Chapter 28: People Live to Find Peace
"Thank you."
After getting out of the car, Mai expressed her gratitude.
"Aren't you mad at me, Mai?" Shunsuke shrugged. "I didn't handle things that well. If this blows up later, it could affect your acting career, you know."
"I'm not that unreasonable. You stood up for me, after all. Even though your response was basically throwing fuel on the fire, I can deal with my frustration internally."
"No, saying that out loud doesn't sound like you're 'dealing with it' at all."
"You've got a point. Guess I should get mad at you now."
The two locked eyes and, after a brief silence, burst into laughter.
"I didn't expect you to be able to read my expression, Mai."
"Don't underestimate me. I've been through way more than you think. Do you even realize how much a top star is worth?"
Mai puffed out her chest proudly, trying to maintain her seniority in front of her junior, which Shunsuke found unexpectedly cute.
That little exchange unexpectedly made the two feel more in sync, drawing them closer without them realizing it.
As they continued talking, they arrived at a café. It was a cozy, two-story, traditional-style Japanese café.
"Welcome! Oh, Miss Sakurajima, it's been a while!"
As soon as they walked in, a girl dressed in a red kimono with a matching ribbon greeted them warmly. She must be the café's poster girl that Mai had mentioned. She was indeed cute.
"Is this gentleman perhaps Miss Sakurajima's boy—"
"He's not."
Mai quickly cut her off, but the girl just smiled brightly, unfazed, clearly showing they had a good relationship.
"Manager, the usual mocha for me."
"Got it."
The Black man behind the counter acknowledged the order.
A Black man?
Shunsuke was a little surprised, sneaking a glance at the manager.
Unlike the stereotypical image he had in mind, this manager wore glasses and had a refined, scholarly air about him.
"What about you, sir?"
"I'll have a cappuccino."
Shunsuke rarely drank coffee, preferring tea most of the time, so he defaulted to something familiar like a cappuccino.
After placing their orders, they found a corner table and sat down.
"Let's pick up where we left off at the library, shall we? You want to know about my past, Shunsuke?"
"Isn't 'past' a bit heavy of a word for this?"
Mai shot him a glare. "You don't want to hear it?"
"No, no. Please, I'm all ears. I don't want to miss a single thing about you, Mai."
"That's more like it."
Miss Mai snorted proudly, her usual tsundere attitude on full display.
Then Mai began talking about her past. Most of it was familiar to Shunsuke, so he could tell that she was still withholding the most important part—something about her mother, who was also her manager.
However, this wasn't something anyone could easily get involved in. It would require the right opportunity.
Just then, the café's poster girl arrived with their coffee.
"Miss Sakurajima, and this gentleman...?"
"I'm Fujii."
"Alright, Mr. Fujii, here's your coffee."
"Thank you."
They both took their coffee, but the poster girl didn't seem to want to leave just yet.
"Miss Sakurajima, if you ever need help, feel free to come to me. Our café also handles all sorts of customer requests. Very reasonably priced, I might add."
Shunsuke quipped, "What is this, a jack-of-all-trades agency?"
There were only three people in the entire café. How could they possibly handle customer requests?
The poster girl puffed out her chest proudly. "My current approval rating is 100%."
"Impressive, impressive," Shunsuke clapped in mock admiration.
"Thanks for the offer, but I'm fine. I've already found a solution," Mai replied, declining the help. It seemed like their relationship was genuinely good.
"Well, if you can't solve it in the end, remember that I'm here for you, Miss Sakurajima."
With that, the poster girl finally left.
"What's the deal with your friend?" Fujii asked quietly.
"I don't know. That's not the point," Mai replied, stirring her coffee with a spoon. "We've been talking about me the whole time. Now it's your turn."
"Hmm, the solution roughly involves—"
"That's not what I meant." Mai looked a bit annoyed. "You know so much about me now, but I still don't know much about you. Don't you think that's unfair?"
"Oh~, so you're saying you want to know more about me?"
"That's right."
"Can I take that to mean you want to get closer to me?"
"No, you can't."
"Shame."
Shunsuke kept joking around to buy time, wondering whether he should reveal something about himself.
One of the quickest ways to build a connection is by sharing a secret.
And for Mai, that secret was Puberty/Adolescence Syndrome.
After a brief moment of thought, he decided he could reveal part of his secret to earn her trust.
With that in mind, he used Platinum Star to lift his coffee cup and took a sip.
A Stand really is the perfect power for lazy people. Nowadays, Shunsuke didn't even bother writing novels or drawing manga at home; he used Platinum Star for everything—even getting dressed and brushing his teeth.
He was a bit worried that Platinum Star would turn him into a complete slacker.
"Telekinesis?"
Mai, with her years of experience, immediately guessed telekinesis rather than magic tricks.
Where did her earlier wariness go?
Seeing the sparkle in her eyes, Shunsuke found it hard to keep a straight face.
"If I gained the ability to become invisible because I didn't want to deal with being constantly watched, how did you end up with telekinesis, Shunsuke?"
Mai's imagination had really drifted far; she was now treating her condition as some kind of superpower.
Faced with her question, Shunsuke paused for a moment of reflection. "...Laziness?"
"..."
Mai fell silent.
The atmosphere grew awkward, so Shunsuke quickly steered the conversation back. "You've probably noticed, right? Your symptoms are lasting longer and affecting a wider range of people. If this keeps up, one day things could get really bad—so bad that even the entire world might forget about you."
Mai's eyes widened in shock. "The whole world?"
"Haven't you felt your condition getting worse?"
"Cough... of course I've noticed."
Despite always acting strong in front of her juniors, this side of Mai—where she pretended to be tough but was surprisingly fragile—made her seem even more adorable in Shunsuke's eyes.
"In theory, Puberty/Adolescence Syndrome should fade away as you grow older. But if you're completely forgotten by the world before then... well, you might not make it that far. Just kidding."
After pushing Mai's anxiety to its peak, Shunsuke then offered her reassurance.
"Even if the whole world forgets about you, I never will. I'll make sure you don't disappear, no matter what."
People live for their own peace of mind. Shunsuke couldn't help but feel a bit sly for saying that.
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