Chapter 9: A Nostalgic Feeling

I-I’m worried…I wonder if Miyu will be home when I get home from work…But if I don’t go to my part time job, I won't have any money for living expenses…If Miyu’s going to live with me, the living expenses are going to be much higher. The food expenses alone would be doubled for two people… 

“Good morning.”

“Aah, morning Kuroshima-kun. There’s still around 30 minutes before your shift, you’re quite early.”

“Manager. I have a favour to ask of you…”

“Nn? What’s the matter? You don't want to quit, do you?”

“No, it's the other way around. I'm asking for more shifts.”

“Are you sure you want more shifts? You're still a high school student, and you're already working five days a week, so more than that…”  

I'm currently working part time at a convenience store. The reason why I chose to work here is because the one around my house had the fewest staff and the most shifts available. The stores in the shopping malls near my house have a good number of staff, so it was hard to earn enough money for living expenses.

My parents have already passed away, so I don't have any allowance. My grandparents took care of me until I went to junior high school, but I was forced to live on my own because I was desperate to make ends meet while also keeping up with my studies. There was no way I could ask my grandparents to send me money after I bought a girl from my class because I didn't have enough money.

“Besides the fact that I want to work more shifts…Can you possibly put me on the late night shift as well?”

“The late night shift…Kuroshima-kun, you’re still a high school student you know?”

“I am aware of that, but…Even so, I desperately need more money… “

Right now, the hourly wage at the convenience store where I work is 900 yen. On days when I have school, I work early in the morning until I go to school, or after school, or both. If it's early in the morning, the hourly rate is 950 yen with an early morning bonus, which is slightly more reasonable. Both weekends are filled with part-time work from morning to night, so basically I don't have any days off. However, I have to take two days off on weekdays because the Labor Standards Act requires it.

“But even so, you know… “

“For now, it’s fine even if it’s just for the winter break!”

I've been on winter break since yesterday, which means I have two full days off a week, but from my point of view it's just a waste of time and I'd like to get a part time job during that too…As you can imagine, that's not possible, so I'm asking to be put on the midnight shift. In the late night hours, the hourly wage would be 1,200 yen with a late night bonus.

“Err…Do you mind if I ask why?”

Why…There’s no way I could say that I started living together with a girl from my class…  

“…I think I've told you this before, but it’s because I'm living on my own right now.”

“Yeah, you did tell me that before. But, didn't you get by just fine the way you were?”

“Yes, but… I'm about to start my second year of high school after the winter break… The money for the school trip starts in a savings account, so I need to earn money for that…“

This is true. There's nothing to lie about. It's just that I have no intention of going on a school trip. By the way, my grandparents pay my basic school fees every month in my account, but I don't tell them about optional things like school trips and excursions. If I receive such letters at school, I just dispose of them at home.

“Can't you get your parents to do that for you?”

“Both of my parents passed away…” 

“!? I said something horrible, huh… Come to think of it, normally high school students don’t live by themselves…“

The manager looked down, as if he felt guilty for asking something he shouldn't have.

“… Can you please do this one favour for me?”

“Umm…Can you promise you won't tell anyone about this?”

“Of course!”

“It's just for the winter break, then. And, of course, I can't make you work every shift late at night.”

“Yes! Thank you very much!”

If you asked me whether I felt bad for lying to Manager or not, of course I do… But there’s no way I could tell him the actual reason.

“Well then, I'll try to arrange for you to be informed of your future shifts by the end of the day, so please continue to work normally for today.”

“Yes! I'll be counting on you!”

This should make our financial situation a little easier. Working late at night will probably be more tiring than before, but since I can take two full days off each week during the winter break, I should be fine. The problem is what to do after the winter break, but I'll think about that during the winter break.

After that, I worked from 12:00 to 19:00, and hurried home. I was in a hurry to get home because I was worried that Miyu would not be home.

“…I’m glad. Looks like she’s still home for now.”

The light was on in the apartment where I live. Then, when I reached about the front——

“Something smells good.”

Was this the smell of curry coming from my apartment? It smells really good. Curry would be nice~…I want to eat some too…Thinking that, I opened the door to my home. 

“I’m home.”

“Welcome back, Kazuya-kun.”

“…A-ah, I’m back.” 

Miyu greeted me. She's also wearing my apron…This situation looks like that of a newlywed couple, no matter how anyone looks at it. To be honest, my heart is beating really fast…The destructive power is too much.

“I thought Kazuya-kun would be tired from his part-time job, so I made you curry.”

Apparently, the smell of curry that I smelled outside my apartment was emanating from my home. When I came home, I found that someone had cooked and was waiting for me… It was something I had forgotten for a long time. It's been about six months since I left my grandparents' house, so it's been a while. It's just that… It would have been really perfect if the other person wasn't the girl I almost forcibly brought with me…

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