Sell My Soul to the Devil

After a minute of Rise’s rest, Hina clutched her arms to her chest, her knees clasping together. She used her hair to hide her downward gaze from Rise, sweats falling down her face for every swallow she made, whispering, “What do I do now?”

Assured that Rise was already sleeping, Hina wore her slippers on, locked the house door from the outside, and ran through the intense rain that felt like stabbing her body with a hundred knives. Her heavy gaze darted towards the zero-visibility road, her noodle-like limbs forcefully swinging as she panted.

Hina reached the designated room after the nurses told her about the situation. Her eyes bulged, the sight of her unconscious mother surrounded by numerous medical equipment forced her not to blink. She squeezed her eyes shut, moaning, whimpering, then screaming…

Mother was at the hospital, and Rise’s sick. What am I gonna even do? What can I even do? Who can I even depend on? How will we survive?

The doctors told Hina that her mother will be in a state of comatose due to a car accident. Three days later, she witnessed Rise having the same reaction as hers. She peeked out from the room, her view focusing on Rise that shook her mother, forcing her to wake up.

“Mom… Wake up… Please… Didn’t I promise? I will earn those medals… and bring you up to the stage with pride…”

With only Rise’s voice echoing through her eardrums, Hina clutched her fists on the side and pursed her lips, her tears slowly crawling down her cheeks. As her sniffs became obvious, she left the two before she was noticed.

I’m the only one capable… I’m the only one who can suffer. If maturing is what I need to do, I will do it.

At an interview room, the interviewer squinted her eyes and wrinkled her brows while shuffling the papers that Hina submitted. Hina bit her lip, her clasping hands below the table sweating, anticipating that her fake documents, specially the forged ID and the work permit, won’t be discovered.

The interviewer coughed, her gaze directed at Rise who responded with a swallow. “Before we end the interview, I would like to ask. I’m sorry if I might be rude, but what I want to know is… Were you really eighteen years old?”

Hina kept silent, her legs trembling… but it wasn’t for long. Before the interview got suspicious, she slowly nodded her head.

“I’m sorry for the question…” The interviewer stood up and extended her hand to Hina, greeting her with a smile, “… And welcome to Donald's Fast Food! We appreciate your willingness to grow with our team.”

Her eyes widening, soon softening, Hina paced at the interviewer’s hand for seconds, until she stood her chair and clasped it, her face painting a smile. “Thank you very much!”

After Hina left the interview room, she bit her lip, her sweating hands clasping at each other in front of her stomach. Her shoulders drew up, elbows tucking into the sides. Chuckling while pacing, she lowered her gaze and joked in her mind,

I was not caught…

A month passed, Hina didn’t encounter any issues with her job as a counter staff for a fast food chain. A kid, seemingly having the same height as hers, was next in line when she did the usual enthusiastic greeting. “Hello, sir! Welcome to Donald’s! May I know your–”

“Amamiya-san?” With narrowed eyes, the kid asked. Hina’s jaw froze open, her hands trembling over the cashier. Still, the kid leaned forward, continuing to question her, “Hey, Amamiya-san! Why are you working here?”

Another worker went out from the kitchen, carrying a tray of food, and exclaimed in a high-pitched tone, his eyes widening, “Kai? You’re going to order here?”

“Onii-chan…” Kai pointed at Hina, his eyes brightening while recalling his memory, “She’s Rise Amamiya, my classmate.”

“Rise?”

Shaking her head, Hina denied the claim while backing from the counter. “N–No… I’m not Rise.” As she ran away, the two witnessed the trembling in her clothes.

At the locker room, she hastily opened her locker, changed her clothes, and packed her things in her bag. As she got out of the staff room, her manager called her out, but ignorance deafened her ears for her to only focus on escaping.

I have no legal documents… I’m underaged…

I can’t be caught…

“I’m home…” Hina opened the door to their house after being tagged as AWOL. As she removed her shoes, she witnessed paper envelopes stacking on the side of the entrance, all had red ‘X’ markings. She brought her shaking hand to her forehead, her shoulders curling.

When she entered the bedroom, she saw Rise sleeping on the bed, covered with a blanket. Hina’s limbs quivered as she approached Rise, her arms cradling her aching and roaring stomach. She sat beside Rise in which she though was sleeping. Her tears crawled down her cheeks while her sniffs held her cry.

I can’t involve Rise in this…

For any second I start to doubt, hunger will eat my stomach…

Hina became a full-timer at a convenience store for a month, taking advantage of the urgent hiring to bypass the job requirements. After providing the change, Hina bowed with enthusiasm. “Thank you so much for buying! We expect you to visit again!”

“We’ll always come back, Hina-nee! You make this store lively!” The kids waved goodbye after buying a single pack of candy for their whole group. When the convenience store door closed, a smile tapped her face, her hands clasping under the counter, and her head nodding crispily, thinking,

I’m safe here.

The store manager came out of the staff room, his posture hunched. A nametag named ‘Sei’ hung on the chest part of his polo. He stopped before Hina, swallowed hard, and sighed heavily. Rise paced, blinking rapidly as her smile vanished.

“I appreciate your hard work and enthusiasm when doing your work, Hina. I could tell how important this job is to you, most importantly your mother needs to wake up.”

“Y–Yes, Sei-san… Rise also needs her allowance to go to school. I need to work overtime so we have something to eat at dinner…”

“However…”

Or so I thought…

“I was given a warning from your previous employer, and their records showed that you did something… unforgivable by the law.”

Hina’s mouth hung open, her hand, shivering in tremors, flew on her chest. She gritted her teeth as her shaky breathing came out her mouth.

The owner waved his hands before his chest and exclaimed, “D–Don’t worry! I didn’t tell you everything about you. We can allow underaged workers to work in this store depending on the situation. I’m just letting you know, because I think what you’re doing is dangerous. Once you’re caught, there’s far more worse consequences.”

Hina visibly sweated while avoiding the manager’s gaze, muttering, “I appreciate you letting me know about this, Sei-san.”

I should leave. I can ask no one for help… No one will come to help.

She immediately left the convenience store after the controversy. Hina’s new work didn’t require any legal documents, only her persistence. As a garbage collector, she accompanied the trash truck that followed a scheduled route. Day and night, rain or shine, she worked for hours of overtime just to provide Rise’s needs. On some days, she skipped meals and endured her churning stomach. It was a daily occurrence that her cuts and wounds increased as she worked.

All I care about is my family, Mother, Rise. Maybe this is my fate… No, this is reality.

Hina collected all the cans using her long pickup stick. A Monster canned drink tested her patience as it slipped through her tongs. Hissing, she grabbed it with her hand, giving birth to a huge cut on her palm when she realized that the can was cut at the bottom. A choked gasp exited her lips, dropping the aluminum can as her cut widened before it flooded out blood. Her face contorted with her eyes squeezed in agony. She pressed her hand with her dirty cloth to stop the bleeding.

Another canned drink came flying towards her head. As she turned back, a sedan stopped before her. A woman in a formal suit hung her mouth open subconsciously, clearing her throat as her hand flew before her lips, exclaiming, “Oh, gosh! Sorry. It wasn’t meant to be thrown at you.”

Hina glared at her and pursed her lips, then she turned back to doing her business. She heard the car door open and close.

The woman pulled Hina’s face facing her, her palms slightly pushing into Hina’s cheeks, and after a ten-second pause caused by each other’s glare, she muttered,

“Your anger seems not only for me. Do you like your job?”

In which Hina pursed her lips, shook her head, and responded, “I just need it.”

After sighing, the woman stretched her wounded palm open and wrapped a clean handkerchief on it. “You should learn to take care of yourself.”

Hina pulled her hand forcefully, her fiery squint was like a rabbit’s surrounded by wolves. “Why do you care?”

The woman didn’t answer, instead she walked back towards her car and said, “You can call me Kazami. If you want a job that pays well, I can offer you the cleanest one for your age… One that won’t wound your hands.”

“Age? How can you tell from a glance? ”

“I have an inkling for shining gems. My eyes won’t lie.” Kazami threw a business card flying towards Rise. “Dress well when you come into that address. Don’t forget to say you’re endorsed by me.”

Kazami’s car roared loud before it vanished before Hina’s sight. Hina took the business card from the ground and scanned it over her trembling wounded palm, her chest hitching knowing she had time to decide her future but, due to her circumstance, was forced to take a step.

That same feeling, when she was still deciding to work after her mother had an incident, came back to her. Churning, her stomach tightened, an inevitable quirk which she knew a decision would change her life drastically. Crumpling the card, she closed her fists and exhaled with a straightened back.

If this will wake up Mom and give our family a happy future, I will sell my soul to the devil.

Inside a commercial media building in which the address is stated in the business card, Hina walked on the carpet towards the center stage inside a small studio room. Three people in formal suits sat before the stage, all their feet pointing towards the spotlight. Hina stopped, her emotionless face didn’t falter. The bell rang, synchronizing a shout from the background, “Start!”

The dim room seemingly became bright when Hina’s face painted a contagious smile, her relaxed face lightened the mood of the three panels like she was inviting them into something exciting. She exclaimed with enthusiasm, “Hello, guys! Hello, everyone! Can you believe it, I’m livestreaming now!? I, Hina, am finally here with you to play a game! Do you like popping bombs? Or you’re just a nerdy puzzle geek like me? Guess what, we’re going to play Minesweeper!”

A single loud clap silenced the room, and Hina’s face turned back to default. A few seconds later, a round of applause followed. Hina successfully transferred her smile to the three panels where her career depended. It turns out that the old man in the middle, the director of the agency, was more than satisfied with her performance. Even Kazami’s eyes bulged at the director as this is the only time he laughed way hard.

“Bravo! As expected of someone who bypassed her from a legal job interview! For now, there’s no better actor than you that I can think of.”

Hina bowed to the point where she hid her face. She said, “Thank you very much,” followed by a light lip press.

“Satou! Hina Satou! You’re the sweet type that makes people’s smiles show up on their faces, might also be on their feces. What would you say about your new persona?”

“Does that mean…” Hina slowly straightened her back, her widened eyes appeared wet.

“I’m offering you a contract. Hina Satou, from now on, you will erase the existence of Hina Amamiya and become the Star of Hope of the internet. Will you accept this title?”

Before the performance, Kazami provided her with the information that it was difficult to pass the screening but the reward would be most worthy, capable of providing more than their needs. They could even buy a house with her income, and pay all pending hospital bills for their mother.

A relaxed smile, followed by floods of tears… She cried, “Yes…”

I’m happy at first… I got the contract… Mom will soon wake up, and Rise will no longer be hungry…