Office

Monday — 6:00 a.m.

Souta’s phone alarm went off, dragging him out of sleep. He groaned and turned onto his side, pulling the futon tighter around himself. The sound didn’t stop. It kept ringing—sharp, repetitive—needling at his ears with every passing second.

6:02 a.m.

His eyes finally cracked open. Three seconds later, he shifted his gaze toward the phone, watching it vibrate against the wooden floor like it was mocking him.

"…Yeah, yeah."

He slapped the screen silent and lay there for a moment, staring at the ceiling. The room was dim but no longer dark. Morning had already seeped in through the thin curtains, painting pale lines across the cluttered floor.

Minutes passed before he pushed himself up.

He washed his face, brushed his teeth, and changed into his work clothes with half-awake motions. The mirror reflected a man who looked functional at best. Papers were still scattered across the floor, empty cans were stacked where they shouldn’t be, and notes about his work were taped to the wall as if they belonged there. But he ignored all of it.

By the time he stepped outside, the sun was fully up, casting its glow over the street below. The air was cool, but the city was already awake, and the low hum of traffic was starting to build.

"The trains should start running any minute now," Souta muttered, glancing at his phone.

He stretched his arms overhead, his joints popping softly, then let out a tired sigh. A second later, he took his first step forward and headed down the apartment stairs, but as he was passing by the door below, he couldn't help but take a peek to see whether his neighbor was already gone for work.

"Oh… she’s already out?" he murmured, his eyes settling on the lock hanging loose from the door.

Later.

"Matsuda-san, nice to see you again. How’s the research coming along?"

By the time Souta reached the office floor, a handful of familiar faces had already noticed him. Polite smiles greeted him — but most of them bent just enough at the corners to give themselves away. Amused. Expectant. Like they were waiting for a punchline.

"Nice in a way," Souta replied, keeping his grin steady. "But if I were you, I wouldn’t look so relaxed. I’m pretty sure I saw the boss at the train station. He’ll be here any minute."

"Oh? Is that so?" a voice said from his left as someone stepped closer. "We were just hoping you’d finally settled the kaiju issue. You know, whether they were bombed into extinction… or never existed in the first place."

A ripple of quiet laughter followed.

"Yeah," another chimed in, folding their arms. "Moriyama-san mentioned you found something interesting this time. An actual kaiju, maybe?"

Souta turned toward the voice, his smile thinning just slightly.

"It’s good to see you’re still alive, Takumi-san."

Takumi grinned wider. "Alive, yes. Delusional? Not quite." He laughed, and a few others joined in without hesitation.

Souta let out a small chuckle of his own; it wasn't sharp or defensive. Just tired. He adjusted his bag and stepped past them, heading toward the stairway that led to the upper floors.

"Well, see you later." He said, leaving the others behind as they continued chuckling and continuing the short conversation involving Souta and Moriyama-san when they were still in high school.

What a pain… They keep making fun of me, even though they’ve never seen what I’m actually working with. Souta muttered as he moved up the stairs. Either way, he was only here today to make some quick cash.

Though Matsuda was using the stairs to get to his office, there was an elevator he could have just used to get there quickly, but he was afraid of getting trapped inside if it suddenly stopped. Also, he just loved walking. It gave him time to think.

I wonder what Moriyama-san is doing right now… Knowing him, he’s probably sleeping in his office.

Souta let out a soft chortle, continuing upward while imagining Moriyama-san sleeping on his desk.

Though in truth, Moriyama-san was still at home, taking it easy for the day. Currently, he wasn't planning on coming to work today; he'd left everything in Souta's hands, but Matsuda-san wasn't aware of the situation he was in.

After some time had passed, Souta was now standing in his office with a taken aback expression as one eye twitched. In front of him was a girl slipping into her skirt.

She wore a cyan bra that perfectly matched her underwear, her skin catching the office light and gleaming softly. Long brown hair tumbled down her back, swaying slightly with her movements as she adjusted her skirt.

The scene made Matsuda's pulse skip, though he tried—and failed—to look anywhere else.

"Wh… wh… wh… what?" Souta stammered, forcing his gaze away.

The girl quickly finished putting her dress on, grabbed her white shirt, and covered it over her breasts as her face flushed crimson.

What's a kid doing here? Did she get lost or what? Souta wondered, though something about the girl's posture told him she was clearly an adult, just painfully embarrassed. He peeked at her again. The girl stayed still, her cheeks flushed deeper by the second.

"Hey, who are you, and what are you doing in my office?" Souta asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

The girl didn't reply; there was no way she could reply, she was too embarrassed to say anything, and there was nowhere to hide. Souta's office was just too open; maybe she could have just gotten out? No, that wasn't an option since Matsuda-san was standing right at the door.

Since the girl wasn't replying, Souta spoke again. "Hello," he prompted, drawing her gaze.

“I-I’m sorry," she finally murmured, bowing awkwardly.

Souta blinked. Seriously? She can’t be that embarrassed… Never mind.

"Who are you?" he asked again, though she stayed bowed, her face still flushed, her hands gripping the shirt over her chest.

Wait, can it be that she's shy about me watching her like that... Looking at the girl with one eye, Souta could clearly see that the girl was too shy to reply to anything he might say.

He swiveled to the door.

"Finish getting dressed first. My question can wait for now."

She complied silently, the faint rustle of fabric filling the room.

Soon, the girl had finished getting dressed, and Souta was heading to his desk as she watched him do so with an awkward expression on her face. And she had also put on rounded grasses.

Souta settled onto his chair, but before he could speak, the girl spoke first.

"I, I'm Fujimoto Ai, nice to meet you, sir."