Rent A Girlfriend: The Past Hurts

Part Two: The First Encounter

Arranging to meet near the local aquarium, Chizuru found her client underneath one of the light posts, and immediately in her head tried to figure out what kind of guy he was. She deduced him to be another one of those who rented her out of despair, so like a switch, had engaged herself into the ' perfect girlfriend'.
" Let me see...orange shirt..", she said as she walked up to him, " Kazuya-Kun..is it?" The boy shook her head timidly as she noticed his face begun to glow bright red. " Well then..shall we start our date?" she asked with a smile on her face, causing him to blush even more.
Working as a rental girlfriend, Chizuru had her fair share of dealing with different types of guys, but none like her most recent one. Unlike her other clients, Kazuya did not directly reach out for hand, but asked for her permission first. As he held her hand in his, she could feel that he was sweating quite a bit.
" You know, you don't have to be so nervous." Startling him, Kazuya looked away for a moment. She could feel him start to sweat even more.
" I-I'm sorry, it's just...I'm still getting used to it." With his head still turned away from her, Chizuru was confused on what he was going on about. 'Getting used to what? Should I..no. The rules state that to not bother the client with personal questions.'
Inside the aquarium, she looked around and was amazed at all the fish around her. She had never been to one before. Turning her view to the right, she spotted an exhibition featuring penguins. They appeared to be doing tricks for those who were watching. ' Penguins! I've only seen them on T.V. before. I want to get closer..but like the rules state, " You must follow the client's plan for the date without any objection". I wonder where he'll take-'
" Mizuhara..do you want to check anything out?" Cutting her from her thoughts, Chizuru was surprised to be asked such a question. Usually, she would be dragged around like a ragdoll by every other guy.
" Um..I'm fine with whatever you choose." she lied. She wanted him to know that he was the one in charge of choosing where to go. And surprising her once more, he replied " W-well, a date should be fun for both boyfriend and girlfriend. Otherwise...it wouldn't be right.." She saw that he was blushing again, and realizing that he wasn't going to give in, gave him a smile.
" If you say so. Well those penguins seem very interesting." As soon as she finished, she was being pulled behind him as he led her to the exhibit.
' Why is he acting so nice..I wonder if he's planning something...'
As the date progressed, Kazuya still found ways to surprise her. Even though they went up to the exhibits he wanted to see, they often found themselves checking out the ones she wanted to see. She found out that he had knowledge on every species there, giving her fun facts at each stop and she simply found herself listening intently to what he had to say. Whenever they did something, he would always ask her if it was okay with her, and would often apologize to her whenever he didn't need to. For instance, when one volunteer asked them if they wanted to take a picture of the two of them in front of the dolphins, he blushed and told her that they didn't have to if she chose not to. Although she said that it was okay, Chizuru could feel him shake as they put their arms around them. As they took the photo, one of the dolphins jumped high up in the air and had managed to splash some water on them. Although she enjoyed getting splashed, Kazuya would bow his head down repeatedly as he apologized.
Before they were about to leave, the two of them stood in front of the manta ray exhibit, and as Kazuya was crouching down to see them better, Chizuru found herself staring at him, lost in her thoughts.
'...He's not like any other boy I've encountered. He seemed to be caring more if I was having fun than himself, which I did end up having. But is there a secret motive behind that..or is he really just considerate....No. If he really was that nice he wouldn't have needed to rent me. He could've gone with his real girlfriend today instead.' As she stared at him more, she started to feel a bit irritated. ' Was this all a ploy?! Was he just acting at the innocent guy as an attempt to...to get in my pants!?
Angry, she walked up to him. He was rambling on about something involving the manta ray, but quickly became silent as Chizuru grabbed his arm to pull him up to her eye-level. She noticed that his eyes were starting to grow in fear, but that didn't cool her down.
" Listen, Kazuya-kun. I don't know what game you're playing..." she said sternly as she placed both hands on his collar, pulling him closer to her, "..but just know that 'nice guy' routine isn't going to work on me." He looked at her pleadingly as she stared back at him with a cold expression on her face. She saw tears start to flow down his cheeks, but for all she knew it could've just been all part of the act.
" I-I don't know what..what you mean.." Angering her even more, she used her force to push her back, causing him to trip on his own feet. People around them started to turn their attention towards them, and she could hear them whispering.
"Must have been a fight."
" Poor guy."
Ignoring them, she watched Kazuya, who was still sitting on the ground.
'Now, I'll see the real him. Let's see how "Mr. Nice Guy" reacts now that...w-why..' She had expected him to yell at her or push her back, but was stunned to see as he started to cry. He held his knees as he did yell at her, but not in the way she had expected him to.
" D-don't hit me..please!" He pleaded with her, crying even more, " I know I'm pathetic! J-Just..please don't hit me anymore. And please don't yell at her anymore.."
Kazuya then got up, and headed out towards the emergency exit. Chizuru, still standing in the same spot, was shocked at what had happened. She was also angry at herself.
' I can't believe I made a client cry. He really was just a kind and thoughtful person...I'm such an idiot...A huge one.' Snapping out of her trance, she chased after him through the same door, and found that it led to an alleyway, and she saw Kazuya leaning his head along the wall. Seeing him like that filled her up with guilt, regret and she didn't know why, but it hurt her to see him like that. She hesitantly walked up to him and could hear him still crying. Attempting to place her hand on his back as comfort, he flinched when she came in contact with him. When he turned towards her, he stood up straight as he tried to wipe the tears off his face.
" I-I'm sorry for the trouble I-Ive caused you..." he said sadly, still trying to stop himself from crying more, " I will pay you... more than I have to. I-I promise." She was about to tell her how she was the one who needed to apologize when his phone started to ring. He reached for his phone, and Chizuru saw how his expression switched into that of fear as he listened to what the person on the other end had to say.
" I'm sorry," hastily he put his phone back in his pocket. He took out an envelope and handed it to her, and she could feel it was full of cash. " I know that I ordered you for 3 hours, but I have to stop here...My grandmother collapsed. Again, I'm sorry for everything." And with that, she watched as he ran off. Chizuru looked down at the envelope, and for some reason felt disgusted. ' I don't deserve this... He said that the date was over but... I-I should probably go after him.' Stepping out the alleyway, she spotted him waiting for the bus, and with a sigh, headed towards her client to resume the date.