"Thanks once again, Mami-chan " , Kibe typed out before closing Line and putting his phone away .
He sat down as he thought about what Mami had told him and for the first time in a few days , he smiled, genuinely relieved .
For the first time his plan didn't seem insane . Mami had assured him that there was nothing wrong with what he wanted to do and had encouraged him to go for it . And despite everything she insisted on taking no credit , instead telling him to just "assume that I hadn't even said anything " , reminding him that it was all his idea .
"Man , Mami-chan is a really nice person .
I can't believe I used to think badly of her when she broke up with Kazuya ", Kibe reflected with a guilty smile.
He then focused on the advice she'd given , specifically about how to tell Kazuya and Kuri That had been what Kibe was most worried about , even more than the plan , the act itself .
Mami's suggestion had solved that . She'd advised him to be firm when he told his friends what he was going to do , to make it clear that he wasn't going to be talked out of it and that had certainly lightened Kibe's load .
"Well then ", he declared out loud .
"Let's get started " .
"Thanks once again, Mami-chan " ,
Mami's lips curved into that fearsome cunning smile of hers as she read Kibe's last message.
"Too easy ", she whispered while typing back a "no problem, see you soon " .
She hadn't known what to expect when Kibe had messaged her but this... she could barely believe her luck . Her eyes had nearly popped out as she read and re-read every word that Kibe had typed as he unknowingly laid out a plan that even Mami herself hadn't thought of yet .
Of course it was a plan that she couldn't carry out anyway, it needed a patsy .
And Kibe had unknowingly become just that .
It was indeed a delightful plan
One that would certainly make a dangerous situation even more volatile.
One that would certainly stir up trouble in the life of a certain person Mami absolutely hated .
Yes , truly a wonderful plan.
"Unless you're little Miss Perfect, of course ", Mami chuckled.
She read Kibe's texts again and found herself marveling at the irony , at the words and sentiments that were so similar to Kazuya's .
As always her heart softened ever so slightly as the ghost of his smile flashed in her mind .
And as always the very next second , she burned with rage as she remembered that woman, the puppet master pulling his strings , making him dance on her palm .
A jolt of the car diverted Mami's attention towards the window at the sight of the unfamiliar buildings and skyline, the city she hadn't been to before.
She had always hated her father's business trips, disguised in the cloak of a holiday where she would be taken to these meetings , not to contribute to the discussions but to project the image her father so desperately wanted .
The perfect father with the perfect daughter , running the perfect business .
A deal that no one could refuse .
But this time she'd been glad to get away , they had left Tokyo barely a few days after her meeting with Kazuya on that Christmas morning , where she had poured what she'd assumed to be the last drops of fuel needed to burn that fake relationship to the ground.
However Mami had never dreamed that she would be at odds with herself , torn with waves of guilt and worry , crashing into her along with the broken bitterness she lived her every day with .
She just couldn't help being afraid of how burnt Kazuya would be.
And so the trip had been a welcome distraction, a chance to refocus , to redirect her hatred and to rid herself of her doubts .
And once she'd reevaluated, Mami had to admit that there was a chance that her plan hadn't worked , that they would still be together , not because her plan had failed but maybe because it hadn't come to fruition yet , a hypothesis helped by a text exchange with Kinoshita Nagomi where she'd mentioned that she was away with relatives.
Of course Mami had been careful not to ask about Kazuya, determined to not be associated with him in any way.
And so Mami had used the time to prepare to craft her next step . Just in case , she'd told herself when she started planning but now she was fully prepared for the eventuality that Kazuya was still in that woman's clutches, that she continued to play with him and his family.
And then this golden ticket had landed in lap , an opportunity too good to pass up , a chance to strike without the smallest risk of being connected to it .
"All things said and done, assuming my plan hasn't worked yet , this thing with Kibe-chan
shouldn't change anything between Kazu-kun and that woman ", Mami admitted.
"But ", the smile slithered across her cheeks once again,
"This will certainly cause some fireworks.
Right in time for me to watch them "
The mention of them brought back the twin emotions for Mami , the guilt and the hatred , the strings of, what she could barely deny was, affection and the ropes of rage .
That cold lifeless stare of hers was transfixed on her face as Mami stretched out her hand and whispered ,
"Ichinose Chizuru or Mizuhara Chizuru or whatever you call yourself .
You think you're in absolute control, don't you ?
You couldn't be more mistaken ".
The Next Morning,
"It's so unfair you have a free day ", Kazuya grumbled .
"You have one tomorrow. And you only have morning classes today ", Chizuru reminded him .
They were walking together, Kazuya headed to Uni , Chizuru towards the nearest coffee shop .
Kazuya watched her pensively before as he'd expected, she yawned . Again .
"So you had a late night again ? ", he asked.
Chizuru nodded without a trace of guilt which didn't please Kazuya too much , as she replied.
"Yeah , I sorted through a bunch of job ads last night but there's still plenty more to go through.
I'm just taking a break to eat before I continue "
"Come on ", Kazuya thought to himself.
"This is way too much , right ? She has to slow down a bit . Even if she's desperate to get a job , she doesn't have to go this far ".
Kazuya opened his mouth to voice his complaints but the memory of her anger last night flashed through him and he couldn't help second guessing himself .
He debated it internally for a couple of minutes before casually asking her ,
"So what are your plans for the rest of the day ?"
Chizuru frowned as she thought about it and then answered ,
"Nothing special really , I'll keep looking through the job sites till my acting class in the afternoon, then come back and continue.
"That sounds hectic ", Kazuya commented before asking ,
"Nothing fun planned ? "
"No", she replied .
"I figured I might as well take advantage of today, we're going to be apart basically all day ".
"Huh ? Why ? ", Kazuya asked .
"Remember, you're going out with Kibe-kun and Kuri-kun tonight?"
Kazuya nodded and Chizuru continued,
"The timing is terrible for us today , you're gone now and I'll be out by the time you get back and I'll be back just before you leave again
"Yeah the timing sucks ", Kazuya agreed ,
"It's been like this for a couple of weeks too ", he added
"But we're definitely getting away this weekend, right? ", Chizuru asked .
"For sure , I already told my boss. He's cool with me taking off the whole weekend.
"Oooh , I can't wait ! ", Chizuru exclaimed, stretching her arms as she yawned once again .
All was fine for a few seconds.
And then Chizuru added ,
"I hope I get a job by then " .
Once again , Kazuya was filled with uneasiness .
After a few seconds , Kazuya tentatively asked ,
"Hey , maybe I should cancel on Kibe ? You seem tired and I could help you with dinner and stuff .
I feel kinda bad leaving you alone with a pile of work ".
"Don't worry , I'll be fine ", she replied in a blunt tone that didn't particularly reassure Kazuya.
Chizuru then smiled at him before telling him ,
"Just go get drunk with your dumb friends and have a good time okay ? "
Somehow that smile of hers did reassure Kazuya , while it didn't dissipate his worries , it did push them away , far enough. For now .
"Alright ", Kazuya relented.
The day flew by and before he knew it , it was almost time for Kazuya to leave .
He checked himself in the mirror once again before leaving the apartment.
He paused on the landing for a while , gazing out as far as he could see , hoping that he could see a glimpse of his girlfriend before he left .
After a few minutes, he sighed and walked down the stairs, glancing again at the message that Chizuru had sent him about twenty minutes back .
"Hey my class is running late so I'll probably get back only after you leave .
Have a fun night.
See you tomorrow. "
He walked slowly to the bus stop and hardly had to wait two minutes before a bus came rolling in .
Kazuya got into the bus , took his seat and allowed his thoughts to drift away .
He was not surprised at where his thoughts landed .
In fact , he could not really claim that his thoughts had "drifted" . After all they were almost always centered on Chizuru .
He was genuinely worried about her . He just wasn't convinced that her insistence to go it alone was the right call . He was worried that she was overdoing it with the late nights added to her usual heavy workload .
To be honest, he was a little annoyed at her too . Annoyed at her stubbornness, at her refusal to accept his help .
He knew that there was some things that she would not talk about , some things she would refuse to compromise on and that this was definitely one of those things .
But still... he wanted to help . No, he needed to help.
"Is there anything wrong with that ?", he asked himself
" She's my precious girlfriend. I love her .
What's wrong with worrying about her ? What's wrong with wanting to help her ? What's wrong with telling her when I think she's making a mistake ".
Kazuya knew that there was nothing wrong with his feelings. But that was not what troubled him .
He was worried because he couldn't help her . He was worried because he didn't even know how to voice his concerns . He'd tried and been shut down and now he didn't know what to do and was worried.
Most of all he was worried about what would happen to Chizuru if she took on too heavy of a burden .
His phone buzzed , interrupting his thoughts.
It was a text from Kuri .
"You close ? "
They'd arranged to meet up a bit earlier, so that they could talk face to face before joining up with Kibe .
Kazuya glanced out the window before answering ,
"Five minutes ".
Four minutes later, Kazuya stepped out of the bus and saw his friend waiting , leaning against the bus stop .
"Hey man ", Kazuya greeted Kuri as he walked up to him.
"Hey ", Kuri replied in a tone that was much more relaxed than Kazuya had expected.
They walked in silence for a few minutes before Kazuya took the initiative,
"Listen I'm sorry for not telling you about Chizuru before , especially because you've kept our secret for so long but I... "
"Look , man ", Kuri interrupted.
"I get it okay ? I totally understand what you did .
Like you said I knew the truth about you two , that's exactly why I get why you didn't tell me . It's not like it's an easy thing to come out and say ,
The girl I've been renting to go on dates with me is now my real girlfriend.
I mean , come on, it sounds ridiculous. Impossible even .
Don't take it the wrong way though , I'm really . happy for you . You're my best friend , of course I'm happy you got an amazing girlfriend ".
Kuri paused for a second and Kazuya sensing his feelings, asked ,
"But ? "
Kuri glanced at him , sighing out loud before replying ,
"But I still felt ... I still am ... insanely jealous of you .
It's not like I want ... her or anything But ... a girl like that ...
It was one thing to see you two outside together but ... I don't know man , seeing her at your place , seeing how cool and happy you are together ... it just felt .. totally different.
It just felt...bad in a whole different sense . It just made me feel really lonely . It made me want to have a girlfriend , more badly then I've ever done in my life .
I even ... "
Kuri's voice trailed off before he admitted,
"I even considered... renting ... again.
Not Ruka-chan of course , but I nearly rented another girl..
But in the end ... I remembered the mess I got into the last time I reacted without thinking , all that trouble I caused for you and Chizuru-san and Ruka-chan.
So I just gave up and let myself mope around for a couple of days . "
"So now you're okay ? ", Kazuya asked.
"Hell no , I'm just about stopping myself from punching you in your stupid face , you stupid lucky bastard ", Kuri replied only half-joking .
Kazuya laughed as the two friends felt the little ice in their friendship start to melt away.
"Seriously , how the hell did you manage this? ", Kuri asked .
"As if I know ", Kazuya replied.
"She says all this stuff about how amazing I am and how happy she is when we're together and how lucky she is .
But I don't get it , man . Sometimes I even ask myself if she's talking about someone else . And when I realize that she is , it's just ... incred.."
Kazuya's voice trailed off as he caught the expression on Kuri's face and he hastily apologized,
"Sorry , man . I wasn't thinking properly ".
"Don't feel sorry for me , you idiot ", Kuri replied.
"That'll just make me feel worse ".
"Sor..", Kazuya started to say before stopping himself.
"Besides ", Kuri added .
"If a girl like that is your girlfriend... of course it'd be incredible
Who could think properly like that ? "
"I know , right? ", Kazuya replied grinning .
"Sometimes , I say something incredibly stupid but and I start worrying if I've messed up but she just laughs at me ".
Kuri smiled , smacked Kazuya's back and told him ,
"At this point its safe to say that Chizuru-san knows that you're a dumbass ".
Kazuya nodded in total agreement and the two friends shared another laugh .
The ice was completely gone now ,their friendship reignited .
As they continued to walk , once again Kazuya's mind dwelled on Chizuru but this time he smiled as he thought to himself,
"I'd forgotten how amazing she is .
I can't believe I had to talk to Kuri to remember how amazing she is .
She's so capable and hard working and determined and talented .
She's an unstoppable force .
I was right earlier, I wasn't wrong for worrying about her.
But maybe I'd forgotten to trust her ".
Kazuya glanced back for a second, imagining Chizuru at her apartment as he thought,
"Chizuru , I'm sure you'll get an amazing job soon"
It was then that he realized that he hadn't told her that .
"How could I forget? ", Kazuya wondered.
"This is what she looks to me for , this is what she depends on me for .
I always encourage her , I always support her , I'm the one who always believes in her ".
He quickly whipped out his phone , opened her chat window and typed ,
"Good luck for the job-hunting.
I'm sure you'll find an amazing job soon .
See you tomorrow ".
He watched as the read reciept appeared below his message.
He smiled happily at the smiley face emoji she'd replied with , that he knew could not contain even the smallest ounce of Chizuru's delight.
"So ..", Kuri asked .
"Any chance Chizuru-san has some hot friends I could meet ? "
"Yeah ", Kazuya replied sarcastically
"The ones who'll go out with you are all on an app . Want me to send you the link ? "
Soon they were at the pre-arranged meeting place, a bar that the three of them regularly frequented .
Kazuya and Kuri went inside and found Kibe at the corner table , already piled with beer and food.
As Kazuya sat down , his worries now melted away , he felt quite excited .
It had been a while since he had a night out and he was determined to enjoy it .
They boys chugged down their first mugs of beer before even exchanging greetings . In fact it was only after draining half of his third that Kazuya spoke ,
"So what's happening man ? "
It was then that he noticed Kibe's pensive expression, unchanging as he finished off his second glass.
Kazuya glanced at Kuri who seemed equally surprised at Kibe .
"Hey , is everything okay Kibe ? ", Kuri asked.
Kibe was silent for a few more seconds before he spoke,
"Look guys , I have to talk to you about something ".
"Okay , what ? ", Kazuya asked .
Kibe seemed to hesitate before replying,
"I need you both to swear that you aren't going to breathe even a word of this to anyone . ".
"Huh ? Why ? You know you can trust us ", a confused Kuri responded .
Kazuya frowned for a couple of seconds and then the frown(aided by the beer ) turned into a slightly unfocused grin as he asked ,
"Man , is this about another one of those weird ads for hair growth that you keep getting taken in by ? "
"Haha ", Kuri exploded , clearly starting to feel the effect of the beer himself.
"Remember that shady hair transplant..."
"Shut up you two " .
Kazuya felt his tongue freeze not because of Kibe's words, rather his tone which conveyed a deadly seriousness.
"What's this about ? ", Kuri asked , his laugh fading as the air grew sharp with tension .
"Swear that you won't talk about this. To anyone", Kibe repeated.
"Okay fine . We swear ", Kazuya promised.
"Now tell us " .
Kibe paused , the silence only adding to the tension which soon brought fear with it .
He then spoke . Clearly and Firmly, Kibe spoke. Or rather stated .
Kibe stated his intentions , his desire , what he was going to do .
The half-filled glass of beer fell from the hands of a shocked Kazuya, sending shards of glass and beer splashing everywhere .
An overcome Kazuya could only stare at Kibe, motionless, his eyes widened in disbelief , unable to belive what he had just heard his closest and oldest friend say .
But his dazed mind could only play those words again and again , torturing him with it , forcing him to admit that Kibe had said those words.
Kibe had said ...
"I'm going to ask Ichinose to be my girlfriend" .
A/N : A shocking twist to end this chapter, one that hopefully caught many of you by surprise.
One point that I wanted to highlight here is that much of what Kuri and Kibe feels in the aftermath of seeing Chizuru at Kazuya's apartment , is very similar. However Kuri, aided by past experience, stops himself while Kibe sets foot on a dangerous path , guided, of course ,by Mami .
Tune in next week to see how this affects Kazuya's and Chizuru's relationship.
Next time : The cost of friendship.