Can't We Skip Dating?

Tokyo, a private hospital.

A man and a woman were sitting on the seats along the hallway.

This kind of setting and pairing would naturally lead one to imagine those reckless young couples who didn't take proper precautions. 

What's more, the younger girl was quite pretty, and seemed a bit repressed, while the clearly adult man was handsome, wearing an indifferent expression.

It was the perfect image for people to fill in the blanks—a scumbag who messed around with a high school girl and wasn't planning to take responsibility.

"Hey, can you not look at me like that?" Akira finally couldn't take it.

Utaha couldn't help it, still staring at him with an expression so complicated it was hard to describe. 

"Did all that really happen to you, and you're not just making it up to trick that girl?"

"I'm not. I haven't fallen so far that I need to fabricate tragic stories just to win a girl's sympathy. So could you stop looking at me like that? 

You've had your own fair share of hardships too."

Utaha considered that, since she'd never had to struggle just for basic survival, she was still a step removed from that kind of suffering. 

But at least she found some balance in the comparison, and her gaze finally returned to normal.

"So, what are you planning to do next?"

"Obviously, make a deal," Akira said as if it were the most natural thing.

Utaha's eyes changed again. "Mr. Ogiwara, are you seriously planning to offer that kind of deal to a girl like her?"

She had stopped using honorifics with him after getting familiar, but now she deliberately added one back.

Akira shrugged. "You won't agree to your part of the deal, so can't I find some other fun? Besides, even if you did agree, it wouldn't stop me.

It's just a transaction—mutual benefit. Let's not meddle in each other's personal lives, okay?"

Utaha turned her head away coldly. "True, but it seems I'll have to lower my opinion of you by a notch."

"I don't really care what your opinion of me is," Akira said lightly, eyes still on the exam room door. 

"She's a girl who should be growing up under her parents' care, healthy and safe.

But she's out working in this heat while sick—there has to be a reason she's in such a rough spot. In that case, isn't making a deal better?"

"Or would you rather she have no options at all, and be forced to keep trudging down this harsh road with no choice?"

Of course not. Having just emerged from her own dark chapter, Utaha understood that kind of despair better than anyone. 

If there's a second path available—even if one doesn't take it—that alone can ease the sense of hopelessness.

Because then, you're choosing to face the darkness, rather than being forced to. That difference alone makes the second path worthwhile.

The girl hadn't yet reached the point of despair, but ultimately, Utaha wasn't qualified to decide for someone else.

"Besides," Akira suddenly turned around with a teasing smile, "What kind of deal did you think I meant?"

Utaha froze for a second, immediately realizing she'd been played.

Akira never said it was that kind of deal. 

It was just her own assumptions, fueled by her personal experiences and the suggestive way he spoke, that led her to such a conclusion. 

Her opinion of him went back up again—but so did her assessment of his bad personality.

"So this time, Mr. Ogiwara isn't lusting after her body?" Utaha teased.

But Akira's response once again caught her off guard.

"I am—but I can't bear to touch her."

Seeing the fleeting trace of tenderness on his face, Utaha finally understood the source of all her irritation today.

It wasn't about what someone else had—it was about what she didn't.

Akira's attitude toward Nanami was much better than how he treated her.

She even started doubting if all the compliments Akira had given her—about her talent and interesting soul—were lies, and that he was only ever after her body. 

And now, in comparison to someone with "a soul," she lost because she had a better body.

So Utaha stopped speaking, turned into a full-on observer, and silently watched the story unfold—and reevaluated her entire life.

The door to the exam room opened, and Nanami walked out.

Akira immediately walked toward her. 

Nanami smiled, as if she wanted to say something—but he didn't even acknowledge her and walked right past, entering the exam room behind her.

"Doctor, how is her condition? She's very strong-willed, so she probably wouldn't tell me the truth."

The doctor on duty was a bespectacled woman in her forties. At first she looked cold, but her expression softened slightly at Akira's concern.

"The illness itself is minor. What's serious is the fatigue and slight malnutrition. 

Thankfully, she's still young and in relatively good shape, so nothing major happened. 

But if this continues, she'll be burning through her youth. She needs four to five days of proper rest—and proper meals."

Akira thanked her and stepped out of the room.

Nanami looked a bit embarrassed—she'd been standing just outside and had heard everything.

Just as Akira had said, she hadn't planned on telling him the truth.

It made her feel exposed, as if her little attempts at hiding things had been seen through completely by someone older and more experienced.

Akira saw her expression and let out a snort. "Make sure you rest properly these next few days, you hear?"

That oppressive vibe of a seasoned part-timer made Nanami quickly nod. "Yes! Got it!"

"Let's go. I've got some questions for you."

As they walked down the hallway together, Akira asked, 

"How did you end up being both overworked and malnourished? 

I mean, unless you're spending money recklessly or have some extra costs, even just one long-shift summer job should be enough to keep food on the table and avoid this kind of exhaustion."

Nanami lowered her head, her voice going quiet. 

"It's for voice acting school. Even though I earn more during summer break, if I don't save properly, I won't have enough when the new semester starts."

"Voice acting?"

"Yeah! I want to be a voice actress!"

Her spirits lifted as she said that, her tone filled with pride.

"That's great—you've got a clear goal and you're working hard for it. That already puts you ahead of most high schoolers."

Just as Nanami was blushing at the praise, Akira suddenly changed tone. "So how many jobs do you have?"

Nanami cautiously raised two fingers. "Besides the ice cream stand, there's one more."

Akira gave a cold laugh.

Nanami bit her lip and raised a third finger. "Okay… three."

Akira turned his gaze away and muttered to himself, 

"If it's not full-time work but part-time jobs, then the shifts are usually only half-days or a few hours. 

The schedule's irregular—restaurants might need staff only from 5 to 8 p.m., malls only on busy weekends, trash collection ends once the work's done… and there are always other people on the job. 

Unless all three are fixed, full-time summer gigs, they wouldn't even fill a weekly schedule."

"Lying's not a good habit, Aoyama-san."

Nanami shrank her neck like a turtle, slowly spreading out five fingers… then hesitated and lifted two more on the other hand.

"Th-these are all… really…"

Akira had mentally prepared himself for how hard she worked, but seeing seven fingers still made him suck in a breath.

Meanwhile, Utaha—who'd been silently following behind—was completely stunned.

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