I Was a Loner Who Tried Finding an Otaku Friend on a Matching App and Ended Up Matching with the Number-One Beauty Who Won the University Miss Contest

Chapter 14: The Sudden Rom-Com Development with the New Part-Timer!?

“Kayama-kun and Tamura-chan, good work, both of you. It’s a bit early, but once you finish the shutter and the register, you can head out.”

“Good work〜!”

The manager, who had come out from the back room, said that to me and Tamura-senpai at the register, so we decided to finish up early.

The manager was an elderly grandpa about the same age as my grandfather. He could barely walk even with a cane, and normally he just stayed in the back room, sipping tea while trading stocks and betting on local horse races.

He usually only showed his face when the store was about to close, but today it was before 8 p.m. That’s unusually early.

We started closing preparations while playing “Hotaru no Hikari” over the store speakers.

As usual, not many customers came in today either.

At this rate, this place might end up on the ranking of easiest part-time jobs in Tokyo. Not that I mind.

These days, renting DVDs is a tough business, and the store’s profits are gradually coming only from card games. That’s the real problem.

I used the hook pole to pull down the store shutter, locked it, and went back inside.

“Okay… shutter’s down. I’ll leave the register to Tamura-senpai and head to the break room.”

“Hold on a second, Kayama-kun.”

Just as I was about to go to the break room, the manager called out and stopped me from behind.

“What’s up, Manager? Don’t tell me your back hurts again… or is it some other spot this time?”

“Don’t treat me like an old man right away! I’m only 86!”

“Ah, right.”

“Anyway, we’ve got a new applicant for the part-time job.”

A new part-timer… Oh yeah, now that I think about it, Tamura-senpai mentioned something like that before I started working here.

Honestly, whether a new person joins or not doesn’t really affect me, but since they’ll technically be my junior, I guess he’s just letting me know.

“Tomorrow we’re doing the interview for that kid, and if it’s okay with you, I was thinking we could have them start learning the job right after.”

“Huh? So that person wants the evening shift?”
“Uh, yeah, it seems like it.”

“Uhhh…”

The words “We’re already so slow!!” got swallowed down into my stomach along with the air.

“Three people feels like a lot, though.”

“That’s exactly the thing. Ever since spring, Tamura-chan has been taking so many shifts she looks pretty worn out, so I was thinking of reducing her evening hours a bit.”

“Ah… yeah, Tamura-senpai really has been working a ton lately.”

Recently Tamura-senpai has been filling in even for morning open shifts whenever there’s a gap, on top of all her other hours. Even though the job is super laid-back, it’s honestly starting to worry me.

“A lot of aspiring voice actresses are really hard workers, but I want her to rest a little too. Even for an easy job like this, I still worry, you know.”

You’re the one calling it an easy job, Manager.

“So yeah. Please look after the new kid for me, Kayama-kun.”

“Ah… sure…”

I accepted the task the manager asked me to do… wait a second.

Newbie “chan”?

Does that mean… the new part-timer is a girl?

“Heyyy, Kayama-kun, I’m done with the register〜 We’re heading out!”

“Eh, ah, coming!”

Tamura-senpai called out once she finished at the register, and I headed toward the break room.

This is bad. The moment I found out it’s a girl, I suddenly got really nervous.

☆☆

—The next day.

As always, I finished my lectures and headed from university straight to my part-time job.

Today’s classes were already tough ones like macroeconomics and philosophy of thought, but the whole time my head was completely filled with thoughts about the job.

I never imagined that in this rundown store—where the only flower was someone like Tamura-senpai (the 20-year-old loli)—a new girl would start working here…

N-not that I’m thinking about any “one chance” or anything creepy like that! I’m just… simply nervous.

But maybe, just maybe, I could get close with her…

The moment that thought crossed my mind—why, out of nowhere, did Yui-san’s face pop into my head?

That innocent, adorable smile of hers.

Yui-san… if I made a new friend, would she feel even a tiny bit jealous?

N-no, wait, Yui-san already has tons of friends at university besides me anyway!

She probably wouldn’t care at all if I made friends with someone else!

But… if Yui-san had other guy friends, I might feel a little… uneasy…

“Ugh! No no no, gross, gross! This is exactly why guys like me who are total otakus are hopeless!”

While spitting out that brutally direct self-roast, I shook my bright-red face from side to side to cool my head down.

She’s just a friend in the first place!

What the hell is jealousy toward a friend! So gross!!

Besides, Yui-san and I only became friends thanks to the miracle of sharing the same light-novel hobby. Normally, no girl would want to be friends with a dull guy like me.

Even though I somehow managed to get close to someone as insanely beautiful as Yui-san, I can’t let myself get carried away.

“Face reality, me…”

Trying to calm myself down, I entered the store and went into the break room.

Actually, thinking “Yui-san this, Yui-san that” all the time probably isn’t good either.

“Ohayo〜 Akito-kun! I passed the part-time interview, so starting today, please take care of me〜”

See? Because I’ve been thinking about Yui-san nonstop, now I’m even hearing hallucinations… Hm? Wait.

Standing proudly in the middle of the break room, wearing our store’s apron, was a girl.

Glossy, long black hair, perfectly shaped features, and an outstanding figure.

The girl standing there in the break room wasn’t Tamura-senpai… Eh, ehhh!?

“W-Wait! Why is Yui-san here?!”

Yes—right there was Yui-san.

Not a hallucination, not an illusion. The genuine, real-deal beauty-pageant queen was wearing the same part-time apron as me.