My Simulation… Why Is It Turning into a Real Romance?!-Chapter 379 - 170: Christmas

The next day.

December 24th, Christmas.

As the last holiday of the year, Christmas symbolized the end of one cycle and the beginning of another. For Haru, this Christmas carried an especially strong meaning, because this holiday was often tied to reunion.

Whether as a future family member or as a present lover, no couple would overlook such an important day. Just thinking of that was enough for him, a boy with many girlfriends, to have started preparations long in advance.

"Ha—"

The black-haired boy lifted his head expressionlessly to the hazy sky. The breath he exhaled turned into pure white mist that lingered in the air. Even in the early morning, snow continued to fall, covering the streets of Shimokitazawa in white over the past few days.

Faint morning light pierced through the thin clouds, shining upon the asphalt road blanketed in snow. The crisp air carried a biting chill, so dry that each breath felt like knives against his throat.

"…"

The boy with long black hair slowly raised his eyelids. He brushed his fingers lightly over the snow gathered under the Shimokitazawa signboard, the cold seeping through his skin and into his body.

"Slacking off, are you?"

A cheerful voice rang in his ears. Reflexively turning his head, Haru was greeted by a gleam of golden sunlight. For a fleeting moment he felt dazed, until he saw her figure clearly: a golden angel with hands tucked behind her back, descending to his side.

Haru stayed silent for two seconds, then said with complete seriousness,

"…I was just thinking, this railing really is a railing."

"Hey~ what are you even saying, that makes no sense at all!"

Wearing a light green jacket, Nijika smiled as brightly as ever, her gentle tone teasing as usual. She glanced at the snow that had already been cleared at the entrance, and the corners of her lips curved softly.

"See? It's all finished already~ amazing, amazing!"

"Well, this was an order from the great boss herself. How could I dare disobey even a little?"

Haru only shrugged with a light chuckle. His words carried no trace of fear despite what he said. Sitting down on the bench beside her as if to loaf right in front of his 'boss', he made Miss Nijika's face flush red like a boiled lobster.

A second later, as if suddenly realizing something, she scolded,

"Honestly, tie your scarf properly! What if you catch a cold?"

Like a fussing mother, the petite girl leaned closer and fixed Haru's loose scarf until it was perfectly neat. Only then did she nod in satisfaction.

A playful glint flashed in Haru's eyes as he answered softly, "Even if I catch a cold, it's fine, right? After all, wouldn't Nijika come take care of me?"

"…As if. There are plenty of other girls who'd do that for you."

Still, she did not pull away. She sat beside him after smoothing down her skirt, though her slender white legs dangled in the air since they could not reach the ground.

Maybe because the boy she liked was right next to her, Nijika discreetly brushed her golden bangs into place. Even the bow on her chest and the folds of her skirt had to be tidied with care.

"There's still a lot to prepare for tonight's Christmas party, right~? Haru, you even came to STARRY this morning to help out, are you sure it's fine?"

The delicate girl inched a little closer to him. Her golden hair swayed gently, her always sweet and cute face now carrying a hint of worry.

"Of course. Today is also Seika's birthday." (Nijika's sister)

"Besides, don't be fooled by how I look. The workload I was assigned was actually pretty light. Soyo and the others practically stole all the preparation tasks for themselves, saying I had to rest properly today no matter what."

Haru let out a small sigh.

Whether by majority rule or girlfriend privilege, as long as all the girls stood together and agreed, he naturally had no choice but to comply with their arrangements.

He had cleared up all the piled-up work days in advance just for today, yet when the time came, he ended up as the idle one with nothing to do.

"Well, that's not so bad, right~ I can totally understand what little Soyo

and the others were thinking~"

"Mm, that settles it!"

"This is also your girlfriend's request, so from now on you're not allowed to help anymore. Rest properly and wait for the party at noon!"

Nijika narrowed her eyes with a beaming smile. Seeing this girl betray him so decisively and side with the others, Haru deliberately pulled the snow-dusted end of his scarf around her neck, leaving her no choice but to lean into his arms.

"Eh? Isn't this… a bit too conspicuous?"

"It's Christmas today. Couples like us are everywhere."

The golden-haired girl's face turned scarlet as he held her tightly. She nervously glanced around, but Haru pressed his nose to her neck, breathing in the faint fragrance unique to a young girl.

Still, teasing an angel had its limits. Once he saw her face so red it looked ready to drip blood, Haru loosened his embrace with a satisfied smile.

"By the way, Nijika, did you prepare a gift?"

"Gift?"

Nijika blinked in confusion, so Haru explained with mild exasperation, "Of course, a gift for Seika. It's her rare birthday today."

"Of course I already prepared a present for my sister~ Actually, I started planning it a long time ago!"

"And me?"

Haru's straight-faced question made the golden angel falter. A blush spread across her cheeks, and she coughed softly to break the silence. Then, after glancing around to make sure no one else was nearby, she leaned closer.

"Haru… Haru's gift is ready too. Because today's Christmas is so special…"

"But! I can't tell you yet what that gift is!"

"You have to wait patiently until the Christmas party tonight~ Until then, all questions about Christmas presents are forbidden! I bet Soyo-chan and the others feel the same way, so don't go asking them either."

Nijika crossed her pale index fingers in front of her chest, her cheeks puffed adorably. The sight made Haru chuckle. He knew he shouldn't spoil the surprise, yet he couldn't resist teasing her a little more.

"Nijika, really not even a hint?"

"N-no way!"

The girl's voice softened as she was drawn into his arms, her half-hearted attempt to push him away no stronger than a spoiled child's. That only made Haru's mischievous urge to bully her grow stronger, and he was just about to say something more when—

A cool voice came from behind them.

"Probably planning to wrap herself in a red ribbon with nothing else on, then offer herself to you as a gift, right?"

The icy blue-haired beauty appeared behind them without expression. Nijika almost leapt from Haru's embrace, then breathed a sigh of relief, only to flare up in embarrassment a moment later. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"No way! Of course it's a normal Christmas present!"

"Mhm~"

A faint smile touched Yamada Ryo's delicate face. She raised an eyebrow at Haru and said in a meaningful tone, "Not the kind of gift I mentioned, but you looked a little disappointed just now, didn't you?"

"No! Absolutely not, do I look like that kind of person?!"

Haru coughed to mask the awkward atmosphere. In truth, the moment Ryo said it, he had already imagined Nijika like that, and his pulse had jumped.

It wasn't his fault.

With that kind of contrast, anyone would lose their composure.

Ryo tilted her chin slightly. She already knew Haru's nature inside out, and the sly smile on her face betrayed it. Leaning close to his shoulder, she whispered playfully,

"But~ it's fine."

"My Christmas gift… you should look forward to it too."

Oh no, now he really had no choice but to anticipate it.

"You two, stop talking about things like that! The preparations aren't even finished yet!"

Nijika, face blazing red, covered Ryo's mouth with her hand and dragged the shameless woman away from Haru, forcibly ending the unfinished conversation.

…

"Rikki-chan, just a little higher, maybe two centimeters more."

Ikuyo Kita held the last ribbon in her hands, directing the black-haired beauty above. In the concert hall, a small Christmas tree had been set up, with colorful streamers and decorations hung along the walls.

Balancing on a stool, Shiina Taki rose on tiptoes and carefully placed a crystal-silver star atop the tree under Kita's guidance. Once it was set, she finally exhaled in relief.

"That should do it, right?"

"As expected of Rikki-chan! After you joined in, the decorating went almost twice as fast. I can't believe it's all finished already! Really, thank you so much!"

Kita clapped her hands enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. Taki, shy by nature, looked flustered by the praise. Her face warmed as she scratched her cheek, trying to appear calm.

In truth, her coming to help at STARRY today was no accident.

Shiina Taki was supposed to be with Yahata Umiri and the others preparing the Christmas party at home for the three bands. But when she heard Haru would be helping out at STARRY in the morning, Umiri had suddenly pushed her forward.

The reason was simple: "We already have enough people here. You go help at STARRY."

Taki had felt a little puzzled at first, but when even Togawa Sakiko and Nagasaki Soyo agreed with Umiri, she had no choice but to comply. By then, even she realized what was going on.

They were obviously giving her time alone with Haru!

"Eh? Everything inside is already decorated?"

"Wow, Rikki-chan, you're amazing!"

Coming down the stairs, Nijika widened her eyes in surprise. She had only been gone a few minutes, yet Taki had finished the rest of the decorations all by herself. The efficiency was shocking.

"That's not true! None of this work was really difficult…"

Taki replied timidly, just as she noticed Haru enter with her. His handsome face showed a flicker of surprise, then he gave her a playful wink as if to praise her.

Trying to keep calm, Taki panicked instead. She quickly looked away toward Kita, but her beautiful face was already flushed with a rosy glow.

A faint loneliness flickered in her eyes.

Even though Umi and the others had gone out of their way to push her toward Haru, she had been too shy to say or do anything along the way. At STARRY too, she buried herself in work, unable to find any chance to be alone with him.

"Hm?"

Nijika noticed her gaze at once. Though she kept her expression calm, her mind was already turning. Her lips curved faintly, and she suddenly clenched her little fist into her palm as though she had just realized something.

"Ah! I forgot to ask Bocchi to pick up the cake we reserved yesterday."

At once, everyone turned toward her.

"Eh? Then I'll go now—"

"Ikuyo, come help me with something."

Kita had barely pulled out her phone before Ryo stopped her. Nijika secretly gave Ryo a thumbs-up, then frowned cutely as if troubled.

"What should we do? We can't have a birthday party without a cake…"

Taki froze, then stepped forward softly.

"…Um, how about I go get it?"

"Rikki-chan, you'd really go pick it up for us?! That's wonderful! In that case… Haru, could you go with her? It'd be much easier with two people~"

Nijika had clearly been waiting for her to say it. She flashed a radiant smile. Taki's eyes widened, her face burning red as she instinctively looked toward Haru.

"I-I can go by myself..."

"Got it~"

Haru winked at Nijika, then without hesitation took Taki's pale hand and pulled her along before she could react. Flustered, she didn't even think to resist.

Once their figures disappeared down the stairs, Nijika finally let out a long breath.

That should do it, right?

...

"W-wait a second…"

"You're just dragging me along like this, I haven't even asked where to pick up the cake yet!"

Shiina Taki's pretty face flushed red as she protested, but Haru was unmoved, still holding her hand firmly as he led her forward. Only when they had fully stepped into the shopping street did he answer casually, as if it were obvious...

"I'm holding my girlfriend's hand. Is there something wrong with that?"

"T-that's not what I meant…"

At this moment, Miss Taki had none of her usual imposing presence. With her hand caught in Haru's, she made no attempt to resist or pull away. She simply let him guide her through the snowy streets of Shimokitazawa.

Of course Haru understood what she was thinking.

In fact, getting her to come along today was something he had arranged deliberately. He had already conspired with Umiri beforehand, using a simple excuse to create this opportunity for Taki to be alone with him. But when she arrived, she hadn't dared to take even a single step forward on her own.

"Seems Umiri was right. Sometimes you really do need to go in swinging."

"Hm? What did you just say?"

His muttered words made Taki's blushing face wrinkle in confusion, but Haru only chuckled and replied lightly, "I said the cake shop we ordered from is really close. Since the decorations are already done, going back too quickly would just leave us with nothing to do."

"So how about… we secretly play around outside for a bit?"

Taki's violet eyes widened. The small beauty mark at the corner shimmered as if emphasizing her feminine allure. Usually so serious and stern, she now only bit her lip lightly, her face tinted pink, and gave the faintest of nods.

"Then it's settled~"

Haru raised his brows with a grin and squeezed her hand tighter.

The truth was, he had wanted to invite her on a private outing for a long time.

But Taki was the type who remained passive to the extreme in matters like this. Even with Umiri's constant encouragement, she never dared to step forward herself. And whenever Haru wanted to take the initiative, there was never a good chance as he was always caught up with preparing Ave Mujica's tour, while she was busy with MyGO's internal affairs.

In front of his other girlfriends, Taki not only failed to take initiative, she hardly even dared to show small signs of closeness.

Now that Haru had caught this chance, there was no way he would let it slip away.

"…"

Taki lifted her gaze slightly and stole a glance at their tightly linked hands.

His warmth spread into her palm, the steady thrum of his heartbeat making her so nervous her breathing turned ragged. Yet alongside the anxiety came a joy too strong to hide. She couldn't help tightening her grip, wanting to savor the heat of his touch.

This was her chance.

She and Soyo had confirmed their relationship with Haru at the same time, yet because of her own timidity and shyness she had kept retreating. She always searched for excuses to cover her shortcomings.

Even Chihaya Anon had surpassed her by now, not to mention Sakiko.

She couldn't keep falling behind. Not anymore.