Tokyo: My Girlfriend

Seeing her daughter's infatuated expression, Aunt Sato coughed and reminded her:

"Kana, give the things to Shinichi."

Sato Kana scratched her head shyly and handed the documents to Kitagawa Shinichi with both hands, her heart fluttering at their very first meeting.

Aunt Sato suggested, "Why don't you two come to my house for lunch today? I've cooked a lot of delicious food, and you can also talk to Kana about school matters, which will help you both adjust better."

Shinichi Kitagawa did not refuse, and Rena thanked him along with him.

At noon, the four of them gathered at Aunt Sato's house, chatting and laughing.

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"Ah~ when you're in a good mood, a cold beer is the perfect thing! It makes you feel so much better."

In the office of a consulting firm in Tokyo, Haruna Kasuga, wearing high heels, a plaid pencil skirt, a pink top, and a white coat, sits on the sofa with a can of ice-cold beer in her hand.

While drinking, his little finger unconsciously curled up, and he looked on, enjoying the rich aroma and coolness of the beer coursing through his body: "So comfortable~"

My best friend, who was standing next to me, was wearing a loose gray long-sleeved off-the-shoulder bodycon dress and had short hair. She closed the door of the office and hung up a sign that said the office was closed for the day.

Haruhi Hina asked curiously, "Why is it closed?"

Haruhi Hina's best friend is named Tamura Kyoko. The two have known each other since junior high school and have remained best friends for over ten years. (Winking at each other)

"If you don't want to serve customers, just close down! Today is the day we celebrate our Miss Hina officially finding a boyfriend, so we can't let tedious work spoil our best friend's good mood. Let's drink to our hearts' content!"

Haruhi Hina grinned and said, "Then I'll be staying here tonight!"

That's exactly what I meant.

They opened some takeout dishes, and Tamura Kyoko and Haruhi Hina clinked glasses. As they drank, they somehow managed to throw their high heels somewhere.

He sat barefoot on the sofa, leaning back, looking every bit like a drunkard.

Tamura Kyoko's alcohol tolerance was significantly better than Haruhi Hina's; her face barely flushed. On the other hand, Haruhi Hina was intoxicated by her own presence, even without drinking, and became tipsy much faster due to her good mood.

Of course, she can't really get drunk; she'll keep her alcohol intake within a certain range.

"Kawaii... I never thought I would get together with the adorable Shinichi so easily. It's like a dream. Kyoko, you have no idea how cute Shinichi is."

"Just how good-looking does a boy have to be for you to say it so many times? Do you have a picture?"

Haruhi Hina exclaimed, then belatedly looked at her best friend, "I forgot to take a picture! Ah!" She clutched her head, "I completely forgot to take a picture of us together! That was such an important day for us dating! Wow!"

Kyoko Tamura glanced at her best friend, who was neither quite childish nor quite mature—that impulsiveness hadn't changed a bit. She took a sip of her drink and asked, "What does Shinichi do for a living? You said he's a great novelist, is his family very wealthy?"

"I don't know if he has money, and as for a job? He doesn't have a job. He seems to be a senior in high school, just writing novels part-time like me."

Kyoko Tamura stared in disbelief, her mouth agape. "What?! Senior year of high school?! Are you crazy?! You, an adult, dating a high school student?!"

Haruhi Hina said unhappily, "What do you mean, 'adult'? We just graduated, okay? Shinichi is eighteen years old, what's wrong with that? I'm not that much older than him." Her face was flushed, and she looked a little shy.

"Well, I admit I had the same thought as you when I first heard that Shinichi was eighteen, but after three years of relationship, and he's so cute, how could I refuse when he asked me if I wanted to date him? I just couldn't refuse."

"You really are something... no wonder you're a pure 22-year-old girl. But here's a question, Hina: your dream is to be a teacher, right? And you've been taking the exams for that right now."

Haruhi Hina held up her finger with a grin and emphasized, "They're a teacher and a novelist!"

"So here's the question: does this count as a teacher-student relationship? If the school finds out, this job is going to be over."

Kasuga Hina: "..."

It was only after the fact that I realized it; it was a bolt from the blue.

Losing his luster because of his own stupidity: "This... this counts as a teacher-student relationship? I don't think so." He was drenched in sweat.

"It certainly doesn't count right now, because you're still taking the relevant exams, but who knows what the future holds. Fortunately, didn't you say that Shinichi isn't studying in Tokyo? The chances of it being exposed are much lower if you're not in the same school. As long as Shinichi goes to university next year, we can date openly."

When Haruhi Hina heard this, she realized that it meant she would have to work secretly for the entire year after becoming a teacher!

No! This is my first love! Why did this have to happen? I was planning to introduce Shin-il to all my friends! What am I going to do?!

I feel like crying.

Haruhi Hina took a sip of beer and pouted dejectedly.

Tamura Kyoko put her arm around her best friend's shoulder and laughed to comfort her, "Alright, alright, this is nothing compared to you finding a boyfriend. When you have time, take me to meet your beloved Shinichi-kun too."

Haruhi Hina nodded tearfully, "Yes, I'll introduce him to you, but it'll have to wait a while. He just got back to Japan and has a lot on his plate." She shyly fumbled for her beer can, "Even our date this week wasn't originally planned; I had to ask..."

Seeing her looking so lovey-dovey, her best friend felt a pang of nostalgia. She thought she had the same expression when she had her first love ten years ago—ah, the beauty of first love.

Kyoko Tamura finished her beer. "By the way, Haruna, are you still going to investigate that mother and daughter? I think we've done enough, right?"

When Haruhi Hina heard about the request she had made earlier, she said, "If they moved to Finland many years ago, even Kyoko probably wouldn't be able to find out about them now, right?"

Kyoko Tamura stared at the ceiling:

"It's not that it's impossible to investigate, since it was something Hina asked me to do. I could use my connections to investigate, but I don't think it's necessary. After all, investigating them in the first place would just be meddling and wouldn't make much sense."

Haruhi Hina stared at the dozens of empty beer cans on the coffee table:

"It's okay if you say it's not related, but it's also somewhat related. I just want to hear that the mother and daughter are happy now."

"Hina, you really are... way too kind. It's easy for you to get hurt like that."

Haruhi Hina, looking pitiful, clung to her best friend's arm:

"Xingzi~ Since you just said you could investigate, could you please do some more research for me? It doesn't have to be too detailed, just let me know that the mother and daughter are happy, that would make me feel much better, please."

My best friend couldn't resist the onslaught: "Okay, okay, I know. You should use your charm on your boyfriend. Oh, and to celebrate you finding a boyfriend, I got you some little gifts."

"A gift? What is it?"

Kyoko Tamura got up and rummaged through a drawer, pulling out a large gift box, about ten centimeters long and wide. She grinned and exclaimed, "Ta-da! A special gift for getting out of singlehood!"

Haruhi Hina said thank you, took the box, and asked if she could open it. The other person said of course.

But when she unwrapped the ribbon and opened the box, Haruhi Hina froze. The box was filled with many small blue boxes. She randomly picked one up to examine it: "What's this... ultra... ultra-thin condoms..."

Kyoko Tamura also introduced with a smile:

"These are all brands I've found to have great user experiences over the years!" She picked out a few to introduce: "For example, this one you have is quite thin and light, closer to reality, and the quality is good. Another one has many small dots of just the right intensity, which feels really nice! And then there's..."

Haruhi Hina returned the gift, blushing and covering her ears: "I don't want to hear it! Kyoko, don't do this! I won't accept this kind of thing, it's so embarrassing."

Kyoko Tamura was speechless.

"Are you from ancient times? You're acting like a middle school girl. You're 22, Aunt Hina! And aren't you meeting Shinichi-kun this week? You'll be staying at a hotel, right? Aren't you afraid of getting pregnant if you don't use those things?"

"What the hell! How can it be so fast! I already thought a kiss last time was fast."

"Does being a stranger count as being related?" Tamura Kyoko grinned mischievously. "Besides, I know you well enough. You've been lonely for so many years, so just listen to me and accept it." She patted the shy Haruhi Hina's shoulder. "Enjoy your first time as a woman! It'll definitely be a wonderful experience!"

Thumbs up: "Keep it up!" Just got it! "I've experienced this countless times; it's so wonderful to experience that with the one you love."

Haruhi Hina's mind wanders; this week... should she really go to a hotel with Shinichi-kun...?

We never said anything about staying overnight, but I can't just go all that way for a short visit... What if Xin Yijun wants to see me? As his girlfriend, I can't refuse, can I?

I'm so conflicted. Will going to a hotel so soon after meeting in person seem frivolous?

I'm so looking forward to it...

"Well... I'll reluctantly accept it..."