Stealing Spree

In the end, I failed to answer Yue’s question about whether to stay here instead of returning. I disappointingly went silent, leaving the girl hanging.

My mind went spinning in circles as I fell into another bout of overthinking.

I thought about plans to keep her close to me without ruining her already bright future. But none of it was plausible. They’re all impossible to accomplish.

I had no idea how long but when I got out of that state, I saw Yue’s face filled with concern for me. She’s bitterly biting her lips, most likely thinking that it’s her fault that I turned like that.

Unusually panicked, I hurriedly cleared that up, telling her what was going on in my head.

Upon hearing that, the girl giggled softly at first but it gradually transformed into a peal of laughter. Yue reached for my cheeks again and caressed them even more endearingly, her affection for me fully channeled through it.

As another warmth washed over my chest, I heard Yue’s mesmerizing voice as she hummed the melody of her new song.

“Yue…” Entranced by it, I couldn’t help but call her name before closing my eyes. Accompanied by the beautiful image created by her voice, I imagined myself standing with her up on a stage. Below us, her fans and critics were mixed together. Her fans were supporting her decision to come clean about her relationship with me while those critics smeared her by calling her derogatory names as well as throwing trash like cans and empty packets at her.

Of course, that was just an imagination, or rather an imagined outcome for her future if I stayed by her side.

Maybe I was fantasizing like Ogawa. But as her voice continued to smoothly flow and soothe my ears, my unknowingly tensed shoulders relaxed.

I opened my eyes again and saw Yue still gracefully humming the melody but a moment later, she started fitting lyrics to it.

It’s her brand-new song. The one she told me she was going to write last week.

The song titled ‘Coincidence’.

Although it’s still unpolished as most of her recordings, the way she delivered it successfully pierced my heart. The lyrics were just a simplified retelling of the events that led to our reconnection but still, it made me remember that the cold night last week was as warm and refreshing as the early spring. It’s a little bittersweet in the first verse because of how I tried to step away after recognizing her. And the second verse was a little comical, she even included how I scolded her disguise. And naturally, it ended at the point where we silently reaffirmed how we missed each other.

She kept it at that because she was going to write and compose another one. A direct sequel to it.

Of course, no one else apart from us would be aware that it’s connected. And since it’s her secret, the other girls won’t hear about it from me.

Well, even if that’s what I’m going to do, they will still make the connection. I told them how I met this girl again, after all.

When Yue finished singing, she pulled me in another kiss as a part of that performance.

And with this, she fulfilled her promise to let me be the first one to hear her new song first.

A few seconds after our lips separated, Yue opened her mouth. “Ruki, stop overthinking about that question. I’m afraid that even if you say yes, I won’t be able to stay here with you.”

Yue's beautiful smile turned bitter. She then lowered her gaze and covered her face using my chest, afraid to let me see the expression she was wearing at the moment.

“Last week, I was certainly impulsive. Saying things like throwing my career away must have put you under pressure. As you said, I can’t just throw it away. I have grown attached to it. I will go back and bring that song out. To let everyone hear our bittersweet reunion…”

“But you see, going back to become Mabushisa Asahi again doesn’t mean I’m going to give up on you. Distance can be closed. We’re still on the same planet. In the same country. You’ll be amazed how free a singer’s life is upon finishing their scheduled commitments. I can always visit you here… It will be hard to bypass my manager but I will definitely find a way…”

“That’s why you should stop overthinking already. Your Yue will always long for you. Take me back… Make me yours again… Dear.”

Ending it at that, Yue raised her gaze again to look at me. With the corners of her eyes a little moist from her tears, the girl put on a determined look. It’s like she’s telling me that she’s entirely serious about what she just said. And that she would dedicate all of her to make that possible.

But at the same time, she’s a little nervous or rather, uncertain about how I would react. Her beautiful pink eyes trembled ever-so-slightly as she waited for my answer.

After all of what she said, if I still couldn’t find my answer… I would call myself pathetic and cowardly.

This girl completely swept me off my feet.

She didn’t just brush away the question that I couldn’t answer, she also laid down a path we could take as a couple.

Although I could add and modify that path she had just laid out, I first have to do something else…

I met Yue's gaze and gave her my best smile. “I love you, Yue. However, before I give you my answer, will you hear me out?”

“Un. I’m waiting for this… Let me hear everything about you. I assure you. My decision will not change.”

Hearing that answer, I pulled her up and kissed her deeply first, conveying those three magic words through it. And once that was done, I began telling her my story… or our story.

-

-

“… And there you have it. Like I told you, my change, if viewed from those with a normal perspective, is terrible. I’ve gone from bad to worse. I fell in love with everyone and that includes you…”

Around half an hour later, I finished with my story. It’s that long even though I started around the point where I realized how important Akane is to me.

All this time, Yue silently listened. She showed different kinds of expressions but the one thing that prevailed was her… utter amazement.

If not for how serious my expression was, she’d probably clap her hands in admiration.

Really, I found myself asking what was wrong with this girl…

But thinking about it, when the girl confessed to me, she never asked me to leave the other girls alone and only focused on her. Even back then, she was more than ready to share me with the other girls…

Even I could see that as absurd… My girls accepted the situation after much deliberation but this girl didn’t care about any of that. Nothing’s more important than getting accepted by me.

“You’re definitely amazing, dear… That many girls in two months? As expected of my man!” The girl exclaimed as she excitedly fiddled on my phone, seeing the photos of my girls that I saved there. “I can’t wait to meet them.”

“Some of them are your fans. No, that’s wrong. A lot of them are your fans.”

“Really? It doesn’t matter. Our standing in your heart is the same, anyway.” Yue nonchalantly dismissed it.

“Are you hearing yourself now?”

“Yes! Ruki, I’m not a snob. Furthermore, you won’t like it if I suddenly acted high and mighty just because of my fame. I won’t do anything that can displease you… After all these years, I finally got my wish. There is no way I will disturb the harmonious relationship you built.” Yue answered instantly, the stars in her eyes still glowing brightly. With her honest trait, everything she just said comes from the depths of her heart.

Once again, the seed of worry inside me produced by my fear of being hated by her wilted without any chance to bloom.

“Oh, right! before I forget… Dear, you look so handsome now. What do you think about being scouted? Become an actor. Did you know? It’s fairly normal for celebrities to be in a relationship, whether it’s an act or a serious one… With that, I can announce to the whole world that I’m yours!”

Koizumi-san asked me if I wanted to become a model and now, this girl wanted me to become an actor?

Obviously, she’s kidding… or not? But no matter how I looked at it, that’s not something suitable for me.

And so, I answered instantly, “No thanks, I’m content being your fan and boyfriend.”