Tokyo's Most Affectionate - Chapter 124

Hotel Photography

In the following two days, Kurosawa went to school every day and followed the schedule for various activities.

For example, on Thursday, he had a home tutoring session, and on Friday, he went to the office for rehearsal and clothing fittings.

He also informed Uesugi, the teacher, to avoid revealing that he hadn’t attended the archery club activity.

In the blink of an eye, the weekend arrived.

On Saturday morning at 7:50 AM, Kurosawa stepped off the subway at Shinjuku Station, carrying a large and small bag with plenty of luggage.

This time, he arrived early, considering the amount of luggage he had. It wouldn’t be good if he were late.

Even though he arrived ten minutes early, as soon as he walked a few steps after getting off the train, someone emerged from the crowd.

“Hikaru-kun, good morning! Why do you have so many things?”

It was Ichinose, who hurried over and stopped in front of him. 

While exchanging greetings, her gaze was also curiously fixed on the numerous bags and items he was carrying.

Was this the surprise that Hikaru-kun prepared for her? But wasn’t it a bit too much?

It seemed like Hikaru-kun was fully equipped… Could it be that, during the weekend, he planned to take her on a trip?

“Today, I’ll be your photographer.”

Facing her scrutiny, Kurosawa, after a week of not seeing each other, finally revealed the plan with a smile.

“???”

With this statement, Ichinose was instantly surprised.

“Hikaru-kun, you know photography too?”

Following that, she felt delighted.

After anticipating for an entire week, she was speculating left and right. However, she never expected that Kurosawa would be her photographer.

“I studied it for a while.” Kurosawa smiled and nodded.

“Even if we’re doing some photography, isn’t all this stuff a bit too much? Let me help you carry some.”

Ichinose, realizing that this was true, was once again astonished when she saw the numerous bags. She reached out her hand.

“No, these are all essential. Take this bag, it’s the lightest.”

Not refusing her offer, Kurosawa took off the smallest bag and handed it to her.

“Mm-mm, where are we going today?”

Taking one of the shoulder bags, Ichinose was filled with anticipation.

Having Kurosawa as her photographer was quite a novel experience.

“Where do you usually shoot?”

Although Kurosawa had done a lot of research through the internet beforehand, he decided to ask her first.

After all, Ichinose had more than a year of experience as a print model and had participated in numerous photoshoots.

“Parks, beaches, riverbanks, outskirts, overpasses, rooftops, stations, indoors. These places all have one thing in common: great scenery. The key decision-maker is Mr. Kuraki; he’s the head of the photography team.”

Ichinose pondered for a moment and then began counting on her fingers, explaining.

“Let’s do an indoor shoot first.”

Kurosawa thought about the need for makeup, but since he didn’t have a makeup team with him and outdoor shoots might be less convenient, he made a decision on the spot.

“Mm-mm, does Hikaru-kun have a reservation for an indoor studio?”

As long as she was with him, Ichinose didn’t mind where they went. She nodded and asked.

“Reservation?”

Hearing this as he was about to leave, Kurosawa paused.

“For indoor studios on weekends, you usually need to book a few days or a week in advance, and they often have a minimum rental period of two hours.”

Ichinose nodded. Although she wasn’t responsible for such matters, having been a model for some time, she was familiar with various aspects of the industry.

“Are there any indoor studios that don’t require reservations?”

Kurosawa  felt a bit embarrassed; he hadn’t considered this requirement for an indoor shoot.

Originally, he wanted to surprise her, but if he had known, he would have clarified it earlier.

“I don’t know… Oh, I’ll ask Mr. Kuraki.”

Realizing he wasn’t prepared for this, Ichinose shook her head and quickly took out her phone.

“No need to ask Mr. Kuraki. Let’s go to a hotel.” Kursoawa quickly stopped her.

Kuraki was Ichinose’s photographer, and he was here now stealing his job; he didn’t want to trouble him before even starting.

“Hotel?”

Hearing the choice of the shooting location, Ichinose stopped and looked up at him.

“With a bit of decoration, the hotel environment should work well,” Kurosawa nodded.

“But if it’s not an indoor studio, the lighting might not be ideal,” Ichinose tentatively expressed, her heart beating a bit faster.

Was Hikaru-kun planning to book a hotel room with her, or was he genuinely interested in the photoshoot?

“Don’t worry, I’ve got everything covered.”

Kurosawa wasn’t concerned at all and gestured to the equipment behind him.

He came fully prepared, regretting only that he didn’t have a car, which would have made things more convenient.

“Everything?”

Ichinose, surprised by his statement, glanced at the equipment behind him.

“Yes.”

“Alright.”

Realizing that he was genuinely planning to be the photographer today, Ichinose felt a bit disappointed but nodded nonetheless.

Regardless, the fact that Kurosawa wanted to be her photographer was a rare and unique experience.

“Let’s go.”

Kurosawa nodded and immediately started moving.

Carrying so much stuff was inconvenient, and he wanted to put it down as soon as possible.

Considering that the photos would be posted online, Kurosawa chose a more formal star-rated hotel instead of a love hotel. 

He opted for a luxurious business suite, spacious and upscale, with a hefty price tag.

“From 6:00 to midnight, a deluxe business suite, staying for a day, 30,000 yen.”

After the front desk registered them, the staff explained.

“Here you go.”

Without waiting for Kurosawa’s response, Ichinose took out money and handed it to the front desk.

“Thank you for the 30,000 yen. Here’s your room key. Thank you for choosing us.”

Seeing this, the receptionist couldn’t help glancing at Kurosawa, but then continued with a professional smile.

“Why did you rush to pay?”

With the room key in hand and inside the elevator, Kurosawa couldn’t help but ask.

The receptionist’s gaze just now was quite unusual… It was indeed rare for the woman to pay for the hotel room.

“Because I always let you pay, I wanted to share the expense a bit.”

Ichinose felt a bit guilty but raised her head and said seriously.

This wasn’t the first time; every time Kurosawa paid so much, she felt uneasy. In fact, as long as she was with Kurosawa, even just strolling in the park without spending money made her happy enough. 

However, Kurosawa was financially capable and always took her to places with expenses, like surfing, watching movies, dining, and even their first date cost a hundred thousand yen!

“But it’s a bit expensive this time.”

Seeing her attitude, Kurosawa was naturally pleased but didn’t want her to bear the cost. 

After all, this girl’s salary was just that little per month, and spending three thousand on a hotel room… it was really quite expensive.

“It’s okay. I’ve pre-advanced my salary for next month with Sister Mari.”

Ichinose was not concerned and explained with a smile.

Kurosawa still felt uneasy about letting the woman pay for the hotel, so after thinking for a moment, he said, “For this hotel stay, let’s use the funds from our previous dates.”

“That won’t do… the money Miss Itsuragi gave us is meant to be used together.”

Upon hearing this decision, Ichinose shook her head.

“We’re not considering this as a date now?”

Seeing her disagreement, Kurosawa immediately responded.

“We are.”

Upon hearing this question, Ichinose felt he was quite cunning, leaving no room for denial.

“Just treat me to lunch and dinner.”

Noticing her disappointment, Kurosawa reached out, gently patted her head, and said with a smile. 

“Mm-mm.”

Having the opportunity to spend money and also receiving a head pat, Ichinose finally felt happy, obediently nodding.

Soon, they took the elevator, reached the corresponding floor, followed the room card’s number, and entered the room.

“Phew.”

Entering the room and unloading their belongings, Kurosawa felt relaxed, stretching his shoulders and moving his limbs.

Although the items weren’t very heavy, carrying so many made movement inconvenient.

“You’ve worked hard.”

Seeing his actions, Ichinose finally realized that the things he carried were quite heavy, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Kurosawa had specifically given her the lighter items, yet he was carrying so much.

“Don’t be so polite. Rest for a few minutes, and we’ll start shooting later.”

Kurosawa turned back to look at her, smiling.

Ichinose nodded, then walked to the edge of the bed and placed the shoulder bag down.

“What’s inside here?”

As she sat down, she glanced at the shoulder bag again, feeling curious. She bent down and unzipped it.

She reached inside and pulled out a dress.

“A dress?”

Ichinose spread it out and, seeing the ethereal purple lace dress, was momentarily stunned.

“I bought it for you. You can wear it for today’s shoot, and after the shoot, you can take it home.”

Kurosawa sat on the edge of the bed, noticing her discovery of the dress, and explained.

“Isn’t today just a casual shoot?”

Ichinose hadn’t expected this, feeling a bit surprised.

“Of course not. Why else would we book the room for so long? I’m going to be your photographer, and later, I’ll upload the photos we take to the internet to see if we can boost your popularity.”

Kurosawa shook his head; he was quite serious about this.

After all, the results of this shoot might impact Ichinose’s career, even though she was still in high school.

Although she was a poor student, uninterested in studying, planning her future career direction early on was not a bad idea.

“But, will it fit me?”

Ichinose looked at the dress in front of her. 

She could sense that the dress was not cheap. If it didn’t fit well, maybe she could return it.

She felt a bit embarrassed because, over time, she had received many gifts from Kurosawa.

“It will definitely fit. Have you forgotten that you told me your measurements before?” Kurosawa was not worried at all.

“Oh, right…”

Ichinose lowered her head and found two more sets of clothes in the shoulder bag, blushing a bit.

To help her with the shoot, Kurosawa even went out of his way to buy clothes for her.

This made her both excited and a little shy.

So, did this mean that Hikaru-kun wanted to take several sets of photos for her?

This would be her first experience shooting alone in a business suite at a hotel; in the past, she always worked with a team.