"Oh, I have never been inside here."

Mary-san said as she smiled at me.

 

 

“Is the food good?”

I nodded.

“I think so. I’m sure you’d enjoy it.”

If I had to be honest, Mary-san's food was far superior. The way her flavors explode in your mouth made eating out… not worth it anymore. I invited her inside, and the place was actually a little busy.

“Woah, I like the way it feels in here. It reminds me of a restaurant I used to go to when I was a kid.”

She stepped inside, saying things like "Oh" and "Ah." It was a little funny watching her look around like a child in a candy store.

“Ma’am, would you like a table?”

My boss asked. Mary-san turned to her and nodded.

"Oh, no, thank you. I'm just looking at my niece's fancy restaurant.”

“Stop teasing me, Mary-san.”

My auntie took a deep breath then exhaled. She looked as though someone was breathing life into her. The side of her lips raised, and she turned back to me.

“Do you enjoy working here, Madoka-san?”

I thought about it, honestly. The work kept me busy and out of my own head. The pay was okay for a high school girl like me, and my coworkers were friendly for the most part.

“Yeah, I do like working here. It keeps me busy.”

“That’s good at your age. It keeps you out of trouble and gives you hardworking traits.”

Mary-san turned to the door.

“Well, I won’t embarrass you any longer. Would you like me to pick you up later tonight?”

I thought about it. I would have to take the train in an unfamiliar direction late at night. Not only that, I’d have to get off and walk my way to Mary-san's home alone. I'm sure it would be fine, but I wanted to be safe, so I decided it would be best to take her offer.

“Sure. I’m off at 10:00 PM. Thanks a lot, Mary-san…."

Slightly ashamed, I pulled one of my hair strains in a sad attempt to distract myself.

“Naka…Onee-san?”

Mary-san and I turned to the door to see an ivy-haired elementary schooler. Her tiny feet bounced across the restaurant floor. In her hand was her backpack. It was bright red and pretty big for her small size.

 

 

“Nagumi-chan.”

I called out to her cutely. Tenderly, I waved to her as she walked closer to me. She didn't say anything as she looked at Mary-san. Holding her backpack in her arms, the timid girl looked up at my auntie a tad suspiciously.

"Ah..."

She attempted to speak before pushing her head down and looking at my auntie. Nagumi-chan pushed the backpack over her lips and looked away. Hastily, she rushed to the back of the restaurant and hid away at her booth table.

“She’s a shy one. How do you know her, Madoka-san?”

“Nagumi-chan is my classmate's little sister.”

Mary-san looked towards Nagumi-chan. The elementary schooler was getting her homework out after sitting down. With her arm deep in her backpack, she glanced at me. Timidly, she brought out her folders and papers. I could see that Nagumi-chan was setting up her work area specifically so I could help her out. She would look up at me, back at her homework, and then back at me. She was so shy that I was going crazy just looking at her.

“Kids seem to like you, Madoka-san."

Mary-san said as she glanced over at Nagumi-chan. My auntie looked awestruck at the cute motions she was making too. It made me wonder if she… might like kids also.

“They are just… adorable, Mary-san!”

“Yeah…”

We watched her fiddle around for a moment more before the big sister stepped in.

“Oh, you’re here early, Nakagawa-san.”

Okabe-san approached and stopped next to us. She looked at Mary-san with wide eyes.

“Ah, hello…”

Mary-san said with a charming smile.

"Oh... ah... hi."

Okabe-san greeted meekly. Her voice peaked sharply as she tried to catch her breath.

 

 

I didn’t expect that expression from her. Her eyes were wide, and she looked a bit taken aback by my auntie. Okabe-san’s almond eyes darted away as she gazed at Nagumi-chan.

“Madoka-san, is this your coworker?”

“Yeah, her name is Okabe Kasumi-san.”

I showed off Mary-san like a trophy as I told her.

“Okabe-san, this is Auburn Mary-san. She is my auntie.”

Okabe-san pulled her hair as she looked away. Her cheeks were a tad red and… It surprised me because I’ve never seen her act this way.

“It’s nice to meet you, Okabe-san. Please take good care of Madoka-san for me.”

“You don’t have to worry about that, Mary-san. She's the hardest working person here, and the girl in the back is her little sister."

Okabe-san huffed and pushed my shoulder.

"Shut up! I have to clock in… you still have an hour, don't you, Nakagawa-san?”

I giggled as I nodded.

“Yeah.”

“Nagumi-chan has been rebellious lately. She’s not completely done with her homework… I think she wants you to help her out."

Mary-san giggled, and Okabe-san stiffened up, turned to the side, and looked away slightly.

“Ah… can you try to help me break this bad habit? I… I think Nagumi-chan’s doing this for attention. If she starts doing bad things for the attention she wants... it’ll only get worse in the future.”

Okabe-san explained.

“Sure, I’ll do my best, Okabe-san.”

With a sharp sigh, she bowed slightly to Mary-san and me.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

My coworker went to the time clock, punched in, and went towards the locker room. She tripped but caught herself on the door, and looked back at us. It… was cute seeing her like this, but I couldn't understand what was making her so self-conscious.

I looked up at Mary-san.

“Well, I’m going to help out Nagumi-chan. I’ll see you at 10 PM, alright?”

“Sure, see you soon. Have a great day at work.”

Mary-san flipped her hair and made her way out the door. She waved me goodbye as she left the restaurant. After she left, Okabe-san came up to me. She wasn't dressed in her uniform yet, and it looked as though she was partway through taking off her own casual jacket.

"Okay, I have a question, Nakagawa-san…."

“Oh, what is it?”

"She's the one that picked you up the other day. I-Is she a model or something… normal people, don't look like her."

This side to Okabe-san was fascinating. I think… that was the closest thing to a compliment I’d heard her say.

“Actually, she is.”

Surprised, she turned back to me.

“No, shit? Really?”

I nodded.

"Yep. I'm not sure what happened, but Mary-san used to be a model. I'll show you some pictures on my break."

Okabe-san scratched her cheek.

“Tsk, don’t worry about it. I need to get to work.”

She walked back into the locker. I turned to my little Nagumi-chan. She was peeking up every now and then, looking towards me. Not wanting to keep her waiting any longer, I walked over to the back of the room. The little girl’s eyes began to shine as she gave me a slight smile.

“Nagumi-chan!”

The little girl straightened her back as she watched me hover over her. Instead of saying anything, she rubbed her left cheek with her arm and looked back at her work.

“Do you want me to help you?”

I looked over her work. It seemed she was doing multiplication and division. Last I saw, she was doing multiplication only. It would appear that her class is moving forward with their studies at a reasonable rate. I sat down next to her.

“Huh?”

The small girl pushed her body closer to me as she pointed to the paper. I took a look at it again and what Okabe-san mentioned stared at me. She was skipping problems, and the ones she'd missed seemed more straightforward than the others. It was apparent that she… likely just wanted to do homework with someone.

“Hey… what’s this answer?”

I asked as I pointed to one that said 5x5. Nagumi-chan's eyes lowered, and a smile appeared on her face. Nagumi-chan wasn't very talkative, and it made me wonder if this was because… of how her father was neglecting her. Could it be that she hid in a shell… and this was her way of trying to express herself?

Eventually, she wrote the correct answer: 25. She looked at me as I gave her a pat on the head.

“You already knew that answer because you’re smart, Nagumi-chan… why skip it?”

Her eyes lowered again as she looked to the side. Her shoulders dropped down slightly as if rocks were placed on them.

“…I don’t know.”

She confessed. Her high-pitched voice had a hint of sadness as she was caught. I took my arms around her and gave her the biggest hug I could.

“Did you want to save some problems for me?”

I teased. I think it was the right way to go as she began to giggle.

“…Naka-Onee…”

We continued to do her homework. She would answer them all on her own, and I'd just praise her from the side. Occasionally, I would poke her nose, causing her to giggle. Nagumi-chan… was having a good time.

“Madoka-san!”

During the last question on the homework sheet, the boss lady came in. She had a brand new suit that looked a lot warmer than the one she usually wore. Risa-san set down her briefcase at her favorite table then walked over to Nagumi-chan and me.

“In…”

She tugged my sheet. It… looked like she wanted to keep my attention. Could it be that Nagumi-chan was a tad jealous?

“Are you both doing homework right now?”

The boss lady asked as she looked over the paper. With a cute sigh, Nagumi-chan nodded.

“Good work, Nagumi-chan!”.

Risa-san teased.

The little girl blushed as she hid behind me. She didn’t say much of anything. But I was beginning to see that Nagumi-chan expressed herself through her actions, making her that much cuter.

"Well, I'm going to order my usual and start writing."

Suddenly, Risa leaned down, put her face close to mine, and rubbed her small nose on mine. I could feel her hot breath trickle on my lips, and it caused my head to start spinning.

“You know where to find me.”

 

 

She teased, causing my body to warm up. With a spin, she swung that butt of hers back and forth as she made her way back to her table.

Risa-san… was as aggressive as ever, and she knew just how to keep me on my toes without letting me fall over entirely.

So for the time being, I continued helping Nagumi-chan finish up her homework. She seemed to enjoy every minute of it.