Chapter 79: It’s Inevitable
After arranging a hospital room for Akari Hojo and picking up the prescribed medication, the tense atmosphere had dissipated considerably.
Akari Honne ended the call with her mother and looked at Alan with a complex expression, saying.
"I told Mom exactly what you said, Alan, and asked her to come tomorrow morning instead."
"Mm."
Alan nodded, fell silent for a moment, then glanced at Nozomi Sakura, who was leaning against the wall yawning nearby, and said.
"Honne, you still have to go back to school tomorrow, right? There’s only one accompanying bed in the hospital. You should go back and get some proper rest first."
He turned to look at Nozomi Sakura and said.
"Nozomi, could you please take her back to the hotel? If anything happens on the way, just give me a call."
"I..."
Hearing this, Akari Honne’s eyes went blank for a moment, and she instinctively wanted to refuse.
However, Nozomi Sakura, who had been standing nearby, walked over, rubbed her eyes, and muttered.
"It’s already past midnight... I’ve been wanting to go back for a while now..."
After saying that, she looked at the stunned girl beside her, a faint smile curling at the corner of her lips as she said softly.
"Are you coming or not?"
Akari Honne glared at her, then glanced at Alan before looking through the window at her sister lying in the hospital bed. She bit her lip and said.
"I understand."
If it were anyone else—whether her sister or her mother—asking her to go back, she wouldn’t have left.
Although, when she learned earlier that her sister had depression, Akari Honne recalled something her sister had once said to her.
’Otherwise, what else should I do? Should I be so angry that I go crazy, then refuse to eat a single bite of food every day, lock myself in my room crying, and drive myself to the point of a mental breakdown, relying on antidepressants to cope?’
Her heart ached a little.
But deep down, she felt that things weren’t that simple.
It was too sudden.
During yesterday’s rehearsal, she had been completely fine, showing no signs of nervousness at all.
And today, the first few songs had gone smoothly, so logically, she shouldn’t have been nervous either.
How could she suddenly become so nervous that she lost her voice?
Earlier, when she saw the look of guilt and sorrow on Alan’s face, Akari Honne’s heart ached especially hard.
Now, hearing him say this, she didn’t want to appear willful or unreasonable in front of him.
She obediently nodded, but before leaving, she couldn’t help but offer comfort.
"Alan, please don’t be sad, okay? This isn’t your fault..."
Hearing this, Alan forced a faint smile and said to her.
"I’m fine. Don’t worry about it. Go back and get some rest. You can come take over tomorrow morning."
"Mm..."
Watching her and Nozomi disappear around the corner of the hallway, he stood at the door of the hospital room, hesitated for a moment, and then pushed the door open to go inside.
As soon as he entered, he met Akari Hojo’s gaze. It seemed she had been watching him through the window the entire time.
Seeing Alan, a faint smile appeared on her pale face.
No matter the situation, it seemed that as long as she could see Alan, she could always manage a gentle smile.
Alan closed the door and walked over to pour her a glass of hot water.
Even though the doctor had just diagnosed that there was nothing wrong with her vocal cords, he still couldn’t rest easy and spent 100,000 yen to exchange for an appraisal card.
When he saw that Akari Hojo’s talent was still S-rank and her singing ability was approaching LV4, he finally felt a sense of relief.
Then, he sat in the accompanying chair beside her, looking at the girl’s pale face. He reached out and touched her forehead to confirm she wasn’t running a fever before speaking.
"I asked Nozomi to take Honne back. Don’t worry about it. Your mom will come to stay with you tomorrow morning..."
"You should rest well for now. Don’t think about work or the company. We’ll handle everything that comes later, and it’s not as bad as you think..."
"..."
Akari Hojo listened to his rambling, blinking her moist eyes as her gaze never left his face, as if she could never get enough of looking at him.
Occasionally, she would nod to show she was listening.
Alan spoke for a while, feeling he had said everything he needed to.
Glancing at the time—it was almost one in the morning—he said.
"Alright, let’s sleep for now. Everything will seem better after you wake up."
As he spoke, he got up and turned off the light in the room.
Akari Hojo didn’t stop him, seemingly agreeing that it was time to rest.
With the lights off in the room, Alan lay on the accompanying bed nearby, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Suddenly, his phone, which he had placed beside the pillow, lit up.
Picking up the phone, he saw a message from Akari Hojo.
[I’m sorry, Alan.]
He turned his head to look at Akari Hojo, who waved her phone at him, indicating she wanted to chat for a while using their phones.
Alan glanced at his phone, thought for a moment, and replied.
[What are you apologizing for?]
[I’m sorry for letting you down.]
[It’s all in the past now. Don’t dwell on it... Besides, if we’re talking about expectations, I didn’t have any for this concert. This was just a small step for you. My real hope is to see you stand on your own and shine brightly in the future...]
[Stand on my own... I thought I could do that this time too, but it seems like I can’t do it alone after all.]
Looking at this message, Alan’s mood instantly grew complicated again. For a moment, he didn’t know how to reply.
However, Akari Hojo didn’t seem to want to put him on the spot, as another message quickly followed.
[Alan, I’m planning to take a break for a while.]
[It’s not that I’ll never sing again. I’m just too tired and want to rest for a bit. You’ll support me, right?]
[After working so hard for so long, it’s time to take a break.]
[Mm... Thank you...]
[No matter what, having you by my side, Alan, gives me the courage to keep going, no matter what choice I make.]
[It’s getting late. Let’s rest soon.]
[Mm.]
Akari Hojo replied, and then, as if she really intended to rest, no more phone screens lit up in the room.
However, a few minutes later, Alan suddenly heard the soft rustling sound of the girl getting out of bed.
He turned his head and saw Akari Hojo standing by the window near the hallway, reaching out to close the curtains.
With a soft swish, the room plunged into complete darkness.
By the faint moonlight filtering in from outside, Alan could vaguely make out the girl’s figure gradually approaching.
Finally, Akari Hojo’s lay down beside him. This time, Alan didn’t refuse.
He allowed her arms to wrap around his waist as she pressed her face against his back.
A look of longing flickered in Akari Hojo’s eyes.
Feeling the warmth of the boy in front of her, the girl’s soft, plump body trembled with emotion, as if she had finally achieved some great success.
Tears of joy welled up uncontrollably from her eyes.
Please forgive my despicable, filthy, greedy, and dirty heart...
Even if you don’t forgive me, it doesn’t matter. As long as I can stay by your side, I don’t care about anything else. Even if you hate me, it’s fine...
Just don’t leave me.
Inhaling Alan’s scent, Akari Hojo felt the cracks in her heart being filled once again.
Her long, pale legs instinctively wrapped around his waist, her cheek gently rubbing against his back as she tightened her arms around him, leaving no space between them.
Her thoughts gradually drifted, and before she knew it, she had fallen into a deep sleep.
However, just a few seconds after she lost consciousness, Alan’s phone suddenly lit up.
He hadn’t been sleeping. Picking up his phone, he saw a message from Honne.
[ALAN, SHE’S CLEARLY LYING TO YOU!]
Alan’s eyes grew complex.
He sighed inwardly and replied:
[It doesn’t matter anymore.]
