3

A few days later.

“Order!”

“Okay!” I yelled, taking the order slip and quickly reading through it.

Kokoro and I had our shifts for a little over a month scheduled, and this was my third day of training.

My training consisted of working in the already existing maid café, learning from the manager and the other staff.

Other than the actual kitchen work, I also had to help with opening and closing the place, so there was a lot to remember. I took notes whenever I could and looked over them in my free time, and I felt that I was starting to get the hang of it.

As Kokoro had said, learning how to actually do my job was the first step I needed to take if I wanted to use this as an opportunity to become closer to Mashiro, and I was doing my best to achieve that.

“So... One omurice, spaghetti bolognese, a hot coffee, and a latte...” I repeated to myself.

I didn’t have all the recipes memorized yet—I followed the recipe book I’d been given. In case I needed assistance, I could also ask my more experienced colleague, who was currently in the break room.

Cafés like this normally served premade, reheated food, but that was not the case here. When he was interviewing us, the owner had told us that at his cafés, the staff cooked everything from scratch. He hadn’t been lying. As impressive as that was, it made preparing orders that much slower and harder.

First of all, I had to take care of the drinks, so I made the coffee and the latte. I took two mugs from the shelf, and the powdered coffee.

How many teaspoons am I supposed to use...? Better check...

Having to remember where everything was and how I had to plate the various dishes was already stressful enough, so I was glad that I was actually somewhat comfortable with cooking to begin with. If I didn’t often have to cook meals for myself at home, this job would have been even more difficult.

And it sure was difficult...

“You new here, kid? You’re so shaky...”

“Oh? Y-Yes, I am! Hahaha...”

For me, this was the most unexpected and challenging part. The kitchen was in plain sight of the dining hall, so the customers sitting at the counter would sometimes strike up conversations with me. I’d thought that only maids had to worry about that, but I was wrong, and I’d been told things would be similar in the new café too.

When a customer entered the shop, they were first asked whether they wanted to sit at a table or at the counter. Choosing the latter meant being right in front of the kitchen, where, except for the occasional veteran maid, there was nobody but us male kitchen staff. Despite this, loads of people still chose the counter and spoke to us. Of course the maids spoke with these customers as well, but most of their time was spent near the tables.

I don’t get why these people would choose to sit here given the option. What’s so fun about chatting with other dudes?

The manager had also told me to improve my conversation skills. Not only did I have to reply to customers when they addressed me, but I actually had to initiate conversations too...

“S-So, have you been here before?” I asked the customer as I boiled the spaghetti. Having to talk while cooking was hard. One time I even burned an omelet because I was so distracted by the conversation.

“What? Your friends didn’t tell you about me?” he replied. “I come here so often I might as well own the place. You’d better memorize the regulars’ faces, kiddo.”

“Hahaha, s-sorry! I will do my best...”

I came here to make friends with cute maids! Why do I have to talk to these filthy old men?!

Apart from the customers, the only other people I actually spoke to were the manager and the kitchen staff that were training me. As for the maids, we mostly only exchanged hellos. Everything was painfully different from my expectations.

I finally finished preparing the last dish on the slip.

“Order ready!” I called.

“Yes!” Kokoro, who was working with me that day, replied.

Maids and kitchen staff weren’t supposed to be too friendly or close with each other in front of customers, and conversations were limited to what was necessary for work. As a result, Kokoro and I behaved like strangers.

I looked at her as she brought the order to the table, and, despite still not being one hundred percent comfortable, she didn’t seem as stressed out as before about chatting with customers. I could tell how seriously she was taking the job, especially considering how much effort it took her to speak with men.

“Hi there,” Kokoro greeted me inside Akihabara station, where we were going to catch the train home together. Another of the company rules was that maids couldn’t walk around Akihabara together with a man, so even when we were on the same shift, we left the café separately and only met up at the station.

“You managed to chat a lot with the customers today, didn’t you?” I asked her.

“Yeah. It’s gotten easier since you helped me... but the other maids still say I’m a bit too stiff. I was asked for a picture for the first time today, and I did my best to smile, but when I looked at it, it was painfully obvious that I was forcing it...”

“Oh? A customer asked for a picture with you?! That’s great, isn’t it?”

“I was happy, obviously, but that’s nothing compared to the other maids! Almost every single customer asked them for pictures! I’ve got a long way to go... and what about you?”

“I’m getting used to the job little by little.”

“And as for, you know... your real goal?” she asked.

“You mean getting closer to Mashiro? We weren’t on the same shift today either, so we’re still just texting...”

I’d had three shifts so far, and I still hadn’t seen Mashiro at work even once.

Our online conversation had also stopped after she’d congratulated me for getting the job and I thanked her. For some reason, I couldn’t shake the feeling that, after our second date, Mashiro had gone off me ever so slightly.

But why? I don’t think I did anything to offend her... Could it have something to do with that friend she met in Animate?

I checked the Twitter account she used to post about work, discovering that next week, on the first day I’d be working at the new café, we were going to be on the same shift together for the first time.

Since I’d basically started this job just so I could spend more time with her, it was the moment I’d been waiting for.

With a sigh, I explained my situation to Kokoro.

“I haven’t been able to chat with the other maids either,” I continued, “so I can’t say that I’ve had any luck so far. What about you?” She couldn’t have been doing much better. Most of the customers were way too old for her, and there were only one or two guys at a time working in the kitchen.

“I got this...” she said, handing me a piece of paper. On it, I could easily recognize the scrawl of a LINE account number.

“What?! D-Did a customer give you that?!”

I thought it was strictly prohibited for maids and customers to exchange contact information! If someone found out she did something like that, she could be fired...

“No, Kusumi gave it to me,” she replied.

Kusumi? Oh, right, that pretty but unreliable-looking guy who was interviewed with us. I’ve never had a shift with him, so it’s not like we’ve talked... He’s kind of good-looking, I’ll give him that, but he’s not exactly Nishina’s type. She likes down-to-earth guys, but he seems the opposite of that... Or will she settle for anyone who’s handsome enough?

“My first impression of him wasn’t so good,” she said, “since he looked kind of easy, if you get me. But he’s very kind and helpful at work, and he knows how to get stuff done... Maybe he’s not so bad. I think I’ll add him on LINE, anyway.”

I could see a slight smile at the corners of her mouth.

“A-Aren’t you lowering your guard just because he’s good-looking? He’s that guy with the dyed hair and the ‘I party a lot’ look, isn’t he?!”

Unforgivable! She managed to get a guy’s LINE while I was busy chatting with old men! But anyone can tell by the way he looks that he can’t be trusted... He’s just going to toy with her and dump her when he’s done!

“I mean, I don’t think you should judge a book by its cover, is all,” she happily replied.

How naive is this girl? You just need to show her a bit of kindness and she falls for you!

“You say he’s kind and helpful, but isn’t he like that with the other maids too?” I asked, skeptical.

“Th-That would just mean that he respects everyone, which is a good thing! Why are you trying so hard to find something wrong with him, anyway? Oh, I get it! Someone’s mad because I got someone’s LINE and he hasn’t!”

“Huh?!” I cried, offended. Offended because she was right, that is.

“Look,” I said, “if things go well between the two of you, then I’ll be happy. But you can tell you’re not the only one who thinks Kusumi’s attractive, right? I just want to say... be careful. That’s all.”

“I’m not dumb, you know?”

This is bad. At this rate she’ll end up dating someone before me. I have to do my best with Mashiro. I don’t care if she’s into male idols or whatever—I just want her to be honest with me.

＊　＊　＊

A few days later.

Today, for the first time, I’d be working at the newly opened café. This was also going to be my first day of proper work, as opposed to training. There weren’t going to be as many other people watching over me as there had been at the old location. Some people had been transferred from over there, like Mashiro, but for the most part it would only be newbies like me.

And I still haven’t got the hang of everything yet... I couldn’t be more anxious. Well, at least I have something to look forward to. Today will be my first shift with Mashiro! She hasn’t been so warm and cheerful while texting me lately, so I wonder if she’ll talk to me as usual...

“Hey, Kagetora, wanna stop by the game center today?” Ai asked me once homeroom was over.

“Sorry, I’ve got work today,” I replied.

“Awww, today too?” he said with a disappointed pout. Since I’d started my new job, I hadn’t had much time to see him.

“I was so surprised when you started working without telling me anything, you know? And at a maid café, of all places! You just want to meet those cute maids, am I right?”

“Ugh...”

“I know you aren’t having any luck at school, but aren’t you trying a little too hard...?”

“I-It’s not like I’m doing it just to meet girls! I need the money for my hobbies and stuff.”

“Anyway, when are you going to tell me the name of the café?” he pressed.

“Oh, I will... eventually.”

If it were just me, I wouldn’t have any problem telling him where I worked. But if he came to see me and noticed Kokoro dressed up as a cat-eared maid, the otaku cat would be out of the bag. I felt a little guilty for not telling Ai, but I had to protect Kokoro’s secret.

“There you go again... You’re so cold to me lately,” he said, puffing up his cheeks.

That’s cute and all, but Nishina put her trust in me...

“Hell—” I walked into the café’s break room and noticed a girl that I recognized from somewhere. She was the cute, brightly dressed girl with the orange twintails that I’d met during the job interview.

“Oh, hello,” she said. I had no idea whether she remembered me or not, mostly because her eyes were permanently fixed in an unreadable, emotionless expression. I wasn’t getting much from her tone of voice either.

“Nice meeting you. I’m Iroha, a high school freshman. I start working today.”

“O-Oh, nice to meet you too. I’m Ichigaya, and I’m a junior,” I replied, surprised that I was only a year older than she was.

“Ichigaya... Let’s go with Ichi then.”

“Huh? O-Okay...”

Isn’t it a bit early for nicknames?!

“I remember you from the interview,” the girl said. “I thought you were older, but you’re still in high school too, huh? There aren’t many of us so young here, so let’s be cool to each other. A’ight, Ichi?”

“S-Sure, of course...” I replied, unable to shake the feeling that I’d just been insulted.

The break room door opened and another girl stepped in.

“Good afternoon,” she said. I’d seen her at the interview too—she was the serious-looking, beautiful one with cropped brown hair.

“Hello!” I replied.

“Oh, hello, Mikoto,” Iroha greeted her, and Mikoto smiled.

So these two know each other despite being newcomers...

“Hi there, Iroha. And you are...?” she said, looking at me.

“Ah, I’m Ichigaya. Nice to meet you.”

“Pleased to meet you, Ichigaya. I’m Mikoto.”

Her slight smile gave her an elegantly refined aura.

“A school uniform?!” Mikoto said, shocked, noticing my clothes. “You’re still in high school? Like Iroha?”

“Hm? Yes...” I replied.

“Another colleague over ten years younger than me... Everyone’s so young here...” she mumbled to herself.

Did I hear that right? Ten years? So she’s at least 26?! I thought she was 20 at most!

“Y-You look much younger than your age...” I told her.

“Oh?! N-No, hold on! I didn’t say that so just you’d give me compliments!”

“I just said what I thought!”

“Really? B-By the way... Ichigaya, was it? Keep my age a secret, would you? I’m 27, but for the customers I’m supposed to be 22...”

“O-Of course!”

She’s lying about her age as if it was the most normal thing in the world... 27 though? That must be the oldest girl I’ve ever spoken to except for maybe my teachers...

“Do you mind if I smoke?” Mikoto asked.

“Not at all,” I replied.

“Go ahead,” Iroha said.

Smoking was allowed in the break room, so the manager and the other employees often used it for that very purpose. There were even ashtrays on the table.

“Whoooa, you even smoke. You look so grown-up...” Iroha, fascinated, stared blankly at her colleague.

“I’m sure it must smell terrible to the pair of you—sorry. I try not to smoke before work, but I really needed a cigarette. Just one.”

“Customers smoke all the time, and so does the manager, so the smell doesn’t bother me at all anymore,” I said.

Mikoto, probably trying to be considerate of us, put out her cigarette after smoking only half of it. She then sprayed breath freshener into her mouth.

“Oh, we better get ready. It’s almost time we open,” Iroha said, looking at the clock.

I went into the men’s changing room to get ready too.

I was happy about having a conversation with two of the maids, but, cute as they looked, they were both very... unique.

Kokoro had told me that it would be better to chat with all of my colleagues, if possible. If word got around that I was unfriendly, Mashiro could end up hearing about it too. That sounded reasonable, since I remembered playing a dating sim that worked exactly like that.

Thankfully, both Iroha and Mikoto seemed amicable toward me.

I’ll have to do my best and chat with everyone so that they all get a decent impression of me.

Apart from the human relations aspect, starting today, I’d also have to get used to the kitchen in the new café. I wasn’t expecting an easy time.

“Are those drinks ready yet?”

“J-Just a second!” I called. I was already stressed out trying to keep up with the orders without the maids making it worse by asking whether they were ready.

“Haha! Looks like you’re struggling there, huh, Ichigaya?” Sasaki pestered from the other side of the counter.

Sasaki was one of the regulars at the old café, and he had followed us to the new location.

For some reason, instead of the tables—where it was easier to chat with the maids—he always chose to sit at the counter. We’d already talked at least three times, enough to remember each other’s names. His weird seating choice made me suspect that he was actually gay, and that he came to the café to chat with the male kitchen staff.

Sasaki, however, was not the only one to rub salt into the wound. Iroha, who was on her break, entered the kitchen together with Mikoto just to poke fun at me.

“Get a grip, Ichi! Why’d you start cooking something else after putting ice in the glasses? You’re struggling so much it’s funny, hehe,” Iroha commented.

“Come now, Iroha, don’t be too harsh on him. I’m sure he’s doing his best,” Mikoto said.

“Oh, shut up,” the other girl replied sarcastically.

These two sound like they’ve been friends for years...

I glanced at the clock and despaired. I still had more than an hour of work left before my next break, and I didn’t know whether I’d reach it alive.

Oh, but wait...

Just before completely losing my willpower, I remembered why I’d been looking forward to today so much.

The café’s door opened and an adorably cheerful voice echoed through the dining hall.

“Hello!”

“Oh, hi, Mashiro,” Sasaki greeted her.

This was my first time seeing Mashiro in a while, and she looked as beautiful as I remembered.

“Oh, Ichigaya! Hi! You’re already hard at work,” she told me.

“M-Mashiro...”

She’d addressed me with her usual warmth, and I couldn’t have been more relieved. I’d been so scared that she might be fed up with me, since our last date ended very weirdly and her texts since then had been nowhere near as cheerful.

That’s why I started working here! She’s the one I want to talk to! Not some weird middle-aged dude!

Mashiro went into the dressing room and came out shortly after, wearing her maid uniform and cat ears. Thanks to her cutesy, innocent air, the outfit looked better on her than it did on any other maid in the room.

“I’ll help you out, I will!” she said.

“R-Really?!”

“Of course! It must be the hardest for a newcomer to manage this big kitchen by himself!”

She’s as kind as she is cute! She’s a goddess!

Having Mashiro help me made all the difference in the world. Despite being a maid, she was also so skilled in the kitchen that we quickly caught up with all the orders without any problem.

She’s kind, cute, and skillful?! Is that even allowed?!

“Mashiro-chan! Can I ask you for a picture?” one of the customers called.

“Oh, of course, Takata, sir!” she promptly replied.

Adding to her huge list of strengths was the fact that she was extremely popular with the clientele. There were a lot of men who looked like they were visiting the café specifically to see her and take pictures together.

I’d seen other maids being asked for pictures too, but Mashiro was on another level. I counted five requests made to her in the last hour alone.

The café had a “stage request” system which meant that customers could ask the maids to do karaoke on the stage. Of course, both picture and song requests cost money, and the maids would get a one-hundred-yen bonus for each request they received.

Mashiro had already been called onto the stage twice that day, first to sing and dance to an anime opening and again for an idol’s song.

I loved her normal speaking voice, but her singing voice was even more adorable—so much so that I couldn’t help but get distracted from my work listening to her. Once again, I realized how lucky I’d been to score a date with Mashiro.

Thanks to her help, I even managed to coast through the last hour of work before my break.

Mashiro entered the break room and addressed me.

“Hey, Ichigaya...”

“Oh, Mashiro! Thank you so much for helping me out earlier!”

“It’s okay. I just wanted to say something... You should know that I’m so, sooo sorry I left all of a sudden...” she said, pouting at me with wide eyes.

“Huh? Don’t worry! I don’t mind it at all.”

“D-Do you remember what I was talking about before leaving?” she asked me.

“Hmm... It was about putting in a preorder for a CD, right?”

“Y-Yes... You see, I guess it’s because my friend keeps talking about it but... There’s this voice actor, a guy, that I’ve started liking lately... Just a little bit! It’s not like I’m a big, big fan or anything!” she explained nervously.

“Uh? S-Sure...” I replied, noticing that her eyes were staring at me as if to gauge my reaction while she held her breath.

“So...” she said, finally taking in some oxygen, “I guess I just want you to know that I’m reeeally, so, so happy that you started working in the same place as me.”

“That goes for me too! It’s great! I just hope I won’t be a hindrance!”

Her words felt like enough payment for a day’s work. I was extremely glad that I’d started working at this place.

“I’ll be going back then,” she said.

“Okay!”

Did she come here just to tell me that? I thought she was on a break too...

I watched her adorable figure make its way out of the break room.

From now on, I’ll be able to see her on a regular basis. I just need to find a chance to invite her on another date, and then, when the time comes... I’ll confess to her.

“What’s with the creepy grin, Ichi?”

“Huh?!”

I jumped in surprise, noticing Iroha, who’d just come out of the dressing room. She was looking at me with more than a hint of suspicion.

“I-I wasn’t grinning or anything... And did you call me creepy?!”

“Oh, sorry. I must have thought that out loud.”

“That’s the lousiest apology I’ve ever heard!”

“See you next time then, Ichi,” she said, casually.

“Sure... See ya...” I replied, watching as she also left.

I was offended, obviously, but I also thought that being able to speak so frankly to a girl I barely knew was an improvement for me.

Is this because I chat with Nishina all the time? At this rate, speaking with girls is going to become second nature...

After my break was over, I went back to the kitchen, where I worked with Mashiro’s help until it was time to close.

I went back to the break room and heard someone speaking on the phone.

“...Yes, I sent the documents yesterday. They should have arrived this morning... Perfect then. Thank you.”

It was Mikoto, and, judging from her stiff tone, whatever she was talking about sounded very important.

“Ah, Ichigaya! Good job today,” she said when she noticed me.

“That sounded like a work call just now... Do you have more than one part-time job?” I asked her.

“Not exactly,” she replied. “I have a full-time office job, and then I work here part time. But I keep the maid thing a secret from my day-job bosses.”

“Really?! That sounds exhausting! May I ask you why you do it?” I said, wondering if money was so tight that juggling jobs was a necessity.

She blushed.

Huh? Did I say something weird? Why is she blushing?

“You know, at this age of mine...” she said.

“You mean twenty-se—”

“Don’t say it out loud! I told you it was a secret, didn’t I?!” she quickly stopped me.

“Eeek!” I squeaked, surprised by her reaction.

You were the one who started talking about your age...

“The people working in this café are all young. Certainly much younger than I expected. So I’m keeping the secret from my colleagues here too. Do you understand?” she said, bringing her voice down to a whisper.

“I-I... Yes, I understand.”

“Anyway, at my age, you don’t get many opportunities to wear something like this,” she said, as she looked—visibly embarrassed—down at her maid uniform. “And this job might well be my last chance to do so.”

Indeed, a cat-ear maid uniform wasn’t the kind of outfit I would normally picture a 27-year-old woman wearing. As she still looked young and beautiful, it fit her perfectly, but the idea that she’d gotten this job just so that she could wear it was terribly weird.

“And why did you start working here?” she asked. “I remember that during the interview you mentioned this is your first job.”

“Well... I need some pocket money to fund my otaku hobbies, and... I-I kind of wanted to work surrounded by cute maids...” I honestly replied.

I know she’s just told me her own secrets and all, but did I really need to be that open with her? That made me sound disgusting...

“You’re so young and you’re already thinking of that?! You are so grown-up for your age! I have nothing but respect for you!” she replied.

“What?” I said, unsure why she was praising me.

“You’re still in high school, and yet you’re already thinking of finding yourself a partner and putting in the effort to find one in a place like this. I’m sure that the day you have a cute maid girlfriend isn’t that far away!”

“E-Excuse me, but... Is that a good thing? Really?”

“Just... Don’t worry about it. I was telling that to myself more than to you.”

“Now that you mention dating... are you married?” I asked Mikoto, without thinking too deeply about it. If she was, that would make her being a maid even weirder.

Mikoto’s face froze, showing the scariest, most unnatural smile I’d ever seen.

“I-Is something wrong?” I asked.

Did I just press a button?!

“Ichigaya. I have one piece of advice for you... Don’t become like me. Your parents will be sad.”

“I...”

“See you next time,” she said, still wearing that terrifying smile as she went into the dressing room.

The way she replied probably meant that she still wasn’t married, and that her parents were sad about it. I wish I’d been sensitive enough not to ask her about something so delicate, but, on the other hand, I wondered why a woman as beautiful as her was having trouble finding a husband.

Without a doubt, both Mikoto and Iroha were very interesting colleagues, but thankfully they were also very approachable. I could never have imagined that I’d ever be able to chat with girls other than Kokoro without my nerves getting in the way.

When I got back home, Kokoro was on the couch, ignoring a TV show in favor of looking at her phone.

“Hi! Are you hungry?” she asked me. Since she wasn’t working that day, she’d been able to stay at home and prepare dinner.

“You bet! I’m starving!”

I went into the kitchen, where a pot of delicious-looking curry was waiting for me. While I warmed it up, I thought that, starting from my next shift, I should take something to work to eat during my breaks. I’d heard that in some workplaces, the cooks would prepare meals for the staff to eat, but this wasn’t the case at the café, even when our shifts ended at 10 p.m. Maybe this was just the owner being cheap.

“How was work?”

“I finally managed to see Mashiro!”

“That’s nice! Did you talk to her?”

“Yeah. I thanked her for helping me with work, and then she apologized for our last date...”

“That thing about the CD... Did she tell you what the deal with that was?” Kokoro asked.

“She said that there’s a male voice actor she kind of likes because her friend is a fan. But she also said that she wouldn’t call herself a major fan though.”

“I see... That could be true...”

The curry was finally warm, so I put some on a plate with some rice and started to dig in.

“Delicious! Ah, by the way, I also spoke with the other maids today,” I said.

“Oh! Which ones? I usually chat with all of them.”

“Iroha and Mikoto.”

“Oh, those two? I love them! They’re so fun,” Kokoro said.

“They’re easy to approach, I’ll give you that. I think I did a decent job at staying natural. Anyway, how are things on your side? You know, with the guy who gave you his LINE and all.”

“Well... I actually added him,” Kokoro replied.

“R-Really?” I said, slightly surprised. I hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly.

“And how did it go?” I asked.

“I’ve been messaging him since yesterday, and we’ve talked about a lot of things. Now we know what kind of otaku things we both like, and stuff like that.”

Speeding through things as always...

“Wait, he’s an otaku too?”

“Oh, yes,” she replied, “you wouldn’t expect it, right? Makes you rethink that stuff about him looking like the type to fool around with girls.”

“What does being an otaku have to do with fooling around? I still think you should be careful, just in case.”

You should never judge a book by its cover... Not that I have any particular reason to doubt him.

“And what kind of otaku stuff does he like then?” I asked, curious. I imagined he would be the kind of wannabe that watches a couple of episodes from a popular anime and starts calling himself an otaku.

“He said he’s into gacha games and dating sims with cute girls,” she replied.

He’s the real deal! Why would he even admit that to a girl?!

“Say, do you think it’d be okay if I asked him to teach me more about his tastes in that kind of thing?” Kokoro then asked me.

“From a guy’s point of view... it depends on how the person asking about it would react. If they’re really interested in the topic, then I’d love to talk about it, but if they are the kind of person who considers those games creepy or disgusting...”

“I don’t! At all! I even play IMS myself!”

“Then go ahead, I guess... If he doesn’t feel comfortable speaking about that, I guess he just won’t.”

“Okay, I will! Thanks!” she said, looking anything but disgusted as she began typing on her phone.

Of course meeting a girl who respects your love for dating sims—especially the sexier ones—would be a dream for any otaku. But I could only feel nervous, worried that Kokoro was sailing toward her goal much faster than me, who still didn’t even have Mashiro’s LINE.

Dammit! I can’t just stand and watch her get ahead!

The next day, after school, I went directly to the café.

I saw Mashiro, in regular clothes rather than her uniform, leaving the break room. She had probably just finished her shift, which was supposed to end thirty minutes before mine started. I was extremely lucky to be able to see her.

“Ah, Ichigaya, Ichigayaaa!” she called out to me. “I have something for you...”

“Hm?”

“I baked this yesterday... to apologize for last time. I hope you like it!” she said, handing me a cupcake covered with cute decorations.

“Y-You didn’t need to! Really!” I said, overjoyed.

A homemade cupcake from Mashiro? She can even bake?! Oh, but she probably made a bunch and is giving them out to everyone else too...

“Don’t tell the others, okay?” she said, winking at me before saying goodbye and leaving for the day.

When my heart finally started beating normally again, I realized that what she had said meant that this cupcake was baked for me and only me.

I thought that, if she’d go through the trouble of baking that just for me, I must have meant at least something to her. If all she wanted to do was apologize, she could have just bought some chocolates from a convenience store and called it a day.

And... did she stay past her shift so that she could hand me this?! Why would such a beautiful, popular girl ever treat me so well? I asked myself, incredulous. That thing about her sounding different... It must have been all my imagination. This cupcake must mean that I have a good chance with her, right?

When I first started working at the café, a small part of my brain thought that maybe, among all the maids, I would find one I liked even better than Mashiro. I was wrong. Mashiro was everything I could ever dream of in a girl, which meant that nobody—not a single person—could be better than her.

After her recent change of tone in her texts, I had found it difficult to muster the courage to move things further with her—but not anymore. I promised myself that on that very day, after work, I would immediately send her a message on Twitter, asking for her LINE.

If she’s being this nice to me, it’s unlikely that she’ll refuse... Not impossible, though.

“Hello!” I heard someone greet me from behind in the changing room.

Oh, right, the café gets busier on Fridays, so there’ll be two of us working in the kitchen today.

“H-Hello,” I said, turning around to see the pretty boy and surprise otaku, Kusumi. It was the first time I’d seen him since the job interview. This was the perfect opportunity to find out more about the guy and, if I found anything remotely suspicious about him, immediately report it to Kokoro.

In particular, I was eager to find out whether he’d make any moves on the other maids.

Is this dude really into games anyway? I thought as I eyed the handsome boy in front of me. Or is he just pretending to be an otaku so that girls let their guard down? But then, why would he go out of his way to mention dating sims? If I wanted to make a good impression with a girl, I wouldn’t say that I like a genre of games which are mostly full of sex scenes...

“Oh, I think we met during the interview. I’m Kusumi, by the way. Nice to meet you!” he said.

He sounds like a pretty decent guy... No! I can’t let my guard down!

“I’m Ichigaya. Nice to meet you too.”

“That uniform... That’s from Kadogawa High School, isn’t it?” he asked.

“Hm? Yes...”

“I knew it! A friend of mine goes there. How old are you, can I ask?”

“Me? I’m in my second year of high school,” I replied.

“That’s great! Me too!” He grinned, lowering my defenses with a blinding smile.

“Uh, yeah. Great,” I managed to say. He actually looked older than me, so I was kind of surprised to learn that we were the same age.

It was the first time since I’d started my new job that I would be working in the kitchen alongside another new employee. Before then, I’d always been working with the manager or employees from the older café.

“But wait, so this means that you go to the same school as Heart-chan?” he asked me.

It was pretty normal in a maid café for the maids to use aliases rather than real names. “Heart” happened to be Kokoro’s maid name. She actually wanted it to be “2♡,” like her online nickname, but she was told that it’d be better to make it easier for customers to read.

“Yeah, we go to the same school...”

“Now that I think of it, didn’t you two also come to the interview together? Are you two friends? Or even... something more?” he asked, biting his lip in consideration.

“W-We’re just from the same year!”

“Oh, I see. Cool,” he said, sounding relieved. He must like her quite a lot...

“So,” I asked, “are you trying to date Nishi— I mean, Heart-chan?”

“Yep!” he said, still smiling. “I tried giving her my LINE, and she actually messaged me! It sounds like a miracle, I know!”

“But there’s no way someone like you would have any trouble finding girls,” I said doubtfully. “Aren’t there any others you like here? Or maybe at school, or someplace else...” I had to find out whether he was serious about Kokoro.

“I wish! The other girls here don’t really pique my interest. And neither did the ones at my old restaurant job. But I was blown away when I first met Heart-chan! She’s just my type! My ideal girl, even!”

“R-Really...?”

I wasn’t sure what to say. He sounded genuinely nice and seemed to only have eyes for Kokoro... I had no choice but to give them my blessing.

I hate to admit it, but I guess that these two are going to get together before I can ask Mashiro out!

Even later, while we worked in the kitchen, I continued chatting with Kusumi.

“I can’t wait for this month’s pay, let me tell you. I’ve spent like a week’s worth of pay on this month’s gacha event...”

“Whoa... I still haven’t even rolled the paid gacha once this month...” I replied in awe.

I learned a few things about Kusumi, but most importantly that he was just as much of an otaku as I was and that, surprisingly, he’d never had a girlfriend before. Now I had absolutely zero reasons to be wary of him dating Kokoro.

I guess I was wrong. Handsome, a virgin, and just downright nice... So otaku boys like that really do exist...

“Hi.”

“Oh, hi,” Kokoro greeted me. She was in the kitchen, watching over a pot of something steamy and tasty.

“Smells delicious,” I said.

“Pork stew!”

“Nice!”

Kokoro started setting the table while I washed my hands, then called me when dinner was ready.

“Oh, by the way,” I said as we started eating, “I met Kusumi properly today.”

“For real? What was he like?”

“He was... a hardcore otaku. No doubt about that.”

“So he wasn’t lying!”

“And also, he sounded like a pretty nice guy all round,” I added.

“See?! I told you!” she said, clearly happy to hear that. “Right now I’m trying to work up the courage to ask him about his favorite dating sim. That’ll help me learn more about him.”

“Okay...” I replied. These two were already on track to start dating each other.

“What about you and Mashiro?” she asked.

“Ah, right... She gave me a homemade cupcake today.”

“What?”

“She said it’s to apologize for our last date.”

“No way! That’s awesome. Girls don’t just go and bake stuff for the first guy they find, you know?”

“You think so?” I asked, secretly dancing with joy inside my heart. “So maybe I should go ahead and invite her on another date!”

“I do think it’s awesome, but... maybe you should wait a bit longer before inviting her.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I was thinking of inviting Kusumi on a date too, you see. But what if something goes wrong and we start hating each other or something? Then it’d be terrible having to work together, don’t you think? And since we have weekend shifts at work it’s difficult to find the right time to go out anyway. So I thought I’ll wait until we’re done with this job. It’s not so long anyway,” she said.

“You have a point...”

Just as she said, we needed to be careful about our interactions with colleagues. And since I could see Mashiro more or less frequently at work anyway, there was no need to take that risk. I could just take it slow.

I’ll wait for my last day on the job, then I’ll ask her for her LINE and invite her on a date at the same time. Until then, I’ll do my best to strengthen our bond while we’re together at the café.

Later that night, I slowly and deliberately savored Mashiro’s cupcake.

That single cupcake tasted so much better than anything I could ever buy from a shop. Anything I’d tasted in my life, in fact. I immediately sent Mashiro a DM on Twitter with my heartfelt thanks and compliments.

“I’m so, so happy you liked it! ♡ ♡”

The wait will be tough, but it’s not that long!