The next day, when Tetsuya saw Mutsumi's outfit for the day, a hint of a smile immediately surfaced on his face.
"Good morning, Wakaba-san."
"...Good morning."
Faced with Tetsuya's greeting, Mutsumi responded while slightly averting her gaze.
Subsequently, Tetsuya carefully scrutinized Mutsumi's outfit for the day while saying:
"I didn't expect you to directly choose to wear this dress to attend [TGC], Wakaba-san."
"Since I'll have to wear it in front of people sooner or later anyway, it's better to just take this opportunity... and use 'flooding therapy' to adapt to it."
The chill on her lower legs and shoulders made Mutsumi couldn't help but shrink her body a little, but even so, having made her resolve, she still stood firmly in place, showing no desire to go back and change clothes.
"Even though you dressed up so cutely, please don't say it in such a forced way, alright?"
Soyo, who had helped Mutsumi dress up and do her hair in the morning, couldn't help but retort:
"If you ask me, once we arrive at the venue, you might even be mistaken for one of today's models at [TGC]!"
Click!
Meanwhile, Anon had already taken out her phone and directly snapped a photo of the slightly shy girl in front of her.
"This is truly incredible..."
Looking at the masterpiece she had casually taken, Anon said in an incredibly amazed tone:
"Although I've always known Mutsumi's looks were amazing, I didn't expect that just changing her outfit and putting on a little makeup would let her reach this level... Eh? Wait a minute, this skin texture... don't tell me you didn't even use foundation?!"
"Isn't that a given?"
Soyo snorted disdainfully.
"Mutsumi's skin fundamentally doesn't need any concealer. She just needs a little lipstick, some mascara, and a touch of blush, and that's enough."
"Must be nice!"
Towards this dual superiority stemming from both family background and natural talent, Anon couldn't help but cast an incredibly envious gaze.
On the other side, Sakiko came to Mutsumi's side and asked in a low voice:
"Regarding that matter... have you completely made up your mind?"
She naturally viewed Mutsumi's decision to go to [TGC] together as a kind of declaration of her stance.
However, faced with Sakiko's question, Mutsumi gently shook her head:
"My thoughts remain unchanged. Now... is still not the time."
"Then today, you're really just coming to watch [TGC] together with us?"
"Mhm."
Mutsumi nodded.
"And, incidentally verify exactly which position I am more suited for."
"...Position?"
Although she didn't quite understand what Mutsumi was saying, since she no longer wanted to deliberately keep her distance and was instead staying with everyone, that was enough for Sakiko to feel relieved.
She perhaps wasn't fully prepared yet to accept Mutsumi as one of the women of the Chihaya household. However, by the same token, she also didn't wish to lose this close friend who had grown up alongside her and had stayed by her side, never abandoning her, during her most lonely and desperate times.
"Speaking of which... tonight, you guys are planning to do that kind of thing, right, Sakiko?"
"Eh?"
Mutsumi's sudden statement made Sakiko, who was in a sentimental state, fall into a momentary stupor.
"That kind of thing means... ah. Y-You're talking about us and Tetsuya-kun..."
"Yes, after all, he said he was going to reward you guys tonight, so naturally things will progress to that step next, right?"
Mutsumi gazed into Sakiko's eyes. She asked this in a voice entirely devoid of inflection.
"...Mhm."
Faced with Mutsumi's pressing question, although her heart was incredibly shaken and ashamed, Sakiko still didn't lie to this childhood friend who understood her so well.
"After all... this is a rare opportunity, so... um, there's a high probability... that we will do that kind of thing."
Having said this, Sakiko suddenly remembered something, and subsequently hurriedly stated:
"Ah, this time I'll properly remind everyone to keep their voices down! This time we absolutely won't disturb your rest, Mutsumi—"
"No, that's not what I wanted to say."
However, faced with Sakiko's consideration, Mutsumi shook her head, and expressionlessly voiced a request that left Sakiko unable to close her mouth for a long time—
"If I were to watch directly, Chihaya-san definitely wouldn't be able to accept it. So, when you guys do it this time, can you let me eavesdrop in the living room?"
"?????"
Sakiko fell into complete chaos.
It wasn't a request for them to lower their volume, but rather directly choosing to eavesdrop from the closest possible distance? Eh?
Although Sakiko had never really been able to understand what was going on in Mutsumi's mind, the request she put forward today was still far beyond Sakiko's imagination. However, just as she was planning to further ask for the truth, the extended commercial vehicle Soyo had booked arrived in front of the apartment...
(No, no matter what, this matter cannot be discussed in public in front of everyone!)
"...We'll talk about this later!"
After tossing this whisper into Mutsumi's ear, Sakiko followed everyone else into the car. Mutsumi simply gave a slight nod to indicate she understood, and subsequently got into the car together with them...
...
After arriving at the [TGC] venue, Tetsuya gave the girls a few brief instructions and immediately headed backstage impatiently, preparing to properly study the experience of a large-scale fashion show...
"Honestly, we finally get to come out and have fun together, couldn't he just stay with us a little longer?"
After Tetsuya left, Anon immediately couldn't help but complain.
"Even if there's no time to go shopping, he could at least go check out the venue with us!"
"The [TGC] venue is open only to women. Even if Tetsu wanted to go with us, he wouldn't be allowed."
Faced with Anon's selfishness, Soyo helplessly explained on Tetsuya's behalf.
"He's already promised to treat us to a meal after [TGC] is over, right? Since that's the case, then stop complaining."
"Sigh... you've completely settled into the role of a supportive wife."
Anon shrugged and said.
"Soyo, don't forget we're all still adolescent girls in our prime right now! If we don't take this time to properly be a little selfish, we'll never have this chance again once we grow up!"
"And practically speaking, even in my elementary school days, I was never as selfish as you are. And even if another ten or twenty years pass, I estimate you'll probably still be acting like this."
Soyo sighed.
"Alright, enough talking. Anyway, let's go stroll around for a bit first... Mhm?"
When Soyo turned around to look at everyone beside her, she instantly froze in place.
"...Sakiko, where did Mutsumi go?"
"?"
Hearing this, Sakiko immediately looked around with a blank face as well. However, right after, she immediately realized that Mutsumi, who had just gotten out of the car together with them, had already vanished without a trace.
And just as feelings of worry couldn't help but begin to sprout in everyone's hearts, all of their phones suddenly chimed with a notification sound in unison.
Subsequently, a new message in their group chat immediately made them look at each other in dismay—
[Because I was slightly curious about Chihaya-san's work, I followed him over there.]
"...To think there was even a move like this."
Anon couldn't help but mutter.
Come to think of it, before he left, Tetsuya indeed hadn't said they were forbidden from following him backstage...
"But, I didn't expect Mutsumi to be so curious about my brother's work... could it be she's also planning to join [Starry Sky] in the future?"
"..." "..."
Hearing this, Sakiko and Soyo couldn't help but silently exchange a glance.
Exactly whether it was Tetsuya's work or the man himself that Mutsumi was interested in, they were keeping them in the dark about it for the time being.
But... judging from her decision to specifically change into that dress today, her outrageous proposal to Sakiko just now, and her current act of stalking first and reporting later, it seemed she had indeed made up her mind to reach an answer as quickly as possible.
"...Is it because of me?" x2.
The two of them first said this sentence in unison, and then, upon realizing they had both done similar things, they sighed together once again.
"As expected, the two of us really can't help but worry about Mutsumi."
"Yeah."
Under the fuel added by the two "assisting players," it seemed Mutsumi's quest for verification was finally drawing to a close.