Weren’t You Only Using Me As A Stand-in? [100]

"Let me introduce myself—Kitahara Takeru, Tiny’s owner."

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Morning light filtered in as Nakano Miku sat dazed on her bed, hair a mess, her body still heavy with sleep. Her eyes stared blankly at the wall, replaying the scene from last night—of the silver-haired, earring-wearing delinquent boy cornering her against the wall and uttering that line.

In truth, Kitahara hadn’t done anything to her. He hadn’t even taken Tiny with him.

He’d shown up like a wandering ronin from a bygone era—appearing just long enough to make his presence known, then vanishing without a trace.

Why am I thinking about him again…

Miku shook her head, sending her long, silky hair swaying gently.

She couldn’t fall back asleep. With a sigh, she climbed out of bed, deciding to go downstairs and check on Tiny.

After all, the poor thing had taken a beating last night protecting her.

Kitahara, that irresponsible owner, hadn’t even shown an ounce of concern. He left Tiny at her place without so much as a message, didn’t offer to take him to the vet, and even lied, saying he wasn’t hurt.

Like I wouldn’t know?

She’d seen it with her own eyes—Tiny had lost so much fur from that savage attack, and had taken a brutal hit from that vicious dog.

There was no way he wasn’t injured.

Just as Miku came downstairs, the front door opened from the outside.

“Takeru’s really getting better these days—I think he’s about to surpass me,” a cheerful voice said.

“I still can’t believe you guys manage to run every single day,” another added.

“Well, if you’ve got someone to work hard with, it’s not so hard to keep it up. Ichika, you should come with us tomorrow!”

“I just want to mooch breakfast.”

From the bottom of the stairs, Miku watched calmly as Yotsuba came in, giggling with Ichika at her side—Tiny trotting behind them.

“Oh, Miku, you’re already up?” Yotsuba blinked in surprise, then beamed. “Good morning!”

“…Morning.”

Miku nodded faintly.

“Where were you guys?”

“I went jogging with Yotsuba and the others,” Ichika said, leaning against the wall with one hand, stretching her right leg back, toying with her sneaker lazily with two fingers.

Tiny came bounding over to Miku, nuzzling against her pajama-clad leg with enthusiasm.

Of all five sisters, Miku was definitely his favorite.

Because she was the easiest to manipulate.

Whenever he wanted something, all it took was a little whimper and a head tilt—and she’d get it for him without fail.

If he had his way, she’d be his forever mistress.

Miku crouched down and gently stroked his head, her voice feigned-casual as she asked, “Who else was with you?”

It was him, wasn’t it?

It had to be him.

She’d heard it—just now.

Yotsuba had called him "Takeru."

It had to be that guy!

“Oh, and Takeru! Right—Miku, you don’t know him yet. He’s amazing!” Yotsuba said as she poured herself a full glass of water and downed it in one go.

“Gulp gulp!”

“Yeah, he’s handsome, top of the class, and can cook too—definitely one of those rare high-value stocks,” Ichika said, pouring herself some milk from the fridge.

She casually draped one arm around her slim waist, balancing the cup against her generous chest, and smirked, “Yotsuba, if you’re not gonna go for it, hand him over to me.”

Yotsuba’s face turned bright red at Ichika’s words.

She began to panic, eyes darting around while her hands flailed wildly. “I-I-Ichika, what are you saying?! I don’t know what you’re talking about! Takeru and I are just regular friends!”

Ichika tilted her head, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Are you sure you only see Kitahara-kun as a ‘regular friend’?”

“O-of course I am!”

Yotsuba turned her face away and quickly poured herself another glass of water, hiding behind the cup.

Mmm. Yotsuba, you’re lying.

Miku watched everything silently, arms wrapped around Tiny.

She could tell—even if Yotsuba hadn’t realized it herself—her feelings for Kitahara definitely weren’t as simple as “just friends.”

Well, not that it had anything to do with her.

Miku lowered her head and met Tiny’s dark brown eyes. She pulled him closer into her embrace.

Dogs are better.

Loyal, unwavering, never betray you. Faithful to the end.

Why even bother falling in love with people?

A dog’s all you need.

---

Saturday morning.

Kitahara Takeru boarded the Keikyū Airport Line rapid express to Shinagawa Station, then transferred to the JR Yokosuka Line to head toward Chiba.

His date with Kasumigaoka Utaha wasn’t until noon. He didn’t need to come this early.

But he’d heard about the Tokyo Cat & Dog Expo, so he decided to check it out ahead of time.

Despite the name, the “Tokyo Cat & Dog Expo” was actually held at Makuhari Messe. And aside from cats and dogs, the event also featured rare and exotic animals—making it a fun experience overall.

By the time Kitahara arrived, the venue was already bustling. Some people had even brought their pets along.

Normally, Kitahara would have come to these events with Tiny.

Come to think of it, this was his first time going solo.

Kind of lonely, honestly.

Still, he was long used to doing things alone—playing chess by himself, going to the movies alone, traveling solo, even moving apartments or visiting the doctor without anyone.

So walking through an animal expo alone? No big deal.

Inside the exhibition hall, the first thing that caught his eye was… a penguin.

“Ugh. Bad luck.”

Just seeing the bird reminded him of certain bloated Chinese tech companies.

No thanks.

He quickly walked away in disgust.

Following the flow of the crowd, he eventually reached the bird exhibit.

There, a dazzling rainbow of avian species stretched out before him—macaws, parrots, kestrels, eagles…

Flashes of yellow, red, green—every bird flaunted its colors proudly, turning the entire zone into a feast for the eyes.

Kitahara stood in front of a majestic eagle, gazing quietly before pointing down to his feet and saying:

“Yo, Eagle-bro, any oil under here?”

The eagle gave him a look—pure “are you stupid?” energy.

“You’ve finally lost it, huh? Want me to recommend a nice psych ward?”

A crisp, composed girl’s voice came from behind him.

He didn’t even have to turn around to know who it was.

But thinking about it—it made perfect sense.

Where there were cats, there had to be Chiba’s Queen of Ice herself.

Kitahara acted as if he hadn’t heard her at all. He slipped off his backpack and started rummaging through it.

The black-haired girl narrowed her eyes, her tone mocking. “So you’ve gone deaf and insane now?”

“Hold on, hold on—I’m looking for something… There. Found it.”

He pulled out a deck of playing cards.

Under her skeptical stare, he extracted two cards and held them out.

“Excuse me, miss. You dropped your student ID.”

The girl glanced down.

Her expression instantly froze.

She stared at Kitahara with a chilling, zero-degree gaze. Her voice was glacial:

“Do you think you’re funny?”

In his hand—wasn’t a joker or wild card.

But a pair of Aces.

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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!