He’d always been a reader, but after that, he changed the way he read. Instead of just paying attention to the characters, he started trying to read the authors too.
“I can’t even imagine it. I’d go there sometimes when you weren’t working, and he was always really good to me. He seemed like someone who picked his words carefully and spoke with consideration. Like, he knew when you wanted to talk or when you wanted to just think,” Haruka said.
“Yeah, because that’s his job.”
Regardless of whether or not a bartender was interested, he was likely to get complaints if he couldn’t pick up on what his clientele were thinking about through their slight movements and gazes. Those indicators were much more important than whatever conversation they were having, and it was a spot where his customer service skills were naturally needed.
“If you aren’t suited to be a bartender, then just who is? The two of you were always simply doing your work, so I never noticed anything. He said some pretty unbelievable stuff behind the scenes, huh?” Haruka mused.
“He just has his own set of aesthetics.”
“You don’t have to defend him. When you don’t get along with someone at work, it keeps you from doing your job. Whatever he was worrying about, I would’ve worded it differently, at the very least,” Haruka said, voice raising.
“That just means that he worded it that way after thinking about how to say it. It wasn’t like I wanted to be a bartender, so he might’ve felt that I was only there to fill an empty job opening.”
As they spoke, Keiichi remembered things he’d already forgotten.
Keiichi had graduated from a specialty cooking school and was hired at the City Hotel in Shinjuku’s high-rise district. He had a dream: to get some experience working in a restaurant so he could one day open his own, however small it might be.
He’d been assigned to the department he wanted when he was hired. But due to staffing shortages, he was asked to work in the food and beverage department temporarily, and once he completed training, he got shuttled off to the main bar. He’d heard that not being able to work in the spot you were hired for happened in every industry.
In order to be able to respond to the clientele’s desires, you needed knowledge in all sorts of things, not just alcohol. While he waited to be moved back to his original job, Keiichi had to keep on studying. When he ended up not hearing anything about that, and being put in charge of the counter on a weekend, he had to give up and get qualified as a bartender. It took a considerable length of time of him considering quitting before he finally admitted he’d just have to bartend for a living.
“But I didn’t think he’d open a bar in Shinjuku,” Keiichi said, finding Uneta’s decision strange.
One of Uneta’s regulars was a female web designer who would come in on the weekend to talk to him about independent business. When she asked him why he didn’t have his own bar, he told her, “One day, I’d like to open a little bar in a seaside town, serving mainly cocktails.” So why had he opened a bar in the middle of the city?
Keiichi knew that Uneta cared about the woman and was friends with her—he didn’t think that Uneta would just tell her a casual lie.
“I only heard about it in passing, so I don’t know the specifics, but apparently Uneta-san got sick and had to quit not long after you left. Guess he opened his own bar to work at his own pace. I’m just worried it might’ve been my fault,” Haruka said, tilting his head with his arms crossed.
“Why would it be your fault?” Keiichi asked.
“Because I poached you to work with me. I mean, I’m super happy you’re working at the Undecimber Garden, and it’s helpful that I’ve finally got somewhere I can go to let off some steam, but…”
One of the businesses run by Haruka’s company was the Undecimber Garden. The Sakurai family was made up of business managers. Both his parents and siblings each owned their own businesses as well as managing a variety of them, so they would hear about work from a number of different industries.
When Haruka heard he might be able to rent a spot in Golden Gai from an acquaintance of his sister’s, he jumped at the opportunity. He got Keiichi into it, hiring him to help run the bar.
“Anyway, I’m off to work. Take care of Sumi. Let me know if anything comes up.”
Lifting his head to get himself back on track, Haruka left the store.
Keiichi headed behind the register counter. He grabbed a package of wet cat food off of the shelf and put it out on a saucer. Looking around the store, there was no sign of the cat.
“Come here, Sumi.”
A moment later, he heard the clear sound of a bell from among the bookshelves. Sumi poked her head half out of the bottom shelf of the bookshelf farthest from the counter. She was looking at the saucer but made no move to approach. When Keiichi called her name again, she walked over to him. At first, she would only watch him from afar, even if he had her food out, but recently it seemed she was letting her guard down around him.
“You must’ve been through a lot before Haruka adopted you, huh, Sumi? It might be safer not to deal with humans, but you’re gonna have to if you want to live.”
As she started eating, body still stiff, Keiichi stroked her back. She turned to look up at him, eyes pure. She must have started considering him someone who wouldn’t hurt her for now, so she didn’t try to run away.
“Keeping a distance is a way to live peacefully. Nothing especially wonderful will happen, but that’s not too bad.”
When he pulled his hand away, she went back to her meal. She finished a few minutes later, turning to him and giving a satisfied meow. She stiffened for a moment when he reached out to her again, but once he actually touched her, she shut her eyes in pleasure. Keiichi pet her the same way that Haruka always did, going from her chin to her ears. He had no idea where cats enjoyed being touched. But they were better than humans, since their reactions were easier to comprehend.
Picking up the empty saucer, he headed back behind the register counter. Then, he heard a little mew from behind him. When he looked again, Sumi was sitting there, staring at him.