Akira kept twiddling on her seat inside the car. She wasn't actually feeling comfortable with her current get up.
It took her almost an hour to persuade Ren to not wear the disguise, but despite her protest, Ren refused to give in. She had no choice but to follow Ren's instructions as it was a part of the deal. If Ren ordered something for the sake of their mission, they had to follow it.
For the nth time, she touched her fake hair again. The wig felt so uncomfortable and weird on her head. She was wearing a black wig that had huge curls on it. In addition to that, Ren made her wear diamond earrings and necklace, a white bodycon midi dress, and a pair of black high heels.
Three hours before their job today, Ren took Akira out to go shopping. As Ren picked one dress after another, Akira stared at him wide-eyed both in shock and fear.
"What on earth are those?" she said in horror as she pointed at the dresses in hangers that Ren was holding. "There is no way I am going to wear those, especially not when I am at work."
Ren ignored her complaint. Instead, he handed her the bundle of clothes in his hands.
"Just bear with it. This is important for our mission today. Please try these and pick which you like the most."
Akira ended up choosing the bodycon dress. It was a little tight but compared to the other dresses, it was the lengthiest. All the other dresses were above the knee long, but the one that she picked was a few inches below the knee.
She knew that if she chose a shorter dress, she would just spend most of her time adjusting it and pulling it down. The whole situation was already too stressful for her. She did not want to make it more problematic.
Everything that she wore were the opposite of what she would typically wear. She was not a big fan of jewelries, dresses and heels. It was mainly because she was always on a job or on a mission, and wearing such things would not be ideal for her line of work. It would only get on her way.
In her mind, she had imprinted the possibility of danger every day and everywhere she was. That meant that she should always be prepared for battle, and when fighting, she wanted to make sure that she could always move freely and comfortably.
"I still believe that this is unnecessary. I mean, we can still meet her without having to wear these. This is too much. The dress, the jewelries, the heels, and even this wig! I cannot stay focused because I keep thinking that it might fall off my head!"
Ren, who was sitting beside Akira at the backseat let out a heavy sigh. He had realized from the very start how stubborn of a woman Akira was. Still, he could not deny that she was really testing and squeezing his patience.
"We are presenting ourselves as very wealthy business tycoons. It is crucial that we dress ourselves accordingly. Do you think she would believe us if we didn't dress ourselves extravagantly?" he moved his head to the side to give Akira a quick glance.
"As for your wig, you're not the only one who is wearing it. As you can see, I am wearing one too. This shouldn't be a surprise to you. You should know that our hair colors are not particularly normal looking. It would draw attention. Also, do forget that Tomo Ogawa is already aware of how we look. We do not know if he revealed our identities to other people. It wouldn't hurt us to be extra careful."
Akira did not say anything in return. Once again, Ren was able to rebut her with his intelligence and reasoning. It registered on her that Ren was right with everything that he said. As uncomfortable as it felt for her and perhaps even for him, they had to be in disguise.
She gave up on the idea of questioning their get up, but she was not yet giving up entirely. She still had one thing that she had an issue with.
"Fine. You are right. But why does it have to be me and you? If we are going to pretend to be a coupe, wouldn't it have been better if it was Sato and Nao who took this job instead of you and me?"
She had a point. Her and Ren pretending to be a husband and wife was almost an impossible job for her. She disliked Ren. Being around him every day, was already hard for her, how much more when she had to pretend to be his wife! How on earth was she even supposed to act around him? She had zero faith that she would be able to pull it off. Their job was doomed from the very start.
"I cannot send them because I have to be there. You know how clever and wily Tomo Ogawa is. If these people are indeed people who are connected to him, then it is very possible that they are his eyes and ears. We need to be very careful. It's not that I am underestimating Sato. His gift is no doubt very powerful, but when it comes to the brains and tactics of Tomo Ogawa, I am afraid he is no match for him. I can actually take Nao with me, but I believe that would be disrespectful to her husband. So obviously, you are the best choice."
Akira couldn't find the words to contradict Ren as she realized that he was right, once again. She bit her lip in frustration.
Why was he so smart? Why was he always right? Why couldn't he be wrong even for just once?
"I know you hate me", Ren suddenly spilled out of his mouth.
Akira was taken aback at his sudden statement.
"I know you think that I am arrogant. I won't defend myself. It is not my nature to actually defend or explain myself to people. But here is one thing that I can tell you, this job is also important to me. I hope you'll see that I am taking this seriously. I genuinely want to help you and your clan in finishing this mission."
She didn't want to make it obvious, but Ren's words actually touched her. She felt the sincerity in them.
'Just who on earth is this guy?' she thought to herself.
One second, he would make her so infuriated and furious. Then the following second she would render her speechless because of his unexpected words.
He looked like the arrogant, insensitive and happy-go-lucky type of person on the outside. But he was actually a lot better than how he would present himself. He was surprisingly sensible, smart and quick-witted. Not only that, Akira just realized now that he could also be sentimental and sincere.
Which side was the real Ren? The former or the latter?
Akira exhaled, "Alright. Honestly, I hate this, but how can I not cooperate after you say those things? I may be stubborn, but I am not heartless. Let's do this. I'll cooperate. I cannot promise that my acting would be very good, after all, this is not my expertise. I am not Nao. Still, I'll give my best."
A huge smile broke out of Ren's face, but he hid it. He moved his head to the other side so that he was facing the window and Akira could not see his face. He stared at the tall buildings that they passed through as the car moved in the busy afternoon streets of the city.
"Don't be so hard on yourself. You are more capable than you think", he mumbled as he looked through the window.