Chapter 23: Volume 1 - CH 7.3

As Sandai was spending his days flirting with Shino without fail even with the limited time, next Sunday came in a flash. After confirming the time specified by his part-time job was drawing near, Sandai got ready and headed there.

It being Sunday, many people were walking down the street, so he was walking while being careful not to bump shoulders with other pedestrians.

Given that he had headed out with some time to spare, he arrived twenty minutes earlier than the specified time. Then he saw Hajime. “Fujiwara-kun!”

“Ah… It’s Saeki.”

Somehow feeling like he hadn’t seen Hajime for a long time, Sandai felt weirdly nostalgic. It hadn’t been that long since the interview, however…

“It sure feels like we haven’t met for about half a year.”

“Eh? It hasn’t been that long, you know? And the interview was just last week. Aww c’mon, a joke like that’s not funny.” Hajime ballooned up his cheeks and hung his head down while pouting his mouth.

It was a very sweet and cute gesture—but Hajime was a guy. Hajime looked like a girl no matter how you looked at it—but he was a guy.

“A boyfemboy is not a man… but being a boyfemboy is also another fact, huh.”

“W-What’s wrong? You’re talking weird… Is it philosophy or something?”

“I just thought the world’s full of wonders, you see.”

“Hmm. …By the way Fujiwara-kun, you didn’t contact me at all, huh?”

“Contact?”

“We’ve exchanged contact addresses, and yet you didn’t contact me at all, so I was feeling lonely, you know?”

“That’s an issue with my personality, I must say.”

“Do you like neglect-play?”

“Could it be you’re trying to tease me?”

“I don’t mean that, though…”

“Well look… you said about contacting, but I don’t know what I should do either here. At any rate, I was a complete loner until not that long ago. Instead of waiting for a contact from me, I want you to do it.”

“Somehow I just feel like I’ll lose if I’m the one contacting~.”

“You know it’s not even about winning or losing.”

As they were having such chit-chat, Omaki came out from the aquarium and called to them. “You two sure are quick. I’m so impressed.”

“Good morning!”

“Good mor… good morning?” Sandai tilted his head in puzzlement because Hajime had said ‘good morning’ even though it was noon.

And then, “Ahem!” Hajime puffed up his non-existent chest and began explaining. “In the service industry, it’s pretty much ‘good morning’ when you come in… I’m not really sure why, though.”

“Right, like Saeki-kun said, there sure are many places in the service industry where they say ‘good morning’ when they come to work. I don’t really know why either, though.”

Since the two people who got no particular point of contact with each other, Hajime and Omaki, were in agreement, it must be the so-called ‘common sense.’

“I see.” As Sandai was nodding his head in understanding, Omaki brought a brand new cardboard box.

“Well, setting aside the greeting’s origin… It’s today’s main topic. Now go change into this you two.”

There were work clothes with the aquarium’s logo and boots in the cardboard box. Although it gave Sandai such a feeling of, I’m gonna start working for real, huh, it seemed to be only him.

As for Hajime with his fair share of working experience, “Okay,” he took it without getting worked up.

“Hey hey, look at these work clothes, it’s got a dolphin picture on the back!”

“Sure they do.”

“The locker room… looks like over there. We’re gonna change together, huh?”

“Yeah su—”

—re we are.

Sandai had almost nodded his head following the flow, but he suddenly came to his senses.

Changing clothes together with Hajime… There was nothing to worry about as they were fellow men, but Sandai felt like it was somehow not right nevertheless.

“…I’ll go get changed in the toilet.”

“W-Why? C’mon, let’s change together.”

“Just because.”

“Do you hate me…?”

“I don’t mean that, but how do I explain this… I’m just of the principle that likes to get changed alone,” Sandai gave some random excuse.

But despite getting slightly dispirited, “I see,” Hajime gave his understanding.

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Sandai sure did feel strangely sorry, but he got a hunch that if they changed together, he’d learn of something serious—something he wasn’t supposed to know.

With the work clothes in one hand, Sandai hurried to the toilet and began to change. Although it took him slightly more time than expected due to him being strangely worked up, he pulled through somehow.

When Sandai got out into the hallway, Hajime was waiting with his back against the wall, apparently having finished changing ahead of Sandai.

“You were waiting for me? It’s not like you really have to…”

“Don’t go saying sad stuff like that. I want to get to know you better, Fujiwara-kun. …If you want, wanna link arms?”

Is linking arms a measurement of closeness between fellow men? Sandai wasn’t really sure, but felt like it was wrong.

“…Is linking arms stuff fellow men do?”

“If they were close, even men would link arms, you know? You might not know as a loner, but that’s how it is these days, you know?”

“Is-Is that so?”

“Just jokin’! It’s just a joke. You’re so kyut, Fujiwara-kun.” Hajime smiled radiantly as if to say, Gotcha!

Hajime probably wasn’t aware of it, but the way he would tease people was exactly like a girl. When combined with the looks, it made Hajime like a perfect beautiful girl that of men’s ideals, so Sandai somehow understood now the feelings of those people wanting to make Hajime wear a girl’s outfit by all means.

Well, that aside, they returned to Omaki since they were done changing, and then were handed a paper outlining the work procedure, a brazier, and a garbage bag.

“So about the work’s procedure, or I should say training… There’s nothing that requires that much proficiency. Just carry on as written on this paper and you’re all OK. No special skills or techniques required whatsoever!”

There was also a section of ‘cleaning with running water’ that seemed to require some knowledge, but there was also a note that a supervisor would give an instruction on this. It seemed there was no need to think complicatedly.

“For now, the goal for today is to have you get the hang of it, so let’s take it easy. Of course, I’ll make sure today’s time is counted as your work time, too. Now then, let’s start by picking up trash around the area.”

The trash picking went smoothly without any particular problems showing up, but they encountered a forkroad not long after, so they had to split up into three groups.

Beyond the forked path, Sandai leisurely and calmly went to pick up the trash. He simply was going about it the same like when studying—not slacking by any means.

This kind of steady work would bring results when done steadily and without haste. In fact, his bag got full in no time at all as he was calmly picking up trash one by one without missing a single piece.

When Sandai returned to the aquarium, Hajime and Omaki weren’t there, apparently first to arrive. The two returned about ten minutes later.

“You’re so quick, Fujiwara-kun…”

“…Looks like it took a bit of time for me and Saeki-kun. Well, boys are different in the way they move and their stamina, so it can’t be helped if things don’t go the same way, though.”

“I’m a boy, too…”

“R-Right, of course, Saeki-kun is also a boy. Th-That’s right, now let’s start sorting out the garbage we’ve collected, shall we?” Omaki opened the opening of the garbage bags to gloss over her careless remark, and quickly walked closer to Sandai next. “Hey… Fujiwara-kun, I think you realized after trying it out for a bit, but you think cleaning is a plain work, don’t you?”

There was an examining-feel to Omaki’s tone; or rather, feeling like she was worried to be told, ‘I knew it, I don’t want to do this.’

Cleaning job was, just like Omaki had pointed out before, plain. But not all youngsters would avoid it, and Sandai had applied for it precisely because it was a cleaning job in the first place.

“Personally, I think this kind of job is pretty interesting too, you know?” Sandai stated matter-of-factly, making Omaki stop looking worried and look bashful.

“…You’re right. There are many young people who think only whether or not they can do flashy activities, but it doesn’t mean a plain but necessary work like this isn’t interesting, isn’t it. Looks like you’ll become a man who got himself together, Fujiwara-kun. Maybe Onee-san should make her claim?”

It was probably just a simple joke, but it would get troublesome in the unlikely event that it wasn’t. So immediately, “I have already been claimed so please stop,” Sandai politely declined it.

“You’ve already been claimed? Hmm, so you have a girlfriend?” Omaki was very doubtful, apparently thinking for Sandai to have a girlfriend to be unexpected, perhaps because she saw him as ‘plain.’

“What is it with those looks, I really do have a girlfriend.”

“…What’s she like?”

“Is it like, I have to speak no matter what?”

“Maybe you really don’t have one?”

“I’m saying I have…”

“Then tell me.”

Always getting doubted will also be bothersome, having thought so Sandai gave up and showed Omaki Shino’s picture he got on his phone.

“It’s this girl.”

“Uwah! A super beauty… I guess I’ve got no chance if she’s like this~.” Although he couldn’t tell whether it was a joke because of the light tone, in any case, Omaki’s interest seemed to have subsided from learning about Shino’s existence. “Haaah… Onee-san wants a boyfriend, though.”

“Although I don’t know your age, Omaki-san, you seem to have passed the age of majority at least, and so aiming for high school boys just sounds so…”

“I’m not that old, you know? I’m still 28.”

“It’s about ten years apart, you know…?”

“Ahaha,” Omaki laughed and glossed it over, but there was a hint of regret in those eyes of hers. It appeared she wouldn’t ask any more weird questions.

Thereafter, while making a lap around the premise, they were lightly taught how to clean each place.

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