Actually, even if he hadn't said those words just now, Takahashi Mio's affection level wouldn't have been stuck at 65 forever.
You know how people get caught up in the heat of the moment and do impulsive stuff? Well, once Mio calmed down, her affection would probably bounce back to 70 on its own. And it wouldn't drop again unless it hit the big 100.
Case in point: about five minutes later, her affection dipped a little again, finally settling at 71 points.
Shiratori Seiya originally thought he could go for a kiss at 70 affection. But thinking back to that day's situation, Mio must've been at her peak—maybe even over 80—to act on impulse and kiss him…
"Thank you."
While waiting at a red light, Mio suddenly turned to look at the guy beside her. Her shoujo-manga sparkly eyes went full bulingbuling as she said earnestly:
"I'll definitely work hard. No way I'm letting you down."
Shiratori Seiya blinked, then felt a warm fuzzy feeling in his chest.
No matter what her true nature was—whether she was jealous, had a twisted pride the size of a mecha, or was just plain vain—this kind of professional attitude really put him at ease.
Seeing Seiya's brows relax, Mio lowered her gaze and stared silently at the audition form in her hand.
"I don't know if you've got some kind of 'raising sim' obsession, but as long as I work my hardest to live up to my potential, you'll be happy, right?"
"Shiratori Seiya, your heart is just too easy to read."
For a moment, Mio could only think that Hōjō Shione was seriously incompetent. She'd spent all that time with this scoundrel and still hadn't discovered his little quirk?
Incompetent. Like Aqua-level useless.
Right after that, she decided that Buggy the Clown wannabe was also worthless. What good was her fancy kendo? Wasn't he now stuck putting all his attention on her?
Useless. Laughably useless.
Thinking those thoughts, Mio felt so refreshed.
This was honestly the happiest she'd been since she started learning acting. The frustration and helplessness from being overshadowed by Hōjō at that concert? Gone. Poof.
…But her good mood didn't last long.
Staring at the script application in her hand, a wave of emotion suddenly washed over her. She felt a little dazed, like everything in front of her wasn't quite real.
So fast. Too fast… An audition?
She'd only started learning acting a little over a month ago, right?
Am I really okay? Can I actually pass the audition?
What if… But with him there, it'd definitely be fine… right?
Biting her lip lightly, Mio glanced sideways at Seiya, who was driving.
He'd said he couldn't guarantee she'd pass, but she wasn't an idiot. Even if she hadn't completely figured him out during their time together, she could sense that his core willpower was stronger than anyone's.
He never gave up until he reached his goal. Once he decided on something, he had to succeed. His drive was terrifyingly strong—sometimes it even made her want to follow him.
So this audition? She'd most likely pass.
But what if I totally bomb it?
Suddenly, she felt like she'd probably be fine. She wanted to share the joy of her upcoming audition—and the real possibility of becoming the female lead—with someone. She wanted to hear them cheer her on.
But thinking it over, the only people she could tell were Shiratori Seiya and Haruno Reika.
Still, she was scared that if she told Reika too much, she might accidentally let it slip… Not that she didn't trust her, but Reika liked to drink. What if word got out and her father found out…? She shook her head, chasing that nightmare out of her mind.
So in the end, the only one she could share with was Shiratori Seiya.
A mix of warmth and lonely solitude swirled in her heart, and Mio didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"What's wrong?"
Noticing her affection had randomly jumped up a bit again, Seiya turned to look at her. Mio's face had a complicated expression on it.
"Nothing."
Yeah, that definitely means something's wrong.
Watching her shake her head, Seiya followed her gaze to the application in her hand. Assuming she was worried about the audition, he tried to comfort her:
"You don't need to stress too much. You've already read the script—the female lead doesn't have that many scenes—and you've been doing special training lately. If you're still nervous, just think about how hard you've been working. You'll be fine."
"Thank you."
His comfort earned him only a "thank you," and her affection didn't budge.
Guess I didn't flatter her right?
Seiya stared at Mio again. The light turned green, and he kept driving while thinking.
When they arrived and he parked the car, he didn't rush to unbuckle his seat-belt. After a moment's thought, he said:
"Are you thinking about your family?"
"?"
Hearing that, Mio's ring finger twitched, and she couldn't help but look up at him.
"Do you have, like, mind-reading powers or something?"
Seeing her reaction, Seiya thought, Called it. Then he leaned back in his seat, staring at the streetlights outside as he spoke:
"You're about to do something you've always dreamed of, and your heart's a mess—nervous, anxious, excited, happy. You've got things you want to say, but you can't even tell your own family. That's gotta be frustrating, right?"
"They won't even acknowledge you, will they?"
"…"
At those words, a pang of sadness welled up in Mio's chest. Tears pooled in her eyes, blurring the words on the application in front of her. She couldn't help turning her head toward the window, her fingers unconsciously wiping the corners of her eyes.
Seeing that, Seiya continued:
"I won't say I'll always support you. But I will walk with you to the most dazzling place in your dreams. I'll stick with you until the day they all genuinely envy and acknowledge you—the day they want to deny you but can't say a single word."
The softest part of her heart got pierced.
Mio's tears spilled like a broken dam, smudging her makeup. She took a deep breath and quickly grabbed several tissues…
Seiya watched her affection shoot up to nearly eighty points, and he smiled.
Guess those psychology books weren't a total waste.
Easy peasy.
But his joy didn't even last a full minute.
When they got out of the car, Mio's affection dropped again.
Before he could figure out why, Mio—who'd walked to the training room entrance—suddenly reached out and patted his shoulder. Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she said:
"Seiya, you said all that stuff to Hōjō before, didn't you?"
Then she stuck out her tongue at him without waiting for a reply, turned, and walked into the training room.
"…"
Shiratori Seiya watched the young girl's retreating figure and fell silent for a moment.
Looks like even with affection displays, conquering her isn't that simple… Is her IQ really only six?
Then again, emotional intelligence probably isn't governed by IQ. And since she was still far from master-level, there was no rush to max out her affection immediately.
Buzz buzz.
He was about to sit down in his usual spot to take notes for Mio when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw an unfamiliar number.
He was about to hang up when he noticed this number had sent a text earlier.
"It's Suzune."