Disclaimer: I do not own Oregairu.
~ Hachiman and Yumiko Watches a Rom-Com~
-2 -
"Thank you very much. Hope to see you again soon." Yumiko bowed graciously before our guests with such gusto.
"Thanks, Yumiko-san!"
"Have a safe night, Yumiko-cchi!"
"I had soooo much fun! See ya, Yumiko-san! Bye-bye."
Yumiko saw after the last handful of regulars as I switched the neon sign from Open to Closed. The time was 20:00—closing hour—so now we're officially done for the night.
Finally...
"Phew!" I exhaled, wiping sweat off my forehead with a hand.
"You tired, Hachi?"
Yumiko picked up a plastic bin off the marble stage in the center and scoured the lounge for microphones. It got on my nerves when people forget to put away the mikes before leaving, not that it happened very often. I walked over to the drink bar, positioned in the far left corner, I needed a MAX.
"Yeah, it's been a long day." Indeed it was, we've completed a hectic twelve-hour shift, which was nothing new. "Yumi, want a drink?"
"Water's fine," Yumiko briefly replied.
Yumiko and I owned a business located in the heart of Chiba: a small-scale karaoke bar, HY-Five renamed by Yumiko (previously Trickstar Café), sandwiched between a four-star hotel and shopping center. Because of this, we were always busy during the days we'd opened. That, and because everybody loved Yumiko.
Not that being busy was necessarily a bad thing, our business thrived in the highly competitive economy for that very reason, therefore generating enough revenue to support our standard lifestyle, in tenfold. That was the idea when we bought the place approximately two years ago. To turn a profit.
Before our investment, I worked editing drafts for aspiring novelists, usually at home or at libraries. Yumiko managed a gig at a corporate giant downtown as a cosmetic chemist.
But I'll spare the details...
I retrieved beverages from the drink bar and head over to the front counter, where Yumiko was now standing, scribbling on paper, tallying receipt totals. Yumiko routinely does this after work. Even at twenty-eight, I'd improved very little in math, so Yumiko handled all the math-related tasks.
"Here you go." I set the bottled water down on the counter, stationing myself right next to Yumiko.
"Thanks, Hachi." She briefly acknowledged me with a cheery gaze, then resumed the task at hand. "You've done everything?"
I always "done everything" twenty minutes before closing, to ensure a quick exit. At first we split the duties 50/50, but things were far more efficient when Yumiko tallied receipts from the get go. We always went home sooner.
"Uh-huh." I took a sip of MAX Coffee.
"Drink bar?" Yumiko asked.
"All clean," I said, not missing a beat.
"Snack bar?"
"Same."
"VIP Area?"
"Chairs are up."
"Karaoke booths?"
"Touchpads, reseted. Monitors are off. Shelves, organized."
"Restrooms?"
I shuddered as if reliving unpleasant memories. "...Yeah."
"You're the best, y'know that. Dunno what I do without you, Hachi..."
"I mean, what good am I if I can't do my part?" I shrugged my shoulders as if to say, It's no big deal.
The only response she gave was a brief sidelong glance and a bright smile.
Yumiko strongly believed in not hiring employees to work until we seriously considered having children— so we could "relax" more often when that time comes. Personally, I was not ready to share Yumiko with anybody quite yet, so producing offspring was out of the equation, for me at least.
However...
Regardless of my ideal, if Yumiko were to make the request at a moment's notice, I'll fulfill her wish without hesitation.
Until then I, Hikigaya Hachiman, will continue assuming restrooms' duties... self-deprecating LOL.
"Almost done?" I said.
"Just about... Gimme, like, three minutes."
"Want me to start the car?"
Yumiko answered with a nod.
"Okay." I walked out the building to start said car.
Exactly five minutes later, Yumiko entered through the passenger side and I drove us home in the breathtaking moonlight. Our house was less than ten minutes away.
...
What I usually do when I got home after work was change out my clothes, and watched TV, specifically anime. It seemed most logical after a tiresome day. Upon changing, I headed to the living room and sprawled myself across the couch. I preferred anime in the darkness, when the only source of light was illuminating off the TV. Currently, reruns of Cowboy Bebop was airing.
"Hachi, cook the rice. I'm gonna draw a bath."
"On it."
With my response, Yumiko smiled and headed down the hall to the bathroom, and as instructed, I got up to cook rice before watching anime again. She'll probably be half an hour.
"That was heavenly." Yumiko let out a long blissful sigh as she emerged from the dimly-lit hallway.
It's been twenty-five minutes.
She was clad in a pink robe, the drawstring tied loosely, exposing her cleavage. The robe hugged and complimented the smooth curves and contours of her body seamlessly like it was tailor-made. Her golden hair still slightly wet, but nonetheless maintained its signature curliness. Her majestic green eyes breathed a new life. Needless to say, I was mesmerized. Though I was accustomed to the sight of robed Yumiko, my mouth overloaded with hormonal saliva as if it were the first time.
My heart skipped a beat, two.
"Something's gonna fly inside, y'know," she quipped, chuckling.
I closed my mouth in response. "If it happens, it happens."
"Yeah, yeah..." She impersonated in my voice. Yumiko stepped into the kitchen nearby, and asked, "Shrimp or scallions?"
"You pi..." I stopped myself. "Scallions."
I got up and headed to the kitchen.
After Yumiko cooked the scallions, I scooped the rice into bowls and got chopsticks. Yumiko dumped the scallions onto a plate, placing it middle of the round dining table. We sat across from each other, at our usual spots and ate. We had a four-seated dining table. No one ever occupied the other seats... except Komachi when she comes over. To my right was Komachi's reserved spot.
"Hachi, I was thinking we'd watch a movie after."
"Sure," I said.
"I already have the one in mind."
I swallowed the last of my food. "Let me guess..." I pretended to think over it. "... it's a romantic comedy?"
"That, it is." Yumiko grinned from ear to ear.
...
After dinner, Yumiko put up the romantic comedy on the TV, via streaming service. We were both situated on the couch in the living room, one lamplight on from her side. Only when we watched horror together are all the lights off. I liked the lights off completely regardless, but she preferred it this way.
Her head slumped against my shoulder as the movie began. I kept my eyes on the screen, but my mind was elsewhere... That's definitely lavender breeze. God, that smells so good.
Letters from Uehara-kun, eh? Sounds corny as hell.
I still never understood romantic comedies. The only positive about sitting through an one hour and a half rom-com was that Yumiko's body, as the movie went on and on, would find new ways to be intimate with mine. Sometime she doesn't realize she's doing it either, oddly enough... not that I'm one to complain.
The scene started off displaying a fireplace in what appeared to be a cabin. The camera zoomed into the fireplace slowly, more slowly, foreboding music started to play. Then, white envelopes are being shoveled into the flames by some mysterious figure wearing snow boots.
I immediately lost interest, not that I had any to begin with. My eyes were still on the screen, though.
Yumiko hated it when my eyes wander off during movies.
Twenty-something minutes into it, I was confused. There was a love triangle, and then a boat exploded. The plot and pacing was all over the place. Is this even a rom-com? I scratched my head in complete atonishment. Yumiko was into it, holding her breath like something big was about to happen.
While she held her breath, I felt soft fingers clinging onto my shirt, near the waist. Warm...
An hour or something (I lost track of time) into it, I had to balance my head on my hand to avoid falling asleep, but that's no good. I'm on the verge of losing consciousness as we speak, eyes drooping, vision going black...
"I'M IN LOVE WITH SOMEONE ELSE!"
My eyes peeled open to the ear-deafening howl. Yumiko gasped at I think it's Ueha-something's sudden burst of affection as if not expecting this turn of events. I looked at the screen, and the girl he made the claim to started to sob uncontrollably.
What the hell is going on?!
With that thought, my lap became heavier. I glance down to see Yumiko's legs stretched out across it. In addition, her arms latched around my neck like a knitted scarf. I could no longer concentrate on the screen, but on silky smooth legs. My entire body tingled with excitement, most notably my—
BOOOOOM!
I shifted my attention to the screen. Another boat exploded.
I was fully invested in the movie now, but not for the reasons you'd think. Seriously, what the hell is going on?!
A/N: Another moderately-time drabble.
Hope you guys had a good time with this one.
Liked it? Let me know.
As always, thanks for reading.