CH 8

All women are actresses

TL: FurbyED: DannY

That night, I called Karen like I always had.

The time was around 11pm.

If I were honest, I don’t feel like even hearing her voice for a while longer, but I continued to tell myself that, for the sake of putting our plan into action, this was necessary.

Nonetheless, I still hesitated to call Karen’s cell phone number for over 15 minutes.

At long last, I mustered up my courage by thinking back to Touko-senpai’s face and pressed the call button.

“Ye~s!”

Karen answered with a cheerful voice like always.

“Karen? It’s me. Sorry I didn’t call you yesterday.”

I started by voicing an apology.

It irked me to have to lower my head to this bitch who cheated on me, but, remembering Touko-senpai’s words, I managed to somehow put on an act with empty words.

“Ye~ah, that ri~ght! Yuu-kun hasn’t contacted me at all since Monday! I was so~ worried thinking something happened to Yuu-ku~n!”

Her tone of voice was that of a girl who only thought of me, as if she had never in her life cheated.

“Sorry. Some stuff happened.”

“What stuff? Something serious enough for Yuu-kun to abandon Karen at the hotel and go back by himself?”

Those words of hers sounded like she was sulking.

Normally, I would find this as ‘cute’, but knowing that it’s coming from a cheating woman, all I can think is ‘cunning’.

She’s probably being roundabout in trying to find out if her love affair rendezvouses haven’t been found out.

“Monday, a friend from my hometown had an accident. I received their call. So I had to hurry over to them.”

This was the excuse I had prepared beforehand.

“Hmm~, all alone?”

“No, I went with Ishida. This is because I contacted Ishida.”

And indeed, I had been together with Ishida on Monday’s night.

You need to insert a bit of truth in your lies, otherwise, you never know where they’ll start to fall apart.

Ah, damn.

I hadn’t told Ishida about the ‘accident my hometown friend had’.

As soon as this call ends, I’ll need to immediately call Ishida and make sure our stories agree.

Say, doesn’t this sort of like, make it seem as if I was the one cheating?

“And what about yesterday?”

“That’s because Monday’s night was long. I fell asleep while writing a report for class. By the time I woke up, it was already 3am, so I didn’t call you thinking that you’d already be asleep, Karen.”

“If that’s how it is, that’s good. Karen was worried thinking that, maybe, Yuu-kun was cheating on her or something.”

For an instant, I felt like throwing the smartphone with all my strength.

This woman, how dare she even! And so brazenly!

Despite herself having an affair right now, of all the things she could say!

… Uh oh, not good, not good. Remember what Touko-senpai told you…

“It’s okay, I wouldn’t do those things.”

Unlike you!

“That’s a promise! Karen is faithful and loves Yuu-kun a lot, after all!”

Anger and shock assaulted me at almost the same time.

I’ll bet it was clearly portrayed in my face too.

That we weren’t meeting face to face is the only silver lining of this.

I swear, this girl!

To think she could tell lies as normally as if she was breathing…

Once again, I couldn’t help thinking ‘women are scary’.

“Me too. Karen’s the only one for me. I love you.”

Though the words got stuck in my throat for a moment, I somehow managed to get them out.

“Karen too! She really loves you!”

Hearing Karen’s voice like this, I started to think that it was instead the exchange of messages with Kamokura-senpai that was a lie.

I decided to ask a single trick question.

“So then, could we meet tomorrow maybe? After our classes end, let’s go eat someplace. It’s already been two days since we met, so I really feel like seeing your face, Karen.”

After a moment of silence…

“Hmm, tomorrow may be a little complicated. Karen made a promise with a friend from her hometown to eat together already.”

I knew it. So that’s how it is.

“That so? If you have a previous engagement, then it can’t be helped. Then let’s leave it for the next chance.”

“Yeah, next time.”

Like that, my Wednesday night call with Karen ended.

I immediately sent a message to Touko-senpai.

> (Yuu) I called Karen by phone just now. She said that tomorrow’s night she ‘was going to eat with a friend from her hometown’.

The reply from Touko-senpai came instantly.

> (Touko) As we imagined. I messaged Tetsuya too just a moment ago and he said he ‘had a drinking party with the guys from the part-time job tomorrow’.

> (Yuu) Then, this means the two of them are planning to meet tomorrow.

> (Touko) The possibility of it is high.

> (Yuu) What will we do?

> (Touko) What do you mean ‘what’?

> (Yuu) Do we follow them?

> (Touko) Oh, that. We finally know what day they’ll meet, so maybe we should look a little into them?

> (Yuu) Do I tag Karen?

> (Touko) The risk of that’s too high. Women can discern their boyfriends with but a single glance at their silhouettes. I’ll be the one to tail her.

> (Yuu) Then, I shall go after Kamokura-senpai, right?

> (Touko) Yeah. However, under no conditions must you over do it. Constantly maintain a distance of 10m or more from him. If you lose sight of him, that’s fine like that. Knowing the train he took alone is enough. There’s no need to go that far tomorrow anyways. We need to let them swim a little more and catch them as red handed as possible!”

In this way, Touko-senpai’s and my ‘Cheating site paparazzi strategy’ began.