Tokyo: Am I the only male tenant?

Should we say this is a spiritual connection between sisters? Or is it the twins' inevitable fate?

As twins, the Hoshino sisters seem to have exactly the same standards when it comes to choosing a partner.

Ginjo Sousuke seemed like a perfect doll that perfectly restored their aesthetic tastes, so it was no wonder that the two sisters were attracted to him at the same time.

Chie Hoshino's liveliness and cheerfulness gave her the upper hand in her relationship with Ginjo, but as an older sister, she never forgot the agreement she made with her younger sister.

Even though she had many opportunities to rush to home base, she gave up at the last moment.

Of course, Chiaki Hoshino noticed the change in her sister, and she knew that she could no longer wait in hesitation.

Putting aside useless concerns, she finally reached the same level as her sister through her own efforts.

As the relationship develops to a more intimate level, there will naturally be more fantasies.

But if you talk about "marriage" directly, it would be too bold for Chiaki Hoshino.

So when Okura Masaki jokingly mentioned the word "wedding" today, she was really shocked.

Marriage? That means two people have to live together.

If that happens, what should my sister do?

Chiaki Hoshino can't imagine life without Ginjō, and the same goes for her sister.

When she thought of this, she felt a little overwhelmed and stared out the car window in a daze.

I hope that myself, my sister and Sosuke will never be separated. That would be the best ending.

"So Qianqiu is still thinking about that. But by the way, the white dress you just tried on really looks a bit like a wedding dress."

Ginjo Sosuke's magnetic voice instantly brought Hoshino Chiaki back to the real world.

"Really? Is Sousuke joking like Masaki-san?"

Chiaki Hoshino couldn't believe her ears.

"Of course not. I felt that way the first time I saw Chiaki in the mirror."

Ginjo has always felt that pure white can best bring out the beauty of Chiaki Hoshino.

"Sosuke..."

Chiaki Hoshino leaned gently on Ginjō's shoulder, her heart filled with an indescribable sense of happiness.

If I really have the chance to wear a wedding dress, the only person standing by my side will be this gentle boy whom I am relying on.

The more than 40 minutes of travel time passed quickly, and the JR line train carrying two people pulled into the platform of Chiba Station.

They passed through the ticket gates and left the station via the south exit.

As soon as I came out of the station, I saw a large object with many bronze bells hanging in front of me.

According to the display board next to it, this should be a musical instrument called "glockenspiel" that can play music automatically.

The surrounding area is filled with hotels, banks, car rental agencies, insurance company buildings and other buildings, giving it the appearance of a large local train station.

The street scene here is somewhat similar to the Hachijo Exit of Tokyo Station, but Chiba is slightly smaller. However, Chiba City has a population of nearly one million and is still a very prosperous city.

“This is my first time in Chiba.”

Ginjo Sousuke said as he looked around.

"I have relatives living here, so I've been here several times, but that was when I was a kid."

"I recently came back here to help Mr. Hojo with the exhibition. Chiba has really changed a lot compared to when he was a child."

Chiaki Hoshino must have been as cute as she is now when she was a child. Perhaps what Ginjo wants to change is not just the scenery, but also her own vision and sensitivity.

Under the guidance of Chiaki Hoshino, Ginjo passed through Chiba Station, exited from the north exit, and arrived at the bus terminal.

When they walked to the bus stop heading to the art museum and confirmed the bus time, Chiaki Hoshino couldn't help but sigh.

It seems that the last bus has just left, and the next one may take more than twenty minutes to wait.

There was no choice but to take a taxi. Fortunately, there was a taxi stand not far from here.

The two got into a taxi waiting for passengers and told the driver their destination. He showed an understanding expression and started the car.

The Chiba cityscape passing by the car window feels more leisurely and relaxed than Tokyo, giving Ginjo the impression that it is a slow-paced city.

Chiaki Hoshino's profile looked expressionless as she looked at the scenery. I wonder if she was thinking of something again.

About ten minutes later, the taxi stopped by the roadside. After they got off, they found the art museum right in front of them.

This is a low-rise art museum located in an apartment building. It looks very much like a hospital. There is a blue sign on the outer wall with "Matsukawa Art Museum" written in hollow letters.

“It seems that this museum was originally established by a family business owner who was born and raised in Chiba to display his collection.”

"Later, they were approved as a public interest foundation, and in recent years they seem to be particularly active in exhibiting works by painters related to Chiba."

Chiaki Hoshino, who had worked here several times, introduced it to Ginjo.

"I see. This is my first time in a place like this. Anyway, let's go in and take a look."

Compared to art, Ginjo Sosuke is more interested in sports.

If he hadn't met a pair of twin sisters studying at an art university, he probably would never have set foot in such a venue in his life.

Chiaki Hoshino showed her entry and exit permit at the reception counter, and Ginjo, as an accompanying person, naturally did not need to purchase a separate ticket.

Once you enter the museum, it doesn't seem very spacious at first glance.

Maybe because it was a weekday, there were not many other guests besides them, and the room was shrouded in silence.

A special exhibition of Ukiyo-e is being held in the museum today.

Although there were some toy paintings and other works in the exhibition that piqued Ginjo's interest, he had no time to leisurely appreciate them because he had more important goals.

The two people walked quickly through this exhibition area, and then the next exhibition area was their destination.

This permanent exhibition area has a special section dedicated to the works of Chiba painters, and every once in a while, a local artist's work will be exhibited.

The invited guest this time was Chiaki Hoshino’s teacher, Hojo Kiki.

It turns out that she is from Chiba City.

The small room was lit by fluorescent lights and filled with an inorganic atmosphere. In addition to paintings, there were also some sculptures on display.

Chiaki Hoshino is one of the students who created these sculptures. The reason why the students' works can be exhibited is also due to the arrangement of Hojo Kiki.

According to her, her students' success is her proudest masterpiece.

The two men immediately found Hojo Kiki's name. There was a sign like a white pad hanging on the wall of the room, with her full name printed horizontally on it, and a brief introduction below.

It was mentioned above that she was the eldest daughter of a businessman in Chiba City. She studied at Tokyo University of the Arts when she was a student, and later devoted herself to teaching and related creative activities in Tokyo.

"Did Hojo-sensei also graduate from the same university as Chiaki?"

When Ginjo Sousuke saw this place, he asked Chiaki Hoshino who was beside him.

"Yes, Mr. Hojo stayed on to teach at the school after graduation because his grades were very good at the time. Later, he became a visiting professor after he started a new business."

Chiaki Hoshino seems to admire this senior from the same school very much.

"I see. No wonder this museum has a special exhibition of her works."

Ginjo Sousuke nodded and continued reading the following content.

The following text explains her painting style and creative philosophy.

“Her style was deeply influenced by the romanticism of Meiji-era painting, and her subsequent works innovatively incorporated contemporary pop culture.”

That's what it says in the introduction, but Ginjo Sosuke knows nothing about art, so I don't think I really understood it.

He believed that his strength was that he did not pretend to know everything, so he looked at Chiaki Hoshino beside him with a seeking eye.

"Sosuke finds this introduction a little hard to understand, right?"

Chiaki Hoshino was a very understanding girl and quickly understood what Ginjō meant.

"Let me think about it. If I don't use professional knowledge to interpret it, how can I explain it? This powerful brushstroke and unique color tone will remind people of Shigeru Aoki."

"Has Sosuke ever heard of the work 'Sea of ​​Fortune'?"

Chiaki Hoshino said as she leaned towards the oil painting on the left side of the sign.

Ginjo Sosuke shook his head. He had no impression of the name of this work. Maybe it was mentioned in the art class in middle school, but he had no memory of it at all.

He simply searched the picture on his mobile phone, and after comparing it with Hojo Kisaki's works, he could indeed see some similarities.

"Well, I think I understand a little better if I look at it this way."

"Right? Hojo-sensei's paintings are very profound. I can study each one for a long time."

Chiaki Hoshino took Ginjo's hand and continued forward.

There are a total of ten works by Hojo Kiki displayed here.

The themes are quite diverse, including a naked woman lying on a sofa, a white dog looking into the distance, and Kujukuri Beach, which is probably what all painters in Chiba would paint.

All the works are oil paintings, and Yincheng thinks that he personally likes this style of brushwork.

They looked at the paintings arranged on the wall one by one in order. When the two of them walked to the last work, Chiaki Hoshino called out softly.

"This is?!"

It seems that she didn't see this work when she was setting up the exhibition. Was it a temporary decision by Hojo Kisaki to add it in?

Two paintings of the same size are placed next to each other with a gap between them, using an upright rectangular canvas of approximately B5 size.

Even a layman like Sousuke Ginjo could tell at a glance that this was a series of works.

The background of the painting is the seaside. The painting on the right shows a man standing facing left, while the painting on the left shows a woman standing facing right.

The picture is zoomed in so that the upper part of the face and the area below the knees are beyond the canvas.

They reached out toward each other, but their upper arms hit the edge of the canvas and were also cut off.

There is a sign below the painting with the title.

"Unfinished Work: Ten Years Later (Two of Three in a Series)"

"An unfinished work? Since there are three paintings in this series, where is the third one?"

Ginjo Sousuke asked curiously.

"According to general practice, unfinished works will not be displayed. I don't know why Mr. Hojo did this this time..."