Am I being simulated by their love affair.

Chapter 593 Frankness
At 10 a.m. on Sunday, Jun Matsue and Haruka Mochizuki stood in front of the beverage counter in the convenience store, looking at the colorful and differently shaped containers inside.

“Kashiwabara always drinks the same beverage…” the girl watched as he opened the cabinet door.

"Hmm." The boy shook the chocolate milk in his hand, his voice gentle. "This is pretty good."

Konno Anzu and he used to drink this often after school when they were in high school.

"What should I drink..." Mochizuki Haruka squatted down in front of the beverage cabinet, her fingers twirling between the chocolate milk (one carton was missing) and the plain milk.

The footsteps faded behind her. "Take your time choosing. I'm going to pay the bill first."

The boy's shadow disappeared from the glass cabinet door. The girl was stunned for a moment, and then a bitter look welled up in her eyes.

After paying at the counter, Mochizuki Haruka pulled Matsueda Jun out of the convenience store, with Imokawa Natsumi, carrying a camera, following beside them. The cashier girl behind the counter watched their backs curiously as the three crossed the street and headed towards the small park on the other side.

On the lush green grass, Fujii Kaede suddenly confessed her feelings.

"Hey, Kashiwabara, do you know that every time I see you, I feel a little scared?"

"...Why?" The boy was a little surprised.

"Because every time, the desire in my heart is eager to be fulfilled."

"But I always feel like you're not in front of me—your gaze always passes right through me and looks somewhere I don't know."

The girl looked at the chocolate milk in his hand.

"So every time I'm by your side, my heart aches, but when I see you, I feel happy, and I can't help it..."

"Kashiwabara, what are you looking at?"

"Can't you even look at me a little longer...?"

The girl's voice trembled with sobs, and Imokawa Natsumi captured the glistening tears in her eyes with her camera before she looked up.

"Cut!"

Mochizuki Haruka took out a tissue, wiped away the eye drops she had just dripped off-camera, and walked towards the boy in front of her.

"How was it? Are there any problems with this take?" Jun Matsue stood still, looking at the serious-looking young director.

"It's alright..." Natsumi Imokawa pondered for a moment while looking at the camera screen, "but I always feel that Mochizuki's emotions are a little weak."

Mochizuki Haruka frowned slightly. "You mean my acting wasn't good enough? How exactly should I do it?"

Natsumi Imokawa watched as she took the wrist of the boy next to her. "...I can't really explain it. Maybe it's because of the environment."

"Let's stop shooting here for today. We'll try shooting another night scene later."

The three returned to the convenience store entrance. Jun Matsueda brought over his backpack full of equipment and watched the girl disassemble the camera lens. Haruka Mochizuki, standing beside him, stared at his profile, their hands still clasped together.

Because of her period, he and Mochizuki didn't do anything last night, and the girl became much clingier today.

She shook her clenched hand. "Does Songzhi also think my acting has deteriorated?"

The boy glanced at her and said, "You don't really have any acting skills, do you? It's just that the plot designed by Imokawa is more in line with your personality."

"Could it be that I've been too happy lately?" Mochizuki Haruka said thoughtfully, "so that I can't understand Fujii Kaede's feelings?"

“That’s possible.” Natsumi Imokawa looked up after packing her backpack. “Maybe we should separate you guys before the next shoot.”

"Since none of you are professional actors, it takes time to get into character. If you're still sticking together before filming, it might really affect your ability to get into character."

The girl's tone was unusually serious, and only after she finished speaking did her face belatedly turn red.

"I'm not criticizing you guys or anything, I just... I just think this might help with the filming..."

Natsumi Imokawa stammered a little—yes, she was only saying that from the director's perspective, the girl told herself.

As a director, it's normal to have opinions when you see actors showing affection in public on your set, as if no one else is around.
The two people in front of her were silent for a moment. The girl was a little nervous. Just as she was about to speak again, Jun Matsue spoke.

"Imokawa is right. We do need to be more serious about this."

Mochizuki Haruka turned her face to the side, pursed her lips, "...Okay, I'll do it this way next time." "But now that filming is over, it should be fine, right?" She squeezed the hand of the person next to her.

“It’s alright…” Natsumi Imokawa breathed a slight sigh of relief and looked at Jun Matsueda beside her.

The boy's smile was somewhat helpless, which made the girl feel inexplicably frustrated. She tightened the zipper of her backpack and lifted it up with some difficulty.

"Then I'll go back first."

Jun Matsue stepped forward and took the heavy backpack. "Let me take you to the station. Carrying such a heavy bag in this weather, I don't know how much you'll sweat by the time you get to the station."

"Oh." Natsumi Imokawa nodded, her blush deepening.

Songzhi isn't the kind of person who values ​​romance over friendship, she told herself.

Even if he were to actually be in a relationship, he wouldn't neglect her!
Watching the girl walk into the station and turn around to wave sweetly at him, Jun Matsue nodded and looked at Haruka Mochizuki standing beside him.

"Does Imokawa know about us?" The girl stared at the figure in the crowd that was hidden by a backpack.

“I have spoken to her about it.”

“That deserves praise.” Mochizuki Haruka nodded with feigned arrogance. “If you hadn’t said so, I would have suspected that you had feelings for her.”

"...Aren't you going to doubt Caijiang again?" The boy rolled his eyes at her.

"What time did you and Aya meet?"

"Eleven o'clock." The girl checked her phone. "The car that's picking us up should be on its way."

"Then I'll wait for you to get on the train before I leave." Jun Matsue took her hand and led her into the shade of the trees at the station entrance.

"Aren't you getting in the car with me?" Mochizuki Haruka looked up at him. "I can take you home first and then pick up Aya-chan."

Jun Matsue took a breath. "No, I have plans for this afternoon. I'll just find somewhere to eat later. I won't go home."

"Are you going out this afternoon?" The girl blinked. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going with Tomatsu to buy supplies for the school trip, like fever-reducing patches and heatstroke medicine, which the class might need."

There was a moment of silence under the shade of the tree, and Jun Matsue looked at the girl beside him who was pursing her lips.

He didn't want to hide the fact that he was going out with Tomatsu Yuka from Mochizuki Haruka—he had Aya ask her to go to the movies just to prevent the girl from suddenly interfering like she did at school.

Even though telling Mochizuki would be troublesome, this was the only way. He didn't want to deceive one party, nor did he want to hurt the other, so he made this decision.

"...You really dare to say that." Mochizuki Haruka pinched the boy's palm hard. "Just because we didn't do it yesterday, you're going to go find Tomatsu Yuka?"

“You know that’s not true.” Jun Matsue felt the stinging pain spreading from his palm, but he didn’t say anything more.

Since you've already chosen to do this, stop with the sweet talk.

"Where are you going?" The girl's voice was cold and harsh, making the temperature under the shade of the tree drop two degrees.

"Outdoor equipment stores in Shibuya."

"..." Mochizuki Haruka remained silent for a few minutes until the black sedan appeared in front of the two of them. The head maid got out of the car and waited respectfully to the side.

"Songzhi, I'm not letting you enjoy yourself by not pushing you to make a decision." Her tone softened a little.
"It's fine at school, but I won't give Tomatsu Yuka any leeway outside."

"Mmm." Jun Matsue squeezed her hand.

The girl's body was always cold; she only felt a little warm when her skin touched his.

"I'll say it again, you're not allowed to sleep with her!" Mochizuki Haruka glared at the boy, then released his hand and stepped into the car with the help of the head maid.

"When I get home, I must see pine branches in the living room."

Watching the black sedan drive away without looking back, Jun Matsue stepped out of the shade of the trees to bask in the scorching sun.

He had absolutely no reason to abandon Mochizuki Haruka, the only one he could not bear to part with.

　Wishing everyone a happy and healthy Dragon Boat Festival!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)