Hearing the voice of Yue’s manager, everyone at the table held their breath.
Ah. Well, except Minoru, of course.
Miwa-nee and Akane were anxious. Most likely they had already anticipated that this wouldn’t be just a normal talk. That it wouldn’t end without the woman at the other end of the call being straight-up mad or enraged upon listening to what Yue and I have to say.
Holding the phone tightly on her left, Yue put it on the loudspeaker and placed it between us on top of the table.
Seconds later, after giving my arm a tight squeeze, siphoning courage from , Yue fixed her usual expression.
Perhaps, it wouldn’t be noticeable for so, however, for , it was like the girl flipped a switch, transforming herself from being my Yue to the up-and-coming popular singer, Asahi.
Her eyes drew a sharp gaze as she stared right into my eyes. Reading through the sparkles in her pupils, I could pick out the girl’s determination, dedication as well as undeniable love for it.
Yue loves a lot but at the sa ti, Asahi loves making songs and music.
Even if she couldn’t find the exact words to describe her feelings, my mind worked wonders and managed to interpret them.
This lovely girl would be complete as long as she has both.
And so, I reached for her cheeks, caressed, and gave her words of assurance, “Go on. I will be here for you… We’re going to face it together.”
Pulling out my best smile along with that, not only Yue but also Akane and Miwa-nee affectionately giggled at my words. They even said sothing along the lines of, “There he goes again…”
Well, I probably already said that a lot of tis to a lot of my girls, including them… And they didn’t say it in a bad taste, anyway. They were more amused instead to see like this once more.
Soon enough, Yue drew in the air, dropped her chopsticks to the side, and straightened her back before responding to her manager.
“Good morning, manager. No… I don’t need anything. However, I have sothing to confess.”
Slowly, the girl’s lips curved upwards as she waited for her manager to respond.
Even though nothing happened yet, she’s already this amused.
I guess I’m the only one that’s a little on edge about how I can convince that manager.
Not finding anything wrong with her words, her manager replied, “Confess… Don’t tell you’ve gained weight again? Last week, I saw you dancing like a cryptid. Is that supposed to be an exercise? Want to enroll you in a dance lesson that can also burn your fats?”
Alright. That sounds harsh. Where’s that kind and understanding manager that she said?
Besides, my Yue isn’t heavy, you know? She’s so light that I could carry her all day and not get tired of it.
While I retorted that in my mind, Yue’s amused expression instantly fell. Replacing it was a panicky one as she quickly denied it.
“That… I’m not dancing like a cryptid!”
Yue sullenly bit her lip as her eyes focused on . She’s checking my reaction to that.
Uh… She’s actually more concerned that I heard those words. I an, talking about weight was taboo for won. Most of them always wanted to be seen as perfect by their man.
Although I agree that she’s not great at dancing, which I won’t tell her for her own sake, I wasn’t that particular about their weight.
And… I guess I might tease her for it like what I did with Otoha two weeks ago.
But that’s not important.
To think that the conversation instantly derailed just with that…
Hearing her manager’s laughter echoing from the other side, Yue looked like she was about to crush the phone in her hand.
And so, I had to make a move.
I picked up a piece of olet using my chopsticks and decisively pushed it into Yue’s mouth.
The girl reflexively closed her mouth and looked up at in confusion.
I smiled at her and nodded.
Understanding it, the girl started chewing. Seconds later, the taste of the simple olet successfully made her face relax.
However, rembering how she reacted, embarrassnt quickly filled her face.
I picked another piece and fed the girl…
Doing that a few tis while ignoring the manager that was waiting on the other side, Yue gradually returned to normal.
Following that, I handed her a glass of water.
There’s the saying that eating sothing can relieve stress… In this case, the tasty breakfast that Miwa-nee prepared swept away the sullen mood that she acquired from those few words from her manager.
I looked at the girl and wordlessly inquired if she was already fine.
Sure enough, Yue instantly nodded while looking apologetic. I patted her head and grabbed the glass of water back before gesturing towards her phone.
“Manager, I have sothing to confess.”
As though what happened was but an illusion, the girl repeated her words.
The laughter subsided from the other side and a long silence ensued.
“Okay… Let hear it. You sure took your ti responding though.”
“And whose fault do you think that is?”
“Asahi, since when have you been that sensitive?”
“That… I’m not, okay? I just don’t want soone else hearing that.”
“… Did you just say soone else?”
“Yes, I do. Manager, it’s your ti to be surprised.”
“Huh? Wait… Are you—” Picking up the hints, her manager quickly caught up and understood the gist of what Yue was going to say.
However, before she could finish her question, Yue bead an amused smile and said, “Un. I’m with soone else… Also, I spent the night sowhere else. Soone picked up last night.”
Dropping that all at once, Yue made a peace sign at , looking proud at what she did.
Not long after, the sound of a chair tumbling on the ground was instantly heard from the other side. And soon, her manager’s disturbed voice rang out. “What the hell, Asahi?! Tell you’re joking. And even if you are, this is sothing you shouldn’t joke about.”
“No. While you’re the one who opened up a joke right away, I’ve been serious when I said that I’m going to confess sothing. What do you think, manager? Care to hear out now?”
Her manager didn’t instantly answer her but we could hear her picking the chair back to its place before returning to sit on it. At this mont, she’s probably in the process of digesting what Yue said.
Fifteen seconds later, an almost inaudible sigh reached us followed by a voice that sounded very serious, “Is it him? The one who inspired you?”
“Correct answer, manager. But there’s no special prize for that.” Yue teased.
But that’s not enough to offset the seriousness in her manager’s voice. The woman ignored that completely. Even though I couldn’t see her face right now, it’s enough to imagine how she’s on the verge of being mad.
“Where are you? I’m going to pick you up. You’re set to return to Tokyo tomorrow. Don’t add more scandal to your na.”
“Manager, I never thought of it as a scandal. It’s my honest answer.” Yue instantly answered as she also slipped back out of her teasing mode. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it, recharging her courage.
“It doesn’t matter! Asahi, you’re not a simple person anymore. You can be as honest as you always are. However, one dirt on your na can pull you down from where you are now in this industry. And I don’t want to witness that happening soon. You’re a star that hasn’t completely shone yet. You have just sent a single ray of light. Are you going to throw it all away for soone who already abandoned you once?”
Hearing those words, I realized. Her manager was aware of the real story behind her viral song. Not just what she revealed on that talk show.
Yue bitterly smiled at but at the sa ti, she got up from her seat and squeezed in to join on mine.
As my arms gently enclosed around her, Yue affectionately caressed my cheek before responding to her manager… “No, he didn’t abandon . I got rejected, rember? And this ti, I finally got him to say yes.”
Obviously, Yue’s answer was no good. Even I understood that… She should have worded it differently or passed the baton to already.
Just like I thought, it didn’t even take a second for her manager to react to it. Her thunderous voice rang out, conveying her undeniable concern toward Yue. “You foolish little girl! He said yes because you’re already a star! Don’t get fooled! Hurry up and tell where you are. I’ll take you back to Tokyo right away. Haa… I know it’s a bad idea to allow you to return to this city.”
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