Chapter 110 - Rental boyfriend [POV: Morikawa Erina]

[Erina nee-san, right?] After finally reuniting with my cute little brother, hearing him call me “nee-san” for the first time made me so surprised and delighted. If I think about it now, I feel like that was the point where everything changed in my life. You know, after being called nee-san by him, I felt the urge to spoil him even more. Not gonna lie, seeing him all worried about how much I had spent on his gift was really funny. How cute of him~ But as cute as he was, the way I saw him changed when the news about “rental boyfriends” came up. My sisters already suspected that I was using this service, to the point where Miyuna even asked Tomoki-kun about his opinion. Honestly, I was expecting him to be hesitant to give his opinion, since he doesn't interact much with people, and I doubted he even knew about this kind of trend. Besides, everyone was just jumping to conclusions. He´s different from other guys, and he always worries about me. I couldn't wait to see him again~ [Erina nee-san, tell him you don't have money and ask him to pay for tomorrow's date instead.] I was flabbergasted. Not only by his suggestion, but also by how confident he actually was. And when I tried to argue, he simply explained. [If he stops talking to you just because you can't pay—despite all the money you've already spent—then that tells you exactly what kind of man he is.] Just hearing that was enough to make me reconsider my current situation. I don't know if it was because I was shocked that my little brother had said that, or because it actually made sense... or maybe both. Anyways, after giving it some thought, I decided to do what he suggested. ♦♦♦Next day♦♦♦ “Hello, Morikawa-san! Did I make you wait?” - My rental boyfriend asked. “Oh! No, don't worry about it. Is everything okay with you?” - He was actually thirty minutes late. “I'm fine. I'm really sorry for making you wait. As a token of my apology, I'll give you a special discount.” Time to have courage. “About this... I can't pay for today's date. Is that still okay with you?” - I'm really nervous now. “What? Oh, it's okay. Then let me be the one to pay for it today. Take it as my token of apology, as well as my thanks.” “Eh!? Thank you!” I knew it! He really sees me in a special way. No rental boyfriend would be willing to go this far for a woman. “So? Is there somewhere you want to visit? You don't need to be shy.” - He asked. “If that's the case...” And so we went to an aquarium. I was really enjoying our time together. As always, he treated me like a princess and was always smiling at me. Tomoki-kun, this is the kind of man he is. Do you approve of him? What a silly question. Of course he would. But well, everything went downhill when we left the aquarium and went to a stall to buy some food. “Morikawa-san? Wait a minute... are you making him pay for you!?” - One of my acquaintances from university called out to me. I froze. “Haha! With everything she's done for me, this is nothing. Today is my treat!” - He said with a smile. I wasn't wrong about him after all. How lucky I am— “You should be treated way better... You know that I would never let you pay for me, right?” - She suddenly said that to him. “That's...” - He didn't retort. “How shameless of you. How can you let your ‘boyfriend’ pay for you? Just because you spent so much on him doesn't give you the right to make him repay you.” - She said. “...” - He was just staring at me. “I was planning to go with you to karaoke next week, but I kind of want to go with you now. Especially after everything you've been through. Or... maybe you're actually dating her for real?” - She asked him. “No! You're wrong. She's my friend and ‘helps’ me a lot. But please, don't say anything bad about her.” - He answered. “Will you come with me?” - She asked him. He glanced at me. Well, I guess he wanted my permission so he wouldn't make things more awkward. For him, of course. So I just nodded to him, and both of them went wherever they wanted to go. All kinds of bad feelings were swirling in my head. Frustration, anger, disappointment... especially after everything she had said to my face. And to make things worse... I snapped at my little brother when I got home. After that, Mother ordered me to calm down and apologize to Tomoki-kun, especially if I still wanted to be a reliable older sister. So I was able to apologize to him, even though I was still a mess. After going to my room, I realized how dumb I had been and how terrible I had been to my little brother, who had only wanted to help me. Me, who hadn't even told him that the “boyfriend” I had was a fake one. I can't face anyone anymore... How shameless can I be? ♦♦♦ … [If that were true, he wouldn't just leave you to go off with another girl who insulted you.] [If I were in his place, and I didn't want to persuit an relationship with you, I would've rejected you right from the start.] [No. That's giving serious thought and being fair.] [If that's how he shows affection, then you're better off alone than with someone like him] I hate to admit, but if Tomoki-kun hadn't said all of these things to me, I would definitely have been trapped in the thought that maybe my “boyfriend” had just been persuaded that time and still liked me. More than that... Tomoki-kun, what kind of life did you have to be able to come up with all of these thoughts? And I may be wrong, but I feel like you became way more reliable than Dad. I mean... I really snapped at him, yet he still went after me. Well, I don't want to lose to my little brother, so... Time to get out of this room. ♦♦♦ “Morikawa-san! Everything good with you?” - It was him again. “Yes. How about you?” - I asked him back. “Yeah! Sorry about last time. You know, I couldn't say no to her that time.” “I see. Don't worry.” You could have said ‘no’ back then. “Then, next time, wanna go on a date?” I flinched. Is he actually...? No, remember what Tomoki-kun said. “Are you asking me out for real?” “That's... Morikawa-san, you know what I mean... right?” I guess this is goodbye then. “Yeah... I understand. Look, I appreciate everything you've done for me until now... but I'm okay now. Thank you.” “Wait, how about we talk somewhere? Let's talk in this family restaurant, okay?” “Sure, let's go.” And so we entered and chose our seats. Huh? What is a young boy doing here all alone? Anyways. “So, what's wrong? Did I make some mistake?” - He asked. “No. I just want to find a real partner, you know? You're a wonderful guy, but you will never be with someone, right? That's your job, after all.” “Did you perhaps find someone you like?” Why is he so persistent now? More and more, it's becoming clear... “No, I haven't.” “Then, why don't you want to hang out with me?” “Will you hang out with me without any payment?” - I asked directly. “Oh... I get it now. Sorry, it was because of the money... I thought you liked me, but I was wrong.” For someone who works as a “rental boyfriend,” he's kind of unprofessional, if I have to say... I see. So he must be a romance scammer. So everyone was right. “Me too.” - I replied. “Since it seems we won't see each other anymore, let me give you some advice as a man. You won't be able to get a boyfriend if you don't treat him well.” - He said. What...!? “I'm telling you because I'm concerned about you. I dated you last time because I was worried about you, but seriously, trying to leave everything to a man and making him pay all the bills is not appropriate. And one more thing, even if you date a real boyfriend, if you let him pay for everything, what kind of woman would you be? Is that how you want to treat him?” - He kept talking. For some reason, I couldn't talk back. I mean, he's kind of right. What kind of woman would I be if I let the man... my boyfriend... pay for everything? “Well, since I was the one who invited you to this restaurant, I'll pay for my bill... if that's okay with you, of course.” “No... I'm kind of in debt to you. Let me pay for you.” My mind is kind of blurry... Am I actually wrong here? I don't know anymore... I guess I'll never be able to have a boyfriend in my life— “Okay, bro! Enough! Since you're so short on money, let me pay for you, okay?” - The young boy suddenly butted in. ... Eh!?