Didn’t You Say I Was Just a Stand-In?

In the sweltering heat of mid-May, cicadas chirped loudly outdoors. The asphalt road shimmered under the scorching sun, creating mirages in the distance. The afternoon streets were filled with the sounds of cicadas and passing vehicles, with almost no pedestrians in sight. Unless it was a matter of life and death, no one would choose to go out during the hottest part of the day.

"Water!"

Inside an air-conditioned bus, a black-haired girl with hair cascading past her shoulders held a copy of The Izu Dancer in her hands. She lifted her head, stretching her long neck, which had grown stiff from reading, and turned to the boy sitting beside her. He had short, neat hair and wore large round glasses.

Kitahara Takashi, who had been on the verge of falling asleep, pinched his thigh hard upon hearing the girl's voice. The pain jolted him awake, and he quickly reached into his sling bag, pulling out a thermos. He opened it and flashed her a bright smile. "Here you go, Utaha-senpai."

Kasumigaoka Utaha stared at the boy, whose face bore an uncanny resemblance to Aki Tomoya. His innocent smile momentarily stunned her. However, she quickly composed herself and said coldly, "Aki wouldn't smile like that."

Takashi lowered his eyes and replied meekly, "I'm sorry. I won't do it again."

Utaha avoided looking at Takashi's face, afraid that the striking resemblance to Aki Tomoya would soften her heart. She took the thermos from him and absentmindedly took a sip. Almost immediately, she frowned.

Takashi, who had been closely watching her expression, quickly explained, "I noticed you've been holding your stomach a lot lately, so I thought maybe… you know, your period was coming. I made you some brown sugar water."

Utaha looked down at the thermos, her face expressionless but her emotions in turmoil.

Takashi was someone she had met on the day she confessed her feelings to Aki Tomoya and was rejected.

It had been snowing heavily that day.

Heartbroken and disoriented after her first-ever confession ended in rejection, she had almost been hit by a car while crossing the street without paying attention to the traffic lights.

It was then that Takashi had reached out and pulled her back to safety.

To be honest, when she first saw Takashi, she had almost mistaken him for Aki.

They had the same hairstyle, the same glasses, and even their voices were eerily similar.

It wasn't until Takashi handed her a flyer that she realized the truth.

"Utaha-senpai, have you heard of stand-in literature?"

Utaha: "..."

The bus doors hissed open, and a wave of heat rushed in, interrupting Utaha's memories of her first encounter with Takashi. She stood up and got off the bus.

Takashi, carrying shopping bags in both hands, followed closely behind her. After stepping off the bus, he shifted all the bags to one hand and pulled out a parasol from his bag, holding it over Utaha. He looked every bit the perfect, devoted boyfriend.

Utaha glanced at him, her wine-red eyes locking onto his. "Takashi, you know I like someone else, right?"

At first, Utaha hadn't thought much of their chance meeting. But the more she reflected on it, the more suspicious she became.

The timing of his appearance—right when she was at her lowest—his almost identical looks, and his similar style of dress… it all felt too convenient.

Could such a coincidence really exist?

Utaha began to suspect that Takashi was secretly her admirer.

Someone who had been watching her from the shadows, studying Aki Tomoya's appearance and mannerisms, and then orchestrating their meeting.

The whole "stand-in boyfriend" thing was just an excuse to get close to her, a tactic to win her over.

Otherwise, how could he know her so well, even down to her menstrual cycle?

'He must be in love with me,' Utaha thought confidently.

She was quite proud of her looks, after all.

Didn't he know the value of being one of the most popular heroines on Shukatsu?

If the heroines of Shukatsu were a measure of talent, she alone accounted for half of it.

"You're just a stand-in, you understand that, right?"

When Utaha first approached Takashi, it was purely to see a face that so closely resembled Aki Tomoya's.

But over time, she began to enjoy Takashi's meticulous care and gentle demeanor.

He knew her preferences.

He planned every detail of their outings.

Most importantly, his eyes were always on her, as if she were the only person in his world.

It felt as though she had been the one Aki Tomoya had chosen all along.

As if the rejection had never happened.

She reveled in Takashi's attention, but she also knew she was only using him as a substitute.

To prevent him from getting the wrong idea, Utaha decided it was best to make things clear.

"Senpai, I know I'm just a stand-in. You don't need to remind me."

Takashi lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly. His voice, low and strained, seemed to be forced out of his throat.

Seeing Takashi so upset, Utaha felt her words might have been too harsh. She opened her mouth, perhaps to say something comforting, but in the end, she remained silent. Instead, she pulled out her phone and transferred 100,000 yen to him.

She wasn't good at comforting people, nor was she willing to apologize outright, so she simply resorted to giving him money.

Hearing the notification sound from his phone, Takashi, still looking down, allowed a faint smile to creep onto his lips. But when he raised his head again, his eyes were slightly red. "Senpai, let me walk you home."

Utaha nodded lightly. "Okay."

The rest of the walk was silent.

Takashi, who was usually chatty around her, remained quiet, and Utaha found it a bit unsettling.

But she understood.

If she were in his shoes, being rejected by someone she liked, she would feel the same way.

'I hope he can move on quickly,' Utaha thought, stealing a glance at Takashi.

After safely escorting Utaha to her doorstep and handing her the shopping bags, Takashi spoke up again. "Senpai!"

"Hmm?"

Utaha turned around.

The summer breeze gently lifted her willow-like hair, swaying it in the wind.

"No matter if you need me or not, I'll always be here for you," Takashi said with a stubborn expression, like a loyal dog unwilling to give up even after being clearly rejected by its owner.

Utaha's eyes grew complex.

After a long pause, she turned away, muttering, "Do whatever you want."

As she walked into her house, her graceful figure disappearing from view, Takashi's expression instantly turned cold, like melting ice.

[Mission completed. Calculating rewards.]

[Player has earned: 5,000 points.]

[Number of dates with Kasumigaoka Utaha: 9]

The moment the system notification sounded, Takashi turned and walked away without hesitation.

He headed straight to a 24-hour convenience store near Utaha's house.

As soon as he entered, the young female cashier greeted him with a smile. "Welcome!"

"Can I use the restroom?"

It wasn't until he came to Japan that Takashi learned convenience stores had restrooms.

"Of course! It's straight ahead, in the corner."

"Thank you."

After politely thanking her, Takashi made his way to the restroom. He removed his glasses, pulled off the wig and hairnet, revealing his silver-white hair.

Using makeup remover, he wiped off the cosmetics on his face. When he looked up at the mirror, the reflection showed a young man with sharp features—thin lips, a straight nose, deep-set eyes, and a jawline that hinted at a mixed heritage.

A black earring adorned his left ear.

His pale skin, illuminated by the light, looked even whiter than a friend who had passed away a month ago.

Unlike the gentle, boy-next-door look he adopted when disguised as Aki Tomoya, Takashi's natural appearance was bold and untamed, exuding a wild, almost intimidating aura. He looked like the kind of guy girls nowadays would call a "wolf-dog" type.

Staring at his reflection for a long time, Takashi sighed deeply. "Sigh…"

It had been almost half a year since he inexplicably found himself in this world, and he still couldn't shake the feeling of unreality.

He sometimes wondered if everything he was experiencing was just a vivid dream, a final surge of brain activity before death.

Otherwise, how could he explain the existence of this so-called "system"?

Come to think of it, he didn't even know how he had died.

He didn't smoke, drink, or indulge in anime. He didn't play Genshin Impact, went to bed before 11 PM every night, and had no conflicts with anyone. His only hobby was listening to tragic stories by authors like Ruyan Dadi, immersing himself in the pain and struggles of the protagonists to satisfy some twisted psychological need.

Sure, he might have been a bit mentally unwell, but it wasn't illegal, right?

So why had he been chosen to穿越 (transmigrate)?

Weren't穿越者 (transmigrators) supposed to be people with tragic backstories—orphans with no friends, who spent their days obsessing over fictional characters, spouting nonsense online, and blushing at the mere sight of a girl?

Buzz~ Buzz~

Just as Takashi was lost in thought, his phone vibrated incessantly in his pocket.

He pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID, instinctively holding it away from his ear before answering.

"Takashi! Where are you? You promised to come to today's mixer! Don't tell me you're bailing on us again, you jerk! If you dare skip out, we're done!!!"

Before Takashi could even get a word in, the person on the other end unleashed a rapid-fire tirade, their voice loud enough to be heard clearly without the need for speakerphone.

Takashi patiently waited for them to finish before calmly replying, "I just finished work. I'll be there soon. I promise I'll make it today."

"You better!"

After the call ended, Takashi packed away his wig, makeup remover, and glasses, slung his bag over his shoulder, and left the restroom.

On his way out, he grabbed a pack of gum from the store.

As he walked past the counter, the cashier, who had been relaxed moments ago, unconsciously straightened her posture.

Beep!

Without even glancing at the gum, the cashier flashed Kitahara Takashi a sweet, heart-melting smile. "498 yen, please."

Takashi pulled out a 500-yen coin from his wallet and handed it over. After receiving his 2 yen in change, he thanked her before leaving.

"Huh?" The cashier looked at him, puzzled.

What was he thanking her for?

Did he know her?

On the JR Keiyo Line heading back to Tokyo, Takashi took a moment to check his system.

The words [Status] and [Shop] were highlighted.

With a thought, Takashi opened his status panel.

Name: Kitahara Takashi

Age: 16

Intelligence: 7

Charm: 9

Stamina: 5

Items: None

Skills: Master-Level Makeup Artistry

Passive: Neat Handwriting

Titles: None

Points: 95,000

Dates: Kasumigaoka Utaha (9 times), Spencer Sawamura Eriri (7 times), Hiratsuka Shizuka (3 times)

Money: 1,231,142 yen

Considering the average person's stats were around 5, Takashi felt he was doing pretty well for a human.

After reviewing his personal information, he opened the [Shop].

Currency Exchange: 100 yen = 1 point

Attributes:

Intelligence: 1 point = 100,000 points

Charm: 1 point = 100,000 points

Stamina: 1 point = 100,000 points

Skills:

Basic Photo Editing: 100 points

Proficient Cooking: 1,000 points

Advanced Writing: 10,000 points

Master-Level Fishing: 100,000 points

God-Level: Meditation Combat – 1,000,000 points

Passives:

Sword Mastery: 10,000 points

Items:

Gentleman's Glasses: 1,000 points

Shuchiin Academy Uniform: 100 points

Soubu High Uniform: 100 points

(Refresh Time: 151 hours, 46 minutes, 53 seconds)

While attribute points and master-level skills were within reach, god-level skills felt like a distant dream to Takashi.

'If only I had more tools like Kasumigaoka Utaha,' Takashi thought sincerely.

He genuinely liked Utaha.

She was the type of person who, at the slightest hint of his discomfort, would assume he was head over heels for her and promptly transfer money to him.

It was almost laughable.

How could he ever be so hung up on a girl?

He wasn't some tragic, lovesick side character from a novel.

If anything, he'd be the protagonist.

He, Kitahara Takashi, would never be anyone's stand-in.