"Ai, do you need the bathroom? I want to take a quick shower."
"...You go first."
In the hotel room, Hoshino Ai, who was sitting upright on the bed, shook her head in response to Misumi Uika's question.
"I'm planning to wait until after today's work is done."
"First, you are not allowed to be distracted during work. If I find out, I will confiscate the key card immediately."
"I see."
Uika didn't suspect anything about Ai's response and simply walked into the bathroom.
After Uika went in, Ai suddenly got up, walked to the room door, and carefully opened it to peer outside—
"On this hallway... there should be less than five rooms that have a clear view of our door..."
In other words, I'll just need to be careful of the occupants of these few rooms!
"Second, just in case, you must go over only when there is no one else in the hallway."
After carefully surveying the terrain, Ai returned to the bedside and reached out to open the nightstand drawer.
When she saw what was inside, her eyes lit up with an incredibly joyful glow—
"Third, if you plan to go over at night, you must take that box from the nightstand drawer with you... As for what I mean by that, you'll understand when you see it."
(Does this mean... Higuchi-san has already given her tacit approval for my relationship with Tetsu?)
Looking at the unopened box of "safety supplies" in her hand, Ai's heart was filled with an indescribable mix of joy and confusion.
Come to think of it, neither the manager's behavior in the car nor the instructions she had just given seemed to be aimed at stopping her from making a move on Tetsuya... In fact, it was quite the opposite. The manager herself had orchestrated this entire situation.
What's going on? I feel like I've received so many favors that I can't quite figure out what the manager is really thinking.
From their previous conversations, she shouldn't want her to graduate, right? If that's the case, why does she keep pushing her in Tetsu's direction?
Or could it be... that the actions she herself considered quite radical were nothing major in the manager's eyes?
Ai was now deeply perplexed.
And just as she was pondering the manager's true intentions, Uika, having finished her shower, happened to walk out of the bathroom.
"Whew~ Are you sure you don't want to rinse off? It's really refreshing... Hey!"
When Uika saw the object in Ai's hand, her relaxed expression instantly transformed into one of grave seriousness, as if facing a great enemy.
"Why did you take that out? What are you planning to do?"
"...Right, this is the normal reaction, isn't it?!"
Faced with Uika's questioning, Ai not only remained unshaken but actually showed a relieved expression, as if she had finally found the correct answer.
"Higuchi-san's reaction was definitely the stranger one!"
"Huh? Why are you bringing her up?!"
Uika asked with a frown.
"Forget it. Whatever the case, put that thing back right now!"
"I won't!"
In response to Uika's demand, Ai turned her head and stuffed the box into her own pocket.
"Higuchi-san specifically told me to take this!"
"...Huh?"
Hearing this, Uika's first instinct was to think she was lying. But when she saw the key card that Ai produced next, she was thrown into a state of complete confusion.
"Eh? The room number on that key card... is the same as Tetsuya-san's."
"Hmph, now you get it, right?"
Ai put the key card away with a smug look on her face.
"I already have Higuchi-san's permission! To use your own words, if you have a problem, you can go talk to Higuchi-san yourself!"
"..."
Although Uika's wariness was not at all dispelled, the origin of this key card did indeed match the conversation the two had at the door just now.
In other words, she really did have the manager's tacit approval...
"No, I have to go ask her and get this cleared up!"
Even with the manager's approval, this matter involved more than just Ai and Tetsuya!
If she really let Ai make a move on him, what awaited them would be nothing but unpredictable chaos!
Filled with worry, Uika quickly took out her phone. She first glanced back at Ai, who was once again staring blankly at the box, then rushed out of the room and dialed the manager's number—
...
[I knew you'd call to demand an explanation.]
Before Uika could even get out her opening line, the manager cut straight to the chase.
[I know what you want to ask. Yes, I was the one who gave her that room key, and I was the one who told her to take out that box.]
"But why?!"
Uika couldn't understand it at all.
"Higuchi-san, you should know, right? Ai's feelings for Tetsuya-san are so strong they're almost bordering on blind obsession! If you keep fanning the flames like this, she might really choose to give up everything to be with him after getting a taste of it—"
[Don't worry, she won't.]
However, in the face of Uika's anxiety, the manager's tone was as calm as ever.
[It's better to guide than to restrict. For a single-minded girl like Ai who's in a rebellious phase, the more you try to restrain her, the more likely you are to provoke her defiance. If you give her a direct push, she'll become confused because she can't figure out your true intentions.]
"That..."
Come to think of it, when she had just walked out of the bathroom, Ai had indeed looked completely dumbstruck.
"But even so, letting... letting them do that, isn't it a bit too extreme?!"
Uika pressed on.
"Putting aside Ai's status as an idol, Tetsuya-san is at a critical point where he's about to start his own business! If they really do that, it will definitely affect him!"
[I don't think you need to worry about that either.]
The manager replied.
[While it's true that given his physique, Tetsuya-san is probably no match for Ai, if the man is completely unwilling to accept the other party, a one-sided use of force is definitely not enough. And... this can also be considered a rehearsal that I've arranged for the two of them.]
"A rehearsal?"
Uika was stunned by this term.
"A rehearsal for what?"
[To put it simply, before the live officially begins, I want them to make a choice in advance. Will they ignore all the risks and follow their desires to choose each other, or will they think about the longer term and restrain this momentary impulse?]
[If they can't even pass this one rehearsal, giving them more time will be futile. That would just be prolonging the period of endurance; the two of them would eventually end up on that path where only they exist. But, if they do manage to restrain themselves, then we can officially talk about what comes next—]
At that moment, another person's voice suddenly came through the phone.
And when Uika made out what was being said, she froze on the spot.
[So, regarding the invitation from TGC (Tokyo Girls Collection) for Ai, how should we respond?]