“So-so, I guess. I got to the second round of interviews. Didn’t get the job, though.”
When Rintarou mentioned that he’d just got the rejection email to Kimiko earlier, she frowned. “That’s not ‘so-so!’ You either got the job or didn’t,” she’d said.
She was always so blunt. Nowadays he could let it go since he was used to it, but when Rintarou was a teen, it had hurt him a lot. If it hadn’t been for Niimi, his relationship with his mother would’ve gone rotten.
“It’s already November, so I’m getting a bit anxious about it. It’s like, there’ll be people turning down the jobs, so maybe it’ll be fine. Or it’d be nice if it’d be fine.”
Most of Rintarou’s friends from university had either already gotten jobs or been accepted to graduate schools. The people who got job offers usually got them from multiple companies, which meant they turned a lot of them down. That meant he still had a chance.
“Rintarou-kun. This is just if you’re interested, of course, but would you like me to ask HR at my job about any openings for you?” Niimi asked, expression serious. He worked at a major pharmaceutical maker, developing perfume. One of the new employees in human resources was one of Niimi’s old coworkers, so he thought he’d be able to swing something.
“You should take his offer,” Kimiko chimed in. “Wouldn’t it be better for you to work somewhere you have someone you can rely on, Rintarou?”
But Rintarou couldn’t do that. It would be bad to get a job through connections when he didn’t have any knowledge or skill for it—he’d just end up embarrassing Niimi. And what was he supposed to say when anyone asked what their relationship was? If he told people he was his mother’s boyfriend, they’d know Niimi was looking at him through rose-colored glasses.
“I’m gonna keep trying on my own for now. I still have hope, after all,” Rintarou said, wishing it was true.
After an awkward toast, Kimiko kept her glass in her hands without drinking anything, even though she was always the first one to drain her drink.
“You know, Rintarou…you don’t have to get a job right away. You could try doing a bunch of different part-time jobs once you graduate, or you could just stay at the rental car shop. You’re always talking about how you’re gonna get a job once you graduate and move out, but I wouldn’t mind it a bit if you stayed here forever. To me, you being home is natural,” she said, looking serious.
The fact that she was always honest was one of his mother’s good points. He could tell that she was worried, and her offer was completely serious.
“I bet you’d find life difficult moving elsewhere after being born and raised in Shinjuku. What have your friends from junior high done, Rintarou-kun? You still hang out with them once in a while, don’t you?” Niimi asked.
“I think most of them still live at home,” Rintarou said. “Can’t knock the ease of transportation here. When they go drinking, they can just walk home if they miss the last train. They say there’s nowhere else they could live that’s got everything handy nearby.”
“See! I was right!” Kimiko interjected as if she’d won.
“But, I mean, getting used to some inconvenience is part of learning about the world,” Rintarou added, laughing it off.
Kimiko muttered that he was starting to resemble Chiyo a little bit. Rintarou took a drink of his beer to push down the retort that there was a reason that he was being stubborn about this.
His plan was that once he graduated university and was out on his own, he’d suggest that his mother and Niimi should get married, or even just start living together properly instead of just over the weekends. The two had prioritized his feelings plenty over the years, maybe even to a fault. If he didn’t put an end to it somehow, then they’d keep on holding themselves back.
Back around one year into their relationship, Kimiko had asked if he would be okay with the three living together. Despite being a bit surprised, he’d said yes on the spot, but Niimi had caught his flash of hesitation. He gave Rintarou an escape route by saying that it would be difficult to suddenly have to live with someone new, so they should just test things out first. That was the beginning of their weekend-only cohabitation.
Back then, he’d been relieved, but it’d been seven years since then. They needed some sort of cue to take the next step in their relationship. If that cue was Rintarou getting a job, then that would be a joyous occasion and a very good reason. The problem was that it didn’t seem like he was getting anywhere with the job hunt.
Heading back to his room after they finished dinner, Rintarou saw that his clothes had all been yanked out of the closet and scattered across the floor.
“You really did it, huh, Chiyo-san…” he sighed, shoulders drooping. But his suit alone was untouched. That was probably her being nice. Having returned to his room ahead of him, the cat was stretched out and dozing in the hammock.
“Okay. Better get you brushed for today.”
Sneaking over, Rintarou grabbed Chiyo by the scruff. While she was subdued, he used his other hand to lift her body and place her down on the floor. She hadn’t been coming very close to him lately, so his only chance to groom her was when she was relaxing after a meal.
After getting her all brushed, he gave her a little rub on the head for being a good girl. The second he let go of her, she jumped onto the couch. When he tried to take a step closer, she went fully on guard. He spoke to her kindly and with love like he always did, but she’d been even less cuddly with him than usual lately.
Rintarou sat on his bed before flopping down onto his back.
“I’m not feeling good about my next interviews either. I wonder if I’d do better if I could talk normally, like I do with Niimi-san…”