"What exactly do you want?"
In the passenger seat, Hōjō Suzune endured the dizziness spinning through her skull, her fingers digging into her older sister's arm like she was clinging to a lifeline. Her eyes, red-rimmed and glistening, locked onto the other woman with fierce intensity.
Hōjō Shione slowly removed her mask and baseball cap, her movements unhurried, almost graceful. She regarded her younger sister with calm eyes and spoke softly:
"Calm down first."
Hōjō Suzune didn't let go. If anything, her grip tightened, her knuckles going white. "Why did you tell Seiya?!"
"..."
Feeling her sister's emotions teetering on the edge of collapse, Hōjō Shione's delicate brows drew together. She let out a quiet sigh and began to explain:
"Suzune... you were too impatient."
She paused, choosing her next words carefully. "Do you know what kind of person that Takahashi is? If she later shows those text messages to Seiya... what do you think he'll think of you?"
Her voice remained gentle, but there was an edge beneath it—the unmistakable firmness of an older sister who knew exactly what she was doing.
"In the past, he was my boyfriend, and you were my sister. You could act spoiled and get away with almost anything. But now?" She shook her head slowly. "Do you still have the right to act spoiled with him?"
"It's not your birthday every day, Suzune. Seiya won't always indulge you. If you want to be with him in the future... you must at least make sure he doesn't dislike you first."
Hōjō Shione looked at her sister with eyes full of tenderness—and something else. Something that might have been pity.
"You're my sister. Since you like Seiya... I will definitely help you."
Hearing this, Hōjō Suzune finally released her grip. She slumped back into her seat, exhausted, and let her eyes fall shut as tears slipped silently down her cheeks.
She took a deep, shuddering breath—as if trying to expel every ounce of resentment lodged in her chest.
A moment passed. Then another.
When she finally spoke again, her voice had steadied somewhat. She stared out the window, watching the streetlights blur past, and said:
"But even after what you did today... can you guarantee she won't tell Seiya?"
Her gaze sharpened. "Do you really think a few words are enough to stop her from talking? You're being a bit too—"
And then she stopped.
A scene flashed through her mind. Takahashi Mio's phone. Her own hands holding it.
Her eyes flew wide open.
"Could it be that you...?"
"Heh heh."
Hōjō Shione smiled—a quiet, knowing smile. She shifted gears smoothly, pressed the accelerator, and kept her eyes fixed on the intersection ahead.
Helping her sister clean up loose ends was only a small part of the plan.
More importantly, she had wanted to meet Takahashi Mio. To see for herself what was so special about this girl who had stolen her man.
As for everything else—putting on pressure, seeing Seiya, making her presence known—those were simply bonuses.
But Shiratori Seiya's attitude toward her today...
That had been somewhat unexpected.
Thinking of this, Hōjō Shione's eyes turned cold. She slammed her foot down on the accelerator.
I refuse to believe you can be so heartless.
—
Late at night. The Takahashi household.
"Are you saying... Hōjō Shione and her sister deliberately set you up today?"
Haruno Reika asked, her face a portrait of disbelief after listening to Takahashi Mio recount the day's events.
"Heh heh..."
Takahashi Mio responded with a foolish chuckle.
Haruno Reika sat across from her, expression grim, silently regretting having left all the alcohol at her own apartment earlier. She was a year older than Mio—old enough to drink legally—but even so, watching her underage friend guzzle wine made her heart skip nervously.
If someone found out about this, she'd be in trouble too.
Haruno Reika snatched the wine glass from Mio's hand, frowning deeply. "Stop drinking."
But Takahashi Mio seemed already lost to the alcohol's embrace. Her oval face had flushed a soft pink, and her hazy eyes drifted up to meet Reika's. She raised one index finger, pointing unsteadily.
"Reika... do you know? Today was my first scene..."
Hiccup.
She hiccupped, grabbed a piece of food, and swallowed it down.
When Haruno Reika had grabbed the glass, some wine had sloshed onto the table. Takahashi Mio stared at her own blurry reflection in the small puddle, her voice dropping to a murmur.
"For a moment... I thought she might be more suited to be an actress than me..."
She drew out the words, her tone dreamy and distant.
"It's so strange..."
"She's clearly a singer... but how can she act so well? Pretending not to care... pretending she doesn't care about him at all..." Her voice cracked slightly. "When actually... she clearly likes him so much..."
Seeing Takahashi Mio ramble like this, Haruno Reika frowned harder and pulled the alcohol further away. "You're drunk."
"Heh heh..."
Takahashi Mio glanced at her, her words disjointed and slurred. "I wish I were drunk. I wish today had never happened at all..."
Haruno Reika rubbed her temples, forcing herself to stay patient. "I still don't quite understand. Are you saying... Hōjō Shione still likes Shiratori Seiya?"
"Mhm."
Takahashi Mio nodded. Then nodded again. Her smooth chin bobbed up and down like one of those roly-poly toys—the kind that always wobbled back upright no matter how hard you pushed.
"So... why did they break up?"
At this, Takahashi Mio lifted her moist, glistening eyes. A foolish grin spread across her pretty face.
"Yeah... why did they break up? I don't understand either."
She didn't wait for Haruno Reika to ask before continuing, her voice dropping into a mumble.
"Do you know what her sister told me today?"
"She said I wasn't worthy of Shiratori Seiya."
Takahashi Mio's expression flickered—a flash of genuine anger cutting through the drunken haze. "I was so angry then... Well, I'm still angry now, actually. I don't know what's so great about that jerk besides his money... Why does Hōjō Shione like him so much..."
Hearing Takahashi Mio say such things, Haruno Reika couldn't help but ask, "So... do you like Shiratori Seiya now? That fast? You only like his money, right? Don't go confusing yourself."
Haruno Reika found it genuinely hard to believe that Mio would fall for any man in just two weeks—Shiratori Seiya or otherwise. It felt impossible.
At the very least, she thought that scenario was far less likely than the Hōjō sisters deliberately setting up Mio just to mess with her head.
And as it turned out, her instincts were spot on.
Hearing Reika's question, Takahashi Mio tilted her head thoughtfully. "Like? How could I..."
She paused, seeming to realize she'd spoken too absolutely. Squinting up at the ceiling light, she raised her hand and spread her index finger and thumb apart—just barely pinching the air between them.
"Mm... maybe about this much liking. But it's nothing compared to those two."
Her voice grew quieter. "She clearly hated me so much... and clearly likes him so much... yet she could pretend to be so nonchalant. Just walk away like that."
Haruno Reika pulled out a pack of Seven Stars, lit one, and took a long, slow drag. She sorted through the tangled mess of information in her mind before finally speaking.
"So now you're just angry because they got under your skin? You want revenge?"
"Revenge?"
Takahashi Mio muttered the word, rolling it around on her tongue like a strange candy. Then, as if struck by sudden inspiration, her beautiful eyes flew wide open. She jabbed her index finger toward Haruno Reika.
"Yes! Revenge. That's exactly it, Reika. You nailed it."
She let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "You know? When she asked for my phone today... I already guessed what she was planning to do."
Her smile turned bitter. "I knew exactly what she was up to... but I couldn't say no."
"I'm really no match for her."
"..."
Seeing her friend in such a frenzied state, Haruno Reika exhaled a cloud of smoke and frowned. Her voice came out cool and measured.
"Look, I'm going to give you some advice. Try to see this more positively. Think about what you actually wanted from the beginning. Those two... at most, they just annoyed you, right? They didn't actually do anything to you."
"Just treat it like getting hassled by a boss's relative at work. You've dealt with that kind of frustration before—back at the convenience store. And now? Your salary is way better than it was back then."
"Don't throw your life away over a momentary impulse."
"Throw my life away?"
Takahashi Mio burst out laughing—a genuine, uncontrollable laugh, like she'd just heard the punchline of the century.
"How could that happen? What are you even saying, Reika? Do you think I'm some anime heroine who gets hurt by a scumbag and then grabs a knife to go on a rampage?" She waved her hand dismissively. "That's way too ridiculous. This is reality, you know..."
Hearing that, Haruno Reika felt a wave of relief wash over her. Still, she couldn't quite pin down what was going on in Mio's head. So she asked:
"Then what do you want to do?"
Takahashi Mio didn't answer right away.
She leaned back, propping her hands behind her, and gazed up at the blank spot on the wall where Hōjō Shione's poster used to hang.
Then she closed her eyes.
Images flashed through her mind. Voices. Fragments.
"I see a lot of potential in you. Do you want to become a star?"
"Bastard! Become a star?! Over my dead body! Don't even think about it!"
"Eh? To be honest, I think this acting style isn't as good as yours, Mio. If you were to act, it would clearly suit you better, don't you think?"
"You simply don't know how much potential you have. The moment you truly step onto that stage... everyone will cheer for you. They'll be drawn to the light radiating from you..."
"So just trust me. The same way I chose you without a second thought."
"Do you really think you're worthy of him? Do you think you're more outstanding than Hōjō Shione? Do you think he truly likes you?"
"It's because of wonderful fans like you that I've been able to come this far..."
"..."
Pain. Jealousy. Anger.
Takahashi Mio felt her pride shatter into pieces beneath her feet.
What did worthy or unworthy even mean?
So what if she wasn't as outstanding as her?
So what if he didn't truly like her?
She was his girlfriend now.
The more you want me to leave... the more I won't.
Since you like Shiratori Seiya so much... keep liking him. Just watch him revolve around me instead.
You'd better keep liking him...
All those tangled emotions swirled together in her chest, slowly coalescing into something solid. Something sharp.
Takahashi Mio opened her eyes.
"I want to become famous," she said—her voice steady, certain, with no trace of hesitation.
For the first time, she fully voiced the thought she had buried deep in her heart for so long.
For the first time, she said it out loud.