Weren’t You Only Using Me As A Stand-in? [131]

“Dad, why didn’t you come home last night?”

In Tokyo, at the director’s office on the top floor of a hospital, a girl who looked exactly like Nakano Ichika, Nakano Miku, and Nakano Yotsuba — only styled differently in makeup and hair — sat across from a refined, well-dressed man.

Her expression was tense, her voice edged with restrained fury.

“There was an emergency surgery.”

Nakano Maruo, flipping through a patient’s chart, didn’t even look up. He spoke as if the person sitting opposite him wasn’t his daughter at all.

“I already had Edogawa deliver your birthday presents.”

Just when it seemed the conversation had ended, Maruo spoke again.

“Did you like—”

But he didn’t get to finish. Nakano Nino raised her voice and cut him off completely.

“We didn’t want any gifts.”

“Do you have any idea? We waited for you the entire night!”

“Why didn’t you come home?”

“You promised us.”

“Why do you always break your promises?”

“If you can’t keep them, then don’t make them in the first place!”

By the end, Nino’s voice trembled, her tone choked with tears. She looked like she might break down at any moment.

“This wasn’t something I could choose.”

Maruo finally moved his gaze away from the medical files and looked at his daughter. His voice was calm, but filled with quiet resignation.

He hadn’t forgotten that yesterday was his daughters’ birthday.

He’d wanted to be there.

But an emergency patient had been admitted — a critical case — and he’d been the only qualified surgeon on-site.

Could he, as a doctor, have just left that patient to go home and cut cake?

Of course, he couldn’t say all of this to his daughter.

Knock knock.

Nino opened her mouth to continue, but at that moment, someone knocked on the office door.

Maruo’s tone returned to its usual professionalism. “Come in.”

A nurse pushed open the door and entered. “Director, a patient’s family is demanding to speak with you.”

“I understand.”

Maruo rose from his chair without hurry.

“If there’s nothing else, you should head home. I’ll have Edogawa drive you. It’s not safe at night.”

As the two passed each other at the doorway, Nino whispered — just loud enough for only them to hear:

“Do you even see us as your daughters?”

Maruo froze mid-step.

“Director?” the nurse asked, puzzled.

He hesitated only a moment, then quietly resumed walking forward.

---

On the second floor of the same hospital, in the outpatient IV lounge, Eriri was leaning listlessly against Kitahara Takeru’s shoulder, an IV needle taped to the back of her hand.

“You knew you had an event the next day, and you still skipped meals and stayed up all night? What is this, cultivating immortality now?”

“You just don’t know how to quit.”

“What happens if your body gives out? Who’s going to take care of you then?”

Takeru, seated beside her, lectured nonstop.

If this had been any other day, Eriri would’ve snapped back instantly.

That was just how tsunderes worked.

Even when they knew you were right and doing it for their sake, they’d still bite back — just to hide their embarrassment.

But this time, she didn’t argue.

She just sat there, quietly listening, her heart feeling warm and full.

Because to her, Watanabe Takeru was scolding her because he cared.

After all — when had he ever spoken to anyone else like this?

Takeru, of course, didn’t know what Eriri was thinking.

He just assumed she was too weak to fight back.

“Stay here and finish the IV. I’m going to grab your prescription and pick up something to eat.”

After a solid round of scolding, Takeru gently helped her sit up straight and stood.

Sensing he was about to leave, Eriri instinctively reached out and grabbed the sleeve of his jacket.

Takeru glanced back and gave her a gentle pat on the head.

“Relax. I’ll be right back.”

He paused, then added with a smile, “I’m not going anywhere.”

Only then did Eriri let go.

She watched his figure disappear from view, then lowered her gaze to her own hand — the one that had reached out without thinking.

It felt unreal.

She had thought that after Aki Tomoya, no one else could ever make her heart beat like that again.

But now… it was racing for someone new.

She’d never imagined that someone could come along in less than a year and take the place of a person she’d secretly loved for nearly a decade.

But Watanabe Takeru had done it.

Bit by bit, he’d stolen back the heart she’d once given to Aki Tomoya.

Her fingers lightly pressed against her chest as she tilted her head back and whispered:

“Tomoya… I finally understand how you felt.”

After meeting Takeru, she finally understood why Aki Tomoya had fallen for someone else.

So this is what it means… when the childhood friend loses to the girl who falls from the sky.

At the payment kiosk, Takeru discovered he didn’t have enough cash and had to withdraw money from the hospital ATM.

“Freakin’ broke…”

He muttered under his breath in frustration.

He’d been hoping to earn a little gold from Eriri — and now he was the one coughing it up.

Of course, the money wasn’t the real issue.

The bigger problem… was that Eriri had fallen for him.

Now what?

They’d agreed this would be transactional — no feelings involved. Mutual benefit.

So why the hell had she gone and caught feelings?

How could she taint their pure, capitalistic relationship with emotion?

“Damn it, it’s all Aki Tomoya’s fault!”

Grumbling, Takeru clutched the hospital receipt and cursed again.

If Tomoya hadn’t made that stupid game… if he hadn’t been so bad at keeping his own girl, then Eriri wouldn’t have ended up catching feelings for him.

If Eriri didn’t like him, he could’ve kept guiltlessly milking her for gold coins.

But now?

Now he was her emotional stand-in.

Now he felt guilty just thinking about asking her for money.

Forget scamming — now I can’t even lie to her with a straight face.

Annoyed and distracted, Takeru wasn’t paying attention to where he was going and bumped shoulders with someone.

“Sorry.”

He turned to apologize — and froze when he saw the girl’s face.

“Miku?”

The name slipped out before he could stop it.

And he regretted it immediately.

He was Watanabe Takeru now, not Kitahara Takeru.

This, too — was Aki Tomoya’s fault!

Nakano Nino had been in a foul mood to begin with. She’d intended to just walk past, but hearing this boy call out “Miku” made her pause and give him a once-over.

Fair skin, delicate features, tall, with black hair and thick-rimmed glasses — he looked like the classic honor-student type. Bookish. Boring. Buttoned-up.

Exactly the kind of guy Nino had zero interest in.

She preferred the rebellious type — guys with edge, with fire.

But… thinking about Miku’s personality, Nino suddenly found this guy kind of fitting.

A bookworm for a shut-in otaku girl. That tracked.

She pictured them dating and couldn’t help but laugh. Her mood improved instantly.

Wait… no. That’s not Miku.

Takeru realized it too — the makeup, the attitude, the styling. Miku would never dress this flashy.

The real Miku didn’t even wear makeup, and her aura was always gloomier — the kind of girl who wouldn’t be caught dead without headphones on.

Realizing his mistake, Takeru decided to just roll with it. He stepped forward, grabbed her arm, and asked with concern:

“Miku, what are you doing here? Are you feeling unwell?”

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This is a fan translation of 不是说只拿我当替身的吗？by 雪碧加冰. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!