───● The Tsundere OL Has Her Fun ●○●
“Haaah…”
It was lunch break at work.
Sitting in the break area near our office, I stared down at the cup of instant glass noodle soup clutched in my hands, completely at a loss.
Ever since Masato told me he would give his final answer by March, my emotions had once again tumbled into complete disarray.
I need to pull myself together, I thought, but changing my mindset was far easier said than done.
Only three months remained. And to begin with, I could usually only see him once a week.
That meant I only had ten or so chances left to see Masato.
I gazed out the window.
In stark contrast to the gloom inside me, the sky outside was delightfully clear and bright.
…What will happen once March comes and goes?
Masato had promised he would keep working at the bar.
…But could I really keep coming here knowing he has a girlfriend?
Or even worse… even if Masato is okay with it, what if his girlfriend doesn’t want him working at a boys’ bar anymore?
Dark, anxious thoughts spiraled endlessly in my head.
“Sei-ra~!”
“Ouch!”
Something soft bopped me on the head, and I spun around in surprise.
Standing behind me was Miki-san, a senior colleague from my department.
“Looking gloomy again, I see. What’s wrong?” she asked, tilting her head.
“Ah, no… it’s nothing…” I mumbled, shrinking back slightly.
Miki-san was the very person who had dragged me to Festa in the first place.
Meeting Masato was all thanks to her, and she was the one who had shattered my dull, meaningless daily routine.
That was precisely why… the thought of returning to how things used to be terrified me.
“E-Eh? Woah, hey, don’t start crying out of nowhere?!” Miki-san exclaimed, flustered.
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry… wait, no, that’s really not it…”
Without me even realizing it, tears had begun welling up and spilling down my cheeks.
Lately, whenever my thoughts drifted to Masato, I ended up like this.
Miki-san unrolled the documents she was holding, shoved them under her arm, and pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket.
I accepted it gratefully and dabbed at my eyes.
“The truth is… Masato might quit working at the bar by March,” I confessed softly.
“Wait, really?” Miki-san blinked in surprise.
“Well, it’s not set in stone yet, but… there’s a very high chance…”
Miki-san slid onto the bench beside me. “I see…” she murmured, looking up at the ceiling.
A silence stretched between us for a few seconds.
“Yeah, no, that’s impossible. I tried putting myself in your shoes, and there’s no way I could handle that,” she declared firmly.
“Right?” I agreed with a mournful nod.
“If Yuusee-kun told me he was quitting, I’d flat-out bawl my eyes out right on the spot,” Miki-san said with conviction.
Her candid, unfiltered nature was exactly why I could confide in her about this.
I knew that if I brought this up to any of my other friends, they wouldn’t understand or sympathize at all.
“Still, you know…” Miki-san began, trailing off thoughtfully.
“?”
She leaned in close, peering intently into my face.
“You really, truly love Masato-kun, don’t you, Seira?”
“…Well… yeah…”
I opened my mouth to deny it out of habit, but gave up almost immediately—there was no point in lying when it was already glaringly obvious.
Besides, I knew Miki-san wouldn’t laugh at me for it.
“Look, men are scarce these days, right? So falling in love with a guy in a place like Festa… I think that’s completely normal.”
“…How do you feel about Yuusee-san, Miki-san?” I countered, raising an eyebrow.
“Well~ to be honest, I’m not even sure myself. But if he asked me out, I wouldn’t hesitate for a single second before nodding and getting his promise in writing!” she chuckled playfully.
Miki-san grinned as she offered the playful remark.
She was genuinely hilarious, but also such a wonderfully supportive person.
“So listen! Just go all out and show him how you feel! Be relentlessly aggressive about it! If you push hard enough, maybe he’ll agree to date you!”
She gave me a hearty slap on the back.
“Even if you aren’t his number one, dating two or three women at once is becoming pretty standard nowadays. Honestly, I’m fully aware I wouldn’t be Yuusee-kun’s first pick anyway.”
“Well… I suppose that’s true,” I admitted softly.
Discussions about legalizing polygamy had been popping up frequently in the news lately, and such non-exclusive relationships were hardly unheard of among people I knew.
“Then you don’t have time to sit around moping! Make your move with everything you’ve got and get him to take you as his wife!”
“…Right,” I agreed with a small nod.
I had my doubts about her choice of the word “take as his wife,” but I couldn’t help nodding along to her encouraging words.
…Yet, somewhere deep down…
Can a woman who hid the fact that she used to stalk him really have the right to stand by his side? I still couldn’t shake that lingering guilt.
“Good luck out there! If you manage to pull it off, maybe I’ll get to date Yuusee-kun too!”
“Isn’t your motive for encouraging your junior a little too ulterior?” I dryly retorted.
Feeling grateful for Miki-san’s kindness, I raised my arms and took a deep, satisfying stretch.
I did feel a little lighter after talking to her.
…And yet, deep inside…
Just like the cup of instant glass noodle soup in my hands, my core remained thoroughly chilled.
Then arrived Friday evening after work.
As usual, I made my way toward Festa.
I had to make sure not to let any gloom show on my face.
I couldn’t let my hyper-awareness of our potential goodbye ruin the precious time we had together and turn it into something painful.
I walked through the bustling entertainment district and arrived in front of the bar.
Suppressing the urge to let out a deep sigh, I gave both of my cheeks a firm slap to steel myself.
Then, I opened the entrance door.
…Only to be greeted by an absurd sight.
“Why don’t we get back together?”
“Huh…?”
A woman was standing right at the reception counter, aggressively cornering Masato.
…Excuse me?
I instinctively pressed a hand to my throbbing temple.
Another woman? A wave of frustration washed over me, immediately accompanied by a familiar sting of inferiority—and of course she’s younger than me again.
And Masato, how could you not even notice that I’m standing right here?!
A dark, murky swirl of unpleasant emotions rose up inside my chest…
However, when I opened my eyes again and took a closer look—
I caught sight of Masato’s expression.
He looked visibly… startled, almost frightened.
It was glaringly obvious that he wanted nothing to do with her.
“I was wrong… We never should have broken up in the first place! That’s why I came all the way here to ask you to date me again!” the woman pressed on desperately.
“U-Um…” Masato stammered, flustered.
He took a hesitant step backward.
The moment I saw him shrink back, my mind was already made up.
Striding forward briskly, I slammed my hand against the wall right beside where she was cornering Masato.
“What business do you have with our Masato?” I demanded coldly.
I leaned in, glaring directly into the girl’s face.
As expected, she was young. Probably around Masato’s age.
“W-Who are you?!” she squeaked, caught off guard.
“Me? I am… a regular customer of this fine young man. Got a problem with that?” I drawled smoothly.
Suppressing the burning urge to declare myself his girlfriend, I stuck to a perfectly legitimate title.
“S-Seira-san!” Masato gasped out.
“Masato! What is the meaning of this? You didn’t even notice when I walked in!” I huffed, feigning irritation.
“A-Ahaha, I’m so sorry…” he apologized with an embarrassed laugh.
When I threw that teasing remark at him, Masato offered a sheepish grin.
The slight flush dusting his cheeks was utterly adorable.
“Come on now, hurry up and serve me. I’m exhausted from work, you know.”
“Ah, yes! Right away!” he replied instantly.
Acting as if the intruder wasn’t even standing there, I made to step into the establishment.
“H-Hey, wait a minute!”
As expected, the girl called out to stop me.
Just as I was about to ignore her completely—
“Seira-san, please give me just a moment,” Masato spoke up gently.
“…Fine,” I relented with a quiet sigh.
Knowing how soft-hearted Masato was, even though he clearly disliked the situation, he was still willing to hear her out.
Masato exchanged a few words with the girl… and ended up accepting a small slip of paper from her.
No doubt her contact information or something along those lines.
Without even glancing my way, the woman turned around and exited the bar.
What an annoying woman, barging in and leaving without spending a single dime.
“I’m so sorry for making you wait, Seira-san,” Masato said, hurrying back to me.
“It’s fine… but to make up for it, you’re going to keep me company all night long, right?” I replied, tilting my head.
“Ahaha… I’ll do my best, so please go easy on me…” he pleaded with a dry chuckle.
With Masato still offering that shy, adorable smile, the two of us headed toward the seating area deeper inside the bar.
As I sipped my drink and listened to Masato explain the situation—
“Y-Your ex-girlfriend?!” I squawked in surprise.
“Well, um… I guess she would qualify as that?”
“Why are you saying that like a question?!” I snapped.
The woman from earlier was apparently Masato’s ex-girlfriend.
Hearing the words “Masato’s ex-girlfriend” touched on a massive landmine of mine, nearly making me throw up on the spot, but Masato’s surprisingly nonchalant reaction allowed me to hold it in for now.
“How should I put it… we barely even dated. We never went out together or anything before breaking up… well, it was more like she got tired of me and dumped me.”
“H-Huh?! That’s… that’s completely impossible!” I blurted out.
“No, it’s a bit tricky to explain, but she really didn’t do anything wrong,” Masato defended gently.
To think someone could dislike Masato… that was utterly unthinkable.
Because I knew what kind of sweet, wonderful boy Masato was, I couldn’t even fathom him being the one at fault.
He’s probably just covering for her because he’s too soft-hearted for his own good…
To mask my sheer disbelief, I took a heavy swig of my highball.
Mmm, nice and cold. Delicious.
“She gave you her contact information or something back there, didn’t she?” I asked knowingly.
“Ahaha, nothing gets past you, Seira-san,” Masato laughed weakly.
“Hand it over. I’ll rip it to tiny shreds for you.”
“Isn’t that a little too extreme?!” he shrieked.
Huh? Is there any reason NOT to tear it to shreds?
“You clearly hated seeing her, didn’t you?” I pointed out.
“…Yeah, you’re right. Honestly, I really disliked it—more than I expected. That’s why…”
Masato turned to face me squarely.
Then, he flashed that dazzling, wonderful smile of his that I loved so much.
“When you stepped in, Seira-san, I was genuinely so happy.”
“…Ngh!”
…God, this boy is really something else.
Suppressing the overwhelming urge to pull him into a messy, smothering embrace right then and there, I chugged the rest of my highball instead.
“Y-You… stop hitting me with sneak attacks like that, seriously…!” I gasped out, fanning my burning cheeks.
“Huh? I-I didn’t mean to…” he stuttered, taken aback.
This is why Masato is so dangerous…
Perhaps because I was drinking faster than usual tonight, I could feel the alcohol rushing to my head at a rapid pace.
“Saying all that… I bet your heart was actually pounding when that girl cornered you earlier, wasn’t it?” I teased playfully.
“Wh-What?! Not at all! I swear!” Masato protested fiercely.
“Is that so~?” I hummed, narrowing my eyes with a mischievous smirk.
Right now, I can just blame it on being drunk…
Maybe a little harmless teasing is allowed?
“W-Wait, Seira-san?!” Masato squeaked in alarm.
“I need to check for myself whether your heart really isn’t racing. Right?”
I closed in right up to his face, gazing deeply into his eyes at point-blank range.
His skin really is so smooth and gorgeous.
He’s so cute, yet handsome. My absolute angel.
Before long, his cheeks flushed a brilliant, crimson red.
Gently placing my palm over his chest, I could feel the rapid, violent thump-thump of Masato’s racing heartbeat beneath his shirt.
“See? Your heart’s pounding like crazy.”
“Th-That’s…”
Masato averted his gaze in sheer embarrassment.
God, he really is so sweet and adorable.
…Just as that thought crossed my mind—
Masato, covering his red face with both hands, muttered softly under his breath.
“Of course my heart races when you’re this close, Seira-san…”
“…!”
Crap… That was dangerous. I almost lost control and kissed him right then and there.
Warning myself that kissing him inside the bar could get me banned from Festa, I summoned a heroic iron will to stop myself and pulled back into my seat.
I could feel my own cheeks burning up intensely.
“Hmph~ S-So you only get heart palpitations from me, but not from that girl earlier, huh?” I stammered out, trying to cover my embarrassment.
“P-Please stop teasing me! It’s embarrassing!! Seriously!!” Masato cried out, flustered to the core.
Unable to endure any more teasing, Masato shuffled back a few inches.
Watching him get all worked up like that was immensely satisfying.
By now, my heart was filled with nothing but pure joy in the present moment.
The gloomy clouds that had weighed so heavily on me during lunch break had vanished long ago.