My Mom Wants to Meet You

"Of course." Riki nodded.

This is our Sakiko—thoughtful, devoted to her family, and good at saving money. Do any of you have a Sakiko like this?

"Two people? Right now, our couples' set is discounted by half and comes with a key ring..." The receptionist smiled at the handsome young man and beautiful young woman before her.

I didn't really want to order the couples' set. I mainly wanted to see how nice the key ring was.

"How about it?" Riki asked Toyokawa Sakiko.

"The couples' set is a little cheaper, and it seems to have more food. Let's get this one." Toyokawa Sakiko rose onto her tiptoes and whispered into Riki's ear, her breath making his ear feel warm and ticklish.

"Okay, we'll have one." Riki spoke.

"One couples' set!" the receptionist called loudly toward the kitchen.

The eyes around them turned their way, and Toyokawa Sakiko's face instantly turned bright red.

Why did she have to say it so loudly?

Riki and Toyokawa Sakiko sat down. They could vaguely hear the surrounding voices: "What a beautiful girl," "That guy's only a little more handsome than me," and "When are they going to kiss?"

Do you have to worry about whether other people kiss?

Only after the two of them sat down did the flush on Toyokawa Sakiko's face gradually fade. She asked Riki, "Did you go to Ring today?"

"Yeah. After all, you care about them a lot, don't you?" Riki shrugged with a smile.

Toyokawa Sakiko lowered her eyes without speaking, but she did not deny it.

"But Soyo won't give up on Crychic," Toyokawa Sakiko said.

"That can't be helped." Riki smiled. Who could forget their White Moonlight?

It was just like how Riki hadn't forgotten Blue-Eyes White Dragon. He had once been a Card Player too, until a rookie who had only been playing for a week crushed him with Tearlaments.

The food was ready at the counter. Riki brought the set over, but the moment he put it down, he noticed something was wrong.

Wait, why was the number of fries in our couples' set odd?

The employee was pulling something, wasn't he?

A little clownish, Brother Riki. We know you've never ordered a couples' set before.

Shut up!

Riki looked at the heart-shaped double-ended straw stuck into the cup of cola and felt a small couples' set shock.

Since things had come to this, they might as well eat first.

"This is really good..." Toyokawa Sakiko's eyes lit up as she smiled with crescent-shaped eyes.

After all, it was fried food. As long as they didn't make some kind of dark cuisine, it couldn't be that bad. Even Trump's favorite food was still cola and hamburgers, proving that this sort of thing was delicious to all humanity.

Riki also started eating, though he felt it wasn't as good as KFC in China. Perhaps that was because Chinese KFC was operated directly, and whenever he saw Chinese chicken, he would think of an old acquaintance.

Riki hadn't had cola in a long time either. He was short on sugar.

I can't take it anymore. I'll have some cola first!

He had just taken a sip through the straw when he realized something was wrong. Looking up, he saw Toyokawa Sakiko, who was only inches away, staring blankly at him. Her thin lips were slightly parted around the straw, and they were less than ten centimeters apart. He could even feel the warmth of her breath.

Toyokawa Sakiko stared blankly at Riki. She had only wanted to take a sip of cola, but after she had taken two sips, Riki had leaned over too. It was a couples' set, but did they really have to get this close?

Riki was dumbfounded too, and instinctively took two more sips of cola.

Sakiko's lips looked so soft, like jelly.

Riki pretended nothing had happened, and Toyokawa Sakiko did the same, but both their ears were bright red.

"What? They didn't kiss?"

Riki heard someone behind him speak in disappointment.

Mind your own business, kid!

"This cola's pretty good." Riki coughed lightly.

"Mm... Mm." Toyokawa Sakiko nodded somewhat frantically.

The heroine of my Tokyo love story couldn't possibly be this cute!

Riki ate his fries as though nothing had happened. Although he was a dashing young man, he was still an innocent one at heart. After being blasted at close range by his White Moonlight demon, he was inevitably a little shy.

Suddenly, his hand closed on empty air. Riki looked up and saw Toyokawa Sakiko putting a fry into his mouth. Blushing, she whispered, "This is a couples' set, right? Then let's pretend to be a couple for this meal."

There was no need to pretend.

Looking at Toyokawa Sakiko's face, red as a ripe apple, Riki's heart beat a little faster.

Bright eyes, pearly teeth, fair skin, gentle toward others... No wonder she was a White Moonlight. Anyone would lose their head after seeing someone this beautiful.

"Don't misunderstand. We're not actually boyfriend and girlfriend," Toyokawa Sakiko said with a frown.

"Understood!"

You didn't have to agree so quickly... Toyokawa Sakiko looked at Riki unhappily. She hadn't expected him to refuse, but couldn't he at least hesitate a little?

After eating their fill, they had more energy as they walked through the night breeze. Looking up at Tokyo's night sky, Riki suddenly remembered that it was cherry blossom season. The Cherry Blossom Front would probably reach Tokyo soon. He could ask Toyokawa Sakiko to go see the blossoms with him then. He wondered if she would be willing.

"What are you thinking about?" Toyokawa Sakiko asked curiously.

"I was thinking that you're beautiful... I mean, the cherry blossoms will bloom in a few days. Let's go see them."

What was with my stammering? Little Zhou, did you infect me with your habit of speaking honestly?

But it seemed that only family members and close friends went to see the cherry blossoms together. Would asking this be a little presumptuous?

"Sure." Toyokawa Sakiko smiled gently.

"You answered so quickly?" Riki said.

"Haha." For some reason, Toyokawa Sakiko had been in a good mood ever since they finished eating. With her hands behind her back, she lightly skipped twice until she reached Riki, then smiled and said, "Because I also want to let Riki, who helped me, see Japan's three great national treasures."

"Three great national treasures?"

"Of course..." Toyokawa Sakiko winked at Riki with a smile. "The first is the sun that rises earliest, the second is the cherry blossoms of spring... and the third is Toyokawa Sakiko's smile."

"She actually calls her own smile a national treasure. What confidence!" Riki was shocked.

Toyokawa Sakiko had been a little embarrassed when she said it, but when she saw Riki's astonished expression, she immediately covered her mouth and laughed. Her bell-like voice carried far into the distance, and her ribbon-like hair swayed lightly.

It was precisely because she liked him that she wanted to share it with him.

Not long after returning to the rented apartment that night, Riki suddenly heard Toyokawa Sakiko's voice and hurried over.

The Eighteenth Chapter: My Mom Wants to Meet You

Things seemed to be getting better lately...

Ever since the problems in her family had begun, Toyokawa Sakiko's mood had been heavy. She forced herself to go to school and work every day, and was already nearing her mental limit. But Riki's unexpected arrival had loosened the taut string inside her a little.

Next time, I'll make him something sweet. Egg tarts, maybe.

The corners of Toyokawa Sakiko's lips lifted slightly. But when she opened the door, she suddenly sensed something was wrong. The smell of alcohol drifted out from inside. Her pupils contracted, and she immediately pushed the door open.

The room she had tidied only a few days ago was once again littered with empty beer bottles. The bedding was a mess, and the air reeked of alcohol.

"Damn it, Old Man came back just now...?"

Anger flashed through Toyokawa Sakiko's eyes, and her shoulders trembled uncontrollably. The clean room had immediately been turned into a mess after he returned.

Suddenly, Toyokawa Sakiko noticed from the corner of her eye that her bedding seemed to have been searched. She froze, then hurried over and checked underneath it. Her eyes instantly went blank.

They were gone.

All the money she had earned from working.

Drizzle tapped against the window.

Riki watched the rain over Tokyo, thinking about where he and Toyokawa Sakiko should go to see the cherry blossoms. Suddenly, he heard faint sobbing within the rain.

At first, Riki thought he had misheard. But when he opened the door, the crying became clearer. He followed the sound to the neighboring room and saw Toyokawa Sakiko slumped on the floor, her delicate shoulders trembling nonstop. She turned around, her face streaked with tears and the corners of her eyes red. Tears rolled continuously from her eyes, gathered on her chin, and finally splattered onto the floor.

"G-good evening, Riki..." Toyokawa Sakiko trembled as she leaned against the wall and stood up, forcing a smile.

Riki saw that the box at her feet had been opened. Inside, there was nothing.

"What is this..."

"Don't ask. Please." Toyokawa Sakiko spoke in a low voice. "Don't ask, okay?"

Her voice trembled, almost pleading.

She had thought she was finally on the right track, but her miserable reality had followed close behind like a demon's claw, dragging her back into hell.

Toyokawa Sakiko's spirit was on the verge of collapse. She fell to the floor and sobbed uncontrollably.

Why?

Why did she have to encounter something like this?

She only wanted an ordinary life. Even living normally with Riki would have been enough. Why wasn't she even allowed that?

What had she done wrong?

The questions in her heart tormented her more and more, and her thoughts began heading in an extreme direction.

If jumping down could bring everything to an end...

Just as she had that thought, she felt herself being embraced. When she looked up, she saw Riki holding her.

"It's all right. I know." Riki spoke softly. "Wait here for me. I'll be back soon."

Riki carried her to the bedding, then turned and walked into the rain.

He was furious.

The man surnamed Toyokawa staggered through the alley with a beer bottle in his hand. He pulled out the wallet from his pocket. The wallet, which had been empty that morning, was now stuffed with the money his daughter had earned from working.

Suddenly, he noticed someone standing in the rain ahead of him.

Who?

"That wallet of yours looks pretty nice. Nice and full." Riki spoke.

"What does that have to do with you?" the man surnamed Toyokawa said coldly. "Get lost."

"I like that answer. Now I won't feel guilty."

Is this guy crazy?

The man surnamed Toyokawa frowned. His thoughts quickly returned to Pachinko, when suddenly the person ahead of him charged forward and kicked him in the chest.

"Bastard..." the man surnamed Toyokawa cursed. He tried to fight back, only to realize that he had no fighting experience at all. Instead, the other man beat him mercilessly.

"You know, when someone used to bully one of my juniors, I'd beat him up like this. There's an art to beating someone up. You can't hit too hard, but you have to make it hurt. I spent an entire semester studying it. By the time I was in high school, I was already a notorious veteran in our area. Ordinary thugs didn't even dare provoke me..."

"And now you dared lay a hand on my beloved Sakiko. You really don't know when to quit!"

The man at his feet wailed, unable to make out a word Riki was saying.

"M-money! Take the money!"

Riki took his wallet, pulled out all the money Toyokawa Sakiko had earned from working, and smashed the remaining wallet into his face.

Riki wanted to beat him again, but the rain was too heavy. Besides, he had fallen while taking a shortcut earlier. It would be better to head back soon.

Damn, why was it so cold?

I think I can see my great-grandmother.

Toyokawa Sakiko hugged her legs and buried her head in her arms, silently listening to the rain outside.

She felt that nothing mattered anymore.

Toyokawa Sakiko's eyes were empty. The cold air outside made her shiver, but she no longer had the energy to cover herself with a blanket.

This life... Maybe ending it here wouldn't be so bad.