How can my simulation be a real love?

Shiina Riki was also a little confused for a moment. Her frank and cute appearance gradually returned to her original stern look, as if her sharp embroidered eyebrows would furrow at any moment.

"Have you forgotten what you just did?"

"……I?"

Seeing that Miss Riki still looked confused, Kazami Naruto said meaningfully, "Miss Riki, you were quite forceful in 'feeding' me that bowl of red bean soup just now, weren't you?"

You, Li Xi, certainly had a great time, but Feng Jianming still has to seek 'revenge'.

Shiina Tatsuki realized at this moment that she had been too forceful in both attitude and action, so she lowered her head somewhat embarrassedly. To express her apology, she tentatively began to speak—

"so what should I do now?"

"You've fed me so much, you have to let me feed you back, right?"

Kazami Mei rolled her eyes.

Miss Lixi, who was initially a little confused, realized something, but before she could speak, her face flushed red and she was taken in the hand by Feng Jianming. She understood completely and her eyes were full of shyness, but in the end she still nodded obediently.

……

Cheers! Happy birthday!

With the crisp sound of glasses clinking, Ms. Shimokitazawa, the 'master of ceremonies,' stood up. A bright red Santa hat adorned her golden hair, and with her light steps, her pale golden ponytail swung in the air in a beautiful arc.

"Everyone is here today for my sister's birthday party, and it's also a special Christmas day!"

"Everyone, please don't have any worries or inhibitions today, just enjoy yourselves!"

As soon as Miss Angel finished speaking, the drunkard sitting opposite her hurriedly picked up his glass and downed an entire bottle of bubbly draft beer in the blink of an eye. He then excitedly picked up Ijichi Hoshika, who was sitting in the middle of the group, and his cheerful words rang out—

"Senior~ It's such a happy day today, have another drink!"

"There's really nothing I can do against you."

The usually serious Ichika Hoshika was unusually gentle today. Perhaps it was because she was wearing a 'Happy Birthday' hat and surrounded by so many people that she couldn't maintain her usual demeanor?

"..."

Sitting to the right of Yamada Ryo, Shiina Tatsuki stared at Hiroi Kikuri with some surprise. Although she knew that the bassist and lead singer of the band SICK HACK had a style that was a bit too 'rock', she did not expect that she would be so bold when she was not performing.

Perhaps because Shiina Riki's gaze was too obvious, the drunkard who was chugging his liquor suddenly noticed, but the next second he cheerfully patted her on the shoulder.

"Lixi-chan, do you want to drink alcohol too? Hahaha, you're still a kid~ Just drink some yogurt before you turn 18!"

"No... if it's yogurt, then..."

Shiina Riki blushed and waved her hand. She secretly glared at Kazami Mei not far away, but quickly looked away.

However, this subtle action was still noticed by Yamada Ryo beside her. She raised her eyebrows meaningfully, reached out and grabbed a turkey leg from the table, and uttered a cool and elegant word.

"It's not time yet, but some people have already secretly eaten it all by themselves."

Chapter 172 Then wouldn't she become part of the 'pet' group? [5k]

Eating alone?

When Yamada Ryo uttered this ambiguous sentence, he didn't make a loud sound. His clear and elegant voice, mixed with the hum of the air conditioner's warm air, was as clearly heard as an icicle shattering on the ground.

"Eh?"

Kita Ikuyo, who was holding a yogurt, froze, her long eyelashes trembling slightly in the rising steam.

As she tilted her head, the ends of her hair brushed against Shiina Tatsuki's burning earlobe, and a hint of doubt flashed in her beautiful eyes as she asked, "But everyone hasn't started eating yet, hasn't everyone?"

Upon hearing this, Shiina Riki blushed instantly. She met Yamada Ryo's meaningful golden eyes, and the next second, as if her thoughts had been read, she lowered her head in a fluster, completely at a loss for words.

How did you figure that out?

Shiina Tatsuki carefully examined her clean and tidy collar. She had swallowed it completely to avoid getting it dirty. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be any flaws on her body, but she didn't expect Yamada Ryo to discover her problem in an instant!

Fortunately, apart from the two of them, no one else noticed what Miss Liang said.

The girl, feeling both nervous and somewhat excited, ultimately chose to remain silent, her face flushed. She gently raised her violet eyes, as clear as autumn water, and gave a light glare towards Kazami Naruto.

It was as if they wanted to shift all the blame onto him.

"..."

Kazami Mei was momentarily speechless.

You can't blame him for this, okay?

The others didn't notice the little 'interlude' here. Iji Chi Nijika, temporarily acting as the party emcee, coughed, and wearing a Santa hat and white lace-trimmed stockings, she stepped onto the tatami mat and began speaking in a cheerful tone—

"Ahem! Everyone, listen up! Today is my sister's 30th birthday! There's one very important thing we need to do before the party starts!"

"Happy birthday, sister!"

In an instant, colorful ribbons, as dazzling as a rainbow, flew out with a loud bang. Goto Ichiri, who had been hiding since the beginning, peeked out, her long, bright pink hair still covered with ribbons from the failed explosion.

"Thank...thank you?"

Such a grand spectacle left Ichiji Hoshika, who was sitting in the middle of the crowd, somewhat at a loss.

In previous years, only her younger sister, Nijika, would celebrate her birthday with her. But this year, the number of people had increased dramatically. Not only that, the entire STARRY team made special arrangements, and they even paid out of their own pockets to buy such a large birthday cake.

Putting everything else aside, she's already so moved she wants to cry.

"Ta-da! As a token of my gratitude for the whole year, I've also prepared a birthday gift in advance!"

As she spoke, Ijichi Niyaka smiled and took out a gift box. When Ijichi Hoshika opened it, her expression froze. Only then did she realize that it contained a brand new 'cervical spine massager', which contrasted sharply with the pink background and gold ribbon of the gift box.

I felt happy, but my heart was unexpectedly complicated.

You know, until last year, the birthday gift her younger sister gave her was still a cute plush toy, which she still needs to hug to fall asleep at night; but now, those gifts that she always complained were 'childish' have somehow turned into health supplements with pharmacy receipts.

Is it because I'm thirty?!

Is that the reason?!

Even with her complicated emotions, Ichiji Hoshika quickly accepted her younger sister's gift. Seeing that someone had taken the lead, the others around her exchanged glances, and then Kita-san followed suit and presented her gift.

"Next is mine!"

Kita Ikuyo, beaming, took out her small gift box, which contained an exquisitely designed and trendy popular vase and lipstick; at the same time, Yamada Ryo, who usually did nothing, slowly strolled over and took out his gift under Kazami Naruto's prior urging.

"This is just a small token of my appreciation, please accept it."

As she spoke, she expressionlessly displayed the silver earrings from the gift box, which refracted a cold light under the warm glow of the lamp.

"I'm so...so sorry that this is the best I can do in the end!!!"

As for the timid Miss Pochi, she shakily presented a felt pendant with crooked stitches, cotton peeking out from the rabbit's twisted ears, and two button eyes staring ahead at different heights.

I feel like it could be used to ward off evil spirits.

"...Well, anyway, thank you so much."

Ichi Hoshika accepted the birthday gifts earnestly. No matter what, she was actually quite happy to have her birthday celebrated. However, as a mature adult, she had to save face and couldn't show any childish behavior like a little kid.

"Don't thank me yet, I haven't received mine."

Kazami Mei rolled her eyes at the blonde woman in front of her, then took out a small but exquisite gift box and handed it to her.

This left Ichika Hoshika somewhat stunned, and for a moment she even forgot to open the gift.

I have absolutely no idea what he would send.

The thought appeared in everyone's mind almost simultaneously. Even Yamada Ryo's eyes lit up with curiosity as he leaned forward. Under the watchful eyes of several people, Iji Tomoka, with a straight face, slowly opened the gift box—

"Noise-canceling headphones...wait, could this CD be...?"

Ijichi Seika's gaze was fixed on the CD at the very back. It looked a bit old, and although the familiar appearance and band name had faded, it was still carefully preserved.

Even Kikuri Hiroi, waking from her drunken stupor, took two steps closer, bottle in hand, and exclaimed in surprise, "Eh? Isn't this the commemorative CD from your band's old days? I can't believe I still found it!"

"...Where did you find this?"

Ijichi Hoshika seemed surprised that Kazami Mei would give such a gift, and looked up in astonishment. However, when asked about it, Kazami Mei simply waved his hand dismissively, claiming that he had just found it in an old record store in Shimokitazawa.

In fact, they all knew very well that this was not so easy to find.

Even the usually stern-faced store manager was momentarily speechless, unsure how to respond. After a moment of silence, she took a deep breath and spoke softly, her words somewhat hesitant—

"...Thank you, I really like this."

"Haha~ Looks like this is my favorite gift today, right?"

Hiroi Kikuri bluntly exposed her arrogant mask, which made Iji Tomoko's forehead veins bulge instantly when she was somewhat embarrassed and angry. She reached out and pressed down on her neck, her red eyes, similar to Nijika's, flashing with a bloody light.

"You're the kind of guy who came here to freeload without giving anything, so shut up and eat properly!"

Seeing the interaction between the two, Kazami Naru shook his head helplessly. Just as he was about to snatch food from Yamada Ryo's mouth, Iji Chi Nijika, who was sitting next to him, suddenly leaned closer and unknowingly came to his shoulder.

The blonde girl smiled faintly, her eyes filled with gentle light, and she spoke softly, "This gift must be hard to find, right?"

"Don't be fooled by how calm my sister seems on the surface. She's actually incredibly happy inside. I also want to thank Ming properly. This is truly a very precious memory for my sister."

The girl's eyes seemed a little dim, but this mood was broken by Kazami Mei's words the next second.

"There's nothing to thank me for. Isn't Sister Xingge my sister too?"

Kazami Mei simply smiled and winked at the girl, causing Iji Chikuni Natsumi to blush and smile helplessly. At this moment, Ryo-san also mysteriously approached and said in a teasing tone—

“Hongxia is right, we really should thank Ming.”

"You don't care about gratitude at all, do you?"

……

The neon signs of STARRY began to glow with a warm orange light, and the long-awaited STARRY store manager's birthday party and Christmas gathering gradually came to an end.

Several girls, one after the other, climbed the stairs with light and energetic steps, like butterflies fluttering in the air. Ijichi Hoshika saw them off with a blank expression, finally stopping at the door.

"Manager, are you really not coming to the Christmas party tonight?"

The beautiful girl with fiery red hair, as if burning with flames, frowned slightly. Wearing a bright red scarf, she turned back to look at Iji Chihoka behind her, but the other girl just waved casually, her narrowed red eyes full of indifference.

"I still have to keep an eye on STARRY, you guys go and have fun."

Ijichi Hoshika's resolute attitude was not entirely consistent with her inner thoughts.

In fact, she had wanted to go to the Kazami family's Christmas party as well, but when she thought about it carefully... all the people going would be that brat's girlfriends, and her own sister might even spend the night there, which could turn into a really bad intimate scene.

If that really happens, wouldn't it be a bit awkward for her, a 30-year-old still single third wheel?

No matter how I think about it, it's still not suitable!

"Hiccup~ Can we have another round? I want to go, I want to go~"

Hiroi Kiku, leaning against Ijichi Seika, let out a drunken burp without any regard for her image. It wasn't even evening yet, and she was already completely drunk, looking like she couldn't even walk steadily without support. But before she could take a step forward, she was pulled back by the shop manager beside her.

"Don't cause trouble for others when you're so drunk! Besides, the shop is still a mess. You came here empty-handed to freeload, so you have to help me out!"

"Why?!"

Ijichi Seika didn't care about Hiroi Kikuri's wailing at all, and just said to the group in a light tone, "Anyway, it's a rare Christmas... You young people should make your own plans. If you're not coming back to sleep tonight, you don't need to call us."

"Kazemi, I'm leaving Nijika in your care."

"elder sister!"

The other party's unrestrained 'roasting' seemed to tear off the mask of shame, causing Ichiji Nijika's delicate face to glow with a blush of shame and indignation, like the surface of a lake gently kissed by the setting sun, but her rebuttal seemed to have no effect.

Kazami Ming raised her slender eyebrows and stared ahead before quickly replying, "Understood. Then, Xingge-nee, I won't be back tonight either, so you don't need to leave the door open for me."

"You little devil..."

Ijichi Hoshika rolled her eyes at Kazami Mei without any expression, but today she didn't say anything to 'refute' as usual. She just waved her hand as if she was disgusted by something dirty, and then pulled the drunkard back into the store on her own.

"Humph~"

"Looks like the only person coming to tonight's Christmas party is my 'girlfriend.' I wonder what it'll be like tonight; it might get really interesting... I'm kind of looking forward to it!"

The girl's cool voice was as deep as the waves under the night sky, and her pale golden eyes shone with a strange light.

Yamada Ryo slipped her red, frozen fingertips into Kazami Mei's pocket, her exquisitely sculpted face resting on his shoulder. Ijichi Hoshika had just left, and her swift movement left the people around them speechless.

Kita Ikuyo, who was the first to react, paused for two seconds before immediately flashing a bright and sunny smile. She held up her left index finger and said earnestly, "Ah—so it's the same as 'last time,' right?"

"Kita-chan, it was just a pre-New Year's party!"

Ijichi Nijika subconsciously glanced in Shiina Tatsuki's direction, then quickly reached out and covered Kita Ikuyo's mouth. Although she usually seemed like a pure and sunny beautiful girl, she would reveal a slightly ominous side under certain circumstances.

Kita-san speaks so bluntly that she occasionally utters incredibly bizarre lines with an innocent expression!