The Heroines Want to Confess

Sakurai Saki was quite satisfied with his current job.

Tutoring from Monday to Wednesday, working a "smile-for-hire" job on Thursdays and Fridays, and weekends free to either rest or pick up some extra gigs if he wanted to make more money.

It was now 4:30 p.m., after school.

With no club activities, Sakurai made his way to the streets of Shibuya.

Today's client was a high school girl. It seemed she needed a temporary boyfriend to avoid feeling awkward while hanging out with her friends at karaoke.

Her list of requirements was long: good looks (the bare minimum), a personality that was loyal but not clingy, cheerful but not overly talkative, gentle but strong enough to stand up for her if she was bullied.

To anyone else, it sounded like Miss A was looking for a unicorn.

A perfectly imperfect prince charming? She probably wouldn't find that.

But these particular requirements? Sakurai could manage that much.

No matter how many demands a client made, as long as you looked good enough, the rest could be overlooked.

This was a world where appearances mattered—and in the escort business, that was doubly true.

He tugged at the collar of his jacket, making the neatly arranged fabric look a little more casual. Too tidy would seem stiff.

Sakurai raised his head, watching the sky as he waited for his client to arrive.

A few minutes later…

A figure emerged from the crowd: choker necklace, blonde hair, school uniform. Probably fresh out of her club activities?

Her appearance was ordinary, though her gyaru style fit perfectly with the Shibuya scene.

"Hi! You're Yuu, right? You're so much hotter in person than in your photo. I totally scored this time!"

Sakurai nodded. Yuu was his stage name.

Rental boyfriend companies didn't allow employees to use their real names.

It was a safety measure—to avoid getting doxxed.

Even so, harassment was inevitable in this line of work.

But Sakurai had been lucky so far.

After more than half a year in the business, he hadn't encountered any "landmine girls"—the type who took things too seriously and couldn't separate fantasy from reality.

If it's a job, you shouldn't involve personal feelings. That was better for everyone.

"Eri-san, just to confirm once more," Sakurai said politely. "The rental service lasts for three hours, and the agreed-upon service is to accompany you for a full karaoke gathering. Is that correct?"

"Yep~! Yuu-kun."

Yuu-kun?

A pet name? Whatever.

It wasn't the first time a client had given him a nickname.

"I bragged to my friends last time… I told them I'd get an amazing boyfriend within a week, so that's why I booked this." Eri explained with a playful grin.

"You don't need to explain. That's your private business," Sakurai replied smoothly.

"Oh."

"Confirmation complete. For the next three hours, I'll be your temporary boyfriend," he said, following the company's formal protocol.

No intimate contact was allowed during a rental date—hugging and hand-holding were exceptions, but anything beyond that was strictly off-limits.

Even if a client offered extra money—it was a hard no.

…

Meanwhile, at the entrance of a nearby karaoke place…

A group of gyaru girls were chatting while waiting.

"Where's Eri-chan? We've been waiting for, like, ten minutes."

"She wasn't lying last time, was she? About getting a hot boyfriend in a week? Super hilarious~"

"Ryo-ta-kun, what do you think? Think Eri-chan's just messing with us?"

A blonde delinquent named Ryota took a drag from his cigarette, clearly annoyed.

"Where's Hayasaka? She's not coming this time?"

Honestly, if it weren't for that blonde girl, he wouldn't be caught dead hanging out with this group of gyaru.

A bunch of ugly chicks.

"Eh?! Ryota-kun, you're not crushing on Hayasaka-chan, are you?"

"Yeah, right~!"

Take a look in the mirror first.

The group waited a few more minutes…

"Yoro~! Isn't this Ryota-kun? Long time no see! Your blonde hair's still a disaster, super hilarious~"

Eri arrived, clinging to Sakurai's arm, her face full of amusement.

Seeing her friends' jealous expressions made her feel like every yen spent on this was so worth it.

"Hi there~ I'm Eri's boyfriend. Just call me Yuu," Sakurai greeted with a bright, friendly smile, his eyes scanning the group of gyaru.

Their looks were… average.

On a scale of 1 to 10? A solid 5.

Just barely above the passing line.

The delinquent Ryota flicked his cigarette to the ground, crushing it under his heel.

"You think you're hot shit, huh?" he sneered.

Who the hell even are you?

Sakurai ignored the clown.

"Is everyone here? If not, should we head in first? I'll cover the cost," he suggested with a practiced, effortless charm.

"Oh no, Yuu-kun! You don't need to pay—I'll take care of it!" Eri played along perfectly, sticking to their script.

The group flooded into the karaoke place.

As they whispered among themselves, Sakurai could catch bits of the conversation.

"Eri's so lucky to land a boyfriend that hot!"

"And he's super sweet…"

"What about Ryota? Shouldn't someone go check on him? Leaving him out there's kinda mean… but seriously, it's hilarious how her boyfriend totally ignored him."

One girl went back to fetch Ryota while the rest followed Sakurai and Eri to choose a karaoke room.

After they picked a room and settled in, Ryota and the other girl finally came in, sulking.

"Alright, alright! Let's start picking songs! We can't just sit around waiting!" One of the heavily made-up gyaru clapped her hands enthusiastically, kicking off the karaoke session.

Sakurai chatted with the group, mostly listening and responding politely.

If no one talked to him, he'd just make small talk with Eri.

"Yuu-kun, aren't you going to sing?" Eri whispered, leaning into him.

"Honestly, I'd rather hear you sing," Sakurai said, his gaze warm and soft. His words floated like a cloud, making Eri feel light-headed.

"Okay~!"

Eri grabbed the mic, eager to show off in front of her "boyfriend."

🎵 Tatoeba kimi no kao~ 🎵

She was singing a love song about unrequited feelings.

Sakurai, with his face turned toward her, gazed at her intently, wearing an expression of pure admiration—like he was truly enchanted.

To anyone watching, it looked like the ultimate display of affection.

'Not great… She's off-key.'

One note too high here, one note too low there.

When the song ended, Sakurai clapped cheerfully.

"Eri, that was amazing!"

Nearby, Ryota took a long sip of his drink.

Everyone here was underage, so it was just soft drinks.

Karaoke with soda… Lame.

But whatever—if that guy was already taken, that meant the girl Ryota was interested in would be all his.

Thinking of this, Ryota's gaze toward Sakurai softened slightly.

That one's way hotter than these ugly chicks.

Midway through the karaoke session…

The door to their room swung open.

A girl with a single golden ponytail, her jacket tied around her waist, and a tired expression stepped inside.

For a moment, the whole room went silent.

Hayasaka Ai scanned the room lazily…

Then, her gaze landed squarely on Sakurai.

She was only here to maintain her "gyaru" persona with the group.

And yet—

She'd just stumbled upon something… interesting.