212 I have a piece of good news

"man child!" kinoshita iori grumbles and scrubs off the ink on her face. that man-child was smiling when he waved at her. only that man-child can do that. she wipes her face clean and looks at the reflection. her appearance hasn't changed much. but takeshi has changed so much. though he looks the same, his aura is not the same. 

she exhales. if she had reacted in a different way when he confessed to her, would they be together now? did she lose something precious due to her naivety? even if she regrets for not acting in a sensible way back then, nothing can change now. he seems like he has forgotten the past and has moved on. 

when he was in love with her, she was one step behind him. when he told her, she was surprised by his confession. before she could come to terms with her feelings for him, he was already out of her reach.

iori smiles at her situation. it's been years. she's not the same naive girl. things between man and woman are not the same as things between friends. childhood friends becoming lovers? she still finds it a little odd. she might have feelings for him. however, she can't say if they would have worked out as a couple. they have never agreed on the same things. she chuckles. she's the fox that calls the grapes sour*.

"iori." she comes out of the washroom when her mother calls out. she frowns when she sees the wide smile on her mother's face. something is cooking in her mother's mind. why is her mother smiling when she should be scolding her? did her cousin not call her mother yet? she did agree to go on the blind date. 

"is something wrong?" iori asks with caution. her notorious mother is good at scheming. her mother's current goal is to get her married. she doesn't want to marry. if she ever marries, she will marry the man she loves. she doesn't know whether she will fall in love again or not. but she is trying to get over takeshi.

since nothing ever started between her and takeshi, she can bury these feelings until these feelings turn to nothing.

"i have a piece of good news." her mother presses her palms together. iori swallows when she notices the excited gleam in her eyes. how many things can make her mother feel excited this much? "iori, kohei asked about you."

who is kohei? this is her first time hearing that name.

"don't you remember tezuka kohei?" her mother walks toward her with her phone. "you used to cling to him when you were two years old."

"..." 

how could she remember clinging to someone when she was only two? her mother has high expectations from her memories. she doubts that even people with photographic memory can remember something that they did at the age of two.

"he used to live next door back then." her mother continues, "his family moved abroad when you were three years old. they came back recently. i met his mother at the market today."

what does this have to do with her? before she can ask, her mother taps the screen of the phone and shows her a picture of a handsome man in a grey suit. she has never seen this man before. but, she can tell that the man belongs to the world of elites.

takeshi's smile appears in her mind. her gaze softens. that man-child's smile isn't bad. since when did she start loving that smirk on his face? she brushes away the thoughts from her mind. the grapes are sour. takeshi is bad for her. he might have a girlfriend by now. 

"what are you waiting for?" her mother slaps her arm. "get ready."

"huh?" iori gawks at her mother, flabbergasted by her words. 

"he's single." iori's mother tells her with a smile, "chiyo's mother will send chiyo to meet the guy i told you about. i thought that he was too old for you. he's good for chiyo, i think. kohei is a good man. he studied at h university abroad."

did her mother already set her up with another man? if her cousin has to go on that date, she will kill iori. "mother, i can't meet him. i have decided to meet takeda ryosei."

"he's thirty-one years old." her mother makes a face. "he's too old for you. chiyo is more suited for him. besides, ryosei showed more interest in chiyo."

"he did?" takeda ryosei is the son of her mother's friend from high school. she was supposed to meet him, but she declined the date because she had no interest in dating at the moment. when she declined, her mother talked to chiyo's mother. so, the date problem was shifted on her cousin's head. today, she got it back on her head. but her mother already found another date for her. 

"i talked to his mother." her mother frowns at her. "it will be chiyo who will meet him. you will meet tezuka kohei."

"but…" iori feels like she wants to cry. her cousin will kill her. she should forget about her promotion and write her last will now. 

"i have an excellent idea." her mother is already tapping her aunt's number with a gleam in her eyes. iori's protests are ignored by her. she speaks to the woman on the other side of the call, "chiyo's mother, why don't we send them on a double date tonight? this is the first time for chiyo too. iori can keep a watch on chiyo."

keeping a watch on her cousin? iori massages her forehead. she was planning to ask for help from her cousin sister. she can forget about that now. 

"i will inform them both." she hears her mother say on the phone. "around seven? -- that sounds good. i will start working on my iori. -- yes, we can do it. we will get our daughters get married before this year ends."

"aaaagh!" iori lets out a groan in frustration. what kind of mission is that? there's only a month left before the year ends. still, she has no choice. she has to go.