La Vie En Rose: Chapter 1 - Part 8

The content warning is in the footnotes0.

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It had been a month since they last met, and a month since they last had sex. Ron-chan was unusually assertive, which excited Momota intensely. He wanted to stay entwined with him, kissing endlessly, but before the lingering passion had cooled, Ron-chan began picking up the clothes he had tossed onto the floor. Momota, sitting on the bed, pulled his lover back under the sheets as he was trying to put on his underwear.

“...Momo.”

“Aren’t you going to stay with me until morning?”

After giving Momota a kiss, Ron-chan lowered his gaze.

“I was in the middle of work. I heard about you and dropped everything. I need to get back to the station.”

“Then, will you come back after you finish your work?”

Momota sulked, and Ron-chan, looking troubled, lowered his head. In the silence, Momota’s phone suddenly rang. Even though he was ignoring it, Ron-chan said, “Your phone’s ringing,” so he reluctantly answered it.

It was Miina, a girl who worked at the shop. The conversation was trivial, a rant about her husband. “Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Momota replied inattentively, just letting her talk. “I’m with someone right now, sorry,” he said, trying to wrap up the conversation. It took him fifteen minutes, and by then, Ron-chan had already dressed himself completely.

“Who was that?”

Ron-chan asked as Momota hung up the phone.

“Oh, just a girl from the shop. Seems like she’s having trouble with her husband…”

“I see,” Ron-chan replied.

“Are you worried I’m cheating on you or something, Ron-chan?”

“Listening to the complaints of your employees is part of the job, right?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“Momo, are you cheating?”

“I’m not, but…”

Ron-chan smiled as if he found something amusing. Feeling like he’d been one-upped, Momota sprawled naked on the bed, fiddling with his phone.

“Speaking of which, there was this girl—not from the shop—who used to call and text me all the time. Every couple of days, she’d ask me to treat her to a meal or something…”

Ron-chan approached and sat down at the edge of the bed, looking down at Momota as he lay there.

“Maybe that girl… likes you, Momo.”

Momota waved his right hand in front of his face dismissively.

“No way, no way. She’s the type who’d laugh and call me ugly. But I haven’t heard from her at all for the past month, and she was kind of a troubled girl, so I’ve been a bit worried…”

“What do you mean by troubled?”

“She was a total junkie. No matter how much I told her to stop, she wouldn’t listen.”

Momota checked his phone history. The last message from her was on March 20th.

“Some people manage to get clean, so if Rina’s turned her life around and is living right now, that’d be good…”

Ron-chan furrowed his brows and repeated the name, “Rina?”

“Could it be that girl’s name was Mitsui Rinako?”

Momota scratched his head.

“I don’t know her real name. She only ever told me her name was Rina.”

Ron-chan held his chin, his posture suggesting he was deep in thought. Their eyes met.

“Momo, do you have that girl’s phone number and email registered?”

“Yeah.”

“...If you don’t mind, could I take a look at your phone?”

“Sure.”

Momota displayed the email address and number and handed over his phone. Ron-chan took the phone and rummaged through his jacket pocket, but not finding what he was looking for, he muttered, “I forgot it…” under his breath. Then, he took out his own phone and started making a call somewhere.

“Hello, Mr. Kusaka? This is Hamauzu. I left my notebook behind, and I’m calling from outside, so could you please tell me the missing Mitsui Rinako’s phone number and email address? ...Yes… Yes… Thank you very much.”

Ron-chan stared intently at Momota. A chill ran down his spine, giving him a bad feeling.

“Momo, did that girl Rina have short hair?”

“Yeah, it was about shoulder length.”

“Did she have a mole under her right eye?”

“Did she? A mole… Oh yeah, she did.”

Momota saw Ron-chan lightly bite his lip.

“Momo, how did you meet that girl?”

“How? Rina was the girlfriend—or rather, the fling—of a young dealer who was pushing Matsuzaka gang’s drugs.”

“Do you know the dealer’s name?”

“Name? I know the face, but what was it again… Something cool-sounding… Mi… Mi… Mizushima, no, that’s not it. Mizuhara, no… Mi, Mi… That’s it, Mizuki.”

Ron-chan fell silent after that.

“You’re like a detective or something, Ron-chan…”

There was no reply.

“Could it be that Rina got busted?”

His lover slowly shook his head.

“Momo, listen to me calmly. Mitsui Rinako, the girl you called Rina, was killed last month.”

The thought that she might have died had crossed his mind. But he never imagined she had been murdered. Momota blurted out, “What?”

“For real?”

“Last month, on March 22nd, her strangled body was found in a river. It was Mitsui Rinako. The culprit hasn’t been caught yet. It was on the news, and they even showed her photo, but it was from high school, so maybe you didn’t recognize her. Her hairstyle had changed, and with makeup, she looked like a different person.”

Momota held his head in his hands. He had seen Rina the day before that. After work, he treated her to McDonald's. “If things get bad for me, will you help me, Momota?” she had said something like that.

“R-Ron-chan. What should I do…?”

His body trembled.

“I saw Rina the day before that happened. After work, at night… She was waiting in front of the shop and asked me to treat her to a meal. And then, she asked me, ‘If things get bad, will you help me?’ Do you think she knew she was going to be killed and was asking me for help? If that’s the case, then I…”

If only he hadn’t brushed it off as the ramblings of a junkie and had taken her seriously, maybe…

“It’s not your fault, Momo.”

Ron-chan’s words sharply pulled him back from the brink of despair.

“It’s not your fault. Even if Mitsui Rinako asked you for help, she didn’t explain what was happening or why she was in danger, right?”

“Yeah, but…”

“If Mitsui Rinako didn’t explain it clearly, then she didn’t want you to be involved. That’s how I see it.”

“But still…”

“Momo, you just happened to meet Mitsui Rinako the day before she was murdered. And even if she said, ‘Help me,’ we don’t know how much she was serious or what certainty she had.”

Ron-chan tightly gripped Momota’s trembling hands.

“The police will catch the culprit. You don’t need to feel responsible, Momo.”

Ron-chan’s words were firm, lifting Momota’s spirits that were on the verge of sinking. Yes, even if he dwelled on it, blaming himself, Rina wouldn’t come back. She wouldn’t be revived. The only thing he could do now was hope that the person who killed Rina would be found as soon as possible. That was all he could do now. 

"Momo, this might be tough, but could you tell me a bit more about Mitsui Rinako?" 

"I’m fine. I’ll tell you everything I know and help in any way I can. That might help catch the killer faster, right?" 

Ron-chan gripped Momota’s hand tightly, then took out a notepad and pen from the hotel desk. 

"We’ve found out that Mitsui Rinako was involved with a part-time worker named Mizuki Yokotani. But since the murder, Yokotani’s whereabouts are unknown. Yokotani was selling methamphetamines openly to friends and acquaintances, so we suspected there might be a foreign organization or a yakuza group backing him up, but we didn’t have any proof. But thanks to your statement, we now know that the Matsuzaka gang was the source. If there’s anything else you know about Mizuki Yokotani, I’d like you to tell me."  

Momota closed his eyes and thought. But he had only met Mizuki Yokotani once. 

"Oh, now that you mention it..." 

"What?" Ron-chan leaned forward. 

"When I first asked the Matsuzaka gang to let me be a dealer, they turned me down. The underboss said, ‘Ex-cons are too risky.’ But then... I think it was in early April. One of the members I knew asked me, ‘Would you still consider becoming a dealer?’ At that time, they said, ‘One of the young buyers screwed up, so we need to keep him hidden for a while.’ Could that have been Yokotani?" 

Ron-chan rubbed his chin and muttered, 

"...That doesn’t add up. Even if Mizuki Yokotani killed Mitsui Rinako, would the Matsuzaka gang go out of their way to protect a troublesome dealer? It would be much simpler to kill him than to take such a risk." 

I felt a chill when Ron-chan casually mentioned "killing him." 

"They said he was a subordinate of the underboss, so they couldn’t just get rid of him." 

Ron-chan turned around abruptly. 

"Who told you that...?" 

"One of the guys I know in the group. So if they’re hiding him, it’s probably at one of the Matsuzaka gang’s hideouts." 

Ron-chan buried his head in his hands. Did I say something I shouldn’t have, considering I’m just a civilian? Did I upset him? As I was feeling anxious, Ron-chan lifted his head. 

"Momo, I want you to take a break from working at the shop until this case is resolved." 

Ron-chan’s voice was firm. 

"As long as you’re marked as a drug dealer, even if you’re not actually selling, and there’s no evidence, they might still come after you for something unrelated... like claiming there’s prostitution happening at your workplace, some fake story. That’s why I wanted you to quit being a dealer. But if you suddenly cut ties with the Matsuzaka gang and then immediately after there’s a police investigation into Mizuki Yokotani, they’ll definitely suspect you. Either way, continuing to work at the shop is dangerous." 

"But the shop can’t run without me..." 

"It’s about your life, Momo. You can go back to work once this case settles down. Don’t go back to your apartment either. Stay in this hotel tonight, and within two or three days, I’ll find a place where you can stay safely." 

I wanted to gather information for Ron-chan, to become a drug dealer for him, but instead of being helpful, I feel like I’ve caused a lot of trouble. 

"Momo, do you understand?" 

I averted my eyes from my boyfriend and scratched my head. 

"The information you gave me about Mizuki Yokotani being connected to the Matsuzaka gang really helped. Honestly, the investigation was hitting a dead end. As for the location of the domestic meth lab, we can leave that to the local police... Momo, you don’t have to do anything else." 

I had no choice but to say, "Okay."

:-::-:

The next morning, just before nine o'clock, Momota called his boss. Although Ron-chan had told him, "You can go back to work once the case settles down," Momota didn’t think it would be that easy to return to the shop.

Even if Mizuki Yokotani, who killed Rina, was caught, that didn’t mean the Matsuzaka gang would be dismantled. As long as the organization remained, he would forever be a traitor. That being said, if his snitching about the warehouse deal didn’t get exposed and they only found out that he had tipped off a low-level member, the group likely wouldn’t go all out to hunt him down.

If he left the Matsuzaka gang's territory and cut ties with the adult entertainment industry, he might be able to make it somehow. But there was no way he could ever return to that shop, which was right in the middle of the Matsuzaka gang's territory.

From the start, Momota directly said to the boss, "I’d like to quit my job."

"Hey, hey, what’s going on all of a sudden, Momo-san?"

The boss was clearly confused by the sudden request.

"I can’t go into details, but I just can’t work at the shop anymore. I’m really sorry to leave things half-finished like this, but I truly apologize."

After a brief silence, the boss muttered softly, "I can’t accept that."

"Could it be that you’ve gotten yourself caught up in something dangerous?"

"Well, sort of..."

"Momo-san, you always said you wouldn’t do anything that could get you caught because you have a partner."

"That’s true, but... I don’t think it’s something bad; it's more like I brought this on myself. I’m really sorry. Truly, I am."

As he kept apologizing, he heard the boss sigh.

"Momo-san, you’re good with the girls and great at handling the customers, so I felt comfortable leaving the shop in your hands. Honestly, you leaving is a real blow."

He trusted me. Knowing this firsthand made my chest fill with guilt.

"I’ll consider it a leave of absence for now. I’ll tell the girls... that you had to go back to your hometown because of a family emergency or something. Come back once things have cooled down."

"I’m really sorry, so sorry."

Even though the boss couldn’t see him, Momota repeatedly bowed his head over and over, holding his phone in one hand.

:-::-:

A little after 10 a.m., while trying to stave off hunger with some snacks from the fridge because I’d been told not to step outside, I got a call from Ron-chan. After checking out of the hotel, I followed his instructions, took a taxi, and headed to the station he mentioned. In front of the station was a shopping district, where I bought fake glasses and a hat. That was also per Ron-chan’s instructions.

I took the train for four stops, changed lines, and then rode three more stops. There, I exited the station and immediately got into a taxi, which took me to a fast-food restaurant about five minutes away. It was 11:45 a.m. at this point. I ordered a set meal and took a seat in a secluded corner. As I was eagerly munching on my hamburger, my hat pulled low and my fake glasses on, I suddenly felt someone stand next to me.

I looked up. The man standing there was also looking down at me. He was still young, around the same age as Ron-chan when I met him, or maybe even younger—around 20. He was thin, with a small face. His hair was short, he wore glasses, and he had a light-colored jacket over his jeans. He didn’t seem like he was working, so maybe he was a university student.



"Are you Sasaki?"

Ron-chan had told me not to use my real name. He said that while the person sheltering me was trustworthy, to be extra cautious, he had told them my name was 'Sasaki.'

"Yes, that's me."

"Will you come with me?"

I hastily shoved the rest of my hamburger and fries into my mouth, grabbed my drink cup, and followed the young man. After walking for about ten minutes, he led me into a three-story apartment building in a residential area. The room was on the third floor—a one-room apartment. The floor was littered with convenience store bags and clothes.

"I’m out working part-time most of the time, so just make yourself comfortable. I’ve already ordered a futon for you, and it should arrive today."

"Oh, thanks for going out of your way."

"It’s no big deal. Ron paid for the futon."

He went through a lot of trouble and made arrangements for me. I was grateful for that, but I also felt bad for causing him unnecessary trouble.

Since we were indoors, I took off my hat and fake glasses. The young man peered into my face and tilted his head.

"Sasaki, you’re kind of old to be a friend of Ron’s, aren’t you?"

"Oh, I guess so. Um... and you are...?"

"I'm Mani."

That’s a unique name, I thought as I asked,

"Mani, are you also a friend of Ron-chan’s?"

The young man let out a small chuckle.

"Ron is my older brother."

"Eh?" I exclaimed.

"My serious, boring brother came to me, saying, ‘I have a favor to ask, please,’ and when I asked what it was, he said he needed me to let you stay here for a while. He even said he’d pay me an allowance."

Ron-chan had mentioned that this person was trustworthy, but I hadn’t expected him to be his brother. As I looked closely at Mani’s face, I realized he didn’t resemble Ron-chan much. They were both good-looking, but while Ron-chan had a stern look, Mani had a more modern, softer, charming appearance.

"Also, he asked me to give this to you."

He handed me a brown envelope. Inside, I found 200,000 yen in cash and a letter.

"This is for your living expenses for now. If you need anything, have Mani buy it for you, and please avoid going outside. That was the initial agreement, so don’t hesitate to ask Mani. I know this will be a confined lifestyle, but I’ll do my best to ensure you can return to a normal life as soon as possible."

Since I couldn’t go back to my apartment, the cash in my wallet was all I had. I needed to buy clothes and underwear... Scratching my head vigorously, I thought about how I didn’t want to trouble Ron-chan, but there was nothing I could do right now. I just knew I had to pay back every yen I spent. As I was thinking this, Mani spoke up.

"Sit wherever. It’s a bit messy, though."

I cleared some trash from the floor and sat down on the hardwood floor. Mani sat on the bed.

"Sasaki, what do you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"What kind of job do you have?"

I wondered if I should be honest and say I worked in call girl service. I liked my job and took pride in it, but I thought it wouldn’t be good for Ron-chan if his family knew he was friends with someone working in the adult entertainment industry.

"What did Ron-chan tell you?"

I cautiously asked back.

"So you call my brother Ron-chan, huh?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Doesn’t seem like he’d fit the name Ron-chan, though."

"Why? Ron-chan’s cute."

Mani’s mouth opened in surprise.

"Are you serious?"

Momota nodded enthusiastically.

"Absolutely. Ron-chan’s sweet, pure-hearted, and really cute, whether he’s angry or smiling."

Mani tilted his head slightly.

"...I can’t believe it. He never smiles at home."

"Really? Maybe it’s because I’m always saying silly things."

Scratching the back of his head, Momota chuckled. Mani was also drawn in and laughed slightly.

"Ron told me not to pry, so I don’t know anything about you, Sasaki. But hearing that only makes me more curious, you know?"

If Ron-chan had told him not to ask, I shouldn’t say too much... I realized. But Mani kept asking anyway.

"So, what kind of job do you have?"

"Uh, well, different things..."

"What do you mean by 'different things'?"

"I’ve worked on-site before, and I’ve worked at a set-meal restaurant and a Chinese restaurant."

"And now?"

Momota bit his lip. He felt uncomfortable lying but also knew he couldn’t say too much. Being silent would also seem rude.

"These days... it’s more like a job with a lot of traveling."

"Temp work?"

"Yeah, something like that."

Mani seemed to have no intention of digging any deeper, so he replied, "Hmm," and nodded. Thinking he needed to change the subject, Momota asked Mani a question.

"By the way, what was Ron-chan like when he was a kid?"

"What do you mean, 'what was he like?' He was just normal, wasn’t he? There’s a nine-year age gap between us. By the time I was old enough to remember, he was in middle school, so I don’t really have any memories of playing together."

"Oh, I see..."

"He was definitely serious. He got a perfect attendance award in both middle and high school... Kind of ridiculous."

"Wow, that’s impressive. That’s just like Ron-chan."

When Momota nodded in admiration, Mani asked, "Is it really that impressive?" and tilted his head with a wry smile.

"Sure it is! I skipped so much that they said I’d have to repeat a year in middle school. I even dropped out of high school. Haha."

Mani muttered with a straight face, "Sasaki, you’re kind of laid-back, huh?"

:-::-:

On the third day of staying at Mani’s apartment, I learned from the midday TV news that Mizuki Yokotani had been arrested on suspicion of murdering Rina. Later that night, I received a slightly delayed email from Ron-chan: “Mizuki Yokotani has been caught.” I felt relieved that the culprit had been arrested, but at the same time, Rina’s words—“Will you help me, Momota?”—flashed through my mind, causing a sharp pain in my chest. Even seeing it on the news, it still didn’t feel real that Rina was dead. It was almost as if she might just call me suddenly and say, “I’m hungry. Treat me to something.”

On the night of the seventh day, a little past eleven, Ron-chan unexpectedly appeared at the apartment. Momota was in the middle of playing mahjong with Mani and two of his university friends.

“What… are you all doing?”

Ron-chan looked down at the tiles lined up on the table with a slightly exasperated expression. Momota stood up and rushed over to him.

“We’re playing mahjong. Everyone here’s pretty good.”

“Sasaki-san, you’re just way too weak.”

Mani’s friend Izumi chimed in from behind. It was Izumi who had brought mahjong to the apartment in the first place.

“I told you from the start, didn’t I? I’m no good at this game.”

“But you’re ridiculously bad at it. That’s a talent in its own right.”

Momota furrowed his brows deeply, making a sour face.

“If you keep saying that, Izumi, I’m only going to tell you about the rip-off soaplands full of old ladies.”

“That was a lie, Sasaki-san! I swear it was a lie!”

His desperate plea made me laugh out loud. Mina found out the next day that my "delivery work" was actually in the adult entertainment industry.

"Mina, I need to talk to Sasaki-san. Could you step out for a bit?" Ron-chan asked, and Mina pursed his lips slightly. He was in the middle of an enjoyable game, and his friends had expressions that said, "If they need to talk, they should be the ones to leave." Even so, as the apartment owner, Mina stood up, and his friends reluctantly followed suit.

Mani’s friends didn’t know that Momota wasn’t supposed to leave the room. As Mani was heading out, Momota pulled a 5,000-yen bill from his wallet in his back pocket and held it out in front of him.

"Why don’t you go to the convenience store and get some beers? I’m treating, after all."

"Nice one, Sasaki-san!" Hearing about the treat, Izumi, who was behind Mani, grinned.

“Get me a Kirin, and don’t forget to bring back the change, okay?”

"Wait, you're not going to give us a tip?" Mina joked, trying to feign innocence. I shot back, "What are you, a kid?"

“Also, grab some snacks, but keep it under 300 yen per person, alright?”

"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." Mina responded, sounding annoyed, as he left with his friends. As soon as we were alone, the room suddenly fell silent.

"Sorry, Momo. I made things awkward for you," Ron-chan muttered softly. Momota waved his right hand dismissively.

"It's fine, it's fine. Mina looked uncomfortable, so giving him an excuse like a treat should make the errand more enjoyable."

Ron-chan pressed his right hand to his forehead.

"I'm not good at reading the room... I'm sorry."

Momota gently patted Ron-chan’s head.

"Don't worry about it. I'm the one imposing on your brother. So, what did you want to talk about?"

Ron-chan looked up.

"I sent you an email, and if you saw the news, you probably already know, but Mizuki Yokotani has been caught. They're also investigating him for violating drug control laws, but he refuses to admit to that part. I think the gang is putting a lot of pressure on him. Even if he does admit to it, he might completely deny any connection to the gang. The local police are continuing their investigation into the Matsuzaka gang, but it seems they're having a hard time catching them in the act. The other side is being very cautious."

Even though the person who killed Rina had been caught, the investigation into the drugs hadn't progressed much. As long as the drug case remained unresolved, my situation as a freeloader would continue.

"It seems that some members of the Matsuzaka gang have come to your workplace to ask about your whereabouts... I’ll have to ask you to hang on here a little longer until the drug issue settles down…"

"I'm totally fine. Mani's been good to me, too. He even lets me use his computer, so I can play games and shop online. I bought some underwear and clothes online, and they were super cheap. Oh yeah, my brother’s oldest son, Toshiki, has a birthday coming up, right? Last year, I went with you to buy a present, but this year I can't go out because of all this, so I ordered it online. It's seriously convenient. Compared to prison, this place is like heaven."

"Is there anything else you need…?"

"No, no. I'm pretty comfortable here."

Ron-chan had a somewhat complicated expression on his face. He glanced briefly at the table behind Momota.

"…Do you like mahjong?"

"Not that much, but I got invited, so..."

Ron-chan lowered his eyes.

"You seemed to be having fun playing games…"

"I'm really just going along with it. But Mani's friends are pretty interesting. ...Come to think of it, you and Mani don’t look much alike, do you?"

"We have different mothers. I'm the child of the first wife."

There was a moment of awkward silence.

"Sorry."

"No need to apologize. My mother passed away when I was little, so I don't even remember her face. Besides, our family gets along well."

I realized that I was staring into Ron-chan’s eyes. I wanted to kiss him, so I pulled him close, but his body tensed up.

"When Mani comes back..."

"He said it takes about five minutes to walk to the nearest convenience store. If he’s shopping, it’ll probably take about twenty minutes. We’ve got time, so just let me kiss you."

I pushed Ron-chan against the wall and kissed him. As our tongues entwined, I started getting frustrated, wondering why I couldn’t just take things further.

"Ron-chan, I really want to do it…"

"N-no, Momo, we can't."

Ron-chan's voice trembled as he tried to resist, but his thigh pressed against Momo's hardening crotch.

"Yeah... but I still want to. I'm going crazy."

While they kissed passionately, almost like having sex, Ron-chan weakly pushed against Momo's shoulder.

"...I'm going to the bathroom."

Ron-chan bent forward and walked toward the unit bath. Momo followed him, entering the bathroom together and locking the door.

"Momo!"

Momo pushed Ron-chan against the door of the unit bath, pulling down his pants and underwear in one swift motion. He lifted the hem of Ron-chan's coat and entered him from behind.

"Ah…!"

Ron-chan's cries were sweet. Momo's tip was already slick with pre-cum, and Ron-chan's entrance, though resisting, couldn’t completely refuse him, allowing Momo to thrust deeply. Watching Ron-chan squirm and stifle his moans by covering his mouth with both hands only fueled Momo’s desire. As he thrust harder, Ron-chan twitched and pulsed in his grip, finally reaching his climax. Momo knew he shouldn’t finish inside, but he couldn’t hold back in time and released into the warm space.



"Sorry, I came."

Momo apologized while holding Ron-chan from behind. Ron-chan shook his head.

"Momo, you should go out first."

"I’ll help you clean up."

Ron-chan gave a wry smile.

"If we’re in here together, it’ll look suspicious. Besides, Mani and the others aren’t back yet."

Momo was pushed out of the unit bath first. When he opened his clenched hand, remnants of Ron-chan's desire trailed in thin strands. He licked them off, tasting Ron-chan.

In less than five minutes, Ron-chan emerged from the unit bath, impeccably put together, as if he hadn't just been violated by a man moments ago.

"Ron-chan, I’m sorry. I really went overboard..."

Momo ran over and apologized. Ron-chan, his ears still red, the only lingering sign of what had happened, muttered, "You don't need to apologize."

"I was surprised that we did it in Mani's apartment, but I’m not mad."

"Does your back hurt?"

"I’m fine."

Ron-chan narrowed his eyes and smiled gently, and Momo hugged him tightly. Ron-chan was kind. Even though he had every right to be angry after Momo’s reckless behavior, he wasn’t. His kindness was almost too much, to the point where it made Momo feel scared.

Ron-chan soon left. About ten minutes later, Mani and the others returned with beer and snacks. Even though he noticed that Ron-chan was gone, Mani didn’t ask, "Did he leave?"

They resumed playing mahjong while drinking beer. Around 3 a.m., Izumi passed out from drinking, and another friend soon followed. It was too much trouble to lift the sleeping guys onto the bed, so Momo left them on the futon below and crawled into Mani's bed. As he lay there, thinking about Ron-chan and the Matsuzaka gang, his mind became too tangled to sleep, so he turned on the bedside lamp and lit a cigarette.

"Sasaki-san," Mani, who Momo thought was asleep, called out.

"Ah, did I wake you? Sorry, mind if I have just one?"

"Give me one too."

"You smoke?"

"Sometimes."

Momo handed him a cigarette and lit it for him, moving the ashtray between them.

"Hey, do you think Ron ever goes to host clubs or something?"

Momo coughed on the smoke and asked, "W-why do you ask?"

"Just curious. I was wondering."

Momo stubbed out his still-burning cigarette in the ashtray.

"Ron-chan doesn't go to those kinds of places. He says he doesn't like the idea of paying for girls."

"Then how did you and Ron-chan meet? I’ve always wondered."

A lot had happened between him and Ron-chan, but none of it was anything he could talk about with just anyone.

"Well... if I had to sum it up in one word, Ron-chan is my lifesaver."

"Lifesaver?"

"I did a lot of reckless things when I was young."

"Yeah, I can kind of see that," Mani nodded in agreement. Momo flicked him on the forehead. "What do you mean you can see that?"

"Ow, that hurt! But Sasaki-san, you have that whole dangerous vibe. When I first met you, I wondered if you were really okay. But after talking to you, you’re actually pretty normal."

"Yeah, I can’t deny I look like a thug. But, well, Ron-chan helped me get back on my feet when I was a mess. Don’t ask for more details."

Even though he had brought it up, Mani just responded with a disinterested "Hmph."

"To be honest, I don’t really like Ron all that much."

Momo turned sharply to face him.

"Why not? He’s so kind."

"He’s serious, but he’s too serious. It makes him kind of boring as a person. He’s bad at timing, can’t read the room, and when he hits you with a harsh truth, it’s really annoying."

"Yeah, I get that. My older brother was like that too."

Mani blinked in surprise.

"You have a brother, Sasaki-san?"

"I used to. He was annoyingly straight-laced. When I joined a gang, he really came down on me. And after I got busted for drugs three times and went to prison twice, he finally cut ties with me."

Mani fell silent, looking stunned. Momo immediately regretted saying too much.

"Look, I’ve quit drugs for good now and turned my life around. I promised Ron-chan I wouldn’t do anything bad anymore."

"Sasaki-san, you’re exactly what I imagined. It’s kind of funny."

When Mani smiled, Momo felt relieved. Some people turn pale or act completely different when they hear about his past with drugs and crime. He understood it was his own fault, but it was still tough to see.

"My brother died three years ago. Even though he cut me off, I heard that at the end, he wanted to see me. It really got to me. We were the only two siblings left after our parents died. I wish I had stopped being an idiot and gotten my act together sooner..."

Just thinking about it made his eyelids tremble. He felt a rush of heat at the corners of his eyes, and tears started to well up. He hadn’t seen his brother’s face before he died—he couldn’t bear to. He remembered his sister-in-law’s tears, her words of thanks. If he had tried harder while his brother was still alive, maybe he could have given him some peace of mind.

As snot started to run from his nose, he fumbled around until Mani said, "There’s tissue under the bed." Momo grabbed a handful of tissues and blew his nose loudly.

"The reason I’m living straight now is thanks to Ron-chan, who stuck by me and helped me. Your brother is really kind, so don’t say you don’t like him."

Mani was quiet for a while, then mumbled, "Sasaki-san, you’re actually kind of sentimental."

Footnotes

0. Content warning: NSFW.

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