Midnight Pretenders (BL)

Chapter 22

"Just Cherry," Aoi says after clearing her throat as she levels her gaze at him. "I'm no longer used to being called Miss Chiba nowadays."

"Even with the Boss?" Sakamoto teases her back with a mischievous grin on his face as he crinkles his eyes at her.

Aoi pauses for a second, raising a brow at the man who is obviously trying to play around with her by making casual jokes about her strange relationship with Yanagi. Well, it is not as if that came out wrong. She does not really mind hearing someone mock her. After all, if Sakamoto is really Yanagi's ally, then there is no such reason for her to feel even wary and suspicious about him. However, if in case Sakamoto really tries to use his "suspected" knowledge of her real identity to interject with her own new plan, things would have to go differently then.

And Aoi must always keep in mind the importance of playing safe. She must never get swayed by this man's futile words.

"He calls me in any way he wants," Aoi just simply replies afterward, speaking in a nonchalant voice as she shrugs a shoulder at him, "He basically owns me now."

The last few words she has said immediately summons a squint on Sakamoto's face while he looks at her with a serious expression. For a moment, he keeps his silence to watch her carefully. He cannot really tell what she is trying to imply with that kind of response but Sakamoto feels like it does not really say anything much.

In fact, he already expects her to be this simple and very casual. He has pretty much guessed now that the Boss has been already deeply intimate with this woman for a long while. Even if there is still no direct nor any official word from the Boss himself, Sakamoto could already see how well taken care of she is by the Yanagi family. Even Jin has already become her personal bodyguard and babysitter despite being the exclusive right-hand man of Kenji Yanagi who has never left his side for so long until this woman suddenly came into the picture and eventually changed that for good.

She must really be so good... in luring the Boss then. Sakamoto cannot really pinpoint any grounds or point as to why she is still being kept like this for so many months just near Yanagi's side except the likely possibility that she has become his lover now.

"As Yanagi's biggest supporter," Sakamoto speaks after a moment, his gaze staying on her face as he regards her, "I also want him to be happy. To be honest, I have never really seen him have a woman to live inside the territory before... Not since a long time ago."

"What do you mean?" It is now Aoi's turn to frown and squint her eyes at Sakamoto after hearing his comment, "He never had a woman? Not until what?"

"Why?" Sakamoto questions back immediately with a raise of a brow as his mouth quirks up into a smirk, "Are you curious to know more of him?"

"We never really talked that much," Aoi says but in a defensive note as she looks away and puts an imaginary distance between them. Every nerve in her body screams at her to ask and pry more about Yanagi's past yet she tries not to be too obvious of her own interest because she knows that too much curiosity and questioning would be absurd and dubious. She does not really want to make Sakamoto even more suspicious of her now.

That is the last thing she would have wanted to happen. She needs to put up a safe bubble around her even when she is desperately trying to pick up crumbs about little things that she learns about Yanagi's past.

"But it's not really my business to know about his life and romance. So far, I'm contented having my own life and buying anything I wanted without being guilty of spending too much. I guess, being Yanagi's woman is not really that much of a struggle."

"I agree, Miss Cherry," Sakamoto briefly answers with a nod himself, "But as to being a Yakuza's wife, I don't know yet. I haven't tried marrying anyone before. Yet Boss Yanagi is a very committed man, though I'm not really saying that he could be planning that far ahead now. But he might be having thoughts about it every one and a while, considering that you are here and he has never really affiliated himself with any other woman before for several long years since I've known him until you."

Is that for real?

Aoi's mind gradually goes blank as she struggles to comprehend what Sakamoto just said to her. Marriage? Wife? Is that where this all is going to? Is that the reason why she is still being kept? But if that so, then why? Why her?

Aoi knows that she should not be overreacting and overthinking about it. Sakamoto might have been just feeding her these kinds of things to make her feel pressured and severely reliable to follow the Yanagi's family way of living. But the chances of it ever being real is quite big. Aoi had even once thought about that scenario... About what if Yanagi suddenly decides to marry her?

What will she do?

Will she say yes? Will she even go for it?

And what does that even say about their relationship? So far, the only thing good with being Yanagi's woman is having the luxury to do and buy all the things she wants and be satisfied in bed, even when there are nights that she went to sleep alone lately. There are no other things that she could possibly feel that Yanagi would suddenly want to marry her. But she is no longer new in this circle. And she even heard before that being married is a huge impact in the clan especially for the Yakuza bosses.

It makes them more dependable and very family-oriented. Women keep them grounded and the Dojima's highest boss has a very huge respect for the significant roles played by wives in the family. Is that perhaps, the reason for this then? Is Aoi actually being targeted to become Yanagi's wife for his own purpose of getting favors from the higher ranks?

"Miss Cherry?"

It is not until Sakamoto has tapped her on the arm that Aoi Chiba finally comes back to her senses and distractingly looks up to meet Sakamoto's frowning face.

"Sorry... I..."

"The Boss is here," he quickly interrupts her, putting on a gentle fake smile as he flits his eyes to someone approaching them behind her. Aoi quickly turns and sees Kenji Yanagi with Jin and a few men, following them, striding his way towards them. His face is too serious and their eyes immediately meet as she watches him until he stops from a few steps away.

This man... is he really going to marry her?

If Sakamoto's words will become true, will she really do it? Can she?

Aoi still could not answer it. But there is only one way to figure it all out, she has to stay beside him.

She has to keep her role important and dependable. For Kenji Yanagi and for her mission, she will become the woman he would desperately want for the rest of his life.