"How did you even get in here?! ヽ(ﾟДﾟ)ﾉ"
"President Saito told me how! ☆"
It was true that I had often asked President Saito Ichigo of Strawberry Productions to look after things for me. Usually, a label wouldn't provide that level of management, but I happened to be the majority shareholder of Strawberry Productions.
"So, did you clean the whole place yourself, Ai?"
"Ah, no. President Saito did that. ೕ(•̀ᴗ•́)"
Right. Ai was definitely the type to make a mess, not clean one up. Even back at the rehearsal studio, she was the one who never properly threw away her empty Haagen-Dazs containers.
'Wait... come to think of it, her place was surprisingly clean, wasn't it?'
Was she only messy in the rehearsal studio...? A chilling thought crossed my mind for a split second, but it was quickly chased away by the delicious aroma of food. Honestly, since this was a scene I could never have imagined, I felt a wave of genuine warmth wash over me.
"So, Chef, what's for dinner tonight?"
"Tonight's menu is Ai's special curry rice!"
I unfolded the portable table next to the refrigerator and watched Ai, who was wearing an apron. The cozy atmosphere currently flowing through the house had the power to make my heart swell.
'Would it feel like this if I started a family with Ai?'
The thought suddenly occurred to me. Of course, it was something that could never happen, but surely a man is allowed to dream? A scene where the kids are waiting for Ai's cooking while I help out by setting the table.
It was a scene I could never achieve in my past life due to my own inadequacy. Back then, I was someone who struggled just to scrape together enough for monthly rent.
"Huh? Wait, Ai, did you happen to put something like MSG in here?"
"Hide, every woman has secrets she doesn't want to reveal — ★"
The stars in Ai's eyes shifted to a deep, dark hue. Uh, could you please not look at me with such murderous eyes?
"Ah! I've got it! This taste... you must have brewed the broth from scratch yourself, right?!"
"But it's just curry rice...? ★"
Ah... damn it, it was just curry rice, wasn't it?
This definitely isn't going to be fixed by buying her just one or two pints of Haagen-Dazs.
Goodbye, my money.....
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"So, how is the acting practice going?"
With Strawberry Productions' scale expanding due to Enfants Terribles' activities, B-Komachi was no longer a bunch of underground idols; they were active as a top-tier idol group.
And Ai, who held the most popularity among the B-Komachi members, had been cast as a supporting character in a drama and was currently learning how to act.
"Well, how should I put it! I'm not learning a single thing! -☆"
Not learning a single thing...? According to President Saito, she was supposed to be taking acting lessons alongside the Lalalie Theatrical Company, a prestigious troupe packed with elite actors.
"I mean, it's not even as good as what Hide taught me... (˃̣̣̣̣̣̣བ˂̣̣̣̣̣̣)"
But the only advice I had given her was to let her emotions take over and express herself with sincerity. That Lalalie Theatrical Company must be a collection of frauds. How unprofessional could they be if they taught worse than me?
"Are the people there okay?"
"Ehh—they're all nice enough!"
That means they're incompetent. Usually, answering that someone is 'nice' when asked about their ability is just a polite way of insulting them.
"Is there anyone strange there?"
"Ah! There's a younger kid who stares at me with really gloomy eyes!"
Gloomy eyes...? What? Staring at Ai with gloomy eyes? I didn't know who that little brat was, but I felt a powerful urge to crush them before I left Japan.
"What's that bastard's name?"
"Ah! I don't know the name! But he had the same blonde hair as Hide, so he stuck in my mind!"
A blonde-haired person in the Lalalie Theatrical Company... I carved that into my brain. It looked like I'd have to bring Shuji and Yokishi, my personal band of thugs, to show him that life is a brutal reality.
I am Hide.
Even when fighting a mere child, I am the type of 'cool' guy who puts his absolute 'sincerity' into trashing them.