I Drink Every Night With a Lookalike of a Popular Idol on the Riverbank
Drinking at Nanase’s place. It had become our winter staple, this gathering that had happened countless times before. And tonight, she was clearly drinking faster than usual.
Next to the sofa, Nanase smiled softly, like a cat.
Her cheeks were flushed a beautiful pink. She was completely drunk.
Empty long cans lined the coffee table like tombstones.
โYosuke! We drank all the booze!โ
Nanase shook each can lightly, checking its contents.
โYeah, you’re right.โ
โSo, let’s go buy more. Convenience store.โ
โHuh? Now?โ
The clock had long passed one a.m. Outside, it was undoubtedly freezing cold.
โCome on, let’s go. Nighttime stroll. Or you could wait here if you want?โ
โI can’t let you go alone at this hourโฆโ
I couldn’t bring myself to refuse her drunkenly innocent suggestion.
ใโ
The cold night air felt pleasant against our flushed cheeks. Burying our faces in our scarves, we walked through the quiet residential neighborhood toward the brightly lit convenience store.
That’s when it happened. At the base of a utility pole, a woman was frantically shaking the shoulders of a man slumped on the ground.
โHey, wake up! You’ll catch a cold sleeping out here!โ
Her exasperated voice echoed through the quiet night. The man lay limp, showing no sign of waking.
โโฆWhat’s going on?โ
โDrunk, maybe. Like us.โ
โSummer, maybeโฆ Winter’s bad, right?โ
โYeah. We can’t just leave him.โ
We exchanged glances and nodded in unison. The option to look the other way simply wasn’t in either of our minds.
โUm, are you okay?โ
When I spoke up, the woman looked up, startled. Her eyes were slightly moist with tears.
โOh, I’m sorryโฆ My boyfriend got drunk and suddenly fell asleep hereโฆโ
She held a plastic bottle filled with water.
โToo much to drink?โ
The woman gave a wry smile at Nanase’s question and nodded.
โOh, that’s terribleโฆ Is your place nearby?โ
When Nanase asked, the woman replied weakly, โYes, just up that hill over thereโฆโ
Nanase glanced at me.
Wellโฆ I couldn’t very well make Nanase carry him, and I couldn’t just leave a drunk out in the cold either. Guess I’ll have to carry him.
โAlright. I’ll carry him on my back.โ
โEh? But, no way!โ
โIt’s fine. I’m stronger than I look.โ
Saying that, I crouched down in front of the man sprawled out on the ground. He was much heavier than I expected. Nanase-san steadied me from behind when I nearly stumbled.
โโฆAlright then, I’ll leave it to you.โ
I hoisted the man onto my back and asked the woman to lead the way. A strange procession formed: Nanase-san and the woman walking side by side, with me following behind. From my back came the sound of contented snoring and the pungent smell of alcohol.
โI’m truly sorryโฆ This is such a help.โ
โNot at all, we’re all in this together.โ
I could hear the two women exchanging that conversation in front of me. After a while, the girl suddenly seemed to remember something and asked Nanase-san.
โUmโฆ I’ve been thinking since earlier. Do people ever tell you you look like Yunagi Nagi? You know, the idol?โ
At those words, my feet almost stopped for an instant.
โAhโฆ Sometimes, people do say that.โ
Nanase-san’s voice came from behind me, sounding slightly troubled, yet also accustomed to it.
โReally?! Amazing! I thought you were the real thing!โ
โHahaโฆ I’m honored.โ
Listening to their conversation, I climbed the gentle, long slope before me, one step at a time.
Suddenly, Nanase-san turned around and smiled brightly.
โYosuke, you’re surprisingly strong. That’s a relief.โ
โRelief?โ
โWell, you know. It means you could do a princess carry or something, right?โ
โCarry this person princess-styleโฆ?โ
โHahโฆ No, no!โ
โThen who exactly would youโฆโ
โWell, well. Who could it be? Well, I’m looking forward to finding out.โ
Nanase-san grinned, turned back around, and started whispering with the woman. Occasionally, they giggled excitedly or turned back to look at me, but I decided not to pry for details.
โ
A few days later. I was eating dinner at home, staring blankly at the TV.
As I idly flipped through the channels, a familiar face appeared on the screen. It was Yunagi Nagi, appearing on a talk show.
As I thought, โShe does look like Nanase-sanโฆ but something’s different,โ her radiant smile caught my attention.
โNow, next up is the segment featuring sightings of our guests sent in by viewers!โ
Along with the host’s cheerful voice, an email began to be read aloud.
‘The other day, my boyfriend passed out drunk right in front of my house. I was at a loss when a very kind woman passing by helped me.’
Huh? I leaned forward slightly toward the TV screen.
‘Two woman helped carry my boyfriend into the house. And that woman looked exactly like Yunagi Nagi from Luminous Tearsโฆ’
The announcer reading the email continued.
โIt was dark, so I couldn’t see her face clearly, but if it was her, it would be a miracle. I want to sincerely thank those two people from that day.โ
The studio was filled with warm applause. The camera zoomed in on Yunagi Nagi face.
She looked slightly troubled, but with her perfect idol smile, she said:
โHmmโฆ Unfortunately, I don’t think it was me.โ
A collective โEh?!โ rises from the studio.
โIt seems I have quite a few look-alikes all over the country. I often get sightings on social media, but it’s usually not me. Still, if my look-alike was such a wonderful person, I’m actually really happy for them.โ
A flawless, impeccable comment. I sat dumbfounded in front of the TV.
So that’s it. That couple we helped that night. The girl must have posted it on TV. And Nanase-san was probably mistaken for the real Yunagi Nagi again.
(Two womenโฆ? Did I look like a woman tooโฆ? No, maybe it was edited because being seen with a guy is just inappropriate for an idol’s story)
As I pondered the behind-the-scenes workings of TV, I pictured both the national idol flashing her professional smile on screen and the face of my drinking buddy who had quietly supported me that night.
โThere are a lot of lookalikes.โ
Nanase-san is the prime example. The fact there are others means Nanase-san must be a lookalike too. It has to be.
Maiasa