"Thank you for your hard work, be careful when you go home."
"Well, thank you for your hard work. There's still half an hour left, Asami, you have to work hard."
"This period is very relaxing. It doesn't matter to me. Goodbye then."
After Sayu clocked in from get off work, Asami walked to the door and waved goodbye to her with a smile. Then she went back to organizing the shelves in the convenience store.
After driving away Yaguchi Kyouya, Asami's way of speaking and feeling returned to her usual state. It was as if she had forgotten all about what happened in the morning, and did not take the beating to her heart at all.
Even though Sayu was very worried about this, she didn't seem to care at all. Instead, she tried to persuade him not to take it to heart. She didn't know where that mysterious confidence came from.
It is worth mentioning that Yaguchi Kyouya, who was slapped in the face, perhaps knowing that she was wronged first, did not come to see her again. As for the police she was worried about, they did not show up at all.
Therefore, despite what happened this morning, Sayu still got off work safely and smoothly.
‘If you think about it on the bright side, maybe the other party will also give up.’ While thinking about this, he said goodbye to Asami.
After changing her clothes, the girl carried her canvas bag to the shopping street next to the station and began to buy the ingredients for dinner.
First I bought two eels at the seafood store, then I bought some leeks and green vegetables at the vegetable store. When I passed by the rice cake shop, I couldn't help but buy some rice cakes.
Occasionally when I meet a familiar housewife, I will say hello and chat with them with a smile.
Mixed among a group of middle-aged women, the girl did not feel out of place at all. Instead, she had a quite natural and harmonious atmosphere.
As he walked and stopped like this, the canvas bag on his shoulder gradually became bulging, filled with various ingredients.
"Well - the main dish is eel rice, the side dish is fried eggs with leeks, and the dessert is red bean rice cake soup... plus there are still leftovers from yesterday's lobster, this should be enough~~"
Sayu held her chin with her fingers and looked at the horizon and muttered to herself, a lively smile slowly appeared on her cute little face.
She looked at the time on her phone and murmured again: "Okay~! There is still plenty of time, so dinner and bath water should be ready by the time Yusuke comes home, so go back and get ready!"
Just at this moment, a store in the shopping street also turned on its door lights.
Subconsciously, Sayu's eyes were attracted by the bright light.
A team composed of women came into view.
She couldn't help but pause at her feet, and the girl's expression became a little hesitant.
"As long as I walk faster from now on, it shouldn't have much impact..."
With that said, she walked straight to the end of the queue and stood in line, and in front of the queue was a milk tea shop.
After waiting in line for about 10 minutes, the girl finally bought what she wanted.
"Excuse me for waiting, here is your strawberry milkshake, a total of 650 yen~"
"Ah, thank you~!"
Facing the clerk who handed over the milkshake, Sayu nodded and thanked her while putting the money on the cashier tray, then picked up the milkshake and prepared to turn around and leave.
"Hello, please give us a strawberry milkshake."
The next customer's words came from behind, and the clerk said in a somewhat apologetic tone: "I'm very sorry, the raw materials for this product have been used up. Would you like to choose other flavors?"
Looking back casually, a mother and daughter came into her eyes.
I saw the woman lowering her head and asking the girl next to her who looked like a primary school student: "What should I do? Mai, are there any other flavors you want?"
Even the clerk put on a gentle tone and said with a smile: "In addition to strawberry, there are other milkshakes that are also very delicious, little sister."
In response, the little girl slowly shook her head, raised her head and said in a milky voice, "But I want a strawberry milkshake."
The clerk looked at the woman with some trouble.
The other party smiled apologetically, "I'm sorry, because this child has always liked the smell of strawberry, but there's nothing I can do about it... I'm sorry, Mai. Anyway, let's go home with mom today?"
The second half of the sentence was said to the little girl.
The pink and jade-carved little face wrinkled slightly, and the round eyes suddenly darkened.
Surprisingly, the little girl neither cried nor fussed, but was quietly led out of the team by her mother. Her free hand was tightly holding the corner of her skirt, her expression looking very lonely.
The woman gently stroked her head and comforted her with soft words in her ears.
With eyes that seemed to be looking somewhere in the distance, Sayu looked at this scene in a daze.
Envy, longing, disappointment, despair...all kinds of complex emotions appeared in his eyes at the same time.
It was like someone had quietly opened up some holes deep in my heart, and an indescribable discomfort surged up.
As if driven by some kind of force, she slowly walked to the other person's side, then bent down and said, "Well, if you don't mind..."
With a somewhat dull voice, the strawberry milkshake they had just bought was handed to the mother and daughter.
"Ah! No, how can this be so embarrassing..."
The woman waved her hands in surprise, then suddenly stopped talking as if she thought of something, and looked at the little girl.
A worried little face came into her eyes, leaving her speechless immediately.
A soft smile appeared on Sayu's face, and then he squatted down slightly so that his eyes were level with the girl's.
"Your name is Mai-chan~ I'm sorry, I stole your milkshake, so I'll give you this one."
As he spoke, he pushed the milkshake that way again.
Although she was obviously eager, the little girl named Mai did not pick her up immediately. Instead, she looked up at her mother, as if asking if she could.
"I'm really sorry...the total is 650 yen, right? Thank you, little girl." The woman who said this took out a thousand yen bill from her wallet and handed it to Sayu.
"No, no need."
Sayu waved her hands repeatedly.
Seeing this, the woman's face became even more apologetic, and she kept saying thank you.
Sayu handed the milkshake to the girl and prepared to get up and leave.
The girl who took the milkshake was not in a hurry to drink it. Instead, she stretched out her young hands to hug her gently and said, "Thank you, beautiful sister."
The sound of milky milk came into my ears.
For a moment, something deep in my heart seemed to be healed.