Naruto sighed in exhaustion. The work was getting harder as the days went by. In exchange for taking a vacation, he had to stay late to do the general cleaning for over a year. This reminded him of when he used to do the same thing during the café's first few months of operation. Sasuke not only let him paint the entire place in dark orange but also allowed him to choose the name. In return, he had to do the general cleaning for about a year and a half. Even so, Sasuke was quite flexible and sometimes helped him out.

Leaning back in a chair, Naruto took a sip of coffee and grabbed some cookies that hadn't yet gone stale. It was already 9:00 PM. He had planned to visit his kids, but by now, they were probably asleep. He would just finish eating and go home to sleep. Tomorrow, he'd try to visit during lunch.

Sometimes he regretted giving up smoking, but he knew it would be better for everyone if he quit that bad habit. After all, he now had a place he wanted to return to, without reeking of tobacco.

The sound of the bell on the door made him turn his head and see a familiar head of purple hair.

—"Ai! What are you doing here?"— Naruto asked when he saw the girl wearing a cap and sunglasses.

—"Can't I come to my favorite café?"— Ai joked lightly.

—"It's not that. It's just… shouldn't you be taking care of the babies?"

—"Don't worry about that. I asked Miyako to help. I didn't see you all day, so I decided to visit you like I used to" —Ai said, sitting down at Naruto's table.

She took off her sunglasses and cap, letting her purple hair fall freely.

—"Feels like yesterday when I came here at this same hour, thinking it was open"— Ai chuckled at the memory.

—"I remember that. I gave you some cookies to make you leave, but you decided to stay and keep me company. That was the first time I truly met you."

Ai gave a confused look.

—"If I remember correctly, we met when I first came to your café. That night happened almost a month later"— Ai scratched her cheek.

—"I only knew your name; after that, you were a complete stranger to me. A name is useless without memories tied to it. When we first spoke so freely, I felt like that was the moment I really met you. I thought it would be a unique moment, one that wouldn't be repeated. But surprise! It almost became a tradition for you to visit my café at night."

Ai grabbed a cookie from Naruto's plate.

—"I liked talking with you, and I think I was mesmerized by how freely you spoke to me. That's why I always came back at night—because in the mornings, I couldn't get your full attention. That, and the free cookies you gave me."

—"Freeloader"— Naruto said, a faint smile spreading across his face.

—"I was really sad yesterday when I came home and saw you were already gone"— Ai made a face of displeasure.

—"Sasuke was already demanding I return. I spent nearly half a year by your side: three months of your pregnancy and three months taking care of the babies while living in your house. The teme was about to hop on a train to find me somewhere I wasn't."

Ai sighed, annoyed.

—"You could have at least made dinner. I got used to eating your meals every day."

—"I don't think I'll be able to do that anytime soon. I still have a long way to go to pay off my debt to the teme. In the meantime, you'll have to manage without my delicious cooking"— Naruto said in a tone that hinted at superiority.

—"Show-off. You're teasing me because I can't cook"— Ai crossed her arms, slightly annoyed.

—"I'm not teasing. Maybe on the weekends, I can teach you how to cook. I don't think I'll have much time from now on. But I'll try to spend as much time with the babies as I can!"— Naruto clenched his fist in determination. "That's a promise!"

Ai just smiled. Naruto took another sip from his coffee cup.

—"Naruto. Are you still smoking?"— Ai suddenly asked.

Naruto choked on his coffee at Ai's sudden question.

—"Why ask that out of the blue?"

—"When I came to your café at night, I saw you with a cigarette in your hand. Remember?"

Naruto nodded at the purple-haired girl's words.

—"I'm surprised you didn't want to leave right then and there. A lot of people frown upon a teenager smoking at such a young age."

—"Honestly, I did find it strange, but in the end, I'm not someone to judge other people's life choices. I didn't feel it was my problem. Since I was little, I saw how everyone around me always got addicted to something, like alcohol or cigarettes. At some point, I just saw it as normal."

—"That's wrong. Just because everyone does it doesn't mean it's right. Smoking or drinking isn't good"— Naruto said, his tone slightly irritated.

—"Then why did you smoke?"— Ai asked.

—"I've already quit. It's been nine months without touching a single cigarette"— the Uzumaki crossed his arms, averting his gaze.

—"Then, why were you smoking when we first met?"— Ai changed her question as she looked at Naruto.

The boy just sighed, unsure of how to respond. For a moment, he thought of lying about it, but that would be pointless. She could always tell when he was lying.

—"I don't know. One day, I just tried it, and I guess I couldn't stop."

—"Just like that?"— Ai looked at Naruto as if he were lying.

—"What did you expect? Sometimes people get hooked on something just because. Even if there aren't any problems in their life, not everything needs some deep explanation"— Naruto shrugged. Even he didn't know why he started smoking; this was the closest thing to the truth.

Ai just leaned back in her seat, slightly disappointed.

—"Sometimes you seem wise, and other times, like a kid"— Ai chuckled softly. "You're very contradictory."

Naruto reached for another cookie from the tray, but his hand found nothing. He glanced down to see the tray was empty. Ai and he had finished everything while they talked.

—"I think we should go now. There are no more cookies to eat"— Naruto stood up from the table and headed toward the backroom, carrying the empty tray and his coffee cup. "I'll go wash this. Can you wait for me?"

—"You don't need to ask that. I'd wait for you anyway."— Ai got up from the table and followed Naruto into the backroom. "This is the first time I've been in here. I'm surprised by how many ovens there are."

—"It's only five ovens, it's not that many. To have good cookies, you need to be patient. Tsunade taught me that. A lot of people come here, and if you don't speed things up, they'll probably leave after a while. Who waits almost an hour for cookies?"— Naruto said matter-of-factly.

—"Me! I would wait as long as necessary just to try one of your cookies"— Ai clapped her hands happily.

—"Let's go. I'm getting really sleepy"— Naruto yawned in exhaustion.

Ai smiled as she took Naruto's hand. The blond turned off the lights and locked the front door, while Ai didn't let go of his hand for a single moment.

—"Why are you holding my hand?"— Naruto asked.

—"Can't I? We have kids together, and to have kids, we had to do adult things. This is nothing compared to that"— Ai laughed when she saw Naruto's face turn red.

—"I'd rather forget that. It's really embarrassing. Though, I can't deny it felt incredible"— Naruto whispered the last part to himself, not wanting Ai to hear.

—"Didn't you like it?"— Ai asked, her tone turning sad.

Naruto's face flushed even redder.

—"W-well. What do you want me to say? We only did it once… to have a child"— Naruto scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

—"And in the end, we had two beautiful babies. I think you did a great job,"— Ai said, enjoying Naruto's flushed face, finding it adorable. —"You know, I always wanted twins. This was my wish come true. I guess it was a stroke of luck."

—"That's not surprising. Back in Miyazaki, you told me about the star Spica, two twin stars that shine thanks to each other. Your gaze always drifted to your belly when you talked about it,"— Naruto said with a soft smile.

—"You always know everything about me. It's not fair,"— Ai shook her head, slightly annoyed.

—"I've always been good at reading people, feeling their emotions and whatnot. It's like a gift. Don't blame me for something that was given to me without my consent,"— Naruto chuckled lightly.

—"I don't blame you. If it weren't for that ability of yours, we might never have gotten to know each other as deeply as we do now,"— Ai leaned a little closer to Naruto.

They both smiled, continuing their walk, chatting about trivial things in life. Ai's hand never let go of Naruto's.

—"Well, I guess this is where we say goodbye,"— the blond said as he tried to pull his hand away, but Ai stopped him.

—"Oh, come on, Naruto! Don't you want to come to my place? It's closer, and it's already really late,"— Ai said, gripping his hand tighter.

—"I can't, Ai. Sasuke will wonder where I am, and I need to feed Kurama,"— Naruto scratched his cheek lightly. He had already asked Sasuke to take care of it for him, but Ai didn't need to know that.

—"You're lying!"— Ai accused him.

—"No, no, no,"— Naruto shook his head. —"I think you're just sleepy."

Ai just sighed.

—"I know when you're lying, Naruto. And you promised me you wouldn't lie to me anymore."

Naruto sighed softly.

—"Look, Ai. I'd like to go to your place, but Sasuke's been really strict with me. He might barge into my apartment tomorrow to wake me up. If I'm not there, he'll make a huge fuss,"— Naruto said, finally managing to free his hand from Ai's grip.

The girl sighed, disappointed.

—"At least walk me to my apartment. You could say goodnight to Aqua and Ruby,"— Ai said, taking his hand again and tugging him along.

—"Fine. But let's hurry. You said Miyako was watching them, and she's probably getting annoyed. It's almost 10:00."

Ai nodded and quickened her pace.

—"You know, Naruto, you could move in with me if you want."

—"I'll think about it. My apartment was empty for six months. My landlord was about to kick me out."

Ai giggled softly.

—"That place must be really lonely."

Naruto just nodded in agreement.

The two young parents continued their walk, their hands still lovingly intertwined.

Hikaru had lost his sense of direction in life. The only thing left for him was to keep living, something that seemed pointless to him now.

His routine consisted of sleeping, going to school, and repeating the same thing over and over. His school wasn't just any school—it was one attended by TV stars, idols, and the like. The only reason he ended up there was because of Airi's friends, who pressured him to continue his acting career to preserve the memory of his abuser.

He glanced at his phone's clock. He still had a good half hour before he needed to be at school.

He continued walking leisurely, not in any rush to reach his destination. He paused for a moment, looking at a building painted in bright orange—the most eye-catching color in his opinion. The facade looked familiar.

If he remembered correctly, Ai had posted a photo on her Instagram of this place. The inside of the shop looked exactly like the photo.

He wondered if Ai came here often. Maybe he could run into her and talk again. He was still unsure if what he saw in the bathroom was really what he thought it was. A big part of him wanted to deny everything, to tell himself she was just sick.

But another part of him had already pieced together the puzzle of why Ai had distanced herself so suddenly.

A boy had managed to win her heart, and in short, she ended up pregnant by this unknown guy.

Several clues led him to this conclusion. Primarily, the way Ai started smiling every time she checked her phone, and how, whenever he tried to see, she immediately put it away.

Another sign, as he mentioned earlier, was the distance that began to form between them. It started when he asked Ai if she would love him forever. All she did was pat him on the head; she didn't say anything, didn't do anything else. Just a pat on the head.

But what really drove them apart was when he tried to be a bit more intimate with Ai. How did that end? Ai left his apartment and disappeared to who knows where. And two months later, he saw her throwing up in the bathroom. So, without a doubt, there was a third person involved in this story—someone whose name or face he didn't know.


Hikaru entered the shop. He was hungry, hadn't had breakfast, so ordering something wouldn't hurt.

—"Hello! Naruto Uzumaki at your service! What would you like to order?"

The cheerful voice of a blonde was the first thing he heard as he walked through the door.

"Oh! A new customer. This is the first time I've seen you. What's your name?"

He had to give the blonde credit. His energy was almost contagious. In a strange way, it reminded him of the fake enthusiasm Ai showed on stage. He looked like her long-lost brother, with blue eyes and blonde hair. How many people like that could there be in Tokyo?

—"Nice to meet you, I'm Hikaru Kamiki. I'd like a—" He looked down at the small menu on the blonde's table.— "An iced coffee to go."

—"Okay, one iced coffee for Mr. Miki-kun,"— Naruto said absentmindedly.

—"Miki-kun?—" he asked.

—"They're the last syllables of your last name, Ka-miki. Don't you like it?"— The boy said with a friendly smile.

—"I don't dislike it, but I don't like it either. I'd prefer if you didn't call me that,"— Hikaru replied calmly.

—"Okay, Mr. Miki-kun."—

He wondered if this Naruto guy had said that just to annoy him deliberately.

—"Your order will be ready in a moment. You can take a seat while it's being prepared,"— Naruto said in an upbeat tone.

Hikaru took a seat.

His order didn't take long to arrive. Naruto appeared with his coffee and placed it on his table.

Hikaru got up and headed straight for the exit.

Inspecting his cup, he noticed an odd message.

To Mr. Miki-kun. You've got the eyes of a liar. You should work on that. I can see you're lost right now. With love, your friend Naruto.*

Well, that really surprised him. This Naruto guy was very interesting and strange. Most people judge liars, but he just laughed and told him to improve. He would come back here. He was curious about Naruto.

—"Friend? I don't need a friend right now."—

End of chapter.

Honestly, the *Oshi no Ko* manga has gotten really entertaining, and to be honest, I haven't been able to write much with all the drama twists.

Whether Hikaru was the killer or wasn't—these past few weeks, I've been on the edge of my seat.

This went to the point that, while I was writing a chapter, and the new chapter of *Oshi no Ko* came out, I felt that the chapter I was writing no longer appealed to me at all.

I'm experimenting with new writing methods, so I'll probably be adding or removing some things in the upcoming chapters.

But anyway, writing things.

As always, leave a comment on what you thought and with any negative review, since it helps me improve.

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