I Told Her She Was Mine… She Took It Too Seriously

I hadn’t really felt it before, but hearing that “darling” finally made the reality of “I have a girlfriend” sink in.

Even though, probably, most likely, Kaori was just thinking that since we were already a couple, we should use more intimate terms, and that’s why she said it…

Still, just hearing it felt amazing.

Those rich guys who throw money at female streamers—don’t they just want to hear the streamer say their name in thanks? It gives them status on the leaderboard.

Hearing Kaori call me that, for whatever reason, I was already immensely grateful.

“Um…”

“Ah, I heard you. Thank you so much!”

“This isn’t really something to thank me for… Hah…” Kaori let out a breath, relieved. “I’m so glad. I thought… Darling… might not want me to call him that.”

“How could I? It’s just that no one’s ever called me that before, so it made me a bit dazed.”

“You mean, I’m the first?”

“Yeah.”

She smiled.

“Good. Then I’ll call you that from now on… Darling.”

For Kaori, the term “darling” was still hard to say. It was more intimate than calling me by name. It clearly required some mental preparation every time she said it, like she was going into battle.

I found it a bit amusing, a bit touching, but mostly, I didn’t want her to force herself.

I scratched my cheek and smiled wryly.

“Uh, if it’s uncomfortable, you don’t have to force it.”

Kaori shook her head firmly.

“I’ll get used to it.”

Her enthusiasm was almost intimidating.

“So, Darling, what should you call me?”

After settling on what Kaori would call me, she earnestly moved on to the next question: what I would call her.

This one wasn’t as embarrassing for me. I could easily say her name.

“Just Kaori. Is that okay?”

She shook her head.

Rejected.

I was stunned.

I c-can’t even call her by her name?

But that wasn’t it. Kaori looked at me seriously and said,

“I want something more intimate, something that matches ‘Darling.'”

I never expected her to be so particular about this. She probably thought couples should be this affectionate.

But not all couples are so lovey-dovey… Hmm…

Oh well. Kaori was making the effort to call me “darling,” so I had to do something on my end.

I folded my arms and thought.

Something more intimate, matching “darling”… Should I call her “darling” too?

No, that would be redundant and awkward to use.

Other options…

—— Baby ——

—— Babe ——

—— Wife ——

—— Honey ——

—— Sweetie ——

—— Little Fairy ——

Bullet comments floated by.

Ugh…

I felt sick.

No way. Too cheesy.

It made me nauseous.

For a terminal straight man like me, pet names like that were impossible to say.

Damn, even I was starting to feel embarrassed.

And Kaori was looking at me with such anticipation… She’d be disappointed if I backed out now.

Even if it felt gross, I’d say it. I’d get used to it eventually.

I’d just roll a die and pick one of those six.

Just as the imaginary die in my mind started to tumble, I had a flash of inspiration. A better name came to me.

“How about… Yi Yi?”

Using the last character of her name doubled. It sounded intimate without being overly saccharine.

“Yi Yi… Yes!”

She seemed very pleased, her smile growing even brighter.

Phew, good… I never thought thinking of a nickname would be so mentally taxing. Was dating always this exhausting?

Something felt off.

Actually, the fact that we were even dating in the first place was strange…

I looked at Kaori… Yi Yi. Her appearance still captivated me, but I knew too little about her “inside.”

We’d only talked briefly yesterday. I couldn’t read minds or memories. I knew nothing about her past or anything else.

Maybe… I was the one who needed to get to know her better.

“Then I’ll call you Yi Yi from now on.”

“Okay, Darling.”

Maybe it was my imagination, but after I called her Yi Yi, she was able to say “darling” without pausing.

It felt too fast. We’d only met yesterday, and she could barely say my name then.

Now, after meeting again, she could say my name easily. And soon after, she could even call me “darling.”

What kind of image did she have of me in her heart?

From a nosy stranger at a convenience store to this… In just one day, what had changed?

After all, in that one day, her entire life’s trajectory had been turned upside down.

“By the way, I almost forgot. You really trust me and the idiot that much?”

I almost forgot. She hadn’t answered my initial question.

The topic had somehow veered into nicknames.

Unexpectedly, Yi Yi blinked and asked back, as if it were strange.

“Why wouldn’t I trust you?”

“Uh, didn’t it occur to you that the idiot and I might be scammers working together? Like we targeted you and set this whole thing up…”

“Well, is it a scam?”

“No, of course not… No, I mean, why do you trust me so much, Yi Yi?”

“Because yesterday, when Darling confessed to me, he was telling the truth.”

“How do you know I was telling the truth?”

“Well, I’m a bit sensitive to it, I suppose. If someone lies, I can usually tell right away… And neither Darling nor Mr. Idiot was lying.”

“Pfft…”

Hearing Yi Yi so seriously say “Mr. Idiot,” I burst out laughing.

Hahahahaha!

Mr. Idiot. Nice. Very nice. I should call him that too!

“Darling?”

“Ahem… Nothing. I see. So that’s how it is.”

An innate ability to detect lies… That’s rare.

It’s actually the same principle as my psychological analysis—judging a person’s mental state through micro-expressions, actions, eye contact, tone, etc.

I consciously pay attention to those things. She probably noticed them unconsciously.

It likely had to do with her personality and upbringing.

Growing up seeing an adult world full of lies and deceit, Yi Yi had learned to distinguish truth from falsehood.

“That’s pretty cool.”

“Huh? It’s not that impressive…”

“No, it’s very impressive. Some women get fooled without a clue. Being able to detect lies means you can protect yourself better.”

“Protect myself…?”

“Yeah.”

Yi Yi lowered her head, confused, as if she couldn’t comprehend the words.

“I’ve never thought about protecting myself… They looked after me, but only because they didn’t want me to get ‘damaged’…”

“But you’ve left them now, haven’t you?”

“Um, yes…”

“Then starting now, I’ll protect you.”

I reached out and patted Yi Yi’s head. The white hair was silky smooth to the touch.

Patting a head was probably the only gesture I could naturally do with a girl.

It was also a habit from childhood… Well, now wasn’t the time for reminiscing.

Yi Yi didn’t flinch. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling, her tense body visibly relaxing.

“But when I’m not with you, if you can protect yourself, I’ll be able to rest easy.”

“Not with you… Can’t I stay by your side?”

“No, I mean, when you’re alone, you should think about protecting yourself.”

“Alone…?”

She frowned, not quite understanding.

Huh. She was unexpectedly the type to split hairs?

I needed to explain it differently so she’d understand.

I thought for a few seconds… I probably should have thought longer.

But I just roughly thought it over and blurted it out.

“Hmm… Let’s put it this way, Yi Yi. You belong to me. Remember, no one is allowed to hurt you except me. Not even yourself. So for my sake, you have to protect yourself.”

The moment I said it, I regretted it.

Aaaaaah!

What did I just say!

Too much! Too arrogant! Too freaking romantic novel!

“You belong to me”?! Do you have the face of a domineering CEO, Ming Qi?! Have you no shame?! Huh?!

I can’t take it. The cringe level is too high. I want to dig a hole and crawl in.

My hands were trembling.

But Yi Yi seemed to understand something. She nodded, looked up at me, and her expression brightened considerably.

“Yes, I understand, Darling.”

“Ah, good? That’s great. I’m glad you get it. Ahaha…”

I pulled my hand back from Yi Yi’s head and laughed dryly. I didn’t even know what I was laughing about.

Just covering up my embarrassment.

But Yi Yi reached out with both hands and took mine, holding them tightly. She looked at me seriously and said,

“For Darling’s sake, I’ll protect myself.”

Then she closed her eyes, as if giving herself a command, and repeated,

“Only for you…”

—

Much, much later.

Looking back on those days and thinking carefully, I had a sudden realization.

Her emotional dependency and yandere tendencies… I might have been the one who created them.