They all pushed me!

Chapter 50: Comics suitable for Ruby's physique

On a bright Sunday in mid-February, MEM, who was lying lazily in the back seat of the car, sighed with relief:

"Finally, finally - time to rest."

"It's been a hellish month. I feel like my facial muscles are going to become stiff from smiling. Is being an idol such a hard job?"

As if to increase the persuasiveness of his words, MEM rubbed both sides of his cheeks:

"Fortunately, it's winter break now, and school won't officially start until April. Otherwise, I would have to be absent for a month..."

Yawning lazily, MEM-chu lay on the back of the front seat like a cat, stretched out her hand to stroke the hair of Samejima Abiko who was sitting there, and said with narrowed eyes:

"Abi is also a freshman in the performing arts department of Yangdong High School this year, right? How about you call me senior? After all, I will be a senior student after school starts."

"senior?"

"Ah - I never thought that one day I would be called 'senior' by others. I am so touched. It is settled. When school starts, I will go to the first-year students' place and have a good look around until I get tired of hearing them."

"Is that an exaggeration?"

Kitagawa Rumi, who was sitting on the other side, also turned around and asked with some confusion.

"After all, in the first two years of the performing arts department at Yangdong High School, I was just an idol trainee and was like a minion in the class. The person sitting on my left was a new generation actor who played the second male lead in two TV dramas, and the person sitting on my right was a debut idol who had already held several live shows. Although my classmates didn't look down on me so obviously, the invisible pressure was always great, and our social circles were naturally separated because of this."

Because he was with his familiar teammates, MEM also rarely complained:

"If it weren't for the fact that the performing arts department there has little requirement for academic scores and attendance, and that my senior personally recommended me for admission and paid for my tuition for three years, I would have wanted to drop out."

"But it's much better now. At least I can participate in normal discussions among classmates. After all, I am now a member of the new and well-known idol group ACE. I can be considered to have truly entered this circle, both big and small."

"Speaking of which, when I gave my mom my earnings from last month a few days ago, she couldn't believe I could make so much money. Her first reaction was that I must have suffered a lot of hardships outside to earn so much, and she said she would help me save the money. But in fact, if she hadn't encouraged me to participate in the National Beauty Contest that year, none of this would have happened."

"I remember that before the finals of that beauty pageant, something happened in MEM's family. I saw the news report at that time."

"Well, my mother was ill and hospitalized at the time. A few agencies knew about it and contacted me to sign a contract with them, which would allow them to reserve part of my salary. But they were basically malicious. If I hadn't received donations from my senior's foundation, I would probably have withdrawn from the finals and dropped out of school to work."

At this point, MEM also smiled and raised his tone:

"I always feel like my luck gets better every time I meet my seniors. It was the same when my mom was sick, and it was the same when I debuted as a group with Abiko and Ruby. Oh, and when I was a kid, I was shooting a commercial with my seniors, and I won first prize—"

Because the topic involved Kitagawa Ryo, MEM啾 also enthusiastically talked about the special couple album of "B Komachi×B Komachi" that was broadcast a few days ago.

“It’s only been uploaded for less than three days, but the number of views is already the highest in the entire “B Komachi×B Komachi” series. I feel like there are a lot of people like me who have been replaying a certain part of it over and over again when they have nothing to do these two days.”

"Speaking of which, Ruby's look in the show is so cute. Among all the special guests who appeared in this episode, Ruby had the most comments and comments."

"Hmm--did you?"

Kitagawa Rumi tilted her head in confusion. She had watched the entire show with Kitagawa Ryo and Hoshino Ai that night, and she had already put this episode on her permanent blacklist, not to mention reading the related discussions and comments.

"Of course, some people have given you and your senior the title of the most beautiful siblings in the entertainment industry. Some people also say that the interaction between you and your senior is so loving. Although you are not related by blood, your relationship is better than that of many siblings."

After hearing what MEM啾 said, Kitagawa Rumi's expression also relaxed a little.

“I also like the Shibuya section.”

On the other side, Samejima Abiko, who had been holding her iPad since she got on the bus, writing and drawing on the Procure software with her head down, letting MEM stroke her hair, rarely raised her head and said:

"I think Ruby's look is very pretty, and I have some ideas for new characters in my mind."

Although she became an idol together with her long-time friend Rumi, Samejima Abiko's passion for comics never faded. After several years of supplementation, the simple idea that was born in her mind gradually became fuller and began to present the outline of a story:

The male protagonist picked up a sword containing mysterious power and embarked on a journey to conquer Tokyo and even the whole country. He established a force based in Shinjuku and slowly expanded to the surrounding areas. As the name suggests, this "Tokyo BLADE" has been a fantasy battle manga with Tokyo as the main stage from the beginning.

"The characters of the main characters have been basically confirmed. I just happened to be thinking about the characters of their first large-scale enemy, the Shibuya Group based in Shibuya district. Hmm, what do you think of this character, Ruby?"

Showing the board in front of her to Kitagawa Rumi, Samejima Abiko pointed at a character in the center with her electronic pen:

A petite girl with blonde hair, red eyes, and wearing a Gothic Lolita outfit, casually wielding a sword, vaguely resembles her.

"Because I feel that the sweet style doesn't fit the atmosphere, Gothic Lolita is more appealing..."

Samejima Abiko seemed to be quite satisfied with her character setting and made a comment to herself.

"She looks a bit like Ruby."

MEM啾 came over and expressed his opinion with his chin in his hand.

"Because it's based on Ruby, just a grown-up version."

Samejima Abiko casually turned the electronic pen in her hand, tapped it on the character's chest, and said with a pout:

“I even made it a little bigger on purpose.”

"...Don't say this kind of thing in such a proud tone."

Kitagawa Rumi stared at the character design intently for a long time, not even responding to the two people's jokes, and finally raised her head to look at Samejima Abiko:

"Abiko, can you let me see the character designs of the main characters? I'll compare them and see if they look out of place when put together."

"no problem."

Samejima Abiko nodded and operated her iPad twice, calling out the previously saved draft and showing it to Kitagawa Rumi:

"In fact, Ryo's Rurouni Kenshin gave me a lot of inspiration, and it almost helped me complete the character design of the male protagonist in an instant, although I drew it based on him at the beginning."

Looking at the character of the comics hero, Kitagawa Ryo, who was almost a replica of the ancient swordsman in costume, Kitagawa Rumi suddenly raised the corners of her mouth, and remembered something she had heard Hoshino Ai talk about at home before.

Due to the huge popularity of "It's Not My Fault That I'm Popular!", the original manga that had been completed before naturally announced the serialization of the special episode. The original author Umino Tsunami even sent several tweets to thank the creative team of the TV series, and the two discussed the plot of the special episode privately several times. After all, even if it weren't for the popularity of the two's official announcement, the original drama, which is already quite popular, will definitely launch a single episode of SP. This is also a practice in the industry.

"Abi-ko - we've always been good friends!"

Faced with her friend's sudden burning gaze, Samejima Abiko showed a helpless expression and even predicted Kitagawa Rumi's next words.

"So, please, beg, hope that Abiko will agree, please~"

"So, please, beg, hope that Abiko will agree, please~"

After all, she had heard it several times and was familiar with Ruby's way of speaking.

"Tell me, what happened?"

I always feel like something troublesome is about to happen.

As expected, as soon as Samejima Abiko opened her mouth to say this, Kitagawa Rumi came close to her ear with a mysterious look on her face, as if she wanted to whisper something.

"…………"

There was no sign of shock at all. After listening to the words of her friend, Samejima Abiko even showed an expression of not being surprised, and said in a calm tone:

"That's exactly what Ruby would say."

She has known Rumi for almost ten years and is still aware of some of her little thoughts.

"But a good cartoonist cannot succumb to the opinions of readers - the plot and character design are not something that can be changed at will? If you just try to please the readers, your work will only become weird."

"But this one from Abiko is obviously still in the draft stage of establishing the world view and characters. Where are the readers? It's just some trivial little suggestions that I, as a friend, give you."

Kitagawa Rumi answered with a calm smile, as if she was making a long and big move.

Chapter 4: Onii-chan (5k)

"Yeah, I get it - it's hard for Abiko to accompany Ruby and make such a fuss."

"You can't say it's 'nonsense'. After all, some of the suggestions Ruby gave me were quite useful. I'm not very good at writing love scenes between male and female characters."

"But Ryo should know better than me what Ruby thinks of Ryo. To her, it can't be simply described as 'nonsense'."

Beichuan Liang stared at the two messages sent by the other party for a long time, and the finger on the mobile phone screen unconsciously slid upwards until he turned to the beginning of the chat history between the two tonight, and clicked on the character picture again.

It goes without saying that Samejima Abiko's painting skills are excellent. Just like the character designs she sent to herself before, this new character is also quite exquisite, with impeccable style and appearance. From the clothing to the small details such as various pendants and earrings, people can feel the unique temperament of Shibuya. There is indeed a simple line of introduction text next to the character, indicating his identity as the leader of the "Shibuya Group".

As the other party's earliest reader, Kitagawa Ryo was also familiar with the world view and background of the comic "Tokyo BLADE" drawn by Samejima Abiko, so he was also clear about the meaning of these proper nouns. At first, he just felt that this character called "Sheji" was quite familiar, and even a little like Ruby who had grown up a few years.

But before he could ask, Samejima Abiko relayed all the conversations she had with Ruby today, telling him that the entire identity and background of the character of Kitagawa Ryo, including his name, were basically set by Kitagawa Rumi, including the fact that she had a [engagement] with the male protagonist BLADE.

In order to conform to the setting of the world view, the name of each major character in the work is basically related to swords, such as the male protagonist BLADE (Blade), and the main characters Kengi and Toku, all of whom follow this rule and are sharp.

But Kitagawa Rumi gave her the name "Shaoji".

It is the sheath responsible for protecting, beautifying and decorating the blade.

From this point of view, even Samejima Abiko was almost convinced by the marriage proposal proposed by the other party. Just like putting a sword back into its sheath after the battle, the sword and the sheath are the best match.

But maybe it’s because she’s read too many weird comics, but Samejima Abiko always feels that the phrase “sheathing the sword” has a strange erotic quality.

But for Kitagawa Ryo, this almost obvious hint brought him back to the memories of last year in Miyazaki, forcing him to re-examine his mentality and thoughts once again.

In fact, when he learned that his sister Kitagawa Rumi was the reincarnation of Tendouji Sarina, he was only happy for a short period of time. The occurrence of this supernatural event was not so much to resolve a knot in his heart as to materialize it into reality.

Just like in literary works, death itself is the most decisive and impressive way to shape a character. Frankly speaking, half of the reason why Tendouji Sariina could leave claw marks in his heart for more than ten years was because of her death.

To know something, to feel something, to get something, to lose something, to seek something, even if one knows that there is a zero realm that will eliminate everything waiting behind, one still wants to struggle to survive and to realize one's wish.

All of this that Sarina Tendouji showed in less than a year of being with him was the other half of the reason.

Since people only have one life, death is always a perfect plus.

People cry and wail in front of the tombstones of the deceased, regretting and going crazy at the top of their lungs, saying things like "what if". Perhaps it is because they know that the deceased will not really come back to life, so they can say all kinds of things, either to comfort themselves or to deliberately show off to others.

But when the other person really stands in front of them alive, I guess not many people would be willing to fulfill these vows that are almost like curses.

In fact, sometimes Kitagawa Ryo really thought that if Ruby was just like him and kept the secret of reincarnation hidden forever, he probably wouldn't be in such a predicament now.

Because in this case, he still only needs to feel guilty and even remorseful towards the deceased Tendoji Sarina, occasionally venting his emotions in front of her grave, and he only needs to show family-like concern and love to his sister Kitagawa Rumi.

But Rumi is Sarana, and he is the only one who knows this secret.

Whether it was because she had helped a lot when he broke up with the Kitagawa family when he was just reincarnated twelve years ago, or because she had been a younger sister and his only family member for twelve years, allowing him to experience family affection for the first time when he had never felt the warmth of family in two lives, in Kitagawa Ryo's heart, Kitagawa Rumi meant a lot to him.

If Rumi's feelings and even obsession with him are due to the time when she was Sarina in her previous life, then Kitagawa Ryo's feelings for Rumi are almost entirely derived from the little things they have experienced together over the past twelve years.

Even now that the fact of reincarnation has been announced, Kitagawa Ryo has never thought that Rumi is Sarina without the prefix "death", but rather that she is the family member he adopted twelve years ago and has been taking care of ever since.

As for Sarina, he only knew about the last period of her life. He knew nothing about her childhood, past, family, the things she used to like but now hate, and the things she used to hate but now like. But Rumi was different. They had always been a family who knew each other best and had lived under the same roof for so long.

Although he knew that such thoughts were selfish and unreasonable, and that saying them out loud would only hurt Rumi, when Kitagawa Ryo was alone with her, he would often feel a strange feeling of being a cuckoo in someone else's nest.

Because compared to 'Liang', he really prefers the name 'brother' which he has become accustomed to and engraved in his bones.

It's like a real family.

Perhaps in Rumi's eyes, the change in address from 'brother' to 'Ryo' seems like throwing away some shackles and is a sign of greater intimacy; but in fact, it is more like abandoning the deepest bond between the two, which will only make Kitagawa Ryo feel like a thorn in his throat.

He even forgot to reply to the message to Samejima Abiko. Kitagawa Ryo just threw the phone away and closed his eyes alone.

Twenty-one years had passed since he was reincarnated into this world. During this time, he had been trying his best to become a better person, gentler, more patient, more helpful, and more considerate. He had started a family and a career, but this seemed to have led everything to a strange result:

He becomes more and more only able to respond to the emotions and needs of others, and becomes more and more tired of expressing his true needs and thoughts. Before speaking, he will even deny that he has any needs at all, as if he can be happy if the people around him are happy.

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

"crunch-"

Suddenly I heard the sound of the door being pushed open.

Beichuan Liang half opened one eye and saw Rumi, who was wearing pajamas, rubbing her sleepy eyes and walking to his bed. After seeing him lying on the bed like this, she yawned lazily:

"It turns out that Liang is just like me, falling asleep while chatting--"

"Abizi just sent me a private message saying that Liang suddenly stopped replying to her messages. I thought you had something wrong and insisted that I come to take a look."

Kitagawa Rumi said this while sitting down on the bed quite naturally. She looked a little dazed, but her tone was still as matter-of-fact as ever:

"What could possibly happen to Liang..."

After all, in her impression, she couldn't think of any illness that Kitagawa Ryo had suffered over the years, otherwise Hoshino Ai would not have been so excited when chatting about the first episode of "It's Not My Fault That I'm Popular" at home. Just like the lines in the original drama, this kind of reliable man is always super cute when he gets sick and needs care.

Although Kitagawa Rumi didn't really want Liang to be unwell, she would still fantasize about it sometimes. And compared with her other fantasies that were more chaotic, evil and indescribable, this one was already very bland.

"I do have a headache, actually."

After hearing the unexpected answer from Kitagawa Ryo, Kitagawa Rumi suddenly woke up from her sleepiness. She even seemed a little impatient. As if some keyword automatic reply mechanism had been triggered, the lines she had thought of long ago came out of her mouth subconsciously:

"Do you want me to buy some medicine or an ice pillow? Drink some hot milk? Do you want me to use the 'whoosh whoosh' little pain-removing magic to make all the pain fly away? Or maybe give me a pat on the head for 'good boy, good boy'?"

"…Where did Ruby learn these words from?"

Seeing that Beichuan Liang had returned to his normal tone of voice, Beichuan Rumi also looked a little disappointed:

"Is Liang really pretending?"

"Actually, I do have a condition that gives me a headache when I see Ruby."

Upon hearing this, Kitagawa Rumi also tilted her head and laid on her side next to Kitagawa Ryo, staring at him with her rosy red eyes:

"Did I cause trouble for Ryo? Did Abiko tell Ryo about the comic? Did Ryo think I went too far?"