The shelves on the brick walls were lined with a wide selection of wines. The sizzling sound of food cooking in the kitchen mixed with the faint smell of garlic. Three other groups aside from Keigo and Saotome were seated in the cozy restaurant.
“Everything looks delicious!” Saotome gasped as the waiter set out colorful dishes of bruschetta and caprese salad. “I’ll serve.”
“Oh, okay, thanks.”
As Keigo watched her divide up the food, he thought about the events of that morning.
Date tonight?
The fact that Nagi was wearing a dress, which was unusual for her, had raised his suspicions.
Yeah.
Finally, the day he’d feared had arrived. Her dinner with Kousaka had been canceled once, and he knew they would inevitably reschedule, but hearing her say the words had dealt a heavy blow. That was why he had made so many careless mistakes at work. For better or worse, no big problems had cropped up like last time. That meant that right about now, Nagi was probably enjoying her dinner with Mr. Cider Commercial. She’d called him “a good person,” but would he really let their date end without trying anything? The very thought of it sent him into a frenzy of worry. And he had something else on his mind, too.
“Here you are,” Saotome said, gently placing a prettily arranged plate of food in front of him. He thanked her, flustered. She smiled and waved dismissively.
Actually, I wanted to ask your advice about something at work.
She’d approached him when he’d stepped out of the office in an attempt to stop thinking about Nagi and focus on his job. In retrospect, it seemed awful of him, but he’d suspected she was using “advice” as an excuse to get closer to him—in a romantic way. He was wary of her and originally planned to turn down her request.
I wanted to ask Ms. Yoroizuka about it, but she said she has plans tonight, so…
In the end, when he saw the troubled look on her face, he couldn’t bring himself to say no. Nagi had happened upon them just as they were making dinner plans, and when he’d tried to explain himself, she’d run off. He hadn’t gotten another chance to talk to her since. The whole day had been one disaster after another. As he sat across from Saotome, he prayed nothing else would go wrong.
“So what kind of advice did you need?” he asked when they’d finished eating the main course and gotten through an appropriate amount of trivial chatting. She quietly set down her glass and parted her glossy, moist lips.
“Actually, I’m interested in someone at the office.”
“…Huh.”
He was too rattled by her unexpected confession to think of anything better to say.
“Do you think it’s okay to date a coworker, Mr. Yuuki?” she asked.
He glanced away, unable to hold her serious gaze.
“I think it’s fine. As long as the parties involved are okay with it, of course,” he said noncommittally.
“You think so?” she asked, looking down. He was relieved to finally be released from her stare, but apparently, she wasn’t finished talking. “Um…do you like anyone at work?”
He choked on his gin and tonic.
“Uh…cough, cough…do I like anyone…?”
He almost snapped back “Don’t be ridiculous” but suddenly thought better of it. He didn’t know what she was after, but it was probably better to contain the situation by being honest instead of fumbling a denial. He planted his hands on his knees and looked at her squarely.
“Yes, I do,” he said nervously. He did not elaborate. She didn’t appear surprised. Slowly, she looked up.
“May I ask who it is?” she said in an extremely quiet voice.
“I don’t think the name would mean anything. It’s not anyone you know,” he said with a half smile. To avoid her accusatory gaze, he took another gulp of his gin and tonic.
“Is that all you wanted to ask me? If there’s nothing else, then—,” he was saying, trying to wind down their dinner, when she interrupted.
“I believe I know Ms. Yoroizuka quite well.”
Her icy tone wove its way through the din of the restaurant to his ears. His hand froze midreach toward their check. He glanced at her, stunned.
“It’s Ms. Yoroizuka you like, isn’t it? I can tell. I’ve been watching you.”
The expression on her face was uncharacteristically serious. Her tone was so decisive he didn’t even think to argue back.
“Please. If I’m right, then tell me,” she said earnestly. For an instant, he considered nodding. It would have been easy. Just a single movement of his head.
“No…it’s someone else.”
Instead, he flatly denied it. He was agitated, but his rational brain won out. Carrying the conversation any further could only hurt her.
“Let’s get going,” he said, standing up with the check in his hand.
“Thank you for dinner.” Saotome bowed to him as they left the restaurant.
“You’re welcome,” he answered. It was such a relief to no longer have to sit across from her. “I’ll walk you to the station. There are a lot of drunks around here. Which line do you take?”
“Thank you… Let’s go this way. It’s a shortcut.”
They walked on in silence, just far enough apart to make it hard to tell if they were strangers or acquaintances. Keigo wished he could run at top speed to their destination to escape the exceedingly awkward atmosphere. But since Saotome was wearing heels, his only option was to match her slow pace.
It sure was going to be uncomfortable seeing her on Monday. Would it have been better to admit he liked Nagi? Keigo was so lost in his own worries, he didn’t notice a couple stumbling drunkenly toward them.
“Eek!” Saotome squealed as she collided with the woman. Both of them tottered perilously.
“Be careful!” Keigo shouted, shooting out a hand to Saotome and pulling her close.
The woman apologized dully and continued down the street, latched on to the arm of her male companion. Judging by the way they were walking, both of them must have been plastered. Eventually, they whispered something to each other and slipped into a building. A signboard set by the entrance brazenly advertised cheap rooms alongside the suggestive name of the establishment in large, fancy script. Glancing around, Keigo realized this street was full of similar signs.
Shit. This area was extremely sketchy. He quickly removed the hand he’d placed on Saotome to stop her from falling.
“The station is this way. Let’s get out of…here…”
He was in the middle of turning around when he stopped in his tracks. He could feel something soft on his back. When he looked down, he saw a slender arm wrapped around his waist.
“Mr. Yuuki…”
Somehow, her hot breath as she whispered his name seemed to penetrate his coat and caress his skin.
“What are you doing…?”
He glanced awkwardly over his shoulder and gasped. Two watery eyes were staring up at him from very close range, wavering helplessly. He couldn’t tell if she was about to cry or get mad or ask him for something, but her expression appealed directly to his male instincts.
I don’t want people to blame my lack of ability on the fact that I’m a woman.
Keigo suddenly remembered Nagi’s words from before. It seemed to him like the disadvantages of being a woman could sometimes be turned into weapons. Right now was a perfect example. But there were women who didn’t even know how to use those weapons, whose only option was to fight head-on. He thought of Nagi—her clumsiness and honest strength. That was just one of the reasons he loved her.
“Saotome, please let go of me.”
He gently peeled away her arms, and she stood, unmoving.
“If you’re having trouble walking, I can call a taxi,” he offered. She shook her head softly.
“…No, I’m fine.”
“Then let’s go. Just tell me if it gets hard to walk.”
They started moving and didn’t say a word until they parted. Keigo left her at the station, and about half an hour later, he ran into Nagi at the oden stand.
“…And that’s all that happened…”
Nagi and Ryou were watching Keigo with solemn expressions. He had just finished summarizing the events of the previous Friday night, after being abruptly called to the president’s office.
“Is that the truth? You aren’t lying about anything?” Nagi asked in an accusatory tone, her arms crossed.
“Of course not!”
He was the one who should have been angry. He had no idea why he was being accused of such a thing, but it couldn’t have been further from the truth.
“Nagi, I think he’s being honest,” Ryou said quietly. Up till then, he’d been listening in silence. “I think all of this can be chalked up to a simple misunderstanding between Ms. Saotome and Keigo.”
He glanced sympathetically at Keigo. Ryou knew all about his long-standing, unrequited love for Nagi.