Tokyo Sick Girlfriend

Chapter 24 Hype
In the classroom, Mio Takahashi is doing the thing she has done most in her life.

The senses gradually blurred, and the teacher's voice on the podium seemed to gradually transform into something else, like a lullaby a mother used to lull a child to sleep.

My eyes closed without me even realizing it.

The head moved along with the teacher's hand, tapping faster than a dragonfly skimming the water, the carbon pen pressing on the paper and spreading out a small, dark patch.

Going to class is a huge hypnotic ritual.

For Mio Takahashi, listening to lectures had a magical quality that simple recordings couldn't match. The slightly noisy but relatively quiet atmosphere of the classroom, the teacher lecturing in the same unchanging tone, and that inexplicable sense of security...

Sleepiness washed over me like a tidal wave, and I couldn't resist it at all...

Just as she was about to give up resisting, she felt a long, hard object stab her in the waist.

‘! ’

In an instant, Takahashi Mio seemed to be struck by lightning. Her eyes widened, her slender waist straightened, and she unconsciously gripped the pen that was about to slip from her fingertips.

A snicker came from behind me.

Mio Takahashi blushed and quickly looked back at her book, preparing to keep up with the teacher's pace.

Unfortunately, even she herself didn't know when she started to feel confused.

I scanned the page in front of me, unsure which line to focus on.

Seemingly noticing her embarrassment, the girl with glasses beside her pointed to the bottom left corner of the book with her pen...

Mio Takahashi's eyes lit up. She looked up at the PPT and started highlighting the key points.

In fact, once you become an adult, almost no one will offer help out of kindness; everyone will be more focused on their own affairs.

Even close friends often prefer to see someone make a fool of themselves, as it adds a bit of fun to a dull and boring life.

The girl next to him was named Nanase Nagata. She wasn't doing this out of kindness; she was a top student whom Mio Takahashi had paid to supervise her.

In fact, it's not just about oversight.

Tutoring, assessments, notes...

It's basically like one-on-one private tutoring.

The price is 100,000 yen per month.

This is considered cheap for a one-on-one tutoring session in Tokyo, which costs around 2000 yen per hour, and the key point is that it's not just one lesson.

If it weren't for the fact that it wouldn't take much time in a day, and that these were the same courses she was currently taking, Nanase Nagata wouldn't have agreed.

After all, you get what you pay for; this applies to both Nanase Nagata and Mio Takahashi.

The allure of one million yen is simply too great.

Therefore, she decided to start studying hard this week, and even refused Haruno Reika's invitation to go out this week.

The task must be completed diligently!
Moreover, after deducting what he gives to Nanase Nagata each month, he still has 200,000 yen left.

If I work hard this semester, I can successfully pay off my loan and no longer have to live a life that looks glamorous on the surface but is actually filled with anxiety and worry about how to pay off the loan next month.

Mio Takahashi was even somewhat hoping that Seiya Shiratori would assign her some more tasks.

This way, I can easily pay off the loan and enjoy my vacation to the fullest, buying whatever I want...

As for Shiratori Seiya's dream of becoming a star, although she had some longing for it, it was now just a pipe dream and there was no point in thinking about it.

As he said, it's better to be down-to-earth first.

'Ta-da!'

"Alright, that's all for this lesson. As for homework..."

After being poked in the waist several times with a pen by Nanase Nagata during a class, Mio Takahashi finally ended her ordeal.

Are you going to the library to study later?

Nanase Nagata adjusted her black-rimmed glasses and asked while tidying up her books.

"Oh, okay, but I need to use the restroom first..."

"Okay, I'll go first, to the same spot as before." "Okay."

Mio Takahashi nodded, packed her handbag, and was about to leave when a gasp came from behind her.

"Eh?!"

"Has Friend A stopped writing?"

Mio Takahashi's ears twitched, and she stopped and turned around to look back.

"What [Friend A]?"

"The one who always wrote songs for Hojo Shione, she's stopped writing."

"Huh? Really? It's fake, right?"

"No, the official Twitter account has already posted it, and Hojo Shione and Friend A's accounts also posted it at the same time."

"Really!"

"..."

Hearing this, Mio Takahashi unconsciously frowned.

She didn't know when it started, but she felt a little irritated whenever she heard the name Hojo Shione.

As Shiratori Seiya's current girlfriend, she always feels like she's being trampled on and crushed.

This has nothing to do with jealousy; Mio Takahashi knows perfectly well that she doesn't have that deep a feeling for Seiya Shiratori at all.

I'm just annoyed.

She angrily tore down the posters of Hojo Shione in the house, put the matching bag she just bought on a second-hand trading website, and packed some unsold accessories into her suitcase to gather dust...

If only she weren't Shiratori Seiya's girlfriend.

Recently, such thoughts have been popping into Mio Takahashi's mind from time to time.

That way, I would still like her, and I wouldn't feel so pressured when facing Shiratori Seiya and listening to him talk about those unattainable dreams...

She wished she could go back in time and not see that photo that night...

But even so, I'll find out sooner or later, won't I?

It felt as if an invisible hand had twisted me between the two people.

Biting her lip, Mio Takahashi took a deep breath and turned on her phone.

Regardless, she still wanted to see what was going on.

Upon opening Twitter, it was discovered that the accounts of Hojo Shione's agency, Hojo Shione herself, and her friend A all posted announcements simultaneously.

The announcements and statements from Hojo Shione's company and her own account were very formulaic.

Friend A's words were quite interesting. The reasons for stopping writing were things like "my talent has run dry," "I want to pursue other dreams," and "Although I haven't earned enough money, I can barely support my next goal."

Mio Takahashi continued scrolling down and saw all sorts of comments.

"Ah, what a pity. Has their collaboration really come to an end? It feels like a couple breaking up..."

"Are there really any fools who believe it's two different people? It's clearly just a publicity stunt by the studio and company. Otherwise, how could the style of each song vary so drastically?"

"Oh right, Hojo Shione's concert is coming up soon, are you using this to create hype?"

"I heard they were the last two songs that Friend A left for her..."

There's been a lot of debate about whether "Friend A" is a studio.

Mio Takahashi's finger, which was swiping down, suddenly stopped, her fingertip resting on a comment:

"Without 'Friend A's' songs, will Hojo Shione continue to be popular?"

Will it be popular?
The replies below are quite interesting. Some say, "Hojo Shione's singing skills are exceptional; any song she sings will become a hit." Others say, "Without good songs, even the best singing skills are wasted effort."

Mio Takahashi narrowed her eyes, and almost unconsciously clicked on Seiya Shiratori's profile picture on the social media app, typed a message, and sent it:
"Do you know that friend A has stopped writing?"

……
-
(End of this chapter)