Weren’t You Only Using Me As A Stand-in? [74]

The moment she saw Yukinoshita Haruno, Hiratsuka Shizuka didn’t even bother to ask what she was doing there. She grabbed Kitahara Takeru like she’d just seen the plague and practically shoved him into the car.

Yukinoshita Haruno stepped on the gas. The car shot forward, disappearing from Umeno Kentarō’s line of sight in an instant.

As soon as they were inside, Shizuka whipped out her phone—block, delete.

Haruno glanced sideways, fingers lightly flicking the steering wheel. “Shizuka, were you being harassed?”

“If it were just harassment, I’d be thrilled… Heh.”

Shizuka slumped in her seat, head resting against the window, looking utterly defeated by life.

With a piece-of-shit ex like that, she felt like she’d lost every last shred of dignity.

All she wanted now was for Umeno Kentarō to stop showing up and act like a decent human being.

“By the way, what are you doing here?” she asked.

Haruno could tell Shizuka didn’t want to talk about it, so she didn’t press. “A friend of mine just opened a store. She invited me over to check it out.”

“Starting a business right after college? Damn. These kids nowadays are something else.” Shizuka chuckled, sounding like a middle-aged salaryman.

Back when she was Haruno’s age, all she thought about was where to go have fun. Starting a business? Never crossed her mind.

After all, her dad had once told her, As long as you don’t try to prove yourself, the money I leave you will last a lifetime.

To rich families, the real fear wasn’t their children partying—it was when they started trying to prove themselves.

Shizuka had long known she wasn’t cut out for that kind of thing. So she’d never tried to prove anything at all.

“Wanna come with me?” Haruno invited with a grin.

Shizuka waved her off. “Nah, just take me home.”

On another day, she might’ve said yes.

But tonight? She just didn’t have the energy.

“Alright, fair enough.” Haruno wasn’t too concerned—it was more of a casual ask anyway.

What she was curious about, though, was the guy sitting next to Shizuka.

“Oh, right, Shizuka—aren’t you going to introduce him to me?”

Haruno had already been eyeing Kitahara Takeru for a while.

“This is Watanabe Takeru. He’s my boyfriend.” Shizuka delivered the line smoothly—after saying it to so many people lately, she was immune to embarrassment.

Takeru wasn’t paying attention to their conversation. At the moment, he was scanning Haruno’s profile:

[Target: Yukinoshita Haruno]
[Age: 20]
[Intelligence: 7]
[Charm: 8]
[Stamina: 5]
[Origin: My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU]
[Crush: ?]
[Single. Open to dating.]

Damn, her parents’ genes are strong.

They only had two daughters, and both were not just stunning—they were smart, too.

And it wasn’t like they were twins born on the same day.

Two different batches. Both hits.

That’s rarer than winning the lottery.

“Your boyfriend!?”

Haruno slammed on the brakes. The car jolted so hard Takeru’s wig nearly flew off.

“Was that really necessary? Watch the damn road!” Shizuka snapped, having nearly smacked into the seat in front.

“He’s really your boyfriend?” Haruno turned to her, face a picture of disbelief.

“What, you think he’s yours?” Shizuka raised an eyebrow, smug.

Heh. Bet you didn’t expect this, huh?

Your girl’s officially off the market.

Haruno looked at Takeru. Then at Shizuka. Then back at Takeru. Then Shizuka. Then Takeru again.

Back and forth. Again and again.

She still didn’t believe it.

She was convinced Shizuka was just messing with her.

“Fake, right?”

She’d never felt pressured to get a boyfriend before—after all, Shizuka wasn’t in a rush, so why should she be?

Now that Shizuka had one… she figured... she still didn’t need to hurry.

She was twenty. In her prime. What’s the rush?

“Would I lie to you?” Shizuka held up her hand, fingers interlaced tightly with Takeru’s, and waved it in front of Haruno like proof.

But Haruno ignored Shizuka and gave Takeru a once-over—from his shoes to the tips of his hair.

Takeru gave her a polite smile. “Nice to meet you.”

Haruno smiled back.

...

“Takeru, I’m heading back. Call me when you get home.”

“Okay. See you, nee-san.”

Haruno dropped Shizuka off at her home—a private, gated villa.

As Shizuka disappeared behind the gate, a system notification chimed in:

[This mission has been completed. Calculating reward.]
[Reward: 5000 points]
[Total Dates: Hiratsuka Shizuka – 4]

Now that it was just the two of them in the car, Haruno asked casually while driving, “Watanabe-kun, if you don’t mind me asking—how long have you and Shizuka been dating?”

“About a month and a half,” he answered.

“Oh? And who made the first move?”

“I did.”

“Can I hear the story?”

“Well, it was a sunny afternoon…”

He talked, she listened, and the two chatted the whole way.

Until the car pulled up in Kabukichō.

Takeru suddenly felt something was off.

“Miss Yukinoshita, where are we...?”

“Oh no.”

Haruno smacked her forehead lightly, sticking out her tongue. “I got so caught up talking, I forgot to ask where your place is.”

“Well, since we’re here... Watanabe-kun, want to come have a little fun?”

“I don’t know if that’s appropriate…”

“What’s inappropriate about it? It’s her grand opening tonight. Not many people are here. You showing up is doing me a favor.”

Takeru fell into thought.

If I remember right, Yukinoshita Haruno comes from a pretty wealthy family. Real estate, I think. Her dad’s a Chiba Prefecture council member, too.

He vaguely recalled Shizuka mentioning a Yukinoshita once—but she’d been talking about Yukino.

Still, they were from the same family. What’s the difference?

Yukinoshita, Yukishmita—whatever. Close enough.

A while back, Takeru wouldn’t have bothered with rich girls.

But after meeting the likes of Shijō Maki, Kashiwagi Nagisa, and Shinomiya Kaguya, he’d started feeling like Haruno’s family didn’t quite measure up. She was lowering his standards.

Damn, Kitahara Takeru, you’ve really lost your grip.

Even he was surprised by himself.

Back when he was broke, he’d chase anything with legs.

Now that life had started looking up, he was turning into a picky snob.

One thing’s for sure though—he couldn’t use the Watanabe Takeru identity here.

That persona was still “dating” Hiratsuka Shizuka.

And he couldn’t use his real name either. He needed a new alias.

What should I call myself this time...?

Got it.

Kujo Takeru. That has a nice ring.

“Alright.”

His decision seemed long, but he made up his mind in a heartbeat.

Haruno parked the car, and the two of them walked into Kabukichō together.

“By the way,” Takeru asked, “what kind of store is your friend opening?”

Opening something in Kabukichō… at night?

Didn’t seem like the most wholesome business.

“A host club.”

Takeru: “???”

[You have a new message.]

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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!