Nagi had been restless all day. It wasn’t because she was wearing a brand-new dress, or because she’d curled her hair for the first time in ages, or because she had a necklace on. It was because she was finally going to have that long-awaited dinner with Kousaka. Two weeks earlier, when she’d canceled their dinner plans the night before his birthday, she’d done so knowing he might hate her for it. But not only had he graciously accepted her change of plans, he’d even wished her luck with work. It would be no exaggeration to say their date that day, which she’d managed to reschedule with him, would impact the rest of her life. No matter what, she couldn’t screw up this time.
As she was powering through her work with demonic speed so she wouldn’t be late to meet him, her eyes stopped on a particular spot in a system specification document. Something was strange about it. When she checked who had written that section, she saw it was Keigo.
“Hey, Keigo,” she called out, stretching her neck to look over her monitor.
“What do you need?” he asked, raising his head.
“I looked at the specifications for the product details page, and it looks like the changes haven’t been incorporated.”
“Really?! My bad. I’ll look it over right away!”
Keigo carried out his work with almost robotic perfection, and it was unusual for him to make even a small mistake like this. Maybe it was her imagination, but that day, he seemed to lack his usual drive. Now that she thought about it, she felt like he’d started acting weird after seeing her outfit that morning and asking if she had a date. Maybe he was sick or something.
He called to her once more through the gap between their screens.
“Sorry about that, Nagi! I fixed the specifications.”
“Got it, thanks.”
As she was rechecking the document, he quietly stood up and walked out of the office. Ever since they were young, he’d been prone to colds—unlike Nagi, who was almost too healthy. It had always been her job to bring him printouts and school-lunch desserts when he stayed home, since she’d lived across the street. Now that they were adults, he didn’t seem to get quite as many colds, but she worried about his health. Knowing how absent-minded he was when it came to himself, she figured he might just buy an energy drink and go on with his day. Slightly worried, she got up to follow him.
“Ms. Yoroizuka.”
But before she could fully stand up, Saiga called her name.
“…Yes?”
“…I can wait, if you’re busy,” he said with a dubious glance at her awkward half-standing posture.
“No, it’s completely fine! What’s going on?”
Their relationship hadn’t improved at all, and Nagi couldn’t shake her habit of acting a little stiff around him.
“I finished the work you asked me to do, so I wanted to let you know.”
“Oh, thank you!”
As she opened the schedule on her computer and updated his progress, she let out a reflexive “Ooh!”
“Saiga, you’re working faster! Impressive!” she said excitedly, forgetting for a moment that he didn’t like her. Maybe because he was getting used to the work, his pace had improved markedly compared with a few months ago. He looked down, seeming embarrassed.
“…Thanks.”
His tone was curt but a little shy. Happy that his development was going so well, Nagi turned back to the schedule in high spirits.
“So your next task will be…”
She scrolled down, pondering what to assign him next. Should she ask him to program a slightly more difficult section than she’d originally planned? That would make Saotome’s work easier, which would allow her to help out Nagi, opening up time for Nagi to work on other things. But she didn’t want to place too much of a burden on a new employee. Right, she’d better go with the original, easier assignment.
“How about this? It’s not difficult at all, so you don’t need to wor…ry…”
She glanced back at him as she pointed to the schedule, then froze. Where was that shy expression from a minute ago? He was glaring at the schedule on her screen with an obviously grumpy look on his face.
“What’s…wrong…?”
“…Nothing. Nothing at all. I understand,” he said curtly, turning to go.
“Wait!” Nagi said, scrambling to stop him. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing, it’s just…”
Nagi was completely confused. She had tried her best to prevent him from disliking his work. She’d given him the easiest jobs possible, and whenever he’d had difficulty finishing something, she’d stayed late to do it for him. So why did she have to put up with such overt loathing?
Wait, maybe she had it all wrong. She hurriedly rejected her childish reaction. She may have “tried” to take his best interests into account, but that was only her perspective. He was an independent person, and he was free to dislike what she had intended as thoughtfulness. And as the senior employee, it was on her if he felt that way.
“…Saiga, would you mind coming with me to the meeting space?”
She forced herself to speak calmly to him, and he followed obediently. She sat down across from him, took a few deep breaths, and plunged in.
“If there’s something I’ve been doing that bothers you, I’d like you to tell me. I want you to feel at ease here. To be honest, I should probably have figured out the issue without you having to tell me…but I’m still inexperienced as a leader, and if you’re willing, I want to work together to make this team better.”
She still found it difficult to interact with him, but what she’d just said was the truth. She wanted to create the best environment she could for Saotome and Saiga, who were working so hard under her inadequate leadership, so that they would stay on for a long time. Having clearly laid out her case, she waited tensely for Saiga to respond. Quietly, he raised his head and looked straight at her.
“Can I say something?”
“Of course,” she said, nodding firmly. Never very talkative, he took his time before speaking.
“I’d like to be assigned to a different team.”
Nagi’s mind went blank in disbelief.
“You…you mean…?”
“I don’t want to be on your team anymore.”
His point-blank rejection stabbed her right in the heart. She’d heard once that when people were truly shaken, they stopped speaking. Maybe he ran out of patience with her dazed silence, because he stood up with a sigh.
“I know it’s probably impossible, so don’t worry about it. I don’t expect anything from you, anyway.”
After Saiga left, Nagi remained rooted in place. She was still in shock. Eventually, she stood on wobbly legs and left the office. There was no way she could focus on her work right now. She wanted to find a place to be alone.
I don’t expect anything from you, anyway.
As she walked aimlessly forward, Saiga’s words played over and over in her head.
What kind of expectations did he mean? If he’d expected something, she wished he’d have told her. Then she would have been able to act closer to how he’d wanted. But it wasn’t too late. She could talk with him again, and—
“…No.”
She shook her head. It was pointless. If he disliked her that much, it would be impossible to repair the relationship. She was nearly in tears, but at the same time, her mind was rationally planning the next steps she had to take. The department head was on a business trip that day, but she could talk to him early the next week. She could admit she’d made a mistake in leadership and ask him to find a placement for Saiga that suited him. But if the team makeup changed, what would she do about the work she’d planned on assigning to Saiga? Oh well, she could do it herself with a bit of overtime. And then—if he would let her, she wanted to apologize to Saiga.
Just then, she heard voices from around the corner in the hallway.
“…Okay, okay. How about dinner tonight?”
“Really, can we?”
It was Keigo and Saotome. Thinking they were an odd pair, she peeked around the corner.
“Sure. I’ll find a place.”
“Thank you so much! I can’t wait!”
From where she was standing, Nagi couldn’t see Keigo’s face, but she had a perfect view of Saotome’s delighted expression. Huh? Were the two of them that close?
Frozen in place, she didn’t realize how far around the corner she’d leaned.
“Oh!”
Saotome, who had been looking at Keigo with a smile practically overflowing with joy, suddenly shifted her gaze toward Nagi. Keigo glanced over his shoulder as well. His face tensed.
“Nagi…”
If she were to put a caption to his expression, it would be “Oh shit.” Like he’d been caught doing something he’d wanted to keep secret. In that instant, something dawned on Nagi.
“Oh, s-sorry! I didn’t mean to listen in…! I didn’t know you two were seeing each other! I’m so sorry for not realizing!”
“Wait, Nagi…”
Keigo tried to interrupt her, but Nagi drowned him out with shouts of “It’s fine, it’s fine!”
“Don’t worry—I won’t tell anyone!” she continued quickly. “Um…Saotome! Keigo is an old friend of mine, but he’s like family, and I don’t see him any other way, so please don’t worry about me! Okay then, the intruder will leave now! Excuse me!”
Bowing energetically, she made a U-turn and retreated full speed the way she’d come. She thought she heard Keigo calling after her, but she pretended she hadn’t and kept running. She ran right past her own office and only stopped after ducking into the women’s restroom on the far side.