Chapter 13 A Drinking Party with Colleagues and a Former Student (1)

A Drinking Party with Colleagues and a Former Student (1)

“Shintaro, you didn’t tell me about this…”

Sitting beside me at the bar, my coworker muttered in a strained voice, his face twitching.

His lips quivered as he kept glancing at the scene in front of us, as if he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“I said we’d grab a drink, didn’t I?”

“Of course, I thought it’d just be the two of us! What is this situation!?”

“Well, Atsushi, your ‘normal’ doesn’t necessarily apply to everyone. It’s better to clarify if it’s subjective or based on majority values.”

“I don’t need your long-winded lecture!!”

“Wait, weren’t you happy that I invited them? If not—”

“I never said that! If anything, having women here is amazing, and I appreciate the effort you put into arranging this, but—!”

“Then it’s fine, isn’t it? I’m happy to be drinking with you, Atsushi.”

“I am too, but…”

Clutching his head, he groaned, “If there were going to be women here, I wish I’d dressed better…” and slumped onto the table.

He’s as much of a reaction comedian as ever.

Seriously, watching him always cheers me up.

This lively, high-energy man is Koriyama Atsushi 郡山敦.

In a company with a notoriously high turnover rate, he’s one of the rare coworkers who’ve stuck it out as long as I have.

It’s been ages since we last went out drinking like this. Usually, we only exchanged a few words when he stopped by the branch I managed.

Atsushi had invited me out plenty of times before, but until recently, I wasn’t great at keeping up with social gatherings. This might actually be the first time we’re drinking together after work.

“Good for you, Atsushi. You mentioned before that you wanted to go to a mixer. At least one of your dreams has come true.”

“This isn’t what I had in mind! Sure, one of them is beautiful, but the other one’s so stiff! There’s no chemistry, no spark, and no chance of meeting anyone new!!”

“…Koriyama-san, making disparaging remarks about women… That’s workplace harassment. I’ll report you to the boss.”

“I’m sorry! Please don’t do that!!”

Atsushi pressed his forehead to the table in an exaggerated apology.

Kanade laughed so hard she clapped her hands.

“This isn’t what I wanted,” Atsushi had said.

I understood his frustration and what he was trying to say.

Meeting new people can be tough at any company. Often, it boils down to continuing relationships from university or meeting someone within the company.

But company settings can be awkward, so finding a partner often means joining some kind of event or initiative.

Not that I have any experience with that…

According to Atsushi, “Becoming an adult doesn’t magically create opportunities to meet people! That’s a total illusion!”

And on top of that, working at a cram school isn’t exactly conducive to meeting people.

…Mainly because the hours are so late.

Weekends are often spent working too, making it an unsuitable job for attending mixers.

The schedules and lifestyles just don’t match.

Unless the person you’re meeting is understanding of such a lifestyle, even going to a mixer would feel pointless… or worse, off-putting.

That’s why Atsushi had been so eager for a mixer.

Well, depending on how you look at it, this could pass as a mixer, so he’ll just have to deal with it.

“Hey, Ariga-cchi~, what are we starting with? Should we go with draft beer for now?”

As she operated the ordering tablet, Atsushi, who had been sulking a moment ago, perked up and raised his hand. “I’ll have the same!”

Next, Kanade turned to Sahara-san, who was sitting beside her.

With a conflicted expression, Sahara-san mumbled to herself, “What should I get…” before hesitantly speaking up.

“I-I’ll start with oolong tea…”

“Okay~. You were talking so big, but you’re going with tea~!”

“W-wait a moment…”

“Yes~?”

With a cute tilt of her head, Kanade grinned mischievously as Sahara-san glared at her.

Then, taking a deep breath—

“Amamiya-san, what are you saying? I said ‘Oolong highball.’ Don’t make assumptions based on your mishearing. You’re making it seem as though I was about to back down out of fear of embarrassing myself in front of Ariga-san. Seriously, it’s troubling when people jump to conclusions without listening properly. Are all young people these days like that?”

She rattled off her words in a torrent.

Watching this, Atsushi laughed so hard he banged on the table.

Blushing furiously, Sahara-san glared at him.

“…Do you have a problem?”

“Haha! Making such a long-winded excuse just makes it sound like you’re admitting it~. Besides, you’re still young yourself, Sahara-san! You’re not much older than us, so your comeback kind of falls flat—”

“Be quiet, you weakling. You’re annoying.”

“Why am I the only one getting this harsh treatment!?”

“Oh, but Rika-chan, you really shouldn’t push yourself. You’ll just end up passing out.”

“I’m not pushing myself! It’s a matter of pride—nyah!?”

I flicked her forehead lightly, and she let out a yelp like a startled cat.

With teary eyes, she looked up at me reproachfully.

“That’s exactly what ‘pushing yourself’ means. And Kanade, don’t tease Sahara-san. She has no resistance to provocation.”

“Sorry… Ariga-san.”

“Haha! My bad~.”

Kanade flashed me an innocent smile, and somehow, I felt awkward enough to look away.

Seeing this, she smirked like a mischievous child who had just thought of a prank.

“Hey, Ariga-cchi~?”

“What is it?”

“You called me by name earlier, didn’t you? Are you sure about that? I mean, you don’t want people to think there’s something between us, right?”

“…Ah.”

…Crap.

By the time I realized, it was already too late.

When I cautiously looked at the two of them, their gazes felt like daggers piercing me.