My Tokyo Celebrity Girlfriend Is Love-Struck, What Should I Do? - Chapter 29

Come Home Early

In the corridor, there echoed a set of footsteps—neither hurried nor leisurely, carrying a subtle sense of tension, heading straight towards the destination.

“Kamiya…”

“Toru-san, right?”

At the classroom entrance appeared Asuka, carrying her bag diagonally across her back, hands tightly gripping the straps.

“Sorry to disturb you.”

In the classroom, amidst Kimura’s bewildered gaze, the girl smiled as she entered.

She casually sat on the chair in front of Kimura’s seat.

“Aren’t you going to the club?” Asuka leaned on the chair’s backrest with her arms.

“I’m not in any club.”

Kimura answered awkwardly.

“That’s great, me neither.” Asuka’s face revealed a relieved smile, “I was worried I might make you quit your club.”

Asuka gazed at Kimura and continued, “And then, for our future relationship, there are many things we need to discuss first…”

“Ah! About that…”

“Are you having second thoughts?”

“Actually, my friend is being harassed. They said if I confess to you, they’ll back off…”

“I see…” The girl’s smile faded.

“Because you’re quite popular, and they want to see me get dumped by you and then ridicule me…” Kimura lowered his head, “I’m really sorry to involve you in this…”

Asuka remained silent.

“How about this, Toru-san? What if we pretend to be a couple?”

“Pretend to be a couple?”

“…”

“Alright, it’s decided!”

“There are three conditions for pretending to be a couple.”

“Conditions?”

“Yes.”

Asuka raised three fair fingers, counting them one by one.

“First, we can’t talk to each other before school ends.”

“Second, communication should be as brief as possible.”

“And…”

“Third, we can’t actually fall for each other.”

After a brief thought, a smile appeared on Kimura’s face, and he nodded gently.

“That’s settled.” Asuka stood up and walked to Kimura’s side, “Starting today, please take care of me, boyfriend-san.”

The girl then took out her phone and snapped a photo of the two of them.

……

“Sugoi! Kimura-senpai and Asuka-senpai’s performance was amazing!” Koike Koichi put down his camera and exclaimed excitedly.

Applause echoed in the classroom.

“Thank you.” Asuka bowed and expressed her gratitude to everyone.

Kimura walked to the nearby computer, reviewing the scenes and clips filmed throughout the afternoon.

The number of members in the classroom had increased. 

In addition to the five members of the photography team, many new faces had joined.

During the previous days of shooting, after experiencing the close-up view of idol filming, some student extras voluntarily joined the subsequent shoots, taking on various tasks such as filming and props.

Considering that the subsequent shoots might be challenging for just the five members of the photography team and the fact that these students just wanted to support their idol – even offering to work for free – Kimura agreed.

What started as a small drama group with only six members had quickly transformed into a larger production team with subgroups for props, photography, and editing, totaling more than ten people.

Even though it was unpaid work, Kimura covered the expenses for everyone’s drinks and occasional bento meals from his limited savings accumulated over his four years in college.

However…

With the increase in the number of people, the shooting progress accelerated. 

It seemed that the completion of the project would be earlier than expected, and they might not end up living on rice balls throughout the entire shoot.

Kimura couldn’t help but envy those who had grown up in Tokyo with no worries about food and clothing.

Their graduation project should not be as financially tight as his.

As Kimura reviewed all the scenes filmed today, a circle of people surrounded him.

“Hey! The filming is fantastic! It feels almost like those scenes from movies.”

“After all, Asuka-senpai has been working on film and television dramas before, so this level should be a breeze for her.”

“Kimura-senpai’s acting is also good… he looks so handsome on camera.”

“I always feel that in the shots, Asuka-senpai and Kimura-senpai look like a real couple, don’t you think?”

“…”

The last statement seemed to resonate, and people around nodded in agreement.

The composed and handsome Kimura, paired with the charming and cute Asuka, created an inexplicable sense of a couple in the frame.

A sense of youthful innocence.

Yoshida Ikumi, who had transitioned from the photography team to the editing team, had silently locked onto the two.

Just by imagining scenes of romance between Kimura-senpai and Asuka-senpai, she felt an excited shiver throughout her body.

Unfortunately.

It could only be a fantasy.

Yoshida Ikumi sighed lightly in resignation, determined in her heart.

She had to compile all the atmospheric scenes between Kimura-senpai and Asuka-senpai during the subsequent editing.

“Everyone, make some adjustments and get ready to shoot Amemiya-san’s scenes in the photography department in a while!”

As the gradually noisy and divergent discussions filled his ears, Kimura quickly spoke up to interrupt the ongoing conversation.

“Yes!”

Everyone dispersed, starting to pack up their equipment and belongings, preparing for the next shoot.

……

“Great job, please have a bottle of water.”

“Do you need water… Yes, you’ve worked hard….”

“Please keep up the good work!”

Asuka distributed mineral water to everyone in the classroom, offering words of encouragement and thanks while handing out water bottles.

Every student who received water had a happy expression on their face.

Wow, it’s like a dream.

To receive mineral water personally handed out by Asuka-chan, and to be encouraged by her…

The initially exhausted spirits of the people felt instantly revitalized by the lovely smile of Asuka.

Their determination to stay in this drama group became even firmer.

As for the mineral water given by Asuka-chan…

It would undoubtedly be accepted with gratitude, placed prominently at home, and treated as a cherished offering!

After distributing water to everyone else,

Asuka walked over to Kimura, who was alone, reviewing the footage, holding a bottle of mineral water in her hand.

“Hey, Hayata-chan, take a break and have a bottle of water.”

“Thanks, Asuka.”

Kimura lifted his head. “I’m not very thirsty right now…”

“Hayata-chan hasn’t had water all afternoon.”

Asuka furrowed her eyebrows, her cheeks puffing slightly.

“Yes.”

Kimura smiled helplessly, taking the mineral water handed to him by Asuka.

“Hayata-chan.”

“Yeah?”

“Come home early tonight… I’ll make dinner for you.”

Kimura blinked for a moment, then a gentle smile appeared on his face.

“Sure.”

……

“Asuka-chan is quite thoughtful.”

Amemiya looked at Asuka, who was sitting back at her seat with a happy expression.

“Huh?”

“Asuka-chan has never distributed water to the entire crew before…”

Amemiya said with a touch of melancholy, “Asuka-chan really cares about that guy.”

Really, she wondered what kind of love potion that guy had given Asuka-chan.

She could see through Asukas actions just now, and the ultimate goal was for that one person.

“Hayata-chan came from outside Tokyo, from the countryside.”

Asuka’s gaze fell on Kimura not far away.

“Eh?”

Amemiya was puzzled, wondering why Asuka suddenly brought this up.

“So… in Tokyo, if I don’t care about Hayata-chan, no one else will.”

Asuka withdrew her gaze, her eyes slightly curved.

“Asuka-chan really is…”

Looking at the delicate face of the girl in front of her, Amemiya was momentarily stunned, unsure of what to say.

A gentle breeze of winter entered the classroom, lifting Asuka’s hair near her ears.

The strands of hair fluttered, landing on the girl’s slightly upturned lips.