Here I am with a new translated chapter!
If I'm counting correctly, there are only two chapters left to close this first arc of this story.
Before I start, I'd like to answer some reviews:
OppaiDgagoi: I'm so glad you're enjoying this, and I hope you'll continue to love the following chapters as well. Thank you very much for reading.
Golden RCG: I'm surprised to see that it's only a few chapters in and it's already among your favorite fics. I hope the next chapters will also continue to fascinate you. Thank you very much for your words.
With nothing more to add, it's time to get started.
Enjoy!
CHAPTER 4: OPENING YOUR HEART.
The murmur among the students spread throughout the lab. The only group that was completely silent was where Takashi, and the causes were more than obvious.
You only needed to see how Rei was folding her arms while piercing Takashi with her eyes.
Saya didn't even give it a thought, while Hirano looked really uncomfortable because of the situation. Meanwhile, Takashi just kept his hands in his pockets while watching what Saya was doing.
But, even if he tried to hide it, it was obvious that he felt really uncomfortable in the presence of his former best friend, and more than that.
"Don't you guys plan to do anything?" Saya looked at the members of her group with a frown. "Put this stupid tension aside and bring me a pipette and a spherical flask." Ordered the buxom little girl with narrowed eyes.
"What's a pipette?"
"What was the spherical flask?"
"Are you serious?" Saya couldn't help but roll her eyes at Takashi and Hirano's questions. "I could expect it from the idiot who dropped out of classes for three months, but not from you!" Much of her accusation fell on Hirano, who could do nothing but shrink at the menacing appearance of the miniature woman, who, jokingly, was bigger than he was.
The discussion fell into the background as a not at all kind laugh echoed over everyone, causing them to look towards the source of the sound.
"What could one expect from the academy's worthless one?" Rei stated with clear venom in her voice, said venom was directed exclusively towards her former friend.
"I guess you're right. But aren't you going to help her? After all, you were smarter than me." Takashi commented with a bored look, causing the teenager to frown immediately upon noticing that the insult hadn't affected Takashi in the slightest.
"And why should I save someone like you? Don't you even have the decency to leave this group? You just want to take advantage of me and Saya..." Rei hissed in clear disgust.
"If you convince that guy, then I would have no problem leaving the group." Takashi stated as he pointed at the professor, causing Rei to growl under her breath.
"Enough talk. Rei, if you're so good, then continue with the distillation." Saya stated, stepping in between her and Takashi. "I'll take these two fools so they can at least learn how to tell the difference between flasks." Saya didn't even wait for a response from Rei, as she grabbed the men's hand and pulled them with her at once.
Rei only deigned to look at them with a clearly displeased look on her face, an expression that only increased after she focused her gaze on the professor, who gave her a condescending smile.
If you looked closely, he was clearly teasing her.
"The sooner I finish it, the less hassle I'll have to put up with..." She whispered to herself as got down to business.
Saya dragged Takashi and Hirano through much of the test tubes, hoping that minutes would pass, and thus, relax the atmosphere.
"Are you feeling better now?" Saya paused as she fixed her gaze on Takashi.
"I don't know what you mean." Was the protagonist's dry reply.
"Don't play dumb with me. I know perfectly well that you're very upset, no matter how hard you try to hide it." Saya placed a finger on his chest incriminatingly, causing Takashi to turn his face away from facing her.
"You know well that no matter how hard I try, she'll come back to bother me and it's totally unbearable..." Takashi commented, giving a long sigh at the end.
"You're going to listen to me, you hear me?" Saya grabbed him by the shirt tightly, forcing him to look her in the eyes. "I don't plan on losing points in chemistry because of the childish bickering between you two. Besides, you're old enough to get carried away with your emotions."
"I'm only 16..."
"You'll be 17 in three weeks."
"How do you remember that?"
"It's none of your business."
"Anyway, a year's difference doesn't indicate anything. There are people a lot older than me and they can't stand to listen to someone raise their voice a little."
"Those are the excuses of losers."
"I'm not a loser."
"Yes you are."
"I'm not."
"Yes, you are."
"I'm not."
"Yes, you are."
"I am not."
"Yes, you are."
"I am not."
"How about you better fix the misunderstanding?" in some unknown way, Hirano found enough courage to interrupt the discussion.
"Misunderstanding?" both Saya and Takashi turned to him and spoke at the same time, revealing the confusion they felt at the chubby guy's proposal.
"You know, I was thinking it was really weird this whole thing. I mean, I understand the reason for hating Miyamoto-san, but I can't understand her reason for hating you." Those words made Takashi put a hand on his chin while Saya looked at him with interest. "I mean, you're more of the type to withdraw into yourself rather than yell at that person who caused you so much harm. So, this gives me to think that there was something else..." Hirano concluded with some nervousness, as Saya was staring at him very intently.
"How did I not think of that before?" Saya thought with slight surprise that the seemingly dumb fatty had been able to deduce something that she would never have been able to find.
"Well, it's a long story. All in all, it's that professor's fault." Takashi commented, and Saya and Hirano's interest piqued. "Anyway, I'm not sure it's going to work..." Takashi showed his doubts as his gaze deepened, as if he was thinking extremely hard.
" He's not asking you to forgive her. He just wants things to be simpler so it won't bother you so much." Saya commented, then fixing her gaze on Hirano. "Isn't that right, Kota-san?"
"E-exactly!" The chubby boy exclaimed energetically.
Takashi lowered his face, thinking of an answer with utmost care.
"...Very well, I will." A smile appeared on Hirano and Saya's face after hearing him. "I'm not too convinced about this, but I don't want my personal problems to bother my friends." He concluded with a smile, receiving a nod from his two friends.
Just like that, the three of them returned to the rehearsal table, where Rei greeted them with her typical annoyed expression.
"Did it take you that long to learn the names of the flasks?" She asked with a slight smirk.
"We were also talking about other things." Saya commented, then jabbed Takashi with her elbow. "Come on." That simple hint made Rei look at Takashi with some uncertainty.
"Hey, we need to talk about Shido..."
"There's nothing to talk about." Rei interrupted him, her tone sounding much more dangerous than usual.
"Listen..." Takashi couldn't help but give a slight sigh at the end. "I don't know what must have happened between you and that guy, but it sure wasn't anything good. I'm aware that you're really good at chemistry. I only said those stupid things to your parents because I was really angry at those times." Seeing that Rei didn't interrupt him again, he knew he had caught her old friend's interest. "In short, I just want to apologize. I don't want this to affect my friends' performance." Takashi concluded as best he could, as he really had a hard time apologizing.
And Rei seemed to realize that.
Therefore, it was impossible for her to hide that smirk covered in satisfaction that emerged on her face.
"I can't accept your apology, as it's not sincere. But I do agree with leaving discussions for other times. I also don't like the idea of our problems affecting Saya." Hirano noticed instantly that Rei hadn't even considered it, but he cared little.
If they were at least going to put their bickering aside for a moment, then that was more than enough for him.
"Very well." Takashi held out his hand, and though Rei was a bit hesitant at first, in the end she accepted the gesture.
"Put the cheesiness aside and get to work." Saya stated with a slight smile, receiving a quick nod from the two.
Still, the tingling sensation lingered on Rei's skin, who couldn't help but look at her hand with slight confusion. That scene didn't last more than a second, though.
Saya and Hirano noticed this, and both looked at each other out of pure inertia.
The hour passed really fast, and although the tension between Takashi and Rei was still more than palpable, they didn't argue again. In fact, they didn't even say a word to each other. Because of that, added to Hirano and Takashi's lack of knowledge, the group did not function properly, but Saya's great mastery proved to be a huge oasis in a desert planet.
Or in simpler words, she saved their asses in a masterful way.
"I told you there was no need for help." Saya commented, watching as Hirano gave her a hand to arrange all the things they used.
"I know, but somehow I wanted to return the favor." Hirano commented rather sheepishly, causing Saya to roll her eyes.
"If you really want to be useful next time, then study harder." Was the woman's curt reply, something that made Hirano nervous.
That was more than enough for both of them to continue ordering in complete silence. A silence that didn't bother Saya, but Hirano couldn't say the same.
The funny thing about this was that Saya herself was the one who decided to break the silence:
"Did you notice it too?" She asked, putting the last vial back in its place.
"What?" Was the only thing Hirano could think to say, who watched her with great confusion.
"How Rei acted when Takashi touched her hand. A simple touch made her do that look." Saya's comment made Hirano forget his shyness and become serious immediately.
"I could tell that. If you ask me, I'd say she's interested in him, although I think it's a stretch to confirm it having only that clue." Stated the chubby guy confidently. "What I can't understand, is that, if she's still interested in him, why did she do all that in the end?" Hirano's look changed to one shrouded in doubt after that question.
"I had my suspicions for a long time." Saya's answer caught Hirano's interest greatly. "I think Rei is simply a bad person." Those words only made Hirano's interest increase even more.
"What do you mean by that?" They both started walking together towards the exit of the lab.
"She really enjoys rolling around with the best friend of the person who declared love to her and the person she supposedly loves, so I'm only left to think that she has a pretty twisted mind." Saya stated, earning a surprised look from Hirano.
"Does that mean Igo-san is just like her?" He asked with great surprise.
"No, not that guy..." Saya couldn't help but scoff with a slight laugh. "Hisashi is just a stupid womanizer, and that's not something that's a suspicion, it's a fact. I guess he didn't care much about sleeping with Rei for the simple idea that he always thinks more about himself than the harm he can cause to others. With that mentality, I wouldn't be surprised if he dumps Rei when he gets the chance to fuck another prettier girl." Saya commented with a slight sigh as she grabbed the door handle. "So no, I don't think Hisashi is a bad guy, he's just a jerk."
With those final words, they both walked out of the lab, and the first thing they saw was Takashi's empty stare. They didn't have to speculate much about what was going on, as Rei and Hisashi were making out with a lot of momentum between the students.
But before either of the two of them went to comfort their friend, murmurs suddenly settled among the students and the silky violet hair caught everyone's attention, especially Takashi's.
He couldn't even react when someone suddenly hugged him, and the distinct scent of coconut and jasmine settled in his nostrils.
"Takashi!" Saeko exclaimed his name with joy as she hugged him even tighter, and it was at that moment that the protagonist was finally able to react.
"Saeko...?" Takashi was barely able to say her name, but he still responded the hug out of pure instinct.
"I thought you didn't come today, but it turns out you were at the lab." Saeko commented, pulling away to get a better look at him.
"That's right, I forgot to tell you." Takashi commented as he started rubbing his hair.
"I guess there's nothing to worry about now." Hirano thought aloud as he folded his arms, watching the couple-to-be with a smile he couldn't hide.
Unlike him, Saya was much more serious than usual. That seriousness was due to the various looks of hatred and envy Takashi and Saeko were receiving.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that..." Saya whispered under her breath with concern as she saw how Eiji and his colleagues were chattering under their breath.
"So how did you do in chemistry class? We hadn't even been introduced to the knowledge of practical classes yet." Saeko commented with slight concern as she subtly dragged Takashi to leave Rei and Hisashi behind.
It was obvious that she had seen everything.
Oblivious to the silent help, Takashi could only continue to rub his hair, though this time he was clearly nervous.
"To be honest, if it hadn't been for Saya then I would have been completely lost..."
"In that case, I guess we'll have to focus on that today."
"Are you coming today as well?"
"Since it's Friday, I'd like to enjoy more time with you.."
Meanwhile, Saya and Hirano's suspicions made even more sense, you only needed to look at the annoyed look on Rei's face right now. But, this time, that annoyance was directed exclusively at Saeko.
In that way the hours passed, until the classes came to an end. And, although Saeko helped him to forget, the truth is that Takashi was still not completely comfortable.
And of course, his discomfort always had to do with Rei. But, on this occasion, he was going to make sure to settle that issue, and right now he had the perfect opportunity.
Said opportunity was right in front of his eyes, where Rei was happily talking along with her mother, who had apparently come to pick her up.
"Sorry to interrupt, Miss Kiriko." Takashi gave a slight bow after stepping into the conversation, startling both women a bit.
"Oh, Takashi-san, I haven't seen you in a while! How are your grades going?" Kiriko commented with a half-smile, patting him on his head a couple of times.
"Well...I'm fine..." Takashi replied with a roll of his eyes, as he had forgotten about the personality so characteristic of Rei's mother. "I wanted to discuss an important topic with you..."
"What do you want to talk to my mother about? Are you going to tell her another lie?" Rei interrupted him, though her mother stifled her practically instantly as she gave her head a hard smack.
"What's with that way of talking to your friends?! Have some manners!" Kiriko exclaimed accusingly, causing her daughter to lower her gaze guiltily.
"I'm sorry..." She whispered under her breath as she looked away, appearing unwilling to make eye contact with Takashi.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" Kiriko moved a little closer to Takashi, her half smile returning to her face.
"It's about the Shido thing." The smile on Kiriko's face disappeared and Rei looked at him with slightly widened eyes. "I lied about that, I don't think your daughter recurred the year just with the intention of being able to course alongside Hisashi." Rei's eyes widened to a huge extent and her mother watched in much more measured surprise. "I really think there is something much deeper to this, something that only your daughter understands and probably already told you. I can tell you it wasn't an excuse. It's probably something very far-fetched, but Rei is not someone who lies. I know more than anyone how a lot of people in this academy act, and it wouldn't seem strange to me that Shido is using his father's high political influence to do not very legal things in Fujimi." Takashi concluded with complete seriousness.
"Are you aware of what you are saying? It's a very serious accusation." Kiriko had no choice but to become serious after what she heard. "I and my husband are cops, we could investigate the case. But..." Kiriko took a step forward, her eyes narrowed and the relaxed atmosphere turned into a very suffocating one. "How do I know you're not just doing this to defend my daughter's honor?"
"Believe me, that's what I'm least interested in right now." Takashi's blunt and immediate answer made Kiriko a little surprised. "I just wanted to apologize, since I told you a lie because I was upset with Rei."
"You were upset with her?"
"It's something personal, mom."
"She's right."
Kiriko looked between Rei and Takashi for a short second, then gave a slight sigh.
"Alright, I guess I can talk to my husband about this, but baseless accusations won't be taken by the police force. Anyway, thank you for telling me the truth." The woman concluded, giving him a toothy half-smile at the end. "You should come home more often! It's been a long time since you've been here!"
"I'm sorry, but it's not something I can promise."
"No?" Kiriko observed Takashi with great confusion after his immediate and solemn answer.
"Now, if you'll excuse me..." Takashi gave a nod to take his leave of the women, receiving an awkward nod from Rei's mother.
"Hey, what was that you did?" Kiriko watched her daughter with some suspicion, as it wasn't hard to notice the apathy Takashi conveyed when talking about Rei.
"I'll catch up with you now, mother!" Rei exclaimed as she ran after Takashi.
"Hey...!" Kiriko tried to stop her, but all she could do in the end is pat her face to give a big sigh.
"Takashi-kun!" Takashi's eye got an immediate twitch after hearing who was calling him, though what really bothered him was the affectionate suffix she had used on him.
"What do you want?" Takashi turned his gaze to face Rei, who was watching him with a smile.
"I just wanted to thank you. My mother and father had been teasing me a lot about this, and I know it must take courage to tell the truth, especially when dealing with two cops." Rei laughed at the end, and Takashi didn't find the humor in any of it.
"I just did what I had to do." The protagonist commented, then continued on his way.
"Wait!" Or so he had originally planned, since she stopped him again. "Really, thanks. If you need to talk about anything..."
"There's nothing to talk about." Takashi interrupted her, giving her an emotionless look that made her pale. "That's what you told me in the lab, and I believe it too."
"But we've been friends for so long! We can talk about this! Or is this misunderstanding enough to break years of friendship?!"
"This misunderstanding? I don't know what you're talking about, whatever we had was already broken even longer ago." Takashi replied with utter coldness, causing Rei's eyes to widen in horror.
"But...!"
"We are no longer partners, no longer friends, no longer absolutely nothing. Just simple strangers who share the same place and year where they study." Takashi interrupted her to give his final verdict, leaving Rei completely paralyzed.
Finally, Takashi took a step to the side and kept walking without even looking at her.
"I only apologized because it's the only thing that still held us together. Now we can each go our own way. It's best for both of us."
"IT'S NOT BEST FOR ME!" Shouted Rei on the verge of tears.
"You're right, it's only better for me." Takashi turned his face to look at her once more, watching those small tears threatening to roll down her cheeks.
The protagonist turned his gaze to the front, watching the cloudy sky that was slowly clearing. That caused a faint smile to emerge on his face.
"I've never been selfish in my life, but I have no qualms about being selfish now either." Takashi retraced his steps without even looking at her.
"Goodbye."
Those last words caused Rei's tears to begin to fall without stopping. And as if her suffering wasn't already great enough, she had no choice but to watch silently and with an uncontrollable amount of jealousy as Saeko joined his walk shortly after.
"Hey, wait for me!" Hirano walked past Rei, seemingly oblivious to how she silently cried.
Finally, the chubby guy landed next to Takashi, and the trio began to talk happily.
Takashi was happy.
Takashi was smiling.
A smile she could never enjoy again.
"That was a very good speech you gave her. I would never have thought, let alone dared to answer like that." Hirano commented with some admiration, earning an embarrassed blush from Takashi.
"Wait a minute, how much did you hear?" Commented the protagonist with clear sorrow in his tone.
"Almost from the beginning. I'm glad to hear you're over her now." Saeko commented with a smile, which made Takashi turn serious again.
"It's not that I'm over her, I just cut any ties I had with her. It's not easy to stop loving overnight, especially when we're talking about so many years..." Takashi wasn't able to hide his sadness, but he still smiled again.
"Anyway, I think this is a big step."
Saeko and Hirano just watched him with a smile, seeing how their best friend moved forward and forward no matter how much pain he was feeling.
Undoubtedly, that pain would diminish to a great extent from now on.
Especially if such a special and beautiful woman was still by his side.
After Takashi and Saeko lunched together, study time began practically instantly. Still, Takashi's constant boredom and Saeko's incessant interest in every question he asked kept them both distracted from the main focus.
After a few hours Hirano arrived to help, but the result was the same, and even worse. But the last conversation certainly caught Saeko and Hirano's interest a lot.
"Now that I remember, Takagi-san had said that you were turning 17 in 3 weeks." Those words made Saeko abandon her reading of the science book to look at the chubby boy with utmost curiosity. "Do you plan to do anything?"
"Hum, not really. Last year I was only with my parents, but I guess this year they won't be able to be because of work issues. I guess I won't be doing anything." He concluded with a tilt of his shoulders, indicating that he didn't really care either.
"Man, don't say that! You can't spend your birthday alone!" Hirano exclaimed with widened eyes, as he was truly amazed that his friend cared little for such an important date.
"Hirano is right." This time it was Saeko who spoke. "If you want, we can spend the day with you. You have a nice yard, we could even have a sleepover."
"But I don't have any of that at my house..." Takashi commented as he rubbed his hair.
"Leave it to me!" Hirano exclaimed decisively.
"Okay." Takashi replied with a slight smile as he noticed the great concern presented by his new and so precious friends.
"Speaking of Takagi-san, how come she knows your birthday? You also mentioned that she was the one who saved you in the chemistry group. I know she's the most promising student in your year, but I didn't expect you two to meet." Saeko commented very curiously.
"She is a childhood friend. She's very strict, but she's definitely a very good person." Takashi commented with a smile, though that smile changed instantly after realizing a really crucial point.
Saeko and Hirano couldn't help but look at him with great confusion the moment he suddenly stood up.
"What if we ask her to join our study group?" Takashi's question made Saeko and Hirano look at each other.
"Takagi-san is a mastermind when we talk about teaching and studying. If she wants to help us, I'm sure we can all learn a lot of things." Saeko commented with a smile, being accompanied by a quick nod from Hirano.
"Alright, just let me call her." Takashi reached for his cell phone, and dialed his friend's contact immediately.
Saya was reading a romance book in her bedroom while holding a big blush on her face.
"If only Takashi-kun would do these things to me..." She whispered to herself and her blush intensified even more at what she was imagining.
And, as if she had called out to him mentally, her cell phone dialed his name.
It was curious to note how the contact name was actually "idiot".
"Takashi? It's weird that you're calling me." Saya closed the book instantly, and that blush disappeared from her face.
"I know. I'll get straight to the point." Takashi commented, causing Saya to become a little serious. "Could you help me with my studies?"
A faint smile crept across the busty midget's lips after hearing him.
"You were already taking too long asking me. I'll be there in an hour."
Once she arrived, Saya introduced herself and Saeko. Although the taller woman seemed happy to be able to meet another potential friend, the truth was that Saya looked at her with some suspicion.
After all, she was at Takashi's house and she didn't even know it.
How long had those two been meeting without her noticing?
One way or another, the study group evolved in a surprising way. Now Saya was in charge, and she didn't allow anyone to be distracted for a single second. There were no breaks, let alone chats that had nothing to do with the study. Saya was in charge of teaching everyone, even her knowledge was much more amazing than Takashi thought, as she even took care of explaining to perfection little things that Saeko didn't understand.
Basically her level of intelligence and knowledge was so high that it surpassed the Ice Queen of the Academy, something unheard of, especially when you consider that she was a year younger.
In the end, Takashi made real progress, and the night came on that day. Both Hirano and Saya said their goodbyes, though the latter was barely able to hide her jealousy upon learning that Saeko would be staying for dinner at Takashi's house.
Good thing she didn't know that she would also be staying over, otherwise it would have created a barrage of questions that would have made both Takashi and Saeko very uncomfortable.
Unfortunately, Hirano was the one who had to endure all of Saya's questions once they left the house. Even after so much questioning he himself began to suspect that maybe, just maybe, Saeko was more interested and curious about Takashi than she really appeared.
"Your friend is a bit more temperamental than you described." Saeko commented with a bit of amusement as she curled up on the marriage bed, to the point where only her face could be seen.
"What can I say? That's just the way she is." Takashi chuckled a little as he knelt down in front of the bed, and Saeko responded in her own way as she widened her smile. "Didn't you forget to bring clothes to change into? Remember the first time you slept here you had to rush home so you wouldn't be late for the academy." He commented with much amusement.
"I'll never make the same mistake again. Besides, that was your fault." She commented with her eyes slightly narrowed.
That, and the fact that she had covered half of her face with the blankets gave her a more than divine look.
"Now it's my fault?" Takashi pulled back the sheets a bit so he could see her full face, watching as a mischievous grin shot up from Saeko.
"Who was the one who was so insistent on me staying?"
"Ya, I guess you're right." They both laughed after that little friendly discussion, but their moment was interrupted when Saeko's cell phone began to vibrate.
She observed the name and her eyes widened a little. Her smile was not long in coming, something that caught Takashi's curiosity a little.
Saeko pulled the cell phone away from her face a little and answered the video call.
"Hi, dad." Those two simple words surprised Takashi completely.
"How is my cute little princess?" Ryoma brought his face closer to the camera in an excessive way, which made him look quite funny.
"Dad, I already told you not to call me that!" Saeko couldn't control her voice and the slight blush that furrowed across her cheeks.
"Huh? Why not,? Where are you? That's not your bed." Ryoma's paternal instinct kicked in practically at the second after noticing that the sheets and the setting wasn't something that was in his home in Japan.
"I'm at a friend's house. Say hello to Takashi Komuro." Saeko pointed her cell phone at the protagonist, and he didn't know what to say.
It was only natural, since he was in front of one of Japan's biggest stars. Besides, that scar running across his left eye, his long messy dark hair and the fierce look he held on his face paralyzed him.
"It's-it's a pleasure, Mr. Busujima!" Takashi replied awkwardly as he gave a rather stilted bow.
Ryoma put a hand to his chin and hummed to himself.
"Hey, Sao-chan..." Saeko had no choice but to blush again in embarrassment, since her father had used that affectionate nickname without even asking her.
"What's wrong?" His daughter appeared on the camera, where both Takashi and her were looking together.
Ryoma started rubbing his chin as he watched them without saying a word, so Takashi and Saeko couldn't help but look at each other with great confusion.
"Did you two use condoms?"
The very sudden question completely threw Takashi off.
"DAD!"
Meanwhile, Saeko had no choice but to blush to death.
"Muahahaaha, relax, it was just a joke!" Ryoma shouted in uncontrollable laughter. "I mean, if you're friends, I guess you don't have that kind of relationship." Concluded the father much more matter-of-factly, then cleared his throat. "By the way, how do I know I can trust you, Komuro-san?" Ryoma's always cheerful tone turned into a dagger that seemed about to stab Takashi's windpipe, so he couldn't help but freeze completely.
"Don't worry, father." To his luck, Saeko jumped to his help. "Takashi is a very good person." She concluded with a sweet smile on her face.
Seeing his daughter smile so radiantly, Ryoma decided to let his guard down.
"If you say so, my daughter..." He commented at the end with some hesitation, but still his smile was back in force. "Then, I won't interrupt you anymore. Enjoy your evening." He concluded, giving a quick wave that was answered by his daughter.
At that moment, a somewhat awkward silence arose between Takashi and Saeko.
"It seems-it seems your father doesn't trust me much..." Takashi wanted to break the ice, laughing with great nervousness at the end.
"It's not your fault." Saeko commented calmly. "As I told you before, I had some female friends who were only interested in being close to a superstar like my father is. When I found out about that, it was really painful, and my father started to take my relationships with a lot more precautions so that I wouldn't get hurt again..." Saeko couldn't finish her speech, as her eyes widened beyond measure as she felt Takashi squeeze her hand to comfort her.
"Don't worry, I would never do something like that to you." He commented with a smile that relaxed her quite a bit.
Though she never in a million years expected the following:
"Because, next to my mother, you are the most important woman in my life."
Saeko brought a hand to her chest unconsciously as she felt her body quicken from one moment to the next. Her bewilderment took effect as did the huge blush that tinged her cheeks. Every breath she took was a sea of feelings so gripping and sensitive that it would move anyone.
She didn't know it, but she was falling in love.
Takashi didn't know it either, and his tactlessness showed up almost immediately as he noticed how Saeko stared at him endlessly with that shocked expression.
"Maybe I overreacted a little?"
Saeko finally reacted after hearing those words, and she let herself be carried away by those overflowing emotions that warmed her body so much, especially, her chest.
That act made her approach Takashi, regardless of the fact that the sheets fell down and her purple bra was presented along with her large cleavage, something that undoubtedly made the boy blush.
That blush only increased when he was hugged surprisingly by her.
But, as he felt Saeko's warmth and his heartbeat accelerated, that nervousness was put aside. A faint smile emerged on his face and he responded to the embrace without any embarrassment.
Saeko's eyes closed tightly and her heart raced even faster after noticing how he hugged her back.
Finally, she clung even tighter to his body before saying a few last words:
"I love you too."
END OF CHAPTER!
I hope you enjoyed it!
And yes, there were certain changes in Rei and Shido's story to fit more to what I want to develop. Although, to be honest, Shido is still the same son of a bitch he's always been.
Initially I thought about closing it with another scene, but the truth is that, if I did that, the chapter would be too long, and, taking advantage of the fact that the next one might be quite short, I decided to move it all to the end of the arc. That way, I think the next chapter will be as long as it is complete.
Remember to follow me on Patre-on to keep up with everything. Just look for me as "Jyanzein". You can also become a paying member to order a double chapter of this story if you want it (or any other one that's still in development).
Thank you very much for reading!