novellhall Chapter 1 Renting a Boyfriend
Chapter 1 Renting a Boyfriend
Friday, 4 PM.
Omotesando, Tokyo.
Miyazawa Itsuki sat in a dessert shop known as an "Instagrammable hotspot," with two strawberry-themed parfaits priced at 2,800 yen each in front of him.
The girl sitting opposite me was carefully framing a photo with her phone, trying to find the perfect angle to capture the gorgeous desserts, the upscale decor of the shop, and the young man's hand in front of her all at once.
The girl was in her early twenties, with regular features, shoulder-length short, jet-black hair, and wearing a pale yellow knitted sweater. She looked like a college student from the neighborhood.
"Miyazawa-kun, could you turn just a little bit to the right? Yes, that angle—okay, please don't move."
Miyazawa Itsuki maintained a perfectly timed smile, keeping the pose the girl had requested.
"Okay!" She pressed the shutter, and with the flash of her phone, a beautiful photo was saved to her album.
The girl excitedly showed him the photos on her phone, and Miyazawa took them with a smile, offering timely praise.
There are many similar photos in my album today: inside a fast fashion store, in front of a claw machine, at the Shinjuku Metropolitan Government Building observation deck. In every single one of them, the girl's smile is bright and captivating.
To provide customers with the most perfect dating experience.
This is his job.
——【Rent a Boyfriend】
It might sound like something that could be misunderstood, but it's really just a physical job where you exchange time for money.
It's more like an emotional companionship service than a sexual service. The practitioners provide clients with a "lover-like" dating experience, offering a degree of emotional comfort.
The services mainly involve chatting, dining, shopping, sightseeing, and taking photos.
In short, it's about playing the role of an "ideal one-day companion".
The companion rental service in Japan began around 2012 and has now developed into a mature industry with a large market.
In today's society, many people are cautious about real relationships, but they are not stingy with their money when it comes to investing in emotional services.
Especially in a place like Tokyo, there is never a shortage of wealthy but lonely girls.
Therefore, the salary for renting a boyfriend is quite considerable, and the most sought-after "boyfriends" even require a reservation of more than a week to have a chance of being successfully booked. Miyazawa Itsuki is one of them.
The hourly wage is 7000 yen, with a minimum of two hours. Overtime is available.
Although there was no deliberate promotion, almost all the guests that Miyazawa Itsuki had served would choose to extend their stay to the maximum allowed time.
The girl in front of me had already continued for a second hour.
As per her request, Miyazawa Itsuki needed to act like "a boyfriend who has only been dating for two weeks, still a little reserved but very considerate."
This is the setting she wrote in the remarks column when she placed the order.
Since it was her first time experiencing this type of service, the girl was initially a little shy, but under Miyazawa Itsuki's gentle guidance, she gradually relaxed.
Towards the end of the date, she seemed to have even forgotten that it was a relationship built on money, and the girl showed a sweet, unguarded smile.
That smile was so beautiful that it made the people nearby who were secretly watching it envious.
If I were a girl's boyfriend, I would definitely be unable to resist holding her in my arms.
But Miyazawa Itsuki just maintained his professional smile and, at the girl's request, helped her take photos to post on social media.
Most of the photos today are taken by Miyazawa Itsuki, whose photography skills are highly praised by clients.
He directed the girl to pose cutely for photos of food, interior scenes, and portraits. After taking the photos, Miyazawa Itsuki returned the phone to the girl.
The other person looked at the photos, their eyes bright, and muttered something under their breath:
"It really looks like a sample image from a magazine."
Then she secretly glanced at Miyazawa Itsuki, her ears turning slightly red.
He had witnessed this reaction many times before.
After the photos were taken, the girl hesitated for a moment before slowly savoring the parfait.
This is the last dessert. After you finish it, it means your date for the day is officially over.
Miyazawa Itsuki followed her pace, eating the parfait spoonful by spoonful. This is one of the store's signature dishes. It's not too sweet and has a strawberry aroma, making it a perfect way to finish your meal.
This was his recommendation, and seeing the girl's surprised expression, it seemed to be working well.
Half an hour later, the two paid their bill and left the dessert shop.
As agreed, Miyazawa Itsuki would take the girl to the nearby station.
He walked naturally on the side closest to the driveway, watching as another day came to an end in bustling Tokyo, with passersby hurrying by.
It's about a seven-minute walk from the dessert shop to the station.
In those seven minutes, they talked about today's parfait, the latest popular movies, and funny little things about their studies.
Miyazawa learned that the girl was a second-year student at a women's university in Tokyo.
Her parents were both doctors at a major hospital in Tokyo. They doted on her, but were also very strict with her upbringing, never allowing her to date before adulthood. They only relaxed their rules a little when she went to university.
Unfortunately, even after entering university, the girl still couldn't find her ideal romantic partner. Although many boys approached her during social events, she didn't feel anything for them.
It wasn't until a friend recommended that she came into contact with the "rent-a-boyfriend" industry.
It is said that as long as you are willing to pay, you can meet any demanding request, even the ideal boyfriend that only exists in shoujo manga.
Although her enthusiastic friends helped her book one of the most popular rental boyfriends, Miyazawa Itsuki, she didn't have the courage to actually try it at first.
I've never been in a real relationship.
It's rather rash to entrust your first date to a rented boyfriend like that.
The girl quickly changed her mind after seeing Miyazawa Itsuki's work photos.
He hypnotized himself into thinking, "This is a preparatory lesson for dating," and only then did he muster the courage to go on the date.
Miyazawa Itsuki listened quietly.
Although I really wanted to advise her that she still needed to protect her privacy when meeting a man for the first time and not be too careless.
But seeing how enthusiastic the girl was, he wisely remained silent.
The two chatted all the way, and every sentence was very natural, like old friends or a couple who had just started dating.
Miyazawa Itsuki always knows how to keep up with conversations, whether it's trendy items among girls, tourist attractions or desserts in Tokyo, or even her university coursework.
This made the girl's mind wander; she wondered if his true identity was that of a student at some university.
One of the red lines of renting a boyfriend is that you can't reveal your real identity to the customer. So even if he knew what the girl was thinking, Miyazawa Itsuki would just laugh it off.
His real age would definitely surprise any girl.
The two stopped talking and walking right up to the subway ticket gate.
With the announcement, the train the girl was on was about to arrive at the station.
"Today..." the girl paused for a moment, then her voice suddenly lowered, "I'm really happy."
Miyazawa looked at her; the girl's eyes were slightly red, but the corners of her mouth were turned up.
"Me too," he said.
"Um..." The girl took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind, "Can I ask you out again next time?"
Miyazawa Itsuki did not answer immediately.
"If you would choose me again next time," he said, "I would be honored."
The girl froze, then nodded vigorously, her eyes reddening further, but her smile was even brighter than before.
She waved vigorously at Miyazawa Itsuki.
"Well then, see you next time, Miyazawa-kun."
"Okay, see you next time."
She turned and walked into the checkpoint, took a few steps, and then turned back again.
Miyazawa Itsuki was still standing there, in the same position, smiling as he watched her. It was as if he was confirming that she had safely entered the station.
The girl blushed again, and only after the train's announcement was made one last time did she reluctantly enter the station, turning back every few steps.
Miyazawa watched her figure disappear into the crowd, then slowly wiped the smile off his face.
His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he turned it on.
[Today’s credit: 54000 yen]
Miyazawa stared at the amount for a while.
Before I could even put my phone back in my pocket, it vibrated again.
This time it was a push notification from the firm's app.
New Orders
Client: Anonymous
Time: 3 PM, March 30th (this Sunday)
Location: Shibuya
Note: We hope you are the "gentle, considerate, and caring" type, and have good physical strength. Please be kind to us if this is your first time using this service.
Compensation: 7000 yen per hour, plus 5000 yen for designated service. Four hours by appointment.
Miyazawa silently tapped "Accept Order" and then locked the screen.