LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 7_ Hirawa Karin_
I was sitting backstage, watching the rest of the show from a small television in the room. It looked like there were more boys after me—although, from what I could tell, they weren’t very attractive. I guess it was supposed to be a public dating show, after all. Only the first guest would be a special one; it wasn’t like there was actually any auditioning.
Yoshikawa rushed to me.
“Mizutaka-kun! Why didn’t you ask out Miyazaki-san?! I can’t believe you; this was the perfect opportunity to get into the entertainment industry!”
“Rejecting all of them was the best decision I could have made.”
“What do you mean? What’s your plan from here?!”
“You might not have noticed since you weren’t up close with them, but Miyazaki-san was planning on rejecting me had I asked her out.”
“How would you know that? She looked like she was showing a lot of interest in you!”
“That was just for the show. It’s all just a bunch of lies.”
“Even so, you could’ve tried to make a mark by asking her out. Even if you were rejected, you’d become more known on the internet! Or you could have asked out any of the other girls. Make yourself known!”
“That’s not my intention. Keeping my value as high as possible is what I need to do.”
“Where will we go from here, if that’s the case? We’re stuck now.”
I looked up at the television again. The host was just beginning to introduce the next participant.
Yoshikawa-sensei grabbed my shoulders.
“What’s your plan then, Mizutaka-kun?!”
“It’s fine.”
“What do you mean?!”
“I haven’t given up on Miyazaki-san.”
“You haven’t given up? What are you planning on doing? There’s no way we can even contact her outside of the show. She’s a celebrity, you know?”
“It’s fine. She’ll contact me.”
I pushed Yoshikawa-sensei out of the way a little so I could see the television more clearly. The sound wasn’t great in the room, and he wasn’t making it any easier to hear. I missed the very start, but I could hear the participant beginning to introduce himself.
「…—Mrrw —Mrrw ”err… I’m very happy to be in front of a-all you b-beautiful girls today! —Mrrw —Mrrw I’ve never had a girlfriend before, so forgive me if I’m not that e-educated. —Mrrw Heh… um, I’m part of the school basketball team and…”」
What he was saying might not have sounded so disturbing had it come from someone with a better-looking face. His lack of confidence was also much too apparent. It made him look like a pitiful person.
Yoshikawa-sensei stood in front of the television.
“What do you mean she’ll contact you?”
“It’s as it sounds. Can you please move? I’m trying to watch the show.”
“I don’t get you at all…”
He begrudgingly moved out of the way and took a seat next to me.
After the boy’s introduction, the host finally spoke again.
「…—Mrrw. A few girls have already pressed their buttons! Would anyone like to explain why they made that decision?」
The boy was currently at 19/30 girls, and the first stage hadn’t even finished yet. I guess the girls were actually meant to be harsh. This was a bit closer to what the assistant director predicted.
The host chose a girl.
It was the same girl who asked me the question about being clingy.
「…”His fashion sense is not my taste at all. I like boys who are conscious about what they wear. I think fashion sense actually says a lot about a person…”」
That was a pretty standard response.
Although, to be completely fair, my fashion sense wasn’t much better.
Yoshikawa-sensei and I continued to watch the show. To be honest, it was pretty entertaining in itself. As someone who’s never really watched television, I didn’t realise that the shows were that interesting.
A few moments later, I could hear footsteps approaching from the distance.
Yoshikawa-sensei stood up to see who was here. We weren’t scheduled to have anything else on, so it was somewhat unexpected.
I also looked over, and to my surprise, it appeared to be a girl of similar age to me. She was wearing a bright red blazer and a short pleated skirt. It looked like the uniform of a school with very relaxed rules, but I could tell that it was an idol outfit.
“Is Mizutaka-kun here?” she asked.
Looking over Yoshikawa-sensei’s shoulder, she noticed me. However, he began talking with her before she could come over.
“You’re Hirawa Karin from the Larenza Idol Group, aren’t you?” he asked.
“Ahaha, I’m glad I don’t have to introduce myself~”
“What do you need from Mizutaka-kun?”
“I was actually wanting to talk to him alone, although you can stay if you want.”
Yoshikawa-sensei sighed.
“If you want to talk to him alone, go ahead. I’ll wait outside.”
“Aah~ thank you.”
She gave him a bright smile before sauntering over to me.
…
“I’m glad you’re still here. After seeing you on stage, I wanted to talk to you~.”
“I don’t think I did anything worthy of being noticed by an idol.”
“Haha~ you’re just as composed in person, it seems! It feels refreshing being able to talk to someone my age without them being worried about who I am.”
“I don’t suppose you’re here just for a chat, though.”
“Aw, what makes you think I’ve got ulterior motives? Aren’t you also happy to talk to me? Or is it just a one-sided thing?”
She grabbed my hand and held it with both of hers.
“Can you just tell me what you want.”
Suddenly, she pulled my arm in and rubbed it on her cheek. I could feel the sensation of warmth and softness, but also the texture of makeup.
“I’m glad you’re acting the way you are. You’re just like me, aren’t you? We’re both the same type, the type that doesn’t care about other people~.”
“That’s not a nice thing to say to someone you just met.”
She rubbed my hand on her face until a significant amount of powder and oil made its way onto my fingers.
I already got what she was trying to imply.
“You still haven’t told me what you want.”
“Haa~ alright then, I’ll get to the point.”
***
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