novellhall 71. The Cat That Stole Fish
71. The Cat That Stole Fish
The weather at the end of April already felt like summer.
When Genji Aoyama pushed open the door to "Honban," a cool breeze carrying the scent of air conditioning swept through, leaving him with a lighthearted sense of relief—at least there didn't seem to be many people in the hall right now.
Once you're in a private room, it's very difficult for any unexpected encounter to happen, no matter how coincidental it may seem.
Besides, Tokyo is such a big city, there must be countless karaoke bars.
"Yes, there's absolutely no need to worry."
Genji Aoyama leaned against the door with one hand, stepping aside to let Yuko Asahi go in first.
After leaving the coffee shop, she became unusually quiet, only occasionally exchanging a few words with him while talking to the cat keychain.
"Aoyama...kun?"
A familiar voice drifted from afar. Aoyama Genji's hand, which was supporting the door, froze, then slid down limply, and the door slowly closed naturally.
hiss--
The air conditioning in the lobby was on high, and he felt a chill down his spine.
"Aoyama-kun~"
The familiar girl's voice went from inexplicable hesitation to excitement in an instant.
Genji Aoyama smiled and waved in the direction of Saki Izumo—no matter what, he should at least say hello.
"What a coincidence, I never expected to run into you here."
Before he could speak, Asahi Yuko, who had gone in first, had already moved towards the waiting area of the karaoke lobby.
"Oh my, Izumo-senpai is here too, what a coincidence."
Asahi Yuko's voice seemed to carry a hint of laughter, but from Aoyama Genji's angle, he could only see her back, and couldn't see her expression at all.
He noticed that Yuko Asahi was tightly clutching the white cat keychain.
"Why--"
Genji Aoyama sighed inwardly.
"Huh? Asahi-senpai is here too!"
As Izumo Saki walked towards them, she smiled, but her expression seemed to carry a hint of mischief.
The atmosphere instantly became extremely subtle.
"Hmm, he's on a date with Aoyama-kun. Where's Izumo-senpai?"
"No wonder... after training this morning, Aoyama-kun refused my invitation, saying he was busy with something. I didn't expect it was because he was on a date with Asahi-senpai."
As she spoke, Izumo Saki glanced at Aoyama Genji, seemingly unintentionally, which made Aoyama Genji's steps even heavier.
Caught off guard by a strange emotion, he composed himself slightly and finally spoke, "Good afternoon, Saki."
"Saya...?"
Asahi Yuko spoke very softly, as if she were talking to herself, and then with a 'thud,' the pendant in her hand fell to the ground.
"It seems that Izumo-senpai and Aoyama-kun have a good relationship."
After saying that, she bent down to pick up the pendant, held it again, and said with a smile as if she didn't care, "I've never heard him mention it much before."
This time, Genji Aoyama will not give them a chance.
"And there's Yui, Rena, Hina... This must be Takahashi-senpai. Nice to meet you. I'm the band's manager, Genji Aoyama."
Aoyama Genji smiled and walked to the middle of the two people and the waiting area: "What a coincidence, I didn't expect to run into everyone here."
"..."
"..." The number one fan of the handsome guy from Omotesando didn't say anything either; she just waved her hand as a greeting.
"..."
"..."
Then, the four members of the band looked at each other, and finally their gazes settled on Genji Aoyama's face, an undeniably handsome man.
But it gives off a rather frivolous vibe.
"...Nice to meet you, Manager. I'm Kanna Takahashi." Another girl, whom he hadn't seen before, stood up and greeted Genji Aoyama.
"Please guide me." Genji Aoyama bowed slightly.
After greeting her, he walked over to Yuko Asahi and whispered, "I'll go open it first..."
"No, no!"
Saki Izumo interrupted Genji Aoyama directly, her expression seemingly excited, "I'm all set, Aoyama-kun, Asahi-senpai, let's go together!"
"This isn't a good idea..." said Genji Aoyama.
"Sure."
Yuko Asahi agreed, maintaining her smile and keeping her gaze fixed on Saki Izumo in front of her. "I only consulted with Izumo-senpai before, and haven't had a chance to have a proper conversation yet."
"Yes, I had the same thought!"
Saki Izumo smiled happily, and the two looked like good sisters who had known each other for many years but hadn't seen each other in a long time.
Genji Aoyama felt superfluous, even like the third party.
After the two made their decision, the lobby staff appeared at just the right moment.
"Ms. Izumo, your reserved private room has been cleaned and you may enter at any time."
"Then, let's go."
Genji Aoyama followed silently, his steps at least three times heavier than when he came.
Guided by the staff, the group entered a private room that could seat about seven or eight people.
It's a little cramped for seven people, but they can still fit.
But how to sit is the problem—
The sofa was L-shaped, and the other four members of the band occupied almost 4/5 of the '丨' section. After thinking for a moment, Genji Aoyama sat down in the narrow '_' section.
Staying away from pretty girls is good for your physical and mental health; this is the lesson he learned today.
Saki Izumo sat close to the band members, and Yuko Asahi, having nowhere else to go, sat between the two.
then.
A subtle atmosphere settled over the entire private room.
The other four members of the band whispered among themselves, glancing at the three of them every now and then.
Occasionally, you can hear whispered conversations like "a chaotic scene," "Didn't they say the manager is Saki's girlfriend?" and "...frivolous."
Yuko Asahi simply smiled and exchanged glances with Saki Izumo, who was also smiling, and occasionally exchanged a word or two.
Out of the corner of his eye, Genji Aoyama noticed that Yuko Asahi's hand was unconsciously stroking the protruding part of the pendant.
"Let's request a song," he said, breaking the awkward silence.
Saki Izumo picked up the karaoke machine, then glanced at Genji Aoyama, who was diagonally opposite her and within arm's reach.
"Wait a moment." After saying that, she got up and went to the band members to operate the jukebox with them.
After Izumo Saki left, Aoyama Genji looked at the somewhat uneasy Asahi Yuko beside him: "Are you having trouble adjusting?"
The space was cramped, and Asahi Yuko and Aoyama Genji were standing quite close together. Perhaps she couldn't accept it yet, because after about ten seconds, she shook her head as if forcing herself to.
The lights dimmed, and Genji Aoyama breathed a sigh of relief. Then the spotlights started flashing, and he found them a bit too bright.
"Asa...Yuuko, is there any song you'd like to sing?"
Genji Aoyama had been thinking about this for a while—why was Yuko Asahi so obsessed with going to karaoke?
Even as more time passed, Yuko Asahi continued to shake her head.
"Should I leave?"
Genji Aoyama pretended to get up, saying, "I feel like Yuuko can't do anything with me here."
The next second, his clothes were tugged by a small force.
"..."
Background music started playing, completely drowning out Yuko Asahi's voice.
"Hmm?" Aoyama Genji leaned in slightly, then pulled away slightly.
Yuko Asahi fell silent again.
The spotlights cycled through the private room, the screen in front lit up, and then the requested song began playing its accompaniment. Izumo Saki returned to her seat.
"Um?"
Saki Izumo's gaze swept back and forth between Genji Aoyama and Yuko Asahi before she finally laughed.
"If Asahi-kun has anything he wants to say to Aoyama-kun, he can tell me first and I can pass it on to him."
"so……"
Yuko Asahi's face showed a thoughtful expression: "I want to hear Aoyama-kun sing."
The background accompaniment seemed to be reaching its climax, and the instrumental sounds in the chorus became more intense.
"I want to hear Aoyama-kun sing, is that alright?" Izumo Saki looked at Aoyama Genji, her voice sounding somewhat excited.
Yuko Asahi was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Izumo-senpai is so cunning, she knows how to take advantage of loopholes."
"Um?"
Saki Izumo tilted her head slightly. "Asahi-senpai is unable to communicate normally with Aoyama-kun due to her own issues. As her senior, is it wrong for me to help Asahi-senpai communicate with Aoyama-kun a little?"
Genji Aoyama glanced at the group of four on the other side—they were chatting and laughing, whispering to each other from time to time, but their attention never left this side.
"To be honest, Genji Aoyama is terrible at singing," he said expressionlessly.
"I can't believe it! Clearly..."
Izumo Saki looked at him in shock, then her expression became even more excited. "Hmm, how about this... I just happened to request a love song for a duet, shall I sing it with Aoyama-kun?"
At the same time, she picked up the microphone and handed it towards Genji Aoyama.
"No." Asahi Yuko's voice was calm, yet loud enough for everyone to hear.
The chorus of the accompaniment in the private room had just ended, and the flowing music became soothing again.
"Knowing full well that Aoyama-kun has a girlfriend," she stared directly at Izumo Saki, "you still invited him to sing a love song... It feels like the behavior of a cat stealing fish."
After he finished speaking, the private room fell into a near-death silence.
The lights were dim, and the music continued, but no one paid any attention.
The four members of the band stopped all their movements—Suzuki's hand, which was waving, froze in mid-air, Shibuya's lips remained in an "O" shape, Takahashi's gaze moved quickly between the three, and Sugiura even peeked out from between his fingers.
In a blind spot, beneath the table, Aoyama Genji's trouser leg was first touched, then felt a soft, silky sensation, and finally, a slightly hot temperature permeated the thin fabric and reached his thigh.
He looked up and saw that Izumo Saki's face was flushed red by the spotlight, and her eyes seemed to be able to drip water.
Please, please choose!
Seemingly provoked by the nickname "the cat who steals fish," Izumo Saki's voice even sounded somewhat excited.