Tokyo Sick Girlfriend

Chapter 150 Contact
“I’m not asking you to change your mind right now, but I think you should give it a try first. If you still feel you can’t do it after trying for a while, then you can say with a clear conscience, ‘I can’t do it,’ and you won’t regret it.”

Shiratori Seiya looked at Hojo Shione with a questioning look in his eyes.

Meeting the boy's gaze, Hojo Shione seemed to be persuaded by his words and nodded slightly.

Her mind was a complete mess at that moment, and she had forgotten that she and he had only known each other for a short time. This was only the second time the two of them had officially interacted.

Shiratori Seiya didn't give her a chance to process her emotions; he wanted to take advantage of her uncertainty to rebuild her confidence.

She took out her phone, sent a message to Yuuki Ono asking for leave, showed it to Shione Hojo, and then dragged her directly to the artist training center she had found in advance.

At first, Hojo Shione, wearing a school uniform, felt lost in the unfamiliar environment. In fact, it wasn't just the environment; the people around her were either established entertainers or well-dressed professionals.

In contrast, she looked extremely childish in her school uniform, which made me feel inferior.

Seemingly sensing her thoughts, Shiratori Seiya took her hand.

Hojo Shione paused for a moment, looked up at him, and did not refuse.

At this moment, she was like a piece of duckweed, being led forward by Shiratori Seiya.

Even after entering the training room, singing a song as instructed by the instructor, and hearing the instructor's praise, she still felt uncertain and wondered if this was something Shiratori Seiya had arranged in advance.

Hojo Shione was still in a daze and hadn't recovered yet.

She only snapped out of her daze when she heard the training instructor and Shiratori Seiya confirm the weekly training schedule.

She quickly grabbed Shiratori Seiya's arm and pulled him aside, saying:

"How... how did the training time get set?"

Shiratori Seiya looked at her with a puzzled expression and said:

"Didn't we already agree that we should at least give it a try?"

"But, but..."

Hojo Shione was taken aback by his decisiveness, her mind a jumble of thoughts. She bit her lip, took a deep breath, and said earnestly:
“But this costs money, right? This is my business after all. You’re right, I should at least give it a try… Shiratori-kun, you’ve already helped me a lot, I absolutely can’t let you spend money.”

As she spoke, she looked at Shiratori Seiya, and as if to show her unwavering determination, she deliberately widened her eyes.

Seeing the serious expression on the girl's face, Shiratori Seiya smiled and said:
Are you afraid of owing me a favor?

"Yes."

"But you can repay my favor. However, some things are lost forever and can never be made up for."

Upon hearing this, Hojo Shione lowered her gaze, pondered for a moment, and then shook her head, saying:
"It still doesn't work, Shiratori-kun... the training here must be expensive, right?"

She looked up, glanced at the exquisite decor around her, and said softly:

"You're right, I'll try my best, but forget about this place..."

"That's it, okay then."

Shiratori Seiya didn't insist, seemingly giving in. He walked up to the training instructor and said:
"I'm sorry, I took the liberty of making this decision. She wasn't mentally prepared, so let's cancel the training course."

"Cancel?"

The female teacher first glanced at Hojo Shione, then looked at Shiratori Seiya and reminded him:

"Cancellation is possible, but the deposit you paid is non-refundable."

Deposit?

Hojo Shione paused for a moment upon hearing this word, then quickly asked:

"How much is the deposit?"

"Twenty percent of the total course cost, which is two hundred thousand yen."

"Two hundred thousand yen?"

Upon hearing this number, Hojo Shione's eyes widened. She turned to look at Shiratori Seiya with a complicated expression, pursing her lips, unsure of what to say.

She also works four days a week, earning 900 yen per hour. To earn 200,000 yen, she would have to work more than 200 hours...

Not to mention the total price.

She really wanted to ask Shiratori Seiya where he got so much money.
She had originally planned to pay for him herself if all else failed, but she only had a little over two thousand yen in her pocket.

Seeing that Hojo Shione obediently shut up and didn't say anything, Shiratori Seiya smiled and said:

"Let's think about it some more and contact you again later, teacher."

"Ok."

"..."

After leaving the training institution, Hojo Shione stood at the door, staring at him with wide eyes without saying a word.

Shiratori Seiya could see through her thoughts, and after thinking for a moment, he said:

"You must be feeling a lot of pressure right now, feeling like you don't deserve this kind of training course, so you're starting to dislike me, right?"

Hojo Shione's lips moved slightly, she pouted, and looked at him with a resentful expression, saying:

"You're such a strange person, you never consider my feelings at all..."

Upon hearing this, Shiratori Seiya shook his head, bent down slightly, and sighed:

Do you think I'm stupid?

Is not it?
Hojo Shione gave him a look but didn't say anything.

The reason you feel pressured right now is because you don't know just how capable you really are.

"The truth is, I admit I also have selfish motives. I know you will definitely shine in the future, so I thought I would make you owe me some favors while you are still not famous, so that I can help you order takeout when I can't afford to eat in the future."

Hojo Shione wasn't too impressed with his joke, but she still pursed her lips and retorted:

"You have quite the appetite, are you planning to order a million-dollar takeout meal...?"

"You don't necessarily have to order that much at once; you can pay in installments."

Shiratori Seiya smiled to ease the tension, then said seriously:

"But honestly, you really have the potential to be a star. I'm not the only one who thinks so. I've been to several training institutions, and the teachers who assessed me all said that you have a great voice, stable breath control, and great potential to become a star."

Hearing him say that, Hojo Shione was secretly delighted, and began to believe that she really did have the potential to become a star, but she still couldn't help but say:
"Is he trying to scam you? Is he just trying to sell you his training courses on purpose...?"

"But what if that's true?"

"..."

Seeing Hojo Shione remain silent, Shiratori Seiya continued:

"Anyway, the money has already been paid. Whether you want training or feel bad about it, there's really no need to pay it back. You might as well treat me to a couple more meals in the future."

Although Shiratori Seiya said he wanted to back down, he had already figured out Hojo Shione's personality. He wanted to force her to take this step. Only by taking it would she realize her talent, become completely confident, and abandon her former cowardice.

'well……'

Finally, Hojo Shione seemed to give in, and sighed:
"Okay, since I've already spent the money, I might as well give it a try..."

Upon hearing this, Shiratori Seiya's face revealed a faint smile. Hojo Shione seemed to notice this, and suddenly leaned closer to him, staring into his eyes, and said:
"But I will definitely pay you back, regardless of whether I am truly talented or not."

"..."

And so, she believed Shiratori Seiya's words.

Her progress far exceeded her own expectations. After only one week at the talent training center, her improvement was immediately apparent, stunning everyone in the club. Club president Yuuki Ono couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Perhaps that's why Hojo Shione and Shiratori Seiya grew closer and closer. She gradually shed her inner insecurity, and her smile became noticeably more frequent.

However, even though the biggest problem has been solved, having the talent alone isn't enough to garner enough votes at the school festival; you also need to campaign for votes and attract an audience beforehand. Attracting an audience is especially important; otherwise, if only a dozen or so people are watching the performance, even if you cast both votes, you'll still be ranked near the bottom.

However, this matter was much simpler for Shiratori Seiya.

He first took advantage of Hojo Shione's afternoon at the artist training center to record one of her best songs. Then, during the afternoon club activities, he secretly sneaked into the school's broadcasting room and played the song twice.

This audio has been meticulously edited, so the effect is immediately noticeable.

Many people want to know who sang this, and how it sounds even better than the original.

Although Shiratori Seiya was punished and apologized to all the students at the assembly the next day, he used the apology speech to promote the vocal music club and revealed that she would be performing at the school festival.

In just two days, the news that the vocal music department had a beautiful female singer with an angelic voice spread throughout the school.

Many people don't know what Hojo Shione looks like, but they are all looking forward to her performance at the school festival.

Hojo Shione was initially both embarrassed and angry that Shiratori Seiya had played her song on the radio.

But seeing more and more people on the forum looking forward to her performance, and some even saying they were saving their tickets for her, Hojo Shione's anger vanished without a trace.

She was even somewhat moved when she saw Shiratori Seiya apologizing at the conference.

He's clearly not the type to do things in a high-profile way, but for his own sake... he actually went to this extent.

It would be a lie to say that I am not impressed.

So after Shiratori Seiya apologized to her, she didn't put on airs. Instead, she couldn't help but want to chat with him more often...

Unbeknownst to her, Hojo Shione had already imprinted his image in her heart.

……

Thursday afternoon, twelve days until the school festival.

As Hojo Shione entered the activity room carrying her handbag, she saw Shiratori Seiya hunched over the table, pen in hand, staring intently at his book.

She moved closer and saw that Shiratori Seiya was reading a book about song composition.

Hojo Shione blinked, somewhat surprised, and asked:

Are you learning to write songs?

"Yes, I'm learning."

Shiratori Seiya didn't look up, and casually replied.

Seeing this, Hojo Shione didn't mind. She put her handbag aside and asked with a smile:

"Hehe, you're not thinking of writing this for me, are you?"

"do not know."

"I do not know what that means?"

Hojo Shione found his ambiguous words strange.

This time, Shiratori Seiya finally raised his head, gave her a deep look, and said:

"I only write songs for my girlfriend."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Hojo Shione's smile froze on her face, and the surrounding air suddenly became quiet.

She wasn't emotionally naive; she could naturally grasp the deeper meaning of Shiratori Seiya's words. She had a vague feeling:
If you can't give yourself a clear answer, you might regret it for the rest of your life.

Hojo Shione hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to agree to his request or give a vague answer to preserve her dignity as a girl.
However, she immediately dismissed the thought as soon as it popped into her head.

She could sense his seriousness through Shiratori Seiya's eyes; giving a vague answer at this moment would be tantamount to a rejection.

Although I didn't spend much time with Shiratori Seiya, I could still sense the arrogance in his bones.

Decisive, direct, and without hesitation.

From the moment I met him, everything he did exemplified these words.

If I reject him now, he'll probably walk away without looking back, go far away, never come back, and never say another word to me...

Just thinking about that scene sent a deep sense of fear through Hojo Shione's heart.

People are always afraid of losing something after they've enjoyed it, and she was no exception.

Don't let yourself regret it.

A voice suddenly appeared in her mind, and Hojo Shione instantly woke up, clenching her fists, having already made up her mind.

However, reason told her that as a girl, she should be more reserved and not just agree to his request so easily. She should at least make sure he was satisfied with her feelings first.

After thinking for a moment, she asked:
"do you like me?"

"What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Hojo Shione's lips moved as if she wanted to say, "How would I know?" But then images of herself grabbing and running away in the corridor flashed through her mind. To boost her confidence, she secretly sought out a music teacher and even spent a large sum of money to enroll in a training course. For her performance, she risked her reputation by promoting herself through the school radio. Even when she was publicly criticized and had to apologize at a rally, she didn't care. Even now, she was still studying music theory, despite being tone-deaf...

Thinking about all this, Hojo Shione felt completely surrounded by happiness, and her heart was filled with overwhelming emotion.

Kneading her palms, Hojo Shione realized she had no strength left. Her eyes were half-closed, and she glanced at him shyly, asking softly:

"So...would you like to go out with me?"

Shiratori Seiya suppressed a laugh, pretended not to hear, and frowned as he asked:
"what?"

"Will you go out with me?"

Shiratori Seiya pursed his lips and said helplessly:

"Your voice is so soft today, does that mean you're rejecting me?"

Hojo Shione was so agitated that her beautiful eyes widened, and she grabbed his hand tightly, asking:
"Shiratori Seiya, would you like to go out with me?"

Hearing her almost shout, Shiratori Seiya smiled and squeezed her hand in return, saying:

"Of course I would, I've liked you for a long time."

Upon hearing this, Hojo Shione finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, before she could even feel happy, she heard Shiratori Seiya say:

"I lied to you."

Hojo Shione's heart skipped a beat, and she looked at the other person in disbelief.

Seeing this, Shiratori Seiya squeezed her hand and said softly:

"I told you, I was lying when I said I was writing a song for my girlfriend."

I'll only write songs for you.

"Bad guy..."

Hojo Shione was startled by him, tears welling up in her eyes. She couldn't help but punch his chest playfully, saying coquettishly:
I want you to say you like me.

"I like you."

"It doesn't feel like you're putting your heart into it. Say it again properly."

Hojo Shione pouted, seemingly unappreciative.

"I love you."

Hearing the boy's confession, Hojo Shione smiled happily and threw herself into his arms.

It seemed she was destined to hide in his arms forever, never to come out again.

"..."
-
(End of this chapter)