Lonely Rock: Love Songs Dedicated to the Stars

"It definitely will."

Chapter 34 Birthday

On the afternoon of December 24th, Yuma was taking a nap when Hoshika called him, waking him up from his sleep and asking him to come over. So he went to Ijichi's house.

Youzhen sat upright on the sofa, and next to him sat Xingge's father.

Mr. Ichi had already heard from his wife that Hoshika had a boyfriend, but he had been working away from home and had only returned yesterday. He was eager to meet the boy his wife often praised.

As soon as Yuuma entered, he saw him sitting calmly on the sofa, drinking tea, seemingly completely unaware of Yuuma's presence. However, when Nijika ran over and hugged Yuuma's leg as soon as he entered, he became a little flustered. Nijika hadn't greeted him like that when he came back before.

Then Yuuma was pushed to the sofa by Aunt Ijichi, who told him to sit down first, and then she took Nijika away.

'Hmph, this kid's really tall, and good-looking too. He seems pretty innocent, but is he actually a womanizer? No, no, no, let's not assume that about him.'

He is usually very busy with work, and he likes to read light novels to relax in his spare time, so he subconsciously regarded Yuuma as a popular girl with a harem in light novels.

Yuma watched as Uncle Ijichi sized him up, his expression changing from blank to a confident smile. Yuma didn't know what he was imagining, but he could tell that this middle-aged man wasn't as scary as he had thought.

"Ahem, thank you for taking care of Xingge these past few days." Mr. Ijichi realized he had lost his composure and quickly regained his composure, looking at Yuuma. "And Hongxia, I heard you often help take care of her. I'm sorry to have troubled you."

"It's what I should do, after all, I'm dating Senior Xingge."

"This is what I wanted to talk to you about."

Yuma waited quietly for Uncle Ijichi's question, but the living room remained quiet. Then he saw the man in front of him sitting there with a solemn expression, not saying a word.

What's wrong with you?

"No, no, it's nothing."

Actually, Mr. Ijichi had forgotten what he was going to ask. After all, this was his first time meeting his daughter's boyfriend, and he was nervous, especially since he'd heard the guy's family was quite wealthy. Could they be involved in yakuza? What if he got angry and the guy just snatched Hoshika away? So he'd stayed up all night preparing his questions.

'Damn it, why did I forget my lines now? Looking at my phone's notes in front of him would be so embarrassing, wouldn't it? Let me think, what kind of questions do I usually ask in situations like this?'

"Um... how's your income?"

'Oh no, he's still a student! How could he ask about my income! Come to think of it, this guy's a rich kid; will he become a shut-in?'

“Um… my income isn’t very high.” Yuzhen didn’t know why Uncle Ijichi wanted to ask him about his income. Did he find out about his investment in his older brother’s bar? What a powerful intelligence network. Uncle Ijichi must be a very capable person. “My older brother owns a bar, and I invested a little money in it. His business is quite good. I can now earn a stable 850,000 yen a month, but I will definitely continue to work hard.”

'He actually does have an income? A little more than mine.'

"Well... your grades seem pretty good. Are you planning to go on to higher education?"

"Yes, my goal is Waseda University."

"What?! The child's mother only told me that this boy's grades were pretty good. Why would he be interested in my daughter? Is it just because Xingge is pretty? Quickly, think of anything else you want to ask."

Yuu-chan had no idea what Mr. Ijichi was thinking, but he could see that his uncle seemed to be deep in thought. Was he dissatisfied with his income and ambitions? His expectations were so high. Yuu-chan couldn't help but feel a little worried.

"Then why did you start dating Xingge?"

“Because Hoshika-senpai pulled me to her side several times when I felt lonely. And I feel that her personality is very compatible with mine.” Yuma answered without hesitation. “I felt the unique charm of Hoshika-senpai in my interactions with her. I like the feeling of being by her side, so I want her to stay by my side. Actually, if I had to say something, I wouldn’t be able to say more. I’m not very good with words.”

"Wait, what are you saying!"

Xingge came out of the room and, from behind Youzhen, pressed down on his shoulders and rocked him back and forth.

“I’m showing my uncle how much I love my elders.”

"Shut up!"

"Senior, I feel so dizzy."

Mr. Ichi looked at the two of them, then silently got up and went to the balcony to light a cigarette.

"How is the child?"

Lady Ichichi came up behind him.

"Exactly the same as when I was pursuing you."

"That's why I think he's a good kid."

Lady Ichi nestled into his arms and leaned against him, just like when they were young.

……

'This kid can cook? Good, at least Xingge won't starve anymore.'

Mr. Ichichi looked on in surprise as Yuuma brought the food out of the kitchen.

"Yuzhen's cooking skills are excellent, she's been a great help."

"Auntie, you flatter me. I was just helping you out."

Yuma brought the dishes to the table and took off her apron, hanging it on the hook on the wall. Hoshika also helped Hongxia wash her hands and sit down.

Yuma placed the cake he bought on the table, then Mrs. Ijichi lit the candles and turned off the lights.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Xingge made a wish. She secretly glanced at Youzhen beside her, the slight blush on her cheeks hidden by the candlelight. This birthday was different from previous ones. She blew out the candles, and only she knew the wish she had just made.

Hongxia kept pressing her sister for a answer, but Xingge refused to answer, and Hongxia angrily turned away, ignoring her. However, when Youzhen placed the cut cake in front of Hongxia, she forgot all about the unpleasantness with her sister. What bad intentions could little Hongxia possibly have?

"This is a gift for Senior Xingge."

After dinner, Youzhen took out the gift she had brought. It was a rather high-end guitar tuner that Xingge had seen before, but she had run out of her allowance and hadn't bought it. Although it wasn't expensive, Xingge still liked it very much.

Hongxia ran over and sat on Youzhen's lap, looking up at Youzhen: "Brother, Hongxia wants a present too."

"How about I give this to Hongxia when it's her birthday?"

Yuma gently patted Hongxia's head.

To be honest, Yuuma often touches Nijika's head because Nijika is very well-behaved and her head feels really nice, and Nijika likes it too, so now Yuuma does it almost subconsciously.

……

The streets were almost deserted at night, the streetlights were still on, and other families were at home celebrating the annual Christmas.

Mrs. Ijichi wanted Yuuma to stay, since it was so dark outside. However, Yuuma felt that it would be too much trouble for her family, so she decided to go home.

Xingge accompanied her downstairs.

"Then I'll be going, senior."

As Yuzhen turned to leave, Xingge grabbed him again.

"What's wrong? Is there anything else?"

“Um…” Xingge took a box out of her pocket. “A Christmas present. Merry Christmas.”

"Thank you, senpai." Yuma put the gift in her pocket. "Merry Christmas."

Yuzhen noticed that Hoshika showed no sign of going back upstairs and was a little confused about what she was trying to do.

"Is there anything else?"

"That's all. I'm going upstairs."

"Okay, let's go back quickly, it's quite cold outside."

Yuzhen stood downstairs and waited for Xingge to go up before turning to leave.

Ijichi Hoshika opened the door and went back inside.

"Xingge, Yuzhen just asked me to leave a gift in your room. He said I'll tell you about it later."

She heard her mother's voice as soon as she entered the door.

"When?"

"Right when you make a wish."

Xingge returned to her bedroom. There was a gift box on the bed, covered by the blanket. A note that read "Merry Christmas" was stuck on it.

She opened the gift, and inside was the panda plush doll that Yuzhen had bought a couple of days ago.

"This idiot." She hugged the plush toy and lay on the bed, still muttering, "What I wanted... well, it's fine too."

She blushed and stared at the doll in her arms for a while, then buried her face in the doll's soft belly.

Chapter 35 New Year (Part 1)

The New Year is finally almost here. Yuuma ran to Yuuki's room early in the morning, then crawled under the kotatsu table in his room and connected the game console to the monitor hanging on Yuuma's wall.

"What are you doing in my room instead of sleeping in your own?"

Yuuki was woken up just as he entered the room. He sat up in bed, but still seemed a little groggy.

"My monitor in my room won't turn on, so I had to come here," Yuzhen said, and then sent a message to Xingge, "I'm online, let's play together."

"You're in my room, using my monitor and game console to play games with your girlfriend?"

Yuuki got off the bed and crawled under the kotatsu. He lay on his side watching the two play games, occasionally interrupting Yuuma.

"Why don't you throw a prop at that person?"

"We're not playing Mario Kart, where would we get props from? And shut up, don't bother me."

"You two have delicious food."

"If you're so good, then you do it."

Yuuki took the controller from Yuuma and sat up to start the second game.

Why did you trip over Senior Xingge?

"What are you talking about? She's not my girlfriend, why should I care so much?" Yuuki glanced at Yuuma. "Besides, this is a competition! I have to win!"

……

The three of them played together for a while. Xingge seemed to be going to visit relatives, so she logged off first.

Yu-ma and Yu-yuki were still lying under the kotatsu, watching a variety show on TV together.

"Yuma, give me half of the orange."

Yuuki reached out his hand; his target was the orange that Yuuma had just peeled.

"There are still so many on the table, can't you peel one yourself?"

"To my shame, my hand went numb from pressing it down."