Tabe Yui hadn't appeared for a long time. Flipping through Carlos Castaneda's *The Art of Dreaming*, Naga had to strain to recall the excitement of that small, pale hand handing him the book.
Miku also started reading books related to dreams, not out of interest, but because Naga had seen her yawning over them several times. The reason was probably so that Naga would think of her when discussing such topics.
News of the Dream Eater ceased with the disappearance of Love. And indeed, Naga hadn't dreamt for over a month. His anticipation of dreams was gradually cooling, while Miku's image began to fill every gap in his life.
Aside from physical desires, he was gradually getting used to everything else. Fortunately, he had Koga Yu, an excellent sexual partner, who allowed him to steal a bite during his busy schedules, which at least kept him from being too irritable.
If things continue like this, it'll naturally develop into a romantic relationship with Miku. Should he confess? Naga looked at the calendar, wondering if he should invite her on a few private dates this weekend. He couldn't find any reason to hesitate any longer about accepting Miku's feelings.
Miku flew to Fukuoka for a business trip of four to five days, while Naga unfortunately got tied up with local business. This was the first time they had been separated for such a long time since they started working together. Perhaps they could use this time to think things through and make a decision.
Actually, he already had the answer in his heart. Naihe smiled and picked up the phone to order roses from a florist, planning to pick her up at the airport when she returned.
That very night, Naga received a phone call.
"Um... Yumeno-kun, I apologize for bothering you, but do you have a moment now?"
Naga hesitated for a moment. Although the other party had been his subordinate for some time, they had not had any contact outside of work. He looked at Kobayashi Anzu's name above the number on the LCD screen and hesitated for a few seconds. "Well, I'm not too busy right now."
What is she planning to do? Launch an offensive while Miku is away? Naga smiled; it had been a while since she'd had such unrealistic fantasies.
"Could you come over here now? I'm in room 106 at XX Cafe. Please, I have something very important to discuss with you."
Without giving Naga a chance to refuse, Anzu hurriedly finished speaking and hung up the phone.
As soon as one call ended, another one came in.
"It's Miku," Naga smiled and pressed the answer button.
"Hey, Section Chief, it's so late, don't work so hard. It's much better to go home after get off work." It seems that Miku thought Naga was busy with work earlier, and she sounded to be in a good mood. "I've arrived in Fukuoka and I'm eating tonkotsu ramen right now. Don't be too envious."
Listening to her excitedly recount a whole bunch of things, as if she were a child who had never been out of the house before, Naga couldn't help but joke, "Hey, Miku, since you like business trips so much, I'll leave all the travel arrangements to you from now on."
The other person immediately retorted with a straightforward complaint, "No way! I still prefer staying in the heater watching TV. Uh... but it's nice to go out and have some fun once in a while. I've never traveled by myself before."
"Hey, Section Chief Shimokawa, you're going on official business, official business. Don't get the purpose wrong, okay?" Naga reminded her with a smile, "The trip is just a side trip."
"Well..." The voice on the other end of the line suddenly softened, "Next time, let's really travel together, okay?"
She must have had some sake to embolden herself; her voice held a familiar, subtly alluring quality, a completely private side of Miku.
"good."
When he said those words, Naga felt his heart suddenly race, and at that moment, he completely forgot about the phone call he had just received.
After finishing their conversation, Naga remembered their date and rushed over, but more than forty minutes had already passed. Naga wasn't sure if Anzu was still there. Modern women aren't very good at waiting; being late for a date is like holding a high-voltage wire in the middle of a relationship, and not even an insulated one at that.
Fortunately, it wasn't that kind of relationship.
Naga got out of the taxi and hurriedly ran into a café with decor that was perfect for couples to meet.
106...106...Uh, Naga looked at the "Do Not Disturb" sign hanging on the door and scratched his head in a bit of a predicament.
"Um... is Kobayashi inside?" Instead of knocking, he shouted loudly from outside the door.
That way, if there are couples having sex inside, Naga can leave without feeling too awkward.
There was no response from inside; perhaps the door was too soundproof. Just as Naga was about to turn around and go to the lobby to make a call to confirm, the door clicked open a crack.
What appeared behind the door was Matsushima Kae's somewhat haggard face.
"Yumeno-kun, um... please come in."
Naga walked into the room, puzzled. The small private room was very quiet. The TV next to him was turned off, and only the colorful images served as a light source. There was a lot of empty beer cans on the table, giving people a sense of helplessness, like "What are you doing drinking in a coffee shop?"
Leaning casually on the sofa next to her in a completely unladylike pose was Kobayashi Anzu. She must have drunk quite a bit of beer; her cheeks were flushed, and her gaze was somewhat unfocused. When she saw Naga enter, she touched her cheek, tried to sit up straight, and straightened her wrinkled skirt to cover her bare knees, glancing nervously at Kae.
Kae shook her head, sat down next to An without saying a word, and rubbed the hem of her skirt with her head down.
The silence continued until Naga felt annoyed, at which point Kae spoke up timidly in a low voice, "Yumeno-kun, what I... I might be saying is ridiculous. If, if you don't believe me, please, please don't laugh at me."
Naga shook her head. "I can't."
"Last time... last time you sent me an email saying you dreamed about me, and... it felt so real, right?" Kae looked at him nervously, as if the answer was incredibly important to him.
Naga nodded, pondering the possibilities of the current situation.
"Actually, I dreamed about you too. I felt like I said a lot of things to you in the dream, and I felt like you really heard me. Yumeno-kun, do you... do you know?" Kae's cute face was filled with anxiety, as if she felt that her question was really absurd.
Naga hesitated for a moment, then clasped his hands on his knees. He leaned forward, looked sincerely into Kae's eyes, and answered earnestly, "I remember everything you told me in my dream that day. I also know what happened between you and Fujibayashi."
Kae's expression became somewhat complicated, a mixture of relief and unbearable shame. She subconsciously touched her chest and lowered her head. "How amazing... But it's so good to encounter something so magical. This way, we don't have to tell you about the embarrassing things again."
"Us?" Naga noticed the word "Kae" and glanced at Kobayashi An. Sure enough, this beauty had also been won over by Fujibayashi Ami.
This confirms Naga's idea that Kobayashi An's sudden disappearance of affection for him was not due to her own subjective will, but was forcibly blocked by Ami.
"So... what exactly is it?" Naga was very curious. How could he help? Should he let them experience the taste of men so they would give up homosexuality and SM? He didn't think Asami would be someone who would be actively abandoned, and judging from their expressions, they clearly weren't enjoying it.
Anne glanced at Kae, and the two exchanged a look. Kae nudged Anne, who shook her head somewhat shyly. Kae nudged her again, and Anne reluctantly turned to face Naga, lowering her gaze as she spoke, but her words were trivial: "Yumeno-kun, you must be very happy being with Shimokawa..."
Uh… Naga hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"I really envy her." Anzu sighed, her interlaced fingers clenching tightly. "Although it might be a little shameless to ask this, I still want to know, in Yumeno-kun's heart, are Kae and I considered attractive women?"
Naga blinked and nodded. He was a fairly honest man; Kae and An were both beauties who could attract men's attention without much effort, and their gentle and cute personalities were favored by many men. He couldn't believe he wasn't tempted.
Anzu glanced at Kae and asked softly, "Can we talk now?" Kae lowered her head and hummed in agreement.
Anzu picked up a can of beer, took a sip, raised her eyes, and said firmly, "We want to ask Yumeno-kun for a favor. If you're willing, as a reward, we..." Her voice trembled slightly, "...both of us can be your women, and simply your women, and it will never affect your relationship with Shimokawa."
A surge of heat rose within him, his masculine blood seemed to ignite, and Naga immediately asked, "What is it?"
Xing's eyes instantly filled with hatred.