Back to everyday life

“Welcome! How many in your party?”

“Manami’s full of energy, isn’t she…”

On a day off, Aisa says this while watching Manami work her part-time job.

Today, Aisa and I aren’t on the work schedule, but since Manami and Yuuki will be free by noon, we’re all gathering at Yuuki’s place under the pretext of a tutoring session.

“Sorry for the wait. Here’s your omurice and the daily special.”

“Thanks, Yuuki.”

“Sure thing… I’ll bring some water too.”

Yuuki responds with a smile.

Thanks to the kindness of the Master and Akemi-san, Aisa and I are seated at a booth, having lunch…

“I might’ve just heard Yuuki speak that confidently for the first time…”

“What are you talking about? That’s thanks to you, Kouki.”

“Huh?”

When our eyes meet, Aisa explains with a hint of exasperation.

“You’ve been tutoring her for a while now, haven’t you? It’s because of you that she’s gained confidence.”

“No way… I don’t remember doing anything that special…”

But Aisa clearly doesn’t see it that way, giving me a half-lidded stare as she says,

“You’re the one who made her realize she wanted to change, Kouki. You got her to start singing, practiced with her until she could talk comfortably at work, encouraged her to shine at the sports festival—every single bit of it was you.”

Aisa smiles softly.

When she lists it all like that, it does feel like we’ve done a lot in a short time…

“All that really made such a big difference?”

“You’re probably the only one who thinks it’s ‘just that,’ Kouki.”

“Is that so…”

It’s a surprising change.

From my perspective, it just looks like Yuuki worked hard herself, and her true potential finally got to shine through to everyone else…

“I think you’ve helped Yuuki a ton, just like back then.”

“Then, I guess that’s a good thing.”

“Yeah.”

As we watch Yuuki, now completely at ease in her waitress outfit, we leisurely wait for her and Manami to finish their shifts.

◇

“It’s amazing, right? Three videos already!”

“It’s still just the beginning… but thanks.”

With Manami and Yuuki’s shifts over, the four of us gather in Yuuki’s room.

After her first video got posted and stirred up the comment section with her talent, the second one—thanks to a collab with Akitsu and some viral buzz—skyrocketed her popularity.

And now, with all eyes on her, she’s taking on her third video.

“Still… it’s incredible. You’re practically a celebrity now.”

“It’s not like that…”

Yuuki says that, but anyone can tell from the view counts and ratings that she’s gaining serious traction, even to an amateur’s eye.

Up until now, Yuuki had been singing songs she loved, but this time, it’s a new song Manami suggested.

“Ehehe! Onee-chan and Kouki-nii said if I predict a hit song and sing it, it’ll make a huge splash, so I went looking!”

This is where Manami’s wild instincts really come in handy.

It’s a track from an almost unknown artist who just debuted yesterday. Manami sniffed it out right away, and now they’re planning to record it today and upload it today too.

“Actually… I’ve already recorded it.”

“Impressive as always…”

“I couldn’t… wait…”

Yuuki says with a shy, almost embarrassed expression.

There’s a cute, childlike excitement in her, like a kid in front of a new toy.

“So, time to mix it?”

“And prep the video… encoding, uploading as soon as possible.”

She’s already got the process down pat.

“I know Kouki’s got this, but will we actually be helpful…?”

“I want… everyone’s opinions.”

We’re all a little surprised at how clearly Yuuki expresses herself.

“Yay! I wanna hear Yuuki-kun’s song too!”

As Manami tackles her with a hug, Yuuki laughs and starts getting things ready.

◇

It was just a casual question.

“By the way, why’d you guys decide to open a café here?”

With lunch service over and a break before Yuuki’s tutoring session, I ask the Master on a whim.

“Oh, right, I never told you, did I? Good timing. Since we’re relying on you for Yuuki, I should probably explain properly.”

“Properly…?”

Before I know it, he’s set a coffee in front of me and has me sit at the counter.

“You might not remember me, but you remember how Yuuki was back then, don’t you?”

“Well, yeah…”

“Didn’t you ever wonder? How someone like Yuuki ended up so withdrawn?”

I hesitate, unsure how to respond, and my words catch in my throat.

“Haha, I’m not trying to put you on the spot. Sorry, sorry.”

The Master takes a sip of his coffee and continues quietly.

“I’m like this now, but my job used to involve a lot of transfers. You and Yuuki only spent a few months together, I think, but we were always moving around, never staying anywhere longer than a few years.”

I couldn’t quite ask what his job was. But I’d heard Yuuki’s family moved a lot, and since we were only together for that short time, it makes sense.

The Master tells me about Yuuki after we parted ways.

“By the time she was in elementary school, it seems Yuuki couldn’t stay the same as she was. She started struggling to fit in at school.”

“Oh…”

Back then, she had such a tomboyish vibe that I mistook her for a boy, but as you grow, your appearance changes. Naturally, the way people treat you as a girl or boy shifts too.

Just like Aisa and I drifted apart…

For Yuuki, it must’ve felt like that happened with her entire class.

“Since she was like that as a kid, we got complacent… thought she’d figure it out eventually. But because of my job dragging us around, we ended up putting Yuuki through unnecessary hardship.”

“That’s…”

The frequent moves probably played a part.

Or rather, if Yuuki had stayed here… Aisa and Manami would never have let her feel isolated. I don’t know if I could’ve reached out to her, especially with how things turned out with Aisa, but…

“So this time, we decided to act for Yuuki’s sake. This place holds her best—maybe her only—good memories. We thought we’d try something new here too. Of course, we’re not planning to make life hard for her. No matter how withdrawn she became, Yuuki’s still our precious, precious daughter.”

Then, with an oddly formal air, the Master bows his head to me and says,

“Thank you, Kouki-kun.”

“W-Wait!? You don’t need to bow like that…”

His coffee cup is already empty.

Still holding it, he looks down at it, avoiding my gaze, and continues.

“When we asked you to tutor her, we saw changes we couldn’t achieve in over a decade—no, changes we’d only made worse. Things we couldn’t fix, you did.”

“It’s not that big of a deal…”

If that’s true, Yuuki’s recent transformation is definitely significant.

But I can’t help thinking it’s only because the Master and Akemi-san are such caring parents who’ve always put Yuuki first.

◇

“…Seeing it again, it’s incredible.”

“So surprising…”

The third video, posted the other day, has racked up views far beyond our expectations.

Thanks to Manami’s spot-on prediction of a hit song, and with few covers out yet, Yuuki’s singing stands out so much that searching for the song sometimes brings her version up before the original.

“Yuuki, you’re seriously amazing…”

The Master said it was thanks to me, but I really didn’t do much. Her singing, her performance at the sports festival—it’s all because of the talent Yuuki already had.

“It’s… thanks to you, Kouki-kun…”

Still, hearing her say that makes it feel worthwhile.

Getting to this point, gaining confidence along the way—it’s all because of Yuuki’s hard work.

“You’ve done so well.”

“…Yeah!”

Watching her work as a waitress downstairs, I can see it.

The Yuuki now is different from the childhood friend I used to play with, but she’s also a far cry from the girl who moved here, barely able to speak.

Her small, animal-like gestures and slightly nervous way of talking remain, but her expression is so bright now—it’s more than enough to make me think she’s going to be just fine.

◇【Yuuki’s Perspective】

“I can’t… hide it anymore, can I…”

Hugging the cushion Kouki-kun was sitting on, I feel embarrassed just thinking about it.

Even so, I can’t lie to myself about the feelings I’ve realized.

“I have to… put my feelings into words…”

Kouki-kun’s encouraged me so many times to do just that…

So…

Aisa-chan and Manami-chan probably feel the same way, and I’m pretty sure Kouki-kun… no, I’m almost certain he does.

But for me… it’s already…

“If only I could’ve come back here a little sooner…”

But holding back these overflowing feelings is starting to feel impossible.