Mash-Up: I'm Not A Substitute

The train sped along beneath a tangled web of overhead power lines.

Half an hour later, Takashi arrived in Tokyo's Ginza district.

Following the navigation instructions, he soon found the designated meeting spot—café yolum. It turned out to be a dessert shop.

A sign at the entrance read "Soft Opening," decorated with various cartoon illustrations, giving it a creative and lively touch.

"This should be the place."

Takashi double-checked the location.

After confirming he was in the right place, he pulled out a small mirror and inspected his makeup.

The sharp, aggressive features he normally carried were now gone, replaced by a softer, more delicate face—one that appeared weak and easy to take advantage of.

This wasn't just makeup; it was practically a complete transformation.

"Perfect."

After carefully examining himself and ensuring that his current appearance bore at least a seventy-to-ninety percent resemblance to Tanuma Tsubasa, Takashi pushed open the door and stepped inside.

…

Inside the dessert shop, which was decorated like a European-style castle, Shijo Maki absentmindedly scooped bites of Black Forest cake into her mouth, chewing mechanically as her thoughts remained fixated on Akari Kashiwagi and Tanuma Tsubasa.

Did they go home together? 

Were they holding hands? 

Would they hug? 

Could they possibly—no, no, no, that was impossible.

Something as sacred as a kiss should be saved for the wedding day.

But what if they were the kind of couple who kissed within just a month of dating?

Wouldn't that make her no different from those cheap girls?

Completely naive about anything related to intimacy, the sixteen-year-old young lady comforted herself with these thoughts.

The rich sweetness of the cake melted in her mouth, but strangely, the dessert she had once adored now tasted bitter.

Her stomach also felt a little uncomfortable.

Maki started to suspect that the café had secretly swapped out its ingredients. Or perhaps this piece of Black Forest cake was leftover from yesterday?

She would have to investigate this place thoroughly when she got home.

If this cake really upset her stomach, she would make sure the café learned the true power of capital.

Completely unaware that her mood was the real culprit behind the change in taste, Maki placed the blame elsewhere.

"Excuse me."

Maki was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice someone had taken the seat next to her.

Without even glancing up, she spoke impatiently. "I don't have a phone, and I don't add people."

Despite being a loser in love, she was actually quite popular.

Many of her classmates were pursuing her, and even outside of school, she was frequently approached. 

But she could never tell whether these people liked her for her looks, her family background, or for who she truly was.

And besides, it's not easy to forget the first person you ever loved—especially when it was a love that was never reciprocated.

Unrequited love was the hardest kind to let go of.

The older she got, the more she would romanticize the past and overlook Tanuma Tsubasa's flaws.

A "first love" wasn't necessarily special because the person was perfect, but because they appeared in your life at just the right moment—when you were at the age most susceptible to falling for someone.

"Miss Shijo, hello. My name is Watanabe Takashi, but you can call me 'Takashi.'"

Takashi wasn't fazed by Maki's cold demeanor. Having been hardened by society after graduation, he had long since learned to maintain his composure in any situation.

He pulled out a chair and sat down, introducing himself.

"Takashi?"

Maki finally spared him a glance.

But the moment she looked up, her pupils dilated in shock.

The next second, as if her chair had a spring-loaded mechanism, she shot to her feet so quickly that she even knocked over the drink on the table.

This was incredibly improper behavior.

Had she been at home, her parents would have reprimanded her for such a breach of etiquette.

But Maki completely forgot about maintaining her usual poise. 

Her voice was filled with a mixture of surprise and delight. "Tsubasa!"

Takashi was very satisfied with her reaction.

That meant his disguise had worked perfectly.

As expected.

This was exactly the effect he had been aiming for.

And everything was going according to plan.

"Tsubasa?"

Takashi blinked in feigned confusion and touched his own face.

"Do I really look that much like him?"

It was only then that Maki snapped out of it. The man had introduced himself already.

His name was Watanabe Takashi—not Tanuma Tsubasa.

"…Sorry, you just look a lot like a friend of mine."

Maki slowly sat back down, though her gaze remained fixed on Takashi.

So similar.

They looked way too similar.

Why did he and Tsubasa resemble each other so much?

"Miss, is everything alright?"

A waiter approached, having noticed the commotion.

"It's fine. Oh, and could you help me clean up the table?" Shijo Maki, despite being a lady from a prestigious family, wasn't arrogant. 

She remained polite even when speaking to regular staff.

"I'd also like to order another of what I had earlier."

Perhaps feeling a bit guilty for causing trouble, she ordered another portion of cake.

After placing her order, she suddenly remembered Takashi's presence and turned to ask, "Would you like anything? It's on me."

"No need. I'm not really into sweets. I'll just have some oolong tea." Takashi declined with a smile.

'Just like Tsubasa—he doesn't like sweets either.'

Hearing his response, Maki thought to herself.

'They really are alike.'

The two of them moved to a different table.

Once the waiter had finished setting their orders down and left, the two of them sat there, staring at each other.

Neither spoke.

The atmosphere quickly grew awkward.

They were like online friends meeting in person for the first time.

Online, you're confident, full of jokes, and endlessly witty.

In person, you suddenly become timid, at a loss for words, and socially inept.

Takashi racked his brain before finally blurting out, "Uh… so… have you eaten yet?"

Maki looked down at the dessert in front of her, then glanced back at him.

Suddenly, she turned her head away, her shoulders shaking violently—clearly trying to hold back laughter.

Takashi could tell she was laughing, and his face started to turn red. The blush spread from his cheeks down to his neck.

"You're laughing, aren't you?" he muttered, embarrassed and annoyed.

"No."

Maki denied it immediately.

As a lady of the Shijo family, she had undergone professional etiquette training.

No matter how funny something was, she wouldn't laugh.

…Unless she couldn't help it.

"You're definitely laughing!"

"I told you, I'm not."

"Then turn around."

Maki did as he asked.

But the moment she saw Takashi's face—so incredibly similar to Tsubasa's—flushed red with embarrassment, she couldn't hold back any longer.

Just like she used to laugh at Tsubasa, she burst out in an unrestrained "Hahaha!"

It was uncanny!

The resemblance was unbelievable!

Unable to speak properly around girls, blushing the moment he made eye contact—wasn't this just Tsubasa himself?

There were too many similarities.

Was it really just a coincidence?

As Maki laughed, Takashi's lips curled into the faintest of smirks.

Coincidence?

There were no such things as coincidences.

What Maki perceived as a fated encounter was, in reality, a carefully orchestrated plan.

Since the system had provided him with Tsubasa's detailed profile, Takashi knew everything—his preferences, his personality, his mannerisms.

All he had to do was mimic him.

And Maki would take the bait herself.

Catching her was as easy as fishing for a predatory fish.

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Check out the other translations too: [Mash-Up: Anything For Money]

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