Do I really have a thing for female voice actors?

"And have you forgotten that I'm just a new voice actor that nobody pays attention to? I can't even get decent work, so why would anyone care about me?"

That's not what I meant.

She looked puzzled.

Tazaki Toru took a deep breath: "Ms. Takagi is a girl, and I am a man. Living together is always... um."

Mika Takagi hadn't considered this at all; she had almost forgotten that before becoming a voice actress, she was a young, single girl.

How could we forget something so important?

Tazaki Toru's words caused the previously relaxed atmosphere to freeze instantly.

Only the clock on the wall remained, its second hand still ticking away.

The sudden silence caused their eyes to meet, and incredibly, unlike before, neither of them looked away, as if they had to find some clue in each other's eyes before they would give up.

"Yes, I'm fine, if it's Tazaki-san."

After a while, the girl's voice traveled through the air and entered Tazaki Toru's ears, like ink plunging into a sink, spreading uncontrollably in a riot of colors.

She stared intently at Toru Tazaki, her narrow eyes squinting into thin slits, her smile incredibly bright and innocent.

"Because I believe in you."

18. Soaking in the bathwater of female voice actresses? That's interesting.

At night, on his way back to Kamiigusa from Shimokitazawa, Toru Tazaki walked alone on the street.

Although an unexpected incident occurred in the afternoon, fortunately, Mika Takagi was willing to take him in, so the final outcome wasn't too bad, and he didn't end up sleeping on the streets.

Looking back, ever since he came into this world, Tazaki Toru has always been receiving help from that voice actress.

The food and the accommodations were both good.

Even her life, if it weren't for her, probably wouldn't have been able to be saved.

Carrying a supermarket shopping bag, Tazaki Toru walked step by step up the familiar apartment stairs, past his own room, and knocked on the door of that room.

A short while later, the door opened, and a cute head peeked out. After meeting her gaze, the girl gave a simple and honest smile.

Welcome back.

Tazaki Toru stood there, stunned, unsure how to respond.

She felt warm all over, her fair cheeks were flushed, and you could faintly smell the fragrance of shower gel.

After pausing for two or three seconds, when the girl in front of him began to show a puzzled look, he gave a soft "hmm".

"I am back."

A subtle silence fell over the room.

Mika Takagi scratched her head sheepishly: "I've been in Tokyo for so long, and this is the first time I've ever said 'Welcome home' to someone. How should I put it... it feels a little unbelievable, hehehe."

"Yes, me too," Tazaki Toru said frankly.

The two exchanged a smile, both feeling rather embarrassed.

Back inside, Toru Tazaki put the sake in the refrigerator, rotating the can each time to keep the "strong zero" lettering facing forward—a bit of an obsessive-compulsive disorder.

He wants to drink some unsweetened fruit wine today.

A voice came from behind: "Tazaki-san, have you had dinner yet?"

"Yes, the manager is treating us to dinner tonight."

She leaned against the wall, watching Toru Tazaki squatting in front of the refrigerator, occasionally tapping her head lightly against the wall, making a soft "thump-thump" sound.

Tazaki Toru turned to look at her: "If you keep doing that, you'll become less and less intelligent."

"It's like they're saying I wasn't smart to begin with."

Tazaki did not respond; his silence was his response.

"By the way, you should go take a shower first. I just took one, and the water is still warm."

"I'm sorry, the rent here is very cheap, but the water heater doesn't work very well. If you change the water, it might come out cold."

Tazaki Toru closed the refrigerator door, got up and went to Takagi Mika.

"It's alright. In fact, I'm really grateful to you for letting me stay."

"Hehe~"

She looked like a primary school student being praised by the teacher in front of the whole class, showing a shy expression, yet somehow, she also exuded a hint of smugness.

Habits are truly a terrible thing.

The thought of being able to undress at the voice actress's house and soak naked in the bathwater she had used filled Tazaki with a strange feeling.

Life seems to be going quite well.

Mika Takagi's voice came from outside the bathroom door.

"Tazaki-san, is the water still hot?"

"Yes, no problem."

"If you think the bottle is in the way, you can take it out. You should still be able to get some more hot water out."

"it is good."

Tazaki Toru thought the conversation was over, but then came the question about where the hairdryer and bath towel were placed.

He clearly didn't have a fetish for talking to women while naked, but he couldn't help responding to her through the bathroom door, to the point that the two of them ended up chatting.

It wasn't until Mika Takagi realized she had talked too much that she hurriedly told him to warm himself up properly, and then fell silent.

Tazaki Toru submerged his head in the water, causing bubbles to rise to the surface, almost drowning in this leisurely daily life.

……

……

Cheers!

After taking a shower, Toru Tazaki and Mika Takagi sat on the floor, drinking chilled Strong Zero.

She held the wine jar in both hands like a hamster, and soon her cheeks flushed red, all the way to her ears.

The television in the living room is playing the latest anime series.

She always watched very carefully, especially when explaining things about voice actors to Toru Tazaki. However, Toru Tazaki didn't know much about voice actors and could only remember a few names that she often mentioned. She only knew that Toru Tazaki liked a voice actress named Inori Minase.

Tazaki Toru never imagined that drinking and watching anime with female voice actresses in the middle of the night would become his daily routine.

When the ending theme started playing, Mika Takagi stretched and blinked her long, narrow eyes, which were tinged with drunkenness, as she looked at Toru Tazaki.

"Tazaki-san, I want to hear you play that piece."

"Again?"

"no?"

"Why wouldn't it work?"

Ever since her birthday, Mika Takagi seems to have taken a liking to Toru Tazaki's piece, and often asks him to play it for her.

In Mika Takagi's words, after hearing this piece of music that night, she no longer felt like crying.

"If I were to make a small request of you, would you grant it, Tazaki-san?"

"of course."

"Anything is fine?"

"Anything is fine."

Seeing Tazaki Toru's decisive answer, she couldn't help but smile, then lowered her head in embarrassment.

"Then, can you teach me to play your pieces?"

"What's so difficult about that?"

She smiled happily.

"But you can't play guitar, right? You'll play bass?"

"Hmm! I'd like to practice a bit, and try to play a few notes in response to your playing."

She started gesturing wildly.

"You see, if one day I really get a chance to audition for playing bass, wouldn't it be embarrassing if I couldn't play anything?"

"and……"

"and?"

The voice actress blushed and shook her head vigorously.

After staring at her for a while, Toru Tazaki said, "Then I'll rewrite a bass score for you."

"Huh? Is it really possible?"

"Ah."

"Thank you! I'll go get the bass."

Her cheeks, flushed with excitement, mingled with the redness from the alcohol.

This caused Mika Takagi to slip and fall uncontrollably onto Toru Tazaki as soon as she stood up, the alcohol in her blood acting up slightly.

This unexpected turn of events left them all somewhat bewildered.

Looking at the girl's face so close to his, and those lips that had once saved him and were moistened with wine, Toru Tazaki seemed to hear a kind of knocking sound, like a drummer vigorously pounding the bass drum.

Thump, thump...

Tazaki Toru has excellent hearing, possessing near-perfect absolute pitch.

However, he couldn't tell whether the person constantly stepping on the bass drum was Mika Takagi or Toru Tazaki himself.

Regardless of how others judge her, Toru Tazaki genuinely believes that Mika Takagi is a very beautiful girl.

She is simple, kind, and even resolute; these qualities form the underlying beauty of the character "Mika Takagi".