Episode 14: Year-End Party, the Calculating Woman Beside Me
Mid-December.
“Alright, everyone, thanks for all your hard work this year! Cheers!”
The president’s toast rang out, followed by the clink of glasses filling the izakaya’s banquet hall. The company year-end party had begun.
I raised my beer glass lightly and looked around. The tables were split into three groups, and I’d ended up by the window. And for some reason, some genuinely mysterious reason, Hanamori was sitting right next to me.
“Cheers.”
“Cheers.”
Hanamori and I clinked glasses too.
I took a sip from mine. A little ways off, Asakura-san sat at one table, and Tamura-san at another. Well, seating like this is usually just random chance. Random.
“You seem kind of dressed up today, Asami-san.”
Hanamori said it in a low voice, smirking.
“What is.”
“Your outfit.”
Straight to the point, no hesitation.
“It’s normal.”
“Really? You’re always so plain, so I just noticed you’re wearing brighter colors today.”
“Huh?”
“That’s a compliment, for the record.”
Hanamori tilted her head, shooting me a deliberately doubtful look.
Infuriating. This woman always finds a way to phrase things like she’s picking a fight.
Petty, I shot one right back at her.
“You’ve got peach oolong today, huh. Cute drink, going for the male appeal?”
“Yep.”
Hanamori shot me a light glare, an attitude of obviously, what of it? Didn’t even land a scratch. Argh.
We kept talking, voices low. Maybe because we were keeping quiet, the distance between us felt closer than usual.
“Tamura-san’s casual outfit is nice today~”
Hanamori murmured, chin propped on her hand, staring off into the distance. True, Tamura-san did have a slightly different air about him than usual.
“Chief Miyashita’s really got her game face on tonight.”
“Right? She always shows more cleavage at drinking parties. That woman.”
Chief Miyashita, in a low-cut top, was pressing that ample chest of hers against the male manager beside her.
And leaning in at an unnervingly close distance to talk to him.
We both muttered a small “ugh…” at the sight and kept talking.
“Good work this year.”
“Same to you. That one project was seriously down to the wire.”
“Right? With that sudden change of direction.”
“Yeah, yeah. The department head definitely just said that on a whim.”
“For sure. And you’re the one who handled all the follow-up after, weren’t you?”
We kept up the low, flat work talk for a while.
“Oh, right, did you hear The Hollow Echoes’ new song?”
Hanamori suddenly changed the subject.
“I heard it, I heard it. So good.”
“Right? There’ll be another solo live too.”
“Ah, yeah. I already signed up.
“Oh, when is it?”
“Huh? February 20th.”
“Huh… guess I’ll sign up too, then.”
“Wait, why the same day.”
“No particular reason.”
Our voices stayed low enough that no one around could hear, a little pocket of space just for the two of us. It was, somehow, fun. Just a little. Just barely.
I reached for the edamame, and Hanamori reached at the same moment, our fingertips almost brushing. Hanamori pulled her hand back quickly.
“Go ahead.”
“You don’t need to give way to me.”
“No, no, elders first.”
“Age has nothing to do with it.”
“It has everything to do with it. Respecting your seniors is important.”
“‘Respecting your seniors,’ really.”
I glared and took the edamame anyway, and Hanamori laughed softly. It looked, somehow, like she was having fun. Contagious enough that I almost laughed too.
“Oh, hey. There’s a seat open next to Tamura-san.”
I said it quietly, and Hanamori glanced toward Tamura-san, then back at me.
“Guess so.”
“‘Guess so’… aren’t you going?”
I’d meant it as an offhand question, but Hanamori’s expression shifted, just slightly. Troubled, but like she wanted to say something too.
“…Not necessarily right now.”
“Huh?”
“I mean, the party just started.”
Hanamori looked away, tracing the condensation on her glass with a finger.
“Better to go once things have warmed up a bit more, right? More fun that way.”
“I think it’d be fine to go now.”
“No, but… oh look, the food hasn’t even come out yet.”
“The food?”
“Right. If I move before the food comes, I won’t know what I missed.”
Hanamori looked away again, stringing together increasingly flimsy excuses.
“Besides, Tamura-san’s talking to other people right now. Timing-wise, better to wait for a calmer moment.”
“Hm.”
Something about it nagged at me. The way Hanamori was explaining herself felt oddly like making excuses. Maybe it was just my imagination. But she didn’t need to list that many reasons.
“What about you, Asami-san? You should go over to Asakura-san.”
“Eh, me? I’m fine… Asakura-san’s probably got other people she wants to talk to.”
“Hmm.”
Hanamori looked away, tracing the rim of her glass with a finger.
“Well…”
A short pause. Hanamori chose her words slowly.
“I’m fine right here, honestly.”
Hanamori made a slightly sulky face, eyes downcast, and took a sip of her peach oolong. That expression looked, somehow, oddly alluring, and my heart skipped.
“Oh, right, the year-end holidays are super long this year, huh.”
Hanamori suddenly changed the subject.
“Ah, yeah. Nine days straight, I think?”
“What are you doing over the break, Asami-san?”
“Huh? I mean, no real plans.”
“Figures. You’re definitely just gonna lounge around the house.”
“I am not.”
“Then what are you doing?”
“…Haven’t decided yet.”
“See? That’s the classic hikikomori move right there.”
Hanamori said it, smirking. Infuriating.
“You’re one to talk, Hanamori-san. You’ll probably just go on another cafe tour, posting sparkly photos all over social media.”
“Wait, what’s that supposed to mean?”
“No, just, you seem like exactly that type.”
“That type, huh… well, I won’t deny it.”
“See?”
Hanamori laughed softly.
“Though, I do like going to cafes. There’s one I went to last week, actually, I thought you’d like it, Asami-san.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was quiet, felt like the kind of place you could sit and read. Seemed like your kind of spot.”
“Well… I don’t dislike places like that.”
“Then, want to go together over the break?”
Hanamori said it casually. Wait, what did she just say?
“Huh?”
“Kidding. You’d rather just relax at home on your days off, right, Asami-san?”
Hanamori smirked. I genuinely can’t tell with this woman whether she’s joking or serious.
“I mean, if I got invited somewhere, I’d go.”
“Wait, really? Then—”
“As long as it’s not with you, Hanamori-san.”
I said it half to cover my own embarrassment, and Hanamori’s face turned slightly sulky.
“Mean. I was trying to invite you for real.”
“You were just messing with me as a joke, weren’t you.”
“I was about twenty percent serious.”
“Only twenty percent, huh.”
I mimed elbowing her, and Hanamori burst out laughing.
It was fun, somehow. And Hanamori’s reactions were cute again. Wait, hold on, how many times have I thought “cute” just now.
No, it’s just the alcohol messing with something in my head. Definitely.
“…Actually.”
Hanamori said quietly.
“Hm?”
“I used to work here. Part-time, back in college.”
“Wait, at this place?”
I looked around in surprise, and Hanamori nodded slightly.
“Huh, I didn’t know that.”
“Well, never really had a reason to bring it up.”
“Were you on the floor, waiting tables here?”
“Yeah. About three days a week. Pretty busy, actually.”
Hanamori’s expression turned a little nostalgic.
“What about you, Asami-san? Did you do any part-time work?”
“I did. Supermarket, mostly.”
“Sounds about right. You seem like the type the part-timer aunties would’ve adored.”
“What kind of image is that?”
I shot back, and Hanamori laughed.
A slightly teasing laugh, but with a warmth to it somewhere.
“Did you work here the whole time?”
“Until I graduated college.”
Hanamori suddenly went quiet. Staring into her glass, like she was thinking something over.
“…Asami-san.”
“Hm?”
Hanamori slowly lifted her head. Not her usual bratty expression. Serious eyes.
“Two years ago—”
Just as Hanamori started to say something, a voice cut in from behind us.
“What are you two talking about?”
I turned around, and there was Asakura-san, standing with a glass of Moscow mule in hand, smiling.
Whoa. Asakura-san looked especially stylish and beautiful tonight.
“Ah… Asakura-san. Good work out there.”
I answered hurriedly.
“Is this seat open?”
“…Ah, yes, please, go ahead!”
I answered immediately, and Asakura-san sat down beside me, on the opposite side from Hanamori.
A faint drift of perfume.
At the edge of my vision, Hanamori’s smile seemed to stiffen, just slightly, but I figured that was probably just my imagination.