Amour

Heaven's Kiss Billiard Club, Shibuya, Tokyo - Morning

Kenta Todoroki

The neon signs outside my bar flickered weakly in the rain—CLOSED FOR RENOVATION scrawled across the door in a notice board that definitely hadn’t been there since I finished my shift yesterday...

“What the fuck…?” I muttered, running a hand through my damp hair. Once again, I tugged at the locked handle, harder this time. Still no give.

That fucking slut!

Miku.

I clenched my jaw until my teeth hurt.
That spoiled little slut probably had something to do with this. After the stunt she pulled earlier, it wouldn’t surprise me if she’d made a call to her rich daddy just to fuck with my business. I never thought she would go this far to make me lose one of my jobs.

“Fuck it, screw this slut!" My legs kicked that fucking door with all of the anger I have through. 

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Blue Moon Host Club, Kabukicho District, Tokyo - Night

By the time my ass arrived at the host club, the lights and perfume haze were already eating through the bitterness. Music thumped, laughter spilled from tables, and all I could do was put on an act, slip back into my host persona.  Charming grin, soft-spoken voice, and, of course, my playful eyes. All of my necessary weapons to trap another hapless girl.
A drink here. A joke there. A hand on their shoulders.
It's just part of my routine as a male host. 
But I couldn't really let go of the fact that I was pissed off today. That little slut just ruined one of my jobs, and now I have to entertain these brain-dead girls so that they give me more tips. 

I chug those bottles more than usual.
One bottle. Two bottles. Then another.
Until my laughter started fading away.

By the time most of my regulars left, it was just me and the faint hum of jazz in the background. I was about to call it a night when she walked in. 

Platinum blonde hair, with a lock of hair falling over one eye. Like, damn girl. She was the kind of beauty that made the whole world stop for a second! Not gonna lie, after a bad day, this is what I fucking need in my life! 

And she didn’t look like the usual customers—there was something… intentionally mysterious about her presence. Her gaze was sharp and direct, locking onto me immediately. Immediately, my instinct kicks in, I need to get her fucking number, and we're gonna fuck all night. 

“Welcome to Blue Moon's club, princess~ Are you here for drinks? Chats? Or s-some....private sessions?" I almost didn't finish my sentence, a bit tipsy from the long night.

“Anything would do. You’ll do me nicely.” Her voice was deep and sultry; the way she said it sent a jolt down my spine. 

She walked over, and oh boy! The slit of her red dress revealing her hot cleavage and pale skin, my drunk brain immediately processed her sexiness. Oh. Seems like someone has been naughty? I could see that she had a beautiful butterfly tattoo on her right chest.

Up close, I sniffed her fragrance and could tell she used an expensive perfume. It was intoxicating. Finally, someone so rich that I could leech off for the next month! Definitely won't let this opportunity slip away. She slid into the booth opposite me, crossing her legs with elegance.

“The name's Kenny. What’s your name, princess?” My lips flashed the lazy grin that usually worked.

She tilted her head, and I could see a faint, luminous emerald green contact lens on the exposed part of her eye. 

“Misa.” 

She leaned closer before I could ask for more, 
“Let’s make tonight… a little bit more interesting, shall we?”

Through the haze of liquor and her stare, I forgot all about that slut Miku and my billiard bar. The club was quiet now, just the two of us in the corner booth. Misa leaned forward, elbows resting on the table, her emerald eyes half-lidded and studying me. I'm sure at this point she's already charmed by my handsome face. 

“So,” she murmured, swirling the wine in her glass, “what are you up to, Kenny? Have any troubles?”

I gave a rough laugh while putting my lighter and a pack of cigarettes on the table.  “You first. You don’t look like the kind of girl who walks into a host club at midnight.”

“Maybe I just wanted to forget a few things.” Her gaze dipped down, then locked into my eyes. “But looking at you… I think your troubles might weigh more than mine.”

“You think so?”

She leaned closer, close enough that her breath brushed my cheek. Misa grabbed two of my cigarettes, bit one, and gave one to me. Her hand traced mine on the table, her other one grabbed my lighter, and she glanced into my eyes.

“Mmhm. I can tell. The way your hands shake a little when you talk. A little tense at midnight, hm?” Her tone turned soft. 

She lit the lighter, and we kindled our cigarettes from that one lighter at the same time. White haze of smoke lingered between our frames.

“You can vent to me now, Kenny.”

Something in her voice, smooth, patient, and kind, made me calm. I stared at the table for a long moment before answering. “It’s nothing. Just… someone I used to work with.”

Her lips parted slightly. “A girl?”

“Yeah.”

“Pretty one?”

I gave a humorless laugh. “Pretty enough to ruin my life.”

The hot chick chuckled, low and silky, and her voice made me talk more than I intended to.... One drink became two. My words loosened. My tongue followed my temper.

“She’s a manipulative brat. Thinks the whole damn world revolves around her.” I slammed my empty glass down, shaking my head and showing her Miku's selfie with me.

Misa didn’t flinch at her flashing picture—if anything, she looked compassionate and worried.

“She used me,” I continued, bitterness spilling like poison. “Said if I helped her trap some girl she doesn't like, she’d give me a night with her. A reward, she said.” I let out a dry laugh. “And then when I failed, she acted like I was trash. Had my bar shut down like it was nothing.”

Misa’s eyes shimmered faintly in the dim light. “And you still care about her?”

“Care? I want to fucking kill her now, maybe even fuck her in front of her boyfriend!”

She leaned forward and brushed her fingers against my cheek. Heaven's feel....

“You're a bold one,” she whispered, her hot red lips curling into a frown. “Then maybe… we’re not so different after all.”

I didn’t know what she meant.
But everything about her stayed with me in this long night. 

She tilted her head, that cascade of blonde hair brushing her uncovered shoulder as she smiled at me. “So, Kenny… tell me more about her,” she murmured. “About Miku.”

I groaned, leaning back against the booth. “Why do you even care?”

“Because I can tell she hurt you,” she said. “And no one deserves to be thrown away after giving everything they've got.” Her lens softened, the emerald glow catching the dim light. “You just wanted to help her, didn’t you?”

Something about the way she said it made me comfortable. It wasn’t pity, it was understanding. Real or not, it felt like she could see right through the tough guy act I’d built up over the years with Miku. Our relationship was transactional and toxic. And this hottie knows about it just from chatting with me for a few minutes.

“Actually, I'm just a dropout......After my parents' divorce, I lived with my mother, who was a hooker. She taught me how to host.... All I can do is use my looks to earn a paycheck. That's where I met her. And she started to help me gather a lot of bucks with her father's money. I'm dumb and I need money." 

Misa didn’t interrupt. She just nodded, eyes never leaving mine. “You weren’t dumb,” she said softly. “You were desperate. You needed someone to make you feel wanted again. You didn't do anything wrong. ”

That hit harder than I expected. My chest ached, and for some reason, the drink didn’t numb it.

“Miku made me think I'm somebody...,like I wasn’t just some dropout and some—”

“Failure?” Misa finished for me.

“Yeah.”

Her smile was faint and sad. “You don’t have to hide it. I’ve met people like her before—girls who use other people's kindness like a blade is not really that rare. But I’ve also met people like you.”

“People like me?” I slurred, blinking at her.

“People who just wanted to be recognized,” she whispered.

My heart kicked hard in my chest. God, her voice—so gentle it almost hurt. Before I could follow up, she reached out and brushed my cheek with her lips. Chu ❤︎. My face went tomato red for a moment.

“You’re tired, aren’t you? You’ve been running for too long.”

I nodded, my breath shaky. Instinctively, I should've kissed back... but somehow my body can't.

“Then rest,” she whispered, sliding back just enough to pat her thighs. “Here.”

My eyes locked on her pale legs under the shimmer of the red neon club lights, smooth and inviting. 

“Go on,” she coaxed. “It’s all right.”

I didn’t even think further. I lay my head down on her lap like I’d done it a thousand times before. Her touch was cool against my hair, her fingers threading gently through it.

“You're a good boy...., you’ve suffered enough.”

Wait? Is she...? My eyelids grew heavy. I could barely hear my own voice when I whispered, but a blink of familiarity now reminded me when I saw her face down here.

“You sound… familiar.”

She smiled faintly, “Do I?”

“Yeah… like I’ve heard you somewhere before.”

“Maybe you already have.”

And as the world blurred into darkness, I could’ve sworn I saw something flicker behind those emerald contact lenses. I don’t even know how long we’d been talking. The bottles on the table had long since emptied, and my whole world spun just enough that Misa’s face looked like it floated like a lantern, right after her breasts.

“You said she used you. Tell me, Kenny… how many people has she done that to?”

“Everyone.” I dragged a hand through my hair, letting out a dry laugh. “That bitch got eight boyfriends. Eight. Can you believe that?”

Misa’s blonde brows lifted slightly, interest flickering behind those emerald eyes. “Eight?” she echoed, her voice dipping into a purr. “That’s quite uhm... collection, I must say.”

“Yeah,” I muttered, half laughing on the words. “And guess what? I’m not even one of them. I was just the idiot errand boy who did her dirty work.”

Her fingers brushed against my cheek again, and she kissed my forehead this time. Chu ❤︎. Dumbly, my cheek must have been so red by now.

“You’re not an errand boy, Kenny,” she whispered. “But… eight boyfriends? You must have known a lot about her.”

“Of course I do,” I said, fumbling for my phone. “You think I didn’t keep receipts? She parades around like a saint, but I’ve seen the messages. I’ve seen who she’s with.”

“Show me.”

I swiped through the gallery—blurry photos, chat screenshots, a couple of pictures I’d taken when I followed her once or twice. “There’s Kazuki, that soccer guy from Yamamoto High School. And this one's Yuuto, the photography nerd from Osaka. Then there’s that college senior from Tokyo University, Shin. Oh, and the rich brat from Kagurazaka High School, Akinari. She keeps them all on a leash, you know? Everyone thinks they’re the only one.”

“And the others?”

“Let’s see…” I scrolled again, blinking hard. “Hibiki from the other host club, the bookstore guy, and that swimmer dude—tch, I forgot their name.” I chuckled faintly.

“But her favorite? This boxer boy. Ryu Isagi. The good guy type. The one she pretends to love for real.”

“Ryu…” she repeatedly savoring the name. 

“Yeah. The one she’s saving her best act for. Poor bastard has no idea who he’s dealing with.”

Misa hummed softly, her nails tracing lazy circles against my shoulder. “You sound jealous.”

“Jealous?” I barked out a bitter laugh. “Maybe I am. He gets the ‘girlfriend’ version. I got the 'bossy bitchy' bootleg version. But whatever, she’ll burn herself sooner or later. Someone like her always does.”

Misa didn’t reply. Her eyes caught the faint light, gleaming with something unreadable. When she finally spoke, her voice was so calm it almost sent a chill down my spine.

“Thank you for telling me, Kenny,” she said, stroking my hair again. “You’ve helped me more than you realize.”

I frowned. “Helped you?”

She smiled faintly. “Let’s just say… a 'special field survey'.”

I wanted to ask what that meant, but my head was heavy, and her lap was too soft. My eyes fluttered closed before I could think. The last thing I felt was her fingers slipping through my hair—and the faintest whisper against my ear, sweet and sharp at once:

“Sleep well, Host-san.”

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Kenta's Apartment, Ginza, Tokyo - Morning 

What the hell happened last night?

I remember drinking—yeah, lots of that. The client was talkative, or maybe I was. Then she showed up… that hot chick. Her voice. God, that voice, it wrapped around me like smoke.

Wait.

Who was her name again?

I sat up fast, clutching my head as pain stabbed through my skull. “Shit…”

Her name was Misa. 

I can picture her perfectly, every detail, but it’s like my brain blanks out the moment I try to say it. It’s not just a hangover. No, this feels wrong. My pulse is racing, skin clammy, stomach twisting like I swallowed acid.

Did she… spike my drink last night?

But why?

I pushed off the bed, stumbling to the mirror. My reflection looked worse than ever—bloodshot eyes, sweat dripping down my neck. My chest was heaving like I’d just finished a fight. And under my skin, just beneath my collarbone, something faint, like a thin red mark crawling along the vein.

What the hell did she do to me?

I gritted my teeth, trying to replay the night. She asked questions. About her. About Miku.
And I told her… everything.

I don’t know what burns more, my blood or the fact that I might’ve just sold Miku out to a stranger. 

Tch. No.

I don’t feel regret 

Only this weird, crawling heat that makes me want to find that woman again,
to ask who she was.

But wait.....

What if she's....

Chisa...?

She must have been her!

BANG!

Hurt........

...is that my blood?

All I could see were some men in black getting inside my room.....

And I saw her.....smiling in front of the door....

Everything's turned into black............