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 project with TechFrontier has officially kicked off, and a new character with a strong personality, ‘Vice President Tsukishima’ has clearly emerged in my daily life.
Of course, this is the same person who reads books in the corner of the laundromat once a week, and the gap between the two causes me to freeze slightly.
At work, she is the epitome of a ‘high-spec CTO and CHRO.’ Sharp analysis, precise instructions, and a communication style that tolerates no waste.
If it weren’t for her vibrant pink hair, no one would doubt that she was a top-notch executive poached from some tech giant in Silicon Valley.
After a whirlwind week of witnessing her like that, the weekend arrived, and I went to the coin laundry as usual after work.
Tsukishima san was sitting quietly in the back, engrossed in a book.
I loaded my laundry into the machine and sat down next to Tsukishima san.
“Um…thank you for your help…”
The person I was talking to was the vice president of a client company. Feeling more than a little awkward, I spoke up, and Tsukishima san closed her book and looked at me.
“Hello, Minato-san. You’re being unusually formal today.
“Well, there were a lot of things happening this week—”
As I spoke carefully, Tsukishima san threw the paperback book she had been holding on her lap toward me.
“Whoa ! W-what the !?”
“Hey, Minato san. Let’s just call each other ‘Minato san’ and ‘Tsukishima san’ here. We don’t know each other’s first names or occupations. All we know is our favorite characters and our last names.”
“Ah…y-yeah…I guess so. It would be easier to talk that way…”
“Don’t worry. I’m the type who can separate my personal life from my work.”
“But apparently you were smiling during the meeting. Someone from the company asked, ‘Is she your ex-girlfriend?’”
“Yeah…..me too. Minato- an was smiling too, apparently.”
The two of us, who hadn’t realized it until it was pointed out, exchanged glances and burst out laughing.
“Tsukishima san, you show your emotions on your face more than I thought. I had the impression you were a poker face.”
“The person I was talking to at the laundromat suddenly showed up in a sharp suit. Of course I’d smile.”
“That’s mutual…but Tsukishima san, you’re in a position where you must be making a lot of money, so why haven’t you bought a new washing machine yet?”
“I think the new model will be better than the one I have now, so I’m not buying it yet.”
“You’ll probably keep saying that forever…”
“Well, but Minato san, you should just buy one. Your company is doing well lately, right? Use your bonus to buy one.”
“Our place is small, so if we’re going to move, I want to buy a bigger, better one. The current one doesn’t have a drying function. The move is still undecided.”
“Fufu……that’s the same thing I was saying.”
“Well, I’m just trying to justify why I’m here.”
“So…is there another reason you’re hiding it?”
Tsukishima san stared at me as she asked. I remained silent, unable to answer, and the space was filled with just the two of us waiting for the laundry to finish.
For a while, the only sound in the store was the steady hum of the two washing machines. The low ‘goung, goung’ sound seemed to shake the silence between us like the breath of a large creature.
“…I wonder.”
“Hmm…”
Tsukishima san looked at me with a stern expression. She then took back the paperback book I was holding and began reading it alone.
Occasionally glancing away from the book and furrowing her brow in thought, she didn’t look like the vice president who pointed out issues in documents without hesitation, but rather like an ordinary literature girl.
I also began reading my own book, and the only sounds in the coin laundry store were the hum of the washing machines and the occasional rustle of pages being turned.
Occasionally, someone would come in, start a washing machine, and leave immediately. Tsukishima san seemed concerned about these visual updates, repeatedly glancing at the door each time it opened before returning her gaze to her book.
“Oh, Minato san was sitting next to me.”
“Yeah, so…what’s wrong?”
“Well, I was so engrossed in my book that I forgot you were sitting next to me. So every time the door opened, I kept glancing over to see if it was you.”
This person is basically a genius, but she has her moments…
“I’m sitting right next to you. Just acknowledge that.”
“Okay, got it.”
Tsukishima san went back to reading, so I opened my own book.
It seemed that what Tsukishima san had said was true, because once she recognized that I was sitting next to her, she stopped looking up every time the door opened.
So, does that mean Tsukishima san is unconsciously waiting for me? She doesn’t seem to realize that she is subtly conveying such an embarrassing thing, and after her gaze runs over the text for a while, she repeats the process of digesting the content with a sidelong glance.
Midway through, Tsukishima san spoke up again as if she had suddenly remembered something.
“Hey, Minato san.”
“What?”
“I don’t plan on buying a washing machine anytime soon. Unless there’s a fundamental innovation in household washing machines, I’ll just keep doing laundry here.”
“I’ve been doing laundry here anyway…so it looks like we’ll be seeing each other for a while.”
“Hm. Yeah. Well, there’s not much else to do besides read books.”
Tsukishima san, who must be quite busy, doesn’t bring her laptop here. That means this is a place where she can get away from her daily life.
I think it’s quite an honor to be able to be together in such an important place.
Tsukishima san glanced at me and smiled.
“Minato san. You’re grinning.”
“My face shows it easily.”
I tried to brush it off, and Tsukishima-san said, “I wonder what you’re thinking.” and returned her gaze to her book.
The book Tsukishima san was reading, by Kirishima Jo, was supposed to be a serious work without any comedic elements. Yet, Tsukishima san’s profile seemed to betray a playful imagination, her face still wearing that smirk.
This quiet everyday life seems set to continue for a while longer.
Maigetsu
I found gold