I live my life in Tokyo

The girl stuffed the chocolate mousse into the gap of the cheesecake. After doing all this, she took another photo of the cake complex on the plate.

She seemed to be in a good mood and hummed a little tune. Sakakibara Kaede remembered the tune. It seemed to be the song she sang to her friends at home that day.

"Hmm, what text should I use?"

Mai Sakurajima muttered that she only posted the first photo. The second photo would make fans think too much. Who ordered the cheesecake in the gap? Did Sakurajima-chan go out with someone else?

Japanese netizens always like to imagine that if Sakakibara-senpai was brought in, they would definitely be greeted by Enjo.

If that happened, Mai Sakurajima would never forgive herself.

"Sakakibara-senpai, are you going to get your motorcycle license?"

"Well, I have no plans to buy a car for now, although I am also planning to get a driver's license in case of emergency. The house I rent now doesn't have a parking space, but the motorcycle can be locked next to the door's handrail."

"Yes, the traffic in Tokyo is so congested that sometimes cars are worse than motorcycles."

The two of them ate cake and chatted about trivial things in life, with countless topics to share.

Mai Sakurajima's eyes were always fixed on the boy's eyes, and she found that he was the same and liked to look into his eyes when speaking.

She saw light in the other's eyes. This was not a metaphor, but Sakurajima Mai's most intuitive feeling. She could intuitively feel the sunshine and warmth of Sakakibara Kaede, and such emotions could not be faked.

Sakakibara-senpai is just such a nice person...

Sakurajima Mai muttered to herself that the young man, who originally seemed lonely and felt that he did not belong here, gradually found his place, and she was happy for him.

They first met, had a chance conversation at school, had a reserved and polite exchange when performing as an extra, and have become friends now.

"what happened?"

“Just thinking of happy things.”

After finishing the cake, the two left the dessert shop and headed to the arcade on the basement floor.

To be honest, Sakakibara Kaede had only seen this scene on the Internet or in anime. If the video game center had any similarities to the places he went to for leisure in the past, it must be an Internet cafe.

"Have you ever been to the arcade before, Sakakibara-senpai?" asked Mai Sakakijima with her hair curled.

"No, there is no such opportunity."

"I do not have either."

The two stared at each other and finally laughed.

They all decided not to focus on the Street Fighter consoles, but instead turned to the first-person shooter design that was aimed at newcomers and had the largest number of players.

The game adopts the form of inserting coins to buy lives. Compared with the combos in Street Fighter that require years of practice to master accurately, shooting and driving racing cars are more suitable for Sakakibara Kaede.

Sakakibara Kaede went back and forth, bought the tokens, handed one to Sakurajima Mai, and put them into the machine at the same time.

"This time I'm fighting alongside Sakakibara-senpai. Yeah, it feels good."

"From what you said, it seems like you want to fight with me."

"Ah, wouldn't it be interesting if the competition was higher? I like to actively compete during auditions, and I won't let go of something I've set my mind on."

"It's terrible. It's terrible to be your opponent."

As he was talking, two zombies jumped up, and they raised the toy handles in their hands, aimed at the screen and pulled the trigger.

The game adopts a normal shooting mode and a defense mode of stepping on the pedal. Even novices can master it quickly - it is no problem for experienced old people to clear the entire level with one token.

Soon, they went from competing to see who died less to seeing who killed more zombies at each level and who caused more damage to the boss.

The laughter between the two made a group of friends who were also playing games on the machines nearby look gloomy. How could they be exposed to the sun for playing games?

It’s like the water was flowing nicely in the morning, and suddenly a dog comes out to sunbathe.

Admin, where is the admin?

"Well... don't we go check out the claw machine?" After spending more than a dozen tokens, they finally passed the first level of the gun battle. Their performance was neither good nor bad, and their ranking on the machine was almost outside the top 100. After playing a round, they took a short break. Sakurajima Mai pointed to the claw machine not far away and said.

Catching dolls is indeed a science. Sakakibara Kaede knows that he had a classmate in high school who went to the video game arcade to grab the figures or peripherals in the doll machines, and then sold them at a high price. It was truly a profitable business.

"Sakakibara-senpai, go catch one for me."

Mai Sakurajima leaned close to the boy's ear and gave orders like a queen.

Kaede Sakakibara glanced at Mai Sakurajima and felt that she did seem to have a bit of a sadistic temperament. He walked slowly forward and put the coin into the claw machine.

"What animal?"

"Well, catch a puppy."

"Let me make it clear first, this is my first time playing this... so don't expect too much from me."

"be quick."

Sakakibara Kaede sighed and shook his head, obeying the queen's order and controlling his waist, hanging straight above the puppy phone pendant.

As the hook moved downward, Mai Sakurajima's breathing tightened, she pursed her lips, and stared at the claw machine with her indigo eyes without blinking, not missing any details.

"what--"

The hook was set very loosely... This was just basic training, and it was normal to fail the first time. Both of them had psychological expectations, so they did not show any disappointment.

"come on! Come on!"

Encouraged by Sakurajima Mai, the two of them got close to the claw machine, with the girl's cheek almost touching Sakakibara Kaede's profile. As the hook moved, they both held their breath.

"Failed—"

"Again."

"I'm sure I'll catch it this time... It was too loose, causing the pendant to fall off."

As the pendant moved towards the cave entrance little by little, the two found hope again. The boy controlled the hook and dragged the dog pendant's foot little by little, moving it towards success.

"what!"

With a scream of surprise, the dog's pendant hooked onto the cat's pendant, and as the hook swung, it turned into a beautiful parabola and fell into the hole.

"Success!"

Mai Sakurajima bent down and took out the cat and dog pendants. She smiled brightly and stretched out the hand that was holding the cat pendant.

"Sakakibara-senpai, take this."

Chapter 10: Sakurajima-senpai

Mai Sakurajima looked over and over at the small, furry dog ​​pendant hanging on her cell phone, stroking it with her fingers.

Compared to the dog's honesty, the white cat pendant on Sakakibara Kaede's mobile phone looks a bit aloof, with a hint of the cat's arrogance and cuteness, as if it can directly understand the desire to rub it anytime and anywhere.

"Thank you, Sakakibara-senpai. It's really beautiful."

Under the light, Mai Sakurajima held the dog pendant in her palm, her smile carrying a hint of girlish innocence. She glanced at the white cat pendant and said with a smile, "Sakakibara-senpai's pendant is also very cute."

"Well, I'm thinking about actually getting one."

Kaede Sakakibara stroked his chin. He had promised the housekeeper of the Starlight Cafe that he would take Chocolate and Vanilla home to take care of them this summer. For this purpose, he had searched the Internet for advice on how to take care of cats, and his shopping cart in the online store always had cat litter, cat bowls and canned cat food.

It can be said that everything was ready, but reality, or rather, Kei Iida, gave him a hard slap in the face.

"Is Sakakibara-senpai going to the office this afternoon?"

"Well, I have a junior who is taking a training course for new actors at the agency, and her agent Iida-san wants to take her in as an artist under his name... I want to go check on her progress today."

"Well... I don't have anything to do this afternoon, so why don't we go together?"

Mai Sakurajima fiddled with the pendant and said with a smile, "Sakakibara-senpai's lazy look is a target of public criticism in the office nowadays."

Sakakibara Kaede blinked her innocent eyes. Just because you touch a quarter of a fish, you become the public enemy, right?

He put his cell phone in his pocket and planned to take Chocolate and Vanilla home after the rental house was repaired. He gave them so much service every time in the coffee shop, it was time for them to repay him.

Taking advantage of the break in the rain, the two of them entered the tram station holding an umbrella. They were wearing hats and masks, leaning on the tram railings and looking at the gray world outside the window.

Compared to the gray outside the window, the inside of the train is full of various colors.

Sakakibara looked at the push on Twitter and liked the promotional retweet of Kashima Tour. After two seasons of filming, he could always feel that his heart was gradually filled up.

This may be because of work, using work to temporarily forget the fear of time travel. It may also be because of friends, with friends by his side, he is not alone.

Or perhaps, because there are goals and dreams ahead, Kaede Sakakibara is full of hope and motivation.

"Good afternoon, Sakurajima-kun, Sakakibara-kun."

The lady at the front desk greeted them both with a smile, and then said, "Sakakibara-kun, please go to the meeting room on the fifth floor. Mr. Tenjing wants to see you."

Sakakibara Kaede shrank back. This feeling was just like when he was called out in class and had to go to the teacher's office after class. What had he done recently? Could it be that his slacking behavior was unbearable to the higher-ups, and they were going to give him an iron-fist education? Or did he eat buffet every day and bankrupt STARS?

Mai Sakurajima covered her mouth and laughed with her hands covering her hands, looking at her misfortune. She pulled Kaede Sakakibara's arm and took him into the elevator, pressing the buttons for the fourth and fifth floors at the same time.

"Mr. Tian Jing is a senior executive of the agency. He is in charge of the idol and music departments. He is strict but gentle. He should only talk to you about work."

The boy frowned and thought, could it be that he had been tutoring Higuchi Madoka and Asakura Toru recently, and someone had leaked it out?

Idols are not actors, so there cannot be any scandals about them. Although Sakakibara Kaede believes that he and the two are just friends and colleagues, he doesn’t know what other people think.

It's going to cause trouble for them.

"It shouldn't be because of Yuanxiang-chan's matter."

Seeing this, Sakurajima Mai comforted her, saying that the young man in front of her was too much of a nice guy, and always thought that there was something wrong with him. Such self-loathing and self-deprecating thoughts made the girl bite her lower lip.

He is warm-hearted and a good guy who is willing to risk his life for his friends. The more perfect his appearance is, the harder it is to see his inner world.

But Mai Sakurajima knew that his gentleness came from the heart and his smile was contagious.

These are all true.

"I'll wait for you in the lounge. See you later."

Mai Sakurajima made a cheering gesture to Kaede Sakakibara, and the latter smiled in response, and the elevator door slowly closed.

Compared to the relaxed atmosphere on the first to fourth floors, the fifth floor and above are office floors that are not open to the public. Those who sit here are people who have a certain say in the firm. The boy stepped out of the elevator, walked quickly to the front desk, and said softly, "I am Sakakibara Kaede——"

"Oh, it's Sakakibara-kun who has an appointment with Mr. Tenai." The lady at the front desk smiled and made a gesture of invitation, "Mr. Tenai is waiting for you in Conference Room 2."

The boy thanked her softly and followed her instructions, stepping on the soft ground.

Taking a deep breath in front of the door of the conference room, Sakakibara Kaede prepared for the worst and knocked on the door. After hearing a response, he opened the door.

Mr. Tian Jing was a middle-aged man in his forties. He looked intimidating without even getting angry. He pointed to the seat and said, "Sakakibara-kun, right? Sit down."

"ha..."

"You should know why I called you here, right?"

The first voice was that of a middle-aged male.

"Is it about tutoring Higuchi-san?" Sakakibara Kaede asked tentatively.

Mr. Amai was stunned, then laughed and shook his head, "Sakakibara-kun, relax. I didn't call you here to accuse you. Idols have a certain amount of freedom outside of their idol lives. I already knew about the tutoring for Higuchi-kun and Asakura-kun. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah..."

Hearing this, Sakakibara Feng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Since it was not a bad thing, the stone in his heart fell to the ground.

“It’s about singing.”

Mr. Tianjing tapped the space bar on the laptop in front of him, and the projection screen in the conference room immediately began playing a video of a boy holding a guitar and singing about friendship in the afternoon sun.

"This song is very nice," said Mr. Tian Jing. "When I listened to this song, I felt warm."

“Did you write this song yourself?”

Sakakibara Kaede lowered his eyes, but in such a short period of time, a myriad of thoughts ran through his mind.

Unexpectedly, I didn’t become a plagiarist, but a song plagiarist.

He took a deep breath. He wanted to sing, to scream into the microphone, to convey his past, present, and future dreams to the audience. He wanted to sing loudly, to fully express the lyrics to the people listening to the song, to tell them that he was in a positive mood with the warmth of the sun. He wanted to sing, even if there were no listeners in the seats in front of him, he would sing out his own song, leaving a mark in this world, a proof of his existence.

Sakakibara Kaede raised his head, his blue pupils were warm and calm, and he nodded.

"Have you ever considered debuting as a singer?" Mr. Tian Jing smiled gently.

Sakakibara chose his words carefully. "I have played a song with the musician Miura-san before, and he also told me that he wanted to form a band and debut together."

"Band..." Mr. Tianjing nodded slightly, and then he continued, "I've heard Miura-kun's performance before, and his drum skills are really good. So... Sakakibara-kun is the singer and guitarist in the band, and Miura-kun is the drummer. What other instruments do you think you need to cooperate with each other?"

Sakakibara Kaede didn't expect things to go so smoothly, or he didn't expect Mr. Aoi to be so easy to talk to. Seeing this, Mr. Aoi smiled, with a hint of a successful prank, "Why, do you think what the agency said in the review is false? There is such a good seedling in the agency, how could we waste your talent?"