The two discussed for quite a while in the café.
They finalized many details and even made up various little interesting things that happened during their supposed relationship. While increasing credibility, these could also be used to deal with gossipy classmates.
Most of the time, it was Anon doing the talking, and Kaito was just a merciless nodding machine, fully responsible for saying "Mm," "Oh," and "I have no opinion."
After carefully scrutinizing everything in her mind and confirming all was ready, the pink-haired girl finally ended the coordination phase with a light cough, her small face slightly red.
"Theoretically speaking, details are… just temporarily discussed up to this point. If there are any other settings, we'll add them later… Next is the practical session."
"First date rehearsal, Kaito, is there anywhere you'd like to go?"
Kaito shook his head, "You decide."
He was the quiet type, not very clear on what girls liked, and besides, this time pretending to be a couple was Anon's request, so everything should naturally prioritize the client.
"S-Since that's the case…", Anon thought for a moment, recalling some plot lines from shoujo manga she'd read before, and quickly had an idea, "Then how about starting with shopping?"
Everything must have a gradual progression.
The young girl was still too shy. Experiencing the daily life of a couple for the first time, even if it was only an act, still made her heart pound nervously like a deer about to crash into something.
Too extreme things she didn't dare do, nor had the courage to. On one hand, it was embarrassment; on the other, worry that Kaito would reject it.
'But if it's just shopping, that's not too over the top, right?'
———
When they left the café, it was still Anon who took the initiative to pay the bill.
The girl came from a fairly wealthy family. Though she might fall short of a real rich lady, she'd never worried about money. The pocket money she'd saved since childhood was more than enough not just to treat once, but even to sponsor an eighteen-year-old boy with Kaito as name.
The date location was chosen at a nearby commercial street.
A large chain mall had just opened recently here. The fourth floor was filled with men's clothing stores. Taking advantage of the chance, Anon planned to buy some clothes for her boyfriend (fake) to wear on Friday.
Although the boyfriend (fake) was already an impeccable pretty boy, dressing up was never a mistake. Plus, it could fulfill her own little selfish wish. Ever since she met Kaito, she had never seen what he looked like wearing anything other than the school uniform. Naturally, she couldn't miss such a good opportunity.
But before that…
"Hey!"
Anon turned her face slightly, reaching out a slender white and soft hand, like scallions, and her delicate ear tips flushed slightly red, "Since we're a couple, when shopping… of course we have to hold hands, right?"
Kaito didn't refuse. Since he had agreed to pretend to be Anon's boyfriend, he wouldn't be perfunctory about it.
He took hold of that delicate, boneless little hand, like a petal drenched in morning dew. Her fingertips felt cool to the touch.
The girl's lashes lowered slightly, and her porcelain-white cheeks were dyed in the colors of the sunset glow, reminiscent of the rose fields in the Valley of Bulgaria.
The burning heat spread from their fingertips to the palms, like a flaming blaze, yet strangely reassuring.
Hand-holding, this kind of thing, once you get used to it, it becomes natural. [T/N: l*wd!]
After going through the initial shyness and excitement, Anon quickly adjusted her mindset.
Pretending to be a couple, no matter how beautiful, was still fake.
Rather than indulging in this illusionary experience card, it would be better to find a way to make it real, turning a "one-day boyfriend" into a "lifelong boyfriend." Then she could hold hands however she wanted. Not just holding hands, she'd even kiss.
As for now, there was something more important.
Girls seemed to have an extraordinary enthusiasm for dress-up games.
School uniforms, hoodies, baseball jerseys, suits, tailcoats, haoris…
Dragged around by Anon from store to store, Kaito was like a puppet on strings, being dressed up by an enthusiastic puppeteer in all kinds of styles.
Time slowly passed, but the girl showed no signs of being tired. Her gray eyes were even getting brighter.
As expected, good-looking people look good even wearing a potato sack.
She inexplicably felt the joy of playing a card collection game. Unlocking new outfits for her boyfriend (fake) one by one, from a fresh and sporty boy, to a cool and reserved noble son, to a beautiful young swordsman straight out of a Taiga drama.
It was dazzling to the eyes. She just regretted not having enough money to buy the entire floor's worth of clothes for Kaito to try on.
'Damn it, I thought I can barely count as a small rich lady… Turns out I am so poor?'
Standing downstairs with shopping bags full of clothes, Anon sighed deeply, not because she had bought enough, but because she had no more money. Her gaze unintentionally drifted toward the clearly visible TGW logo on the mall building, representing an industry under the Togawa Group. She had never envied these damn rich people so much.
'Sigh, capitalism.'
But the girl quickly came to terms again. Having money doesn't mean happiness, and having no money doesn't mean unhappiness. She read online that the Togawa Group's heir was about her age, receiving elite education since childhood, probably so busy his feet didn't touch the ground, likely didn't even have time to fall in love, and definitely didn't have a handsome boyfriend like she did, 'Don't underestimate small wins, win!'
"Let's call it a day for today's date."
Seeing the sky turning to evening, and also receiving several messages from his assistant urging [Boss, why aren't you back yet], Kaito saw Anon still looking like her soul was wandering in the clouds, so he took the initiative to end the rest of the plan.
"Ah… ah? Oh, oh."
The girl came to her senses, blushing as she handed him the bags in her hand, "Sorry, sorry, I spaced out a bit. These clothes, Kaito, remember to keep them well, you can wear any set for the gathering that day."
Four or five shopping bags, filled with clothes worth six figures, a huge sum for any student, and the total cost emptied all of Anon's long-saved allowance.
Kaito had tried to stop her earlier, but the girl was firm, so he could only let it be.
Faced with this expensive gift, he thought for a moment but didn't refuse. After all, she had already bought it. He could just return the favor with a gift some other day.
Come to think of it, Anon didn't seem to have a protective jade pendant yet. He might as well take this opportunity to give her one.
While thinking so in his heart, he watched the girl board the train to go home and let out a soft sigh.
Although they had been shopping for nearly two hours, with his physical fitness, this level of exercise didn't even count as a warm-up.
But he still felt very tired, mainly mentally.
Accompanying a girl shopping, especially in clothing stores, was a form of psychological torture for most boys.
Thankfully, all of this was finally over.
When he got home later, he'd take a nice bath.
With this thought in mind, he looked up. Only for his eyes to freeze when he saw the scene on the nearby overpass.
A girl with short gray hair was leaning against the railing, half of her body tilted outward, staring blankly like a butterfly with broken wings, swaying and on the verge of falling.
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