Do I really have a thing for female voice actors?

I haven't eaten all day, and my stomach is growling with hunger.

Just as he was hesitating about whether to go to the convenience store, a familiar voice came from behind him.

"Mr. Tazaki?"

Tazaki Toru turned around and met a pair of narrow eyes.

The evening breeze in March was constantly ruffling the girl's long, flowing hair. She wrapped her woolen trench coat tighter around herself, her round eyes fixed on Tazaki Toru's handsome yet tired face.

Tazaki Toru looked at his neighbor, a woman with a gentle smile, and nodded slightly.

"good evening."

Good evening, it really is you, what a coincidence.

Mika Takagi walked over to Toru Tazaki and glanced at his neck. The marks and redness from the strangulation had almost disappeared, as if everything that happened last night was just her imagination.

She looked at Tazaki Toru's lips as if seeking confirmation, then quickly looked away.

"Mr. Tazaki, did you just come back from outside?"

"Yes, part-time."

Mika Takagi opened her mouth, feeling somewhat incredulous. How could someone who was so tormented that she chose suicide still have to go out and work part-time?

Of course, she wouldn't say something so hurtful, so she chimed in, "Me too."

"I see."

Mika Takagi didn't seem to care about Toru Tazaki's taciturn nature, and walked silently to the side. The two of them walked in the same direction without prior arrangement.

They are neighbors, that's only natural.

The Suginami Ward was quite quiet at night. The aroma of fried dumplings wafted from a Chinese restaurant at the street corner, causing Toru Tazaki's stomach to contract and churn.

Along the way, Tazaki Toru's stomach made a lot of noises.

Mika Takagi glanced at Toru Tazaki from time to time, remaining silent for long periods, like an NPC teammate in a single-player game, constantly following her side.

I returned to my rented old-fashioned two-story apartment under the pale moonlight.

Not long ago, a light rain fell. The metal staircase outside the apartment building was covered with rusty iron sheets, and cherry blossom petals that seemed to have drifted down from somewhere. It looked like a childhood sweetheart was scolding a delinquent after he had finished a fight, while sticking an animal-patterned band-aid on his cheek.

Just as Tazaki Toru took out his key, the girl behind him suddenly called out his name.

"Mr. Tazaki, I was just about to have dinner. If you haven't eaten yet, how about we join each other?"

Tazaki Toru was taken aback when he heard this, and glanced at the time: 10:08 PM.

"dinner?"

"Dinner." She nodded firmly.

Tazaki Toru thought that what they were eating at this time should be called a midnight snack.

"Do not……"

Just as I was about to refuse, my stomach growled again.

"...Won't it be too much trouble?" he changed his mind.

The girl chuckled softly.

"It's no trouble at all."

……

……

"Sorry to bother you."

After taking off his shoes, Toru Tazaki followed Mika Takagi into the house.

Although this was his second visit, the circumstances last night were special, so Tazaki Toru was finally able to properly tour the voice actress's home.

Unlike the single room rented by Tazaki Toru, there is a separate bedroom in addition to the living room. The sliding door of the bedroom is not fully closed, and you can see the single bed inside, as well as the underwear casually hanging on the edge of the bed.

Light yellow.

It perfectly matches the warm and cheerful impression she gives off.

Tazaki Toru decided to abstain from looking at what he shouldn't see.

"Ms. Takagi, are you playing bass?"

Tazaki Toru looked at the bass guitar on the A-frame shelf in the corner of the room. The girl squatting in front of the refrigerator replied, "I haven't played it in a while. I've been busy with work. Is instant noodles okay?"

"I'm not picky, thank you."

"learn."

She picked up the chilled barley tea, nudged the refrigerator door with her heel (wearing white socks), making a soft "thump" sound, and poured tea for Tazaki Toru.

As he listened to the gurgling sound of the kettle boiling water, Tazaki Toru glanced at the woman's handbag lying on the floor beside him, where half a thin book was visible.

It's the script I saw last night.

I picked it up casually and flipped through a couple of pages, and indeed found the lines that Mika Takagi had said.

"Ms. Takagi, would you like to appear in this production?"

As she poured the boiled water into the cup, Takagi Mika noticed Tazaki Toru holding her script. Feeling a little embarrassed, she patted her head and forced a smile.

"To my shame, I've already lost the election, just today."

Knowing he had stepped on a landmine, Toru Tazaki silently closed it up, while Mika Takagi seemed unconcerned, as if she had long been used to this outcome.

Perhaps because I hadn't eaten all day, the cup noodles tasted especially delicious.

But when Mika Takagi boasted that she had a chef's license, Toru Tazaki couldn't help but wonder what this had to do with cup noodles.

"Let's not talk about my business anymore. How was Mr. Tazaki's day?"

"What does 'how' mean?"

"It's all about how you're doing, whether you've encountered any good things, whether you're happy or not. Just don't be pessimistic."

So that's how it is. First impressions are indeed not so easily erased.

"Good news? Hmm... there are two."

"Can you tell me about it?"

"I found a part-time job."

"Oh! Congratulations! What about the other one?"

Tazaki Toru pointed to the empty cup of noodles on the table: "Finally, I can eat something hot. Thank you."

Mika Takagi was taken aback: "You consider this a small matter?"

"The reason it's considered a small matter is because I'm still alive and haven't starved to death, so you saved my life again."

Mika Takagi was completely bewildered, not understanding what kind of logic this was, and her eyes revealed a hint of not-so-brightness.

The Tazaki Toru standing before her didn't seem like someone who wanted to die at all.

Although she didn't understand the reason, the thought that she had saved the life made her feel less upset about failing the audition.

Shortly after, Tazaki Toru got up to leave, and Takagi Mika specially escorted him to the outside, said a few words of farewell, and reminded him not to leave the loquats for too long.

After returning to my room, I was about to take a shower when I heard a series of piercing metallic clanging sounds coming from next door.

Mika Takagi reopened the door and craned her neck to look at Toru Tazaki.

"what happened?"

"The door won't open."

Upon hearing this, Mika Takagi walked over with her shoes half-on and shuffling along, saying, "Let me try." She took the key from Toru Tazaki, inserted it into the lock, and turned it twice, but it wouldn't budge.

Just as she was wondering, Mika Takagi suddenly looked at the mail slot below the door, where a letter was stuffed and stuck in the slot.

Tazaki Toru noticed this too, and immediately pulled out the letter, opened it, and read it. There was only one line inside.

The lock has been changed. Pay your rent now. (Landlord's note)

"........."

For a moment, Tazaki Toru was at a loss for words.

[Toru Tazaki] gave almost all the money he earned from work to the director and the welfare home. In the past, the director also handled the rent payments for him, and he did not have the landlord's contact information.

At this moment, a light rain began to fall again. The rain, carried by the cold wind of the night, was blown into the open corridor, one drop after another hitting Tazaki Toru's neck, soaking through his collar, and making his hair stand on end from the cold.

Mika Takagi remained silent for a moment, then looked hesitantly at Toru Tazaki, and roughly understood Toru Tazaki's situation.

"Well, it's not good to stay outside. It's getting chilly. How about... we go back to my place for a bit?"

4. She has never done any work that could be described as voice acting. (Please vote with monthly tickets)

Mika Takagi was born in southern Chiba Prefecture, in a remote village called "Minamiboso".

Uncultivated land, a tangled mess of utility poles, rubble-covered bungalows everywhere, an abandoned and desolate train station with only one tram per hour.

In short, it was an incredibly rural place.

If one had to praise something, one could only cite the pleasant scenery and the presence of the sea and Mount Fuji as examples.

Her rather rustic name, her unchanging black-rimmed glasses, and even when she tries different ways to braid her hair, the simple and honest charm of a country girl is impossible to hide.

She's not exactly bright; if you were to abruptly ask her what the chemical formula for carbon dioxide is, she'd probably panic for a moment, then carefully poke her fingers together and answer, "H2O."

The naive girl from the countryside seems to have an innate yearning for the big city.

After graduating from high school, I went to Tokyo alone to pursue the dream I had set for myself as a child. Everything seemed so natural.

At 21, this is her third year in Beijing, but she has to spend her precious years commuting on crowded trams and working part-time jobs.

She had nothing to complain about. Dreams are inherently unattainable, and just being able to walk on the path to them already made her luckier than most people.

Even though she is not doing well now, Mika Takagi is not discouraged. She takes steady steps forward, even if to others it seems like she is just standing still.

Only in this way could she accept it willingly.

When dreams are shattered in the future, and one slunk back to their hometown, they will spend their days sweeping the abandoned shrines and accepting the reality that they are just an ordinary person.