As everyone knows, in order for a performance to proceed smoothly, pre-rehearsals are absolutely essential.
Genius actors who can impress people with impromptu performance without any practice are, after all, rare. Most people, without training, may not even have better acting skills than some nearly outdated internet celebrity.
Moreover, compared to solo performances, pretending to be a couple involves two people and tests the tacit understanding between them, making the difficulty even higher.
In order to ensure that there are no flaws revealed in front of classmates, isn't it normal to rehearse and align with the partner before attending the gathering?
Since it's pretending to be a couple, then the rehearsal content should of course also be couple-related. Otherwise, how can one get into character?
So then, here comes the question. When it comes to couples, what do people think of first?
Holding hands, hugging, dating, and… that reluctant kiss under the streetlight before parting.
So, it's really not that Anon schemed, acted righteous, and took advantage of the situation. All of this was for the sake of authenticity in the performance. A sacrifice that had to be made.
The more Chihaya Anon thought about it, the more reasonable it sounded. Her initial guilt completely vanished, and she puffed out her chest with an air of justification.
Kaito, on the other hand, didn't think that much.
Since he had already agreed to play Anon's boyfriend, he wouldn't evade responsibility.
What's more, the girl's reasons were quite reasonable. Pre-rehearsal was indeed necessary to avoid embarrassment in front of others.
So he simply nodded slightly, "Alright, how do you plan to rehearse?"
"Ahem!"
Anon cleared her throat, her serious expression resembling an old scholar in academia, "Of course, we should do what couples are supposed to do."
To add more credibility to her suggestion, she swore solemnly and gave an example, "Good actors all immerse themselves in their roles to perform better… For instance, that famous actress Minami-chan, in her youth, once took a part-time job for two months at a convenience store just for a minor role as a clerk! And she won Best Supporting Actress that year in one go!"
"Now that we're pretending to be a couple, of course we have to learn to interact like a couple!"
'Minami-san had such an experience?'
'Well, it actually makes a lot of sense.'
Kaito pondered for two seconds, "So, you're planning to…"
"In order not to let Rui and the others notice any flaws,"
Chihaya Anon finally revealed her wolf-like ambition, "How about starting with a date as practice?"
———
[Half an Hour Later]
A nondescript coffee shop.
In a corner seat, Kaito and Chihaya Anon sat facing each other.
"A more formal self-introduction now."
The girl with cherry pink long hair posed in the classic stance of Commander Ikari, "My name is Chihaya Anon, 18 years old, 160 cm tall, born on September 8th, Virgo, currently studying at Shuka Private Academy. My favorite foods are smoked salmon and fruit sandwiches. I dislike pickled plums and sour things. My hobby is watching makeup videos. My measurements are—"
"Stop. There's no need to disclose that kind of private info," Kaito interrupted her in time, unsure how to evaluate Chihaya-san's level of honesty.
After agreeing to Anon's date rehearsal, he had been dragged to this café by the girl, under the high-sounding excuse of a pre-date briefing.
To convincingly pretend to be a couple, they at least needed to know each other's basic information and hobbies.
Otherwise, when Anon's classmates asked, and they both looked clueless, even a fool could tell something was off.
"D-Don't need to say that part?", The pink-haired girl stuck out her tongue, "Well then, next it's your turn, Kaito."
"Kurumizaka Kaito."
He quickly organized his thoughts before continuing, "Height: 182 cm. Birthday… let's say February 2nd. No particular favorite foods, no particular dislikes. Likes gaming, occasionally watches anime. Has a cat at home."
"That's it?", Anon blinked, "You haven't said your age yet."
"Hmm…"
Kaito paused, "18."
Eighteen years and however-many months still counted as eighteen. At the very least, he was way younger than a certain purple-haired granny who shamelessly claimed to be "forever seventeen."
Anon was clearly surprised. She covered her mouth with her small hand, glanced downward, and paused slightly.
Should one say, never judge a book by its cover?
'That size…'
'No way it can get in. No matter how you think about it, it just won't go in!'
Kaito: "..."
He slowly typed out a question mark, "You… were asking about age, right?"
"O-Of course age! What else could it be?"
Anon snapped out of it, eyes wandering, "A-Anyway, Kaito, you just said… you're raising a cat, right?"
This topic shift was a bit too clumsy. But Kaito was silent for two seconds and still nodded.
"Very good."
The pink-haired girl clenched her right fist and tapped her left palm, "If Rui and the others ask how we met, let's use that as the excuse."
A boy and girl feeding a stray cat together meet on a rainy day, fall in love at first sight, and sparks fly, this setup was straight out of an idol drama. To impress a bunch of love-inexperienced girly girls? Easy as pie.
The more Anon thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. She enthusiastically added new settings, "The first time we met, your clothes got wet in the rain, and I invited you to my house to dry off. Then we exchanged contacts when saying goodbye. After that, we naturally went out a few times and ended up dating."
"As for who confessed first… let's say I did. I prefer to take the initiative. You don't dislike being passive, do you, Kaito?"
"Also, although we've only dated for six months, our bond is strong. We've already met each other's parents and plan to get married after graduation."
"No plans to have kids for the first three years of marriage, but if you want to, Kaito, that's negotiable…"
"Stop. Chihaya-san, don't you think… you're going a bit too far?", Seeing the pink-haired girl falling deep into her future fantasy, Kaito knocked on the table and sighed helplessly.
"We're only pretending to be a couple once. Your classmates shouldn't be nosy enough to ask about your post-marriage life, right?"
"A-A full prep is just being thorough…", Anon also realized she might've gotten too carried away. She quickly calmed herself and muttered softly, "Who knows… they might be even nosier than you think…"
Being a girl herself, she understood all too well how unrestrained girl-to-girl conversations could get, especially those love-starved girlies who'd never dated. When they start fantasizing, even your wildest imagination couldn't compare.
Why did she know this so well?
Ahem, it's definitely not because she had once had many similar cherry-colored fantasies about someone.
Definitely not.
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