Having finished their meal and bid farewell to Machida Sonoko, Shichen headed back with Kasumigaoka Utaha and Nishikigi Chisato in tow.
They'd arrived with two people, and now they were leaving with three.
As they walked on either side of him, Chisato clung to his arm, smiling. She was way too forward, always catching him off guard so he couldn't stop her—definitely not because he was enjoying the softness of her embrace. Definitely not.
Meanwhile, Utaha refrained from clinging to him; she seemed distracted, probably because her novel, Love Metronome, was now essentially guaranteed for publication, though the timeline still needed planning. Machida Sonoko would lay that out over the next few days, leaving Utaha to get going on Volume Two. If everything went well, and sales were strong, she could ride that wave of popularity into the second volume.
Her mind was awash with visions of her novel's bright future, and she was already mulling over Volume Two's plot. In fact, she was making some progress—thanks in no small part to Chisato's appearance.
"Careful," Shichen suddenly said, grabbing Utaha's wrist and pulling her closer to him.
Utaha snapped out of her thoughts and glanced at the spot she'd just left. Someone was walking by and she would have crashed right into them if not for Shichen's quick intervention.
"Thank you…"
"What're you so distracted about?" Shichen asked with amusement.
"Volume Two."
"Oh? Have any ideas yet?"
"A little…" Utaha spared a glance at Chisato. "Thanks in part to…someone."
"Huh? Why are you looking at me?" Chisato asked, ever sensitive to people's stares.
"She's just expressing her gratitude," Shichen interjected to smooth things over.
"Thank me? Not sure why she would," Chisato said, shrugging. "But okay."
"Yes, you know she's writing a novel," Shichen explained, "and apparently she got inspired—"
He stopped mid-sentence, frowning slightly as a realization dawned on him. Chisato's presence…had given Utaha inspiration?
Given the day's events, could she be planning to add a new female lead, turning her story into a rivalry-filled drama? That would definitely mirror the storyline he knew, except now he was the cause.
He couldn't decide whether to be pleased or worried.
Chisato, meanwhile, turned to Utaha. "Because of me, you got inspired? What kind of novel is it? Can I read it?"
"It's about youthful romance," Utaha replied, her tone cool.
"Youthful romance? I'm super interested!" Chisato's eyes lit up.
Her sudden burst of enthusiasm caught Utaha off guard, but the other girl's earnest request prompted a somewhat softened response. "Not right now. You'll have to wait until it's published… I could give you a copy then."
"Really? Thank you!"
"Mhm…"
It looked like the two of them were getting on a bit better. Shichen felt happy about this but kept a straight face.
Soon, they reached the station. Over the course of their walk, Shichen had inadvertently failed to let go of Utaha's wrist. He'd been holding onto it so she wouldn't bump into anyone again—her wrist was quite slender, with remarkably smooth skin that he found surprisingly pleasant to the touch.
Only while waiting for the train did Utaha realize Shichen was still gripping her wrist. She looked his way; he stared straight ahead, feigning cluelessness. Clearly, he was putting on an act.
Utaha smirked. Considering he'd just saved her from colliding with a passerby, she decided to let it slide for now. It was only her wrist he was holding, not her hand…so no big deal. Besides, as her very first reader, maybe he deserved a small privilege.
When the train arrived, they boarded, but there were no seats. They stood, which, naturally, attracted quite a bit of attention. Indeed, all three of them together stood out—people either stared openly or stole furtive glances. Even those with good manners couldn't entirely resist taking a look.
Shichen sensed envy and even a bit of self-doubt in those stares. They had no reason to compare themselves to him. He was uniquely, almost painfully handsome, and it was pointless for them to agonize over it. He wasn't about to show any reaction, though. He didn't want to stir up trouble; jealousy could be dangerous if it escalated.
They reached their stop without incident, got off, and headed toward the café. Of course, Shichen could no longer hold on to Utaha's wrist.
On the way, Shichen took the opportunity to explain his situation to Chisato: the café, how he already had someone living with him, and so on.
The moment he mentioned Tohru, he felt a pang of stress. Bringing Chisato home would obviously make Tohru jealous, or possibly insecure—maybe suspecting him of "tossing her aside" in favor of someone new.
But that was ridiculous. He was too greedy to toss anyone aside. He liked them all. Still, Tohru was easy enough to pacify—this time, though, it'd be tricky to "fool" her. She'd probably see right through him.
"Chen-nii, doesn't Utaha live with you guys too?" Chisato asked curiously once he'd finished.
"Not yet," Shichen replied.
"What do you mean not yet?" Utaha cut in, glaring.
"Er…," Shichen cleared his throat.
"What, do you want me to move in with you?" she pressed him.
"No, no, just a random comment," he hastened to explain.
"Oh really? Don't you want me staying with you?" Utaha teased. "Actually, it's not impossible. I live alone anyway—just renting a place. It wouldn't be that big a hassle to move. I wouldn't have to worry about cooking, I could work on my novel freely at the café…"
Shichen hesitated. "Well…if you really want to, I have no problem. There are plenty of rooms."
He thought it might actually be helpful. If Utaha moved in, it could solve his nightly problem of being alone with Tohru. At the same time, though, what if she got too absorbed in writing and never slept? Maybe Chisato would step in, or so he hoped.
"Haha, I was just kidding," Utaha said with a bright laugh. "I'm not planning to relocate just yet."
"…." Shichen gave her an exasperated look.
"Good," Chisato said, evidently pleased.
"Heh—don't get too complacent," Utaha retorted. "There's still that dragon maid for you to deal with."
"Oh, really?"
Before long, they arrived at the café. Shichen entered first; Tohru was behind the register, fiddling with her phone.
"Chen-dono, you're back—who's she?" Tohru perked up at the sight of him but noticed Utaha and a new face behind him, and her excitement instantly turned to wariness.
She recognized Utaha, but the sight of this other beautiful girl triggered alarm bells.
"Oh, let me introduce you." Shichen steeled himself. "This is Nishikigi Chisato. She'll be staying with us and helping out around the café."
"Huh?" Tohru froze, dumbfounded.
"Tohru?"
"Chen-dono…" Tears welled up in Tohru's eyes. "Are you…replacing me?"
Shichen sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Of course not!"
"Then why are you bringing someone else in to do my job?" she whimpered.
"It's not to replace you—it's to share the workload." Shichen tried patiently to explain.
"But I can manage everything by myself," Tohru insisted, pouting pitifully.
Shichen shook his head, smiling. "Really? You don't want time to just relax and chat with me?"
"Huh? Well…" Tohru had never considered that, but the idea deeply appealed to her.
"…I do," she admitted softly.
"There you go."
"Still—"
"You must be Tohru?" Chisato came over and took Tohru's hand, all smiles.
"What are you doing?" Tohru tensed up, clearly on guard.
"Don't you think we'll get along great?"
"I—absolutely do not."
"Really? Don't you like Chen-nii? I like Chen-nii too—so we have the same interests and tastes, right? Isn't that something to celebrate?" Chisato said earnestly.
"Wait, that…actually…maybe?" Tohru blinked, puzzled.
"Sure it does! Since we both like Chen-nii, why can't we be friendly with each other?"
"Friendly, huh… You won't steal him away?"
"Never! We'll look after him together!"
"O-okay…" Tohru agreed somewhat dazedly.
Shichen was gobsmacked. He hadn't expected Chisato to be so diplomatic.
"Hehe~" Chisato flashed Shichen a V-sign with her fingers.
Utaha just rolled her eyes and retreated to her usual table.
"Utaha, wait—" Shichen called after her.
She didn't respond.
"Kasumi Utako? …Kasumi? …Kasumi?"
"I'm writing," Utaha snapped, finally turning to glare at him.
~~~
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