A Beautiful Model In My Class Comes To The Coffee Shop Where I Work Part-time Only When I'm On Shift - Chapter 16

Episode 16: Our Own Fortress

I asked Shizuku to wait for a moment as I entered the staff room. Just as I stepped in, I made eye contact with Mamiya-sensei, who was about to leave.

“Oh, Mamiya-sensei.”

“Call me Akira-chan. I might kill you.”

“That’s a bit difficult for me…”

—As unreasonable as always.

“Um, do you happen to have coffee brewing equipment in the staff room?”

“Coffee equipment?”

“Like a coffee grinder or a dripper.”

“Ah…”

In Mamiya-sensei’s line of sight, there was a kettle and tea bags. Instant coffee seemed to be available, but the desired tools were nowhere to be found.

“Hey.”

“Yes…”

“Are you trying to brew coffee at school?”

“Well, yes… It’s for various reasons.”

“Wait a moment.”

“…?”

Mamiya-sensei took a key hanging on the wall and returned to me.

“Well, what’s this?”

“It’s the key to the night shift room. There might be coffee equipment’s there. But return the key by the end of the day.”

“…Thank you.”

Having access to the duty room was appreciated. Shizuku probably didn’t want to attract too much attention inside the school, and if it was an unused classroom, she could relax relatively easily. Clutching the received key, I left the staff room.

◇◆◇

“Night shift room?”

“Yeah, Mamiya-sensei said there might be equipments there.”

I led Shizuku to our destination.

A dimly lit corridor with few people.

In a somewhat secluded spot that could be considered on the outskirts of the school building, there was the night shift room.

“I’ve been attending for over a year, but it’s my first time coming this far.”

“Me too… I’ll open it.”

I opened the slightly shaky door, and we stepped inside. It was a room with tatami mats.

There was a gas stove, microwave, refrigerator, and something like a closet. In the center of the room was a low table, and there was an ashtray with cigarette butts on it.

It didn’t seem too old. Probably something Mamiya-sensei used. When I sniffed, I could catch a faint smell of tobacco.

“It’s been taken care of well, even though it’s not being used.”

The well-maintained state was evidence that it had been cherished. Even though we were going to use it now, we had to treat it with respect, just like the previous owner did.

“Well, there are no coffee beans.”

“Yeah…”

We searched the room together, but there were no coffee beans. Even if we found some, they probably would have passed their expiration date. The shelf life of coffee beans was generally around a year at most. Some might have a shorter window, even within a month, so it was common sense to use them as soon as possible.

“Maybe we should bring coffee beans tomorrow… We should also get some paper filters.”

“I found paper filters, but we shouldn’t use them just in case. It’s part of hygiene management.”

“I guess we have to give up today… sigh, I really want some coffee.”

Shizuku was already a full-fledged coffee lover. At this point, she probably wouldn’t be able to concentrate in the afternoon classes. I understood that feeling.

“…Even though it might just be a placebo effect, coffee after enduring is really delicious, you know?”

“If you say that, somehow, I’m starting to feel motivated… By the way, can we freely use this room from now on?”

“Why not? Mamiya-sensei said we could use it.”

“…Doesn’t that make you kind of excited?”

Shizuku, with a smile on her face, lay down on the tatami mat.

“Come on, Juntaro.”

“……”

Invited, I lay down beside her. Even though we were at school, it was a space where we could stretch our limbs freely. It was indeed quite nice.

“Feels like our secret base, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s great. So, from today, let’s make this our secret base.”

With a strangely embarrassed feeling, we both laughed. From today, this room became our fortress.