The streets of Shinjuku were buzzing with life.
Toru's attention was caught by a street performance not far away.
The guitarist's skill was impressive, probably around Level 5, not something an ordinary person could pull off.
Ryo was still adjusting to the slight discomfort of entering the simulation world. Once she came to, she glanced at Toru beside her.
At that moment, she made up her mind.
This time, she would definitely experience what a kiss felt like.
But the very next second, Ryo found herself worrying. How should she kiss so that she didn't look inexperienced?
She had never kissed anyone before.
If her first kiss turned out too awkward, wouldn't that be embarrassing?
"I was wondering why that street guitarist was so good. Turns out it's Yoyoko."
Toru recognized the girl performing.
"Yoyoko?"
Ryo repeated the unfamiliar name.
"She's Ohtsuki Yoyoko, the guitarist and vocalist of the band SIDEROS. Ryo-chan, don't you often go to FOLT in Shinjuku to watch Hiroi Kikuri's shows? Yoyoko performs there as a regular member of the house band."
"I kind of remember."
She recalled a brown-haired girl with twin ponytails.
In the real world, Ryo wasn't close with Hiroi Kikuri. Their relationship was that of fan and idol.
Ryo adored her wild and unrestrained performances.
That kind of raw, reckless energy—vomiting, spraying drinks, cursing at fans—was what made her so cool.
"Wanna go take a look?"
Toru wanted to tease Ohtsuki Yoyoko a little.
She was particularly fun to mess with, almost as entertaining as about 0.8 of Hitori.
Not to mention, Yoyoko was a classic tsundere—mouthy on the outside, soft inside, impossibly cute.
If Ryo hadn't confessed to him first and if he didn't owe her four favors already, Toru might not have chosen Ryo at all. He'd have found himself a new girlfriend by now. Don't ask, he was just tired.
"It's Tanabata today," Ryo glared at him. "You're taking your girlfriend to see another girl, and with that face, no less."
Her meaning was clear enough.
I'm jealous.
I'm mad, now cheer me up.
"Alright, I won't go see her."
Toru wrapped his arms around her and whispered a few comforting words in her ear.
He didn't let go until a faint, uncertain smile appeared on Ryo's face.
Before releasing her, Toru placed a kiss on her cheek.
Ryo didn't like being too physically clingy, so it was better not to push it.
Based on his second simulation experience, Toru was extremely cautious, so cautious that Ryo started getting annoyed.
"Can't I kiss you?"
After he gave her that light kiss, she seemed even angrier.
What did I do wrong now?
"You can kiss me."
Her face flushed as she pointed at her lips. "I was just wondering why you only kissed my cheek. Even earlier, I thought you'd kiss me here."
Toru realized that experience-based assumptions could really get you into trouble. He had thought that even though Ryo had changed slightly in this simulation, her dislike of physical affection would remain.
Unfortunately...
He was wrong.
"You're acting really weird today," Ryo puffed her cheeks in frustration. "I'm your girlfriend, you know."
You blockhead.
You hopeless log.
You dense lump of wood.
You can be so smooth with other women, but the moment it's me, you turn into a statue?
Do you adjust your flirting by situation or what?
"It's Tanabata today, and I got us matching gifts. You thought I'd mmph—"
Before she could finish, her boyfriend's handsome face was suddenly inches away.
Within a heartbeat, her lips were sealed. The soft pressure, the warmth of his breath as it all happened so quickly she barely processed it.
He… kissed me…
As the thought sank in, Ryo's body softened. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his waist.
She tried her best to respond, wanting to seem like she knew what she was doing.
After a while, the shy, uncertain kiss came to an end.
She wiped the corner of her mouth.
"Idiot."
Her voice was soft, teasing.
They were standing right in the middle of the street, what was he even thinking?
"What? Weren't you the one who wanted this?"
Toru released her, noticing that all her anger had been replaced by bashfulness and shyness.
"Don't you see where we are? Let's go, quickly."
Blushing furiously, Ryo grabbed his hand and pulled him away.
Before leaving, she looked around, taking note of the exact spot where her first kiss had happened.
After they left, not far away on the pedestrian bridge, the twin-tailed street performer rolled her eyes in an adorably exaggerated way.
"Kissing in public, huh? What a pair of idiots."
Ohtsuki Yoyoko decided to stay far away from Toru from now on.
She didn't want to catch his idiot virus.
———
[The Tanabata Festival ends perfectly.]
[Thanks to your choices, Toru realized that you might not be as uninterested in intimacy as he thought. Afterward, he began kissing you more often.]
[But for you...]
[Simply doing it more wasn't enough. Determined to enchant him completely, you went online to learn what adults call "Adult's Kiss."]
Adult's kiss?
Ryo thought her simulated self was practically driven by desire, a full-blown kiss maniac.
[In mid-July, the National Comprehensive Academic Test concluded. After you both registered, you ranked first and 35,327th nationwide, respectively.]
[Your boyfriend's score aside—]
[Your own wasn't that great. The deviation value wasn't high, and Tokyo University was still a long way off.]
[So, to get into the same university as your boyfriend, you began studying diligently.]
[Thanks to you and Toru, even your bandmates, who usually just hung out together, caught the studying fever. Even Hitori, who hated studying the most, got dragged into it.]
[During this time, without giving up music, all of you studied hard.]
[Your grades improved dramatically.]
[Especially Kita. When Toru heard she was aiming for Tokyo University, he even took time to tutor her personally, creating test papers for her one-on-one.]
[By September of the same year, after taking the second round of tests, your average deviation value rose to 72, bringing Tokyo University within reach.]
[Kita's score was slightly lower at 69, but not hopeless. After all, she still had a year left to catch up; she was only in her second year of high school.]
No, really, you don't have to.
Ikuyo, you deserve better... please don't try to steal my boyfriend.
[Nijika didn't try to follow your path. She believed that loving someone sometimes meant letting go.]
Nijika.
Who exactly do you love?
Don't tell me... it's my husband?
Ryo felt this simulation was turning terrifying.
The moment she started dating Toru, chaos seemed to follow.
Ryo was surrounded on all sides, seeing rivals everywhere. Even Xiang Yu would've called her a pro at being besieged.
[In the following months...]
[Life wasn't particularly fun. The pressure of preparing for college entrance exams left you breathless.]
[Seeing how hard you worked, your boyfriend often took time off to bring you out for a little relaxation.]
[It helped ease your frustration, even just a little.]