked at Emma, her eyes as pure as a child's, filled with curiosity and confusion: "Why are you afraid of rejection?"
"Hmm... how should I explain this to you?" Emma couldn't immediately explain the psychological process of liking someone to her.
Nono looked away from them, instead starting to fold the clothes piled on Emma's bed, and said casually, "Silly girl, if you like someone, you'll feel inferior in front of them. If you're not pretty enough, or your personality isn't good enough, a failed confession is proof of all that."
Emma agreed with Ye Ye's words, echoing, "Yes, and it's very likely that we won't even be able to remain friends later."
"Love is so complicated..." Yuko felt that she had never found a math problem so difficult to understand.
“But Emma, I think your chances of success in confessing are very high.” Nono decided to reveal some clues she had seen. She squinted as if she was about to reveal some earth-shattering secret. “Have you noticed that Ryuguji is very polite and considerate to most men, but he’s different with you?”
"I thought you were going to say something? He's just like Mikey, they're too familiar with each other, that's why he's so impolite." Emma didn't quite believe Ye Ye's words.
“You’re too sweet; being treated differently is a signal.” Ye Ye firmly believed in her theory.
Differential treatment is a signal. This sentence flashed through Yuko's mind like a lightbulb, and she felt she was about to discover something, but it happened too quickly for her to grasp. What exactly was it...? This question lingered in Yuko's mind.
In short, the three of them spent the whole afternoon arguing and finally decided what to wear tomorrow.
-
National Yoyogi Stadium.
It's 6:30 p.m.
The large plaza in front of the entrance/exit.
At 6:00 PM sharp, the audience could prepare to have their tickets checked and enter. Just half an hour later, the place was already packed with people, and the queues were so long that you couldn't see the end of them. In addition to the people who came to see the concert, there were also vendors holding boxes of water and food selling, and scalpers selling tickets on both sides of the queue.
Yuko and Nono hid by the green belt at the edge of the square, curious about their date and feeling uneasy unless they saw them actually going to the concert together.
They secretly planned to stalk them on this day.
The two girls, dressed in stalking attire learned from movies and TV shows, wore masks and sunglasses, and even carried binoculars to spot the dating group as soon as possible. From a distance, the two girls, hiding under the bushes in the green belt, peering around with binoculars, looked extremely suspicious; if they were noticed, someone would probably call the police.
"Nono, are we really okay like this? Won't we be recognized?" Yuko asked worriedly.
"Don't worry, even your dad might not recognize you," Ye Ye said confidently about their disguise. She peered through her binoculars at the group, urging, "Quickly, see if they're here yet."
Yuko quickly picked up her binoculars and carefully checked the group for any familiar figures.
Time passed second by second.
Yuko had her hair neatly tied back in a ponytail this time. She wore a sleeveless white shirt with a navy ribbon tied at the collar, black shorts, white calf socks, and matching canvas shoes—a clean and simple black-and-white look. It looked good, but it didn't keep out the mosquitoes at all! They were hiding near plants again, and Yuko's exposed arms and legs had already been bitten several times. Looking at Nono, she wasn't in much better shape, constantly scratching her neck and arms.
"Could they have had something come up and canceled at the last minute?" Ye Ye took out her phone and checked the time. It was already 7:22. Although there were still quite a few people, it wasn't as crowded as before, but she still couldn't see them.
"No way, maybe we missed something." Yuko held the binoculars in one hand and slapped her leg with the other without any emotion. She glanced at her palm and realized she hadn't swatted a single mosquito. She thought to herself, "Damn it."
"How about I send a text message to ask if Emma has entered the venue?" Ye Ye lowered her head and typed a text message.
Yuko looked around through the binoculars and then saw two familiar faces. They seemed to have noticed them and were looking in their direction.
Yuko, as if caught red-handed, slacked off with her binoculars.
She reassured herself, "They probably won't recognize us; we're wearing masks to cover our faces." Then she picked up her binoculars again and looked, but the person had vanished once more.
Yuko couldn't help but wonder if she was hallucinating from using the binoculars too much. She adjusted her direction to search, but suddenly her vision went completely black.
A voice sounded from above.
What are you doing here?
Yuko took down her binoculars, and a blond, dark-eyed man appeared before her. Yuko felt guilty and tried to back away. Nono, equally guilty, quietly grabbed Yuko's hand. "Run!"
The two had just stood up when their path was blocked. The long-haired man seemed speechless and said, "Ye Ye, what are you up to?"
Ye Ye said in a high-pitched voice, "You've mistaken me for someone else, I'm not Ye Ye!" Of course, she wasn't going to admit it. But as soon as she finished speaking, her mask was ripped off by the other person.
The venue simply couldn't understand the thought process of its childhood sweetheart.
Yuko cowered behind Nono, feeling ashamed that her stalking behavior had been discovered.
"Aren't you going to tutoring classes?" Mikey looked at her with amusement.
Yuko was embarrassed and didn't answer. She had actually lied, but if she didn't say it, how could she create an opportunity for Emma and Draken?
On the contrary, Ye Ye, feeling self-righteous because of her exposure, loudly proclaimed, "Mind your own business when it comes to beautiful women. And what about you? What are you doing here too?"
This time, the venue answered honestly: "Draken and Emma weren't here to see the concert? We just stopped by and dropped them off. We just brought them in."
Upon hearing this, Nono immediately retorted with dissatisfaction, "That useless man Ryuguji actually invited you all to come along. How dare you be third wheels?"
"What light bulb?" The audience couldn't understand.
"This is Ryuguji and Emma's date!"
"Dating?"
"You didn't notice that Emma likes Ryuguji, did you?"
"What?!"
Nono: You really didn't notice...
Yuko timidly peeked out from behind Nono and asked curiously, "We've been waiting here for so long, but we haven't seen you. How did you get them in?"
"Oh, that?" Mikey said casually, "The line was too long, so we helped them cut in line a little."
Yuko/Nono: You guys must have threatened the people in front of you to cut in line, right...?
"Never mind, at least we know they've entered." Nono stretched her limbs and said to Yuko, "Let's go."
Yuko followed Nono, while the venue and Mikey walked alongside them.
The two childhood sweethearts, caught in the middle, chatted intermittently.
The staff casually asked, "What time did you arrive?"
Ye Ye: "Six-thirty, I guess."
"You've been waiting here all this time just to see them enter?"
"Yes, we're almost sucked dry by the mosquitoes."
Why would you do something like that?
You wouldn't understand even if I told you.
"How would I understand if you didn't tell me?"
"The teacher also explains the problems in class, but you still can't do them."
"you!"
Yuko, who had been quietly following along, suddenly noticed that her shoelaces were loose.
She figured tying her shoelaces wouldn't take long, so she didn't interrupt Ye Ye and the field's conversation and squatted down to tie them first.
But at this moment, they were going against the flow of people, and it was almost time for the show to start. A stranger who was rushing to check tickets didn't see Yuko squatting down. Even though he managed to dodge in time, he still bumped into her shoulder. The man said sorry, and Yuko, who had fallen to the ground from the impact, looked up and found that Nono and the others were gone.
She stood up and looked around, seeing only unfamiliar faces and a cacophony of sounds. Yuko stared blankly at the people going in the opposite direction, a sudden, inexplicable panic of being abandoned washing over her.
It's a place with a lot of people, just like any other place.
It was also because of my own reasons.
If it weren't for her insisting on going out to play...
Shimizu and she wouldn't have been arrested.
After being captured, they reunited in a dilapidated warehouse, but by then Shimizu was on the verge of death, her skirt covered in glaring blood.
Shimizu, who had been smiling warmly, had cloudy and broken eyes, but she still tried her best to comfort her, telling her not to be afraid and to be strong.
How could I not be afraid, and how could I be strong?
From then on, Yuko stopped going out; her only friend was the cold television. She tried to emulate Shimizu, almost becoming her—gentle, polite, obedient, and docile. Even her dream of becoming a doctor stemmed from her hatred of her inability to save Shimizu.
all.
It's all my fault.
Like a chain reaction, it uprooted the memories that were buried deep in the mud in Yuko's heart.
"How come you get lost even when you're just following along?"
The familiar voice was like a ray of light, piercing through the darkness and confusion.
Yuko looked at the person in front of her, as if everything around her had become background noise. His figure and eyes revealed an unshakable determination.
It makes people want to follow and get close to it.
Mikey looked at her.
It's not like I haven't seen her in even more disheveled states.
But none of them were as fragile and fearful as this, like a mirror that suddenly shattered.
But upon seeing him, the shattered light in her eyes rekindled, coalescing into a single crystal drop that slowly slid down her cheek.
He thought he must have been bewitched, otherwise he wouldn't have reached out his hand or wiped away her tears.
Is this even worth crying about?
Yuko felt a slight sting from the rough touch of the thumb wiping her face; it was arguably the most painful time in her life she'd ever had her tears wiped away. But a strange sense of comfort washed over her. She blinked and whispered, "Thank you."
Mikey awkwardly withdrew his hand, turned around, and said, "You'd better stick close this time, or I won't take care of you."
Yuko explained quietly, "It was because my shoelaces came undone."
Mikey walked forward with his back to her, and his voice came from ahead: "Then don't wear shoes with laces anymore."
Yuko: ...This person is so unreasonable.
A short while later, Yuko received a call from Nono, and they successfully met up. The eventful day finally came to a peaceful end.
Back home, lying in bed, Yuko recalled Sano Manjiro's face, those unforgettable eyes. Deep, dark black, utterly expressionless, as if he looked down on everything, indifferent to all things. This should have inspired fear and shunning, but his behavior seemed to do the exact opposite.
Yuko suddenly remembered that day in the park, when he didn't seem hot at all, but he said he was hot and wanted to leave.
Is it because I'm afraid of the heat? Yuko wasn't quite sure.
But he helped Emma get rid of her love rival, and he even wiped away my tears.
Cold eyes, a soft heart—what a contradictory person...
Yuko Takiya is experiencing insomnia for the first time in fourteen years.
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