Chapter 49: Encounter In A Skyscraper
TL: Akabane
***
Kirin-san took me to the floor where the party was held. The venue was the high priest floor, which was further up from the middle level where the offices of a well-known big company were located.
"Wow! There it is! That one! That's a rich man's house! They're using that room! That's amazing! Oh, my God! Kyah!"
"Is this where the upper class people live? I didn't know they held parties in places like this...! The world is so big...!"
This place seems to be a floor where rich people live. They seem to be using a part of it as a venue. It's not half bad. And the receptionist, a friend of Kirin-san, let us through for free. The scenery beyond was breathtaking.
"Wow...beautiful..."
Kirin-san exclaimed in admiration. The large floor was crowded with many people. And with high ceilings and walls of glass, the lights of Tokyo's skyscrapers seemed to spread out endlessly.
"Would you like to do a selfie anyway?"
"Yes! I'll do it all! Hollywood-kun! Let's take a picture together!"
Me and Kirin-san took a bunch of selfies against the glass wall.
"Looks great! I'll upload it later. Like the Tokyo Skyscraper with the cartel boss?"
"Kirin-san, can you stop comparing me to an anti-corporate boss? Hey? Please? Okay?"
"You look so strong. Let's just eat and drink while looking for comedians!"
As Kirin-san pulled me along, I got a cocktail from the bar counter, and took some meat and salad from the table. We sat down at a table and ate our food.
"This is so good! Is this free?"
"It's really good! I've been to a lot of parties in my life, but I've never had such a delicious meal!"
Kirin-san looked so cute with a big smile on her face. I thought it wouldn't be bad to have a launch party like this after the party.
"Hey, hey, Hollywood-kun, do you have a girlfriend?"
"No, I don't."
"That's right, hey hey. Is it possible that Hollywood-kun isn't good at love?"
She stabbed me in the face like it was my weakness, even though she had a loose voice.
"You know what? You don't trust girls much, do you? And yet, you don't despise them. It's strange. You're still young, but somehow you have the composure of a married man."
"I guess that's true. Maybe I want to believe them. But...I don't think I can yet."
"Then, why don't you just play around? There are lots of lightweight girls who don't need to take responsibility. Like me. Ufufu..."
Kirin-san's eyes seemed to shine with a mysterious glint. Like a witch who wants to push people down the wrong path.
"Kirin-san...why are you so fluffy? You're really a solid person and very good at taking care of people. Your juniors adored you, didn't they?"
I met this person because Kekai-senpai brought this person home. It's a terrible encounter when you think about it. The title of b*tch fits well. Most girls like that tend to be hated by the same girls, but this person was adored by the juniors. Something doesn't add up.
"Oh no, you're a quintessential Kodai student. You analyze people logically, don't you? Haha! I'm not that deep of a person. In fact, I'm very shallow. Too shallow, in fact."
Kirin-san rubs the edge of her wet cocktail glass with her index finger. A beautiful sound of a keening echoed from the glass, and she laughed.
"When people know things they don't need to know, they do silly things and hurt other people. Especially in love. I don't want to hurt people. I want to be fluffy. If it's light, no one gets hurt. Right?"
Hearing that story reminded me of what happened to me and Igarashi in the previous world.
"...But if you're hurt, it means you love that person just as much. You can't say you love someone without that hurt."
"Even if that wound is very painful?"
"Yes. Even if it hurts...I can't forget it. I can't help it. But at least, I can lick the wound."
"...Yeah. You are a strange boy after all. I'd like to see how weird you are! Yes! Let's see who's better at sex and weird play, Ke-kun or you! Hahaha!"
"Oh no, I don't like the idea of being hole brothers with that guy. Haha!"
I don't want to be hole brothers with someone who plays in the clock tower on the Komaba campus. You know? That clock tower is the dream of every student in the country who takes the entrance exam, you know? That's seriously sacrilegious when you think about it. Over dinner, we keep chatting. Every once in a while, a famous athlete or two would pass by. I was so happy to have my picture taken with them. But...
"Personally, I think baseball players are more physically compatible with me than soccer players. After all, they swing bats on a regular basis. Their bats are amazing too!"
"Haha! Eggy! It breaks boys' hearts!"
We also passed by a comedian who has been on the rise recently, so we had our picture taken with him. The young comedian, who will make his big break in a month or so, thanked us for taking a picture with him. She later uploaded it to social media and said with a smug look on her face,
"My theory is that sex with band members is highly addictive. It's very addictive when you f*ck them after a gig. On the other hand, sex with a comedian is like that. It's kind of soothing."
"I can't help you with that impression, though! I mean, aren't women more about love than technique?"
"It's more about atmosphere than love. I think that's what makes sex good or bad. That's what I think. And I like musical actors! They have sex with me after waiting for me to come out! I can get off on that alone if he whispers in my ear while he backs me up!"
"Atmosphere...by the way, are those guys okay? Can you create that kind of atmosphere?"
"Don't worry, they'll be fine! Even virgin couples are fine! Next time, I'll give the girls some tips on how to create an atmosphere that will make the boys want to ask them out for sex!"
"I can't believe they're going to lose their virginity......it's going to get even more annoying...."
I'm afraid they're going to start talking about math-related things... I'm so scared. That's when I was imagining such a trivial future. Two women passed by us.
"Would you like to talk to those baseball players this time? I'd be so proud of you if we took a picture together!"
I know this voice well. It's the voice of the self-proclaimed savvy Mashiba.
"I'm not interested. Go alone. I'm only here because I get a free meal. I have no intention of talking to a man outside of work."
I looked at Mashiba so that she would not notice me, and there next to her was a beautiful woman with black hair and green eyes. It was the hostess I had seen that day in Shinjuku.
"Eh, please! Please help me talk to him! I'm not used to this kind of place!"
"You call yourself a savage, but you're relying on me? If you wear a short skirt and flirt, it's easy for a man to be dominated by a woman."
"I don't mean that! I want a smart and successful connection like this! Hey, please! I'll talk to Hagiri so you'll get another job offer!"
"I get it. I'll be in your debt. I'd appreciate it."
The women approach the famous actors nearby. The dark-haired, green-eyed woman with the most bewitching smile approached the group of baseball players. The players, charmed by her smile, politely invited her to join them in the circle. The center of the chatter seemed to be the dark-haired woman. I could see that she was tickling the players' hearts very well.
"Hee. That black-haired girl is so beautiful! What wrong? You look kinda scary."
Kirin-san looks at my face and smolders. There is Mashiba. That fact reminded me of one possibility. I look around the floor. There was a step floor at the end. There was a counter table by the wall, and a man and a woman were sitting on chairs and chatting while looking at the skyscraper. The woman had brown hair that looked like smoky ash. The color of the well-known Cinderella!
"Ah! Hey! Where are you going?"
Kirin-san's voice echoes from behind me, but I don't care, I head toward the step floor. The man and woman were talking happily. The woman had her left hand on the counter. There is nothing on that left hand right now. But. The man's right hand was reaching out and about to rest on top of it. So I---
"Stop it. Don't cross the line."
Before the man's hand could overlap the woman's, I grabbed his wrist to stop him. The man caught by me looked up at me with a terribly surprised face.
"Kanahisa Tokiwa? Why are you here?!!!!"
"That's my line. You keep showing up everywhere I go, you b*stard! Are you my stalker or something? Hagiri!"
It was still Hagiri there. And the woman next to her was Igarashi. As usual, we ran into each other again.