Valentine's Day in Tokyo is a curse. Especially when you are Kiyoshi.
The announcer on the TV blared, "Hello, Tokyo! Today is the most romantic day of the year!"
Kiyoshi groaned and threw a pillow at the screen. "Mom, turn that off."
He sat up in bed, the sheets tangling around his legs. His room was a graveyard of gold and plastic. A National Science Fair trophy was being used as a paperweight for a stack of manga. A certificate for "Top Academic Achiever" was pinned crookedly to the wall, gathering dust. To the world, Kiyoshi was a genius. To the girls in his class, he was just "that bookworm."
He had the grades. He had the awards. But as he looked at the couples walking hand-in-hand outside his window, he realized he had absolutely nothing that mattered.
Bzz.
A notification lit up his phone. He meant to swipe it away, but the bold text caught his eye:
"Feeling lonely? Rent a Girlfriend today. No strings attached."
His thumb hovered over the screen. It was pathetic. It was desperate. It was exactly what he needed.
He didn't just click the link; he scoured it. He ignored the Terms of Service. He ignored the safety warnings. His eyes locked onto a profile picture that made his breath hitch.
Sakura. 19 Years Old. Brown hair. The smile of an angel.
"Three hours," he whispered, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. "Just for three hours, I want to be normal."
He dressed carefully in his best outfit and set off to meet her. From a distance, he spotted her, and his breath caught. She had brownish hair that cascaded down to her hips, and she was about his height. It was her. As he introduced himself, he noticed a subtle shift in her demeanor. She was good at this, he thought. But beneath her practiced charm, he couldn't help but wonder if there was any genuine emotion there. Was she just playing a role, or was there something more behind her smile?
"Hi, Kiyoshi. I'm your girlfriend for the next three hours. Where would you like to go?" she greeted him with a warm, practiced smile.
He stammered, "That's great. Let's go over there."
"Can I hold your hand?" he asked, his voice tinged with hope.
"Only hands," she replied, her tone polite but distant.
The rejection stung, but he pushed the feeling aside. They walked to an ice cream shop decorated with roses and heart-shaped ornaments. They shared a special Valentine's Day treat, each spoonful feeling like a small, intimate moment. Yet, her eyes seemed distant, as if she were somewhere else entirely. They played their parts—lovers for a day, but strangers beneath the surface.
After lunch, they arrived at the KOK mall by noon. A wish card shop caught their attention, its colorful displays impossible to ignore.
By 2:00 PM, the unexpected happened—they ran into his parents. Panic surged through him, and he quickly pulled Sakura out of sight, only to bump straight into his mother.
"Kiyoshi? What are you doing here?" she asked, her eyes wide with surprise.
"Why are you here, Mom?" he shot back, equally startled.
Blushing, she admitted, "I'm celebrating Valentine's Day with your dad."
Feeling awkward, Kiyoshi quickly excused himself, dragging Sakura along.
"Take one of these cards and write a wish. I promise it will come true," a maid-like woman offered. They each picked a card and wrote down their secret desires. Kiyoshi was curious about what Sakura had written, but she kept her card close, her expression unreadable.
As the minutes ticked by, Kiyoshi couldn't help but reflect on the fleeting nature of their time together. Maybe next year, he thought, he'd celebrate with a real girlfriend.
Suddenly, the world around them went dark. A rosy-scented fog enveloped everything, leaving only the two of them in a surreal, dreamlike space. A slow, romantic melody played in the background, and balloons began to float around them. An enigmatic doll appeared, its grin mischievous.
"How about a picnic?" it suggested, snapping its fingers.
And just like that, everything went black.