The cultural festival had finally arrived!

The day before, I had a good meal and slept soundly. I entered the day filled with energy.

During the morning of the first day, we would sell vegetables and processed goods in cooperation with local farmers.

In the afternoon, I was going to the Goto Islands cafe as part of an event by the kimono club.

It was a pretty hard schedule.

The Owner said he would come to see me, but he didn’t know when his job would finish.

I didn’t feel like I could meet him here, but next month we were going to eat mackerel shabu shabu. I had to do my best.

I think I would manage to get through the first day with my energy.

The name of the collaboration with the local farmers was called “Jigemon Market and Dutch Slopes Shops”.

Jigemon is Nagasaki dialect meaning local people and goods.

A shop that sells local products, sold by locals. I thought it was a perfect name.

I was planning to wear an apron on top of my own clothes to sell the goods, but a farmer’s wife brought over a matching kappogi, so I decided to wear it while selling things.

The farmers’ wives looked good in the kappogi, but we female college students weren’t used to it, so we felt a little uncomfortable.

But it was a good memory regardless.

 

Vegetables were sold at a reasonable price.

Most of the processed goods were also sold out.

The morning hours passed in no time.

After lunch, I hurried to the place where the kimono club was holding their event.

The Goto Islands cafe event was designed to allow some children from villages to learn about the good things in Goto.

Pictures of the beautiful Goto sea and mountains were displayed in the cafe so that they could enjoy it like an exhibition.

Since it was the kimono club, there were of course kimonos. The apron that was worn on top was decorated with frills, giving off the appearance of women from an older period.

Today, some of the mothers of the people in the club came as well and helped me get dressed. Because of that, I was able to change into a kimono faster than usual.

My hair was done up in the same style as the actresses from the black and white movies of the Showa era.

Putting a triangular bandana on my head, I wore an apron on top of the kimono.

My preparations were now complete.

The seniors in the club around me said ‘Because Hidaka-san has a Showa period face, it looks good on you’ but I didn’t know if they were complimenting me or not.

I wanted to ask about it, but I had no time to talk with my seniors because the changeover time was nearing. I hurried over to the kitchen of the Goto Islands cafe.

There was a line of a few people outside the shop. It seemed that it was doing well.

When I entered the kitchen, it became a battlefield.

It was lunchtime so Goto Udon seemed to be selling rapidly.

Even though it was a cafe, to serve udon……but Goto was most famous for udon. We decided to include it in the menu as the customers would expect it to be on it.

When I said I was here for the next shift, someone grabbed me tightly on my shoulders.

 

「Otome-chan, we’re saved……!」

「Ah, um. Was a lot of matcha ordered?」

「Come in, here.」

「I-I understand.」

 

I’m in charge of the matcha.

Our drinks are coffee, juice and matcha.

Juice and coffee are commercially available, but matcha has to be made to order. We both worked together, but it was still quite tough.

Apparently many people ordered sweets as an after meal snack.

Naturally, the sweets included Goto’s traditional sweets “Kankoro Mochi” and “Hatchi Kankan”.

Kankoro mochi was a sweet made by drying boiled sweet potatoes and mixing it with steamed glutinous rice.

It was a home cooking dish that was cooked as a preserved food for winter when rice was scarce.

Hatchi kankan was a dumpling covered with kinako and was eaten as a charm to ward off evil.

I was allowed to taste some, both were traditional dishes with a simple taste.

 

Orders were placed right after the changeover was made, so I decided to prepare the tea.

 

There were 8 people in the club who could brew matcha.

We were supposed to have a two person system, but the person I was supposed to work with didn’t come.

The person I was supposed to work with was Komada-san.

It had been 30 minutes since then. It was a little hard to manage by myself, so I hoped she would come soon.

However, the seniors who noticed that Komada-san was absent revealed some surprising information.

 

「I’m sorry Hidaka-san, Komada-san has hurt her hand.」

「Ah, was that so? Is she okay?」

「Ahh, yes. She just cut a finger with a kitchen knife.」

 

Because of hygiene issues, she decided that it was best not to stay in the shop.

She didn’t come to tell them directly, but did send a message.

 

「I’m sorry about that.」

「No, it’s fine, probably.」

 

I replied with distant eyes.

A senior had some free time in the afternoon, so they helped with adding the matcha and pouring the hot water.

 

The time was 3:30pm.

The food had sold out, so we decided to close the shop early.

Everyone was worn out. My hands were at their limits.

 

As we were cleaning up, the manager called out to me all of a sudden.

 

「Hidaka-san, are you there! Komada-san is chatting downstairs!」

「Oh, she hasn’t left?」

 

I was so tired that I couldn’t give a witty reply and just replied with an ‘oh, is that so’.

But, the manager told me to call her up.

 

Uwa, I didn’t want to, but the managers words must be followed.

Giving a bow, I went down to the lower floor.

 

Komada-san was–over there! She was talking happily while surrounded by her friends.

When I went over, it got quiet.

 

「Um, Komada-san.」

「What?」

「The manager wants you to come up to the shop.」

「Why?」

「W-Who knows?」

 

It’s probably for a lecture since she never showed up, but I couldn’t say that here.

 

「I can’t.」

「Eh?」

「Because I’m super depressed right now.」

「I-Is that so.」

 

She easily confessed that she had broken up with her boyfriend.

I don’t think she had been dating for more than a month?

 

「What’s with that face?」

「No, I thought it was a bit fast to break up.」

「Because I didn’t like him.」

「You didn’t like him, but you went out with him.」

「That’s how it is.」

 

Because he had confessed when she didn’t have a boyfriend, she decided to go out with him.

However, their relationship changed after they started dating and they broke up after a fierce fight last night.

 

「No way, so you got hurt?」

「Hurt?」

「I heard from Oda-sempai that Komada-san was injured.」

「Oh, that was the excuse.」

「……Huh?」

「The injury was a lie.」

「Such a thing!」

 

Because working at the shop was too troublesome, she told a lie. I thought she was a bad woman.

 

「Speaking of that, I was supposed to be making matcha with Hidaka-san.」

「That’s right.」

「Sorry! Thinking about it, it hasn’t been since I was in elementary school that I made matcha, so I probably wouldn’t be able to do it.」

「Ahh……」

 

How should I put it, I felt exhausted.

Since she said that so straightforwardly, I couldn’t get angry at all.

Maybe it was because I was tired.

 

Well, should I just think that it was a good thing she wasn’t hurt?

 

「Today was a good day, I guess it was worth it. Hidaka-san?」

「Ah~, yea. Well, it was a lot of fun.」

 

I was praised by a grandfather from a farm in a not so subtle way who said ‘You work well enough to be my grandson’s wife’.

 

「I need to have a new boyfriend soon.」

「Is a boyfriend something you just have?」

「It’s not marriage, so you don’t necessarily have to choose someone you like, right? If we can have a good time, that’s fine.」

「Is that so~.」

 

Of course, it’s great to be able to be together with someone you like, but it’s quite hard to get to that point on both sides.

According to Komada-san, relationships between men and women are simple and that we didn’t need to think too much about it.

It was a surprising opinion to me.

 

When I tried to thank Komada-san, a voice called out from behind me.

 

「–Oto-chan?」

 

Turning around, it was Ryoko-chan, Iida-san and the Owner.

I’m glad they came as promised.

When I tried to go over, Komada-san grabbed me from behind and whispered into my ear.

 

「Should I confess to that glasses onii-san now?」

「Eh!?」

 

The glasses onii-san was the Owner.

She was going to confess here?

Komada-san was a scary peron. –I felt a shudder.

 

「Is it okay?」

 

I shook my head with all my might.

 

「Then, you can confess first Hidaka-san.」

「W-Why is that!?」

「If you don’t, then I will.」

 

Ehh~~, I don’t want that to happen. But to confess here……

Komada-san and I were the focus of attention.

 

This place was too embarrassing, there’s now way I can confess here. I thought it was even harder than with just the Owner alone.

 

But if I don’t say it now, Komada-san will ask if the Owner will go out with her.

If such a cute girl who looks like a model asked, I didn’t think even the straight-laced Owner would refuse.

Now that I found out that she didn’t date people on the premise of liking them, I felt very flustered.

 

I didn’t want to say it now, but I didn’t want to regret it later.

I strengthened my resolve.

 

I walked up to the Owner and looked up at his face.

 

「U-Um.」

 

The Owner looked down at me with a puzzled expression.

There was no use being afraid, so I gathered my courage to confess.

 

「–Mukai-san, will you go out with me?」

 

The Owner’s expression didn’t change.

Rather he looked at me with a deep expression and narrowed eyes.

 

「Um, sorry for saying this so suddenly–」

「If you’re okay with me.」

「Eh!?」

 

It was a modest reply that made me go blank.

Next to me, Iida-san said ‘Congratulations!!’.

While I was stunned, the Owner grabbed my hand and took me out of the room.

 

I was pulled along by the Owner, who walked steadily ahead.

 

Arriving at an empty courtyard, he let go of my hand.

The Owner turned around and asked me.

 

「Was it a penalty game or something?」

「!」

 

His words contained some anger.

I felt my blood drain and I shook my head.

 

「I-It’s not, I–」

 

I really liked the Owner.

I couldn’t say those words.

Various thoughts swirled through my head, like what should I do if he rejected me or thought was a casual woman.

 

When I hung my head, the Owner did something unexpected.

He patted me on my head.

 

「You didn’t do anything bad. I just wanted to know if someone forced you to say it.」

 

I wanted to say no, but only tears came out.

I was too miserable, so miserable that I began to cry.

 

The Owner stayed with me until I settled down.

On that day, I thought again that I really liked him.

[Previous Chapter] [Table Of Contents] [Next Chapter]