Unfamiliar Territory (Chizuru Ichinose x Reader)

(5) Working With The Neighbour

Y/n's POV:

The second she opens the door, I get ready to bow, apologizing:

Y/n: "I-I'm sorry for ruining your privacy b-but you didn't give me your number and I-I'm ready to get star-" I quickly stutter out before she raises a hand, cutting me off.

Chizuru: "No need to apologize, it was my fault." She says, a serious expression on her face.

"If it's okay, could we work at your apartment instead?" She asks, to which I accept, giving her a thumbs up.

"Alright then, I'll be there in 10 minutes." She says before shutting her door, leaving me outside with little time to prepare. I go back to my own apartment and get my laptop, along with some paper and pens to draw up a plan for the literature project. If there's one thing I'm proud of, it's that I'm exceptionally organised and rarely let any rooms in my apartment get messy. 

A few minutes later, I hear a knock on the door and I open it, gesturing for her to come inside. She looks around with a neutral expression before choosing to sit on the couch, where I sit next to her, albeit with enough distance between us. 

We begin discussing what to do when I open my laptop, getting ready to search for texts to cover in the presentation. Once opened, the screen of my 'Nottpad' account present for her to clearly see, before I quickly close the window. However, the damage is already done, and the inevitable question is asked:

Chizuru: "Y/n... you're the author of the 'Night' book collection?" She asks, shocked.

Damn it all, there's no getting out of this, is there?

Y/n: "...Yes." I say quietly, hiding my face, clearly flustered that my secret is out.

A silence follows which lasts for quite some time before I manage to change topics back to the project. We actually make some headway, almost finishing a quarter of it in a single day, before the sound of two tummies rumbling signal for us to finish for the day. It's a little dark outside. Who knew that it would take so long? 

Chizuru: "I guess it took longer than I expected. We've still got more to do though... same time tomorrow? I'm free at this time." She questions to which I once again agree.

"Since you've let me stay as a guest for so long, let me cook, as it seems we're both quite hungry." She says gently, moving towards the kitchen before I interject:

Y/n: "It's alright, you relax and I can cook. It's the least I can do for taking your time." I begin to argue, soon realising that she won't let me do everything without getting involved herself.

I sigh, before speaking up once more:

"Why don't we both cook then?" I suggest to which she asks:

Chizuru: "... alright then, but don't try anything funny! I took self-defence classes you know!" She half-yells, to which I nod frantically, trying to calm her down.

I'm not surprised that she knows how to defend herself, considering her job. Sure there are terms and conditions but there are bound to be some people who 'give it a try' anyway.

Y/n: "Also, I just realised that you probably shouldn't be here, since rental rules state that you aren't allowed to be inside a client's abode for any reason whatsoever. I'm sorry I forgot." I say, my tone reflecting my seriousness towards this matter. 

Surprisingly, she waves it off, saying:

Chizuru: "It's fine, I'm not on the clock right now. I'm merely a classmate at the moment. To be honest, I'm surprised that you actually read the terms and conditions. Most clients just click 'accept' without knowledge of the consequences when they fail to follow them." She states while rummaging around in my fridge, picking out ingredients.

Y/n: "Of course, I always make sure I know exactly what I'm getting when making a purchase." I reply nonchalantly while getting the appropriate kitchenware ready.

"Also, I'm guessing you change your look to make sure that no-one else identifies you when you're working?" I ask to which she nods, before sarcastically commenting that 'it clearly doesn't work anymore', causing me to slightly chuckle.

As we both prepare the food, we occasionally fall into conversations, talking about many different matters, from school, to birthdays, to cooking styles and even my writing career that she now knows of. Thankfully, she promised to keep it a secret, giving me further incentive to keep the knowledge of my job to myself.

Eventually, she asks me a question I didn't expect:

Chizuru: "I hope you don't mind me asking but, why did you decide to not only rent a girlfriend but also take them to one of the most expensive restaurants in Tokyo? It doesn't look like you'd have much trouble finding yourself a girl. It's not to show off, is it?" She asks, deadly serious.

I explain my thought process behind the whole ordeal:

Y/n: "I won't name them in respect of their own privacy but, a friend of mine was recently dumped by someone and they were acting extremely gloomy for the past couple of days, to the point where they wouldn't even come to the college. Another friend suggested the 'Diamond' app to try and cheer them up and sent it to me first to double check on whether it's a good idea, god knows why...

...so basically, I got a discount on a table for two, without actually having anyone to take there. And I'm not the most social person, so I thought it would be a good way to see where I stand in terms of social interactions." I explain, leaving Ichinose satisfied enough with the answer.

The conversation takes an interesting turn when I hear her say:

Chizuru: "I bet you think it's disgusting, being a rental girlfriend and getting paid to pretend to like someone, especially when most clients only rent us due to bad luck in their own love lives." She says flatly.

Y/n: "Well, at the end of the day, it's a job, so the client should know the whole 'love' aspect of it isn't real. However, it can be used to help build confidence, maybe even providing clients who have never had a girlfriend a small preview of what a relationship is like, so they would know what to expect." I reply, leaving her pleasantly surprised.

"Since you asked me a question, I'd like to ask you one if that's okay. Why did you choose a job as a rental girlfriend?" I ask, causing her face to turn a little red.

Chizuru: "...I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that." She squeaks shyly, leading to another awkward silence between us.

However, once food is ready, we both move over to the table and begin to eat. Once finished, she gets ready to leave:

Y/n: "Well, thank you for helping with the food. It was delicious." I say smiling

Chizuru: "I should be thanking you. You're a better cook than I initially thought." She replies, with a smile of her own breaking out onto her face.

We both say our goodbyes and now it's just me. It's pretty late, so I don't even bother checking my computer and go straight to my room, dozing off soon afterward.

Chizuru's POV:

I enter my apartment, get changed and go straight to bed, deep in thought the entire time. Well, at least I got some questions answered. But seriously, what are the odds? A famous writer? Why would he even need to study something he's already well-known for? He does seem like a nice person though. I process internally before I feel the embrace of sleep slowly weighing me down.

He's a good cook too... was my last though before I drifted off