A Beautiful Model In My Class Comes To The Coffee Shop Where I Work Part-time Only When I'm On Shift - Chapter 4

Episode 4: Did I Go Too Far?

“…Is this place okay?”

Confirming that there’s no one around, Kamisaka sighs in relief.

“Thank you, Mikage-kun. You were considerate of me, weren’t you?”

“Well, you seemed troubled. Was I being meddlesome?”

“Not at all. I appreciated it.”

Kamisaka, looking tired as yesterday, leans against the wall, exhaling.

“Ugh… Dealing with that energy from the morning is a bit tough.”

“It feels different… the atmosphere.”

“Yeah, exactly, Mikage-kun. You really understand.”

“Y-Yeah…”

As if saying, ‘Thank you for understanding,’ Kamisaka pats me on the back. She must be accumulating quite a bit of stress. Her words carried a kind of poignant sorrow.

“Even here, there’s some sort of temperature difference here… What do you call it, the way expectations are placed on you? It’s a bit harsh. It’s not like I’ve already been cast in a drama or anything.”

“Ah…”

Even if you tell them not to expect, they won’t listen, thinking it’s just modesty. If Kamisaka fails the audition after being expected so much, they’ll surely be disappointed. It’s not easy for her to be expected, only to be disappointed without any real decision about her future roles.

“Having expectations is nice, but my main job is still modeling… Dramas, movies, and lately singing? The agency just wants me to do everything. Well, it’s probably because I’m still a newcomer… but I can’t go against the agency’s policy.”

“That’s unfortunate…”

“At our age, it’s not easy to completely separate work from personal feelings, right? Even if people say various things about it, there’s not much we can do… Sorry. I ended up complaining about various things.”

Kamisaka covers her face with her hands, looking apologetic. She seems to have accumulated quite a bit of frustration. What she poured out at our cafe yesterday wasn’t enough, it seems.

“I, after all, misunderstood Kamisaka.”

“Misunderstood?”

“You always seemed calm and detached, but you were really struggling… You’re working hard. I think you’re incredibly brave.”

“……”

When I said that, Kamisaka looked at me with wide eyes. Gradually, tears welled up in her eyes.

“Wai…!? Did I say something strange?”

“No, it’s not that! I’m sorry for showing you a weird side of me.”

Kamisaka wipes away her tears with her hands. Rather than looking hurt, she seemed somewhat happy.

“I’ve been complimented on my work, but this is the first time someone praised my efforts… It just got to me. I’m actually happy about it.”

“That’s good… Everyone should praise each other’s efforts more. Kamisaka too—”

“Shizuku.”

“Huh?”

“Call me Shizuku. Mikage-kun, that’s not it, I will also call you Jun-kun.”

“—!”

Her moist eyes pierced me, and I could feel my heart skip a beat. The way she looks up at him, completely different from her usual cool and cool impression, is just too cute. If there is a man who won’t be defeated by this method of pleading, I would like him to bring him along.

“Got it, then… I’ll call you Shizuku.”

“—! Yeah, it’s a promise, okay?”

As we continued chatting, the bell for the first period rang. It seems we spent quite some time.

“Oh no! Let’s go back, Jun-kun.”

“…Ah.”

Just calling my name makes me strangely flustered. Calming my pounding heart, I returned to the classroom with Shizuku.

“Maybe I was a little too aggressive?”

I felt like Shizuku was muttering something, but I couldn’t hear it.

◇◆◇

“Phew…”

The sixth period ended, and finally, after-school arrived. I praised myself for making it through class without sleeping and began preparing to leave. Today, like any other day, I have part-time work. Without engaging in any conversations, I left the classroom.

By the way, even after school, Shizuku was surrounded by classmates. Although I gave her a glance, it seemed she wasn’t as troubled as she was in the morning, and she silently shook her head.

“Hey, Mikage.”

“Mamiya-sensei?”

“No, it’s Akira-chan.”

“…”

As I walked through the corridor, I was suddenly called out to by that voice. When I turned around, there stood Mamiya Akira-sensei, a somewhat tired-looking female teacher.

She teaches modern literature but wears a white coat and has unhealthy-looking bags under her eyes. For some reason, she’s referred to as Akira-chan by the students, despite the fact that she’s a teacher.

“…It’s quite a resistance to be called Akira-chan by a teacher.”

“Shut up. If you don’t call me that, I’ll kill you.”

“What a ridiculous teacher…”

It doesn’t seem like a phrase a teacher should say to a student, but she is indeed a popular teacher. She sincerely listens to students’ concerns, makes her lessons easy to understand, and is beloved by the majority of students. Even for a quiet and unnoticeable student like me, she addresses me by my full name, proving she’s considerate. Moreover, if you look closely, she’s apparently popular because she’s quite beautiful, even though it’s hard to tell due to the bags under her eyes.

“You, were you in the same class as Kamisaka?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then, can you give her this?”

What was handed to me was the printout used in the previous class.

“She mentioned something about having a model job and took the day off last time, right? I forgot to give her this printout then.”

“I understand, I’ll give it to her.”

“Alright. …Also, tell her not to work so much that she breaks herself.”

She’s not a straightforward teacher. It would have been fine to hand her the printout during the next class, but she chose a roundabout way just to convey those words.

“…Mamiya-sensei, you’re kind.”

“It’s Akira-chan. Well, I’m counting on you.”

Mamiya-sensei turned her back on me, waved, and then left.

Now, Shizuku might still be at school. Turning back, I decided to return to the classroom.

“…Was I too late?”

However, Shizuku was not there. Her bag was not there, and it seems we missed each other while passing by.

(I should have exchanged contact information.)

I regretted it a little since there was a chance. Well, it’s fine to give her the printout tomorrow.

I carefully put the printout in my bag and left the classroom.

◇◆◇

“Hey, you came again.”

That night, Shizuku appeared at the cafe where I work.

[Afterword]

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