Discord link: [discord . gg / 4y5QVPj]

Disclaimer: I don't own Rent a Girlfriend, or any of its characters...

After eating a pair of sandwiches and finishing up their drinks at the cafe, the two went to their next stop, with the destination being a place that Kazuya thought of.

Before anything else, it was Chizuru who asked the young man about where should they head next and he just went with the first thing that came to his mind.

"Wow! This place looks really pretty!" she exclaimed with a bright smile, thoroughly amazed with pretty much the whole place in its entirety.

Kazuya thought of taking the girl to an aquarium after they were done eating at the cafe, since Chizuru really wanted him to think about a place they could visit together without interruptions. He chose the aquarium because he simply couldn't think of any other place and who knows, the place might even help calm his mind down.

"Really? I thought it would be boring since this isn't the type of place that girls would like," he asked, raising an eyebrow at her strange demeanor.

Kazuya was fully aware of how people find an aquarium boring, since there were several times when he heard various teenagers complain about the place because there is nothing to do other than stare at the fish around.

Because of that, he was a bit surprised to see that Chizuru was enjoying herself. He couldn't even tell if she was just pretending to like the place or not.

"Is that so? But I like it here! It's so peaceful and watching the fish swim around is pretty fun!" she said, confused why other people would think bad about this place.

He shrugged.

"Hell if I know. Glad you like the place, at least. I don't have any place left in mind for us to go. I don't want to go to the amusement park and I don't want to go watch a movie, either."

Kazuya was then caught off guard when Chizuru wrapped her arms around his own and leaned closer to him, which nearly caused him to push her off from how close she was to him. Fortunately, she started to speak before that could happen.

"Fufu… you know, this is actually my first time at an aquarium!"

"That's explains things," he muttered to himself before the girl separated from him, walking towards a spot where small fishes with distinct orange lines along their bodies were swimming all around.

"Oh, oh, what do you call these?! They're so cute!"

The young man walked up to her from behind and took one good look at the fishes that she was referring to, before he quickly figured out what they were.

"They're Glowlight Tetras."

Chizuru blinked a few times before she turned around, looking at her companion curiously.

"Eh, do you have an interest in fish, Kazuya-kun?"

"Not really. I just like going to aquariums often. Just watching the little guys swim around takes my mind off a lot of things," he explained, having a moment of peace to himself as he flashed a small smile.

A big smile formed on Chizuru's face upon hearing those words. If it was anyone else in Kazuya's position right now, they wouldn't be able to resist how cute and pretty the girl looked, but the young man with Chizuru wasn't like any other boy out there.

"That's really cool of you, Kazuya-kun. I'm glad that my first time at an aquarium was with you!"

"Are you really?" he hid a frown to himself as he watched her move to the next set of fishes she saw. His expression didn't last however, since he couldn't bring himself to be angry at someone whom he saw as a friend.

From the moment he met Chizuru, he didn't feel like she was putting up an act and every action she did was genuine. From how she was nervous in the nightclub, to the time she wrongly accused him for following her around, to when she cooked miso soup for him and they shared it.

Heck, if that wasn't enough, she even told him her real name and she trusted him with her secret! But now, Kazuya felt like he was spending time with someone else entirely.

"Ugh, I hope this can end soon… I'm getting sick of this act. Why can't she just act normal, for god's sake?!"

Meanwhile, Chizuru was actually surprised with herself that she managed to keep up her rental girlfriend persona until now, considering how she kept on messing up entirely every time she tries to get her act together in front of Kazuya.

"I'm actually doing it… and honestly, this is kind of fun. I didn't really think I'd feel this way while being around him…"

She cheered in her mind, completely forgetting about the fact that they were only in this situation because of an unexpected series of events. It seemed like she thought of this as nothing different from the dates she used to have with those who have rented her before.

"Seriously, how does he not have a girlfriend already? He's kind, caring, has a big heart, and he's very understanding! He even promised that he won't tell my secret to anyone! Any girl would be lucky to have him, even me."

Chizuru quickly realized what she just said and shook her head for a few moments to prevent a blush from acting up. Fortunately, she managed to calm herself enough that she wouldn't panic, before shifting her attention back to reality.

"No, no, this is not a real date, Chizuru! Remember that! I'm doing this because I can't accept money without doing anything in return! I just need to focus. Keep on acting like a rental girlfriend, and I won't mess this up like I always do," she told herself as she reverted back to 'Mizuhara' mode, ready to continue this impromptu 'date' with Kazuya.

The girl was completely unaware of how she was already ruining this for the two of them with her own actions.

After one whole trip around the aquarium, the two teenagers headed to their next destination, which was a department store to buy a couple of clothes for each of them. They had spent a full hour observing the marine life in the aquarium, cutting their supposed time together even further.

Kazuya, in particular, was constantly checking his phone to keep track of the time while Chizuru was searching for a good shirt that would suit him. She was already done looking for something for herself, so she volunteered to pick out a shirt for him.

He was lucky that she didn't take several hours before settling on one garment, but the fact that they were on limited time is likely the main reason behind it.

"Kazuya, which of these colors would you like?" she asked, holding up a dark green shirt in one while a yellow one was in the other.

The young man thought about what he should pick, adopting a more serious expression this time instead of looking distracted.

Hey, he was going to buy a shirt for himself! He wasn't going to half-ass this one because of something stupid. Plus, he could wear something new whenever he's going out somewhere!

"I'll take the green one. It looks good," he pointed to the dark green shirt with a smile.

"Then let's go buy these!" she grinned, before skipping off to find a saleslady who can assist them with the clothes they chose.

He sighed deeply upon seeing her smile, while reminding himself that this wasn't the real deal. If they were just hanging out like normal friends, he would enjoy this a lot more. If Chizuru just asked him if she wanted to hang out with her, he would have no reason to refuse!

He didn't know why they needed to do this entire act instead… was she obsessed with her job or something?

Kazuya shook his head to get it off his mind for the moment and quickly caught up to Chizuru, who found the nearest saleslady before handing over the clothes they chose towards her.

"Would this married couple want it all in one bag?" the woman asked with a smile, seeing Kazuya approach the girl from behind.

"Uh, we're not—" Kazuya quickly tried to deny what was being implied before it could cause any misunderstandings, only for him to get cut off by his companion.

"We're lovers!" Chizuru smiled, wrapping her arms around Kazuya's own before leaning into him in a loving manner, showing off the illusion that they were a couple who were shopping together.

It took a few seconds for Kazuya to properly react; he blinked a few times as though he misheard what she said before he stared at her in absolute shock, and he almost wanted to pretend that he didn't hear her right.

However, he knew that his ears weren't playing tricks on him and he really did hear Chizuru say those words about them.

What the hell is she thinking?

Has she gone out of her mind?!

Almost immediately, his expression changed from impassive to furious as any thought of him feeling bad of having to giving Chizuru the cold shoulder was thrown into the back of his mind. Right now, his attention was directed towards demanding answers from the girl he was with.

"Come with me for a sec," he said as he felt a surge of anger rise up from within him. He quickly led Chizuru away from the scene, although it looked more like he was dragging her along with him.

"H-Hey…! Kazuya-kun, you're pulling on my arm so hard! Slow down! Slow down, damn it!"

She complained while feeling confused why Kazuya was started acting like this, but the young man didn't listen and even tightened his grip as a sign of his growing anger.

When they reached the nearest fitting room, the young man pushed her towards the wall and cornered her so that she won't go anywhere.

"What are you doing?!"

Chizuru nearly shouted at him, although she was quickly silenced when he narrowed his eyes at her dangerously. Unable to do anything else, she could only look up at him in a mixture of confusion and fear, flinching at the glare he sent towards her.

"What the hell are you doing? The deal doesn't involve you spreading lies about being my girlfriend," he seethed through gritted teeth, not caring that this young woman was supposed to be his friend.

"Kazuya-kun, you know that it's not real, right? I'm just doing my part as your rental girlfriend, that's all," she chuckled nervously, thinking that there was nothing wrong with what she did.

His lips curled up in a sarcastic smile.

"I know that, and that's why I gave in earlier and let you drag me into this rental girlfriend stuff. But I never said anything about letting you spread lies to everyone else about our relationship!" he retorted, making it clear that he was displeased with what she did.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Chizuru frowned at him in confusion. What Kazuya did caught her off guard and scared her a bit since he cornered her in a secluded place, but now she could breathe normally since he only seemed to be angry about something…

"Is it really a big deal to you? It's not like other people are gonna ask questions about the two of us and how we got together, you know."

Kazuya punched the wall next to her, which nearly caused her to yelp.

"I don't want them to think we are a couple because we are not! Don't you understand?!"

He heightened his voice even further, scaring the girl in her place because she had never seen him like this before. If this had taken place a month ago, Kazuya would be screaming like a girl for hitting a stone wall but he wasn't like what he was back then, so he simply ignored the growing pain in his hand.

Chizuru couldn't help but feel terrified. This was the first time that Kazuya had gotten angry with her, and it was all because she told the saleslady that they were a couple?

However, she wasn't some crybaby who needed saving every time, so she took a deep breath and bit back against Kazuya with her next words.

"Calm down! You're taking this too seriously! I know that we're not a couple, but that's what my job is about! I'm just putting up an act, alright? I thought you knew that already?"

"That is exactly what I hate about this," he narrowed his eyes further before moving away then turning his back on her. "I didn't want to do this in the first place, remember? But you were being persistent and you didn't want to let me go because you said that it's your job, so I just rolled along with it in the end. But at the very least, would you mind keeping your—"

*Ring! Ring! Ring!*

The sound of a phone ringing interrupted Kazuya from his words, so he quickly turned around and reached into his pocket so he could answer the call, temporarily forgetting that Chizuru was behind him.

"Hello?" he asked, holding his phone next to hus ear so he could hear what was being said to him. Almost immediately, his eyes grew wide and he looked terrified. "What?! You can't be serious!"

Chizuru only stared at her companion, surprised at his change in mood once again although she wondered what could have gotten him to look scared all of a sudden.

"Got it! I'm on my way there!"

As soon as he said those words, Kazuya returned his phone into his pocket and began to walk away in a considerably fast pace. It took Chizuru a moment to realize that she was being left behind, before she finally took off and quickly caught up to him.

"Kazuya-kun, did something bad happen?!" she asked, completely forgetting about their little argument just now.

The young man didn't stop walking, although he did choose to answer her question. He didn't look angry with her anymore because his mind was focused on something bigger.

"My grandmother collapsed, so I'm gonna head to the hospital. I apologize for cutting this 'date' short, but my family needs me."

"I'm going with you then," she stated without hesitation, donning a serious look as well.

Kazuya only shook his head in exasperation.

"You don't have to. Go home already."

"Look, I already told you earlier! You paid for my services, so I'm your rental girlfriend for three hours. It's only been like two hours, so you still have time. I can't leave a client until all of his remaining time is used up!" she explained, forgetting the fact that Kazuya wasn't her actual client but rather someone else.

Being reminded of what just happened, earlier, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned to give her another glare, which caused her to halt as well. Chizuru gulped as she seemed nervous of what was he going to do next, only to hear him sigh before rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"Fine! Tag along for all I care, but don't forget what I told you. Don't spread any lies, especially not in front of my family. I won't be as forgiving the next time."

She quickly nodded her head, since it was clear to her that Kazuya was completely worried about something else. Plus, he mentioned his family so it would be for the best to not say anything about being his girlfriend.

There have been several times where she got introduced to a boy's family as the girlfriend, but it never really works out because of her job itself.

"G-Got it…!"

Kazuya stared at her for a few more seconds before dropping his glare, then resigning himself to a long, drawled out, sigh of defeat. He knew that he had lost his composure just now and he took it out on Chizuru. He had no excuse regarding that, but she needed to learn that there is no romantic label in their relationship and it will stay that way.

"Look… I don't want to be angry anymore, alright? Especially not towards you. Just act normal, please?" he asked, his voice becoming a lot calmer than before.

"I understand."

With that, the two continued on their way with a new destination in mind, and that was the hospital. While they were walking, Chizuru couldn't help but wonder what caused Kazuya start screaming at her as if she did something horrible.

It seemed like he was completely aware of what he was doing, but she couldn't figure out what she did wrong. All she did was pretend to be his girlfriend in front of another person, which caused him to snap for some reason. She was basically doing what she's been doing for a few hours now and there's no reason for Kazuya to be angry with her, unless…

"Does he hate rental girlfriends that much that he doesn't want anyone seeing him with one? If that's the case, then… I wonder what made him this way…" she thought, sending a worried look at her companion.

He didn't seem like he hated her, in spite of everything.

Sheesh, Chizuru couldn't keep her mouth shut, could she? Because of that, she made Kazuya mad... good thing he calmed down, though. Let's hope she learns a lesson about making up stuff regarding their relationship, because it would be really bad if she does the same thing in front of his grandma and family... wonder how that encounter would go, by the way?

MINASAN, YONDE KURETE ARIGATŌ! AISHITEMAAAAASUUUUU! *starts playing air guitar*

-Lance