Game Market 1983

“Twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle."

“Wow!”

Peek-a-boo!

When I entered the special room in Tsubaki's room, I heard the children laughing somewhere.

And in that smile, I slowly walked to the place where I heard the children's voices.

“Sis!! Let's do it again. What?”

“Yes, I understand. Wait a minute."

Then the chubby, full-bodied child in his patient outfit pressed her with a wave next to Tsubaki.

“Hurry up!”

“There's Massao. You have to let go of your arm to play the piano!”

“Oh, right. ”

“Hahaha! Masao is a fool!”

“Yes, yes!”

“Kids, don't make fun of your friends. What did you say yesterday? ”

“Be friends!! ”

“Great!”

This place is full of teachers.

Seeing the bright smile of Tsubaki singing with the children, I felt lighter and lighter all the way here.

But was there ever a place like this on the first floor of the special wing?

I don't think I've seen you before.

“Ah!! Strange man is watching us!! ”

Hey, kid. Strange guy. Where did I...?

At that time, I looked up at Tsubaki, who turned his head to his voice, and I smiled awkwardly and lifted a bouquet of flowers.

“Wow! He must be my boyfriend!! ”

“Are you her boyfriend? ”

“No. He's married to a very pretty woman.”

“Ahhh!! Then it must be an affair. An affair!! ”

Then the girl next to me tilted her head and asked the boy who shouted that he was having an affair.

“Hey, brother. What is an affair?”

“Huh? It's... oh, it's a long trip with another woman after we get married. I saw it on TV.”

“Hmm? Why go on a trip with another woman? ”

“Well? I'm not sure about that...”

... There's nothing the kids can't do these days.

Tsubaki stood up with a red face, wondering if he was embarrassed by what he said.

“Hello, Joon-Hyuk. ”

As the sun shines down on the window, she smiles brightly at me as she walks towards me.

“How are you feeling? ”

Then Tsubaki lifted up his casualty's robe, expressing his forearms, smiling and returning.

“I'm very good at it!”

I looked at her like that for a moment and smiled at her face.

“Is that a doomsday gift? ”

“Oh, right...”

“Wow, you're pretty! You have a good sense, Joon-Hyuk. I can see why Yuki likes Joon-Hyuk. ”

Looking at the happy Tsubaki with a basket of flowers, I thanked her again and again in my heart.

“By the way, was there ever a piano in that room? ”

“No. The hospital told me that Ueno donated the piano. ”

“Ugh? Mr. Ueno? ”

I can only recall a few days ago when I agreed to a list of supplies for a piano purchase that Ueno requested.

I thought I needed it for the sound team, so I bought it. Was it a donation to the hospital?

“I'm glad I got to know my kids, and I didn't forget the piano sense. ”

“Yes…? That's good."

As expected, Mr. Ueno has not missed the strings of hope for Tsubaki...

However, the more difficult the moment of separation will be, Ueno is three years older than I am, and he is still married to the Kawaguchi Representative.

A 36-year-old single woman is quite old, but she still doesn't seem willing to get married.

“But what brings you here today? ”

Tsubaki, who was walking earlier, pressed the button of the elevator going up to the room and asked me.

I was momentarily lost in thought, smiling awkwardly at her sudden question.

“I was just on my way to work, and I had some business at the Pentagon, and I thought of Tsubaki...”

“Oh, right. By the way, it's been a month since the launch of Complex Raon, and it's September, so it looks like the heat has broken...”

“Yeah, that humid air feels pretty refreshing now. ”

“Hehe. Right? ”

Ding!

With the ringtone, the door of the heavy elevator opens, revealing an empty metal space. Tsubaki was being beaten by Ringer, so he moved the iron hanger with Ringer Pack on her behalf.

Soon after the elevator door closes with a thumping sound, you begin to climb to the seventh floor of her room with a rumbling sound.

Would it have been easier if there was someone else besides us?

Just the two of her in a barricaded space. My heart was getting darker and darker again.

Then Tsubaki, staring at the elevator door, opens his mouth.

“Joon-Hyuk is a terrible liar. ”

“Huh?"

“When Yuki came to the hospital earlier, I heard where Joon-Hyuk lived. If you really wanted to go to the Pentagon shop, the hospital here is completely opposite Junhyuk's house. ”

“Oh, well...”

“It's okay. I didn't mean to insult Joon-Hyuk. ”

I could only say this when she looked back at me and held out her tongue.

“Sorry...”

“It's okay, I understand. But…”

During her brief hesitation, the elevator suddenly arrives on the seventh floor and rings a ringtone.

The warm sunlight in the hallway flashed golden, and Tsubaki pulled me out of the room while standing still holding the Ringer hanger in my hand.

“Ah, the weather is so nice. The room's getting a little overwhelming, so can we talk about it here? ”

“Yes, do whatever you want. ”

“Yuki said she pretended to be careless, but sometimes she was very delicate, so I guess she was wrong about her eyes. ”

“Yuki said that? ”

“Sure. Oh, right. I saw Seohyun too. The smile on his face in the bathroom was so cute...”

Tsubaki trembles with his hands wrapped around his balls, wondering if he remembered Seohyun.

I threw a bloody smile at that Tsubaki.

“Ah, now you smile. Joon-Hyuk's face is too stiff. ”

“No, I smile well. ”

“Of course I laugh well. Especially when it comes to hitting gamers in the back. A cynical smile that I make with my mouth. ”

“What...? ”

“Kick-kick. Surprised? ”

“No. Like what? You've seen more of my conferences than that. ”

“Of course. I've kept it a secret so far, but I've been playing all the Pentagon games." ”

I was not surprised by her answer.

I just wanted to sing, and I thought she was auditioning for Virtual Idol, but she was actually a Pentagon gamer...

“The first thing I knew about the Pentagon was the Final Frontier. My dad bought me a family for my birthday at the time, and the game I bought with him was the Final Frontier. The father who gave the game machine to the little girl, which is weird to think about right now, but that's how I found out it's a game. ”

“I see...”

“Then one day. I asked him what happened because my classmate went to school with a very frustrated look on his face, and he was very upset that the game he bought for a lot of money was over at the end. So I asked him to play again from the beginning, and he said, is that an impossible game? ”

“Dragon emblem...”

“That's right!”

In her gesture of reaching a finger toward me with a frown on one eye, I now felt quite refreshed.

“Of course, I didn't know Joon-Hyuk that well at the time, but I was there. ”

“Hmm..? Where?”

“I was one of the participants at the Dragon Emblem Punitive Ceremony at the time, hosted by Pammy Communications. ”

“What!? ”

I remember there were a few female players at the time, including Yuki, but I didn't know there was a Tsubaki in there...

Looking at her with a silly look, Tsubaki opens his mouth with a pudgy smile.

“You look just like Yuki. ”

“I had no idea...”

“Of course. I was quickly dismissed, and I was very young. Was it freshman year in high school? But I watched Joon-Hyuk finish clearing the Dragon Emblem. I was going to talk to Joon-Hyuk on the way back from the event, but I stopped giving up because I had a player right in front of me. ”

“Ah…”

Then it really was the day you met Yuki. Tsubaki was looking at me when I was a kid.

I was stunned by the impact of a hammer on the back of my head, and I looked at her, and I said, "That's pretty amazing, right? ’I smiled warmly.

“I hadn't played a game for a while, but one day I happened to see a game magazine in a bookstore and read an article about Joon-Hyuk. The truth is, you were the developer of the Dragon Emblem, and the whole community has been making up these crazy streets ever since... and you left Mintendo and went to a place called Pentagon Soft. ”

“I see...”

“Since then it has taken some time, but I've tried all of Junhyuk's games. Then one day last year, I was auditioning at the Pentagon for an article about idols. He knew I was sick at the time, but I wanted to see him again. I used to know Joon-Hyuk so closely...”

“Tsubaki, you...”

“What do you think? On the contrary, I feel like I've been hit by a user...?" ”

“Haha... I don't have anything to say...”

“Funny, isn't it? Don't worry too much. I didn't tell Yuki about this. ”

As I stare at her side, face full of sunlight, my chin curled up in the window frame, I sigh a small sigh.

I couldn't look at that smile and tell him to give up Idol and get the surgery.

“Joon-Hyuk.”

“Yes..? ”

“Hey, I... I've been writing a song with Kanna's help lately. ”

“Yeah..? ”

“So do me a favor, this is a little cheesy, but do me a favor as a girl who used to like you a lot? ”

“Boo... Tak? ”

“It's not that hard, so don't be too nervous. ”

Her face turned and looked at me was full of life that had never existed.