At a restaurant about ten minutes by train from Yuzuru’s house.
In the staff room, a boy dressed in a waiter’s uniform sat facing a man with an androgynous air.
“So, Yuzuru-kun. What about your shifts this term? Same as before?”
“Right… if possible, I’d appreciate it if you could increase them.”
Yuzuru answered the man—the restaurant’s manager.
He currently juggled about three part-time jobs.
One was working as a private tutor for a child of his father’s acquaintance.
Another was assisting a lawyer—also an acquaintance of his father—with miscellaneous tasks.
And the last was this restaurant job.
Among them, the tutoring paid the most—2,000 yen per hour.
The lawyer’s errands paid 1,500 yen per hour.
That said, both of those were only once a week and didn’t allow for flexible scheduling.
Which made this restaurant job his main source of income.
For reference, it paid about 1,050 yen per hour.
“Is that alright?”
“It helps me, of course—but what about your studies? If your grades drop, I’ll be the one getting scolded by your parents.”
Naturally, the restaurant manager was also acquainted with Yuzuru’s parents.
Though in this case, the connection came through his mother rather than the Takasegawa side.
“I’ll make sure not to cause trouble for Hiromi-san.”
Hasegawa Hiromi—that was his name.
A very kind person, and someone Yuzuru owed a great deal to.
It made sense—his parents trusted him enough to leave Yuzuru in his care.
…Though, if Yuzuru were honest, he would have preferred to find work on his own. That hadn’t been allowed.
There were bad people in the world, after all.
And, if one were being blunt… having connections meant that if Yuzuru ever did cause trouble, it would be easier to smooth things over.
Not that he had any intention of doing so.
“Well, if it’s you, I suppose it’ll be fine. It helps the restaurant too… By the way, can I ask why? You don’t have to answer if you’d rather not.”
“I’m thinking of saving up for White Day.”
At that, Hiromi’s eyes widened.
“Oh? Planning on getting something in return already? Does that mean you’ve got a girlfriend? Now that you mention it, you said you had plans for Christmas too—looks like you’ve been busy, Yuzuru-kun.”
“Well… she’s not my girlfriend. But she’s someone I like.”
Arisa wasn’t his girlfriend.
But he was confident she’d give him chocolates on Valentine’s Day.
If she didn’t… he’d be genuinely crushed.
In any case, if there was a high chance of receiving something, he ought to prepare properly for White Day in advance.
If the Christmas present had been a probing jab, then this time he intended to land a decisive straight punch—to knock Arisa off her feet.
And for that, he needed money.
“I see… Then when she becomes your girlfriend, you’ll have to introduce her to me.”
“Of course.”
Introducing his future wife to someone who had taken care of him was only natural.
“So, is she pretty? Anyone she looks like?”
“Let’s see…”
Yuzuru mentioned the name of a famous foreign actress.
Hiromi tilted his head.
“Is she from overseas?”
“She’s mixed. Though she was born and raised in Japan.”
Answering as asked, Yuzuru spoke about Arisa—carefully avoiding anything too personal.
That she was beautiful, a good cook, intelligent, athletic… an all-around wonderful girl.
Hearing that, Hiromi nodded knowingly.
“You’re completely smitten, aren’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re not even going to deny it?”
“Why would I?”
It was a fact that Yuzuru was deeply taken with Arisa—and not something to be ashamed of.
Of course, being teased about it was a little embarrassing.
But acting embarrassed would only make it worse, so he remained composed.
“I see…”
Hiromi nodded again, as if satisfied.
“Alright. I’ll increase your shifts as much as I can.”
“Thank you very much.”
After leaving the staff room, Hiromi scratched his head, looking slightly troubled.
“…Now, what am I supposed to tell the girls here?”
“What a troublesome boy…”
He muttered quietly, letting out a small sigh.
A few days later, on Saturday.
As a rule, Yuzuru kept Saturdays free as “Arisa’s day.”
Since she was coming over, he was putting extra effort into cleaning his room when—
His phone rang.
It was Arisa.
Hello. What’s wrong, Arisa?
I’m sorry… I can’t come to your house today.
Her voice sounded different from usual.
A little hoarse.
…Are you feeling unwell?
Now that he thought about it, she hadn’t looked very well the day before.
It might be a cold.
Yes… cough, I’ve caught a cold.
As expected.
But the timing wasn’t good.
Weren’t you alone today? I heard your sister’s staying over at a friend’s house, and your mother’s on a trip.
And of course, Naoki was at work.
Taisho had returned to university.
Normally, having no one around might make things easier—but when you’re ill, being alone is hard.
cough, cough… I’ll be fine. I just need to rest.
She sounded composed.
Too composed.
If anything, it made Yuzuru worry more.
It felt like she was forcing herself not to burden him.
Are you really alright?
…I’m fine. You don’t need to worry.
There was a slight pause before she answered.
She was putting on a brave face.
To Yuzuru, it felt like she was quietly asking for help.
(I want to respect her wishes, but… if she’s ill, that’s different.)
Even a mild cold could suddenly worsen.
It could even be the flu.
This wasn’t the time to prioritise distance.
And besides—
(She says she’s fine, but… it feels like she wants help.)
After half a year together, he’d come to understand her a little.
Then I’m coming to check on you.
Eh? No, but—
When I got injured before, you took care of me, didn’t you?
He meant the time he’d fallen from a tree and sprained his ankle.
Looking back, that had been the moment their distance truly closed.
So this time, let me help you.
After he said that—
There was a brief silence.
Then, in a slightly trembling voice—
…Please.
Leave it to me.
