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Prologue: Matching with an Alluring Older Woman on a Dating App
“Look at this, doesn’t it look just like Shou?”
Lying in bed, I gaze at the picture attached to the message. It shows a cat with a robust and slightly arrogant face, lying on its back on the street, stomach exposed to the sky.
How does this resemble me at all? It feels like I’m being mocked.
The sender is Takamiya Hikaru, my ex-girlfriend with whom I hadn’t been in contact for a year.
About a week ago, thanks to Ichinose Enji’s arrangement, the rift that had developed between us seemed to have lessened… I think.
For a whole year, we neither saw each other nor did we communicate like we are doing now.
The start of such annoying LINE messages and our current relationship is attributed to reconnecting by chance through a dating app called Connect, which I started using on Enji’s recommendation.
Since then, we’ve met a few times, and on that day, our relationship clearly changed.
The cruel words I blurted out when we broke up, words I didn’t mean, I was finally able to apologize for them, and that significantly influenced this change.
This was all thanks to Enji, who worked hard to mend our relationship.
Since then, Hikaru and I have been exchanging such trivial messages. Though, most of the messages from her are usually about berating me…
Among them, today’s message about resembling a cat is relatively kind.
“Indeed. I guess I am a comforting presence.”
“What? How are you comforting?”
“But this, doesn’t it resemble you too, Hikaru? When you’re hungry and in a bad mood, you make a face like this.”
“The surly look and laziness do resemble you, Shou.”
“Well, cats are cute, so I guess that’s fine.”
“But while cats are comforting just by being there, your mere presence is annoying.”
“Who’s the one who chose such an annoying person once?”
“My life’s blemish, a regret.”
“Isn’t calling me a blemish a bit too harsh?”
Retracting my earlier thought about her being relatively kind.
Compared to before, our relationship seems to have thawed a bit.
But, it’s not really the case.
Since our reunion, the term ‘fighting like cats and dogs’ perfectly describes us; we would always argue when we met.
Even now, we continue to bicker like this, but honestly, every time I receive a LINE message, I’m reminded of that day and feel embarrassed.
It creates an awkwardness between us.
“What did you like about me?”
Normally, I would have dodged the question, but that night, perhaps influenced by Enji’s plan, I was out of my element.
“The way you clumsily try to cook for me.”
She always made lunchboxes early in the morning.
“How everything seems delicious when you eat.”
Seeing her happy face while eating was something I looked forward to every day.
“The way you cover your mouth with both hands when you laugh.”
Such a small gesture, yet I remember it even after a year.
“The way you jump over the last two steps when going down the stairs…”
Recalling what I said makes my face burn. Why did I say such embarrassing things?
I wonder if Hikaru is laughing at the me from that time on the other side of the screen?
I still have lingering feelings.
But I’m not sure if these feelings are love.
I don’t want to become distant again because I like her, I don’t want her to be taken by someone else, if only it were that simple.
In reality, it’s much more complex. Even if we got back together, would we be able to make it work? Would small fights lead to talks of breaking up again? What does Hikaru really think of me? The more I think, the more uncertainties and worries I have.
It’s not just about Hikaru.
Even when choosing friends, I’ve become calculating over time.
This might be what it means to become an adult.
Currently, I don’t even understand my own feelings. That’s why it feels awkward, being so conscious of it.
There’s another person who feels awkward too.
──I’ll help you forget.
I never thought that Kokoro, who is shy, introverted, and struggles with ‘S’-sounds, would say something like that, with such a bold expression, yet blushing.
Though it was over LINE, honestly, it got to me.
I don’t know what Kokoro meant by saying that.
──Because you are sincere, Kakeru, you worry like this. I am attracted to that aspect of you.
Would my heart have been so shaken without that preface? No, probably not.
Even without that introduction, I think both Hikaru and Kokoro would have troubled my mind just as they are now.
Anyone would interpret her words at that time as, “I will make you forget (as a new romantic interest).” According to that assumption, Kokoro was declaring her romantic intentions to me.
But considering Kokoro’s personality, I doubt she could say something so bold.
Hence, the next theory becomes more plausible.
That theory is, “I will make you forget (as a friend).”
Sadly, for someone like Kokoro, this latter theory is much more likely.
Even if the former were true, I can’t imagine Kokoro saying such a thing in my presence.
“Ahhhh”
I threw my smartphone down on the bed as I was looking up at it.
As the bed bounced back, my phone vibrated, probably a LINE message from Hikaru, and I brought it back in front of my eyes.
“A ‘Like’ from Kaede.”
It was a notification from the teal-colored app icon.
I hadn’t used the dating app Connect much recently.
Just last week, I checked it when I received a notification about an upcoming event and realized it had been a month since I joined. I thought it wouldn’t work anymore since I only paid for a month, but it seems to have automatically renewed, and another month’s fee was charged.
It seems it will keep renewing unless I turn off auto-renewal.
It’s a waste since I’m not using it now.
Out of curiosity, I decided to check the profile of Kaede, who had just sent me a rare ‘Like’.
The compatibility was seventy-eight percent.
With Hikaru, it was ninety-eight percent, and with Kokoro, ninety-two percent. So, Kaede’s score feels quite low. But, finding over ninety percent is quite rare.
So far, I haven’t seen anyone else over ninety percent besides Hikaru and Kokoro. That’s how rare it is.
I looked at some women’s profiles, and most were around eighty percent.
Kaede’s score wasn’t particularly low.
Her profile picture showed her smiling, with her upper body visible.
Honestly, I initially thought that a dating app would be full of not-so-cute women, uninvolved in real-life romance.
But Hikaru, Kokoro, and now Kaede… are cute.
Kaede’s appearance had a different charm than Hikaru or Kokoro.
How should I put it, more mature, or incredibly sexy, especially the chest.
The photo showed her upper body, wearing a top with a gaping hole revealing her cleavage.
This kind of thing would attract players…
Despite being a player magnet, Kaede, surprisingly, was the same age as me, twenty. She also lives in Kobe.
She’s a student and likes going to dog cafes.
I wish she would dote on my ‘Enji’.
Her profile says she likes dogs, alcohol, and cute guys. What’s with liking cute guys? You don’t usually write that in a profile.
Since I’ve already paid 4000 yen because of auto-renewal, I might as well respond to this nice ‘Like’.
It’s not because I was lured by the hole in her chest.
I mean, this kind of top is becoming popular, but it’s as lethal as the so-called ‘virgin-killing sweater’.
How can girls wear this so casually?
“Matched with Kaede.”
First Message After Matching
Thinking about the first message to send was a bit daunting, given my complex state of mind at the moment.
After pondering for several minutes while staring at the ceiling, an idea still didn’t come to mind.
“Toilet paper…”
Instead of thinking about the first message, I remembered that I was running low on toilet paper.
There’s data suggesting that replying within an hour increases response rates, and Connect, the dating app, would send a notification if I didn’t respond.
But no thoughts came to mind, so I decided to get out of bed and buy toilet paper first.
April had brought warmer weather.
Just a quick shopping trip. I threw on a grey hoodie over my white T-shirt, switched my room shorts for black slacks, and finally put on some socks. After slipping into white sneakers at the entrance…
“Let’s go.”
I had planned to visit the nearby pharmacy, but the craving for McDonald’s fries took me to the nearest station instead.
It was a holiday today. My mind had been preoccupied with thoughts of Hikaru and Kokoro-san all day, and by the time I arrived, it was past nine at night.
I managed to buy toilet paper at the pharmacy before closing and indulged in the longed-for fries at McDonald’s.
No regrets left, it was time to head home.
Essentially, I had wasted the entire day.
If asked what I did today, all I could say was, “I bought toilet paper.”
Heading towards the bus stop at the station, I noticed a lady lying on the ground and a suited man sitting beside her. Acquaintances, maybe? It was past ten at night, perhaps returning from a drinking party…
“Ten o’clock…? Oh no.”
Living in a less bustling area of Kobe City, which has a variety of transportation options, means that the last bus comes quite early.
I could leave the drunken lady to what seemed like her boss. I didn’t have the luxury to worry about them.
I had completely forgotten about it.
All because my mind was filled with thoughts of Hikaru and Kokoro-san.
Missing the last bus meant a twenty-minute walk from the station to my apartment.
Not an impossible distance, but I preferred the bus.
If I ran, I could make it…
As I started running towards the bus stop, I passed by the lady and the man.
In a fleeting glimpse, what I saw made me stop in my tracks.
The man’s hand was not just on the lady’s buttock but inside her skirt. This was a definite no-go, even if he was her boss.
But what if they were a couple?
It seemed unlikely, but I couldn’t be certain. Even if they were a couple, would anyone normally touch someone’s bottom before tending to a drunken partner?
No, that’s not normal. Not in public.
The bus stop was in sight, and a bus had just arrived. I could still make it.
But I couldn’t leave. I couldn’t just walk away.
It wasn’t about being a good Samaritan. If I left them and went home, it would haunt my dreams.
“Hey lady, why are you sleeping here? Get up, your ride is here!”
I called out as naturally as I could, drawing attention from those around.
Fortunately, there was a police box nearby. If needed, I could ask the police for help.
“Uh…”
The lady made a pained face, rubbing her eyes and grasping the sleeve of my squatting figure.
The man beside her, startled by my intervention, quickly left the scene.
Good.
She was now safe.
Now, I just needed to either get her to a safe place or wait until she was fully conscious. One of the two.
“Um… who are you? I don’t have a brother.”
She looked dazed, clinging to my knee.
Her cheeks were flushed, her body temperature high.
And she smelled of alcohol.
“Just now, that man running over there was about to touch you while you were sleeping. Sorry, I acted impulsively.”
“Oh, is that so? Thanks… uh.”
“Uh…?”
Whether it was a miscalculation of distance or something else, the lady was using my knee like a pillow. I could feel her warmth through my slacks, but right now, that was the least of my worries given the impending sense of dread from her “uh.”
“Oh, oh, oh.”
It was just as I thought.
The woman pressed her hand to her mouth, her face turning pale.
“Wait a minute, sis! Water! I’ll buy some water for you!”
I hurried to a nearby convenience store, bought water and a sports drink, and dashed back to her. I remembered hearing on TV that sports drinks are absorbed faster than water.
“Here you go, sis. Can you drink this?”
I opened the bottle for her, making it easier to drink while she was lying down.
“Umm, I’d prefer a highball.”
“Get real.”
I couldn’t help but retort. Somehow, giving up the last bus for her seemed ridiculous now.
Leaning against a pillar, the woman began to drink the sports drink, looking exhausted.
At that moment, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
I’ve seen her somewhere before. This woman.
──Is she Kaede from Connect?
She was the one who was being hit on by a flashy guy with a wolf cut.
That’s right, it was the day I reunited with Hikaru.
While waiting for Hikaru at the station, I saw a man and a woman meeting through Connect. That woman was her──Kaede…?
Thinking it might be her, I sent the first message I hadn’t yet sent from my smartphone.
At this point, any content would do.
“Good evening.”
As soon as I sent the message, a smartphone near the woman chimed. The Connect icon displayed my message, “Good evening,” from sender Kakeru.
No doubt about it.
This woman was Kaede, whom I had matched with today. She was the same woman I had seen the day I reunited with Hikaru, and now we had met without even planning to.
I never imagined such a miraculous encounter would happen three times.
An ex-girlfriend I hadn’t seen in a year, a campus crush who sat next to me by chance at university, and now a drunk woman at the station I had seen before. The last one felt a bit off, though.
“Thank you, I’m okay now.”
Taking a deep breath, the woman looked around to assess her surroundings and reached for her smartphone.
“As a thank you for helping me, why don’t we go for a drink now?”
“Are you crazy?”
I couldn’t help but respond rudely and give her a light chop on the head.
Holding her head, she said, “Phew.”
“You just drank too much and were about to be touched by some strange man. Be more careful. As a girl, you need to take care of yourself.”
“Hmm, so cool. I’d love to go for a drink with someone as cool as you… just kidding.”
“Are you even listening?”
“Sorry.”
“Can you get home by yourself?”
“Uh, no buses now, right? No choice, I can’t walk, so I’ll take a taxi. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Thanks for caring.”
Smiling, Kaede─the woman in the Connect profile picture, wearing a top revealing her chest─responded.
And bending over like that…
“No, I can’t just leave it at that, it would haunt me…”
I quickly averted my eyes to avoid getting carried away.
“I really want to thank you, so can you at least give me your contact?”
We already have a way to communicate, though. To show her, I opened Connect and showed it to Kaede.
“This is probably you, right?”
“Ah, is this you? That’s amazing, like fate. I thought your omelette rice icon face was funny, but you look cooler in person.”
This kind of fate is nothing new to me.
Apparently, she recognized the omelette rice as a face.
The ‘Like’ came late at night; she must have been quite tipsy by then.
“Your name is Kakeru, right? Ah, we’re the same age. Let’s talk casually, I want to get along.”
She talks like Enji.
But, if she’s the same age, and she’s okay with it, there’s no need for formalities.
“Alright, I’ll do that.”
“I’ll message you when I get home safely!”
Kaede saluted but was still unsteady.
Is she really okay?
“Well, I’m going home too.”
“Yeah, thanks. I’ll really treat you next time!”
“Yeah, see you.”
Even though I said that, I was still worried about the unsteady Kaede. I watched her from a distance until a taxi came.
She had some close calls, like talking to a bus timetable and almost getting into a regular car mistaking it for a taxi, but she eventually got into a taxi and left.
I wonder if she managed to tell the driver where to go.
Maybe I should have escorted her all the way, but somehow, that felt wrong…
As I pondered, Hikaru and Kokoro were pushed to the back of my mind, providing a slight distraction.
School starts again tomorrow.
By noon, Kokoro will be waiting for me in the cafeteria.
I still don’t know what she meant by her words that day. It’s a bit awkward, but I have to go.
It’s not that I don’t want to.
I’m just a little shy, that’s all.