Minimum Wage Life

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

As the self loathing wells up back inside of me, I check my video analytics to see how well my last video has done.

3 views since the last two days.

8 views total. I slam my fist onto the table.

I slump down into my chair and sigh. After that good month I had, I figured that things were looking up for me, but I've lost around half of the subscribers I had since the start of the week. 

Hey! I'm Saeki Hinata, son of the famous game dev Saeki Taro. If you're familiar with the gaming industry, you might have heard of his name, since he was once of the biggest creators on Smoke. I'm a (future) full time streamer with 827 subscribers as of the current moment, and no girlfriend, but hopefully that will change when I finally ask Airi out. 

Oh, and I'm currently 22 years old. 

I refresh the page once more, hoping that a new refresh will change the results. Nothing. I swear, the algorithm really has it out for me this week. I slam my fist down on the table again. The cup noodle cup, long having been emptied of it's contents, falls over. I pick it up and toss it over onto the pile.

Pretty sure there's a cockroach nest in that thing, but I'm too scared to check. Is it a little pathetic that I hope I can ask Airi to help me check if I ever bring her over? I know the man should be catching stray bugs for his woman, but Airi's not scared of insects, because I've seen her catch spiders before.

Then again, maybe I'll have to call an exterminator if it's a proper nest. Even Airi will probably freak out over a whole nest.

I look around the room again. God, I can't let her see me like this. There are piles of empty water bottles, cup noodles, and trash lying around. I've done a good job organizing the trash, but I have yet to take them out.

I'll do it tomorrow I guess.

Airi is a bartender at the bar I work at (hopefully full time as a non-temporary member in the future). I'm trying to find work around the city, since my bills are really starting to pile up. Since the bar is located so far away, the owner asked Airi, who lives nearby, to help with transportation, since I don't have a car. 

Where to ask her out, where to...? I won't be asking her out a ride, that's for sure. I'd like to take her somewhere romantic, but I also need to manage my finances.

Aaaarg, all this thinking about money isn't romantic at all! Only if I can get more subscribers on MeTube. I could treat Airi to anyplace I wanted. Oh, and maybe I'd be a lot cooler too for her. Everyone starts somewhere, but it's been years and I've made no progress.

Maybe I am just another dead end.

My phone rings, sharply cracking through the spaghetti of thoughts I call my mind at the speed of sound. I pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Hinata!" The bossman's on the other side, his unpleasant voice snapping at me like a turtle. "That lazy temp worker from yesterday's out. I need you to get over here. We have a major party happening in an hour, and I need more hands on deck."

Right now? You serious?

"Uh...sir, I don't really have a way to get here-"

"Boss?" A beautiful voice rings from beyond the phone. It's on the deeper side, but still carried with her a certain charm. That's Airi. I could recognize that voice from anywhere. "I could drive Hinata over here, if you need. Just give me thirty minutes."

"Ngh..." I can tell he's not happy about losing his best bartender, but given the fact that the restaurant appears to be critically understaffed and I have no transportation, it's the only way. "Fine. Make it quick. Party is in forty five minutes."

"You got it bossman!" Her cheery voice rings. 

"I'll get dressed and ready sir." I tell him. It's a good thing I wasn't streaming or recording today. "Airi, I'll be waiting outside!"

***

I've had a withered left leg ever since I was born. 

My left calf, to be specific. I've gotten used to it though, so much so the fact that if I wear long pants (which I always do), it's impossible to tell, even at a brisk walk. Running is a lot more difficult however, which is a reason I generally prefer not to walk to work, especially when the area outside my apartment is crawling with crackheads, and I'd prefer to minimize the amount of time spent outside if possible, especially at night. 

Fortunately for me, I'm on the first floor, so I don't have to walk up the stairs or take a ride in that claustrophobic elevator from the 60's. For some ungodly reason, the elevator is absolutely tiny and can only fit one person comfortably, and two if you really squeeze. People here call it the coffin squeeze.

Regardless, that left leg of mine is what makes me hesitant to be standing outside for so long during this late evening - especially as the sun sets a lot sooner with the coming of autumn. But the cafe needs me, and Airi needs me. I guess it's a small price to pay to not let her down.

The evening air is freezing, and I'm honestly a bit bored just standing around here, waiting for Airi's car to pull up, but I'm not going to make Airi wait. 

I look around. There's a few hobos milling around, but none of them seem dangerous. Still, I keep my guard up. I can't run. If it comes down to a chase, I'm dead.

After what seems like an eternity, Airi arrives. 

"Hey Hinata!" She's got a big grin on her face. "Oh no, I didn't keep you waiting, did I?" She winks at me with those sapphire blue eyes. She's a couple years older than me, and has a mole under her eye. "Get in, what are you doing?"

I'm almost gawking at her. Shit.

"No, no!" I quickly open the door and step in. There's a long and awkward silence again between us as I look at her to say something, but I don't have anything. It smells like citrus.

"Shall we get going then?" She asks, breaking the silence.

"Uh, yeah!" I give her the best smile I can, as she shifts the gear of her manual drive, and we are off.

"So!" Airi asks me as the car begins to pick up pace. "Uh, how's the channel going?"

"Oh! Uh, great, great!" I lean back into my chair. "It's going...well, yeah, good!"

"Sorry, I haven't had the time to watch anything yet. Work has been busy, you know?"

"Oh, of course, of course!"

Why am I glad she hasn't seen them? That's not a good sign. Maybe I am trash at it.

Whatever. Come on Hinata, say something! What's there to talk about? The weather? I know Airi's pretty involved politically, but I'm not going to pretend to be a politics expert. She loves rock music, which I admit I am a casual fan of, but I'll probably just humiliate myself if I try to impress her. Uh, what movies did she like again? I'm racking my brain trying to find out, but she gives different answers to different customers, and I've been far too much of a chicken to ask her. 

Uh.

In the end, I say nothing as the car pulls up to the bar.

"Alright Hinata, we ready to do this?" Airi gives me a wink.

"Of course." I give her my best smile, and step on out of the car.

Despite my experiences to the contrary, maybe today's shift won't be too bad.