Am I being simulated by their love affair.

Chapter 653 Yamami Maki
When the pleasant notification sound rang out in the quiet space of the library, Yamami Maki did not react immediately.

She didn't look up until her arm was poked, and looked at the girl next to her in confusion.

"Maki's phone is ringing..." Kuroba Kokoro said softly to her, "Don't you usually keep it on silent in the library?"

“…Huh?” Yami Maki was stunned for a moment before realizing that it was her phone, which was in her pocket, that had just rang.

My phone was definitely on silent, but one person's message was an exception.

However, this exception has not occurred in Yamami Maki's life for a long time.

So when another notification sound came from her pocket, the girl, realizing something, immediately put down her pen and hurriedly took out her phone, fearing that the sound was just her imagination.

However, things didn't go as planned. Perhaps she pulled the phone out too forcefully, and the lit screen slipped from Yamami Maki's hand, tumbling and falling deep under the table.

The muffled thud echoed around, and the girls who had been studying with their heads down all looked over. Hei Yuxin lowered her eyes somewhat awkwardly, watching her childhood friend crawl under the wooden table, frantically searching for her phone, looking extremely embarrassed.

Yamami Maki quickly sat up with her phone in hand. She hurriedly gave the girl next to her an apologetic smile, then nervously opened the message.

"Is Senior Yamami free right now?"

"I have something I'd like to ask you."

"Senior Yamami..." The girl savored the polite form of address—even this distant attitude lingered in her mind for a long time.

After all, she originally thought that she would never receive any more messages from Songzhi.

"Of course I'm free!" Yami Maki, snapping out of her daze, immediately tapped the screen.

However, she thought about it again, typed a few more words, and carefully read them twice before sending them.

"Of course I'm free." A smiley face followed. "What can I do for you, Pine-e-kun?"

She dared not utter a single word about their past—what if Matsueda-kun immediately stopped talking to her if she brought it up?
Over the course of four months, the girl had tasted all the bitterness in her heart. The messages from the boy were like bait, and she, starving, just wanted to devour them all.

However, Jun Matsue did not reply immediately. Maki Yamami stared at the small "unread" sign for a while until a small hand reached out from the side and waved the phone.

"What are you doing?" Kuroba Shin asked in a low voice. "Didn't you say you were preparing for final exams? Why are you staring at your phone?"

She had no choice but to put her phone next to her textbook and temporarily put aside the matter of Songzhi...

This was of course impossible. The girl, who had been concentrating, suddenly became absent-minded. She stared at the sociology textbook in front of her, but felt that the neat and orderly knowledge in her head had turned into a jumble of messy words.

After flipping through a few pages of notes, Yamami Maki looked at the dark phone screen next to her.

Haneoka High School must be on vacation already, right? Is Matsueda working a part-time job?
Or is he currently with Yuuka...?

Thinking of this, the girl's heart clenched again.

It wasn't actually that painful.

Because she couldn't see Matsueda Jun, she had long since gotten used to peeking into Tomatsu Yuka's life through her interactions with other people.

He was engrossed in mopping the floor during the first day of school cleaning; he was focused on doing problems in the library; he was holding a girl's hand while strolling through the streets...

Yamami Maki stopped reminiscing and stared at her still unresponsive phone.

Didn't you have something to ask? Why haven't you replied yet?

Was the message sent to the wrong person?

But he was clearly talking about Yamami-senpai...

Before the girl could even imagine the worst-case scenario, her long-awaited phone screen finally lit up.

However, Kuroba Shin, who had been observing her for a long time, took the phone first and glanced at the message on it.

"So it was sent by Jun Matsue." She blinked in surprise. "No wonder you were so—" "Kokoro-chan!" Maki Yami covered her mouth. The girl hadn't managed to keep her voice down, and the students studying around them were looking over again.

A few minutes later, the two walked out of the library with their bags—they weren't kicked out, they just didn't want to stay there any longer.

"So why did Songzhi suddenly contact you?" Walking down the street, Kuroba Shin tiptoed, trying to peek at the phone of the person next to her.

Yamami Maki turned her body to block the girl's gossipy gaze, her expression somewhat complicated.

"...It's because of Miss Kurusu."

The girl frowned. "Miss Kurusu? Which Miss Kurusu?"

"Come and live in Yangshi."

"That one who was always trending on social media recently?" Kuroba Shin looked enlightened. "How did she get involved with Matsueda Jun?"

“...They’ve always been good friends,” Yami Maki replied softly.

Does Ms. Kurusu still like Mr. Matsueda? Another question arose in the girl's mind.

If they like each other, what is their relationship now?
Looking at the questions in the chat box, she felt a mix of emotions.

"I want to ask your sister if her company is not interested in Yosuke Kurusu, an artist under JINIAS."

Yamami Maki had fantasized many times about the scenario of Matsueda Jun contacting her again, but she never imagined it would be because of another girl.

The text on the other end of the screen was simple, without any ambiguous or vague emotions, as if they had completely forgotten their fruitless relationship.

The girl initially thought this was fine, but now she felt like a wine glass, with the liquid that had been brewing in her heart for a long time being both sour and bitter, constantly swaying back and forth.

You brought this on yourself...

"So what exactly happened?" Kuroba asked unwillingly from the side.

"It's related to my sister's business."

Yamami Maki gripped her phone tightly and typed softly.

“Of course you can.” She sent another smiley face. “But what are the specifics? I’d like to explain them to my sister.”

She hadn't even considered the possibility of her sister contacting Songzhi directly.

The boy replied quickly this time, "Let's talk about it later. I'm still out now, I'll contact you later."

"Good~"

The girl pressed the send button, and after the message showed as read, there was no response. She waited for a while before putting her phone back in her pocket and letting out a soft sigh.

"I'm talking to you!" Kokoro's voice rang in her ear. "You act like you can't hear anything when you message Matsue!"

"I'm sorry." Yami Maki smiled apologetically.

At least there's another chance to chat, the girl thought.

Kuroba Shin stared at her for a while, then shook her head with a mixture of disgust and helplessness.

"Didn't you want to break up with him in the first place? Why are you making that face now?"

“…” Yamami Maki looked up.

The sunlight, regardless of the season, illuminated the melancholy in her eyes, and the girl spoke in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Of course it's because I still like him."

(End of this chapter)