The evening breeze ruffled my bangs, making my black hair a bit messy. From the desk near the classroom window, I stared outside. There, I saw a girl trying to persuade a junior to join the student council.
"They're looking for student council members again…"
I muttered softly while resting my chin on my hand, lazily watching them. Honestly, I thought their efforts were pointless.
Being in the student council isn't easy. They'd be busy making school rules, having meetings in that special room after school, then going home late almost every day. Spending their youth doing only that… just doesn't sound like something I'd want to do.
If they asked me to join, I'd reject them immediately.
Rather than keep watching those busy people, I sat back down at my desk.
At that exact moment—
"Kamuto, don't you want a girlfriend?"
That voice slipped into my ears, making me sigh inwardly. The one who just spoke was Akira Omura, my classmate. He wore glasses, and his spiky hair looked like a messy porcupine. We'd been friends since middle school.
Ah, right. My name is Kamuto Hashimoto. I'm sixteen years old, a second-year high school student. My hair is pretty normal, not too short or too long. And yeah… I don't have a girlfriend right now.
Unlike Akira, who already has a girlfriend.
"Come on, Kamuto! You'll get lonely if you don't have a girlfriend!"
Akira seemed excited, like a salesman trying to promote something. I only let out a small huff. I knew having a girlfriend might ease the loneliness, but I wasn't going to date just for that reason. I would only have a girlfriend if I genuinely liked someone.
And… I hadn't found that someone yet.
"Ahhhh~"
I yawned widely, to the point my eyes watered.
"What's with that 'ahhhh~'…"
Akira grumbled softly, but I just stared straight ahead without answering. I knew if I responded, he would start talking about the pretty girls in every class. And listening to lectures about cute girls wasn't my hobby.
"Kamuto, are you listening to me?"
"Kamuto!!"
"Don't yell, Akira-kun," I replied softly, imitating a girl's voice.
"Don't use that tone! It's gross, you know!"
"It's your fault for calling my name over and over."
"Hmph… but I've got a suggestion for you, my dear friend."
I turned to him, looking at Akira lazily. A suggestion? It wasn't like him to offer advice to me. If it was a good one, maybe I'd consider it.
Akira smiled, pushed his glasses up with his finger, and then said,
"I got a recommendation to download an app earlier…"
An app?
I immediately sat up straighter. If this was about a new game, I wanted to hear it. Fantasy RPGs were my favorite, and I was always curious about the latest releases.
"An app?" I repeated seriously, looking at Akira with hopeful eyes.
Akira leaned toward me.
Then.
BAK!
He slammed his hand on the desk.
"H-Hey! You scared me!"
Akira just grinned while pulling his phone from his pocket and showing me the screen.
"Relax… here it is, a rent-a-girlfriend app!"
"…Huh?"
I tilted my head, staring at his phone. A rent-a-girlfriend app? What was that about? I had never heard of it before.
"What is this app…? This is the first time I've seen it."
"Of course, Kamuto! It's a new app where you can rent a girlfriend if you're interested!"
I fell silent, still staring at Akira's phone, while outside, the dismissal bell began to ring.
Renting a girlfriend, huh…?
I had no idea if my life would change after this, or just get even more troublesome.
***
I stared at my phone screen in my room, still wearing my school uniform, lying down with my legs hanging off the side of my bed.
Honestly, this was all Akira's fault.
If he hadn't told me about that weird rent-a-girlfriend app, I wouldn't have gotten curious like this.
"Should I… actually try this…?"
I muttered softly while looking at the bright screen in the glow of the evening light from the window. The app's logo was still clearly burned into my mind. Ah, whatever. I decided to download it, at least to satisfy my curiosity.
"There, this is it."
I pressed the download button on the app store, my heart pounding.
"12%…"
"39%…"
"68%…"
"100%."
As the download hit 100%, I felt my heartbeat quicken, as if it would leap out of my chest. My hand trembled slightly as the app icon appeared on my phone screen.
I took a deep breath.
Slowly, I opened the app with its chibi anime logo labeled "Rent-A-Girlfriend." As soon as it opened, the screen was filled with photos of smiling girls.
I started scrolling down.
"Their ages range from 16… to 32 years old… This really is for lonely people."
I kept scrolling, my eyes moving quickly, but the more I looked, the more confused I became. They were all really pretty… staring at their faces too long made my head spin.
But then, one feature caught my eye.
Rating.
The higher the rating, the more popular they seemed on this app.
I tapped on a profile that stood out.
Name: Ran Momuka
Age: 20 Years
Rental Fee: 300 Yen (1 Hour)
Rating: 4.9
"WHAT?! 300 Yen per hour?!"
I shouted spontaneously, thinking that with 300 Yen, I could eat discounted bread for an entire week.
"KEEP IT DOWN, KAMUTO!!"
My mother's voice came from downstairs, making me immediately lower my voice, rubbing the back of my neck that felt hot.
I shook my head quickly. No, no, she was four years older, the price was too high, and I wasn't ready to handle a girl like her.
"Next~"
I continued scrolling, feeling a mix of excitement and dread. For some reason, looking at their faces made me happy, but the looming threat to my wallet was real.
Suddenly… my hand stopped.
There was one name that appeared with a ridiculous price.
Name: Ayaka Shirase
Age: 17 Years
Rental Fee: 30 Yen (1 Hour)
Rating: 0
"…What is this, a 0 rating and only 30 Yen…"
I let out a small chuckle, unable to suppress a mischievous smile. This… was dirt cheap. Too cheap. And since it was cheap, maybe I could "practice" having a girlfriend with her.
Without thinking too much, I pressed the Rent button.
DRING~
A notification sound came from the app. A new chat popped up.
"Hello."
I froze. So she actually messaged me…?
With slightly trembling fingers, I quickly replied.
"Yes, hello."
"Did you rent me?"
"Of course, when do you want to go on a date?"
"Tomorrow, according to the schedule you tapped."
I glanced at the schedule section. Sure enough, I hadn't realized I had already tapped for tomorrow.
I gulped, typing back.
"Sure, let's meet at Himawari Park tomorrow at 10 a.m."
"Ok."
She replied with a smiling emoji at the end of her message. For some reason, my heart started beating even faster than when I pressed the download button earlier.
I closed the app, looking at my reflection in the dark screen. I, Kamuto Hashimoto, had actually rented a girlfriend named Ayaka Shirase.
In the photo, she looked really pretty, with short yellow hair and a gentle smile that felt calming. But… her rating was 0.
Would she really look like she did in the photo? Or… would she look completely different?
For the first time, I didn't know what to think about this first date.
It wasn't because I was excited…
But because I was scared, scared that she wouldn't be like what I saw on the screen.