He keeps asking me to drink something together that seems like an energy or stamina supplement. Even when I say I don’t want to because it looks like it tastes bad, he says things like, “You’ll feel even better.” I don’t want to refuse if possible because it might ruin the mood, but I’m uncomfortable putting something suspicious into my body. Has anyone here tried it? If he asks me again, do I have no choice but to drink it?

I’m Tetsu, a male member. As a general rule, it’s best not to drink anything given to you by someone else. It’s a way to protect yourself—you also need to consider the possibility of date rape. Anything that’s already been opened is out of the question. Even with an unopened drink, there’s a possibility it contains something that doesn’t agree with your body. And even if you feel unwell after drinking it, there’s no guarantee the man will take responsibility. As other people have mentioned, I think it’s best to bring a drink you know you can have and use that to make a toast.

I’m Maezawa from the CEO’s office, and I’ll answer this too. Thank you for your question. Is the drink still unopened? Since you’re worried it may be something they brought with them, I think you should first make sure it really hasn’t been opened. Usually, you can tell by looking closely at the cap. If it’s unopened, it may be okay to drink. But if it seems suspicious, it’s probably imported or from a brand you’ve never heard of. Even if it ruins the mood, I think it’s perfectly fine to firmly say, “I’m sorry, but I’m uncomfortable drinking something from a brand I don’t know.” It’s probably some kind of aphrodisiac-style drink sold at adult shops, but if it’s actually some suspicious drug, that would be scary. You shouldn’t drink anything you don’t want to. And if that ruins the mood, I think it would be fine to end things there. The basic rule should be not to do anything you’re not comfortable with. That’s also important for protecting yourself. If it’s just an energy drink, you could buy a regular one yourself and bring it along. Whether the other person agrees is another matter, but they might say, “Well, if you’ve already bought it, I suppose it can’t be helped…” Store-brand energy drinks are cheap even when they contain 3,000 mg of taurine. For example: - At Matsumoto Kiyoshi: matsukiyo High Vita All 4000 - At Sugi Pharmacy: Vita Alto Ace 4000 - At SEIMES: Shin Richmin 3000 Royal - At Ministop and other Aeon-affiliated stores: Taurine Drink 3000 with four essential amino acids Something like that, perhaps.