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
It had been a few weeks since Minato san started coming in and out of the office as a consultant. As an executive at TechFrontier, my daily life was still hectic, but on Friday nights, the quiet conversations we had in that quiet space, completely unrelated to work, had become an unexpected source of comfort for me.
Getting a glimpse of his true self, which he rarely shows, and occasionally catching a flash of his insight, was a pleasant stimulus.
However, such a peaceful routine was disrupted by an unexpected twist.
The source was Tanaka Jun from the HR department. Her speed and breadth of information within the company sometimes left me in awe, but eventually, the day came when I became the target.
“Tsukishima san ! Good afternoon !”
One day during lunch break, I was sitting alone at my desk, deep in thought while eating my lunch, when Tanaka san sat down across from me with a salad in hand, her eyes sparkling as she spoke in a hushed voice.
With her shoulder-length brown hair loosely curled and dressed in a trendy office outfit, she exuded the aura of someone well-connected.
“I heard a rumor that Tsukishima san goes to the coin laundry. Apparently, you’re there with your ex-boyfriend.”
Ugh…maybe someone at the company lives nearby. I instantly thought of various countermeasures, such as relaxing the housing allowance requirements, discouraging employees from living near the company, or dyeing my hair darker. But once Tanaka san found out, it was already too late.
“Y…you think so? Maybe you’re mistaken…..”
“Could it be a mistake? With that pink hair?” “
Our company boasts about having a flat, open-minded workplace culture. The fact that someone would say ‘that pink hair’ to the vice president is proof of that.
“T-there are plenty of people who look like Minato san ! L-look. There are tons of people with center-parted hair and a sharp look !”
“So, the vice president is really at the coin laundry. You’re surprisingly down-to-earth, aren’t you?”
“My washing machine is broken.”
“Why not just buy a new one?”
“Well, not right now.”
“I see, I see…I understand !”
She said that, but the curiosity in her eyes didn’t fade at all.
And then, on Friday night. The usual laundromat.
I arrived a little early and opened a book by Kirishima Jo. Every time the automatic door opened, I looked up. I turned the pages, hoping to see what kind of face he would have when he appeared.
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When I arrived at the laundromat, Tsukishima san was already sitting at her usual seat, reading a book.
I set up my laundry and sat down next to her. Following the local rule, we didn’t talk about work.
Suddenly, a different detergent scent tickled my nose.
“Hm, this fabric softener scent…has it changed?”
When I said that, Tsukishima san answered without looking up.
“Hm. You noticed. It seems to have changed last week. I might prefer this one over the old one.”
“Me too. It feels like the scent has become a bit softer. Even small changes like this are important, aren’t they?”
“Hmm. User experience is important. If only they could handle coin exchanges and electronic payments, it would be perfect.”
Silence returned, and only the sound of the washing machine spinning could be heard. Even that sound seemed somehow gentler than usual today.
Suddenly, Tsukishima san spoke up.
“…Listen, Minato san.”
Without looking up from her book, she said,
“What?”
“The fact that we’re meeting here has been discovered by the employees…”
“So, it’s finally time for Tsukishima san to replace the washing machine, huh?”
“No, that’s not what I meant. The next model should be more high-performance anyway.”
“Here we go…but even if we’re discovered, it shouldn’t be a problem, right? We’re not exactly being affectionate in public or anything.”
“Hm…that’s it !”
Tsukishima san, who rarely raises her voice, pulled her chair closer to me. She then lifted her leg and placed it on my thigh. Since she was wearing short pajama pants, her bare legs were right in front of my eyes, which was a bit distracting.
“Wait…what are you doing !?”
“I realized that being together halfway like this just leads to weird rumors. If we did something here that would make people think, ‘They’re not afraid of being seen,’ then it would become awkward to talk about, and no one would mention it !”
“Probably, people would just secretly say behind our backs, ‘Those two were really cozying up at the laundromat.’!? Someone as smart as Tsukishima san should understand that ! Think about it ! The pros and cons don’t balance out !”
“Yeah…you’re right. Comparing the pros and cons is important.”
Tsukishima san smiled wryly and sat back down.
“But even if the rumor that I’m your ex-boyfriend spreads, there aren’t really any major disadvantages, right?”
I realized that if she said there was someone she liked in the company, it would be a major disadvantage.
However, Tsukishima san looked serious as she pondered, then murmured, “True…there wouldn’t be any issues.” so that line of reasoning seemed unlikely.
“But, you know…we’re not middle schoolers. People talking about who’s dating who is just annoying, right?”
“On the other hand, if we weren’t dating, we probably wouldn’t be seeing each other every week at the late-night laundromat either.”
“So, are we dating?”
Tsukishima san asked, pointing at each other.
We just stared at each other and froze. From Tsukishima san’s perspective, she was waiting for my response, so she could relax, but I somehow couldn’t find the right words to say. It’s not like we’ve only known each other for a short time.
“No…it’s not like that…”
“Hm. Right?”
Tsukishima san said it matter-of-factly with a blank expression. I wasn’t looking for a blushing reaction, but this was kind of sad.
“Well, no one knows what the future holds. Whether Doraemon will even exist in the future.”
Tsukishima san muttered.
“With Doraemon, there’s even the possibility that people in the future might create him by referencing past manga.”
“Then…it all depends on the actions of the people living in the present, right?”
Tsukishima smiled slyly, turned sideways, and placed her foot on my thigh again.
“This…is this connected to the future !?”
“Well, I wonder.”
Tsukishima san continued reading a book in a relaxed posture, as if she were in her own room, until the laundry was finished.
Maigetsu