Utsukushii Kare/ My Beautiful Man [ENGLISH TRANSLATION]

Chapter-4; PART-1: Moon Age 14

Translator: White Lotus

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The area from Shibuya to Omotesando* was a terrifying one. A species of people who were fundamentally incompatible with Hira, who usually chose his clothes under the concept of not standing out, or at the very least not appearing unclean, throng around here.

(T/N: *Omotesando (表参道) is a pedestrian-friendly street stretching from Harajuku to Aoyama in Tokyo. It is an area located near Shibuya and Harajuku, Tokyo. Known as the Champs-Élysées of Tokyo, Omotesando's tree-lined streets are filled with beautiful shops, funky cafes, and great restaurants. It is best known for its luxury goods stores and high-quality products. Omotesando is considered one of the most beautiful streets in Tokyo because of the stunning architectural buildings on both sides of the avenue. It is also the gateway to the entrance to the Meiji Jingu Shrine and links on to the very popular Harajuku area including Takeshita Street. Omotesandō is one of the most pleasant (and most expensive) neighborhoods in Tokyo. )

"I told you not to lower your head. Why do you keep hunching your back like that? Straighten your body out."

After being scolded by Kiyoi, who was walking next to him, Hira gingerly raised his head.

"......I-I feel like I'm the only one who looks out of place here."

"That's not true. Today, you appear ten times better than usual. Look, even the girls coming from the front are staring at you."

The two girls with long, silky flowing hair peeked at Hira as they passed them before turning to look at each other and giggled together. Hira seemed to hear them say in a mocking whisper: gross (although, in reality, he actually did not hear them say anything like that), so Hira immediately lowered his head again, only to be scolded by Kiyoi: "I told you not to keep your head down."

He should've declined the offer after all……But it was too late to regret now.

Last week, Kiyoi said there was a drinking party and invited Hira to join him. Since the attendees would be models and actresses who were friends of Kiyoi, Hira refused within three seconds. Among such a group of glamorous people, Hira had no idea how someone like him should communicate. Hira felt that his mere presence in that place alone would be enough to bring down the order of the atmosphere, let alone talk.

"But you used to come to the afterparties of the stage show before, didn’t you?"

"That was because I was desperate."

After graduating from high school, they lost touch with each other, so the only way he could get to see Kiyoi in person was during the stage play. Having lost his mind from the exhilaration of being unexpectedly invited to the afterparty, Hira was in a berserker state. Attending an afterparty where he didn't even know anyone, he truly didn't know how to describe it other than to state that his mind must have been glitched.

"...... Hmm. That means you're no longer desperate."

"Eh?"

"So you're the type who doesn't feed bait to a fish you've caught, huh?"*

(T/N: *The meaning of the phrase "釣った魚に餌やらない" (Tsutta sakana ni esa yaranai) is "People never feed bait to a landed fish/ caught fish." This expression is used metaphorically to convey that you don't need to exert further effort or provide additional resources once you've reached your goal or obtained what you wanted.)