Am I being simulated by their love affair.

Chapter 541 A Girl's Heart Under the Bright Sun

May 3rd was the first day of the Thursday holiday for gold.

Jun Matsue and Natsumi Imokawa stood at the entrance of an old-fashioned convenience store, holding popsicles. The plastic canopy above them blocked out the bright sunlight, leaving customers with a precious cool shade.

It's one o'clock in the afternoon, the time when people are most likely to feel drowsy after lunch. The boy turned his head to look at the girl next to him.

Natsumi Imokawa had half a popsicle dangling from her mouth as she stared down at the camera in her hand, her eyes slightly narrowed, whether from weariness or the light, it was hard to tell.

The girl was wearing a pale yellow floral dress today, the same one she wore when she met Matsueda Jun at the coffee shop. The fabric at the chest was a little tight, revealing a dazzling white patch.

Seemingly because she was focused on the video in front of her, she did not notice that the water droplets that had condensed on the popsicle in her mouth were about to fall—a gentle breeze blew by, and the water droplets flashed in the air and landed on her fair skin on her chest, scattering into a striking, delicate shimmer.

"Is there anything wrong with the materials from this morning?" Jun Matsue took a sip of the half-melted shaved ice in his hand, the cool, sweet milk flavor spreading in his mouth.

“It’s great.” Natsumi Imokawa nodded as she looked at the camera. “Mochizuki-san is getting more and more comfortable with her role.”

The boy recalled the scene from that morning, the way Mochizuki looked at him coquettishly under the tall ginkgo tree—the girl's smile reflected in the deep green shadows of the tree, etched the shape of spring.

Mochizuki doesn't understand acting; she's just getting more and more used to expressing her emotions in front of the camera.

"How about we find an internet cafe or something to rest for a bit?" Jun Matsue asked the girl next to him.

"No need, right?" Natsumi Imokawa put down her camera, took a deep suck on her popsicle, and two cute dimples appeared on her cheeks. "Tomatsu-kun should be here soon, we need to get ready for the shoot."

"Shouldn't we postpone the filming time a little?" The boy looked at the sky outside the eaves. The morning weather was cloudy and comfortable, but now the unshielded sunlight had become particularly dazzling.

“This is fine.” The girl shook her head. “The scenes we were supposed to shoot this afternoon were all flashbacks, which required that kind of white, unreal feeling. The current lighting saves us the trouble of overexposure.”

"Alright." Jun Matsue took out his phone and checked it. "Tomatsu should be here soon. I'll go pick her up."

"I'll wait for the pine branch here." Natsumi Imokawa waved.

Walking along the shaded path to the station, after waiting a few minutes, Jun Matsueda spotted Tomoka Tomatsu behind the gates.

The girl was wearing a floral dress similar to Natsumi Imokawa's today, only the skirt was longer, the off-white base color made her look more innocent, and the light pink floral pattern added a touch of youthful charm.

"Jun-kun—" Before she even reached the boy, Tomatsu Yuka raised her arm and greeted him eagerly.

"It's a bit hot today~"

Jun Matsuoka walked side by side with her toward the intersection. "It was fine in the morning, but the sun came out in the afternoon, and the crows on the rooftops were all shiny from the sun."

The two quickly met up with the girl at the convenience store entrance. Tomatsu Yuka silently observed Imokawa Natsumi's sweet and charming attire, and then subtly probed her a few times. Only after confirming that the director had no intention of seducing her male actor did she feel temporarily at ease.

"The filming started near the school, right?"

Natsumi Imokawa nodded. "We'll be changing locations several times today to film various memories of Hikaru Kashiwabara and Anzu Konno. It'll take quite a bit of time to get there..."

Her implication was that the filming efficiency needed to be improved, and Tomatsu Yuka nodded in understanding.

"I'll try my best! I feel much better today!"

As the girl said this, she glanced at the boy with the bag next to her, but Jun Matsue pretended not to notice.

Actually, he didn't have any filming tasks in the afternoon. The reason he stayed here was just to help Natsumi Imokawa carry her backpack and props, and to keep Tomatsu Yuka in good condition. A few minutes later, the three of them walked to the path outside Fujimori High School. The street, which had been full of cherry blossoms not long ago, had turned into a continuous expanse of tender green—the vibrant "leaf cherry blossoms," a seasonal word in haiku that symbolizes the transition from spring to summer.

"Is Tomatsu-san ready?" Natsumi Imokawa changed the lens on the camera. "We're about to start filming."

Tomatsu Yuka handed the boy a tote bag containing clothes, then gave him a bright smile.

"no problem!"

The first scene was filmed in just over twenty minutes, as smoothly as the afternoon sun. The trio quickly packed up and headed to the next location.

"Tomatsu-san's acting skills are back!" Imokawa Natsumi's steps became much lighter, causing her ample bosom to sway.

"..." Tomatsu Yuka looked away and turned to the boy walking on her other side, "Thanks to Tsun-kun's help."

"I hope everything goes well." Jun Matsue looked at the crows perched on the rooftops not far away.

The second filming location was a park. When the girls arrived, their faces were flushed. There was not much shade along the way, and they were all a bit hot from the sun.

"How about we borrow Mochizuki's car for future shoots?" The boy suddenly had this idea. "That would make things easier, whether we're traveling or changing clothes."

After several attempts, Jun Matsueda was no longer resistant to asking Haruka Mochizuki for help.

"Huh?" Natsumi Imokawa blinked. "Is it okay?"

Having a car is indeed much more convenient, and the young woman doesn't mind reducing the burden of her filming work.

"Isn't this too much trouble for her?" Tomatsu Yuka looked troubled. "And wouldn't that require a driver? I feel like having too many people might affect her performance during filming."

Actually, she just didn't want to have the Mochizuki family's spies around her when she was with Matsueda Jun.

"Then forget it." Natsumi Imokawa shook her head; the actor's performance was more important.

The filming of the second scene also went smoothly. However, after this mission, the three of them did not choose to move immediately, but stayed in the park to rest for a while.

The girl next to him started looking intently at the camera again. Jun Matsue took a big gulp of the salted soda he had just bought from the vending machine.

The cool, sparkling water had a slightly salty kick that made it exceptionally refreshing to drink. The boy squinted, admiring the sparse sunlight filtering through the gaps in the branches overhead.

As he tightened the cap on the soda bottle, Tomatsu Yuka, who had changed her clothes, stood under another tree and waved to him.

Jun Matsueda glanced at her, placed the soda bottle at Natsumi Imokawa's feet, and then got up and walked towards the girl.

The boy's tall figure cast a gray shadow on the girl's skirt. Tomatsu Yuka tilted her head up, her gaze carefully tracing the face of her beloved.

"Are you going to talk about your father?" Jun Matsue raised his hand to shoo away the small flying insects swirling around the two of them.

"Yes." The girl nodded, and took a step back, letting her body be completely covered by the boy's shadow—this action was meaningless, but it gave her a little more satisfaction and a sense of security.

Tomatsu Tomoka took a breath and then stated the conclusion she had drawn from her sixth sense and initial observations.

“I think my parents are lying to me—he doesn’t actually like anyone.”

(End of this chapter)