Chapter 3

“Are you alright?” Ao asked.

I nodded glumly.

“If any of the hosts have caused you any trouble at all, please don’t hesitate to bring it up,” she said, only a tinge of sympathy in her tone. “We take our customers’ complaints very seriously. We won’t hesitate to take action—”

“Could you bring him back?” I asked.

She hesitated for a moment, unsure if she had heard me correctly. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, please. And, you don’t have to punish him or anything. It’s fine.”

“I—” She pulled herself together. “Of course. If that’s what you want.”

Ao returned once again, but for the first time, with the same host in tow. He looked amused now, like he had just watched a cat pull off a clever trick. He slid smoothly into the seat next to me, and Ao made off.

“I don’t think I ever introduced myself. I’m Mitsuki.” He extended a hand to me in greeting. At first, I considered not taking it as he had done to me, but I wasn’t feeling that bitter yet. I accepted his introduction, and he smiled in return.

“Why’d you decide to call me back?” he asked.

“I don’t like losing,” I said. I wasn’t looking at him.

He let out a low hum of acknowledgement. “You’ve probably realized this by now, but most hosts have their own way of operating.”

I nodded, signaling him to continue.

“And of course, each approach works for a different type of clientele.”

When I didn’t respond, he continued, “My approach tends to work best on the stubborn ones, like you.”

I finally looked up at him. He was smiling like he had just won a bet.

“You did that on purpose,” I said.

“You called me back, didn’t you?”

If I hadn’t been before, I was fully sulking then. Arms crossed on the table, head buried in them, shoulders slumped—I felt truly miserable. Far from feeling better, coming here with Rin had only left me even more lonely than before.

Mitsuki made no attempt to close the gap between us. He wasn’t even looking at me, instead keeping his eyes fixed on Rin and the other hosts. They had brought out several bottles of champagne for all of them, and they were singing loudly to a Palettes song. Far from Rin’s performance on stage, her voice screeched up and down through the notes as she sang. Had Kyouko seen the sight before me, she would have surely been at a complete loss for words. I wasn’t sure if this was exactly what Rin had had in mind when she left me alone with Mitsuki.

It was infuriating. Even just sitting next to him, I could feel myself shrinking, my face growing warm. I downed another glass, just to keep my nerves steady. Even though the other hosts were similarly attractive, I had to admit that Mitsuki was exactly my type. Nonchalant, cold, and distant. I sped through an entire life together with him in my mind. We’d get together, the first couple of dates, and then he’d propose to me at sunset on a beach. He’d get cold feet about the increasing commitment and back out at the last minute, we’d start fighting about it, and he’d break my heart, leaving me to die alone. And yet, I wanted it all the same. I wanted someone to be able to hurt me that badly. It was a heat-of-the-moment, instantaneous attraction type of thing. If I had been asked again the morning after what I thought about Mitsuki, I would have probably wrinkled my nose. Which was why, just then, I couldn’t let go of my desire to be in love.

“So, she’s an idol, huh?” It took me a moment to realize Mitsuki had spoken to me.

“She is,” I replied noncommittally. “An amazing one, in fact. Though, you might find that hard to believe at the moment.”

“And you? You’re an idol too, right?”

“I am.”

Even in her drunken state, Rin was an excellent dancer. She took to the middle of the crowd just as she did on stage and moved with such grace that I forgot we were still in a host club. It was one of our songs, so of course she knew all the moves, and had practiced them for days on end. It was little wonder that even Kyouko often went to her for help with particularly tricky moves. She pulled one such move off just then, causing the crowd to erupt into cheers, though she barely even batted an eye.

“I don’t think I could even do that sober,” I muttered to myself.

“What’s your favorite Palettes song?” Mitsuki asked.

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

“I already told you. I don’t know any of your songs. It would be pointless to ask me.”

I thought about it for a moment. “I like Strawberry Train.”

“How does that one go?”

“You’re my Strawberry Train. I’ll wait for you no matter how long it takes.”

“Ah. I think I might have heard that one.”

Mitsuki didn’t say anything after that. We just continued to listen to Rin sing. It went on for a while, and they got rowdier as they went. After a while, I slumped over the table, chin resting on the flat top.

“What is this?” I asked, dejected. “What kind of host just sits there while we watch someone else have fun? Do I have to pay you more or something?”

He smiled in return. “Sorry, but this is just how I am. This isn’t something money can solve. Though, if you’d like to pay me more, I wouldn’t object.”

I grimaced. “You’re terrible, aren’t you? I should pay you to go away.”

“Rin’s paying me to keep you company, so if you want me to leave, you’ll have to at least double her offer.”

“And how much is that?”

“You’d have to pay me one million yen.”

I blanched at the number. Curse that Rin. I should have known that she’d throw around her money like it was nothing. Not that I wouldn’t do the same, but…

“Whatever,” I said. “If I’m going to spend a million yen tonight, then it might as well be in drinks. What have you got for me?”

He let himself have a grin. “Now we’re talking. Let me see what I can do for you.”

He left and came back a moment later with several bottles under his arm. He laid them out across the table one by one, like a collector showing off his wares. Then, he placed two glasses on the table, one for me and one for himself.

“How well do you hold your liquor?” he asked.