Upon hearing Sawamura Sayuri’s words, Shirase tilted his head and glanced at Nakano Ichika, whose face had already turned pink. The girl quickly gave an embarrassed smile.
“I’ll grab something to eat first, so I won’t get in your way.”
Ichika didn’t dare meet Shirase’s eyes—especially with a woman present who could see straight through her thoughts.
Seriously scary.
She walked over to a nearby table, paused, and wondered why this Mrs. Sawamura felt exactly like Yukinoshita Haruno-san.
Because it’s fun.
Haruno’s teasing words echoed in her mind.
“It seems I’ve misspoken,” Sawamura Sayuri withdrew her gaze and offered Shirase an apologetic smile. “I’ve scared away your dance partner.”
Before Shirase could respond, she pointed toward her daughter beside her. “Then how about this? To make up for it, why not let Eriri be your partner instead?”
“Mom!” Sawamura Eriri cried out, face flushed with panic. Is this really how a mother should act?!
Even Shirase looked stunned. “Mrs. Sawamura, are you serious?”
“Well… if I say I’m serious, that wouldn’t be quite right. But if I say I’m not, it sounds hypocritical.”
The elegant lady actually wore a thoughtful look, like a child trying to puzzle something out.
Two seconds later, she winked playfully. “How about you just pretend I’m serious?”
Eriri’s expression darkened. Are you completely ignoring your daughter’s feelings?!
Holding back a laugh, Shirase replied earnestly, “I think we should at least have Sawamura-san’s consent. Dancing involves two people, after all.”
“Of course Eriri would agree.”
“I do NOT agree!”
Mother and daughter’s voices overlapped in perfect contradiction.
Shirase subtly fanned the flames. “See? Sawamura-san’s clearly someone with her own opinions. My instincts were right—you should probably respect her feelings first.”
Eriri instinctively shot him a grateful look.
Sayuri chuckled. “As expected of my silly daughter! Shirase-kun’s clearly just stirring things up for fun, and you still thank him? Did you inherit any of your parents’ brains?”
“Huh?” Eriri froze, staring blankly.
Her gaze toward Shirase immediately cooled.
Sayuri only laughed harder. “Seems I misjudged you too, Shirase-kun—you’re quite the mischievous one.”
Shirase returned a polite smile. Times like these called for silence—otherwise, this beautiful woman would turn her aim on him next.
He’d learned that much after countless verbal duels with Yukinoshita Yukino in [Immersive Hosting].
Thinking of her, Shirase glanced toward the slim figure beyond the table.
Yukino and Eriri shared similar slender builds, yet their airs couldn’t be more different.
Yukinoshita Yukino noticed his gaze. Instead of displeasure, the brilliant girl offered him a calm, radiant smile.
Her meaning was clear: I’m enjoying this. Don’t stop now.
As expected, she was wicked through and through, Shirase muttered inwardly.
Then Sayuri asked again, “By the way, if Eriri invited you to dance, would you accept?”
“Mom, why do you always have to drag me into this?!” Eriri’s voice rose in indignation.
They might not be much normally, but right now her chest felt like it was about to burst from anger.
Sayuri simply laughed it off.
Meeting her daughter’s fiery glare, Shirase thought for a moment, then said, “After thinking about it, I probably wouldn’t.”
Eriri froze, not sure she’d heard right.
Before she could react, Sayuri clapped her hands happily. “Wonderful, Eriri! Did you hear that? Shirase-kun said he wouldn’t chase after you. Now I don’t have to worry about you getting stolen away by other boys.”
Eriri: “…”
At this point, she was half convinced her mom had picked her up out of a trash can.
He’d only said he probably wouldn’t dance with her—how had her mother’s logic ended up scaling the Himalayas?
If you’re that happy, why not just smack me around to top it off?!
Eriri puffed her cheeks in frustration, too annoyed to say another word.
Seeing through Sayuri’s teasing, Shirase smoothly stepped in. “What I meant was, Sawamura-san and I aren’t very familiar. If she suddenly invited me to dance, I might start imagining weird things—like she’s playing some kind of truth-or-dare.”
“Why would you think that?” Sayuri asked curiously.
“Because she’s very beautiful,” Shirase said honestly. “With her looks, there’s no way she’d be short on dance partners at a ball.”
Eriri blinked, caught off guard. Meeting his gaze, she fought down the smile tugging at her lips and instead gave a sharp, tsundere snort, turning away.
Did you really think a simple compliment would work on me?
Absolutely not!
Shirase didn’t mind her reaction. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Nakano Ichika not far away—now joined by a man speaking with her.
Knowing Ichika, the polite smile she wore looked more like resistance.
Quickly excusing himself from the Sawamuras, Shirase walked over.
“Mr. Hoshino, I’m sorry for the trouble. My partner’s arrived, so please invite someone else.” Ichika shot Shirase a surprised glance, her polite smile instantly turning genuine.
The man paused, then, seeing Shirase’s composed figure in a tailored suit, gave an awkward nod. “Sorry for intruding.”
As the man left, Shirase said regretfully, “I actually thought he’d insist on taking you away.”
Ichika blinked. “Why?”
“Isn’t that how it goes in dramas? The villain gives the lead a perfect chance to look cool. Unfortunately, he didn’t. My blood was already boiling for the scene.”
“Hahaha… what kind of drama is that?”
“As someone aiming to be a big star, you don’t even know the classics? I’m seriously doubting your dedication.”
“You’re so annoying.”
Ichika pretended to hit him, but then hesitated. Her eyes softened shyly. “You just said… male lead? Were you imagining yourself as him?”
“Is there something wrong with that?” Shirase countered.
Ichika bit her lip, voice small. “Then… would I be the female lead?”
Just as warmth began to rise in her chest, Shirase suddenly reached out and pinched her cheek.
She froze.
What kind of move is that?!
Then she heard him mutter thoughtfully, “When did your skin get this thick?”
A brief silence. Then Ichika laughed and gave him a light kick.
Geez, couldn’t you just answer seriously?
She hid her disappointment behind her smile.
—
This is a fan translation of 谁能拒绝中野二乃呢？by 六花吖六花. Rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!
Reader discussion
0 Comments
Be the first reader to share a thought about this chapter.