Chapter 153: The Two on the Streets of Shibuya

Among the many bustling streets of Tokyo, "Shibuya Center-gai" may not be the one with the highest foot traffic, but it is definitely the most popular one among young people.

Here, one can see bustling streets filled with heavy traffic, as well as various specialty food streets, including takoyaki, wagyu skewers, okonomiyaki, various snacks, and a wide variety of sushi.

While tasting the food, pairing it with chilled beer and Japanese shochu can make one feel intoxicated.

Besides the food, "Shibuya Center-gai" also has all kinds of shops, from malls and restaurants to arcades and karaoke parlors, as well as various trendy people on the street, making it very suitable for hanging out.

Therefore, Akiwara Yuto and Asano Aiko agreed to meet at Shibuya Center-gai and then walk around together.

……

At 4: 0 PM, Akiwara Yuto, wearing a thin sweater, walked out of JR Shibuya Station and headed toward the location he had agreed upon with Asano Aiko.

Ten minutes later, he arrived at the destination, but was surprised to find that Asano Aiko had not yet arrived.

Is she late again? Akiwara Yuto looked around in confusion.

At this moment, he suddenly spotted a figure not far away who looked very much like Asano Aiko, but next to that figure was a man in a jacket, gesturing at something.

Akiwara Yuto thought for two seconds and then walked over. As the distance closed, he realized that the figure was indeed Asano Aiko.

On the other side, Asano Aiko also noticed Akiwara Yuto; she waved happily at him, then gave a slight bow to the man in the jacket, and ran over to Akiwara Yuto.

The man in the jacket turned his head to glance at Akiwara Yuto, then shrugged and left.

"Akiwara, sorry for the trouble just now," Asano Aiko said with a smile, then walked to Akiwara Yuto's side.

She was wearing a black striped skirt and a pair of white sandals today. As she spoke with a smile, her dimples appeared faintly.

Akiwara Yuto looked at Asano Aiko and paused, but he quickly reacted and asked in an uncertain tone, "Was that a pickup attempt?"

In Japan, pickup culture is very prevalent, especially in places like Shibuya where there are many young people. Many beautiful women who are alone are often approached by different men every few steps, some asking them to go singing, others to go for dinner or karaoke.

A content creator in his past life once shared that while traveling in Tokyo, he was approached by five different men within 10 minutes.

"Yeah, I told the other person that I already had plans, but they just wouldn't leave."

Asano Aiko nodded, then said with a relieved expression, "So it's fortunate that you arrived at this time."

Akiwara Yuto shook his head and said in a slightly apologetic voice, "Sorry, if I had been earlier, I wouldn't have let you run into trouble..."

"It's nothing." Asano Aiko interrupted him in a firm tone, waving her hand, "Akiwara, this is just a small matter. If I couldn't even handle this, I wouldn't dare accept the salary you pay me."

After saying this, she winked playfully.

Akiwara Yuto was a bit speechless, but he quickly recovered and responded with a smile, "Alright, let's not talk about this. Where are we going next?"

Asano Aiko lowered her head, reached into her bag, took out a note, and said, "Accompany me to a karaoke parlor."

Akiwara Yuto nodded to show he understood.

……

In late November, it gets dark exceptionally early; it was just past 5 o'clock, and the night had already grown thick. On the streets of Shibuya, streetlights had already been lit on both sides.

Akiwara Yuto and Asano Aiko followed the flow of people, walking along the bustling street. After walking for a while, they finally found a karaoke parlor located on the second floor.

After paying at the front desk, the two booked a private room and walked inside.

"Is there anything you'd like to drink?" Asano Aiko put her bag on the seat and said to Akiwara Yuto.

"Chilled cola, please."

After Akiwara Yuto answered, Asano Aiko nodded, pushed open the room door, and prepared to go get the self-service drinks. While she was away, Akiwara Yuto subconsciously looked around the room.

Unlike karaoke rooms back home, Japanese karaoke rooms are long, rectangular rooms. Directly in front of the room are the TV, air conditioner, and song-selection equipment. In the middle of the room is a large rectangular wooden table, surrounded by red sofa seats.

Two minutes later, Asano Aiko returned with two drinks. After placing the drinks on the table, she walked to the equipment and started selecting songs.

After picking two, she turned her head and asked, "Akiwara, what songs do you want to pick?"

Hearing this request, Akiwara Yuto was stumped.

Although he knew some songs, they were all from his past life. In the karaoke equipment of this world, it was impossible for these songs to exist.

As for the original owner's memories, that was even more ridiculous; there were only some nursery rhymes and folk songs from the Hokkaido region...

After thinking for a moment, he replied, "You sing first, I'll just watch."

Asano Aiko looked at him curiously for a few moments, but accepted the suggestion and picked up the equipment to start singing.

As the music started, Asano Aiko began to sing.

Sitting in his seat, Akiwara Yuto listened and became lost in thought.

Asano Aiko's singing voice was not as professional as those singers on TV, but her voice felt very crisp and clean, like a gently flowing stream sliding through mountains and forests, giving one a very comfortable feeling.

Among amateur self-entertainment, it could already be considered quite impressive.

Akiwara Yuto listened for a while and subconsciously looked at her several times, feeling that Asano Aiko, who was singing, radiated a unique brilliance.

After singing several songs, Asano Aiko stopped, turned her head to look at Akiwara Yuto, "Akiwara, are you really not going to sing one?"

Seeing that Akiwara Yuto still refused, she was a bit "dissatisfied" and said in a complaining tone, "You're being too cunning. If you had said earlier that you didn't like singing, I wouldn't have come to the karaoke parlor."

"I'm not..." Akiwara Yuto was at a loss for words.

He had the heart to refute, but after thinking about it, he didn't say anything.

On the other side, Asano Aiko smiled, "Let me tell you something. In the past six months, whenever I felt stressed, I would go to a karaoke parlor with friends to vent. When I sing, I always feel my stress lessen quite a bit."

She paused, then said in a crisp voice, "Anyway, thank you for being able to accompany me today. Of course, if someone were willing to sing a song, I would be even happier."

Akiwara Yuto was stunned, then started to laugh as well.

Just then, a mischievous idea popped into his mind.

He thought for a moment, then, under Asano Aiko's puzzled gaze, took the paper and pen from the table and began to write.

Seeing Akiwara Yuto's actions, Asano Aiko was stunned, not knowing what he wanted to do. But she immediately felt a bit dissatisfied—did creative inspiration strike? Couldn't he have chosen another time?

After a while, Akiwara Yuto filled the entire sheet of paper and handed it over, "Asano, I suddenly thought of a song, could you take a look?"

Asano Aiko was a bit confused, but she took the paper and hummed softly, "Your figure is so dazzling, it makes me unable to look away. How can I deeply imprint my name in your heart? Even if it is a love with no result, is there a moment reflected in your heart..."

Akiwara Yuto looked at the confused Asano Aiko and explained, "This song is called 'Unreachable Love'. It's something I conceived earlier. As for the melody, it goes like this."

His purpose in writing this song was purely out of mischief. After all, having someone from another parallel universe sing a song from his past life would be exceptionally interesting.

As for this "Unreachable Love", it came from a famous work in his past life, "White Album 2", which had quite a reputation in the entire ACG circle.

Asano Aiko listened to the melody Akiwara Yuto hummed and was completely astonished.

Aren't you a writer? How did you suddenly become a composer?

And this song, no matter how you look at it, is used to describe a woman, so how is your brain wired, Akiwara?

Do you have a maiden's heart?

Asano Aiko took a while to make herself accept this fact. Then, after listening to the melody a few times, she memorized the tune of the whole song.

Immediately after, at Akiwara Yuto's request, she continued to sing a cappella with her crisp and ethereal voice.

"How can I imprint my heart in the mirror for you to see clearly? Even if it is a love that ends in vain, is there a moment reflected in the mirror? Before I can see the faint dawn, this love is still unable to move forward..."

Listening to this song, Akiwara Yuto nodded with satisfaction. Being able to mention a song he liked from his past life here made today's trip worthwhile.

But to his surprise, as Asano Aiko sang, her voice became choked with sobs, and tears even flowed from the corners of her eyes.

Asano, while holding the microphone and singing, had other thoughts in her mind.

Akiwara, do you know? This song you wrote simply describes my current feelings...