How can my simulation be a real love?

Ichiji Nijika sat in the middle of the dining table, her face full of shame. Even though she didn't dare to look up, she could feel the intense gazes around her. Even Ms. Mutsu, who was usually expressionless, was staring at her, making her feel extremely dizzy.

Why did it become like this! ?

During dinner, everyone gathered around the table. Miss Lena, the 'culprit,' was happily squinting her eyes, engrossed in savoring the delicious food, completely unaware of the atmosphere.

Both Hachiman Kairin and Wakaba Mutsu are prime examples of people who rarely express their emotions. Although they both wanted to say something to ease the awkwardness, it was clear that bringing it up at this moment would only exacerbate Nijika's fragile sense of shame.

"Um, actually, Ming and I were talking about the band."

"--I see."

Yawata Kairin nodded with a serious expression, which made Iji Chi Nijika so embarrassed that she almost fainted.

Kazami Mei, who was about to say something, froze. He really didn't expect Nijika to open her mouth like that. If she didn't say anything, everyone would just ignore it. But if she said something now, wouldn't that be like burying her head in the sand?

"Actually, Hongxia did come to talk to me about the band today, but since she happened to be here, I decided to keep our promise and draw her a picture."

The reason given for coming was indeed to 'discuss the band'.

With a blank expression, Wakaba Mutsumi slowly asked, "Is it a portrait?"

"Yeah."

After a moment of silence, Hachiman Kairin looked up and asked, "I see. Is this the topic of what will happen after the band ends?"

"Yeah."

As Yao Lenai shoveled rice into her mouth, her eyes brightened slightly, and she asked, "Hong Xiaxia, are you staying tonight?"

"Right, right...wait?"

Miss Hongxia, who had answered subconsciously, suddenly looked up, her face flushed with embarrassment. Only then did she realize what she had said. Before she could explain, the two people beside her looked on knowingly, and then Ruoye Mu got up as quickly as possible.

"I'll go prepare clothes and toiletries."

Hachiman Kairin nodded, casually tossing her hair behind her ear as she replied, "Then I'll go prepare the bedding... Well, I probably won't need it, so I'll just grab some essential tools."

"No, that's not the case!"

The girl's shy and flustered cries immediately echoed throughout the living room.

Chapter 146 Why are you being so respectful, kid? [5k]

Water droplets condensed on the milky white tiles reflected the warm orange light, and the hot water in the bathtub immersed the blonde girl completely.

The water barely covered her delicate collarbone, and the girl's slender limbs turned a pale pink like cherry blossoms in the hot water. Her wet, golden hair was loosely coiled into a bun and wrapped in a snow-white towel, with the ends playfully hanging down on the water's surface, swaying gently with the ripples.

Water droplets slid down her flushed cheeks, and the slowly rising pure white steam gave the bathroom a slightly surreal feel.

Perhaps she suddenly thought of something, for the girl soaking in the bathtub had an alluring blush on her cheeks.

"Why did you actually agree?"

Just after dinner, Xiao Mu's usually indifferent emerald eyes flashed with a rare mischievousness, while Hai Ling, holding Bess, leaned against the door frame, twirling the ends of her hair with her black-painted fingertips, looking at her with a playful expression.

Wow!

Ichiji Nijika covered her flushed face and let out an unintelligible sob. In that atmosphere, no amount of explanation could help. Both Xiaomu and Hailing had already assumed that she would stay overnight and were staring at her with 'that' kind of look.

She never imagined things would turn out this way before she came!

"So, where should I sleep tonight?"

With her mind filled with all sorts of random thoughts, Miss Hongxia had been soaking in the bath for almost half an hour and was feeling dizzy. Fortunately, she regained her senses before completely passing out and managed to walk out of the bathroom.

Miss Hongxia, wrapped in a bath towel, walked out of the bathroom with a flushed face. She took clean pajamas from the expressionless doll, changed into them, and followed her upstairs. It wasn't until they entered the room that she suddenly came to her senses.

"Huh? This... isn't this Naruto's room?"

The girl's knuckles turned white as she gripped the hem of her nightgown tightly, her shoulder blades peeking out from under the fabric.

If Ye Mu was watering the succulents by the bay window with a blank expression, upon hearing this, she would simply turn her head slightly. Moonlight flowed over her platinum blonde hair, as if gilding a porcelain doll with a silver edge.

"That's right."

Ruoye Mu looked at Iji Chi Nijika, whose face was flushed, with some confusion. She seemed not to understand why Iji Chi Nijika had such a flustered expression. However, after a long silence, the wooden girl's expressionless face also became a little rosy.

The little piece of wood is not just a little piece of wood.

Perhaps considering Ichiji Nijika's feelings, Wakaba Mutsumi, who had been expressionless, slowly took two steps forward and cautiously began to speak—

"Hongxia, don't you want to share a room with Ming?"

"Huh? No... that's not how it is..."

Miss Angel waved her fair little hand, but the tension on her face was palpable.

How could she not want to?

Ijichi Nijika came here today because she couldn't bear the loneliness in her heart, but her girlish reserve and shyness made her feel a little lost, especially since Wakaba Mutsu and Hachiman Kairin were well aware of this, which further stimulated her already not very strong heart.

After a two-second silence, her face flushed, the girl suddenly spoke in a questioning tone—

"Then...if I sleep here, what are you and Hailing going to do, Xiaomu?"

Ruo Yemu blinked in surprise, then calmly raised her head.

"I'm going back to my room today, and Hailing agrees with me."

Nijika Ichichi, somewhat flustered, raised her blushing cheeks and instinctively asked, "Eh? Aren't you... coming together?"

If Ye Mu seemed surprised that Iji Chi Nijika would ask such a question, her blank eyes seemed to show a hint of astonishment, and after hesitating for a moment, she looked at the other person with a slightly flushed face.

At this moment, Miss Hongxia seemed to realize that her question had been too explicit. In her panic, her eyes darted around as she quickly explained, "No, no, no... that's not it! I was just asking casually, please don't misunderstand!"

“…Yes, I understand.”

Ruoye Mu nodded meaningfully, then turned and walked towards the door.

Oh no, this is making things worse.

It wasn't until Wakaba Mutsu walked out of the room with a slightly flushed face that Ichiji Niji Natsumi, who was left inside, felt what it meant to be 'powerless' to explain. Extremely embarrassed, she covered her face and made some muffled noises.

What is she doing?

Isn't this a complete misunderstanding?

The girl, whose mind was a complete mess, finally realized that no matter how she explained, it would be too late. Besides, the misunderstanding wasn't entirely untrue, so Miss Hongxia simply gave up.

"..."

Sitting on the bed, Ichiji Nijika looked around curiously. In fact, this was her first time actually being in Kazami Mei's bedroom.

It's very similar to the previous small apartment; apart from the larger bed, the furnishings are almost unchanged.

The school uniforms were neatly hung on the wall, and the bookshelves were filled with small potted plants. Next to the computer in the room was a large stack of A4 white paper, which she discovered to be all work-related materials for the band.

"Huh? What are these—"

Nijika Ichi is an understanding and polite girl; she knows it's wrong to look through these materials without permission.

The sheer number of them made it hard for her to ignore them, and she couldn't resist taking a few quick glances.

Some of these blank sheets of paper contained the band's album CD proposals, while the rest contained the band's operational information, lyrics, and arrangements. Important points and notes were carefully circled on the sheets of paper with a red ballpoint pen.

The bright red annotations on the paper were densely packed. When she turned to the tour budget sheet, her long eyelashes trembled slightly—it turned out that the lighting of the venue for Minglian's performance had been referenced and compared.

She seemed to be able to see the writer's focused and attentive posture.

Tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes, and the girl gently pursed her cherry-colored lips.

"My daily work is actually so hard..."

Ichi Nijika felt a pang of bitterness and heartache. As the leader of the 'End Band,' she placed her complete trust in Kazami Mei, entrusting him with the power of life and death and the direction of the band's operation, as well as a great deal of responsibility and work.

Xiao Mu, she saw all of this, didn't she?

With mixed feelings, Miss Angel gently raised her eyes. Her gaze, which had been lowered, gradually became focused and firm. Her small hands, hanging at her sides, slowly clenched, as if she had made a decision and took a deep breath.

Click.

She faintly heard someone grabbing the doorknob. Reacting quickly, Miss Hongxia put the documents away at the fastest speed she had ever done, then smiled nonchalantly and looked toward the door.

The black-haired boy who stepped into the room was wearing loose pajamas. The loose collar gradually revealed his figure, and the ends of his black hair were still glistening with moisture. His already extremely handsome face was even more stunning at this moment.

Ichi Nijika was slightly taken aback, and she couldn't quite look away.

"Hongxia?"

As Kazami Mei pushed open the door, she gradually raised her eyebrows and immediately noticed the girl with her hands behind her back.

"I remember asking Xiao Mu to take you to your room... Ha, so she actually brought you to my room?"

Just by seeing Ichiji Nijika here, he guessed what had happened. He rubbed his temples in exasperation, but his attitude made the girl purse her lips in dissatisfaction and frown like a child.

"Hmm? Does Ming not welcome me here?"

"How could we not welcome you? We just thought you might be shy."

Kazami Mei looked at Iji Chi Nijika not far away with amusement. Just as he expected, a few blushes appeared on the girl's cheeks. But the next moment, she stepped to the bedside and sat down, and even patted the spot next to her with her small hand.

Why does it give me such a strange sense of déjà vu?

Kazami, who was internally complaining, slowly sat down next to Nijika. The girl shyly avoided his gaze, but she quickly mustered her courage and straightened her back slightly to get a little closer to him.

"Actually, there's something I want to say..."

"Was it triggered by last year's baseball game?"

"baseball?"

Ichi Nijika looked at the black-haired boy beside her with a puzzled expression, seemingly not understanding the meaning of his words at all. Kazami Mei, who had just realized what was going on, coughed to ease the awkwardness, and then waved her hand to let her continue.

The girl playfully punched him lightly before taking a deep breath and continuing—

"...It's about work related to the band."

“I realize that I’ve been relying on you a little too much before… I’ve been leaving everything to you all this time, and I haven’t been able to help you much until now… I’m really sorry.”

The girl, her eyes lowered, spoke softly, a hint of disappointment creeping into her forced smile.

Kazami Mei raised an eyebrow, then looked toward the computer desk.

Oh, I see. Did she accidentally see it?

Kazami Mei slowly raised his head thoughtfully, and as he looked at the ceiling, a smile gradually appeared on his lips: "Being relied upon by a lovely and virtuous 'wife' is the happiest thing for a man."

"Eh?"

"The workload of three bands might be a bit heavy, but it's nothing for me... Well, I guess Nijika probably wouldn't believe me if I said that, right?"

Kazami Mei's words were full of teasing, and her ever-confident smile made it impossible for her to look away.

"Always thinking of carrying the entire band's work on my own, upon closer reflection, does that seem a bit too arrogant? At this point, it might really be better to find someone to share the burden."

"Hmm, let me think who would be more suitable?"

Ichiji Nijika's lowered gaze gradually lifted, her beautiful crimson eyes containing an indescribable connection. She smiled gently, as if looking at a naughty child, her expression a mixture of reproach and involuntary tenderness.

The girl took a deep breath.

"Then leave it to me!"

No need for complicated or tedious words, just the shared feelings between the two.

Ichi Nijika was well aware of this. She couldn't continue to rely on her husband like she did in the "dream." At the same time, she had to become a wife who could share his emotions, his burdens, and fulfill her responsibilities!

Before she knew it, the girl had habitually taken his hand. Their intertwined fingers allowed her to clearly feel his warmth and affection, which made the already shy blonde girl purse her lips, but she did not hide her blushing cheeks.

Ichi Nijika quietly counted the calluses on his palms—the calluses from years of practicing guitar and piano were on his fingertips, while the calluses from his pen were on his middle finger. Despite his slender and beautiful hands, they felt so rough that it was heartbreaking to touch.

He has fulfilled his responsibilities, so now he should also—

"Okay, it's about time we rested, isn't it?"

The girl's words, tinged with nervousness yet tinged with anticipation, made Mr. Kazami's heart itch like a cat's claws.

"Since that's the case, then—"

hum! !

The sudden vibration startled Ichiji Nijika so much that she almost jumped up. She noticed that her phone was buzzing, and at that moment her beautiful eyes widened slightly as she suddenly noticed a possibility.

"I...I think I forgot to call my sister..."

"broken."