Chapter 231

"I don't want to give Hayato-kun too much hope, but I still want to say that I like Hayato-kun. I only said that earlier because I felt it wouldn't matter if my first time was with Hayato-kun."

"Although there might have been some concern about Hayato-kun leaving the band, I don't think that's what I care about most. The happiness I feel with Hayato-kun and the wonderful qualities Hayato-kun has are what I care about most."

"And you know I broke my promise, Hayato-kun, right?"

Ishikawa Hayato listened quietly as Nijika opened her heart to him for the first time, telling him everything that was on her mind. He also knew that Nijika was talking about the promise she had broken.

"Well, the agreement was that 'if everyone is satisfied and accepts it, then you'll date me.'"

Nijika lowered her head and smiled bitterly, as if more and more guilt was weighing on her.

"I did remember, but Hayato-kun didn't say anything. Because of this broken promise and my feelings for Hayato-kun, I thought it was okay."

She carefully observed Ishikawa Hayato's expression, then involuntarily took a step back and said.

"I also hope that Hayato-kun can spend more time by my side, even if it means... doing anything for me in the future..."

"Ishikawa Hayato stroked his chin and said..."

"Then it seems we should try starting with the body, to win over Nijika's heart."

He abruptly broke the increasingly awkward atmosphere.

Nijika was stunned for a moment. Realizing how awful he had been, she blushed instantly, whether from anger or embarrassment, her ears turning bright red.

"Hey! You're terrible!"

But Ishikawa Hayato waved his hand and said seriously.

"So Nijika likes me, right?"

Nijika hesitated for a moment before nodding, but she quickly explained.

"But don't misunderstand, Hayato-kun, we can't be together."

"I'll confirm it then."

Ishikawa Hayato, seemingly unconcerned, continued, "I just want to confirm, even if you're with the other members of the band, Nijika feels it's okay, or even if you're not together, it's fine just to do it with me, is that right?"

Nijika herself started by saying it, but now she's incredibly shy.

"Um..."

The next moment, Ishikawa Hayato changed the subject and said with great certainty.

"So it really was Seika who said something."

Nijika's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly denied it.

"No, no, it has nothing to do with my sister."

"There have been too many negatives." Ishikawa Hayato smiled, then looked at Nijika's thoughtful eyes and asked:

"Then... if I can convince Seika, can Nijika sincerely date me?"

178. The Disturbance Before the School Festival (Complete) (16,000 words)

Although Nijika likes him, wants to stay by his side, and even tacitly allows him to act as her boyfriend, it seems like she has agreed to date him.

But this is just her concession; harboring resentment, she will one day mysteriously disappear without a trace.

Ishikawa Hayato isn't the kind of man who would leave a woman heartbroken and emotionally scarred. Now that he's got her, he'll hold on tight.

Deceptive emotions will never last a lifetime.

Nijika looked at her hesitantly, but her beautiful red eyes held an extremely tempted expression.

She slightly opened her mouth and said, "Okay..."

But before she could even clearly speak, her words were interrupted.

Seika actually came today too. She knew that the group planned to package the CDs themselves, and last night she saw such a large pile of CDs being brought into the store and was worried that they wouldn't be able to finish, so she also planned to come and help.

She knew she wouldn't have the nerve to offer to help them, but she still tried to see what was going on.

And it's time to go to the store.

Seika didn't think arrogantly at all.

She took out her key, opened the door, and walked directly down the Seika. Inside the shop, Ishikawa Hayato and Nijika had only turned on two small lights, but she turned on all the lights.

The once dim starry sky was suddenly brightly lit.

Seika glanced at the rehearsal room, which still had a crack in the door, but didn't go over. Instead, she placed the apple juice and notebook she had bought on the bar.

Once she was sure she was just going to check on things, she went over.

Upon reaching the door, she glanced into the rehearsal room and was startled to find only Ishikawa and his sister inside.

However, seeing that Ishikawa Hayato was diligently packaging the CDs made her feel a little more at ease.

Then she heard...

"So Nijika likes me, right?"

"But don't misunderstand, Hayato-kun, we can't be together."

She breathed a sigh of relief amidst her tension; her earlier reminder had been useful. Her sister couldn't become the kind of person who maintained an ambiguous relationship with a man who already had a girlfriend.

But then she lost her composure.

"I just want to confirm, even if you're with the other members of the band, does Nijika feel it's okay, or even if you're not together, is it alright if you're just doing it with me? Is that right?"

What's the meaning?

What... should we do with him?

Also, even if we're not together... what can we do...?

While Seika was still frozen in thought and dared not face reality, she heard her younger sister's shy response.

"Um..."

That gentle and lovely response from the boy was, for Seika, a devastating blow to the heart.

This was clearly her sister's suggestion, Seika couldn't imagine that her sister would be willing to go to such lengths.

This is even more humiliating than being a third party or a lover.

Seika finds this result completely unacceptable; she cannot accept it emotionally, rationally, based on her past experiences and values.

How could I let Nijika fall to such a state!

How could she allow her cherished family to go down that path?

When Ishikawa Hayato asked, "So... if I can convince Seika, can Nijika genuinely date me?" Seika went inside.

She glanced expressionlessly at Nijika, whose mouth seemed to open slightly but whose expression suddenly changed, and then spoke to Ishikawa Hayato.

"There's no way to convince you. Get out of here and never show your face in front of me again."

Her arrival made the shy-looking Nijika tremble, her face turn pale, and she was filled with panic.

Nijika was so scared that she clenched her hands and shrank to her legs, staring at Seika with a stunned unease in her eyes.

Seika was like an uninvited flood or a monstrous beast; the sudden disaster overwhelmed the ambiguous atmosphere in the rehearsal room.

After a brief pause, Nijika, like a little girl caught doing something wrong by her parents, whispered fearfully.

"Elder sister..."

The eldest sister is like a mother to her, living in the Ijichi Family, whose mother has passed away and whose father is busy with work.

Although Seika has a bad temper, is arrogant, doesn't do housework, and still sleeps with a doll at her age, she still supports the family and takes care of Nijika in ways other than housework.

After Seika came in and said something, she walked menacingly toward Ishikawa Hayato. Seeing that he was still standing there, she reached out and grabbed Ishikawa Hayato's collar. Ishikawa Hayato did not dodge and followed her grabbing his collar.

Seika, her face dark, dragged him around as if throwing away trash, turning and walking out.

Even in this situation, Ishikawa Hayato remained calm and was not intimidated by Seika.

He said with a helpless smile.

"Manager, I think we need to have a talk, let's calm down first..."

Before he could finish speaking, Seika, who had been trying to calm him down, let out a terrifying, gangster-like roar.

"Who's going to stay calm?! Do you want to die?"

Her furious shout made Nijika tremble again, and she looked at the scene, not knowing what to do.

When Seika turned around and saw that Ishikawa Hayato was not nervous at all and even had a smile on his face, her anger intensified.

"Still not giving up, huh?"

As she spoke, she suddenly punched Ishikawa Hayato in the face.

The boy who used to dodge her attacks endlessly now makes no attempt to block or dodge this attack that he could easily avoid with a turn of his head.

The fist landed squarely on his face, making him stagger slightly.

Seika was a little surprised that she hit the target, but that didn't appease her anger in the slightest.

Seeing that Ishikawa Hayato had been beaten up but was still smiling as if nothing had happened, she clenched her fists even tighter.

"Wanting to die is..."

"Sister, what are you doing?!"

When Nijika was angry, her voice and aura were no weaker than Seika's; even Seika, who was in a rage, paused for a moment upon hearing it.

Only then can one see that Nijika actually shares the same blood as Seika.

Nijika, who was afraid to face Seika, was enraged when she saw Ishikawa Hayato being beaten. She rushed over and tried to pry Seika's hands off Seika Ishikawa Hayato's collar.

She pried open a few of Seika's fingers, but how could Seika possibly let go?

Seeing that Seika was still tightly gripping Ishikawa Hayato's collar, Nijika glared at Seika and shouted angrily.

"Sister, let go!"

Seika wasn't someone who would be intimidated by someone raising their voice, so she glared back and said.

"You better get out of here and go to the corner!"

Nijika didn't speak, but stared at her angrily with wide eyes.

The scene was one where Seika was able to punch him, and the unassuming Ishikawa Hayato seemed to be caught between two ferocious beasts.

Seeing that his argument with Seika was about to turn into an argument between Seika and Nijika, he quickly grabbed Seika's hand tightly, making her let go in pain.

Nijika noticed that Seika had let go of her hand, so she grabbed Ishikawa Hayato's hand and pulled him past Seika, running towards the wide-open rehearsal room door.

"Hey, who told you to go out?"

Seika hurried to the door, intending to follow, but she saw Nijika turn around because of her voice, her eyes filled with resentment.

She stopped in her tracks.

The two fled from the stars and ran a long way.

Nijika kept pulling Ishikawa Hayato along, and Ishikawa Hayato Nijika after her. She ran like she was escaping for a long time, and finally came to her senses when they reached a small park.

She glanced briefly back at Ishikawa Hayato, re-analyzing the current situation.

She was starting to feel confused about what would happen in the future, but she was still very clear about what she needed to do in the present. She led Ishikawa Hayato to a park bench and pressed him down to sit.

"Hayato-kun, wait here for a moment. I'll go buy the medicine."

Ishikawa Hayato certainly wouldn't let Nijika, who was distracted and looking sullen, leave, so he reached out and grabbed Nijika as she was about to leave.

"It's nothing, this isn't a big deal for me. Nijika is probably in more pain. Would you like something to drink?"

Nijika was pulled to a stop, turned around to look at him, and shook her head weakly.