Chapter 76: Volume 1, - 76: The Girlfriend They Had Never Met
The previous evening Suzune asked, "You’re going to tell them tomorrow?"
They were together in Akiyama Bakery after closing. The shop was quiet, filled with the clean scent of cooled flour and wiped stainless steel. Suzune stood behind the counter, her hands resting against the smooth surface. Across from her, Ren sat on a wooden stool, rubbing the back of his neck as a flush climbed into his ears.
"There’s one more thing," he said, staring at the counter. "They don’t know about us either."
Suzune almost smiled at his embarrassment. Then the meaning caught up with her, and her amber eyes narrowed slightly. "They don’t know I exist?"
"I kept waiting until I had my life completely sorted out," Ren admitted. "I didn’t want to drag you into a family mess before I cleared the air."
Suzune pulled her hand back from the counter. "Ren, you keep waiting until the difficult part is almost over."
"I know."
She studied him for several seconds, her expression shifting from momentary frustration to quiet resolve. "I’ll come tomorrow. Not to prove that your life is going well, but because I’m your girlfriend and they deserve to meet me properly. You talk to them first so they can process the heavy news, and I’ll wait outside until you’re ready for me to come in."
"Thank you, Suzune," Ren said, relieved.
---
On Tuesday evening, 18 April 2023, Ren closed the front door behind him and released a breath he felt he had been holding for years.
He walked down the narrow concrete steps towards the White Pearl Crystal Shine Toyota Crown parked along the gravel driveway. Opening the passenger door, he looked down at Suzune.
"My mother is still processing everything," Ren said dryly. "And Mei is waiting to see whether you’re real."
Suzune unbuckled her seatbelt and stepped out into the cool evening air. "Then let’s go prove I’m real."
Inside, the living room still held the lingering tension of the earlier disclosure. Emiko stood near the kitchen counter, her eyes slightly red-rimmed, while Mei sat cross-legged on a floor cushion, watching the entryway.
"Mom, Mei," Ren said, stepping aside as Suzune unlaced her shoes at the genkan. "This is Suzune Akiyama."
Suzune bowed politely. "It’s very nice to meet you, Mrs. Kisaragi. Hello, Mei."
Emiko blinked, taking in Suzune’s warm sweater, neat trousers, and quiet composure. "Akiyama-san... Please, sit down."
They gathered around the low glass coffee table. Suzune explained smoothly that her family owned Akiyama Bakery. She mentioned that they had first spoken when Ren entered the shop as a customer and returned a dropped order slip, and that Kisaragi Business Support had later done paid work for the bakery. She added that while they had known each other for a short while, they had only officially started dating recently.
Emiko listened, her hands clasped tightly around her teacup. She looked from Suzune to her son, her brows drawing together.
"Akiyama-san," Emiko said, her tone cautious and direct. "Did you know about... his situation? The debt? The fact that he dropped out of university?"
"Yes," Suzune answered honestly. "Ren told me before we officially started dating."
A heavy stillness settled over the room. Emiko looked at Ren, her expression tightening with fresh hurt.
"He told you..." Emiko murmured. "Before he told his own mother."
Ren shifted uncomfortably on his cushion. "Mom, I—"
"He should have told you earlier," Suzune said gently, looking straight at Emiko. She offered no excuses for him, though her voice remained kind. "He was wrong to keep you in the dark for so long."
Ren blinked, turning to his girlfriend. "I’m sitting right here."
"I know," Suzune said, giving him a swift sideways glance. "And you know I’m right."
Mei let out a sudden, muffled snort into her sleeve, her tense posture relaxing for the first time all evening. She leaned forward across the table, resting her chin on her hands as she looked at Suzune with genuine curiosity.
"Is he always this serious?" Mei asked. "Like he swallowed a textbook?"
"In public, mostly," Suzune said, a faint smile touching her lips. "Although he spent twenty minutes complaining about the noodles we had in Kawagoe."
"They were terrible noodles," Ren grumbled, sitting up straight. "The broth was too salty and the noodles were mush."
"You still ate every bite," Suzune pointed out.
Mei broke into a genuine laugh, while Emiko’s tight posture softened slightly. The sharp edge in the room began to thaw, settling into a quieter, messier reality.
Emiko set her cup down and looked at Suzune. "Does he overwork himself when he’s with you? We know very little about Ren over the past two years."
"He still overworks," Suzune admitted. "I tell him when he’s doing it. He doesn’t always like hearing it, but he listens more than he used to."
"And the business?" Emiko asked. "Is he being honest with you about his firm?"
"The estate gave him opportunities, but the client work is real," Suzune said gently. "He still had to convince people to trust him. He works harder than anyone I know."
Emiko looked down at her hands. Her grip on the teacup loosened, though the tight line of her mouth remained.
Before Suzune and Ren left at eight o’clock, Ren pulled out a piece of memo paper and wrote down two lines in clear handwriting. He placed it on the kitchen counter beside the teapot.
"That’s my apartment address, and the second line is Suite 302," Ren said. "I’ll arrange a proper office visit. I won’t make you ask me again."
Emiko tapped the paper with her finger. "An actual date, Ren. Not ’sometime.’"
"An actual date," he promised.
While Ren went to fetch his coat from the entryway, Mei leaned toward Suzune near the door, sliding her smartphone across the wooden counter.
"Type your LINE ID in," Mei whispered quickly, keeping an eye on her brother’s back. "Just in case he tries to hide another major life event from us."
Suzune smiled, took the phone, and typed her information into the screen. "Added."
"Fair warning," Mei added in a hushed tone as Suzune handed the phone back. "He becomes completely impossible to talk to whenever he thinks he’s logically right about something."
"I’ve already noticed," Suzune replied smoothly. "I usually just ignore him until he realises he’s being ridiculous."
From the genkan, Ren adjusted his collar and called back over his shoulder. "I can hear both of you, you know."
"Good!" Mei yelled back cheerfully. "It saves me from having to repeat it!"