Chapter 1

Iyori woke up the second she heard the all but pleasant sound of a door slamming, something Iyori’s younger sister Hanako had made a habit of doing every morning in an attempt to wake up the young girl. Eyes still heavy and half open, Iyori rolled over and stretched out her body, whereafter she reached for her phone, looking at the time. Once her eyes had enough time to focus and she saw the numbers clearly, she let out a deep sigh. 

She had to get up, get out of bed, get ready and go to school. 

Indeed... Indeed she should. 

But maybe just 5 more minutes? Who could blame a young girl for closing her eyes for a mere 5 more minutes? It was her right, at least that was how Iyori saw it and she quickly put down her phone, rolled over on her bed and curled up under her blanket once again, ready to claim her 5 more minutes. 

Unfortunately, those 5 more minutes quickly turned into 10 minutes and those 10 minutes turned into 15, that turned into 20 and so it went on until half an hour had passed and Iyori suddenly woke up with a start, looking at her phone in fear of how late she was going to be. 

No, she didn’t even want to look at the time! Instead she just jumped out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. Luckily, she knew herself well enough to always take a shower in the evening, and she was gradually becoming an expert in tying up her hair behind her back, while she was running down the stairs. 

“Good morning,” said Hina, Iyori’s mother who was sitting at the dining table with her husband, Akihito. Akihito simply looked at Iyori and shook his head while letting out a sigh. 

“I thought I woke you up earlier,” said Hanako, who was sitting across from Hina, calmly sipping her morning coffee. Iyori didn’t respond and Hina quickly felt the chilly atmosphere spread around the entire room. 

“Oh well, that isn’t important,” said Hina quickly, her voice light and cheerful as always, “Iyori is up now, and still in time to have some breakfast.” 

“No thank you,” said Iyori, the words politely chosen, all the while her tone was the complete opposite. “I will just grab a piece of bread to eat on the go.” 

“Sit down, child,” said Akihito in an annoyed tone, “eat breakfast with your family for once.” Iyori looked at the three cozy people who were gathered around the table. It looked idyllic, almost perfect. A loving, caring family. But even if there was an empty chair, and even if Hina gestured towards it with her big, cheerful smile, Iyori new she didn’t belong. 

“Yes, sweetheart,” said Hina and interrupted Iyori’s thoughts. “Listen to your father and take a seat. If you eat breakfast first, you and Hanako can walk to school together.” 

“No thank you!” Like a gust of wind, the words left Iyori’s mouth. No words came as a response to Iyori’s fierce remark, but none did it matter either way, as she had already grabbed a piece of toast and left the house, slamming the door behind her. 

“That girl...” said Akihito and sighed, before turned the page in the news paper, not even noticing the worried expression on his wife’s face. 

“Hanako,” said Hina and looked at her youngest daughter, “can’t you talk to your sister, it can’t go on like this forever.” 

“Iyori doesn’t listen to anyone, least of all me,” said Hanako and got up from her chair, bringing her dishes to the kitchen, “I need to get going too, have a nice day, mom.” 

“You too,” said Hina and nudged her husband in the side, “honey, say goodbye to your daughter.” 

“Ah yes, goodbye Hanako, work hard!” 

“You too.” 

***

As Iyori walked the all too familiar streets of Otaru, getting closer and closer to the school building, she noticed how she slowly started getting surrounded by other students walking in the same direction. All wearing the same blue summer school uniform, enjoying the sunny mornings the month of April brought with it. Most people walked in pairs or small crowds of people, chatting and laughing with their friends about who knows what. The more people there was around her, the noisier it became and all the conversations started blending together. Iyori just snorted and turned up the music in her headphones, feeling the warm summer sun shine down upon her and the light breeze guide her forward, even though all she wanted was to run in the opposite direction. 

“Good morning students,” said the young teacher, Fuyoko Nishida, to all the students who quickly got up from their chair when she entered the room. 

“Good morning miss Nishida,” said the students in union, before Fuyoko gestured for everyone to take a seat. 

“As you know, today you get the results back from your first midterms as 3rd year students,” said Fuyoko with great enthusiasm, something the students didn’t return. 

The classroom was completely silent while Fuyoko began handing out the corrected tests and soon enough, the silence was taken over by a mixture of happiness and disappointment, of cheers and sighs, all blending together in a jumble. 

“Miss Mikami,” said Fuyoko when she stood in front of Iyori, looking at her with fallen eyes as she handed her the results, “I do hope you plan on improving yourself before the finals.” Iyori looked over the result and let out a snort. 

“Don’t count on it,” said Iyori and Fuyoko continued on after letting out a sigh. 

After Fuyoko was out of sight, busy handing out the rest of the tests, Iyori took another look at her result, trying to convince herself that the heavy feeling in her chest didn’t mean anything. Of course it didn’t, this meant nothing, she didn’t care at all. 

“How did it go?” asked Hanako and scared Iyori out of her heavy thoughts and back to earth. Iyori looked at her sister who had gotten up from her seat and was now standing right next to her, her eyes focused on the piece of paper in Iyori’s hand. 

Not a sound left Iyori’s mouth, instead she simply handed the test to her sister and turned her head. She didn’t want to see the face of disappointment. Hanako was the one in the family who made that face in the most dramatic way and Iyori always gave her a reason to show it. 

“45 out of 100? Did you even read the questions before answering?” asked Hanako in a spiteful tone. “How? How can you fail a test you have had before.” 

“Don’t be silly, I haven’t had this exact test before, stupid!” answered Iyori, finally looking at Hanako, but only to receive a raised eyebrow that made her wish she had only kept her mouth shut. 

“You might not have had this exact test, no,” said Hanako, “but you had all the material before. Everything. So how could you–” 

“Yeah yeah, I heard you already. Now tell me how you did!” said Iyori quickly to change the subject, “100 out of 100 I guess.” 

“98 out of 100,” corrected Hanako and Iyori moved her hand up to cover her mouth while she looked at Hanako with a shocked expression. 

“Oh my...” said Iyori sarcastically, “but, what went wrong?” 

“Just shut up!” said Hanako annoyed. 

“Yes, you heard me correctly, 100 out 100, but what else to expect.” Both girls turned their heads by the sound of a familiar, arrogant voice coming from the student seated behind Iyori. The top student of the class, or rather, the top student of the school, Shuya Takahashi, was sitting at his desk with a smirk on his face while he delighted told his classmate at the desk next to his, about his remarkable results. 

“I think it is actually physically impossible for me to get any answer wrong,” continued Shuya while the girls turned their heads away again, both of them rolling their eyes simultaneously. 

“There he goes again, what a jerk,” said Hanako, “I really hoped I wouldn’t have to deal with him this year too. He might have only transferred to our school and my class in the last semester of my 2nd year, but even one semester was enough for me to realize what a douche he is.” 

“Sure...” said Iyori and rested her chin in her hand, “or maybe you are just jealous because he always gets better grades than you.” 

“That is not true at all!” said Hanako in an angry tone, but she quickly regretted when she heard Fuyoko’s voice speak up. 

“Miss Hanako Mikami, would you please take a seat?” Iyori nearly burst out laughing as she watched her sister do the walk of shame all the way to her desk where she quietly sat down, while Fuyoko continued teaching without a care. 

The hours moved by at the speed of a snail, even though Iyori did her best to drift away from the classroom and into dreamland instead, far away from this school, far away from this city. Imagining a better and more fun place where she belonged. It was nothing but dreams, but if it helped her get through the first half of the day, it was good enough for Iyori. All she needed was for the class to end and lunch break to begin. As soon as the bell rang and everyone went to the Cafeteria, Iyori packed her bags and disappeared from the school before anyone could blink twice. 

After running to the nearest cafe, asking to borrow the key to the bathroom, Iyori changed from her school uniform, into a short summer dress and put her hair up in a cute bun. After looking herself in the mirror, giving a satisfied nod, she left the cafe as a new, refined woman. 

While walking towards the train station, Iyori took out her phone and clicked on the pink ikon with a white heart inside. 

“Welcome back, Yuki,” Iyori read the message off of her screen, “would you like to check in?” 

Without a second thought, Iyori clicked on “yes” and read the following message in her head: 

“You have now checked in and can be requested.” With a satisfied smile on her lips, Iyori closed the app and shoved her phone into her bag, whereafter she sat down on a bench, waiting for the train to arrive. 

The weather really was lovely and when Iyori got off the train in Sapporo, the neighboring town, she walked with fast steps towards her usual spot in her usual park. Sitting down among the many people who were also enjoying the warm sun, Iyori opened up her bag and took out her sketch book. Her smile wouldn’t leave her face as she started sketching whatever she saw around her. It wasn’t much, nothing special, but enough to pass time in an enjoyable way. 

Suddenly, as she was deciding what to draw next, she felt her phone vibrate and she quickly reached for it and opened it. 

“Mr. Sakamoto is requesting a date.” 

Tomoki Sakamoto, Iyori remembered him well. It would be the third time he requested her for a date, something Iyori only saw as a good sign. 

After accepting the request, Iyori quickly packed up her things and started walking towards the designated meeting spot. When she arrived, she looked around the area, searching for the red bike she had seen him arriving on the last two times. He was studying medicine and Iyori had the feeling he spent his free hours riding his bike to the city so he could go on a date with her. 

Suddenly, Iyori took notice of that exact red bike she was looking for and she quickly started waving her hand at Tomoki who was approaching her. 

“Tomoki!” said Iyori enthusiastically when Tomoki jumped off his bike and he quickly waved back at her. After parking his bike and locking it with a chain, he hurried back to Iyori and gave her a quick hug, something Iyori accepted from her dates after a few times, when she got to know them better. 

“Yuki, it’s so good to see you again,” said Tomoki after releasing Iyori from his arms, “how are you?” 

“I’m good,” said Iyori with a smile. “What about you? What do you want to do today, sweetie.” Tomoki lifted his face towards the sky, looking like he was thinking hard about Iyori’s question. When he raised his head like that, he looked much taller than he was and Iyori felt like he was towering over her, who was only around 160 cm tall. The sun was reflecting in his glasses, making it impossible to see his eyes, until he finally lowered his head again and looked at Iyori. 

“I think I just want to go for a walk in the park, would that be okay? Or is that too boring?” asked Tomoki, looking nervous all of a sudden and Iyori let out a slight chuckle. 

“No, it sounds lovely, I couldn’t think of a better way to spend a sunny afternoon myself,” said Iyori and took Tomoki’s hand in hers, watching as his cheeks turned slightly redder. 

“Then... maybe we can buy some street food on our way? I haven’t had any lunch yet,” said Tomoki, suddenly diverting his eyes after feeling Iyori’s touch. 

“Me neither, so that sounds perfect,” said Iyori, whereafter they both started walking down the street hand in hand. 

In contrast to school, time flew by when Iyori was with Tomoki. He was in the good category of dates, calm and relaxed, something Iyori really admired him for. Studying medicine had got to be stressful, but Tomoki never let it show when he was with Iyori. He always wore a bright smile on his face and spoke in a calm and friendly voice. But best of all, he always had an eye for Iyori’s interests, rather than his own when they went on dates. Already on their first date, did he realize how fond she was of food, and he never failed to invite her somewhere to eat. 

“What do you want?” asked Tomoki while he and Iyori stood in front of the stall, looking at the different food options. “Choose whatever you want, it’s my treat.” 

“You spoil me too much,” said Iyori, “but I am not sure I can eat a lot, maybe you want to share something with me?” 

“Of course I want to share something with you,” replied Tomoki with a smile, “anything for you.” Iyori sent back a smile and then pointed at the food she wanted. 

“What a cute couple you two make,” said the owner of the food stall while she handed the food to Iyori, “I hope you will continue to have a good day.” 

“Thank you so much,” said Iyori and bowed her head slightly before she and Tomoki went on their way again. 

“What a nice man,” said Iyori after they started walking through the park again. 

“Nicer than me?” asked Tomoki in a teasing voice. 

“Of course not,” answered Iyori immediately and Tomoki let out a slight chuckle. 

When they had finished eating the food, Iyori and Tomoki walked around the park a bit more, but it wasn’t long before Tomoki explained that he had to get back to his dorm. He mentioned how he had a bunch of upcoming exams he still hadn’t finished preparing for. Iyori thanked him for the lovely date and made sure to wish him good luck on his studies. 

“Remember, you can always request a date with me, if you need a break from the books,” said Iyori and winked at Tomoki. 

“I will keep that in mind,” said Tomoki, “I would probably take you out more often, if it wasn’t because it was so expensive.” Tomoki let out a awkward laugh after finishing his sentence. 

“I am sorry I am such an expensive date, but I hope you at least feel like it is worth it and that you are enjoying our time together.” 

“More than you know,” said Tomoki with a soft voice. “Take care of yourself until we see each other again.” 

“I will, same to you,” said Iyori and waved goodbye to Tomoki as he disappeared down the street on his red bicycle. 

The huge smile which had been plastered to her face for the past hour, slowly started fading when Tomoki was out of sight. Her jaw was hurting and she felt drained from energy, exhausted after trying to show her best side to the young man. Maybe she should simply go home for the day. She didn’t feel satisfied only going on one date, but Tomoki requested her late in the afternoon and she had no idea how long it would be before the next person put in a request for her. The week days were usually slow like this, she already knew the weekends were the busy ones, but she still preferred spending her time like this, rather than sitting in her classroom all day. 

While Iyori slowly started making her way towards the train station, she took out her phone and clicked on the same pink icon from earlier. 

“End date with Mr. Sakamoto?” said the white dialog box on her screen and Iyori calmly clicked on “Yes”. 

“Mr Sakamoto gave your date a 5 star rating, congratulations on another successful date.” Iyori smiled after reading the message on her screen. Maybe Tomoki would actually turn out to be a regular at this point? With a warm fuzzy feeling in her chest, Iyori was ready to close the app and turn off her phone again, when suddenly, another dialog box appeared on her screen. 

“Would you like to check in again?” 

Iyori had no idea for how long she stared at the message on the screen, incapable of making a decision. She looked at the time, it wouldn’t be a long time before her father returned home from work. Her mother had probably started cooking dinner by now and she could already smell the sweet fragrance of her mother’s home cooking, almost taste it on her tongue. A perfect family dinner. Perfect. At least if she wasn’t in the picture. 

“You have now checked in and can be requested.” Iyori read the message on the screen after she spontaneously clicked on “Yes” in the former dialog box. 

The next train would arrive in 10 minutes. If she hadn’t been requested before then, she would get on the train and go home to her family. The minutes seemed never ending, but she received no requests whatsoever. She let out a sigh after checking her phone again, but still nothing, instead she heard the train arriving. The doors opened and people started leaving the train, while others on the station started getting ready to get on. Iyori was no different, what else could she do but take a step forward and board the train. She was only one step away from the train door, when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and she quickly took it out. 

“Mr. Takahashi is requesting a date.” 

Hello everyone!

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this story, it has been a really fun story to work on and I have been so excited to finally post it and see what you all think of it.

What do you think about the kind of part time job Iyori has? Did you know that you could rent a girlfriend in Japan? I find it really interesting and it just creates a lot of fun scenes to write out.

Let me know what you think and take care of yourself! I'll see you all in the next chapter.

Love, Annalise~