Author's Note:
I was finally able to complete chapter 5 of No Matter How Far Apart, We Come Together Every Time. And after moaning about it to myself for so long I'm actually very pleased with it now. It was a hard chapter to write with a long build-up before hell breaks loose, but I'm feeling more confident now that it'll please everyone who reads it when I can start publishing.
Meanwhile, in my Sailor Minis series, I hope I was able to add an entertaining chapter where four unlikely people meet one late afternoon.
Please enjoy.
Adventures in shopping
Juuban Supermarket. A model of retail excellence in the capital.
A reputation earned by over a century of dedicated service to the needs of over a hundred thousand customers every day.
Generations of Minato-ku citizens have confirmed their choice of Juuban Supermarket for their everyday grocery purchases decade after decade.
From father to son, the Ishikawa family led this modest local monument of Tokyo retail as responsible fathers with their family of employees.
It was with great sadness then, that in the winter of the year 1996, the dozens of employees at Juuban Supermarket heard that the place many of them worked at since high school graduation would be taken over by the Azabu Group.
There was much insecurity and concern in the first months after the announcement. Not just from the employees, but every bit as much from the local customers.
When rumors surfaced that the man put in charge as store manager by Azabu Group recently ended a period of hospitalization due to psychological problems these concerns only increased.
It is in this situation that Touki Urawa found himself when having dealt as well as he could with the onslaught of a life-shattering ordeal, he was pushed into an unwanted promotion as a "reward" for past services by the Azabu Group.
Touki would not be the man he was if he hadn't bitterly decided to deal with the situation according to the personal mission statement of "Handling the position to the best and worst of his abilities so that the rapacious and depraved higher-ups could judge for themselves how much "merit" lay in their decision when things ultimately ended in disaster."
Luckily for everyone involved - safe perhaps Touki himself - he also wouldn't be the man he was if he didn't push himself to make sure everything ended in disaster by immersing himself into the business he was chosen to lead and making sure he understood the ins and outs of the local monument of Tokyo retail.
Taking notice of this ill-tempered sense of responsibility - which was mostly motivated by Touki's insecurity and need for control - the experienced personnel of the new Azabu Juban Supermarket gradually put most of their worries to rest.
When with their help Touki was able to competently (despite one or two deplorable small conflicts of opinion with some of the staff and customers) handle the transition of leadership and supply, the opinions of the customer base also changed for the better.
Every department of Azabu Juuban Supermarket was stocked as thoroughly as usual.
The beauty and hygiene department still supplied the housewife and the office lady with all the attributes to maintain their allure for their husband and promote the health of their children.
The deli department still served students and large families with affordable healthy or less healthy meals without having to lose time cooking.
The assorted beverages department was still able to provide fathers with their beer to relax after a day's work and university students with the basis for a good party.
The pet foods and supplies department still put a dreamy smile on the faces of adolescent men who would at times be struck by the thought of keeping a dog of their own.
The sight of a small can of gourmet dog food can start the motor of imagination in the most cold-hearted of us.
It can lead a young man to the vision of coming home after a long day at school to the welcoming barks of an excited long-eared Spaniel.
It can lead him to the homely fancy of pulling the lid off the can and emptying it to the fond shows of appreciation from his furry companion.
"Oh! Hello Mamoru-kun. What are you doing?"
Startled by the unexpected question from the voice of his girlfriend's brother behind him, an embarrassed Mamoru stealthily placed the can of dog food he was perusing back onto the shelf.
"Hahaha!" The handsome young man sweatdropped as he turned around to face the fourteen-year-old boy in the blue jacket and beige pants whose quizzical look was upon him. "Hello, Shingo-kun. What a surprise seeing you here."
"Yeah…" Shingo said while tilting his head at his sister's boyfriend. "Mother asked me to bring along a daikon radish and a bag of rice from the Supermarket after school.
So what are you doing in the pet food department? I didn't know you had a dog."
"Haha. A friend I made at University in the U.S.A. had a beautiful golden Cocker Spaniel.
We used to go on long walks with Lizzie. We had a few parties at Rick-san's place, after which I invariably woke up with Lizzie sleeping next to me in bed.
She loved it when I fluffed her long ears and… hahaha!"
Mamoru scratched the back of his head with a sheepish laugh when he became aware of the increasingly worried look he got from Shingo.
"Well… A few weeks after I got back I started to miss Lizzie, so I told Usako I was thinking about adopting a dog. Luna disagreed with the idea though."
"Luna?" Shingo frowned at the twenty-year-old young man in the dark-green winter jacket and black trousers. "How would you know whether she agrees or not?"
"Erm… Usako told me her cat dislikes dogs. So…" Mamoru grinned.
"Hahaha!" Shingo laughed along with him. "Yes. I guess most cats would."
"Do you want to shop together?" Mamoru asked with a sideward push of his shopping cart. "I can give you a ride home."
The black-haired telecommunications master stared with confusion at the pained face Shingo made for a moment.
"Well…" His girlfriend's little brother said with a bit of a sour look. "I feel some pressure to make sure I get enough exercise, but I don't want to seem ungrateful to you, Mamoru-kun. And It's nice to spend some time together without Usagi."
"I agree," Mamoru smiled. "Mind if we go by the beverages department after we get your rice? We can go to the fresh produce department before going to the cash register."
"Fine by me," Shingo shrugged.
As they walked side by side through the alleys, the handsome dark-blonde teen felt glad at the chance meeting.
He and Mamoru quickly got along after Usagi introduced the young man to her family as her boyfriend, but due to their age difference and Mamoru having spent so much time studying in America, they hadn't had much opportunity to bond.
"Why do you feel pressure to exercise?" Mamoru asked when they approached the rice and grains aisle.
Sensing the treacherous situation he had gotten himself into with his last remark, Shingo was put on alert immediately as he looked at his about half-a-head-taller older friend.
"I pressure myself," The proud young man truthfully stated with some fake nonchalance. "I think I've gotten too lazy lately and I don't want to take Usagi's bad example."
Mamoru laughed upon hearing the familiar dispute between brother and sister.
Shingo knew Hotaru would never criticize him for not being as active as she is. At the same time, however, his male pride couldn't let him off the hook as to the fact that his girlfriend had become more than his equal in sports.
Ashamed of his motivation, he had been making sure to jog the long way to school every morning while hoping none of Hotaru's friends would see him.
"It's good to exercise," Mamoru said. "But I don't think it should become a punishment.
Physical exercise should be enjoyed. If you don't enjoy what you're doing there are plenty of sports to explore. I'm confident there is an activity fit for everyone to improve their health."
"I guess that's true," Shingo nodded. "But I don't hate jogging."
The two young men stopped in the rice and grain aisle when after a quick search Shingo found the rice brand Ikuko usually used.
"Good fortune that I can ride with you!" The blonde fourteen-year-old said as he lifted a 50-kilo rice bag into the cart. "I can buy two and make the most of the discount Mother told me about. Is that okay?"
"Don't worry. It's fine," Mamoru smiled as he lifted a second bag into their cart. "My trunk is empty and I'm not buying much myself."
"Great. Thanks, Mamoru-kun," Shingo smiled.
"Oh! How's that new television your father bought?" Mamoru asked. "I thought he said he had some problems with it?"
"Did Usagi tell you?" The fourteen-year-old next to him countered as they continued their journey through the aisles. "We had some trouble figuring things out, but Father and I got it working in the end."
"That's good news. Then I can come over and watch Ken Shimamura with you in High Definition?" Mamoru smiled.
"I'm Tashiro. I bring the documents!" Shingo imitated a sketch from the comedian's show while pretending to try and open the door of a refrigerator.
"And then they leave through the conference table!" Mamoru remembered as the two young men laughed.
"The best part is always when Usagi sits in between us and tries to act out the sketch with us," Shingo laughed.
"And then your mother scolds her for acting ridiculous in front of her boyfriend," Mamoru chuckled while fondly remembering the occasional ear-pulling.
"Which Hotaru-chan and Chibi-Usa-chan always seem to find the most amusing part of the show," His girlfriend's younger brother smiled.
Mamoru observed Shingo as they turned the corner into the beverages aisle.
Shingo and Usagi could get in each other's hair at times. But that's just how things get between brother and sister sometimes.
The fourteen-year-old was a serious student and a considerate friend.
Mamoru had learned that Usagi's brother was a little proud and could be demanding, but he found the younger boy to be good company in general.
"Hotaru-chan's birthday is coming in a few weeks," The handsome black-haired young man heard his good companion bring up without a discernible cause.
"That's right," Mamoru pensively reacted before halting his cart at the milk tea. "That's in January, isn't it?"
"Do you and Usagi know what you're getting her?"
"Huh?!" The surprised University student reacted to the unexpected question from a rather intensely staring Shingo. "We've never really… I mean she usually celebrates her birthday with the Out… Tenoh-san and the others."
This seemed to displease Usagi's younger brother.
Mamoru and Usagi had celebrated Hotaru's previous birthday since it was the first one she could invite all of her fellow Senshi to.
Since he nor Usagi had been invited by Hotaru on this occasion, however, he wasn't sure if the six-year-younger girl would want all of them present. Especially with all the friends the black-bobbed stoic made at school.
"But Usagi is also a friend of Hotaru-chan's, isn't she? And you get along when the two of you are at our house?"
Mamoru sheepishly pushed his lower lip against his upper lip and looked from left to right to avoid Shingo's somehow accusing gaze.
"I like Hotaru-chan of course. We're friends, obviously. No less than she and Usagi are.
We went to Meiou-san's birthday party too, so if we're invited I'll gladly come to Hotaru-chan's party. I'll have to ask Usako what we'll get her.
"I think Chibi-Usa-chan will have a few ideas on what to buy Hotaru-chan," Shingo said with a gentle smile.
This made Mamoru feel more at ease. So he started to load a few packages of milk tea into his cart.
"Are you going to play a song for Hotaru-chan with Rei-chan and Minako-chan as the three of you did for Meiou-san's birthday?" The young man in the dark-green winter jacket and black trousers asked. "That was quite the performance you guys managed at the shrine. I didn't know you were at such a level already with your guitar lessons."
"Thank you," Shingo smirked while puffing up his chest. "I made sure to practice to perfection, so I was quite satisfied with the result. Rei-chan and Minako-chan were great too. As expected of an idol, of course. Minako-chan is an amazing performer!"
"It was a wonderful evening, Shingo-kun," The two young men heard a gentle and suave female voice say behind them. "Thank you again for the beautiful birthday present."
To Shingo's slight consternation, Setsuna herself stood at his left shoulder in her inimitable otherworldly splendor.
The young man with the dark-blonde hair had lost most of the awe he used to feel in the company of the greenette back when he first came to visit his girlfriend at the Outer Senshis' apartment. But there was still something unsettling about the handsome university student. As if she saw right through him at any time and knew his every secret.
"Hello Meiou-san," A much more at ease Mamoru warmly greeted the young woman in the brown trousers and matching vest over a thin yellow knitted sweater. "Nice to see you again. Our little group of shoppers keeps growing."
"I'm equally pleasantly surprised, Mamoru-kun," Setsuna smiled. "I was just yesterday remembering our discussion about radio wave oscillation.
You helped me out tremendously in better understanding the subject."
"I'm happy my geek-out during your birthday party wasn't a bore to you," Mamoru chuckled.
"Not at all," Setsuna laughed. "But you will have to excuse me if I launch into an elegy on the beauty of Mori Hanae-san's designs on your birthday."
Feeling left out of the conversation, Shingo's eyes wandered to a stack of Detective Conan iced coffee drinks.
Remembering Hotaru's enthusiasm for the show when they watched it together he took two cans and placed them in the cart
Then he wondered whether he shouldn't buy four cans.
"And what do you and Small Lady have planned for Hotaru-kun's birthday, Shingo-kun?" He heard Setsuna ask.
Mustering all the cool he was master of, the young man in the blue jacket and beige pants faced the suave green-haired beauty.
"I bought her a large panther plushie…" He said.
"Ooh! That's a good choice," An impressed Setsuna reacted while bringing her right hand to her lips.
"Hotaru-kun likes panthers a lot. She'll reserve the television set when there's a documentary on."
"Chibi-Usa and the boys and girls from the club are getting her a shiatsu massage at an onsen."
"Also nice," Mamoru said.
Shingo thought it prudent not to mention the morning serenade he had planned underneath Hotaru's bedroom window on her birthday. Nor his own contribution towards the onsen visit for Chibi-Usa and his girlfriend.
"You know, Shingo-kun," Mamoru smiled. "It made me happy to see how the friendship between you, Hotaru-chan, and Chibi-Usa-chan has been developing.
Both of them have had their share of difficulties, so it's good that they found a kind friend in you. I hope you can continue to watch over them."
"O… of course," A slightly awed Shingo reacted to the responsibility he suddenly felt pushed upon his shoulders while his older friend pushed their cart further along the aisle.
"I wouldn't worry about that, Mamoru-kun," Setsuna said while she and Shingo followed the handsome black-haired man's lead. "I think Shingo-kun will be a very dedicated friend to the girls."
The sly wink from the tall greenette made the blushing Shingo once again feel like she knew more than she was letting on.
"What are you getting Hotaru-chan for her birthday, Meiou-san?" Mamoru asked without looking behind.
"Something that is both cool, sporty, and sexy," Setsuna grinned while glancing at an increasingly uncomfortable Shingo.
"Are… ahem. Are you designing a dress for her?" The young man inquired while increasing his pace until he walked just in front of the young woman.
"It will be so much more than a dress, Shingo-kun!" Setsuna shamelessly gushed about her own creation.
"My birthday gift to Hotaru-kun will be an ultra-versatile all-season leisure outfit that will make our young tomboy shine at any social occasion and make the feelings of the boy she adores clear as day to her."
Mamoru chuckled amusedly at the unusual loquaciousness of the greenette as she made her message clear as day to Shingo by poking the proud dark-blonde boy just to the right of his left scapula.
"... they can just do as they please and nobody tells them off!" The trio heard someone say in an agitated tone around the corner. "Those guys come here proud as peacocks and they treat us like children and expect us to unload with them while talking down to us!"
With a concerned frown, Mamoru turned his cart and steered into the refrigerated area where a short woman with a brown ponytail and a tall athletic man with a short-cropped beige hairdo in green uniforms were unloading stacked trays with bento boxes into the refrigerators.
"I hate those Azabu assholes!" The woman complained to her colleague as she unloaded the bentos.
"Hahahahahahaha!" The beige-haired man who was standing next to her and amusedly listened to her laughed loudly at her frustration to the displeasure of his colleague.
Shingo walked over to the area where the vegetables were displayed together with Setsuna. Neither of them paid attention to Mamoru who was edging towards the two employees.
"Our previous distributor was never late. The drivers never mocked us or disrespected us. They always unloaded everything themselves. They never left any junk behind.
The warehouse and the drivers from Azabu Group treat us like trash and they can keep doing it no matter how many times I complain about it."
"Excuse me, but don't you think it's time you complained a little less?"
Turning pale in mortification, the woman turned around and saw Mamoru standing behind her with a stern look.
Shingo and Setsuna looked up from their conversation as they heard their friend adressing the employee.
"I was able to listen in to your displeased rant from the corner of the aisle," Mamoru scolded the woman while crossing his arms. "In my opinion, this is behavior unsuited in the presence of customers. Would you not agree?"
The 40-something with the brown ponytail and her tall beige-haired colleague stood before the young man with open mouths.
Having picked a daikon radish, Shingo and Setsuna walked over to the group and listened to what their friend had to say.
"B… But… This is a professional discussion about work," The woman tried to defend herself. "I am sorry if it bothers you to hear it, but the way Azabu Group has treated us since the takeover is a disgrace."
"All I hear is that you are damaging the reputation of your employer," An unmoved Mamoru cut in. "In this day and age, you should be grateful to have a job at all."
"What?!" The affronted woman turned red.
"People should…" Mamoru began.
"Excuse me, Kyaku-sama. Is there a problem I can help you with?"
Mamoru saw a lean older man about the same height as him with graying dark-brown hair standing to his right. The man with the wrinkled yet youthful-seeming face was dressed in the green trousers of the Azabu Group but had a brown knitted sweater over his upper body and a badge on his chest with his name that identified him as the store manager.
Mamoru glanced from the man to his employee and hesitated for a second. His relationship with Usagi had taught him to be more forgiving of the flaws he saw in others, having learned that people whom he felt didn't behave properly could sometimes surprise him with the extreme effort they were capable of when it mattered.
The female employee had shocked him with the shamelessness of her public outcry, however. And if he now felt he might have reacted with somewhat less indignation to her he had a duty to report on the cause of their discussion to the inquiry of her employer.
"I was simply having an argument with your employee, Manager-san," The black-haired young man said. "I found her behavior to be unfitting her occupation."
"Can you please be more specific?" Touki Urawa frowned.
"Well, she was complaining about the truck drivers from the distributor among other things. I felt it was disgraceful to talk that way within hearing of customers and I told her so."
"We're very sorry for the disturbance we caused, Manager-san," The beige-haired man said. "Please apologize to the customer, Honda-san."
"But I already did!" The woman stammered in affront.
"You did and I thankfully accept your apology. I hope you realize that behavior was unbecoming," Mamoru sternly addressed the brunette again.
"As human beings, we have a duty to work. As I said before: You are lucky to have a job at all the way the economy is right now…"
"We have a duty to work?" Touki Urawa repeated in a disgusted voice.
"Yes? Mamoru frowned. 'Of course."
"And she should feel lucky to have a job at all?" The lean man in the brown knitted sweater next to him inquired. "Then maybe you should feel lucky Honda-san chose to be present at her place of employment at all. Or is she the only one who should keep her standards low?"
"Excuse me?" Mamoru asked with indignation while Shingo and Setsuna sweatdropped and shared a worried look behind him.
The young man glanced at his interlocutor's nametag again and faintly remembered Ami telling him something about an uncle of Ryo's.
But he didn't remember her saying anything about the man having left the institution he was recovering at nor of his having left the psychiatric hospital and continuing employment.
"Human beings have a duty to work," Touki nearly spat the words. "I hate that mindset so much.
Human beings have only one duty and that is to try and ensure their own wellbeing. If only all human beings were born with an equal capacity to ensure their wellbeing."
"That is egotism in a nutshell," Mamoru bit back in indignation at feeling attacked. "We live in a society and are responsible for each other."
"Oh? Then when does society ever take responsibility for those who fail to ensure their own wellbeing?" Honda-san and Tanaka-san heard their employer state while staring from one man to the other. "The strong stand together in their "society" and prey on the weak. Then they intimidate their victims upon the latter being struck with a mental breakdown and tell them to take responsibility."
"What nonsense," A fuming Mamoru replied with a nervous Setsuna and Shingo watching on. "I think society takes plenty of responsibility to care for those who need mental health care."
"Do you?!" A now furious Touki exclaimed. "Yes. Society takes such good care of us we need to be ace detectives to figure out where, what, and how to get the help we need! And the quality of the help we can get is barely fit for the Sengoku era. Never mind that we are the laughingstock of society for needing that help in the first place!"
"Mamoru-kun…" Setsuna pleaded in a soft but stern voice. "I think you need to disengage from this discussion or it will only get worse."
"Yes," Her friend nodded. "I am deeply dissatisfied with this discussion, Manager-san. But my friends and I need to be on our way.
Let me just say this before I put an end to this matter: I do not feel a man who talks to his customers like you just did to me is fit for his position."
"Well put!" Touki reacted bitterly as Mamoru and his companions walked off. "Thank you for acknowledging this simple fact which my superiors so happily ignore. If only they would give me my old job back. I pleaded to them on more than one occasion."
"I humbly apologize for this situation, Manager-san," Eri Honda bowed in distress at Touki's outburst. "I burdened you through my lack of composure."
"Humph!" Touki huffed with bitter frustration pulsing through his veins as he watched Mamoru and his friends walk towards the cash register.
Then the man turned to his two employees who watched him with confused eyes.
"You are kind for saying so, Honda-san," The man said in a sulking voice and a soothed smile. "But you have done nothing wrong in my opinion.
Please just try and talk more quietly if you feel frustrated about your treatment from our wonderful colleagues in Azabu Group on future occasions. Don't worry about this.
If my masters hear word of this alteration and feel fit to complain about my behavior again I will have a few choice words for their consideration."
Eri and Masaki silently watched their manager walk off in the direction of his office and heaved a sigh.
"I guess the rumors were true then after all," The latter chuckled in relief. "But aren't you lucky he took your side?"
"Shut up, Masaki," Eri grumbled while going back to work. "How about you move your hands around a bit instead of standing around looking pretty?"
With an embarrassed blush, the tall man set to work helping his colleague.
"I think I'll ask Ami-chan about the matter," Mamoru asked a little later after he, Shingo, and Setsuna walked to his car in the underground parking lot.
"If this was Ryo-kun's uncle that explains what he was talking about in his outburst. I'll ask her to let him know I would have reacted differently if I hadn't lost my temper."
"He's the one who should have treated you with proper respect," Shingo commented. "His rant was shameful and uncalled for. More so than the behavior of that woman."
"I suppose that when people are suffering in their personal or professional life they cannot always keep those feelings to themselves," Setsuna gently worded her feelings on the matter while walking behind the two younger men with a brown paper bag in her arms.
"What was uncomfortable to us seemed to have been the result of emotional pain in them."
"Hmm… There might be something to that," Shingo quietly reacted while remembering a few things Hotaru mentioned to him in the course of their relationship that had started to alter his views on the inabilities and vulnerabilities of others.
"Ruminating on the matter made me a little self-absorbed while we were at the cash register, Meiou-san," Mamoru smiled kindly while turning to her upon arriving at his car. "What did you come here to purchase if I may be so curious?"
"Just an eggplant," The greenette smiled. "I sat in class wondering what Haruka-kun would make for dinner tonight and I started craving some yaki nasu."
"I've been wondering if Haruka-kun does all of the cooking for you guys?" Shingo curiously inquired while he and Mamoru stored their groceries in the trunk of the latter's car.
"Haruka-kun makes dinner. Michiru-chan makes breakfast and bentos. I do the laundry and the dishes. Hotaru-kun cleans the apartment," The woman replied.
"Yes," Shingo pondered. "I heard Hotaru-chan mention vacuuming and such. You're well organized."
"Proper agreements are the basis of a healthy household, Shingo-kun," Setsuna suggestively smiled at the young man.
"Y… Yes. I agree."
"Well then,' Mamoru concluded as he closed the trunk of his car. "This is where we part ways. It was nice seeing you again, Meiou-san."
"It was indeed, Mamoru-kun. I suppose the next time we meet will be at Hotaru-kun's birthday party?"
Mamoru eyed Shingo uncertainly.
"I was just wondering if we are invited?" The handsome black-haired man asked.
"Why would you not be?" Setsuna retorted with a tilt of her head. "Rest assured that all four of us want to deepen our friendship with all of you.
There might have been misunderstandings in the past, but… Well, I can only say it seems there are more than a few hotheads between us."
"Hahaha! I can only hang my head in shame," Mamoru joined in the woman's giggle. "And I need to thank you for saving me from making things worse back in the store."
"As for you, young Shingo-kun. You and Small Lady are always welcome at our home as well to deepen your friendship with Hotaru-kun and the rest of us."
"Thank you, Setsuna-san," Shingo smiled.
"Then I wish you both a nice evening and a delicious meal," Setsuna said with a bow.
"Likewise. Have a nice evening," Mamoru said as the greenette turned with a smile and walked toward the door of the stairwell that led to the outside.
"See you soon, Setsuna-san," Shingo called out to the woman.
As he watched his sister's boyfriend follow their female friend with his eyes, Shingo wondered what the two had alluded to when Setsuna said there had been misunderstandings between her housemates and Mamoru and his sister.
He thought it better not to mention it after what had happened though, and supposed he could ask Hotaru sometime.
"Let's get going then," Mamoru finally said as he opened the passenger's door to his younger friend. "You think your mother would invite me to stay if she sees me dropping you off?"
Shingo observed the hopeful expression on the face of the handsome black-haired young man and smirked.
"You don't feel like cooking this evening. Do you, Mamoru-kun?" He asked.
"That and I very much feel like embracing Usako and smelling her hair right now," Mamoru sweatdropped awkwardly.
Acting aloof and confident, Shingo walked over to the passenger's side and patted his sister's boyfriend on the shoulder.
"Leave it to me, buddy," He grinned as he got into the car. "You're eating good today."