Trial Lover 8 (Patreon)

Main Story 7 - Part-time Job

RAW

After school.

After this, I'm going to do my part-time job at a local chain coffee shop. I already told Hiori about it while we were eating lunch during lunch break.

Hiori will go to the literature club after her cleaning duty is over. According to Hiori, the literature club is active every Tuesday and Thursday after school.

“Aki, see you tomorrow! Good luck on your part-time job!”

“Yeah. Kazuo and Shimizu-san too, do your best in club activities.”

“Yeah!”

Kazuo leaves the classroom with Shimizu-san. As they do, they wave at me, so I wave back.

I grab my bag and head towards Hiori.

“Hiori. Good luck with your cleaning duty and club activities.”

“Thank you very much. Akito-san too, please do your best at your part-time job.”

“Thank you. I’ll do my best.”

With those words, I feel like I can do my best at my part-time job without taking a break today. Also, I don't feel as tired today as I usually do. Maybe it's because Hiori fed me her special tamagoyaki during lunch break.

“Hiorin! Let's go to club activities together-ssu!”

Hazuki-san said that to Hiori as soon as she entered the classroom.

“I'm sorry, Saaya-san. I'm on cleaning duty this week. Could you please go to the club room first or wait for me in the hallway?”

“Roger-ssu. Then, I'll be waiting in the hallway-ssu.”

“I understand.”

"Kamitou-kun, are you going home now-ssu? Or are you coming to visit the literature club-ssu?”

“I have a part-time job at a coffee shop today. Going to the literature club is... attractive, but I think I'll just read at my own pace. I'm not good at writing at all. And I can barely write a book review.”

I like reading light novels and novels, so I tried writing one when I was in middle school. But I couldn't think of a story at all, so I gave up immediately. That’s when I actually realized that people who can write stories, regardless of content or length, are amazing.

“But, I would be happy if I could talk to Hiori and Hazuki-san about books and stuff.”

“That's true. I also want to talk about those things with Akito-san from now on.”

“Me too-ssu!”

Both Hiori and Hazuki-san said that cheerfully. I would be happy if there was a work that I could enjoy talking about with the two of them.

“Kamitou-kun, you said you were working part-time at a coffee shop-ssu, but what’s the name of the shop-ssu?”

“It's a chain coffee shop called Zosol.”

“Zosol-ssu? There's one near the school and one in my area. I've been there many times-ssu.”

“I’ve also gone to Zosol near Kasagaya Station several times before.”

“As a store clerk, I'm happy to hear that. The store I work part-time at is the one at the north exit of Hagikubo Station near my house.”

“I see-ssu. Also, so Kamitou-kun lives in Hagikubo-ssu. I'm in Takano-ssu. I work part-time at a bookstore in a commercial facility near the station-ssu.”

“I see.”

Takano is... if it’s from Kasagaya Station it’s two stations away in the direction of Tokyo. When I was a first year student, I went to a friend's house in Takano a couple of times. It’s a city where many commercial facilities are gathered around the station.

Also, Hazuki-san has a part-time job at a bookstore? She's also in the literature club, so I guess she really likes books.

“Come to think of it, I didn't ask if Hiori has a part-time job. Does Hiori have a part-time job?”

“No, I don’t. But, I publish the novels I write on multiple novel submission sites. I receive advertising revenue from those every month. Thankfully, they are read a lot, so...I get quite a good amount of money.”

“So that’s how it is. Just being able to write is amazing, but to think you are receiving money for it. I read online novels from time to time. Like after I finish my assignments, or during a break at my part-time job.”

“Is that so? I publish under the pen name Aokawa Koori.”

“Aokawa Koori... wait, that Aokawa Koori-san, the author of the [Arisugawa Academy Literature Club] series?”

“That’s right.”

Hiori nods.

The Arisugawa Academy Literature Club series is a school mystery series published on multiple novel submission sites. The main character, a boy who belongs to the literature club of a private high school called Arisugawa Academy, solves incidents and mysteries that occur in the school, its students, and the area where the school is located. It is in a series format, and each chapter is a short to medium-length volume. Although it updates irregularly, each chapter is published all at once.

The Arisugawa series is highly acclaimed not only for its mystery solving, but also for the drama of its characters. It is a popular work that is always ranked in the top 5 in mystery genre rankings.

“I read the Arisugawa series. It's really interesting. I also read several rom-coms and girls’ love short stories. Some of them made my heart skip a beat.”

“Thank you very much. I’m happy to hear that. What I read is mostly romance, but what I write is a lot of school and youth stuff. The Arisugawa series can be considered my masterpiece.”

Hiori's eyes are shining as she looks at me. She is probably happy that her work is read and told that it is interesting.

To think that the author of my favorite online novel is Hiori. I wonder if it's just my imagination that it looks like a halo is shining on Hiori. It’s a bit dazzling though.

“By the way, I also publish novels-ssu. My pen name is Kazuki Saya. My work sometimes appears in romance rankings.”

“Kazuki Saya... I've read some of your girls’ love short stories. They have some pretty extreme depictions. It was interesting.”

“I'm happy-ssu. I like romance in general, but I especially love girls love and boys love, and I often write about them-ssu! I also like to write about bodies being intertwined.”

Fufu-... Hazuki-san lets out what seems to be an obscene laugh. I wonder if she's fantasizing about someone being intertwined now. Also, didn’t she say that she was planning a new work after hearing that we started dating on a trial basis yesterday? Maybe someday that work will be published in some form.

“Aoyama-san! Let's start cleaning!”

“I understood.”

“...Right. Hiori was on cleaning duty. Sorry for interfering with you.”

“Sorry, Hiorin.”

“No no, don't worry about it. I had fun talking. Akito-san, please do your best at your part-time job.”

“Do your best-ssu, Kamitou-kun.”

“Yeah, thank you. Good luck with your club activities, both of you. See you tomorrow.”

I wave to Hiori and Hazuki-san and leave the classroom.

*

Just before 4pm.

I arrive at my part-time job at Zosol Hagikubo Station North Exit branch.

I enter the store through the employee entrance at the back of the store. I stamp my time card in the staff break room and change from my high school uniform to the store's employee uniform in the men's locker room.

“All right, let's do my best today too.”

I head to the counter.

I've been working part-time at this store since around this time last year, mainly serving customers at the counter.

“Oh, Kamitou-kun. Thank you for your hard work in your high school.”

When I arrive at the counter, I see Tsukushi Yamato-senpai there. Tsukushi-senpai is my senior clerk who gave me guidance on how to do my job. He is a second year university student in the Faculty of Science and Engineering. Senpai is very kind and took care of me, and thanks to him, I was able to learn the job well. Thanks to that, I have never wanted to quit my part-time job.

Tsukushi-senpai is good at his job, tall and handsome. He also has a calm atmosphere, because of that, there are many repeat customers, mainly young women, who are aiming for senpai. Also, he also wears glasses, so he also has some bespectacled male fans. It seems that he is also courted or confessed to sometimes, but senpai resolutely turns them down.

“Senpai too, thank you for your hard work at university.”

“Thank you. Let's do our best together today too.”

“Yes.”

Today, Hiori and Hazuki-san also told me “Do your best at your part-time job.” So I was more motivated than usual.

I stand at the counter next to Tsukushi-senpai and serve customers.

It's been about a year since I started working part-time. Now I can generally perform my job. But, I still feel secure when Tsukushi-senpai is next to me.

Since it is evening, many of the customers are in uniform or look like university students. The time passes by quickly as we serve customers almost constantly.

After more than an hour, I take a break.

When I arrive at the break room, I see Tsukushi-senpai drinking coffee and playing with his smartphone.

“Kamitou-kun, thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Tsukushi-senpai.”

I put iced coffee in a paper cup and sit on the chair in front of Tsukushi-senpai. Then, senpai puts his smartphone on the table and looks at me.

“Kamitou-kun, you are very energetic today. You were serving customers with a nice expression on your face. Did something good happen? Did your favorite manga or light novel have their anime adaptation confirmed? Or did you win some kind of campaign?”

Tsukushi-senpai asked with his characteristic refreshing smile. Senpai is a huge fan of manga, light novels, and anime. So, there is also a connection between us as otaku friends. We sometimes talk about manga and anime during our breaks. Senpai especially likes rom-coms and isekai fantasy.

Thanks to Hiori, I was able to serve customers more energetically than usual. Seeing me like that, senpai must have thought that something good had happened to me. If it’s senpai, I guess it's okay to talk about Hiori.

“Actually... starting yesterday, I started dating a female classmate on a trial basis.”

“Ooh. A trial basis.”

There was still a refreshing smile on Tsukushi-senpai's face as he said that.

“Yes. I fell in love at first sight with her about six months ago. But, she has turned down every confession. I’ve never had the courage to confess until now, but yesterday after school we were alone. So I mustered up my courage and confessed to her.”

“That's so cool. But why did it become a trial?”

“She said that unlike the previous confessions, she felt something, and she couldn't bring herself to turn me down. But, she didn't seem to know whether she liked me or not. So, I suggested that we decide on a period of time and go out on a trial basis. And she accepted that.”

“I see. So that's how it is. Even if it's just a trial, you'd be happy if you could date someone you like. That's why your customer service was better than ever today.”

“Most likely.”

When I say that, Tsukushi-senpai's smile turns into a kind one.

“I see. Even if it's just a trial, you managed to go out with her, congratulations. I hope you can officially start dating as lovers. I'm rooting for you.”

“Thank you very much.”

I'm glad that Tsukushi-senpai is rooting for me.

“When I was in high school... I had a friend who was dating a girl he liked on a trial basis, like Kamitou-kun.”

“Is that so? By the way, what happened to that friend and the person he likes?”

“They started officially dating. They’re living together now. Of course, it seems like they’re on good terms.”

“I see.”

In fact, it is reassuring to hear stories of couples who have started dating officially after a trial relationship.

Also, if we start dating officially, there's a possibility that we might live together. She made me some tamagoyaki today and fed it to me. I end up fantasizing about living together with Hiori.

“Your expression slackened. I wonder if you're fantasizing about living together with the girl you're dating.”

“...You know me well.”

“Since we just talked about it, I can roughly guess. I wonder if the day will come when I can meet someone who I can feel the same way about. There are wonderful people in the 3D, but all the people I fall in love with are in the 2D.”

“How very senpai-like. Also, if you... meet her in the future, please don't make her feel weird. I think it’s fine if it’s senpai, but I said it just in case.”

“Rest assured. I won't do anything that Kamitou-kun and your lover girl won't like.”

“...I’ll believe in you.”

“Yeah.”

Smiling refreshingly again, Tsukushi-senpai looks me in the eye and nods.

After that, for a short while, I talk to Tsukushi-senpai about the novel Hiori wrote and the recently started anime, and go back to working at the counter.

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