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The first time she’d shown up at the bookstore was in August, during a muggy day where Yuzuriha had been thanking the building designers for tucking the registers near the AC, away from the double doors that prevented too much hot air from making her shift any more miserable than it had to be. The shelves were re-stocked yesterday, work that still left her shoulders a smidge sore, but at least she could sneak some peeks at her phone while all the geeks bought their dumb books. Besides, the only ones coming in during the back half summer break were either salarymen who needed to learn something for their work, geeky students who already had their homework done and decided they wanted some fun books, or the occasional stressed out and semi-responsible student only now realizing they didn’t have long left before second term began and all that summer homework would be due. It wasn’t like Yuzuriha thought anyone interesting would show up that shift, and normally, she’d have been right. That day simply was not a normal day.
The woman stepped through the door, Yuzuriha not even bothering to look up from her phone on the counter as she scrolled, one wireless earbud in as some pop song played from it. She didn’t even hear the woman beginning to approach, only her voice once she was standing in front of her. “Excuse me, miss… could you tell me where the romance section is?”
Yuzuriha didn’t remember much else of that day’s interaction. She remembered stumbling over her words, pointing awkwardly, and ringing up a book with two women and a man on the cover. Probably some love triangle story. Not like the transaction mattered or anything, right? Especially not for some random customer, even if she was hotter than 99 percent of all the others combined.
Nearly three weeks. That’s how long it took for Yuzuriha to see that smoking hot repeat customer again, as she entered the building, tucking a small red umbrella into her jacket pocket with a steady, clearly practiced hand. If only those fingers, wrapped so neatly around that umbrella, could slide between hers instead, palm against palm…
And yeah, sure, she was thinking of one of the customers in the sort of way management would have a few heart attacks about, and she’d probably get her ears talked off with the scolding they’d want to give her, but she knew the heart wants what heart wants, and who was she to argue with such sage-like wisdom? Especially one with fingers that could probably reach all the spots she wanted during back scratches, little massages, hand holding, reaching those shelves that were just a smidge out of reach for her, or maybe even when they got under the sheets and Yuzuriha was getting-
“Pardon me, miss, but, um, I was hoping to find a certain book, and I wasn’t sure if it was in stock.” There she was, the hottest customer Yuzuriha had seen in months, back for a second round with her. Oh, if only she could mean that in the way she wanted…
“Yes, of course. If I could have the title?” Now she had an excuse to take note of this cute gal’s taste in books, see if she could find something similar about the two of them and strike up a conversation. Books weren’t usually her thing, but the store paid well enough, and her sister had enjoyed having cheap reading materials at the hospital during her long stays and extensive tests, and it was too much of a pain to try and find something else.
“Um, it’s called Seeing Your Own Ghost. I think it’s in the horror section, but it’s a bit older of a find, so I’m not certain you’d have it.” It wasn’t one she’d heard anything about, but with her, ahem, limited dedication to the job, she wasn’t exactly surprised.
Still, typing it in, there wasn’t any in stock, meaning she wouldn’t be able to get the book here. Yuzuriha slouched her shoulders. “Yeah, no dice here.”
“Awww, so sweet of you to care that much about a customer’s book.” The hot customer smiled at her, Yuzuriha’s heart melting into a puddle of puppy love.
“Well, for a customer as sweet as you, why wouldn’t I be enticed into making sure you get the best customer service?” The woman’s smile softened, Yuzuriha’s heart skipping a beat as she racked her brain for anything that could keep this lady standing in front of her for longer.
“How generous.” The mystery woman leaned in, Yuzuriha’s eyes darting down and taking a small peek at… her shirt. Not even a tasteful V-neck with a necklace, just some high-necked T-shirt under medical scrubs. “Then, is there any chance you could find out if it’s available for ordering? I’d be fine waiting. It’s supposed to be an intense read, after all.”
If she wanted something intense, who was Yuzuriha to deny her that? Besides, it did say in print on the book’s information screen. “Alright. I’ll put it on back-order, and we can send you an e-mail or a text when it’s in. I’ll need a name and some form of contact, if you’d like, and it might take a little while, but shouldn’t take more than a few weeks, if that time frame is okay?”
Come on, say yes, say yes…
“That’s fine. I think I forgot my membership last time, so let me just get my card. You should be able to mark it from there.”
Her… membership. So she’d scan some random membership and not even have any new flirty information. No new e-mail? No repeating her phone number back to her just because, while she fantasized about them in some cute gay bar? “Alright, if I could have your card, then, and I can scan it.” Don’t look disappointed. Don’t look disappointed. Don’t look-
“In my wallet.” The woman removed her red cloth wallet, removing her card from it. “Here.”
The card was only a set of numbers. Dammit, couldn’t this stupid bookstore give her more information on a hot woman‽ This was supposed to be a place that taught people things, opened doors to new experiences! This stupid card she was scanning…
It showed the name Sagiri Yamada. Nevermind. “Your order should be in soon, and you can pay for it once it’s arrived. We’ll notify you by e-mail.”
Sagiri grinned at her, and Yuzuriha’s stomach began a gymnastics routine.
A little shy of two weeks later, Sagiri entered the building for a third time, and Yuzuriha was already grinning as she approached the counter. She’d been able to think up a cheesy line already, but not so cheesy she’d lose her shot with this woman.
“That a pre-order in your pocket, Miss Sagiri? Or perhaps…”
Sagiri gave her a polite smile. “No, just the pre-order.” The smile dropped quickly, eyes widening slightly. “Why? Did it look like I forgot something from my work?” Now she was patting down her pockets, pulling her wallet out, then her phone and a few random other items, shuffling through them frantically.
“Oh, you’re a little green, aren’t you?” At least it was cute on her.
“Oh no, am I? I hope I haven’t caught anything. That wouldn’t be good…” Even that worried face of hers was so adorable. Yuzuriha really needed to make Sagiri hers.
“Well, let’s check on that little book of yours, bet we can get it into your adorable hands. nice and fast.” Maybe she could even get herself in those adorable hands soon, if only she found the right angle. There it was, one book in the back. Now to hand it off, give this Sagiri the perfect chance to understand how desirable she was and maybe even score a hot date soon if she played her cards right. A quick check at the ordered shelves was all it took to grab the book, and the slip on it was poking out, which meant…
Slinking back to the counter with a shifty grin on her face, Yuzuriha held the book with her ticket to a hot new girlfriend close, the ghost’s eyes on the book she was holding to her abdomen looking up towards a certain part of her. Despite her angling of the book, despite her slightly lidded eyes and tilting of her head, making sure her hair looked just messy enough to leave a few connotations available for Sagiri’s mind to wander, Sagiri simply stood there, with absolutely no reaction. What was even happening with this woman? Was she even into gals? No, she wasn’t about to question something when she needed a certain answer. Sagiri would like gals, and she would like her in time. That’s all Yuzuriha needed from this interaction.
“Alright, here’s your order. Let me just get you all rung up here, and we’ll have you out before the next train leaves.” Not that she wanted Sagiri on any trains unless they led to Yuzuriha’s apartment, but she didn’t need to know that yet. They had time, and she could wine and dine her first, then get ready to get all hot and heavy together.
A small beep of Sagiri’s card, and the book was paid for. Sagiri took the book with her, the sheet of paper Yuzuriha had scrawled her digits on still sticking out from between the pages, the ball of romance officially in Sagiri’s court.
By the same time the next day, Sagiri hadn’t sent any messages to Yuzuriha.
And the day after that.
Again on the third day.
Plus the fourth day.
Including the fifth day.
Still nothing as of the sixth day.
Maybe she’d made the wrong choice.
Yuzuriha slunk in the break room, staring at her phone. Only three minutes left on her break, and she hadn’t seen Sagiri since she left that paper. No Sagiri. No messages. No hope.
She’d blown it. She might’ve had a chance with the cutest gal she’d seen in… at least a long time, maybe ever, and she’d gone and blown it. Now Sagiri would never want to be with her. Only two minutes left, and she’d be back at her job, trying to pretend she wasn’t desperate every time the doors opened, forcing herself not to look in futile hope she’d see that hottie strutting through, there to see her.
Deep down, she knew it wouldn’t happen.
One minute left. She might as well. Not like it would change anything. Slinking out of her chair, she took a deep breath, almost ready to face the rest of her shift. With work, she’d at least be able to slack some if she was assigned to the registers. Besides, given her current situation, she could use the mental vacation.
She stepped behind the registers right as the door opened again, and even knowing she wouldn’t see Sagiri, it took most of her willpower to avoid looking in its general direction, that impossible what-if gnawing at the back of her mind, threatening to climb its way to the front.
“Excuse me?”
To think she was so desperate for Sagiri, she’d even hallucinate her voice.
“Um, excuse me, miss?”
She looked up, a reflex. Now she was even seeing her. It… couldn’t be, could it?
“Sagirin!”
“Sagi…rin? Rather close, aren’t we?” Sagiri said, and if Yuzuriha didn’t know any better, she’d think Sagiri was playfully teasing her. The tone was there, but a whole week with no texts had to mean something bad.
“Well, apparently not. I mean, I haven’t heard from you in a week.”
“Yeah, we had a few big days at the ER, so I had to work doubles. They’re important, but they really drain you…” She was in her scrubs, and they were wrinkled.
Huh. “So is that why you never texted me?”
“Texted?” Sagiri tilted her head, one brow raised with a small frown.
“Yeah, from the paper I left my number on. Here I thought you’d been, like, mad at me about it or something, but that’s such a relief, Sagirin!” She played with a stray lock of hair, letting her chest rest on the counter and leaning forward in a manner which emphasized her natural assets.
Sagiri kept her eyes directly on Yuzuriha’s face as she replied. “About that… there was a paper in it that flew onto the train tracks when I opened the book at the station. I’d been hoping to use it as a bookmark, too…”
“Well, in that case, I can check on any old promotional bookmarks, maybe something a bit sturdier, and if we’ve got one, maybe you could have a purchase in about ten minutes, maybe a bit later. I’m with the closers tonight, so no rush.” She had a good feeling the manager wouldn’t notice one bookmark missing from the back stock, not that anyone needed to know about why one was gone… assuming they didn’t have anything leftover from a book release with a pre-order bonus, and that bonus could always be missing one due to a sender’s error…
About twenty minutes later, Sagiri was walking off with some sci-fi ship bookmark and Yuzuriha’s number, and if a fan of that series didn’t get what they wanted, tough luck.
She spent the entire night staring at her phone, waiting for a message. She’d take a name and an emoji, if it gave her a chance. No need for anything fancy. All she really wanted was Sagiri’s info saved in her phone, a first step to building her fairy tale romance with her beyond adorable future girlfriend. Finishing their contact info exchange was everything she needed, and she’d find Paradise on Earth.
Unfortunately, waking up and checking her messages before she double-checked even her shift time today, she found the lack of a certain notification Hell.
Only an hour left before she had to muster up the energy to go to work, and the day was already torture. No cute gal on her phone yet, no hottie to flirt with during her work hours… it was the worst. What was she even supposed to do with her life while she waited for her adorable future w- girlfriend to connect with her?
She slunk out of her bed, deciding she should at least get something to eat. Rice she’d prepared and froze in bulk, enough for a bowl, plus some miso paste and tofu she could add to boiling water and stir… maybe add some canned fish on top, a little soy sauce, and call it a meal. She’d save the more impressive breakfasts for her lazy mornings in with Sagiri, showing off her bedhead and hoping to get a little extra smoochy attention for being so hot.
She figured a quick shower was the best option to buy herself a few minutes where she couldn’t check her phone, but even stepping out, toweling her hair dry-ish, her phone was sorely lacking in hottie notifications, only one from her friend Senta about his art exhibit in a couple weeks. If only she could take Sagiri on a date there, be some extra-sweet arm candy for her…
Whatever. She’d make breakfast now. She’d have to take bites of her food, and she could keep an eye on her notifications, even if it didn’t go off at all. She wasn’t that upset it wasn’t sent yet. She could play it cool. She wasn’t that obsessed.
Even after brushing her teeth, doing her makeup, making sure her outfit was set for today’s shift, even after all that getting ready, still nothing. What was wrong with this cruel, uncaring world? Why did it have to steal away the attention of the jaw-dropping Sagiri, leaving them unable to stay in contact? More importantly, how could she fix it?
Clicking the clock-in button on the bookstore’s system, Yuzuriha resigned herself to a long and desperate shift, one where she’d been hoping the entire time for her phone to finally send the notification she deserved. No chance she’d get anything soon enough, but if she held out, maybe Sagiri would have her own lunch break or wait at the train station, and she’d get a nice little message from that. Besides, lunch breaks for standard workers were coming up soon. In another hour or two, she’d probably have her message.
Fast forward three more hours, and no message. What was wrong with her phone? Did she piss off the phone company somehow? Why wasn’t she getting any messages?
Slumping on the counter, pouting at her phone and ignoring the glare of the manager, she resigned herself to a shift of misery. She let her thoughts wander, only listening to some random customers who needed their books- a blonde woman with a scar who hoped her day would get better soon, a weird guy with dark hair and darker bags under his eyes who was way too invested in the pride and loyalty of being a proper employee, and some other guy with a slight beard and long hair who had a few horny books, a rambly, half-there attitude, and stunk of alcohol. Still another hour left by now before those cushy desk jobs might finish for the day, and she had no chance of seeing Sagiri in that slow, dreary limbo.
She’d sunk so low as to ignore whoever entered when the doors opened by now, knowing better than to waste her energy until the salaryman’s dinnertime. The sound of flat shoes against the floor approaching was barely enough to get her to turn her head to glance at-
Sagiri! It was her Sagiri! Her- “Sagirin!”
“It’s nice to see you again as well. Slow shift today? I know how it feels, not being able to help as much as you’d like.”
She sprung up, a grin blossoming on her face. “Yeah, uh… exactly. I was hoping for a chance to help you out some today. Well, or, uh… you know…” Shit. Where was her composure, her suave ladykiller charm? This was gonna slaughter her chances with Sagiri, and she’d just gotten her number handed over yesterday!
“I, well… I talked with some people about the, well, number you gave me. I hope you don’t mind?” She had the cutest sheepish face, those pleading eyes leaving Yuzuriha’s heart melting in her chest.
“Of course not! Sagirin, you don’t have to worry in the slightest about all that, not for little old me, okay?” That melty heart of hers took over each and every last thought in Yuzuriha’s brain, leaving her no room to think of any suave lines to use for flirting with Sagiri.
“And, uh… some of them thought for some weird reason that you might, well… and this is gonna sound embarrassing,” Sagiri began, a small blush decorating those cheeks, enhancing her beauty in Yuzuriha’s happily biased eyes, “but some of them believed you might have been attempting to, as they say… hit on me?”
All the blood rushed to Yuzuriha’s head. Well. That was… direct. “Is that… bad?”
“No! No… not at all.” Sagiri smiled at her. “I just, I needed to know if I should be considering, well… and I thought, maybe a test drink sometime? I know a lovely tea place, and if it doesn’t go anywhere, no harm?”
“I’d love that.” She’d love Sagiri too, in time. “It sounds perfect.”
Sagiri’s smile brightened, and Yuzuriha could tell she’d be hopelessly and madly in love for as long as this woman wanted her. She’d worked selling people happily ever afters, but this happy new start was far better than any story could ever hope to become.