1.1.2 : Unloading

 

 

My jaw drops. “You’re both ditching me tonight? Am I dreaming here?”

Naoto nods seriously. “I’m going to graduate soon.”

My lips purse and I look Naoto in the eye and nod. “Deal. Do your best.” Naoto is such a hard-working guy, so much that I want to cheer him on in my own way, even if it means covering his shift.

“I don’t have the money now, but I swear I’ll get it somehow.” Denji says, clasping his hands again. “Tomorrow even. I’ll bring 7,000 in crisp notes. I don’t go back on my word. Besides…” He steps over to me to whisper into my ear. “Dude… I know ladies… Your girl is gonna see us leaving ahead of time and she’ll put one and one together. She’ll see how hard working you are. Heck, she might even break the ice, herself. Trust me.” He winks at me.

Damned scammer. Why the hell do I even consider him to be my friend? He’s manipulating me, and I know it. My face turns pink and I look away. Denji adds with a smirk, “She’s going to think you’re a hell of a stud.”

Grudgingly, I see some value in the bullshit he’s feeding me and with a sigh I turn back and glare at Denji while Naoto heads to the employee’s lounge. “You’d better pay up. I’ll kick your ass if you don’t have it.” My eyes narrow.

“It’s a deal. If I don’t, I’ll let you shove my head up my ass if it makes you feel better.” Denji rubs his hands together and with a bright grin, he dances after Naoto, freed. Ugh.

Getting back to work, hauling each box from the back of the truck to their places around the storage room, I inventory everything while unloading on my notepad. Alone, it all takes four more hours to unload the rest of the boxes from the truck. As I work, I sweat enough to where I feel my shirt will be soaked if I continue working like this. Removing my apron and unbuttoning my overshirt, I toss it onto the table and tug off my undershirt that’s plastered to my skin. I deposit it by my button up shirt and work with a bare chest except for the locket fastened around my neck. I gradually empty the back and finally take a long break, heaving a heavy sigh. 

Sitting in a chair, I lean back, feeling the breeze drifting around the back of the truck and cooling off with my eyes closed.

When I’ve mostly dried off, I sling my button-up-shirt over my shoulder, leaving my undershirt on the table, taking the time to shake it out so that it’ll dry better in the draft. In the staff room, I open my locker, lift my deodorant from the top shelf to rub it all over when a gunshot goes off nearby. Dropping the deodorant stick in startlement, I look off in that direction, realizing that that sound was far too close for comfort.

It came from inside this building. SHIT! Guns are against the law! What the hell? Looking around, I spot a crowbar for prying open crates and lift it, carrying it along to the door. I carefully peer around the swinging door outside to see two men wearing germ face masks.

“You don’t wanna go and put your life on the line when your pay isn’t worth shit, am I right?” One of them asks Kairi. “Wouldn’t be doing this if my own employers weren’t so greedy. Just open the register and we’ll be on our way.”

“Yeah. It’s not even your money, girl.” The second holds a large sack out over the counter while the first keeps his gun trained on my pink-haired crush. Shit… why’d they have to pick our store for this kind of a heist?

Trembling, Kairi nods with a fear-filled face. She punches buttons furiously on her register with a lost expression. My chest feels heavy as I watch and my hand clenches tightly around the crowbar as I eye the gun that the armed man holds. I experimentally swing its heavy length. The metal warms in my palm as I make a choice with my heart pounding.

 I’m not a hero or anything, but… it’s for Kairi! My lips twist as I silently push out the doors and walk as quietly as I can. Looking Kairi's way, I notice that she’s too distracted by stuffing the sack with bills of yen.

“You got a safe somewhere? Might be too much to hope you got access, but who knows, maybe you’re the manager, eh?” the gunman asks, gesturing with his gun.

Kairi stares at him blankly and shakes her head. “No. I’m just a cashier,” she says as she stuffs another wad of cash into the bag and as I creep around the aisle nearest to the thieves, Kairi looks directly at me for a moment, freezing and puts a smile on her face with trembling lips.

The gunner frowns at Kairi, his eyebrows knitting and he smoothly turns to lock eyes with me, so close to them. In that moment of desperation, I yank up the crowbar to catch his jaw with the tip. Not looking surprised, he fires as he tilts his head back in time and my crowbar swooshes through the air, narrowly missing him.

“We got a hero here. Just back off, huh? We don’t have to do this.”

With narrowed eyes, I take another step forward and swing again. His eyes widen and he fires again as pain shoots through my body, everything focusing on a single point in my right side and hot blood pours from the wound, feeling as though burned through. My crowbar sails past his face and he dodges my swipes, firing repeatedly, but missing with how I’m putting him off balance. On the sixth shot, a bullet grazes my cheek, coming too close to my eye and I feel my strength start ebbing. Gripping the crowbar extra hard, I swing firmly and finally score a hit across his face. 

The man holding the sack, previously staring at us fighting for the last few minutes digs into his pants pocket and produces his own firearm.

“NO way I’m letting you do that, asshole!” I bring the crowbar down onto his head and his gun falls to the floor with a rattling noise. Looking around, seeing the both of them down, I sigh, my body aching and a sensation of coldness coming over me. 

You are reading story Euphonia – Requiem to a Cursed World at novel35.com

Kairi gasps and vaults over the counter and pulling off her light jacket, she presses the pink fabric to the wound in my side. I gasp, moaning softly as a new wave of pain seizes me.

“Are you okay, Haku?” she asks me, biting her lip. “I’ll call for an ambulance.”

Shaking my head, I smile. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.” I clutch her jacket to my side, wincing at seeing my blood soaking it. Running into the back, almost screaming from the pain, I grab up some rope and head back out to tie the robber’s prone bodies together. Looking at their guns on the floor, I shake my head.

“Our store was just robbed, but another employee stopped them… but he’s hurt. Um… can you arrange to have an ambulance come too?” Kairi asks.

Leaning against shelves I hold the jacket to my side as I sweat and the damp on my cut cheek stings as the blood dripping from it mingles with salt-water. Taking relaxing breaths, I listen to the droning of her beautiful voice.

“Yeah… they’re unconscious now. I think they’re okay, but I don’t…”

“Oh… he used a crowbar and the two robbers had guns and Haku’s been shot in his stomach.”

Closing my eyes, I smile, glad that Kairi is alright. “It’ll be five minutes, Haku.” Kairi turns to me and puts an arm around me. “You’re not looking like you’re doing well.”

I nod and smile. “I’ll be fine. Let’s get some fresh air and relax.”

With a skeptical look on her face, Kairi walks with me to the front door, triggering it to slide open. The breeze playing over my body feels wonderful. Its caress feels better than ever, even if the air’s a little dirty.

“Haku… you… you were absolutely amazing…” Kairi says and forces herself under my arm. I try to pull away, but she holds my arm firmly. “You know, I didn’t think you were so incredible before. I mean, you look great while you’re working, but… that was…” She laughs softly and shakes her head. “Dumb, but cool.”

“Did you really think so?” I blush and smile wryly. “Stupid sounds about right.” I cough softly, wincing at the twinge from my side.

“Nah… I mean… I couldn’t have done anything like that, Haku. You were like a hero from a manga, swinging that crowbar like it was Excalibur.” She beams up at me.

“Hahaha… you’re calling me King Arthur or something, now?”

“Nothing that great.” Kairi gently punches me on the shoulder. “We don’t have magic swords, but you’re probably the closest thing to a hero that I’ve ever met.” She blushes profusely.

I look down at her, surprised by her heart-felt words… at least it feels like she means it. “Kairi… Um… when I get better from this…” I gesture with my hand pressed firmly on the makeshift compress that blood still drips from. “Would you like to go on a date?”

Kairi looks at me with her sunset-stained cheeks and her eyes soften. She looks into my eyes and nods quickly. “I’d like that. I didn’t… I didn’t know how to approach you… but… even though they hurt you, I’m glad that something happened and made me…” Her lips purse, her ears pink. She runs fingers through her lovely pink hair, smiling.

“I’ve always been looking at you,” I look seriously into Kairi’s eyes, confessing. “It was like… first love when I saw you… how good you are with the customers. I don’t think I could ever do that. I mean… you’re courageous to face them like you do, while I’m hiding in the back…”

“Tchhhh—Don’t do that. Hiding in the back, lifting all those heavy crates for many hours?” Kairi laughs. “Don’t try to pretend like you’re not the store’s superhero or something like that. You do more work than anyone else. Um… sometimes when I’m taking a short break, I really have peeked at you working. I started actually worrying… because too often you’re doing it all alone.”

“Eh?” I blink, blushing at having been noticed. “Naoto and Denji are great guys, but Naoto is studying his ass off and Denji… um…” I trail off, laughing lamely.

We look at each other for a long moment and I start wondering whether the police are coming since there’s no sirens blaring yet.

“How about we go to Shibuya for our first date? Um… under Hachiko’s statue… um… unless that’s too corny,” Kairi fiddles her fingers around each other, asking.

“That sounds perfect!” Letting go of her jacket, I take her hands and look into her eyes. She smiles and leans up towards my face, pressing her lips close to mine as headlights shine on us as though stage lights came on to illuminate our bodies. We look deeply into each other’s eyes and I sigh contentedly, losing myself in her eyes, feeling frozen in the moment. I close the remaining distance between us and press my lips against Kairi’s.

I could die right now and be happy.