“Mr. Hoshitani, it’s me. Why did you delete me? 😟”
The line of text, accompanied by a sad emoji, lay quietly on the mobile phone screen, like a little abandoned animal lingering at the door.
Kaoru Hoshitani stared at that line of text for a long, long time. So long that the screen went dark on its own, and he lit it up again. It went dark, and he lit it up again.
His finger hovered above the screen, refusing to fall.
Outside the window, the morning sun was warm, spilling through the gaps in the curtains into the living room, casting a thin, golden band of light on the floor.
Tiny specks of dust floated in the band of light, the air so quiet it felt as if the whole world was asleep.
But in his heart, a stormy sea was raging.
Accept? Or reject?
Accepting meant going against Aina’s wishes. It meant maintaining a connection with that world.
It meant burying a landmine under the fragile, hard-won surface of Aina’s peace.
He had only just understood something from Aina’s terrifyingly calm demeanor this morning—she had chosen to pretend not to know, chosen to give him one more chance, chosen to preserve the last shred of dignity for their home.
If he contacted Chinatsu Ayase again, would he even deserve Aina’s silent endurance?
Rejecting meant cutting the last lifeline.
That yellow-haired woman wouldn’t just give up. If she could stake out downstairs today, tomorrow she could be right at his doorstep.
Without Chinatsu Ayase’s help, what did he have to fight against Rika Kawasaki’s madness?
His pitiful strength, his pale threats—in front of that woman, they weren’t even worth as much as paper.
He sat there like that, curled up on the sofa, phone in hand, hesitating for a long, long time.
In the end, he still clicked ‘Accept’.
*
On the other side, Chinatsu Ayase had waited what felt like a century.
She sat on the sofa in the president’s office, her phone resting on her knees, the screen lit up. The words “Waiting for verification” lay there quietly.
Her fingers tapped lightly on the arm of the sofa, once, twice, thrice—the rhythm even, yet faintly betraying a trace of impatience.
The office was quiet. The coffee had gone cold. The tropical fish had tired of swimming and were now motionless by the water plants.
She stared at the screen, her brow slightly furrowed.
She had thought of many possibilities.
Maybe Kaoru Hoshitani had been forced by Aina Saiten to delete her. Maybe he had just acted on impulse. Maybe he was hesitating about whether to add her back.
But no matter what, she needed this line of communication.
Not for any noble reason, but—she couldn’t let her sister get ahead of her.
Finally, the text on the screen changed.
“The other party has accepted your friend request.”
Chinatsu Ayase’s eyes instantly brightened.
She immediately straightened up on the sofa, a flash of triumph passing through her grey eyes.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to let her lips curl into a smile. Her fingers flew across the screen, typing out message after message.
“Mr. Hoshitani, why did you delete me? It wasn’t an accident, was it?”
“And Mr. Hoshitani, why didn’t you come to work today? Did something suddenly come up?”
Her tone was light, carrying just the right amount of confusion and concern, as if she really was just a friend who had been inexplicably deleted and felt puzzled.
No interrogation, no blame, not even a mention of those two photographs.
She knew now wasn’t the time to pursue that.
*
After receiving the girl’s messages, Kaoru Hoshitani typed a few words on his phone’s keyboard, then deleted them.
He repeated this, typing and deleting, deleting and typing.
The living room was quiet, filled only by the ticking of the wall clock and his own rapid breathing.
The sunlight slowly shifted at his feet, inch by inch, mirroring his current state of mind—each step a struggle.
He remembered how Aina had looked this morning. Her face, with light makeup that couldn’t hide her exhaustion.
Her eyes, clearly bloodshot yet trying hard to curve into a smile. That light kiss that landed on his lips. The words, “Call me if anything comes up.”
And that terrifyingly calm tone, as if nothing had happened at all.
After remembering the look of disappointment in Aina’s eyes— a look without anger, without interrogation, only a deep, bottomless weariness that broke his heart— Kaoru Hoshitani finally made up his mind.
He took a deep breath and slowly typed a few lines on the keyboard, each word seeming to drain all his strength:
“I’m sorry, Miss Ayase. Due to personal reasons, I won’t be able to come to the company to work anymore. I am very grateful for all the help you have given me during this time. I will always remember your kindness in my heart.”
Send.
On the phone screen, that message lay quietly, like a declaration.
*
When Chinatsu Ayase saw this message, she wasn’t particularly surprised.
She leaned back against the sofa, squinting her eyes as she carefully savored the words.
“Personal reasons”—these four words, translated, meant “Aina Saiten won’t let me go.”
“Thank you for your help,” “remember in my heart”—this was politeness, and also a farewell.
He was trying to draw a clear line between them in a dignified way.
‘So Aina Senpai really has found out about this…’
She thought to herself.
‘Hmm… What should I do about this?’
She tilted her head, looking at the message, a hint of amusement flashing in her grey eyes.
Aina Saiten’s move was indeed clever—no fuss, no drama, just locking Kaoru Hoshitani up at home, severing all his connections with the outside world.
This way, Rika Kawasaki couldn’t find him, and she couldn’t see him either.
That useless girlfriend could continue to maintain her happiness, a facade that would shatter at the slightest poke.
But what good did that do?
She thought it over. Right now, there was no opportunity for her to take the initiative.
That little man was already under Aina Saiten’s watch. She couldn’t exactly break into their home and snatch him away.
Better to stay still than move rashly. She might as well wait at her ease and observe how things developed.
She picked up her phone, her slender fingers dancing lightly across the screen as she typed a line:
“Alright, I understand. But Mr. Hoshitani, can you please not delete me again? (crying)”
Send.
After a moment’s thought, she added another message, her tone even more earnest:
“If there’s still any place where Mr. Hoshitani needs my help, having a way to contact each other would be more convenient. After all, my sister might still…”
She didn’t finish the sentence.
She knew Kaoru Hoshitani would understand what she meant.
After a pause of a few seconds, she added one final line, each word gentle yet heavy as a thousand pounds:
“And besides, aren’t we friends?”
*
When Kaoru Hoshitani saw this message, his fingers froze above the screen.
“Friends”—that word was like a fine needle, gently pricking the softest part of his heart.
Yes, friends.
She had helped him, protected him, reached out her hand when he was most desperate.
She had taken him to see the sea, taken photos of him, listened to him talk about things he never dared to tell Aina.
She had never forced him to do anything, never pinned him down and had her way with him like that yellow-haired woman.
She had just… been good to him.
If he had to delete even a friend like this, what would he have left?
He had originally planned to just add her back, explain a little to Chinatsu Ayase, and then delete her again.
But when he saw the messages the girl sent, he didn’t know what to do anymore.
Without the girl’s help, that yellow-haired woman would absolutely come looking for him this weekend.
When that time came, without Chinatsu Ayase’s car to hide in, without her cover to escape under, how long could he last facing Rika Kawasaki alone?
In the end, he could only slowly type a single word on the screen:
“Okay.”
Send.
Then, he pressed the power button, turning the screen black.
The dark screen reflected his own face—that pale, exhausted face that even he found somewhat unfamiliar.
*
On Chinatsu Ayase’s side, no more messages came.
Retreat.
She knew when to stop. Pushing too hard would only make that little man want to run away even more.
All she needed to do was wait.
*
Kaoru Hoshitani spent the rest of the morning in a state of restless anxiety.
The sunlight had already moved to the other side of the living room, casting large, bright patches of light on the floor.
The unwashed dishes from the morning were still in the kitchen. The bowls and plates were soaking in the sink, a thin layer of oil floating on the water’s surface.
He stood up mechanically, preparing to make lunch.
Just as he turned to walk towards the kitchen—
The phone suddenly rang.
The ringtone was especially piercing in the quiet living room, like a knife slicing through all the pretended peace.
Kaoru Hoshitani stopped in his tracks, turned around, and looked at the vibrating phone on the coffee table.
The screen was lit up. The caller ID showed a string of unfamiliar numbers.
He hesitated for a moment, then walked over and picked up the phone.
“Hello? Who is this?”
He answered the call, putting the phone to his ear, a trace of confusion in his voice.
The other end of the line was quiet for a second.
Then, a voice sounded. A voice he would never forget in his lifetime.
Low, hoarse, carrying a familiarity that froze his blood.
Like an echo from the depths of hell, every syllable made him remember those nights pinned down beneath her, that inescapable fear, those sensations branded deep into his skin and soul.
“Little Kazune, it seems you’ve really grown some backbone.”
Rika Kawasaki’s voice came from the other end of the line, unhurried, carrying the casual ease of a cat toying with a mouse.
The voice, though separated by the receiver, felt as if it was right by his ear, pressing against his auricle, the hot breath almost scalding his skin.
“You actually dared to block me.”
She paused, a tone of sarcastic laughter entering her voice:
“It seems my little sister has made you feel like you can rely on her to get rid of me, hasn’t she?”
Kaoru Hoshitani’s hand holding the phone began to tremble. He felt his blood freeze in an instant, his entire body plunging into an ice cellar.
From his fingertips to his heart, every inch ached with cold. He wanted to say something, but his throat felt blocked by something, unable to produce any sound.
Only his rapid, chaotic breathing transmitted through the receiver to the other end of the line.
On the other end, Rika Kawasaki seemed to enjoy his silence.
She waited a few seconds, a hint of amusement in her tone as she continued:
“By the way, why didn’t you go to work today?”
She asked knowingly, her voice full of mockery.
“Didn’t you love going to work? Dressing up all pretty every day, going to be a vase for those women, so much fun.”
She paused again, as if savoring her own words. Then, the sarcastic smile in her voice grew thicker:
“Could it be that your useless girlfriend found out you’ve been using work time to have secret meetings with other women, you little male whore?”
The three words “male whore” were like three poison-tipped needles, viciously stabbing into Kaoru Hoshitani’s heart.
His face instantly turned deathly pale.
His lips trembled, wanting to refute, wanting to say “it’s not like that,” wanting to say “you forced me into all of this.”
But those words were stuck in his throat, not a single one able to squeeze out.
Because he knew, no matter how he explained, in that woman’s eyes, he was just a played-out, worthless piece of goods.
His eyes began to redden.
Not from grievance, but from anger and humiliation.
That feeling of being trampled on, insulted, stripped of all dignity was even harder for him to bear than any physical violation.
He opened his mouth, finally squeezing out a broken syllable from his throat:
“I…”
On the other end of the line, Rika Kawasaki didn’t give him a chance to speak.
“You what?”
Her voice suddenly turned cold, like a blade tempered in ice.
“I’m telling you, Kaoru Hoshitani, do you think hiding at home will keep you safe? Do you think relying on my little sister will let you escape?”
She let out a cold laugh, a laugh so cold it made one’s bones ache:
“Dream on.”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.