All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

I can’t rush this. I need to wait until little Kotomi accepts my confession before I come to formally propose marriage. If I act too forcefully now, it might backfire and make her uncomfortable, Arisu Sakayanagi reasoned to herself.

”Uncle Izumi, Aunt Izumi, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Kotomi’s friend, Arisu Sakayanagi,” she said politely as she straightened up.

Then, she produced a carefully prepared box of rakugan sweets and presented it.

”A small token of my appreciation. Please accept it.”

”Oh, child, you’re just visiting; there’s no need to bring anything!”

Izumi Kaneyoshi also stepped forward to take the gift box from Arisu Sakayanagi. When receiving a gift from a guest, it was customary for the head of the household to accept it personally to show respect and gratitude.

During dinner, Arisu Sakayanagi happily sat beside Kotomi and chatted extensively with the Izumi couple. Despite being the heiress of the prestigious Sakayanagi Financial Group, she carried herself without a hint of arrogance, instead coming across as approachable and warm.

Her impressive breadth of knowledge allowed her to join in on even the most complex topics.

At least to Kotomi, being with Arisu Sakayanagi gave her a comforting sense of familiarity. It felt as though there was no distance between them, as if they had known each other for years.

”Uncle Izumi, Aunt Izumi, your cooking is absolutely delicious! These meatballs, in particular, are even better than any I’ve had before,” Arisu Sakayanagi praised enthusiastically.

From the moment she sat down, her small mouth hadn’t stopped—whether it was eating, chatting, or offering compliments.

What made it remarkable was that every word she said seemed to hit all the right notes with the Izumi couple. Their smiles had remained constant throughout the meal.

While they were talking, Kotomi focused entirely on her food. With a rice bowl in one hand and chopsticks in the other, she ate quietly and attentively.

Kotomi had always been well-behaved during meals, a trait that had saved her parents a lot of trouble when she was younger.

While other parents chased their kids around, coaxing and cajoling them to take a few bites, Kotomi had always sat obediently in her chair to eat.

The only issue was that it took a while to feed her—not because she was picky or uncooperative, but simply because she ate a lot.

Once Kotomi learned how to use chopsticks and a spoon, mealtime became even easier for her parents. She neither fussed nor made noise, and the only occasional sound was her spoon scraping the bowl—a signal that she was still hungry and needed more food.

Midway through dinner, the sound of a phone ringing suddenly interrupted the meal.

Arisu Sakayanagi silently thought, Finally, Atsuki is calling. She then put on an apologetic expression and said, ”Excuse me, I need to take this call.”

She pressed the answer button, having already turned the call volume to maximum.

”Hello, Atsuki. What’s the matter?”

”Miss, this is terrible! I managed to finish up all the tasks at home today, but I accidentally booked the wrong plane ticket! The flight that was supposed to depart this evening—I accidentally booked it for 6 a.m. tomorrow instead. I didn’t realize until I got to the airport. When I asked the airport staff, I found out that all the flights to Chiba for today have already departed, and there’s no way to reschedule!”

At this moment, Atsuki was lounging leisurely on a beach chair at the Izu Shirahama seaside. On the small table next to her chair sat a delicate cocktail and a novel by Yasunari Kawabata, ”The Dancing Girl of Izu,” marked with a tracing paper bookmark.

Atsuki was reading through the lines Arisu Sakayanagi had sent her in advance, delivering them with her best acting skills.

It was as though she wasn’t enjoying a breathtaking sunset and sea breeze on the Izu beach, but instead pacing anxiously at an airport back home.

Arisu Sakayanagi furrowed her brows slightly, pretending to be surprised and a bit annoyed. ”So you’re saying you won’t be able to come back tonight?”

”That’s right! I’m so sorry, Miss! I’ll go commit seppuku to atone for my mistake!” Atsuki exclaimed dramatically, raising her voice to a near shout. Afterward, her throat felt a bit dry, so she took a sip of her cocktail.

She glanced around to make sure no one else was nearby. Fortunately, it was nearly sunset, and the beach wasn’t crowded. Otherwise, she would’ve died of second-hand embarrassment on the spot.