The Beautiful Kuudere Woman Who Always Reads Books While Standing Next to Me at the Laundromat Turns Out to Be the Vice President of One of Our Clients
The weekend date was a thing of the past, and on Monday, my company’s office had turned into a minefield for me.
The rumor spread by Tanaka san had reached the project members on our side of the company, and they were looking at me with curiosity.
I tried to shut out all the noise and concentrate on my work. But my small resistance came to an abrupt end. It was a chat message from my boss, Takahashi san.
[Minato kun, can I have a moment?]
At those few words, my heart skipped a beat with an unpleasant thud.
I immediately stood up and headed toward Takahashi san’s desk. His expression seemed more cheerful than I had expected. Perhaps it had nothing to do with Tsukishima san.
“Minato kun, the TechFrontier project seems to be going smoothly. I hear the client’s evaluation is very high.”
“Yes, thank you. It’s all thanks to the cooperation of Tsukishima san and everyone else.”
“Well…it’s about Tsukishima-san, you see.”
It was directly related.
Takahashi san paused there for a moment. Then, as if trying to make himself heard, he continued slowly.
“Minato kun. I heard that you used your days off to build a very close relationship with Tsukishima san, our client. To dive so deeply and actively into the client’s inner circle…that dedicated work ethic is truly admirable. I’ve come to respect you more. Please apply that same effort to other projects and contribute to our company’s sales.”
…Am I being misunderstood !?
And in an incredibly positive way.
President Takahashi is misinterpreting my actions as aggressive, commendable sales activities aimed at building professional relationships.
If I just kept quiet and accepted this misunderstanding, things might have worked out smoothly. My evaluation might have even improved.
But I couldn’t do that.
It wasn’t just that my pride wouldn’t allow it; it felt like I was sullying the honest, clumsy time I spent with Tsukishima san at the coin laundry by labeling it as “work.”
I took a deep breath.
“…Sir. I’m truly sorry.”
“Hm? What’s the matter? Why are you being so formal?”
“Regarding that matter, there is absolutely no business intent as you might be thinking. It’s just a friendship…I have no intention of seeking favors or using personal connections for sales purposes. That’s one thing, and this is another.”
I spoke honestly.
At that moment, Takahashi san’s gentle expression vanished.
His eyes had instantly shifted from those of a gentle boss to those of a manager tasked with managing corporate risk.
“Well…I’m not sure about that. Trust is everything in our work. We should avoid actions that could lead to misunderstandings. If it’s purely for business purposes, that’s one thing…but going forward, you should carefully consider how to interact with Tsukishima san, keeping your position in mind.”
Those words were a clear warning.
I replied casually, “I understand” and returned to my desk. My mind was in disarray.
Recalling the pleasant weekend,
◆
I contacted Tsukishima san at the start of the week, asking, “Would you like to do laundry?” And there I was at the usual coin laundry. I needed to discuss today’s events.
Soon, Tsukishima san appeared. But as soon as she saw my face, she seemed to notice something was wrong.
“What’s wrong, Minato san? You look pale. Are you feeling unwell? Did you get hurt? Does something hurt?”
She sat next to me and peered at my face with concern.
“Well, there’s this rumor that’s been spreading from Tanaka san…”
I honestly told her everything that had happened today and what Takahashi san had said to me. How my actions might have put her in a difficult position. How it might have had a negative impact on the project.
As I spoke, looking down and stuttering, Tsukishima san just listened silently.
After I finished speaking, Tsukishima san burst out laughing as if she couldn’t hold it in anymore.
“That’s it, right? Golf.”
“Golf?”
“Well, important older men tend to go golfing on their days off for business entertainment, right? Thinking that people might think I was doing something similar made me laugh.”
“Clothing selection instead of golf…it is indeed a form of entertainment appropriate for the season…”
She looked me straight in the eye.
“Well, I understand that you’re not being friendly with me for such calculated reasons.”
“Oh…right…”
“If Minato san were removed from the project, it would actually be a complaint. I don’t see how it would improve the quality of the team, and there’s no personal feelings involved.”
“No, no…there are plenty of other talented people.”
“Hmm…well, you’re overthinking it.”
“I hope so…”
“Hmm. Besides, it’s annoying to have people meddle in my personal life, and we met here first. Minato was assigned to the project later.”
“That’s true…”
“So, I think you should just be proud of yourself.”
“Was Tsukishima san proud of herself?”
“No, I was teased mercilessly…”
Tsukishima san covered his face with both hands, looking embarrassed.
“Everyone likes that kind of talk, don’t they…”
“Yeah. Can’t we separate the issues? Just because two people were seen leaving together doesn’t mean they’re dating. We haven’t progressed at all since high school.”
“That’s true… There’s no romantic feelings involved…”
As I was about to say that, I looked over at Tsukishima san, who was staring at me with a blank expression.
“Uh…what?” I asked.
“…Right….right ! That’s right !”
Tsukishima san hurriedly agreed with me.
…What was that just now !?
Looking closely, Tsukishima san didn’t have any laundry with her. In other words, she came here just to talk to me.
“Tsukishima san…you came here even though you didn’t have any laundry.”
“Fufu…did you just notice? Yeah. I was called by Minato san. I thought I didn’t need to come here just to talk, but since there was a conversation like that earlier, it wasn’t at home. You’re so polite.”
“Well…sort of.”
Tsukishima san smiled and nodded, looking ahead. “I see.”
“Hey, Minato san. Let’s do that thing that starts with ‘E’ next time.”
“Entertainment, right?”
“The kind that makes the other person feel good.”
“Entertainment !?”
“The act of putting a ball into a hole.”
“Entertainment golf !?”
Tsukishima san was laughing happily. Looking at her profile, I felt strangely calm. After a while of excitement, Tsukishima san stared at the ceiling.
“Well, if it comes to that, I’d welcome you transferring to my place.”
“Well, that’s a bit much…”
“You could transfer to another company, but I’ll support you during your period of unemployment.”
“Well…for now, I’ll just maintain the status quo. It’s not like I’m going to quit.”
“Hm. Yeah, that’s right. Well, it’ll work out somehow.”
Tsukishima san smiled and stood up, then came in front of me and ruffled my hair.
It was ticklish, but for some reason, Tsukishima san felt reliable and reassuring.
Maigetsu