New Guy, Familiar Face
(Hey guys! I've watched Aggretsuko S1 on Netflix and I cannot get it out of my mind, so I thought I'd made a 'Fic after watching the final season episode and reading some stories from various authors. Obviously, this story has an OC, but I'm sticking with Retsuko X Haida; also, be wary of occasional spoilers and references from S1. Enjoy the story! ;))
Chapter 1: Another Day for Retsuko
It was early morning in Osaka, Japan; the orange sun's rays glittered across the water bay, over the trees and foliage and shone on the windows throughout the city. Inside one of the apartment complexes, a female Red Panda is snoring under the covers after a natural day's work; by 'natural', I of course mean 'doing her superior's work beyond the time she was supposed to get off shift and screaming death metal in the women's bathroom after being verbally abused by Mr. Ton'.
When her alarm clock rang at 7:00am exactly twice, she hit the 'Snooze' button; her eyes were really exhausted and she muttered unamused "Another day in hell, that's my job…" Although she didn't want to leave her bed, she knew she needed to pay her rent, so she threw the covers off her and sat on the edge of her bed wearily.
She sighed silently as she thought 6 days back, when she came to visit Haida in the hospital after breaking up with Resaske aka 'Space Cadet'.
(Flashback)
After she and Fenneko checked up on Haida, Fenneko excused herself by refilling the flower vase with water; as the turned the corner into the hall, she said as she gestured her free paw into a thumbs up "Stay safe, you kids have fun."
Haida and Retsuko saw Fenneko's hand leave their view, before Haida looked at Retsuko in concern and asked "Hey Retsuko… Are you alright, after breaking up with the Space Cadet?" Retsuko puts up an enlightening smile and replied "I'm okay, Haida; after all, YOU'RE the one who's got pneumonia."
Haida rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and said awkwardly "Right…" Haida then looked out the window with a relieved expression, then it changed to despair and said in a gentle tone "To be truthful… I've known you better than that guy; 5 years now… I mean, what does he have that I don't?"
Retsuko is slowly feeling flushed; Haida is really confessing his feelings for Retsuko after 5 years working with her. Haida then continued "That's what I wanted to say… Honestly, the real Retsuko I've been thinking about is the one in my head. *sighs* I guess… what I'm trying to say is…"
Haida closed his eyes in tension and turned his head to Retsuko and said "You know where I'm going with this?" Retsuko replied, blushing heavily and wearing a flattering smile "Yeah… but if you don't say it, it won't mean anything." Haida then paused briefly, before he made a nervous chuckle and noted "Yeah… I guess that's fair…"
Haida then closed his eyes and breathed deeply, before exhaling calmly; feeling more confident, he said less nervously "Well… Here goes!" Retsuko smiled contently at Haida with her cheeks blushing; Haida then confessed "Retsuko… I have developed feelings for you… romantic feelings since after the first few weeks we worked together. I tried to tell you out on a date, but I don't have a lot of confidence in me and you always got something else in mind. The reason why I got pneumonia in the first place is because I saw an empty can of coffee on the sidewalk; it reminded me of Resaske going out with the girl I've wanted to date for years, so I kicked it out of anger and ended up slipping on my back in the rain."
Retsuko hadn't changed her expression, but her blush kept getting redder as she thought ("Haida's fallen for me for five years… I was so focused on work and other stuff, that I didn't even notice him asking me out! Add the fact of his reason for getting pneumonia in the first place… Oh Haida…)
Haida then finished "Listen… I know you've got a lot on your plate at work right now… but I want to take you out on a date, a week after I am out of hospital… Is that alright with you?" Retsuko still haven't changed her expression, but she replied cheerily "Haida… I just want to apologise for not noticing your feelings for me… and…"
Haida widened his eyes slightly, expecting her to make an excuse; his ears then heard a sentence he always dreamed of hearing from her lips "And I love to go out with you!" Haida smiled with his teeth bared and blushing like a tomato; Retsuko then checked her phone to see the time and said "I'd better get going… I'll see you on Tuesday?"
Haida nodded without changing his expression; Tuesday was the day after he will be cleared from the hospital. Retsuko then hopped off the chair and puts her phone in her handbag, before she went closer to Haida and said "By the way Haida… I love your honest reply when I asked about if I should go to work or not when we're married. I heard you say when I walked off after mentioning your salary isn't a king's ransom that we can give each other morale support when office days are tough."
Retsuko then gave Haida a peck on the cheek and walked quickly out to the corridor in a heavy blush; Haida is blushing so much, steam is pouring out of his ears and his tongue is sticking out with his eyes in love hearts.
(End of Flashback)
Retsuko smiled a little from that event, then saw the time on her alarm clock and busied herself to get ready for work; after 15 quick minutes of getting ready, she hurried over to her bed and got her mic under the covers into her handbag. After checking she hasn't got her crappy sandals on, she rushed out of her apartment and locked her door and hurried down the stairs to the subway line to work.
As she arrived, she was irritated that the subway is currently down due to mechanical issues; seeing that traffic is slower than walking, Retsuko was forced to get to work on foot. When she finally arrived at the office building, she entered the lobby and went in an empty elevator; as she pressed the floor to Accounting, a quick pacing of light footsteps grew increasingly closer to where Retsuko is and she saw it was Tsunoda, who just got in the elevator just in time.
Tsunoda steadied herself onto a handle as she panted hard; Retsuko then noticed that Tsunoda is clutching her phone to her chest and supposed she fell to sleep as she was making some posts. Tsunoda then finally said to Retsuko in between gasps "Hey… Ret… Suko… How… was… your night?" Retsuko then made a shrug and replied casually "Nothing eventful, really…"
Tsunoda nodded slightly as she was catching her own breath; when she finally caught her breath, the elevator doors opened to their floor and they went to the Women's Locker Room to get changed into their work clothes… well Retsuko, anyway. As soon as they entered the Women's Room, a loud voice that Retsuko knew only too well exclaimed "Retsuko! Is it true you're dating Haida now? About time, if you ask me…"
Retsuko raised her brow and inquired "What do you mean, Kabae?" Kabae then leered at Retsuko slyly, making the latter having a sweat drop at the back of her head; Kabae then turned her back to Retsuko and made some banter with some co-workers, letting Retsuko have a sigh of relief. As she went over to her locker, a voice Retsuko knew in an instant said "Retsuko, hey. A bit behind schedule to get here?"
Retsuko replied as she opened her locker, apparently exhausted "Yeah… the train lines are down due to mechanical issues, so I was forced to walk here." Fenneko shook her head silently in amusement and noted "If the traffic wasn't really jammed often, you might want to hail a cab or call a friend to drive you to work."
Retsuko then countered as she buttoned up her shirt "There's no way I'm taking a cab, it smells badly of cigarettes and expired alcohol; as far as getting a friend to pick me up, I'm well aware that neither you, Tsunoda or Haida owns a car." Fenneko then resigned as she was fixing up her collar "Yeah… I suppose you're right… Come on, let's get to our work stations before Mr. Ton gives a crappy excuse to make us get more paperwork done."
Retsuko nodded silently, before she packed her belongings in her locker and went to her work station; as she entered the Accounting Offices, she noticed Haida busying himself with a few piles of paper at his work station. She then looked over at her desk and understood why there were less paper than normal: Haida willingly took some work for Retsuko.
She smiled a little at Haida's kind nature, before her smile turned into panic as she saw it was only 3 minutes til 9:00; what's worse, today's Monday and it means it's her turn to tidy up Mr Ton's Desk. Speeding like a roadrunner, she cleaned Ton's Desk, replaced the flowers in the vase and refilled the humidifier with just a minute to spare; she then noted mentally that the Yoga really is paying off.
Just like clockwork, Mr Ton stormed in anger to his Desk on account of the Transit lines on maintenance; he then looked more clearly at his desk and saw it had been already cleaned, the vase had the flowers replaced and the humidifier had also been refilled. Mr Ton then lifted his head a little to see Retsuko looking at him in fear; he had always given her a hard time at work, making sexist comments about her especially and kept on giving her lots of paperwork even if she was supposed to be off.
Mr Ton then sat down on his chair with a heavy *Flump!* and said "Calendar… Fix me up some hot tea, will ya?" Like usual, Retsuko puts her paws together and replied with a bow "Yes, Mr Ton. Right away, sir." She then trailed off to the Tea Room, unaware that Haida spotted her from the corner of his eyes; he then thought to himself "Retsuko doesn't need to put up such abuse from Mr Ton; sometimes, I just wished I would just stand up and punch him right in his stupid face… *sighs* but I don't want to make things worse."
He then turned back to working on the paperwork just as Retsuko came back, holding a stainless steel tray with a mug of hot tea on it and a crumpet on the side. Retsuko then placed the tray in front of Mr Ton and said with her eyes closed "Here's your tea…" Mr Ton then gave an attentive grunt at Retsuko, when she said "If you'll pardon me… I've got paperwork to do."
Retsuko then turned to her right and went to her desk, when Mr Ton spat out his tea and bellowed "There's very little flavour in this tea! How the hell are you going to keep working if you can't get this simple job right?!" Retsuko subtly clenched her paws in rage and gritted her teeth behind her closed lips; she then thought to herself "If you like Tea the way you wanted it, why not do it yourself you fat boar?"
Mr Ton then said "In fact, why then hell are you even working here?! You are such a poor worker, I think I'll—" Mr Ton was suddenly interrupted by a familiar assertive voice that said "Mr Ton, The President will want to see you in his office right away." Both Retsuko and Mr Ton opened their eyes in surprise to see Washimi standing idle close to the corridor, holding a clipboard and a folder underneath it.
Retsuko felt that Washimi's intervention had saved her from being fired; Mr Ton isn't one to take orders from women, but Washimi is the only staff member that he fears the most, so he stood up and went with Washimi without another word to the President's Office. Retsuko then slumped down on her chair with a sigh of relief and said "That was too close…"
Fenneko replied, not taking her gaze away from the computer as she was typing "I'll say… He may be a fat jerk, but he always behaves himself whenever Washimi is close by, even by earshot." Retsuko then nodded and thought to herself "Thank god Washimi came… This job may be a living hell, but at least I've got friends here who've got my back."
By the time Lunch Break came, Retsuko, Fenneko and Haida were sitting at the table in the break room; Fenneko subtly noticed that whenever Retsuko or Haida glanced at one another, they quickly averted their gaze with a slight blush. Retsuko and Haida have kept quiet on their planned date tomorrow evening, though they have an uneasy feeling that everyone in the building knew Haida has a crush on Retsuko. Why they didn't pointed it out to Retsuko, they haven't got a damn clue, though Haida is glad they didn't tell Retsuko before he did at least.
Fenneko then broke the awkward silence and said while checking some data charts "Bit of a close call earlier, right?" Retsuko replied, swallowing a bite from her Chicken and Mayo sandwich "You're telling me, I was freaking out in my mind at getting fired there." Haida blushed deeply on his muzzle and noted "Honestly, he'd be cracking the whip on the rest of us with you gone… and I—WE… definitely don't want that to happen."
Fenneko glanced suspiciously at Haida; although practically it was true, she knew he can't be working here without Retsuko. Retsuko then nodded in agreement with Haida, wearing a deep blush; she then thought to herself "I'm so glad that Haida is here… If he wasn't, I would've resigned on my first month here."
Retsuko then covered up her infatuation by asking "So Haida, how did you get here earlier than me anyway?" Haida then replied with a slight smile "Uh… I took a cab here…" Retsuko then smiled sweetly at Haida and noted "I had to get here on foot, since the cabs near my apartment aren't hygenic and I don't know anyone who owns a car to give me a lift."
Haida looked at Retsuko in concern briefly, before he replied in a flattering smile "IF I have a car, I would've picked you up without a second thought." Retsuko felt appreciated that Haida would pick her up for work in a heartbeat, before she changed the subject "Um… let's finish our lunch… Break's going to be over in a few minutes." Haida and Fenneko didn't argue with that, so they finished off their meals and puts the containers in the bin before they went back to their workstations.
Throughout the rest of the afternoon, Retsuko and Haida glanced at each other now and then subtly and Mr Ton was surprisingly quiet, not even making a sexist comment when Retsuko handed the paperwork over. When her shift is over, she went to the Women's Locker Room and changed back to her casual clothes; she then said to the other co-workers without turning around "You guys knew Haida had a crush on me, didn't you?" There was some awkward silence in the room, before Kabae replied "Um… Well… Yeah, yeah we did."
Retsuko closed her eyes in irritation, before Tsunoda said "We made a pact to not tell you until Haida says so himself… I mean, he really has feelings about you, but even I'm surprised it took 5 years for him to confess." Retsuko breathed through her nose, before she closed her locker and went to the door, as Fenneko asked "Retsuko, are you okay?" Retsuko just opened the door wide, before she replied in a dull tone "Does it even matter?" Every female co-worker were taken aback at Retsuko's reaction, before they witnessed her leave the Women's Locker Room.
Retsuko then entered a packed elevator and rode it down to the lobby; as she walked sombrely to the front doors, she thought to herself "They knew… Everyone in Accounting, if not the whole building, knew Haida had a crush on me for 5 years… *sighs* Still, it was better that it came from him and not anybody else…"
Retsuko then exited the lobby and went down the stairs, when she got a text on her phone; she pulled it out from her handbag and saw it was a message from Puko. The message reads:
Puko: Hey Retsuko, got time for a chat?
Retsuko then smiled a little and sent a message back to Puko:
Retsuko: Just got off shift on time… for once. XD Where you want to chat?
