Episode 102: I Can’t Stay Pathetic Forever
Monday afternoon, the start of the week.
Having promptly arranged to meet Yukiyasu-san, we were now walking side by side towards his company.
“Hey, Yui-san. Would it be alright if I took half a day off this afternoon?”
Yui-san is the president, so she has no restrictions on working hours and is free to do as she pleases, but as an employee, I’m a different matter. Since this matter isn’t related to work, I considered it a personal errand and asked accordingly.
“You’re still as conscientious as ever, Kanata. There’s really no need to worry about such things. Yuki-san is a director, so meeting him during working hours isn’t odd at all. Besides, it’s only half a day.”
Yui-san said this casually, but I felt it wasn’t right for me alone to receive special treatment while everyone else worked bound by time constraints.
“I’ll submit the request later, so just approve it for me, please.”
I’ve got plenty of paid leave left anyway. If she’s going to worry about it, she might as well take the day off happily from the start. Thinking this, I made the request. Yui-san smiled at me, saying, “That’s so typical of you, Kanata,” and replied with her approval.
Our company occupies an entire floor in a building owned by the Ichinose Group, which is impressive. Yet Yukiyasu-san’s company is also conveniently located near the station, housed in a relatively new and clean office building.
To establish an office in such a prestigious building, without relying on anyone else’s support, demonstrates Yukiyasu-san’s business acumen beyond doubt. He founded his company independently.
I hear the Ichinose Group has many subsidiaries with long histories.
It seems many companies still haven’t shed their old corporate culture, and everyone agreed that our company was no exception before Yui-san became president.
Reforms brought by young executives might initially meet resistance from long-serving employees, but I believe they bring more positive elements overall.
If Yukiyasu-san were to return to the group, it would undoubtedly be a source of strength for both the group and Yui-san… but with the rift with her father still unresolved, I can’t imagine Yui-san would ask that of him.
They’re both such kind people, you see. Both Yui-san and Yukiyasu-san.
I checked the directory board at the building entrance to confirm the floor where Yukiyasu-san’s company was located, then stepped into one of the many lifts and pressed the button. Inside the ascending steel box, I glanced at Yui.
Yuki-san must surely already sense the significance of us both visiting him today.
I suppose the sharpness both Yui and Yuki-san possess must be inherited from their mother.
From what I’ve heard, Yui’s father seems a rather clumsy sort.
As soon as I rang the reception bell, Yukiyasu came to greet us.
He appeared suddenly, wearing a crisp white shirt under a navy jacket, his feet in white leather trainers.
Yukiyasu should be five years older than Yui, making him thirty-two this year, yet every time I see him, he gives the same impression as when I first met him in our student days.
Honestly, his smile was so refreshingly bright, so youthful every time I saw him, it was hard to believe he was the same age as Kitakami-san.
I was shown into the reception room and sat on the leather sofa.
A female employee arrived a little later and placed three coffees on the table.
“So, what’s this about?”
When Yukiyasu-san said that, Yui-san, seated so close her shoulder nearly brushed mine, gave me a glance.
I nodded once, just once, and Yui-san turned back to Yukiyasu-san.
“Sorry to bother you when you’re busy. Yukiyasu-nii, there’s something I really need to talk to you about. It’s about our future.”
Yuki-san before us gazed at us with gentle eyes, wearing that smile so similar to Yui-san’s.
“I never properly explained, did I? Why I wanted to break off my engagement with Shinji… The truth is, I wanted to be with Kanata. I desperately wanted to end things with Shinji, so three years ago, I asked Yuki-nii for his help.”
Yukiyasu gave a small nod. He already knew this fact, so he showed no surprise. Nor was Yui surprised that Yukiyasu had realised.
It was an exchange like a confirmation, built upon the trust that only exists between siblings.
“I believe it’s thanks to you, Yukiyasu, that I was able to achieve the result I promised Father. I can’t thank you enough. Truly, thank you.”
“I… haven’t done anything worthy of thanks. Rather, I feel terribly sorry for forcing responsibility onto you and causing you pain. I’m a pathetic older brother, Yui. I’m truly sorry.”
Saying this, Yukiyasu bent his arms at the knees and bowed his head deeply, deeply to Yui.
“That’s not true. Yukiyasu, please, don’t apologise.”
Yui spoke softly to Yukiyasu’s bowed head, as if begging for forgiveness.
When Yukiyasu lifted his face, his eyes were faintly moist, and seeing this made my own chest ache as if it were creaking.
Thinking of the pain they’d both carried all this time, unable to speak it precisely because they cared for each other, I found myself utterly at a loss for words.
“…Actually, the other day, Shinji came to the office. I told him I wanted to break off the engagement. But he wouldn’t accept it at all. I said we should properly discuss the terms, but he wouldn’t listen. I don’t understand why Shinji is so fixated on marriage. Do you understand, Yuki-nii?”
Given the five-year age gap between Kitakami-san and Yui-san, it was hardly surprising she knew little about him.
He was a formidable adversary who had repeatedly pulled moves we hadn’t anticipated. His motives were utterly baffling, making him deeply unsettling.
If Kitakami-san learned Yui-san had asked her father to break off the engagement, we had no idea what actions he might take next.
But Yukiyasu-san, who’s known Kitakami-san since childhood, might understand the reason, knowing his background.
“I see. So Shinji really doesn’t want to break off the engagement. …He should just live freely already.”
Yukiyasu-san crossed his arms and let out a deep sigh.
“I can imagine the reason. I think Shinji’s father is the cause.”
“Shinji’s father? You mean Managing Director Kitakami?”
“Yes. Shinji’s father was an incredibly strict man. He always demanded perfection from Shinji. But humans aren’t robots, and there’s no such thing as a perfect person.”
Saying this, Yukiyasu narrowed his eyes as if recalling something fondly.
“We used to be close, you know. He always said that when I eventually became president, he’d support me just like his father supported my father. Shinji grew up hearing that from his father. In the end, I betrayed that trust, and because of that, Yui ended up getting engaged to Shinji. After that, becoming ‘my replacement’ became Shinji’s purpose.”
Yukiyasu continued, his eyes somehow sad.
“We were together right up through high school, you know. But after every test, that bloke would come back with a black eye. He said his father beat him if he couldn’t beat me, that it meant he wasn’t trying hard enough. …He didn’t have to be so bloody honest about his test results with his father, did he?”
Saying that, Yukiyasu gave a bitter laugh.
“I felt sorry for him once and eased off a bit, but he saw right through it. He probably felt his own efforts had been denied. That’s when it started – when he became disappointed in me and started to detest me. But looking back now, I was rather naive, wasn’t I? That proud Shinji – there was no way he could ever tolerate something like that. In the end, when Shinji realised his efforts could never meet his father’s expectations, he just became more and more twisted… Before I knew it, he’d become a man who’d do anything to achieve his goals.”
I see. So that’s why Kitakami-san harboured such fierce rivalry towards Yukiyasu-san.
And why he wouldn’t budge an inch about his engagement to Yui-san… Makes perfect sense.
“…So that’s how it was. I had no idea.”
“Yui never had any interest in Shinji at all, you see. Ever since they were young. Honestly, it was pitiful. It was almost unbearable to watch. She simply wouldn’t give him the time of day. I always wondered how Shinji managed not to lose heart.”
Indeed. After all, Yui never used any of the presents Kitakami-san gave her, never answered his calls, never replied to his messages.
If I were Kitakami-san, I’d have given up long ago. I reckon being with someone who has absolutely no interest in you is just painful.
“Shinji’s father’s goal is to establish a solid position within the group. And at the core of Shinji is the desire to meet his father’s expectations. But if he thinks he can’t achieve that goal without marrying Yui, he’s mistaken. I don’t know much about Shinji’s work ethic, but if he’s still working as his father’s right-hand man, he must have some ability. I just wish Shinji could realise that sooner. He’s putting his efforts in the wrong direction.”
Indeed, he must have put in considerable effort up until now. Even if the marriage to Yui falls through, that accumulated effort doesn’t vanish.
Kitakami-san might be afraid. He might fear that if his engagement to Yui-san is dissolved, he himself will become worthless.
“It’s alright. Whatever action Shinji takes, we’re getting ready to counter it. Thanks to Kanata-chan keeping us informed of Shinji’s movements, we’ve had plenty of time.”
Saying that, Yukiyasu-san gave me a sharp wink.
“Prepared?”
“Yeah. Well, this is sort of a last resort, mind. More importantly, Yui. When do you plan to tell Father about this?”
“I’m thinking of inviting him out for a meal after Friday’s board meeting. I’ll tell him then.”
“I see. That… I suppose I could join you, couldn’t I?”
“Eh…?”
Yui gasped in surprise. I found myself holding my breath too. I’d heard Yukiyasu hadn’t spoken to his father in years. They were still estranged.
“…I can’t just stay pathetic forever. I’ll come with you. I’ll tell Dad properly how much effort Yui’s put in these past three years. Let’s have dinner together, the three of us, for the first time in ages.”
Yukiyasu said this, smiling softly.
Yui, Yukiyasu, and her father.
The relationship that had remained frozen ever since Yui’s mother passed away was now beginning to change.
I felt as though I could see a definite spark of hope being lit.