“It’s my best friend, Endo Arata’s wedding. He’s a really good guy, we’ve been friends since high school and he’s always had my back when I needed it. He’s nice and tends to meddle in my relationships which is why well, I needed to hire you. He’s marrying Yoshida Hinata, who he met when we were in college and they’ve dated the past four years. Hinata is… a lot. He’s very energetic, like constantly moving and talks so fast, and honestly did not seem like Arata’s type but, here we are.”

Hoshi tilted his head, “Are you in love with Arata, Yuudai-san?”

Suzu held up his hands, shaking his head, “No, no, no. I mean, we dated for a little bit but, that really… we were just better as friends, honestly.”

“Are you sure? Because I can totally help you win him back. I always have a strategy like that ready to go.”

He stared at Hoshi who looked completely serious about that. Was that actually something he’d done before?

“It’s… we’re going to his wedding, Hoshi-san.”

“So? That’s like a totally classic drama move! You win over his heart again and the two of you run away together! It actually happened last season in My Best Girl, Shin-Hye Park.”

Suzu just stared at Hoshi again, as if he’d suddenly started speaking another language.

“I’m sorry, what?”

Hoshi grinned—an adorable expression that made Suzu’s heart flutter.

“It was a really good Kdrama from last fall. I’m hoping it gets picked up for another season since they basically ended on the whole wedding bit. But I so totally hope they come back and show the fallout of all that!”

“Kdrama?”

“Korean Drama! They’re like so insane! Not that JDramas aren’t but oh man, I just love watching them. They’re addicting.”

Suzu smiled. He had just found out something about Hoshi and it was really nice. In fact, he was actually starting to feel very comfortable around the other, no longer quite as conscious about their close proximity. Clearly, Hoshi was very good at his job.

“I hope you aren’t going to be missing any on account of me dragging you on this trip.”

Hoshi placed his hand on Suzu’s thigh and for a moment, Suzu felt dizzy from the sudden, intimate contact.

“Not to worry, Yuudai-san, I’ve got a premium subscription to the streaming service. I won’t miss a thing!”

“G-Great…” Suzu was finding it hard to talk again.

“Now then, enough about all that. I want you to tell me all about yourself!”

Suzu shifted a bit uncomfortably. What was there to even tell Hoshi? He hadn’t been doing anything except helping with this wedding and working. He was probably going to wind up boring the escort to death. Still, Hoshi did need to know about him for this to work.

“Uh, there’s not a ton to tell, if I’m being honest. I’m 26, I work in advertising, I’m very obviously single, and well, that’s it.”

Hoshi stared at him for a minute before chuckling, “Any hobbies? Likes? Dislikes? There’s certainly more to you than just that, Yuudai-san.”

Suzu felt his cheeks heat up, “Well I go clubbing every so often, I like music and going to concerts, I um, occasionally play video games. But that’s really it. I’m kind of boring, sorry.”

The redhead smiled and moved his hand to Suzu’s knee, the sensation smooth and pleasant, “You’re not boring, Yuudai-san, just shy. Hopefully, you’ll warm up to me when we’re in front of everyone.”

Suzu could only nod, his mind and stomach overwhelmed by the butterfly feeling once more. Thankfully, Hoshi continued to talk.

“Well, given what I know of you so far, I think I have an idea for our meet-cute.”

“Meet-cute?”

“Yeah! The adorable story that sparked our budding relationship. I’m thinking,” he held his hands up, as if setting a scene, “a coffee shop run-in where our orders were mixed up and we started talking. Then I asked you for your number, we texted some—though I had to text you first—and finally, you asked me out on our first date. And we’ve been together for about three weeks!”

He looked up at Suzu, grinning, “How does that sound?”

Suzu blinked, completely dumbfounded by how normal and plausible the story sounded. Not to mention, easy for him to remember. It was perfect; he almost couldn’t believe how simple that had been.

“Yeah actually, that sounds great.”