CH 40

It has been a week since I spoke to her. 

The days are as cold as ever, but I feel as if my old routine has returned, somewhat nostalgic and somewhat empty. 

As it turns out, this was for the best. 

I want that girl to fulfill her dream. I also want to see Aimi Momoka shining once again. So, that day. I strongly pushed my heart away. With a look that said, "Don't show me that face again". 

"............I'm bored." 

It's just a week, and today is Sunday. No holiday work, just a man lying at home with a body that doesn't want to move. I feel more comfortable working right now. So this past week has felt like a weekday gone in a blink of an eye. 

It's past nine in the morning. I didn't want to stay cooped up in bed, so I'm dressed and lying on the couch. What I'm doing is the same, but it's a matter of feeling. This way, I still have the energy to move. 

She took off, not even putting on her coat. I thought about going after her, but I pushed myself not to do so. If I did that in that situation, I would never want to let her go again. My instincts told me so. 

It was also bad enough that I made Master eat her share of the curry. He was complaining that her stomach was upset, but he ate it without leaving any leftovers, probably because it was something he had made himself. 

Yamamoto's forgotten item was in my possession. I wanted the master to keep it, but he denied my proposal. He wanted me to take responsibility for it and bring it back home. I couldn't say anything, so I obeyed him. 

I felt uncomfortable stuffing them in the closet where there were only my clothes, so I left them in the bedroom. I don't even put them in paper bags because I'm sorry if they get wrinkled. I'm worried about the smell of cigarettes on them, but I feel like it's inevitable when they're in this house. 

It's funny that her personal belongings are in my territory in the first place. 

As expected, I can't just leave it like that. If I don't return it soon, I can only see a perverse future of burying my face in that coat. 

(But I guess so.........)

Anyway, it's hard to see her. That's all I can say. 

The other day, I told her that it would be better if we didn't meet, but I don't think it's right to contact her so easily. 

No, it's too harsh. It's not that it's lame, but I simply don't know what I should look like when I see him. We used to exchange messages every couple of days, but not for the past week. Our relationship was about to completely change. 

And that master. He's totally making fun of me. It's a theory that if you forget something, you leave it in the store. She might come back to get it. 

However, I went there almost every day this week, and I didn't hear anything about Yamamoto from him. Maybe, or rather, almost certainly, she hasn't come. That's right. I might be here. 

"Oh ...... if it's Miya-san." 

Can't we ask her to let us put it at her house? It's also her office, so even Yamamoto should be able to visit. Then we could ask her to bring it back. I don't think Miya-san would even tell us who brought it. 

I got up and went to the bedroom closet. I take out a business card case from the inside pocket of my suit and look for hers. I found it easily, since I don't meet with people outside the company as often these days. 

"......I knew it was a phone." 

There was a landline phone in the office, but just in case. Calling a phone is more reliable. I don't care if she's sarcastic. I don't like the situation as it is. 

I sat down on the bed where I had just been and punched in the number. The ringing tone was rather long, but it was soon replaced by a grumpy voice. 

||  "Yes, this is Miya." 

"Oh, it's Araki. I'm sorry for calling so suddenly." 

I don't hear any sounds around her. It seems that she is in a rather quiet space. But there is an atmosphere of busyness. I guess there are no weekends in the entertainment business. I'm sorry about that. 

But as soon as she realized it was me, she let out an understandable sigh. One wrong move and it's harassment. But I'm used to it, and I think it's finally getting dangerous. 

||  "What the hell. I have a bad feeling about this." 

"That's a terrible thing to say. It's not that big of a deal." 

||  "Really?" 

"Yes, I'm sure." 

You don't believe me at all. Well, that's okay. As far as I'm concerned, as long as I get it there, that's all that matters. 

"I've got something for you." 

||  "A package? For me?" 

"To Miya-san, or rather, to Yamamoto-san." 

When she heard this, she reacted skeptically, but before I could argue with her, I started on my own. 

"Look, I can't just casually meet with you from now on. So I thought I'd deliver it to the office." 

||  "......What is it in the first place? It's called a delivery." 

Yeah, I can't say it's her personal stuff. 

"Well, whatever, right?" 

||  "......Suspicious. Very much." 

"And anyway, I called with the intention of following Miya-san's advice." 

Even I think to myself, "What's the point now?" But I believe that there is nothing false in her words. That's why the words came out so smoothly. 

Like me, Miya-san was stunned, even over the phone. 

||  "Well, whatever. I understand. Are you coming today?" 

"I'll do that. Do you have a bad time?" 

||  "No, I'll be fine today. The bank is closed and I'll be here all day." 

If that's the case, it seems like it would be no problem for me to meet her at my convenience. It would be bad to stay too late, so I thought 2:00 PM. would be a good time to meet her. 

Oh, no - there is one thing I forgot to ask. You can decide according to that. 

"Speaking of which, where is Yamamoto-san today?" 

||  "I'm sending her to lessons. She's been taking lessons until late this evening." 

"I see." 

If that's the case, then 2:00 PM. would be fine. For my part, I don't want to run into her when I get there. If she has lessons until the evening, even if I come to the office afterwards, she won't be there. I'll do that. 

||  "What? You sound so happy." 

"No, I'm not." 

||  ".......So, what time are you coming?" 

"I'll be there around 2:00 in the afternoon." 

For a moment I was nervous, but I think I managed to fool her. I ended the call and fell back on my bed like a floater that had lost air. 

I was tired anyway. Miya-san, you are not a bad person, but you tire me out. Her voice, the way she looks at you, the way she reads your mind. It was very nerve-wracking to talk to her. 

Oh, but it was fun when we had dinner together. Because there was alcohol in it, I didn't feel her peculiar disgust. Because of that memory, it seems to neutralize the usual harshness she has. 

But still, a lesson, huh? 

Miina Yamamoto began to move in earnest to return to that stage. It's her. She will probably shake off the slight blanks in no time. And she will show the world her talent and brilliance. 

She may be too old to be called an idol. But age doesn't matter as long as you are sparkling. Whether you are a singer or anything else. I can't help but have high hopes for the potential of Miina Yamamoto. 

The curtains were open, so warm sunlight was shining into the bedroom. It was neither too bright nor too dark. I am confident that if I close my eyelids, I will be able to sleep until late afternoon. 

I wonder if I have the right to call myself a fan after hurting her. Is it okay for me to think that way after having pushed her away like that? I am sure that only she knows the answer to that question. 

If that's the case, there's no way for me to know anymore. It's sad, but... 

My eyelids close and my consciousness fades. My thoughts are becoming empty. What remained faintly was the emotion that should have been locked up in my heart. 

Ah, for you...