It was six in the morning. A thin layer of frost clung to the windowpane. Haruki reached out, silenced the alarm on his phone, and stared at the glowing screen.
"On time" he muttered, yawning as he sat up in bed.
Still yawning, he caught sight of himself in the mirror and sighed.
"I've gotten kind of lazy these days.
The chill pressed in, and he whispered, "So cold today" before dragging himself to the bathroom.
The hot water filled the tiny bathroom with steam, fogging the mirror. A few minutes later, Haruki stepped out, towel-drying his hair. He slipped into a dark blue jacket, jeans, and a scarf, then shoved his hands deep into his pockets. After locking the door, he stepped outside, straight into the biting morning air.
The streets were dusted with a thin layer of snow, glimmering faintly under the pale sunlight. Haruki exhaled, watching his breath vanish instantly into the cold.
"I just moved here yesterday. From my hometown, Akari. Came for work. The people, this city… it's all new to me, he thought.
A little further down, a small café came into view old-fashioned, but charming. As he pushed the door open, the tiny bell above it chimed softly. Haruki paused at the entrance, taking everything in.
"This café looks small, probably just two staff members here. One is me, but the other,I don't know yet, he wondered.
Taking a deep breath, he stepped inside.
Warmth washed over him. The heaters hummed quietly, and behind the counter, a man was flipping through some files. The café manager,(Jin Yun, age 45.)
Haruki, a little nervous, walked up to the counter.
"Hello, sir. I'm Haruki,he said.
Jin Yun adjusted his glasses and looked at him.
"Yes?
Haruki fiddled with his scarf.
"I'm the new staff. I'm sure you've already been told about me.
The manager flipped through a page, then gave a faint smile.
"Yes, yes. I was informed. But you were supposed to start tomorrow.
Haruki offered an awkward smile.
"I moved in yesterday, and had nothing to do at home, so I thought I'd come in early.
Jin Yun set the file aside and began explaining, pointing around.
"That's the kitchen. Over there is the changing room. Honestly, there's not much else to say about this place.
Then, standing up, he added,
"And from me.
Haruki braced himself for something formal, but instead
"Welcome to the café,"Jin Yun said warmly, smiling.
Haruki smiled back.
"Thank you, sir.
"I hope you'll give this your best effort, Jin Yun added.
"Yes, sir. I'll do my best,Haruki replied earnestly.
Work began.
Haruki slipped on an apron and moved behind the counter. His hands barely had a moment's rest—taking orders, serving customers, all while muttering to himself.
"I really have to work hard. If I lose this job too, finding another one won't be easy.
As more customers poured in, orders piled up. Haruki's first official day had truly begun.
By noon, the café door swung open again, letting in a draft of icy wind.
A girl stepped inside—Hina, eighteen. She brushed snow off her coat, her face lit by a bright, blooming smile. She looked up at Haruki, her eyes glimmering with curiosity.
"So you're the new staff they mentioned yesterday?" she asked.
Haruki nodded.
"Yes… that's me."
But his heart was racing. She's really cute.
"I'm Hina," she introduced herself.
"Haruki. I came here from Akari," he replied with a small smile.
Hina looked at his face, then teased with a laugh,
"Why are you sweating? It's freezing outside."
"N-no, it's nothing," Haruki stammered, quickly wiping his forehead.
"Mm-hmm. Sure," she chuckled, trying to hide her grin.
She looks even cuter when she laughs, Haruki thought.
But before they could talk further, Jin Yun's voice cut in from behind the counter.
"Less chatting, more working."
Both of them snapped back to their tasks.
At lunch, Haruki sat alone at a corner table, steam rising from his soup and two large plates of food in front of him.
Hina walked over, plopped down across from him, and said with a playful smile,
"You're kind of stingy, huh? Didn't even ask your co-worker to join you for lunch."
Haruki blinked.
"You're… talking to me?"
Hina glanced around. "Well, who else? No one else is here."
"Oh… I just… I'm not used to people talking to me, so I thought maybe you meant someone else," he said, embarrassed.
She frowned slightly. "Why?"
"I don't know. People usually think I'm… weird. Wherever I go, they'd rather keep their distance." He took another sip of soup.
"Weird? You don't look weird at all. You don't have horns, or giant ears, or walk around wearing leaves instead of clothes," she said matter-of-factly.
Haruki burst out laughing.
"Well, when you put it like that, yeah, I guess not."
"Exactly. So what's weird about you?" Hina said. But by then, Haruki had already finished his soup and moved on to his main course.
When she saw the amount of food, Hina's eyes widened.
"Wait—hold on. You're going to eat all that by yourself?"
Haruki chewed casually.
"Yeah. I always eat this much."
"Seriously? Can you even finish it?" she asked, still stunned.
Haruki frowned.
"Yeah. Why, do you have a problem with it?"
"No, no, no problem at all!" she quickly said, and he went back to eating in peace.
Watching him, Hina muttered to herself, What a glutton.
Haruki, mid-bite, thought, She probably thinks I'm a glutton now. He asked,
"You're not eating?"
"I usually eat lunch at my college canteen," she replied, scrolling through her phone.
Haruki blinked.
"Wow, so you're studying and working here?"
"What's so wow about that? Everyone does it these days," Hina replied, then turned the question back to him. "What about you? College? School?"
Haruki's face dimmed.
"I dropped out after middle school."
The mood shifted. Hina realized her question had struck somewhere sensitive.
"Oh… I see. Sorry if I asked the wrong thing," she said softly.
Haruki smiled faintly.
"No, it's fine. I left because… well, we couldn't afford further studies."
Their eyes met for a moment, and both smiled gently at each other.
After lunch, they returned quietly to work.
As the day wound down and the sky darkened, Haruki and Hina hung up their aprons and stepped outside. The air was sharper now, colder. Haruki tightened his scarf, walking alongside Hina.
A few blocks down, she stopped and pointed toward a narrow alley.
"My place is this way."
Haruki smiled and nodded.
"Got it."
"Bye. See you tomorrow," she said, waving.
"Bye," Haruki waved back.
He watched her disappear into the alley, then turned toward his own street with a smile.
But before he'd gone far, a voice called out.
"Hey, you!"
Haruki turned. A boy stood there, hair slightly long, a mischievous glint in his eyes, jacket half-open, and a sly grin plastered across his face.
"Yeah? What do you want?" Haruki asked cautiously.
"You new around here? Never seen you before," the boy said in a deep voice.
"Yeah… I just moved here," Haruki admitted nervously.
The boy suddenly burst into laughter. Haruki blinked. Why's he laughing? Did I say something funny?
The boy grinned.
"Got you! Scared you, didn't I? My acting's pretty good, huh?"
He was still laughing, and Haruki thought, This guy's a little crazy.
The boy extended his hand.
"I'm Isame. ( Age 19 )
Haruki shook it.
"Haruki."
They started walking together through the snow.
"I'm a first-year in college," Isame said casually. "What about you? School? College?"
Haruki shrugged.
"I don't study anymore. I work now."
Isame didn't flinch, just smiled.
"Oh, no problem. Working's good. Me, I just live off my dad's money."
Both of them laughed. Haruki thought, Strange… he didn't react weirdly to me dropping out.
They chatted a little while longer, until Haruki pointed to a small house.
"That's me. I live here."
Isame grinned.
"Then we'll be seeing each other a lot. I live nearby too."
He waved goodbye and headed off.
Watching him go, Haruki thought, That guy's a little weird… but friendly.
With the cold night air wrapping around him, Haruki stepped into his house.
To be continued… 👀