They all pushed me!

"I think so. It should be when B Komachi was the most popular. When Ai was about seventeen or eighteen years old?"

Beichuan Liang recalled, raised his eyebrows at his sister, and said with a slightly teasing tone:

"Why? Want to find some inspiration from love?"

"For the ace who wants to surpass B Komachi and Hoshino Ai, this is just to know yourself and your opponent."

Kitagawa Rumi snorted rather proudly, but her hands moved quickly. She immediately found the video from a few years ago by searching for keywords and started playing it in silence.

"What? Sister Ai's bookshelf doesn't have many books. It's basically filled with various trophies. Um, Best Idol of the Year, Top Ten Excellent Albums... Write them down. I want to get them all in the future."

After looking down for a while, Kitagawa Rumi found a pen and paper while talking and wrote down the names of the various crystal clear trophies that appeared in the video.

"I have an idea!"

After copying everything, Kitagawa Rumi also twirled her pen and had an idea:

"I'll just leave this bookshelf empty and put the names of these trophies on sticky notes."

At this point, she waved her hand confidently, and changed her tone as she immersed herself in the role. She spoke in a low and serious voice:

"One day, I will fill this place with all the honors!"

Then, Kitagawa Rumi looked at her brother excitedly and said urgently:

"How is it? Isn't it very impressive and touching? After watching it, do you feel like you are willing to support this idol for the rest of your life and accompany her to realize her dream step by step?"

"Uh... a little bit."

Beichuan Liang hesitated for a while, then said tentatively:

"Ruby, you've been using this bookshelf for several years, don't you think it's a bit old? Do you want to get a new one?"

In the face of Beichuan Liang's sudden suggestion, Beichuan Rumi also tilted her head in confusion, but immediately raised her index finger as if she understood:

"Ryo wants to count this money as expenses for filming the video. I've heard from MEM that many YouTubers will deliberately upload videos of themselves buying expensive things. This is basically to count the money they spend on buying things as expenses for filming the video, so that when they file their income tax every year..."

"I wouldn't resort to such methods, and I pay my taxes conscientiously every year."

Looking at his sister who had an expression of 'I already understand everything', Beichuan Ryo smacked his lips and interrupted her speculation speechlessly.

Then, he looked around the room at the familiar and friendly furnishings, especially the teddy bear stuffed animal placed at the bedside, so he hesitated for a moment.

It has been four or five years since he and his sister moved to the house in this community after the stalker incident ended. Although they have not lived there as long as they did in the first apartment, they have also developed a considerable degree of attachment to it.

"What's wrong?"

As if noticing something strange about Kitagawa Ryo, Kitagawa Rumi pulled his arm and asked in confusion.

"Well... how should I put it? It's not just the bookshelf. Ruby may be living in a new room soon. To put it more bluntly, we will be moving out of here soon."

"Huh? Why are you moving? Where are you moving to?"

Kitagawa Rumi subconsciously asked one question after another, but an answer had already vaguely emerged in her mind.

"It's a new house in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. It's also the new house that Ai and I will live in after we got married."

"That's why we're moving. Ai and I are getting married early next year, and we're going to live in a new house together."

Kitagawa Ryo tried his best to use a gentle and calm tone to tell Rumi this fact, his eyes fixed closely on hers.

But what surprised him was that Rumi didn't seem to collapse like last time. She was just silent for a while, lowered her head slightly, and then immediately spoke in the same tone as usual:

"Oh... that's a bit troublesome. I guess I need to tell the staff and MEM-chu and the others to postpone the plan of this exhibition room for the time being."

"I've grown a lot in the past two years, and a few days ago I felt that my current bed and room were a bit small. The new house should be very big, so my room should be bigger too? Well... then I should buy a bigger bed, the kind that I can roll over three times without falling off. It should be more comfortable to sleep on."

"The bookshelf is indeed a bit old, so I'll replace it with a newer and bigger one. Anyway, I originally wanted to win more trophies than Ai, Ai-jie...jie, such as the Best Newcomer award, ha... an idol can only win once in their career. She didn't get it, so when I get it next year, I, I will-"

At this point, Kitagawa Rumi suddenly stopped. She turned her back, sniffed hard and embarrassedly, took a deep breath, and rubbed her face a few times before turning back and speaking calmly:

"When is the wedding?"

"It is tentatively scheduled for April next year."

"Has it been decided?"

"It's already been decided."

Kitagawa Rumi nodded. Her eyes were a little red, but she still managed a smile.

"Now all the couples that netizens have been supporting have come true."

Then, she raised her head and looked straight at Beichuan Liang:

"And then? In this wedding, am I a flower girl, a bridesmaid, a member of the groom's family, or just an invited guest?"

Chapter 4: The Only One and Forever (5k)

"...I don't want to be any of them, whether it's a flower girl, a bridesmaid, a family member of the groom, or a guest invited to witness these things, I don't want to be any of them."

Before Kitagawa Ryo could answer, Kitagawa Rumi shook her head again and whispered to deny all the roles she had just proposed.

"Does Ruby mean to not participate?"

"It's too cunning to play dumb at this time."

Kitagawa Rumi turned her eyes away from his face, lowered her head to look at her toes, and sighed a little bitterly.

There was no way she would engage in another cold war with Beichuan Liang over something that had been expected and was bound to happen, because no one would stand on her side except herself.

Although Kitagawa Rumi had no doubt that if she really showed more stubbornness and even unreasonableness than last time, Kitagawa Ryo might really postpone the wedding that seemed to have been prepared for a long time for her, but the price of doing so would be to further erode Kitagawa Ryo's feelings for her, because this had already gone beyond the level of throwing a tantrum.

So, after hinting at her feelings, Kitagawa Rumi tried to calm down, and every part of her body and every organ worked together. Her tears seemed to have suddenly become the most precious thing in the world, as if a drop from her body would take away a part of her vitality. So she stood there biting her lips until they turned white, shrinking her eyes, wiping away those crystal things, and suppressing the low sobs in her throat. Her small body twitched for a long time before she calmed down.

"I'll be there."

Kitagawa Rumi spoke again, with a heavy nasal tone that could not be eliminated for a while, and raised the corners of her mouth as much as possible, pretending to be well-behaved:

"Because I want to witness Ryo's happiness."

She could clearly feel that as soon as she said this, Beichuan Ryo suddenly turned his head away for unknown reasons, as if he didn't dare to look directly into Rumi's misty eyes, and moved his gaze away.

It seemed that he felt that it was inappropriate to say anything in this situation. After a long silence, Beichuan Ryo reached out and touched his sister's head as usual:

"No matter what, Ruby is the only one for me..."

He originally wanted to say "family", but immediately realized that this word was not right and not good, whether for Rumi or for Hoshino Ai who was about to become his wife.

After a while, Kitagawa Ryo was unable to find a suitable relative noun to fill this gap, but Rumi felt that this was already a complete sentence.

"Well, no matter what time it is, Liang Ye is always the only one for me."

In response to Kitagawa Rumi's retelling, Kitagawa Ryo decided to just let it go and not care about it, because sometimes the relationship formed between two people after birth is different from the blood relationship determined at birth, and there is really no way to summarize it with just one noun.

Just like Hoshino Ai had told him before when they discussed wedding-related issues.

He can be her psychotherapist, acting teacher, sex partner, fiancé, lover, spiritual mentor and the only one -

light.

-------------------------------------

The last episode of "It's Not My Fault That I'm Not Popular" was finally aired at the end of this year. The final episode, which was hailed as "making this winter warmer", lived up to expectations and achieved a 37% audience rating, breaking the record in the past five years.

As a TV series in the October season, when the three-month serialization period ended, the time in reality just happened to slowly move to the eve of the New Year and near Christmas.

On the day when the first snow of this winter fell in Tokyo, Kana Arima also gave the hand-knitted scarf mentioned earlier to Kitagawa Ryo as a gift to his home.

After personally accepting the kindness from his junior and expressing his sincere gratitude, Kitagawa Ryoya made hot cocoa for Arima Kana who came to visit his house alone.

“I’m leaving Burning Production.”

Arima Kana had just taken a sip of her hot drink when she heard Kitagawa Ryo tell her the news straight away.

"Is it because of what happened with Sister Ai?"

Arima Kana, who was not surprised at all, looked up at the living room which was much more spacious than before, and guessed with a smile.

"Well, after all, the company will not accept me announcing my relationship or even marriage at this time."

Beichuan Liang nodded and replied:

"Although they won't interfere with my private life or forbid me from dating, the bottom line is that I can't make an official announcement."

"After all, Ryo is only 21 years old this year, which means he has just reached adulthood. Even Ai-sister seems to be only 24 years old this year. Most of the idols I have seen officially announce their relationships in the past two years were basically 27 or 28 years old."

Arima Kana put the index finger of her right hand to her lips and briefly recalled some of the news she had seen in the past few years.

"Because Ai and I knew each other earlier, or rather, we were already in a relationship in the true sense a long time ago, and we've actually been in love for several years."

Beichuan Liang did not intend to continue talking about this topic, and concluded neatly:

"No matter what, my wedding with Ai has been scheduled."

Then, he looked at Arima Kana seriously:

"In fact, even if Kana didn't come to my place today, I was going to find a time in the next two days to talk to Kana."

"Senior Liang, please tell me."

Noticing that Kitagawa Ryo's expression and tone suddenly became serious, Arima Kana also sat up straight and looked seriously at Kitagawa Ryo sitting opposite her.

"Ms. Mita told me a few days ago that you had asked her about some matters related to the agency and the contract. Is that true?"

"...Yes, I did ask Miss Xiangzi about this."

Arima Kana was slightly startled, and subconsciously tightened the pendant on her right wrist, and then honestly admitted:

"It was Senior Liang who brought me into this office. Now that Senior Liang is ready to leave."

She pursed her lips and twisted her hands nervously:

"There's no point for me to stay here any longer."

"Is that really the reason?"

Kitagawa Ryo sighed when he heard that. He didn't intend to say that Burning Production could provide her with a better platform and resources. Forcibly leaving would most likely lead to suppression from the company and possible PR smear campaigns in the future. After all, as Kana Arima's agent, Oeda Shoko should have told her these things as soon as possible.

But even so, Arima Kana, who was sitting in front of him, had no intention of changing his mind, which was basically a clear statement of his attitude.

"Because I am Liang-senpai's [only designated] junior."

Looking at Kitagawa Ryo who looked somewhat worried, Arima Kana also held the pendant in her palm and added this sentence with courage.

In the company's publicity and promotion for her in the past few years, Arimakana's favorite titles were the so-called "the only designated junior of Kitagawa Ryo" and "the next Kitagawa Ryo". Sometimes she would even deliberately search for related keywords and stare at her phone for a long time.

Generally speaking, this kind of high-profile promotion of seniors and juniors is basically only aimed at those in the same company or agency. In other words, if Kitagawa Ryo left Burning Production, Arima Kana would definitely not think that the company would continue with this promotional trend, and it would not be an exaggeration to even call it a sacred separation.

"Senior Liang clearly said that as long as you are here, you won't force me to do things I don't like. If I continue to stay in this office, I will be instructed to say something deliberately to discredit you, and I will be warned not to talk about you in interviews and programs. All of these are possible, but I neither like nor accept them."

As if she had completely lost her usual calmness and composure, Arima Kana now showed a side that suits her age, like a child who stubbornly took out the green vegetables that his parents put into his bowl and threw them on the table over and over again.

She opened her round pupils wide and stared at Beichuan Liang stubbornly and refused to give in.

Arima Kana used the glare, and Kitagawa Ryo's defense decreased!

Throwing away the inexplicable complaints in his mind, Beichuan Liang showed a helpless expression as if he had been defeated by you, and extended an invitation to her just like he did a few years ago:

"Would you like to sign a contract with my firm?"

"Still, as my junior."

"I knew that Ryo-senpai would set up his own agency. After all, ACE has not signed a contract with any idol-specialized agency yet."

Arima Kana raised her chin upon hearing this. All the emotions she had just felt disappeared without a trace the moment Beichuan Ryo invited her. She answered as a matter of course:

"Of course I have to sign it."

"Please give me more advice in the future."

Then she added playfully:

"forever."

Kitagawa Ryo also smiled when he heard this, because this line was one of the most popular lines from the recently concluded "It's Not My Fault That I'm Popular!". It was the response of the heroine Moriyama Mikuri to the hero Tsuzaki Hiramitsu, "Please give me your guidance in the future."

"You don't even confirm the contents of the contract?"

"Senior Liang, are you planning to exploit me with an unscrupulous long-term child labor contract? How about just signing for a hundred years?"

"That's also a win for me. After all, Kana will only be more popular in the future. I asked Gotanda to read the script of Homeless Child a few days ago. It has the potential to be a big hit. With Kana's acting skills and excellent production, it may become a national-level work. Moreover, the character of Korin is very complicated, so Kana should be able to perform happily. I personally look forward to Kana's interpretation of her."

"Then does Senior Liang have any good suggestions?"

"Just some of my personal opinions..."

Arima Kana was quietly enjoying the atmosphere of the moment, as if she was cherishing this time which would become less and less as she grew up and after Kitagawa Ryo got married, and she kept pestering him with all kinds of questions.