Tokyo Sick Girlfriend

Chapter 130 Refining
She's had so much going on these past few days, including preparing for auditions, that she fell asleep almost as soon as she got home yesterday.

But when I woke up this morning, I felt inexplicably uneasy, as if something was wrong.

While lying in bed scrolling through her phone forums, she suddenly realized she had forgotten to guard against Hojo Shione.

Given her reckless and madwoman-like personality, Mio Takahashi felt that a night raid was entirely possible.

Before, with Saori Hasegawa around, she could keep an eye on her, but these past two days Hasegawa has gone to participate in a kendo competition, so she's completely out of reach and has to rely on herself.

Although reason told her that even if Hojo Shione really did launch a night raid, Shiratori Seiya could not possibly have actually had a relationship with her.

But...what if?
She didn't expect to lose her voice during the concert, but she managed to do it anyway.

It wouldn't be excessive to be on high alert when dealing with Hojo Shione.

But he couldn't tell Shiratori Seiya these things; it would make him seem paranoid. So he gave a forced smile and said:

"Get up at nine o'clock? You know, a person should be looked at with new eyes after three days of separation."

"Besides, I'm not as heartless as you say, am I? The audition is tomorrow, and I'll still be nervous no matter what, okay?"

"I can't sleep well anyway, so I might as well get up early and do more preparations."

As she spoke, Mio Takahashi moved closer to him, touching her eyelids with her fingers to show off her dark circles.

"There's no need to be so nervous."

Seeing this, Shiratori Seiya, suppressing his sore throat, gently comforted him:
"Didn't Araki-sensei say that you're at a level where you're perfectly capable of participating in this film? Just perform normally."

Even though she knew he was just trying to comfort her, Takahashi Mio sighed, staring blankly at the windshield and murmuring:

"That's what they say, but since it's my first time, I'm still quite unsure of myself..."

"It's always good to be prepared. At least it gives me peace of mind, and even if I fail, I can say that I did my best..."

Upon hearing this, Shiratori Seiya didn't say anything more. Seeing how hard she was trying, he felt more at ease, and his throat seemed to be less sore.

"correct."

As if she had thought of something, Mio Takahashi suddenly said:
"I know Hasegawa Saori went to participate in the kendo competition, but what's going on with Hojo Shione? Shouldn't she be bothering you every day? Why haven't I seen her today?"

"She..."

Shiratori Seiya briefly explained to Takahashi Mio that Shione had to go back home because of company business.

"No wonder."

After hearing this, Mio Takahashi gave a cold laugh, then snorted softly:
"But seriously, isn't it a bit too careless of you to let her live right across from your house? Aren't you afraid she might suddenly do something out of nowhere?"

"what's up?"

Sensing something amiss in her tone, Shiratori Seiya frowned.

That's the downside of having a cold; your thinking isn't as quick as usual, and coupled with the distraction of driving, he didn't immediately grasp the meaning behind Mio's words.

"Well... never mind, who knows? Anyway, I have a feeling she has ill intentions towards you and is plotting something."

"..."

Hearing her say that, Shiratori Seiya could roughly understand what she meant; she was probably jealous.

So, after thinking for a moment, I decided to put her mind at ease and said:

"Not really."

“Xiyin will only be staying here for a while. After she's rested enough, she'll probably be even busier than you, and won't have time to stay here anymore. It's too far from her company; the commute is too long, and for safety reasons, the company will discuss it with her.” Hearing this, Takahashi Mio's delicate brows furrowed even deeper, and she asked in return:

"You mean she's leaving in a while?"

"Pretty much, anyway, I won't be staying here for long."

"..."

not that simple.

Hojo Shione is definitely not someone who gives up easily. Even she herself would not feel at ease if she knew that Shiratori Seiya and Hasegawa Saori lived in the same neighborhood.

Hojo Shione is clearly much more abnormal than herself. How could she just leave because of company matters?

So if you think about it that way, her saying she would leave was probably just a smokescreen to deceive Shiratori Seiya.

A familiar sense of unease welled up in Mio Takahashi's heart.

But before she could think any further, she patted Shiratori Seiya on the shoulder and pointed to a pharmacy ahead, saying:

"Kiyoshi, stop at that pharmacy up ahead."

"Ok?"

Shiratori Seiya's gaze followed her finger, and he instinctively refused:

"What are you doing? I already took cold medicine this morning..."

"Stop arguing. I didn't come here specifically to buy medicine for you. Just drive over."

Seemingly realizing that she might have been a bit too forceful, Takahashi Mio paused, softened her tone, and explained gently:
"You... just consider this... me exercising my girlfriend privileges, okay? You promised me that before, didn't you?"

"..."

Shiratori Seiya is now somewhat sensitive to talk of 'agreements' and stopped as Mio requested.

Mio Takahashi said she was going to buy something for herself, but she ended up buying a whole bunch of medicine for warming the body, detoxifying, and reducing inflammation and coughs. She took out two boxes of Ryukakusan from the plastic bag and looked at Seiya Shiratori, explaining:
Here, one box for you, and one box for me.

"I know your throat must be really sore right now, so just hold this in your mouth and it will help a lot. You can also drink it when you take your medicine at noon."

As she spoke, she pried open two pearls, pinched them between her index fingers, and brought them to Shiratori Seiya's lips, her bright eyes fixed on him without blinking.

"Sweetie, open your mouth, ah..."

Hearing her speak in a tone as if coaxing a child, Shiratori Seiya subconsciously wanted to laugh, but when his gaze met her eyes, her extremely earnest and gentle eyes seemed to transform into a hot spring, rushing into a certain empty space in his heart.

This feeling wasn't the warmth of taking care of Saori, nor the emotion of being unconditionally trusted by Saori, nor the constant need to reassure myself of my love when I was deeply in love with Shione...

tolerate.

For some reason, Shiratori Seiya had a feeling that he could completely rely on Takahashi Mio.

He subconsciously opened his mouth and took the pill the girl fed him, but perhaps because he was not in a daze, he accidentally put her slender white fingers into his mouth.

The girl's slightly cool fingers tasted sweet with Ryukakusan.

In an instant, Mio Takahashi's pupils contracted, her pretty face flushed red, and her red lips parted slightly. The tingling sensation from her fingertips almost made her cry out, and her fingers quickly withdrew as if she had been electrocuted.

She turned to look out the window, her ears flushed, and repeatedly rubbed her saliva-covered index finger as if she wanted to knead it into her bones.

……
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(End of this chapter)