Chapter 37: Teach Me How to Pursue Ken!

“Mio, do you like Ken?”

The manager’s words left Natsume Mio standing there dumbfounded. She opened her mouth, stammering, unable to speak.

“Man… Manager-san, what… what are you talking about? Of course not…”

“Hehehe,” the old manager chuckled and said, “I’ve lived for so many years, of course I can tell. When you talk to Ken, your tone is different.”

She turned and walked behind the cash register, continuing, “Actually, Mio, you came to work at our store for Ken, right? I’ve seen it all.”

Natsume Mio had wanted to deny it, but hearing the manager say it with such a certain tone, she resentfully swallowed her words.

She silently organized the shelves with a basket in her hand, but her mind was in complete chaos.

She thought for a moment and came to the front of the counter.

“Um… Manager-san,” Natsume Mio said embarrassedly, “Actually, you’re right. I… I… li… li…”

She couldn’t get the last syllable out. Her face was already flushed red to the roots of her ears.

“Ken is a good boy, and he’s handsome,” the manager looked at Natsume Mio with a smile and said, “If you want to pursue him, Mio-chan, you have to be more proactive.”

“Is… is that so…”

“You’re all about to start school, right? When you get to university, there will probably be many girls pursuing Ken.”

“Start school…” Natsume Mio thought about the date. There was still a little over a month.

Mom said that a big regret of my high school was not having a relationship. If I can get Ken before university starts, it should count as making up for the regret of high school, right?

Natsume Mio pondered in her heart, but she had no idea how to “get Ken.”

The old manager carefully looked at Natsume Mio and asked, “Mio, what do your parents do?”

“My parents?” Natsume Mio was a little surprised that the manager would ask such a question.

After all, family matters were personal privacy. Even when looking for a job, an interviewer would never ask such a question. Otherwise, the company would be boycotted for violating the privacy of job applicants.

But the look in the manager’s eyes…

Natsume Mio didn’t think much of it. She said, “My dad works at a trading company, and my mom is a housewife.”

“A trading company? That’s not bad. But do you know about Ken’s family situation?”

“Yes, I know…”

“Don’t look at Ken’s family situation. He will definitely have a bright future.”

“Eh? Manager-san, you’re…”

The manager looked at Natsume Mio with a smile, the meaning in her smile self-evident.

It was definitely the tone of a matchmaker introducing a partner!

Then maybe, I should let Manager-san help…?!

Thinking of this, Natsume Mio’s gaze suddenly became firm. “Manager-san! Then, can you help me…”

“Mio-chan, do you have no experience in relationships?” the manager asked.

Natsume Mio shook her head.

“I see…” the manager thought for a moment and said, “Although my experience is definitely outdated now, there is one thing that is definitely right.”

“What is it!” Natsume Mio asked immediately.

The manager squinted her eyes and said with a smile, “Meet more often, communicate more, and then find opportunities to have physical contact with him.”

“Physical contact?”

Natsume Mio’s mind thought of the scene where she and Ken were pressed tightly together, sweating profusely.

“Aren’t you both working at our store? When he comes tonight, I’ll arrange for you to organize the bookshelf together. You, then, find an opportunity to get close to him, and inadvertently touch his arm, or touch his hand.” The manager raised her two hands and touched them together, saying, “As long as he’s not a block of wood, this kind of contact will definitely be remembered.”

“Is… is that so?”

“Definitely not,” the manager shook her head and said, “Ken is definitely not a block of wood when it comes to relationships.”

“Ah, I wasn’t talking about Ken…” Natsume Mio said awkwardly.

The manager chuckled. She thought Natsume Mio was asking if Ken was a block of wood.

The old manager asked, “Mio-chan, have you never even tried holding hands with a boy?”

“No…” Natsume Mio pouted and lowered her head in embarrassment.

It was indeed strange for someone like her who had graduated from high school without ever having been in a relationship.

The manager continued, “Don’t ask too many questions. Just do as I say.”

“Then… is Ken a block of wood? Does that mean he’s emotionally clueless?” Natsume Mio asked again.

“You, I think you’re the block of wood,” the old manager said. “I’ve seen many men. Ken is very mature in his heart. When did it start… Although he was more sensible than his peers before, the real change should be after he graduated from high school.”

Natsume Mio silently remembered what the manager said.

As for whether Ken’s mentality had become mature…

She recalled that day at the convenience store. She wanted to confess to Ken, but he took her to the apartment he rented and said those words.

Something about how he used to just like her body, that it was a vulgar kind of like. He also talked about his family, saying that he was not in a position to be with her.

That’s right, Manager-san is right. I don’t know when it started, but Ken’s whole state is different from before.

After graduating from high school, it was considered entering society. She still had her parents to help her, both financially and mentally.

But Ken only had himself.

So, did his heart suddenly mature after graduating from high school?

Natsume Mio said very seriously, “Manager-san! Can you teach me!”

“Teach you what?” the manager’s lips curved up slightly and said.

“Teach me…” Natsume Mio swallowed, took a deep breath, and finally mustered up the courage to say it, “Teach me how to pursue Ken!”

…

“Sakamoto-sensei, I’ll be leaving now.”

“Okay, Editor-san, take care.”

Seeing Kaji Keiko pick up the thick stack of original manuscript paper, Sakamoto Ken also stood up.

“By the way, Sakamoto-sensei’s house… doesn’t have a bathroom?” Kaji Keiko looked around and asked.

Sakamoto Ken nodded and said, “It’s a shared bathroom on each floor.”

“Oh, I see…” Kaji Keiko said, “Then I’ll go to the, um… bathroom.”

“I’ll help you with the manuscript paper,” Sakamoto Ken said. “There’s no place to put the original manuscript paper inside.”

Kaji Keiko bowed slightly to Sakamoto Ken in embarrassment and said, “That’s great. It’s quite heavy. Thank you, Sakamoto-sensei.”

Sakamoto Ken took the thick stack. There were more than two hundred pages of B4 size original manuscript paper in total. Each chapter was packed in a large file bag brought by Editor Kaji. The total weight was probably equivalent to eight bottles of mineral water.

Watching Editor Kaji change her shoes at the door, she lifted her foot and let the tip of her foot slide into the shoe. The instep of her foot arched flexibly at the opening of the shoe, and then she squatted down sideways and used her fingers to pull at the back of the shoe.

That cute blue robot cat then slipped into the shoe, was covered by the leg of her pants, and disappeared from sight.

(End of Chapter)