Chapter 7: 7

Volume 1, Chapter 7: First Day of Part-Time Job

 

"M-Manato!"

 

Ayana called out from behind me in a familiar voice.

 

"What is it?"

 

I replied briefly. I had an urgent matter to attend to today.

 

"Are you leaving already?"

"It doesn't matter to Ayano, does it?"

 

No matter where I was headed to, it was of no concern to Ayano, a stranger. So, why would she care about my every move?

 

"T-that's right, isn't it. Ahaha..."

 

Ayana replied in a small voice, laughing helplessly.

 

"Are you done?"

"Oh...um, yeah. Sorry. For holding you back."

 

After I heard those words, I turned my back to Ayano and started walking. Towards my destination.

 

 

 

Alright, time to go in. I entered the secondhand bookstore 'Shimamiya Bookstore', after I prepared myself. Today was the first day in my life that I worked part-time.

 

"Hello."

 

The time was 4:30. Since I could only come here after school, it was difficult for me to work for longer durations. By the way, I hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. Which was why I was incredibly hungry right now. I had to negotiate somehow with the manager to get paid on the same day...

 

"Ah, h-hello."

 

When I entered the store, Hisai-san called to me. ...Still, I felt like I'd seen that face before...just where? I didn't have any idea.

 

"Please take care of me today. Hisai-san."

"L-likewise."

 

She trembled too much.

 

"..."

"..."

 

An awkward silence passed between the two of us.

 

"R-reminds me, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Tamaki Manato. I'm a second-year high school student."

 

I told her that so as to diffuse the unsettling mood as much as possible.

 

"I-I'm Hisai Aika. A third-year high school student."

 

Hisai-san introduced herself in return. Huh, so Hisai-san was older than me. I was glad to have the chance to talk with her for a bit. However, the conversation didn't continue at all.

 

"I, have to talk to the manager, so I'll go in the back for a bit."

 

I couldn't stand this awkwardness any longer, and I left with what sounded like an excuse.

 

 

There, I found the manager in the Backyard organizing books, and I called out to him.

 

"Manager, is it fine to talk for a bit?"

 

When I said that, the manager immediately stopped working and turned to me.

 

"What's up?"

"Um, is it possible to receive my salary on the same day?"

 

I started off with that, feeling apologetic.

 

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"I don't mind that, but...I guess you must have your reasons."

 

I wondered if my expression was unsightly and the manager guessed from that.

 

"Okay. I'll hand it to you at the end of your shift today, so come find me then."

"Thank you."

 

I expressed my gratitude to the manager who didn't ask any more questions. Because this wasn't the kind of thing to talk to strangers.

 

When I returned back from the Backyard, Hasui-san approached me.

 

"Oh, Tamaki-kun. I'm going to teach you what to do on this job, so please follow me."

"Ah, please. Also, Hasui-san is my senpai, so you don't have to use honorifics on me."

 

When I told her this, Hasui-san nodded.

 

"O-okay. I understand."

 

Why did Hasui-san seem to unconfident? It wasn't that she wasn't good at communication. She could respond well enough and was even able to speak to others on her own.

But she was always watching my expression all this time. Well, I guess it was none of my business.

With that thought in mind, I followed Hasui-san's lead.

 

"Um, let's start by putting the books back to where they belong that a customer mistakenly misplaced."

"Yes."

 

It seemed that this secondhand bookstore was divided by genres.

Mystery books were in the mystery section. If it was a fantasy book, there were shelves dedicated to fantasy as well.

 

"Then, I'd like you to do that."

 

I was told that, and although it took me some time, I managed to returned the misplaced books back to their original places.

 

"A-amazing. Even though it's your first time... It took me two hours when I first did it back then..."

 

It kept me busy for around 30 minutes. When Hasui-san saw this, she lowered her head down and got depressed. I still had a feeling that I had seen Hasui-san's face before, although I really couldn't recall.

 

"T-then, next..."

 

From there, I was briefed on several things. First was a process called POP, which involved displaying the arrived books on the shelves and penning introductions and illustrations.

 

"Tamaki-kun is really amazing... You don't even need me..."

 

After giving out a praise, Hasui-san's voice became extremely quiet. And when I saw Hasui-san's face at that moment, I remembered what this feeling of familiarity was all about.

Ah, I see. This was the same face I always saw in the mirror. It was the same face I had when I gave up everything because I wasn't loved.

"..."

 

Even though I understood that, I couldn't speak out to Hasui-san. Because she didn't want any comforting words. We both wanted to be loved.

 

 

And so, my first day of work was over. I visited the manager as I was told, and he handed me a paper envelope.

 

"Okay, here's your paycheck for today."

 

As I was told that, I checked the contents of the envelope in front of the manager, even though it might seem rude.

 

"Huh? W-wait a minute. Why is there 5,000 yen here?"

 

I worked for three hours today, from 4:30 to 7:30.

 

The hourly wage at this shop is 1,000 yen, so the correct amount should have been 3,000 yen. Yet, there was 2,000 yen more in the envelope.

 

"An earnest-looking kid came to me, so I was thinking I should at least give more for his first paycheck."

 

The manager replied with a laugh.

 

"B-but..."

"Continue working hard from now on, okay?"

 

I couldn't say anything back to the manager in the end. Still, I was very happy with the salary I earned.

 

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