Chapter 123 - 121 With a Guaranteed Bottom, What's to Fear (Exploding Four Updates, Twelve Thousand, Seeking Subscriptions)_1

The Akizuki Residence is located in Azuma District Nishimaki Ichome. It's a standard Japanese-style house with a courtyard and two stories. Cherry blossom trees are planted in front of the door. At this time, the cherry blossoms have already withered, only the green leaves remain green. Standing at the doorway, Ayatsuki Ayaka turned her head and said, "Aozawa, I'm home now, you can go on with your things." "Mhm." Aozawa let go of her soft little hand. Ayatsuki Ayaka wanted to grasp it again but didn't have the courage to do so; instead, she clenched her left hand into a fist, trying hard to retain the warmth from Aozawa in her palm. "See you at school next week." "Mhm." Ayatsuki Ayaka nodded solemnly, watching Aozawa leave. It wasn't until his broad back disappeared down the street that she withdrew her gaze, the feeling of loss in her heart suddenly replaced by joy. Upon reflection, this date was much better than the last one. After the last one ended, they went home separately. Now that Aozawa had taken the initiative to walk her home, it meant that their relationship had taken a big step forward. Wife material. Ayatsuki Ayaka encouraged herself, walked to the front door, and turned the doorknob with her right hand. The entryway shoe cabinet held three pairs of shoes. From the style of the shoes, Ayatsuki Ayaka knew who had come to visit; she closed the door behind her and called out, "Sis, are Saeko and the others here?" "Yeah, I'm showing them your childhood photos." Ayatsuki Ayaka's composure vanished in an instant as her sister's response came from the living room. Almost at lightning speed, she kicked off her long boots, left them on the cabinet, didn't even bother with slippers, and stepped directly onto the floor with her fishnet-stockinged feet. "Don't look at them!" Ayatsuki Ayaka yelled, rushing into the living room, only to discover her sister had already displayed her childhood photos to the three visitors. Unlike now, the young Ayatsuki Ayaka looked very well-behaved and adorable. Her hair was still black. Up until sixth grade, she kept that kind of bowl-cut hairstyle. "Isn't she cute?" her sister pointed at a photo of Iroha on a spring outing in elementary school, one pant leg higher than the other, her face smeared with the mud of playtime. The smile, though, was just as bright as it was now. "Sis!" Ayatsuki Ayaka shouted, flustered, then hurriedly said, "Saeko, Maru, Kaoru, stop staring at these boring things and come to my room." Miyahara Kaoru said, "Eh, I still want to see more of Iroha's childhood." Tama Chan chimed in, "Yeah, she's really cute." Takahashi Saeko held up her phone triumphantly, "I've already taken pictures." "Saeko! Don't take photos, hurry up and delete them!" Ayatsuki Ayaka was so embarrassed her face turned a bright red. In her eyes, her elementary school years were nothing short of a nightmare; that utterly unfashionable look seemed to scream 'country bumpkin' from head to toe. It was radically different from the glamorous school life she bragged about to her friends. Ayatsuki Ayaka herded her three friends to her room like sheep and gave her sister an angry glare. Her sister didn't seem to care and just smiled contentedly. They were sisters after all and knew very well each other's embarrassing pasts. Whoever revealed it first should be prepared for a counterattack from the other side. 「In the bedroom.」 Ayatsuki Ayaka brought over tea and biscuits, worried they would question the discrepancy between the childhood she boasted about and her school life. She quickly found a topic to broach, "Didn't you guys have dates with others today?" Tama Chan knew she was trying to change the subject but didn't mind. The fact that Iroha loved to boast wasn't a secret. "I'm more interested in the details of your date than in dating those guys." Miyahara Kaoru said with a smile, "Yeah, tell us about it." Takahashi Saeko said with a grin, "Any joy should be shared with everyone." "If you wanted to know, you could have just asked in the group chat." Ayatsuki Ayaka mentally patted herself on the back for the clever diversion she had thrown, which successfully shifted their focus. "It's not the same atmosphere." Takahashi Saeko refuted her, grabbing the penguin doll from the table. "Like now, I can use this doll to speak for me." These were just excuses. The real reason was that she wanted to see how Ayatsuki Ayaka would lie through her teeth and describe her brilliant performance on the date. Then consider how much truth and how much fabrication were in Iroha's words, which was much more interesting than a date with a man. The three of them sat side by side on her bed looking like an audience ready with tea and sunflower seeds, the wooden sign of 'onlookers' metaphorically hanging around their necks. Ayatsuki Ayaka, with a hint of suspicion in her eyes, said, "Why do I feel like you guys just want to enjoy the show?" "We're just concerned about you," replied Takahashi Saeko, raising the penguin doll and lowering her voice. After a moment of thought, Ayatsuki Ayaka sat on the floor and began to tell them about her date that day. "Aozawa can't handle horror movies at all; he kept dodging towards my side each time he got scared. Hehe, I wasn't scared in the least." "Pause!" Tama Chan raised her right hand; her suspicion had been there from the very beginning of the date. She asked, "Every time he dodged towards you, did he touch your chest?" With Tama Chan's comment, Ayatsuki Ayaka suddenly realized; not only had it touched, but at the time, his forearm was pressed against her chest. A hint of shock passed over her face. All three on the bed shook their heads in unison; it took her far too long to realize she'd been taken advantage of—she was utterly clueless. "He definitely did that on purpose." "One hundred percent." "No doubt." "Don't talk nonsense. Looking at Aozawa's expression, he was really scared. There's no law in the country that says boys can't be scared of horror movies." Ayatsuki Ayaka quickly retorted. She was convinced of the fact she had seen, believing that Aozawa hugged her because he was scared of the horror movie. Tama Chan chuckled and said, "I have no doubts, go on." Ayatsuki Ayaka continued her story, recounting how after the movie, they went to a Maid Cafe. "A Maid Cafe? His interests really are unique," Takahashi Saeko couldn't help but tease. Ayatsuki Ayaka said with a smile, "This shows that Aozawa is sharing with me things he likes, hoping for my approval. I naturally accompanied him to the Maid Cafe; the service was unexpectedly good. Let's go together next time. The egg tarts there are also very tasty." Speaking of egg tarts, Ayatsuki Ayaka thought of the one she and Aozawa shared, her wheat-colored cheeks blushing again. "That's an expression with a story behind it," Takahashi Saeko eagerly said, "Come on, confess, what happened at the cafe?" "Did you guys kiss in the cafe?" Tama Chan exclaimed in surprise. "No, we didn't." Ayatsuki Ayaka hurriedly shook her head, then thought about it, and said with a blushing face in a low voice, "Well, maybe sort of." "Iroha! You have to make it clear to us!" Tama Chan leaned forward with more excitement than she would have talking about doing that kind of thing with her boyfriend. She wanted to hear more details. The other two also perked up their ears. Ayatsuki Ayaka twirled her hair with her right index finger, considering an indirect kiss too lame, and decided to make up a story where both shared an egg tart. Her embellished boasting filled the small bedroom. 「Meanwhile, Aozawa returned to the Ayase Apartment.」 He opened the door and called out, "Chitose, I'm back." Morimoto Chiyoda didn't respond, lying leisurely on the couch with a face mask on, watching short videos on YouTube. It was a commentary on a movie. Aozawa approached and glanced at the screen, asking, "What's the movie about?" "It's about a scumbag getting stabbed to death by Girlfriend A, then having his stomach cut open before Girlfriend B chops off his head and throws it into the sea," Morimoto Chiyoda casually replied, glancing sideways, "How was your date today?" "It wasn't really a date, just hanging out." "Going out with a girl to watch a movie on a day off, isn't that a date?" Aozawa sat beside her shoulder and laughed, "It's different. That's only called a date between boyfriend and girlfriend. Me and Iroha haven't confirmed that kind of relationship." "Quibbling." Morimoto Chiyoda was too lazy to argue with a quibbling youth, her right hand massaging her temple. She had the day off today. Dio hadn't made any big moves in the past two days, and with Emily pulling in more people from the Metropolitan Police Department, she strongly suggested that the task force adopt a rotating leave system. Not having a single day off in a week, for a civil servant like Morimoto Chiyoda, was absolutely unbearable. Even an assassination attempt on the Prime Minister wouldn't affect her time off. Aozawa stood up, moved behind her, and started massaging her shoulders, "Are you jealous?" Morimoto Chiyoda picked up a book that was ready at her side and placed it over her chest to block the view of someone trying to peek further. "No, I'm just worried that if you keep being a scumbag, you'll end up like the protagonist in the movie." "Chitose, I am very serious in my approach." "Do you really like that girl?" Morimoto Chiyoda lifted her head, the face mask hiding her expression but not the slight tinge of melancholy in her voice. After all, she's not of the same age. "I like Chitose more, and if Iroha can accept Chitose, that would be great. If she can't, I'll definitely choose you." Morimoto Chiyoda's head spun trying to process his words. After a moment, her eyes widened in shock, "Wait, you're not planning to have Ayatsuki Ayaka and me both stay by your side, are you?" "What's wrong with that?" "Of course it's wrong!" Morimoto Chiyoda suddenly felt a headache, "The country practices monogamy, and you want to turn back the wheels of history?" "The law is easy to handle. I can marry Chitose, and then date other girlfriends." Aozawa had his ways to deal with the legal aspects. If he didn't remarry, he wouldn't be committing bigamy. Morimoto Chiyoda fell silent. It was all her fault. She shouldn't have let Aozawa think that she had to stay by his side. This led to Aozawa facing other girls and openly expressing the idea of dating multiple people. Because he knew that even if they disagreed, even if he failed, she would be by his side to support him; there wouldn't be total loss. With her backing, Aozawa naturally craved more, leading to his current views on love. As Morimoto Chiyoda realized this, she also knew there was no way to change it. By this point, she couldn't possibly play any games of distancing herself. "This is what a scumbag is." "A scumbag is an irresponsible man. I don't intend to escape responsibility. Men in Africa can have six or seven wives!" "Japan is not Africa." Morimoto Chiyoda retorted but didn't continue to persuade. She didn't believe that besides herself, any girl would agree to such an absurd relationship.