Aina Saiten had been restless ever since she saw Kaoru Hoshitani that morning, and she was completely unable to concentrate on her work.
She sat in her office cubicle with a spreadsheet that needed checking spread out before her.
However, the dense rows of numbers seemed to dance and blur before her eyes, refusing to enter her mind.
She stared at the same line of figures for a full five minutes but had absolutely no idea what was written there.
The time in the bottom right corner of the computer screen seemed to have been cast with a spell, moving even slower than a Bee-Cow.
Countless possibilities flashed through her mind —
‘Why would Kaoru come to the company? How did he get into that secretary uniform? When did he and Chinatsu Tsukuse meet? What exactly happened between them?’
But what bothered her most was why an outsider like Chinatsu clearly knew everything, while she, his girlfriend, was kept in the dark, completely oblivious.
This thought was like a thorn, piercing deeply into her heart.
Based on Kaoru’s secretary uniform and hearing Chinatsu Tsukuse say that “the President is already waiting,” Aina Saiten could roughly deduce that Kaoru was about to start working at Quansheng as a secretary.
Furthermore, Chinatsu Tsukuse had certainly played a major role in this — after all, she was the one who had taken Kaoru to the President’s office.
Yet, Kaoru hadn’t even mentioned such an important matter to her, let alone discussed it with her. He hadn’t sent a single notification.
He had decided this matter entirely in private with another woman… with Junior Chinatsu…
At the thought of this, Aina Saiten felt a pang of sharp, real pain in her heart, as if something were being ruthlessly torn.
She trusted Kaoru. Having known and stayed by each other’s side for over ten years, she understood and believed in him more than anyone else.
However, Kaoru’s actions truly didn’t take her feelings into consideration.
The sensation of being excluded and kept in the dark made her feel waves of grievance and sadness.
Nevertheless, Aina Saiten remained rational. She hadn’t said much at the time, nor had she questioned or blamed him.
She knew that given Kaoru’s personality, he must have a reason for doing something like this.
And when Chinatsu Tsukuse messaged her later, saying that the three of them should have lunch together, she had agreed.
She needed an explanation. She needed a face-to-face, honest explanation.
…
At 12:00 PM, Aina Saiten arrived right on time at the reserved restaurant near the company.
It was an exquisitely decorated Japanese restaurant with a quiet atmosphere and soft lighting.
She chose a table for four by the window, ordered a glass of water, and then simply waited in silence.
Through the window, she could see the continuous flow of people on the street.
The afternoon sun was a bit dazzling, coating everything in a layer of golden light.
Five minutes later, she saw two figures.
Kaoru Hoshitani and Chinatsu Tsukuse were walking side by side from the other end of the street, weaving through the crowd toward the restaurant’s entrance.
The afternoon sun spilled over them, outlining two slender and beautiful silhouettes.
Kaoru was wearing that black secretary uniform today.
The well-tailored suit perfectly outlined his slender frame, making him look both exquisite and possessed of a slight, unfamiliar sense of maturity.
Chinatsu Tsukuse was dressed in a light gray skirt suit, her long hair draped softly over her shoulders and a faint smile on her face.
As they walked together, they looked natural and coordinated. That scene actually had an indescribable harmony to it.
The gazes of the other guests in the restaurant were drawn to them simultaneously.
Some stopped their chopsticks, some opened their mouths slightly, and others leaned in to whisper to one another.
To these people, this pair of handsome man and beautiful woman looked like a match made in heaven.
At the thought of this, Aina Saiten’s fingers couldn’t help but slightly tighten around the water glass in her hand.
“Senior Aina, we’re here!”
Chinatsu Tsukuse was the first to enter the restaurant and spotted Aina Saiten by the window immediately.
She waved with a smile, her tone relaxed and natural, as if this were just an ordinary lunch and the accidental “encounter” from that morning had never happened.
Kaoru followed behind her, his gaze landing on his girlfriend the very first moment.
He saw Aina sitting there with a calm expression on her face, but her eyes held too many emotions that he could read — grievance, sadness, and a hint of suppressed questioning.
His heart tightened suddenly.
He quickened his pace to Aina Saiten’s side and reached out, gently and with a hint of cautious testing, to take her hand.
Her hand was a bit cold and slightly stiff, but the moment he held it, it seemed to tremble slightly.
“Aina…”
His voice was soft, carrying a clear sense of guilt and a desire to please.
“I’m sorry… it’s my fault for not telling you in advance…”
He lowered his head, his little deer eyes filled with sincere apology, and his eyelashes trembled slightly like the wings of a startled butterfly.
“I was actually planning to tell you within the next few days. I just didn’t expect Miss Tsukuse to be so efficient and bring me here today… so I didn’t have time…”
His voice grew smaller and smaller, carrying a hint of grievance and innocence, as if he had also been caught off guard by the “sudden turn of events.”
Then, Kaoru began to explain to Aina Saiten the reason why he wanted to be a secretary at Quansheng —
It was because staying home alone during the day was too lonely.
It was because he wanted the chance to be with Aina during the day, even if they were just in the same building.
It was because he wanted to save some money and help ease Aina’s pressure.
“If we get married and have a child…”
His voice became even softer, and a faint blush appeared on his cheeks.
“The current house would be a little too small…”
As he spoke, he looked up at Aina Saiten with those watery little deer eyes.
His gaze held a longing for their future, a hint of cautious expectation, and a pitiable quality that made it impossible to refuse him.
Looking at Kaoru like this, seeing the emotions in his eyes, and hearing his plans for their future — marriage, children, and moving to a larger house — Aina Saiten felt much of the gloom and grievance in her heart dissipate.
Kaoru was doing this for her, too. It was for their future.
Moreover, now that Kaoru had already joined the company, the deed was done.
She couldn’t very well disagree now, let alone blame him at a time like this.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the remaining traces of unease in her heart, and said seriously, word by word, to Kaoru:
“Kaoru, in the future, if something happens, you must remember to discuss it with me first, okay?”
Her tone held seriousness, a demand, and also forgiveness.
“Okay.”
Kaoru nodded, then leaned his face gently against his girlfriend’s shoulder.
Like a small animal seeking shelter, he responded softly, “In the future, I’ll definitely tell Aina first…”
He looked so obedient it made one’s heart ache.
Chinatsu Tsukuse, who had been observing everything quietly without speaking, saw that the two had finally finished their talk and spoke up at the right moment.
Her tone carried a hint of feigned hurt, though her face was bright with a smile.
“All right, all right. Mr. Hoshitani was thinking of you, Senior Aina. Even I can see that. But you two should take pity on me, too — “
She theatrically clutched her chest.
“Stop showing off your love here. Let’s hurry up and order. I’m practically starving!”
Her light tone perfectly broke the slightly heavy atmosphere between the two.
For the rest of the meal, the atmosphere was much more active and relaxed.
Kaoru talked about his work from that morning, a look of confusion on his face.
“It’s really different from what I imagined…”
He tilted his head slightly, his little deer eyes full of incomprehension.
“I thought a secretary’s work would be very heavy, with lots of running around and being busy with everything. But I don’t seem… to have anything to do.”
He paused, looked at Chinatsu Tsukuse sitting opposite him, and asked, “Senior Sato said it was arranged by the President. Miss Tsukuse, do you know why?”
Chinatsu Tsukuse was sipping juice through a straw. Hearing this, she looked up with a reassuring smile.
She took a sip of juice, set the glass down, and comforted him in a relaxed tone.
“Actually, a secretary’s work isn’t like what you see in TV dramas. Besides, isn’t it because my mom is away on a business trip today? I expect there will be more to do in a couple of days.”
She spoke casually, as if she were merely stating a perfectly normal fact.
But Aina Saiten, sitting to the side, felt like she had been struck by lightning the moment she heard those words.
[‘Mom…?’]
Her brain seemed to stop functioning at that instant.
Chinatsu Tsukuse… called the President… Mom?
She had previously guessed that Chinatsu Tsukuse was the offspring of some high-level executive in the company.
After all, given Chinatsu Tsukuse’s age and experience, being able to navigate the company so skillfully and playing such an important role in her own successful hiring meant she definitely had some background.
But she never dreamed that Chinatsu Tsukuse was actually the President’s daughter.
[‘If the President is Junior Chinatsu’s mother? Then doesn’t that mean… that yellow-haired woman, Rika Kawasaki, and Chinatsu Tsukuse are… sisters?’]
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