Electronic Store

 

The man behind the counter handed Reiki a hand-drawn map, he said. “Here you go.” Reiki took it off his hands, he said. “Thanks, mister.” He glanced at the subpar drawing on it and thought. This guy has no artistic talent. Reiki started folding the map while the cashier had a hint of embarrassment on his face. The man said. “A-Are you sure you don’t need me to guide you?” Reiki placed the map into the plastic bag and said. “It’s fine, you’ve already helped me enough.”  Reiki moved his gaze onto the small display beside the counter, he said. “Mister, how much for a pack of zip ties?”

 

The cashier used his hand to feel his pocket which had a faint outline of a key on it, he said. “Two hundred yen including tax.” Reiki took out a five hundred yen coin from his pocket, placed it on the counter, and said. “Two please.” The man behind the counter took the key from his pocket as he made his way to the display. He said. “What’s the story behind the zip ties?” The man unblocked it while Reiki said. “Mom tripped over some loose cables for Dad's PC and gave him a scolding. He said zip ties are a good way to tie them up.”

 

The cashier took out a couple of packs of zip ties, made his way back to the counter, and placed it beside the five hundred yen coin. He said. “Do you want another bag?” Reiki placed one of the packs of zip ties into the plastic bag he was holding onto, he said. “I’m good with one.” He grabbed the other pack while the cashier took the coin and opened the cashier drawer. Reiki stared at the pack of zip ties, he thought. Two packs with twenty black zip ties each. He placed it inside his plastic bag while the man behind the cashier placed a hundred yen coin on the counter.

 

The man said. “Your change comes to a hundred yen.” He tapped on the screen a couple of times while Reiki pocketed the hundred yen coin as he gave him a small wave. Reiki said. “Bye, mister.” He made his way out of the store while the man returned the wave while watching Reiki make his way out. The man thought. … Good kid, I hope he has a fun time helping his dad build the dog house. Reiki started looking for an elevator, he thought. My cheeks hurt from trying to keep a smile for too long. He rubbed his right cheek.

 

Reiki continued his train of thought. I completely forgot asking for help is a bad thing since they tend to go the extra mile to the point it’s detrimental to them… He saw the elevator as a small group of people walked in, Reiki quickly made his way toward it and said. “Wait, I’m also getting on.” A female saw a young boy hurriedly running toward them and quickly pressed the button to keep the door open. Reiki reached inside the elevator as he gave the woman who kept the door open a smile, he said. “Thank you, nee-san.” The woman returned the smile and said. “What floor?” Reiki stood beside her and said. “Eighth floor please.”

 

The woman pressed the button that had a number eight on it lighting up as a couple of buttons on the panel were also glowing. The elevator door closed by itself as it went up while simple music started to play. The woman glanced at Reiki from the corner of her eye and said. “Why are you visiting yodobashi?” Reiki placed his hand inside the plastic bag and took out the drawn map, he said. “I’m helping my dad build a dog house. I asked the mister behind the counter for directions and he gave me this map.”

 

The elevator reached a floor the button was pressed as it slowly came to a halt. The door slid open as a couple of people walked out while Reiki showed the map to the woman who asked. Her expression turned a bit odd seeing it, she said. “He didn’t offer to walk you there?” The elevator closed as it slowly started going back up while Reiki folded the map and said. “He did, but I turned it down because there was no one else to watch the store.” He placed the map back into the plastic bag while the woman standing beside him had a hint of concern on her face.

 

The woman said. “Won’t you get lost?” The elevator slowly stopped as the door slid open as a woman walked out of it. Reiki shook his head sideways as he pressed the button to close the door, he said. “I’ll be fine, I’ve already memorized my home address. Plus I know the store's name so I could ask for directions if needed.” The elevator door closed as it started to move up while the concern on the woman's face was slightly relieved, she was about to say something as the elevator quickly reached the next floor.

 

The door opened as the woman quickly spoke and said. “Good luck and make sure to ask for directions.” She walked out of the elevator along with the last couple standing at the back of the elevator leaving Reiki alone. He pressed the button to close the door as the elevator started to go up again, Reiki took the drawn map from the plastic bag, crumpled it, and placed it inside his pocket. He thought. Points for effort, but if someone used this they’ll end up lost or worse, kidnapped. He watched the buttons light up as the elevator slowly reached his floor.

 

The door slid open as Reiki saw long hallways with countless food stalls on both sides, he walked out of the elevator and took a small whiff of the smell of food lingering in the air. He thought. I hope the food here is passable. He ignored all the side-eye glances people were giving him as the elevator behind Reiki started to close. He walked down one of the long hallways while judging the food stalls. He walked past signboards with menus on them, with some plastic food being presented as people sitting on chairs eating.

 

He saw three recycle bins of different colors as he walked toward them and threw the crumpled map into the blue trash bin. Reiki felt a bill in his pocket and took it out while making sure to hide it in his hand, he slightly opened his hand revealing a bloody ten thousand yen bill. He thought. I’m going to have to wash this… He made his way down the long hallway while passing by the lively food court, Reiki continued his train of thought. I’ve passed countless food stalls and I’ve only seen three trash cans… 

 

Reiki kept walking but came to a sudden stop as a waiter served a plate of pizza to a table, he let out a sigh and thought. Now I remember why my few visits to Japan were a month at best… That ‘pizza’ is basically bread with tomato sauce and cheese on top. He went back to walking while shaking his head sideways, Reiki continued his train of thought. … I think I should just cut my losses and head to the store... He walked past another food stall as a group of people left as they made their way down the hall.

 

Reiki took a right turn as he saw a stall selling different types of rice bowls, he thought. They’re selling katsudon for… Three thousand yen… A man wearing apprentice chef’s clothing placed a bowl of pork cutlet in front of another man wearing a suit as he sat at a bar counter. Reiki watched the man split apart the wooden chopsticks as his gaze moved onto the normal size bowl. Reiki thought. Fuck that, I’d rather starve. He turned around and made his way to the elevator.

 

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Classroom

 

Shiro, Yuki, and Mio had their desks huddled together. Yuki placed a bento into her pouch and said. “Thanks for bringing our bentos, Shiro.” Mio was in the middle of reading a book as she managed to pry her eyes away from it and onto her friend. She said. “Are you sure Reiki’s fine with making our lunches?” Shiro’s right hand was in an ocean-blue pouch, she gave her friend a reassuring nod and said. “It’s fine, even if Onii-chan complained I could always tell Onee-chan.”

 

Yuki let out a chuckle, she said. “That’s one way to guarantee our lunch.” MIo had a smile on her face while she was back reading the book she was holding onto, she said. “Speaking of food, Yuki. Don’t you get tired of eating chicken every day?” Shiro took out a notebook and a couple of mechanical pencils from the pouch while Yuki crossed her arms. Yuki said. “I’ve already gotten sick of chicken when I was five.”

 

Shiro took out a book from the pouch and said. “Then how come you never asked for something else?” Yuki placed her left elbow on her desk and rested her chin on the palm of her hand, she said. “It’s either that turkey or salmon. I’ve given up on turkey on the count of how many bones it has. Salmon on the other hand costs a lot so it wasn’t a long-term option.” Yuki thought for a moment while Mio flipped to the next page as Shiro opened her notebook and started going through the table of contents of a book.

 

Yuki continued. “But, I did like black beans, avocado, and a sunny side egg on top of rice.” Shiro was still searching through the table of contents while Mio moved her gaze onto Yuki. Mio said. “Why aren’t those in your lunch then?” Yuki let out a chuckle while her gaze wandered onto the cover of the book Shiro was holding. Yuki said. “It tasted good, but made my farts smell like chemical warfare.” Shiro started laughing as she let go of the book she was holding and lightly smacked her desk a couple of times.

 

Mio glared at her friend as Yuki had an innocent look on her face as she turned her head to see the angry look on her friend's face. Yuki said. “What?” Mio placed the book on her desk and said. “Really? Chemical warfare smelling fa-? I can’t even finish that word.” A few of the other desks that were mainly made with boys were grinning while the girls pretended to not have heard anything. Yuki rolled her eyes at her while Shiro’s laughter slowly died down. Yuki said. “What? Everyone does it. You’re resting as if I proved a math formula to be wrong.”

 

She glanced at the few groups of boys who had stupid grins on their faces as her eyes narrowed, Yuki continued. “Since they have the guts to grin, I would assume no one would turn down a spar.” All the boys instantly panicked as a few of them quickly turned their heads or used a book to hide their faces. Shiro used her left hand to flip to the next page of the table of contents, she said. “Mio it’s fine, besides. Yuki does have a point about everyone doing it.”

 

Mio picked up one side of the book with her right hand, she said. “It’s not about the… Gas… It’s about how she compared it to chemical warfare.” Shiro started giggling while Mio let out a sigh and said. “Shiro, you’re encouraging her.” Yuki was still resting her head on her left palm and used her right fingers to softly tap on her desk, she said. “Just to prove a point, I’m going to ask Reiki to make that dish for tournament day so you can judge for yourself.” Mio glared at her and said. “Don’t. You. Dare.”

 

Yuki’s mouth curled into a mischievous cat-like smile, she said. “Why not? I just want to try it again.” Shiro found the page she was looking for and thought. Page sixty-two. She said. “Mio, we’ve never once managed to change her mind.” Mio turned her head as she watched Shiro quickly flip through the pages. Mio said. “Don’t forget, we have to be in the same room with her.” Shiro wasn’t bothered by that fact as she reached the page she was searching for, she said. “We can just open a window.” Mio stared at her and said. “Then you can be responsible for explaining why Yuki’s… Gas smells like that to Reiki.”

 

Shiro was reaching for her notebook as she had a horrifying realization, she turned her head to Yuki and saw the mischievous cat-like smile on Yuki’s face. Shiro said. “Y-Yuki, how about we-.” She stopped mid-sentence when she saw the cat-like smile on her face turned smug and grew even bigger. Yuki tilted her head to the side and said. “We what, Shiro? I just want Reiki to make one of my old meals.” She took out a pouch from her pocket and placed her hand in it.

 

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Hardware Store

 

The door opened as the man standing beside the cashier by a long display case said. “Welcome.” He moved his gaze onto the young boy who was looking around, he thought. Why is a kid here? Reiki made his way to the man behind the counter. Reiki said. “Mister, I need a nail gun, a drill, two lightbulbs, and a hammer.” The man had an odd look on his face, he said. “... Are you going to be the one using those?...” Reiki shook his head sideways and said. “No, Dad’s building a dog house. All I’m doing is shopping, I get to watch him though.”

 

The man let out a long exhale through his nose from relief, he thought. Ok, he’s just shopping… He cleared his throat and said. “For the drill and nail gun, did your father specify if he wanted one with a wire or batteries?” Reiki pretended to be interested in all the different sizes of nuts and bolts on display, he said. “Batteries, he told me the extension doesn’t reach and he can use them to help the neighbors.” The man behind the counter pointed at the far side of the section.

 

He said. “The drills and nail gun are over there…” His gaze wandered onto the shelves and thought. What he needs is on the… He moved his gaze onto Reiki and said. “I’ll get those two for you since they’re on the top shelf.” Reiki looked up to him, he said. “Thanks, mister.” The man made his way to the shelves while Reiki stood beside the display, he thought. After these, all I need are a disposable razor and a couple of metal baseball bats… Souvenirs, can’t forget about those, or else Onee-chan will send me back here on foot…

 

The man was carrying a stack of two rectangular nearly flat boxes as he made his way behind the display and placed them on the counter. He said. “Does your father have any batteries?” Reiki thought for a moment and said. “He has a drawer that has triple A’s in them.” The man separated the box as he placed his hand on top of the nail gun, he said. “This model of nail gun needs an 8.0 Ah Lithium-Ion Battery Pack.” He moved his hand on the box of the drill and continued. “The drill on the other hand needs-.”

 

Reiki waved his hand which got the man’s attention as he stopped talking. Reiki said. “Mister, can’t I just buy them from you?” The man had a frozen expression on his face, he tapped on the box a couple of times and said. “... Give me a moment to drop by the battery section.” The man made his way to the section near the wall while Reiki stared at the two boxes on the counter, he thought. … I’m so tempted to steal that and just put those in my pouch. He glanced at the corner of his eye and stared at the camera that was pointing toward the counter.

 

Reiki continued his train of thought. If that camera wasn’t there. The man was carrying a couple of medium-sized boxes stacked on top of each other, he made his way behind the display and placed them on top of the other two. He said. “Here are the batteries.” The man moved his voice onto Reiki and continued. “Do you want me to put the batteries on for both of them?” Reiki moved his gaze onto the boxes on the counter, he said. “It’s fine, my Dad wanted to assemble these himself.”

 

Reiki looked up to the man and continued. “Mister, do you have a standard light bulb?” The man behind the counter took out a large plastic bag from one of the cabinets, he pointed at the edge of the store. He said. “It’s by the battery section at the corner.” Reiki said. “Thank you.” He made his way to the corner while the man placed the large plastic bag on the counter and started scanning the barcodes. Reiki made his way to the corner of the room as he walked past the section of batteries and saw one with a row of light bulbs.

 

He picked up a couple of the largest light bulbs on the shelf, Reiki thought. Perfect for getting stuck in someone’s mouth. He made his way back to the cashier and placed the two bulbs on the counter, Reiki said. “Mister, this is everything I need.” The man behind the counter picked up one of the light bulbs as he placed it back down and started typing on a keyboard. He said. “Two twenty-watt light bulbs.”

 

________________________________________________________________________________

Modern Cafe

 

Ketsueki, Sachi, and Namida were sitting around a square table as they sat on chairs. A waitress was carrying a tray with her right hand that had three large parfaits on it and made her way to the girls' table. The waitress started placing the parfaits on the table while naming the flavors, she said. “Strawberry, coffee, and pistachio. Please feel free to press the button on the side if you need anything.” The waitress made her way to the backroom while Ketsueki picked up a parfait spoon, she said. “This place is a bit too close to the company for my taste.”

 

Sachi picked up the parfait spoon and used it to scoop a bit of whipped cream, she said. “That’s the main reason no one from there drops by. I should know, this is where I take my breaks.” Namida used her index finger to tap on the table a few times, she said. “I ordered cheesecake, where is it?” Ketsueki placed her parfait spoon on top of the napkin, quickly grabbed the menu on the holder, and said. “They have cheesecakes?!” Namida pressed the button on the side as it faintly glowed a sharp red. Sachi used the napkin to wipe her lips clean, she said. “What kind do they have?”

 

Ketsueki’s eyes widened as she showed the menu to Sachi and said. “They have baklava cheesecake!” Namida picked up her parfait spoon, she said. “That’s what I ordered.” Ketsueki and Sachi glared at her as Namida gave them a clueless look and said. “What?” Ketsueki placed the menu back on the holder while Sachi used the parfait spoon to scoop some ice cream. Sachi said. “You ordered cheesecake and didn’t tell us?” Namida used her hand to pick up the confectionery stabbed into the ice cream, she said. “I ordered an entire one for us to share.”

 

The glares on Sachi and Ketsueki's faces were instantly replaced with smiles. Namida had a knowing smile on her face while Sachi playfully tapped on her friend's shoulder. Sachi said. “We’re just messing with you.” Namida nodded along to what she said while Ketsueki lightly tapped on the back of Namida’s hand that was resting on the table. Ketsueki said. “If you’re interested, she’s looking for a sugar daddy.” Sachi almost spat out the ice cream in her mouth while Namida let out a laugh. Namida managed to speak out a sentence and said. “No offense, but I’ll pass. I don’t have the money to support her spending habits.”

 

Sachi picked up her glass of water and took a sip of it, she said. “You wish you had that kind of money.” She placed her glass of water back on the table while Namida’s laughter slowly died down. Namida said. “Technically, I do. I just don’t have access to it until I’m the head.” They saw the waitress making her way to their table, she said. “Is there anything I can help with?” Namida raised her hand which caught her attention, she said. “I ordered an entire baklava cheesecake.” The waitress gave her a business smile and said. “My apologies, I forgot to tell you that the cheesecake is cooling down from baking.”

 

Namida had a look of understanding on her face, she said. “In that case, I think my friends wanted to order something.” Ketsueki raised her index finger and said. “I saw a cherry pie, can I have a slice?” Sachi gulped down some ice cream in her mouth, she said. “Me too.” Namida looked up to the waitress and said. “Just make it an entire pie.”