I Drink Every Night With a Lookalike of a Popular Idol on the Riverbank
A stylist’s assistant and a member of a top idol group.
It might have been fun to talk with these two unusual characters, but I still preferred spending time alone with Nanase, chatting about trivial things.
That day, we sat on the riverbank, two cans of chu-hi apart, repeating the same meaningless conversation as always.
Since learning that she worked as a stylist’s assistant, she had transformed in my mind from just a mysterious girl to a “professional” working in the same field as me.
So, I suddenly felt like asking her.
“Hey, Nanase-san. I was just wondering, since it’s related to your job…”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Do you have any favorite stationery items… or any particular preferences?”
My question was too personal and niche.
She looked puzzled for a moment, then pursed her lips slightly as she began to think.
“Haha, that’s an interesting question.”
Then, Nanase paused for a moment before answering.
“Hmm… I guess it’s a sign pen.”
“A sign pen?”
I was a little surprised.
Not a ballpoint pen or a mechanical pencil. A slightly unusual choice.
“Hmm. I have a lot of opportunities to write things down. The ink doesn’t clump, it glides smoothly, and it dries quickly. The best thing is that it doesn’t smudge on any kind of paper.”
Her answer was so specific and professional.
At that moment, a switch flipped in my head.
“I see, quick-drying…! That’s definitely important. By the way, how about ease of use? Do you care about the thickness of the grip or the balance of weight?”
I leaned forward and pressed her for answers.
It was pure curiosity as an office worker at a stationery manufacturer.
“Um, well…”
Nanase seemed a little taken aback by my sudden change in mode.
“Ease of grip is important, right? Signing things—or whatever—so you don’t get tired. The one I’m using now feels just right. Not too light, not too heavy, you know?”
“The one you’re using now?”
“Yeah. Oh, I happen to have it with me.”
Saying that, she rummaged through her bag and pulled out a black sign pen.
“Here it is.”
The pen she held out in front of me
had a familiar shape. The logo I see every day, with a swallow mark on the cap.
“…!”
I gasped.
“This… is our company’s product.”
It was a product I had been involved in developing as a member of the planning team.
“Really!?”
Nanase was surprised.
“Yeah… I was in charge of selecting the material for the grip part of this pen.”
“…Wow. Really?”
“Yeah. Really.”
What a miraculous coincidence.
A warm feeling slowly rose from the depths of my chest.
I was happy. Just purely happy.
The fact that something I made was being used as her favorite item filled my heart more than any other work success I had ever experienced.
“Nanase-san… why this pen?”
I asked, unable to hide my excitement.
At that question, Nanae-san’s gaze wandered slightly.
“Well, my job is as a stylist’s assistant, so I have to write names and notes on all sorts of things—like tags on clothes, plastic bags for costumes, and cardboard boxes for equipment. This pen writes cleanly on anything without smudging, so I’ve been using it all along.”
“I see…”
I nodded in agreement with her words.
“That kind of feedback from the field is super helpful…! The ink development team worked really hard to make sure it writes smoothly on tags and plastic bags without smudging. It’s great to know it’s making a difference…!”
“…Hehe. It’s definitely making a difference. The grip feels good too.”
Nanase said that with a gentle smile.
I alternated my gaze between her smile and the pen we had created, held in her hand.
My daily life and her daily life.
Nanase-san removed the cap from the pen and took my hand.
“Hey, Yousuke. Can I write on your hand?”
“Sure. As long as it’s not something weird.”
Nanase-san smiled and asked, “Mischief?”
“No way!”
“Fufu, just kidding. Stay still.”
Nanase-san held my hand and moved the pen. Maybe because my hand was tense from being held, the tip of the pen tickled me, making me feel a bit itchy.
Ignoring my nervousness, she drew a cute, stylized cat face, like the kind you might doodle in a notebook during class.
“…A cat?”
“Yeah, a cat.”
“Why a cat?”
“Better than Makiguso, right?”
“Better than Makiguso!?”
“Hehe… This is me and Yosuke. Probably two worlds that were never meant to intersect, connected by a single sign pen. Isn’t that amazing?”
Nanase-san stated this ordinary fact with a joyful smile.
“Well… that’s true.”
It may not be something as grand as fate.
But for the two of us, it was a special and joyful event, enveloped in an itchy smile.
◆
The next day, while having lunch with Narumi, she stopped suddenly when she saw my hand.
“…What’s wrong?”
“That… that signature…”
Narumi hurriedly took my hand and stared at it intently, as if she were about to stare a hole through it.
“Hm… ? No, that’s not it. I was surprised… I thought it was Naginagi’s signature.”
“This cat?”
“Exactly!”
Narumi showed me Nagi Nagi’s signature on her smartphone. Next to her name, written in a broken style, was a cute, stylized cat.
“Isn’t it the same?”
“No, it’s a little different. The angle of the cat’s ears is different. I’ve had her write it many times, so I can tell.”
Otaku are amazing. I couldn’t help but mutter, “Wow…”
“But Nanase is just a look-alike… She’s not the real person, so of course the handwriting is different.”
“Hmm… Well, I guess so. But she practices her signature, right?”
“Maybe she gets asked to do it sometimes? Because she looks so much like her.”
“Hmm…”
Narumi looked up at the ceiling with a puzzled expression and tilted her head.
Maiasa