Izakaya Peanuts- Chapter 4 8/13/2014

[kuro808]

Chapter 1

“Yui-chan, ohayou!  Ohisashiburi!”

Yokoyama Yui heard the greeting many times before but in a way it felt old yet a renewed greeting of when she had returned to Kyoto from Tokyo.  Being surrounded in the swarm of black, she squeezed through the groups of people as she hugged the many people she hadn’t seen or remembered for a long time.  She would smile only to be questioning herself of the person she had just met before walking into the line to give her final greeting to someone she hadn’t seen since she had left.

The man, himself, was a prosperous human being with the stroke of luck.  Everything he could design had become famous within Kyoto.  He had developed himself as an entrepreneur before the word was even muttered in business circles.  Yui had met him only during family events and he was the one who had proclaimed her as the person to follow him as he had failed to produce kids with her aunt.  Her uncle boasted that the only thing that he would not be rich was to be dead.  Being his funeral, he had given his money to his nieces and nephews except for Yui, which left her confused and her immediate return to her hometown.

“Yui-chan, sit here.”  The woman pointed toward the seat with the heavy makeup and the loose fitting top.

“Mom!  Where’s aunt Kimiko?”  She asked the woman as she stood like a captain hunting for land in the sea of people as she pointed left of them.

“Yui-chan!  Ohisashiburi.”  She hugged the young woman.  “Genki?”

“Unn.  I have been hunting for a job.”  Yui replied as the aunt’s eyes widened.

“I need to talk to you after the service.  Uncle Takashi forgot about the money.”  She smiled as she took her seat in the front as the priest stood in front of the group.

“Welcome to the funeral of Yokoyama Takashi!”  He greeted everyone as a bracelet was passed to her.  Yui held the bracelet in hand as the priest stepped up to the altar and picked up the thick cylindrical item and banged it against the metal bowl.  Her mind became set on what his uncle had left her.  There were many things she had considered but they were his possessions that probably her cousins had gotten to first.  Yui closed her eyes throughout the ceremony only to open to the priest’s voice.

She glanced around the church with the strong of incense making her tear up as the image of her many cousins popped up from when they were younger.  It wasn’t that long that she had left Kyoto for Tokyo in the belief that she would achieve a better education but that seemed to be going downhill after a flurry of incidents happening at the school before it closed down and transferring to a business school had given her much headaches.  In the end, she was part of the thousands looking for a job.

Luckily, a roommate that didn’t seem to mind the job seeking type was with her.  Yui thought that she was unusual with her skills as being a starving writer until a book got published by my mistake and sold the lot within the first month.  Under the pseudonym, Unagi, Kitahara Rie had become an instant classic with the office ladies with a mystic adventure of woman discovering herself in the male dominated world of workplace hierarchy.

Yui had the invitation to look for better places but she declined when she heard about her uncle’s passing.  Rie didn’t plan the move either so they stayed to go through the daily struggle in the cramped space.  She considered it lucky that Rie decided to stay.

“Yui-chan, we can talk about what uncle left you.”  Her aunt said as they rushed out of the church and into the common area outside in the parking lot.  Her aunt took her to the tent farthest away from the church as she handed Yui a crumpled piece of paper.  The script was extremely messy which she didn’t mind but not knowing how her uncle wrote brought few concerns.

“Please read it.”

Dear Yuihan,

If you received this letter, this means I have passed on.  I know I was boasting about your abilities since you were young but I remembered the day that you decided to go off to Tokyo despite your parents’ disapproval but I heard about you graduating at the business school and making yourself accustomed in Tokyo.

However, I have a proposition for you…

No one wanted to take over the Izakaya Peanuts so I have decided to leave it you.  Aunt Kimiko doesn’t know of this place because I gave it to my business partner to take of it but his greed got the best of him and died.  The business itself isn’t hard but I know you have the mindset to get it off the ground.  I don’t know about the staff in general but see what you can get from them.  The rest of the information is in a box that your aunt Kimiko has on her bureau.

I wish you the best of luck,

Uncle Takashi.

P.S. My partner’s name is Shimazaki Haruo, if you wanted to know…

“I need you to show me the box.”  Yui said to the elder woman as she nodded before walking to the car and grabbing the purple sash before carrying it to her.

Yui pulled open the sash to a polished mahogany box seeing his uncle’s initials on it.  She opened the box to a black book and a silver key to the side of the book.  The woman turned to the other and saw her shrug as she grabbed the key in her hand.

“Your uncle wanted to make a restaurant but things happened and regretfully for both of us, the guy lost money on the venture before owing to the yakuza.”  Kimiko explained as Yui opened the book to a list of names, mainly female, as she took out the book and gave back the empty box to her aunt.

“Is it paid off?”  Yui asked with the decision looming on her mind.

“Your uncle made sure of that and it was the reason why you never received money from us.”  Kimiko sighed as Yui gave her hug.

“You and uncle worked hard.”  Yui smiled, slipped the book and key into her purse.  “There is one question.”

“It isn’t far from here and the key is actually to the whole building.”  She disclosed before returning back to the rest of the family congregating under the other tent.

“Yui!  Did aunt Kimiko give you the letter?”  Her mother asked as the rest of the people slowly passed them.

“Yes.  He left me an izakaya.”  Yui answered with her mother’s eyes widening.

“Izakaya?  I didn’t know he had one.”

“Me neither…  But I feel interested in looking into it.”  Yui showed her the book and key.  “Also, I heard the building is also owned by him.”

“I see…  Maybe spend a night over there.”  She suggested as Yui wasn’t sure about the conditions and began her walk to the place her uncle had co-owned.

She began her walk down the narrow streets to a gray building where the book had explained the location being between other bars in the areas.  Yui saw the few signs outside ready for business as an old man saw the woman walking through.

“What are you looking for?”  He asked with a firm smile on his face.

“Izakaya Peanuts.”  She answered seeing his face turn to a sour expression as he pointed down the way.

“That place was for yakuza.”  He explained his expression.

“I’m sorry for asking.  My uncle co-owned the place.”  Yui explained as the man confirmed his direction with Yui continuing to a building with a metal door in front.  The door was marked up with graffiti and then she saw the glass door where she dug into the purse for the key and opened up to the establishment.  The place itself was well-kept but the smell of a swamp had filled her nose.  She weaved through the tables before seeing a staircase to the right.

Yui turned left to a small area surrounded by metal as she saw the two big items in the corner and saw the handle to open it up.  The thick perfume of mold and rotten food caught up to her as she waved it away before closing the door.  She walked further into the establishment to see the traps filled with vermin as she returned back to the staircase.

She walked up the winding stairs to the next floor lined with a wooden floor.  Yui walked further to see two doors on either side of her and grasped the handle on the left one to a dark room with a lamp.  Yui jumped onto the bed feeling her body sink into the bedding with a cloud of dust coming up.  She brushed off the dust before opening the next door to the same concept except she saw the foil on the window.

Yui closed the door and walked down the hall to the next set of doors with the one on the right ajar.  She opened it further, seeing the lump under a blanket.  Yui crept up to the bed with the small beam of light catching the auburn-colored hair of the person as she extended her hand out when the body turned to see the fair skin of the person.  Yui assured herself it wasn’t a man by staying calm in the situation and placing her hand on the body confirming the body being a woman.  The woman pulled off the sheets to a white t-shirt showing the midriff of her body and the white underwear with various colors of polka dots.

“Excuse me, who are you?”  She asked in the softest voice she could despite her alert status being at an eight.

“Hello!”  She said as her eyes fluttered a bit before fixing them toward the woman.  “What are you doing here?”

“I’m Yokoyama Yui!  I own this building.”  She explained as the woman returned to her bed.

“I’m just staying here for my sleep.”  She said as Yui shook her again.  “Please don’t disturb me.”

“I own the building and you would be considered as a trespasser.  I would have to kick you out.”  Yui threatened as the woman sat up.

“I know!  You don’t have to be a bitch about it.”  She growled before grabbing the blanket and headed to the room across.

“I’m not but you are here illegally.”

“Takashi said I could stay here.”

She heard the name and shook her head.  “What is your relationship with him?”

“I’m his partner’s daughter.”  She grunted before closing the door in front of her.  Yui felt her blood boil but she didn’t want to get angry over evicting her before realizing she had to examine the last of the place before making a decision on the building.

[kuro808]

As you may not know izakaya= a drinking establishment usually for after-work

Chapter 2

Yui went to last room where the door was polished with a clear epoxy but the dust covered the front as she felt the sticky substance on the door knob.  She opened the door to a spacious room with a large bed to the far wall and a mirror on the other side of the room.  She turned to find two closets closed toward the mirror.  Yui pulled it open to clothing hung on the hangers and a few paintings to the side.  She went to the other one with the same amount of contents before closing it.

She opened her phone and pressed on her mother’s number.  Yui was assured that she couldn’t stay for the night as the place was abandoned but her interest of a job was still in her mind.  The sounds of the rings made her go into a relaxation zone when the voice awoke her.

“Yui-chan, what is it?”

“I like the place but I may need to work on building this place back up.”  Yui explained as her mother confirmed the situation.  “The worst thing is a loan…”

“Aunt Kimiko actually had asked if you were interested, she had set up a loan in advance and she’ll sign off on it.”  Her mother remembered as Yui felt the stars had aligned for once.  Yui closed the door to the room and opened the room with the woman, sticking her head inside.

“Whoever you are… I’ll kick you out whenever I feel like it.”  She threatened again when the other woman handed her a piece of paper that looked similar to the letter to her as she was the inheritor of the property.

Yui glared at the paper in confusion as she folded it to throw it at the woman.

“We need to look at it further.  Come with me.”  Yui grabbed her hand and dragged her out of bed to the other room where her clothes were and threw on the jeans that was on the floor.  She dragged the other woman to the nearest place where she could look over the paper near the building and entering the empty café, Yui and the woman took their seats as the waitress came by and Yui ordered coffee for two as the other woman was rubbing her eyes of sleep.

“Tell me about this.”  Yui pleaded as the woman glared down at the paper.

“My father gave it to me couple years ago before he died.  He would always come home late and then be passed out on the table when I awoke the next morning.  Then, he handed it to me out of the blue when I returned home from school.  Couple days later, they found his body in the ditch near the place.  However, the bank had closed down the shop when the payments stopped but forgot to change the locks so I used the rooms on the second floor for sleeping since I’m exactly homeless.”  She explained as the two coffees came to them.

“My uncle gave me the letter that the place is mine.”  Yui argued as she took out the letter.

“Well… I don’t know what he shall do.”  The woman grabbed three sugar packets and poured it into her coffee.”

Yui glanced toward the end to find the P.S. and pointed toward the name.  “Is that your father?”

“Yes!  I’m Shimazaki Haruka.  I usually go by Paruru.”  She replied with lips on the cup sipping her coffee.

“Okay, Paruru.  I’m Yokoyama Yui and I’m interested in fixing up the property but I need your help and your authorization to help me get it back.”  Yui requested toward the woman as she sat back in her chair.

Her thoughts were of the nights he would return and never said good morning.  Paru felt hurt that she never had a father that assisted her in life with any problems which came to her mother.  Paru wasn’t great with the opposite sex either as her demeanor would turn off many guys despite being an attractive person.  She had followed her father down to Kyoto to confront him after a week trip and received the news of his impending doom before returning home.

“I’m not sure.”  She replied softly as she stared at the deep brown color of the drink.

“I’ll employ you and you can stay within the building, I promise.”  Yui proposed as Paru took another sip of the coffee.

“I have to think about it.”  Paru revealed a small smile as Yui nodded, seeing the struggle in her eyes.

Yui grabbed her cup and began to look around before her phone caught her attention and opened it in front of Paru.  Her heart tugged as she heard the conversation and wondered who she was talking to.  If she wanted to know, it wouldn’t be easy to ask but she kept her eyes onto Yui with her conversation.  Paru took a sip of the coffee when she heard talking behind her and turned to a man with a smile.

“Howya doing?”

“I’m doing fine…”  She replied as the man pulled a seat from the table and sat on it backwards.  “You shouldn’t do that.”

“C’mon!  No one is sitting there and it is pretty empty at the moment.”  He pointed around the café with the few people around them.

“I’m not interested in you.”  She stated as the man scooted closer.

“I don’t think you gave me a chance to explain.”  He reasoned when he grabbed her hand and her hand reacted with the lukewarm liquid splashing onto the man’s face.  Yui turned to the incident and saw the waitress come with a towel, wiping the man’s face.  “You weren’t worth it!”

Paru didn’t reply as the next cup of coffee came to her as she did the three packets of sugar without even considering her consequences.  Yui ended the call and saw Paru sipping her coffee again.

“What happened?”  She asked with Paru shrugging her shoulders.

“The guy touched me and I had to protect myself.”  She elaborated on the incident as Yui took a deep breath.

Yui knew Paru didn’t deserve the building to sleep in especially with the deal in limbo.  However, she had no place to go without interfering in her business.  She glared at the woman, sipping her coffee as she was left with few choices to consider when the idea popped into her head.

“At least, stay somewhere warm for the time being.”  Yui suggested.  “I’ll pay for a room.”

Paru leaned back into the chair.  “It’s fine.”  She said waving her hand in front of her face.

“I’ll pay and at least you can be at peace rather than being in the building.”  Yui pleaded with her as Paru glanced down at the coffee.

“I guess I’ll accept.”  She spoke softly responding to the plea.  “I have no clothes though.”

Yui smiled.  “I think you should get some clothes for the time being.”

Yui lifted her hand for the bill and paid it quickly before walking outside to the warm afternoon in her home city.  Paru followed her to the marketplace where items were sold as Paru walked through the vendors glancing at the selection of clothes.  Many were just too bright for but Yui had insisted to get a few items and Paru complied with a few shorts and shirts for half price.  Then, Paru ventured further to the end to the warehouse store at the end of the street.

Yui was compelled that she had nothing else but showing the only thing that she needed to the outside and ran into the store with a sigh.  She remembered what had been seen earlier that day and the fact that it could start haunting her quickly brought an interest to Paru.  Yui wasn’t sure how to associate herself in buying underwear with another woman but she stood there with Paru holding the item as they got to the cashier.  Yui made no eye contact to anybody except for where it was needed and made it as painless as possible to pay and hurry out with her dignity.

“Anyplace else?”  Yui asked as Paru shook her head.

Yui helped Paru with her new clothes to lobby of the hotel.  The place was usually a place Yui remembered when they would go on vacation if they couldn’t go anywhere special.  Paru looked around at the plain décor.  She never stayed at a hotel before and felt her body flow with adrenaline like a kid.  She ran to the chair and took a seat with the bags stacked upon her.  Yui took a seat as the receptionist had been busy with a call.  Paru smelled the floral scent roaming around the lobby, letting out a sigh into the air.  Paru walked toward the restaurant with the people eating their meal as she turned toward the counter.

“Yokoyama-san, your room is ready.”  The receptionist called as Yui stood and picked up the key before heading over to the elevator.  Paru smiled before following Yui to the elevator, pressing the button to the third floor.  The duo came out with Yui leading them to the hallway before stopping at the door and opening it up.

“You can stay here for the time being.”  Yui confirmed as Paru looked around the room before heading to the shower.

“Thanks.  You didn’t have to do this for me.”  Paru smiled before closing the door.

The phone rang, seeing the name on the screen, she swiped to accept the call.  “Moshi moshi.”

“It’s Kitahara.  Are you sure you want to go through with this?”  Rie asked when Yui scanned the city with the view of Kyoto.

“It’s fine.  I think you deserve to be successful by yourself.”  Yui insisted as she knew Tokyo life was nearing its end.

“I see.”  Rie sighed.  “Kyoto is wonderful.”

“One day come by and visit.”

“Surely do.  I’ll organize a day to get your stuff to Kyoto.”  Rie said as Yui checked the door.

“Thanks.”

Yui hung up the phone thinking about Rie for the time being.  It was blissful for the time together but she felt like an anchor hanging onto her success.  It was a challenge to test the waters as both were single but neither gave into the temptation that was their new found friendship.  Her thoughts changed hearing a shriek from the shower.  Yui pressed her ear against the door to hear the voice of Paru singing in the shower.  Yui snickered as she heard her sing but quickly walked to the table to take a seat until Paru finished her shower.

[kuro808]

Chapter 3

“You’re still here?”  Paru questions as her body was wrapped in the white towel and her hair was down as she stared at Yui who had turned with her eyes trying to stay above the collarbone.

“I wanted to say bye personally before I left.”  Yui smiled, dropping the card key on the table before she headed toward the door, gripping the knob when Paru jogged to grab her.

“Thank you for everything.”  Paru shook her hand before allowing her to leave the room.

Paru stood over her bed glancing over her selection of clothes which seemed to be plentiful for her but the three shirts and three bottoms were matching for her taste.  Then, the final bag was the stack of plain underwear in different colors which forced a small smile onto her face but luckily Yui had left before she had to personally chase her out.  Paru hadn’t cared for another pair of eyes but she did like Yui for her kindness and opened the fresh pack of underwear to place it onto her body.

She grabbed a shirt and shorts for herself, tossing the old clothes into a bunch at the foot of the bed, and stripped off the towel to put her clothes on.  The natural warmth wrapped her body as she tossed herself onto the bed with the contrast of cold touching her body.  Paru’s face dug into the pillow and smelled the sweet scent of it as it rose into her nose.  Her mind filled with curiosity, walked around the room to look into every area of the place.

Paru’s eyes opened up to the many things around her but she felt her heart beat awkwardly as the room seemed to be quiet, too quiet.  She had no other contacts except for Yui personally but without any information to get in contact with her, she returned to the bed to turn on the television to the pictures that moved in her mind.  Paru’s eyes went heavy and slipped under the blanket.

“Paru, don’t worry.  I’ll be back.”

She finally felt alone for that brief moment after hearing the words from her father as he pasted a smile onto his face before leaving that day.  Paru was analyzing her choices as she had left her mother after she had become a hostess and picked out a new boyfriend every few months.  Living with her father was worst off overall but it was away from the chaos that was becoming rampant at the house.

The business was closing up with the people purging the area of food when the people started to leave, hearing a yell from outside to the mutilated body in the ditch.  Paru saw through the window the group and went to sleep only to hear the sirens blaring an hour later.  She rubbed her eyes to see the police near the ditch and then a knock from downstairs brought her to the door.

Paru knew it was bad when walked up to see him folded over in the ditch with his face turned up towards them.  She nodded, not saying a bit about anything but knowing the last day of the establishment would bring the torture of her life to end quickly.  She stated that she had been living with him for a few months and was going to move out if possible but no one had forced her out until Yui came.

“Shimazaki-san, sorry for your lost.”

Her top half of her body shot up with the sun beaming into the room.  Paru remembered the words during that night and every few weeks, the dream of that night popped up.  She didn’t feel calm the morning after when it first came into her mind but every subsequent dream after, she slowly understood the situation.  Paru heard the knock at the door and ran over to answer to a woman’s voice.

“Breakfast.”  She announced as Paru was handed a ticket.  “We have a buffet downstairs in the lobby restaurant.”  She explained as her dimpled smile came out with a nod.

“Kawaii ne.  Are you here with someone?”  The woman asked as Paru could see the creases in her face move with her mouth.

“No.  My friend had given me this living arrangement.”  She stated as the woman’s eyes widened with her mouth creating an “o.”

“So nice of your friend to get you a room.”  She commented.  “Where ya from?”

“Originally from Saitama but been moving around…”  Paru answered with a sigh toward the end and her hand behind the door slowly closing the door.

“Ah!  I hope you come to visit.  You have only up to 9:00.”  She informed the woman as Paru closed the door.

Many things seemed to come when she said she was from Saitama.  Paru rarely showed her true emotions and it seemed one good quality she possessed but internally the arrow stuck out of her back.  People had helped to take it out but if they did, it would only bring more hate to the situation.  Paru took a few deep breaths before grabbing the card key and heading to the elevator.

As she proceeded down, her thoughts turned to Yui.  There were many things she wanted to ask but Yui was persistent in getting her to help her with the run down izakaya.  She wasn’t confident that she could bring it from the ashes but the confidence she exhibited was something she hadn’t personally felt about anything confident in a while.  She didn’t see the line at the restaurant before walking inside to the crowd eating at the far corner where the woman came from the corner of her eye.

“Welcome!  Have a seat anywhere.”  She greeted Paru, pointing to the roped off area.  “I’m glad you came.”

Paru walked up to the line seeing the bowl of fruit and tongs on the outside before grabbing a plate and a fork.  She grabbed the instrument and picked out the melons and grapes from the bowl onto her plate.  Paru walked up to the next station and picked out a piece of white bread and used the soft off-white spread to cover the edible canvas.  Then, the rice and meats came up and moved the fruits to the side to have a small serving of rice before stacking four strips of bacon onto the plate before turning to the juice station.

“Do you need a drink?”  A young female asked in a squeaky voice.

“Yes.  Thank you!”

Paru stared at the female before heading to the table when the woman came and placed the drink onto the table.  “Is orange juice okay?”

“It’s okay.” Paru grinned toward her and left the customer to eat her meal. 

Paru had become concerned that the service seemed too perfect as she glanced around as the people were greeting the customers and offering their services.  She saw the knife on the table and grabbed her fork to cut into the piece of melon.  She placed it into her mouth with the juice covering her taste buds.  Paru felt relieved that it was nice to have fresh fruit in a long while.

“Do you want some water?”  The waiter asked her as she nodded with his steady hand filling up the frosted glass from his cart with clear water.  “You’re really cute.”  He said with a blush on his face.

“Thank you.”  Paru nodded as he rolled his cart away from her.

Paru continued with her fruits, cutting it into smaller pieces and placing it in her mouth with her eyes scanning around the restaurant.  The guests were more family oriented with the kids talking and eating with their parents.  She didn’t mind the noise but she felt her heart gone cold for the moment as she went back to her eating.  Paru picked on what she should eat with her knife and cutting to bite-size pieces with the meal.  She saw many leave at the same time when the clock had hit half past eight and she continued without looking up again until it was fifteen minutes until closing.

“Are you going up for another plate?”  The waitress asked glancing at her almost clean dish.

“No.”  She said politely before eating the last piece of meat from the plate before the waitress took it.

She patted her stomach before exiting the restaurant to the lobby where a tour group had formed outside but decided to go back to the room instead.  Paru felt exhausted after going through the buffet when she grabbed the letter and scanned through it.  The memories flooded again into mind and heart about those times and then her father’s face would appear in front of her.

“Hmm, maybe Yui will come back soon.”  She thought with her hand on top of her chest.

She slowly sunk back into the bed with her mind on her father when she rolled off the bed to do some sightseeing.  Despite being in the town, Paru didn’t venture outside of the building that she would usually only crawl out during the night for food.  She decided to go back downstairs and see around the town.  The place was beyond the imagination for many people as she walked around when she felt the shirt sticking to her body.

Paru noticed the problem and became concerned as she covered her chest from the eyes surrounding her as she ventured through when she felt a hand upon the shoulder.  She turned to the woman with honey-colored hair with a smile growing on her face.

“Remember me?”

“I’m not sure…”  Paru replied as she followed her to the store with the mannequin in the display.

“I gave you the doll after those boys had stolen it from you.”  She explained as the memory was still foggy from her explanation.  “The name is Itano Tomomi and I own this shop.”

Paru ventured through the store surrounded with high-end clothes and then heading to the back where the undergarments were hanging up on the racks.  She felt unsure of what to find but she glanced at the smaller bras as the woman grinned at her.

“I figured you didn’t have one in this heat.”  She snickered as Paru saw the prices on the rack.

“I can’t pay for this.”

“That’s on me with a price.”  She gave a toothy smile when Paru walked up to her.

“What’s your price?”  She asked in a soft voice.

“I want you to help me with some modeling.”  Tomomi announced as she handed her a small portfolio.  “I’ve been doing it for a while.”

Paru was amazed with her style and figure.  She gave it a thought that it wouldn’t suit her but if a former tough girl could do it.  It wouldn’t be a hard task when Tomomi guided her to the backroom where a white screen had been placed with lights aiming down toward the floor.  Paru turned to see the camera and then glanced back at Tomomi.

“Two free for the photo shoot?”  She suggested as Paru nodded without hesitation.

Paru was shown the changing room behind a dark curtain as Itano handed her a set when the light came on from the top.  She quickly changed into it, tossing her clothes to the side before coming out to Tomomi rubbing her hands together as she ran up to fix the items on her chest.

“Try to pose naturally.”  She instructed with Paru placed her hands together and smiled with her dimples coming out.  Tomomi ran to the other side to grab makeup and adjusted the make up to darker looked which brought out the eyes from the light.  Itano ran to the camera and adjusted the angle before running around to adjust as Paru stood and then the flash caught her off guard.  Itano hit the button again and saw the masterpiece being created.

“One more and then you’ll get your pay.”  Tomomi held up her finger as Paru ran back to the changing room to switch out of the first set.

Paru could feel the cool air hit her flesh with a higher cut everywhere when she came out and Tomomi moved the camera with Paru standing in front of screen.  Tomomi saw the natural ability of an amateur model coming out as she commanded her to do certain poses and made a quick snap as Tomomi handed her a box.

“This was last year’s design.  Thank you for helping.”  She bowed before escorting her back to the dressing room to change into the clothes.  Paru placed one of the bras onto her body.  It was a bit snug but blocked the view of her chest through her shirt.  Tomomi led her out and into the streets.

Paru thought about lunch but returned back to her room with her head on the pillow for the rest of the day.

[Yuki88]

You know, when I saw the title Peanuts I almost thought that this fic will be about Keicchi for some reason hahah. I guess I'm wrong

But anyway, interesting way to start and I wonder how Yui will rebuild the place.

[kuro808]

You know, when I saw the title Peanuts I almost thought that this fic will be about Keicchi for some reason hahah. I guess I'm wrong

But anyway, interesting way to start and I wonder how Yui will rebuild the place.

Yeah... I just caught on that joke from Anchu's Kanto Dialect.  Don't count on an appearance by her.

This is the weird buildup to get to that point.

[kuro808]

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“Mom!  Dad!  I’m home.”  Yui called into the house, hearing the echo returning back to her.

Yui slipped off her shoes before proceeding to the living room where both were sleeping on the couch with the television intently watching them.  She walked in front of the two and turned off the machine with both shaking off the sleep when they waved toward their daughter.

“I heard you were taking over uncle’s failing business.”  He joked as his wife gave him an elbow to his ribs with the female scooting forward.

“Anata, Yui-chan is doing something that Uncle Takashi wanted her to do.  He was confident compared to her cousins.”  She reminded her husband as the two glanced at each other before looking back at Yui.  “Tomorrow morning you can sign off on the loan.”  Her mother informed the woman

Yui smiled hearing about the loan before proceeding to the fridge for food.  She grabbed the bread and meat from the fridge and slapped few pieces of meat between the thin slices of white bread.  Yui took her seat, hearing the television again as she began to think about the times in Kyoto with her many friends after meeting them for summer camp when there was a knock at the door.

“Yuihan!  I heard you came back.”  The voice yelled as Yui ran to the door and opening to the short-haired woman in a boyish t-shirt and jeans shorts.  Yui knew Yamamoto Sayaka well enough as the socks was a clue to her casual clothing.

“So Sayaka, how’s everything?”  Yui asked as her guest took off the shoes and walked inside.

“Everything has been well.  You know how things are with me.”  Sayaka smiled as she followed Yui to the kitchen as she saw the half-eaten sandwich on the table.  “Did I bother your meal time?”

“No.”  She waved her hand.  “I’ve been well.  Just had a funeral for my great-uncle.”

“Gomen.  Sorry for your lost.”  She commented as Yui grabbed her sandwich and munched into it as Sayaka walked over to get the pitcher of water from the fridge.  As she poured the glass, Sayaka stared at the woman before Yui could see the intention behind the look.

“Tokyo?  How did you do picking up a girlfriend?”  Sayaka asked in a low voice as she took the chair next to hear and scooted closer.

“I never had one but my roommate…”  Yui stopped mid-sentence as Sayaka was like a fish being reeled into be caught.  “We became good friends.”

“Awww!”  She moaned with her hand smacked straight onto her forehead holding the glass.  “You never do anything fun.”  Sayaka frowned to the pleasure of the woman.

“There is one piece of information that will make you interested.”  Yui leaned in.  “I’m an owner of an izakaya.”

“Sugoi!  Yui-mama-san!”  Sayaka sang as she stood with the festive hand gestures raised to the heavens and dancing around in the goofy style common to her Osaka blood.

Yui smiled at the woman despite Sayaka always bugging her about a girlfriend.  Their first meeting had been good if it wasn’t for the counselor to make them into a pair.  The two were one in the same as their mannerisms were similar and how their Kansai would flow out in anger when they were part of the defeated team.  However, it took one night to get them situated into being friends.

Yui was quite amused with Sayaka’s style when she dealt with others as a sisterly type.  She caught that personality trait once and got to blackmailing her for being soft but there was the reason and Yui had heard about her kindness toward others as a volunteer at a care home.  Sayaka’s blushed as she tried to explain what she did during the year to get money for the camp.  Yui had the instant change of heart of looking at her as a rival and got to know her as a close friend ever since.

“Stop it!  The problem is I need to convince someone to help me out but she isn’t hard-working like us.”  Yui confided as Sayaka sat down and placed the story together.

“Maybe it must be something with her past.”  Sayaka thought.  “She must be cute though.”

Yui grinned when she said the words but shook it off with her coy smile.  She shoveled the sandwich into her mouth before leaving the dish in the sink with Sayaka in her mode of trying to fish for the answer.  Yui walked up to the next floor with the woman slowly following her down the hall to the second door on the right.  She opened the door to the plain room and remembered it from when she had left for college.

“When’s your stuff coming?” Sayaka asked as Yui shrugged her shoulders.

“I have to wait for my roommate’s call to see on a date on when she can have the stuff delivered.”  Yui answered when she pulled out the chair from the desk and taking a seat at the desk.

“I guess we came in here so you avoid your parents hearing about my relationship?”  Sayaka theorized as Yui knew her parents didn’t accept the talk in the living room.  She wasn’t surprised by that fact but it was sort of a meaningful kinship before it bloomed rapidly.

“So Milky and you…”  Yui leaned in as Sayaka jumped onto the bed.

“Every so often…  It has become a chore sometimes thinking about her needs and the times when both are available for a little time together since we have two different occupations.”  Sayaka explained with her eyes staring up at the ceiling.

“What does Milky do?”

“She has been doing a receptionist job for a while now…  It isn’t easy for her because she gets asked out a lot compared to me.”  Sayaka sighed as Yui rolled the chair over to her.

“You aren’t that bad, just a little boyish at times.”  Yui commented with her friend shaking her head profusely.

“It doesn’t bother me that it rarely happens but it has been off and on.”  Sayaka said as Yui’s phone rang and ran back downstairs to get it.

“Moshi moshi!”

“Kitahara desu.  I’m coming over with you stuff.”  She informed her roommate.  “It’ll be here in the morning.”

“Okay!  Thanks again.”  Yui replied as she hung up her phone and ran back up to her room.

Yui opened the door to Sayaka lying on the bed with the pillow between her thighs as the woman turned around to glance back at Yui.  She didn’t say anything as Yui returned to her seat when Sayaka reached out to grab her soft hand dragged her to the bed.  Her arms were guided to her waist before Yui could say another word, Sayaka was snuggling up to her.

“What’s this for?”

“I rarely feel this from Milky.”  She responded with her head nestled into the groove of Yui’s chest.

“Okay…  It is just weird.”  Yui remarked, hoping it would be quick embrace.

She stayed in the position until Sayaka rolled off the bed and landed onto her feet.  Yui had the perfume of her head near her nose before Sayaka sat in the chair with her hands behind her head looking at the window.  The elder woman sat up seeing the smile from Sayaka appear as the words seemed to escape quicker than her brain could process.  “Was there any purpose for the friendship to maybe pursue ourselves into a romance?”

“I honestly thought it would but you wanted a boyfriend, remember?”  Sayaka replied as Yui gave a toothy smile.

“I gave up.”  Yui remarked as Sayaka shook her head.

“Oh well… We had a chance.”  Sayaka smiled.

“Yeah…”

Yui eyed the door as she threw the blanket over both of them.  The warmth from the woman’s body filled Yui up.  She liked it.  However, it brought chaos to her head.  There wasn’t a time where she had thought about Kitahara and it seemed to bring out those moments when she felt comfortable.  Every day alone was torture bringing itself to fruition.

“What time do you have to return?”  Yui asked as she brushed her hair back with Sayaka glancing at her phone.

“Soon…”  She answered.  “But this feels better.  Yuihan is comfortable to be with, ne?”

Yui closed her eyes as she heard the voice.  The sappy comment made her cringe about the times they would play along with the relationship situation.  The elder woman breathed with her hand pressing onto the soft skin of her partner.  Yui’s heart thumped with Sayaka close to her.  She couldn’t release the woman from the position as she ventured off to another world.

“Thank you.”  Sayaka said as Yui awoke from her slumber.

“No problem… I didn’t expect to sleep.”  Yui admitted with a smile.

“I better go.  It was fun being with you.”  Sayaka smiled.

“Bring Milky next time and maybe a free meal?”  Yui recommended as the other woman flashed an OK sign before running down the stairs and out of the house.

Yui remembered the last time they had shared an embrace as she came back to seat down near her desk.  The day they wouldn’t have the chance to see each other for a while had come as Yui was graduating and leaving for Tokyo.  Sayaka hadn’t been aware of the circumstances but she clung onto the girl’s waist with her eyes filled with regret as she never thought that Yui would leave the countryside for the city.  Yui didn’t want to proceed to say anything but to smile and just comforted her.

She knew a lot about Sayaka through the moment but was still in contact when she would return to Kyoto but it was usually short and brief.  Then, it was the announcement that Milky came into Sayaka’s life, which had given her comfort that it wouldn’t be just her but seeing both of them.  Yui grew anxious for the meeting but timing was problematic and if it managed to happen, Yui knew it was good timing to meet her.

Sayaka’s gleaming face brought out the best attributes from her girlfriend.  However, the lingering feeling Yui had felt made her wonder about the alternative history.  She didn’t think about it a lot but when it did, it was like a storm that poured upon her.  Sayaka to her was the only thing she would commit herself to with caution in her heart.

She glanced at the clock and returned to her bed with the scent of Sayaka lingering in her nose.  Yui closed her eyes after the brief moment of silence and felt comfort instantly.

Her phone awoke her from the peaceful slumber with the third call from Kitahara.  She let out a long yawn before swiping to accept the call.

“Ohayou!”

“Ohayou!”  Yui greeted.  “Sorry I just woke up.”

“Ah… Your stuff is ready.”  She informed the woman as Yui nodded.

“Give me some time to get ready.”  Yui sighed before hanging up the phone.

She shuffled down to the bathroom and stood in front of the sink, turning on the water, and splashing onto her face.  Her stomach felt like a monster from her slumber as she slept through the night without dinner.  Yui wiped up and ran back into the room to get a new shirt.  After changing, she ran down to the door to greet her roommate.

“Nee… That was a bit long.”  Rie joked when the men came with the three boxes.

Yui pointed up to the room as the men carried the boxes up into the open door as the two women followed them up as it was carefully stacked on the floor.  Yui only realized that it had to be about more as the men came back and forth with a box until they were about four high and blocking the window.  Rie leaped onto the bed, diving into the pillow head first.

“You do have a nice scent.”  She commented as Yui snapped her head around.

“Sure…”

“It’d be weird without you around though.”  Rie smiled as the men held out a clipboard for Yui to sign off before leaving the room.

“Same here.”  Yui replied.

“I do have one confession…”  Rie smiled as she stood up again facing her with her hand clasped with Yui.  “I thought for a while that we would be together but the book changed both of us.  I didn’t expect it to be a best seller and I would be travelling alone a lot but I wished we had that one chance to at least be more than what we were.”

Yui felt heart beat quickly.  It wasn’t something that she didn’t want to experiment but it seemed rushed but her thoughts were quickly wiped as she felt the luscious lips of her roommate for that quick second.  Yui forced a quick smile before running over to the door and locking it.  Yui rushed over and continued the embrace to the bed with her mouth taking over her neck but instantly stopped with her chest being lit from the inside.

“What’s wrong?”

“I can’t continue this.  It was a few months ago that I had this urge to ask you about this situation but I can’t now, it doesn’t feel the same.”  Yui admitted as Rie patted her on the head.

“It’s okay.”  Rie nodded with her arms wrapped around her body.  “I wasn’t expecting anything, I was wondering if you would accept and I guess my answer was yes but no at the same time.”  Rie smiled with her reasoning as she stood up.

Yui’s head started to spin with the situation.  Everything that seemed to be going right had become wrong suddenly.  She had that crush that couldn’t seem to go away but now was a dream that wasn’t going to be able to come true.  Confliction had become her reasoning as she stared at her with nothing else to say.

“I’m sorry.”  Yui bent her lips as she grabbed Rie and gave her a quick kiss.

“I should apologize.”  Rie smiled and wrapped her roommate one last time.

As she saw her leave, Yui wasn’t sure of anything but her mind brought up the one thing and ran down to see her one last time.

“I’m an owner of an izakaya!  Visit me.”  She begged as Rie returned an OK sign.

Rie drove away as her heart fluttered like a butterfly in the wind.  Yui saw the time and ran back upstairs to get ready for the loan signing and visit Paru for the planning stages of her new establishment.

[hakase309]

Thanks for creating this fic m(_ _)m

[Foxtchy]

can't wait for the next update!
Hwaiting! 

[hakase309]

how 'bout an update? 

[kuro808]

how 'bout an update? 

I never do update although I owe a YuiParu or any Yui pairing really...