With Care, Mai Sasaki ~

Mai woke up bright and early the next morning. She still had a few hours left before she needed to go to work.

“Good morning,” Mai greeted softly to her dad as she placed her picture frame back on the nightstand carefully.

She then began to make her bed. Taking all of the stuffed bear plushies off of her bed, Mai fixed her bed sheets and blankets to make her bed look nice and tidy. Afterwards, she took all of her stuffed animals and placed them on her bed gently, decorating her bed in a childish glow.

When she finished tidying up her bed, she grabbed her work clothes and laid them out nicely on the bed. She had her own white polo, her own name tag, and her own khaki shorts. Mark had ordered a couple sets of the uniform for her, and this was the first time she would be able to wear them.

Once she got her uniform set out nicely, she grabbed some underclothes and headed towards the bathroom to shower. Mai spent a long time in the shower as opposed to her normal shower. She spent most of that extra time washing her hair out, ensuring that it was the nicest and smoothest it had ever been before.

As she finished showering, she turned off the water and reached for her towel. Wrapping the towel around herself, she left the shower. The steam lingered in the air as she dried herself and put on her underclothes. The water from her hair continued to drip down onto the floor, so she grabbed another towel and wrapped it around her hair to dry it.

Leaving the bathroom, she walked past her bedroom and headed to the kitchen to eat breakfast. There was still an abundance of time left before she needed to be ready, so she decided to make herself some breakfast.

Mai opened the fridge to find something to cook. Her fridge this time was full of different items. From eggs, to milk, to different vegetables, juice, bottled water, bacon, and other little snacks. All of these were also paid for by Mark so that Mai could save her first paycheck.

She took out the eggs and bacon from the fridge and closed it behind her. Setting the ingredients on the counter, she got to work on making herself a nice breakfast.

After making her breakfast, Mai sat at the table near where she placed the cake container. She let out a deep breath, said a quick little prayer in her mind, and began to eat and savor her food.

Mai lost herself in her food. With every bite, she thought about a different memory that she had with her father. Some of the memories also included her stepmother, a younger woman with blonde hair and blue eyes, enjoying her meal next to her father.

“I wish you weren’t so busy with work,” she thought to herself as the image of her stepmother remained implanted in her head. “I wish you spent more time with us,” she continued thinking as she finished eating her breakfast.

Once she finished washing the dishes, she headed back upstairs to get dressed. Mai was surprised with how well and comfortable the outfit was. She always had a hard time finding clothes in her size, and most of the professional clothes she had when working with her stepmother were tailored to fit Mai.

Mai took off the towel that she had wrapped around her hair and finished drying her hair. When she finished, she looked in the mirror, watching as it reflected the calm and mute expression she bore on her face. A front to hide the millions of thoughts racing in her mind.

Leaving the bathroom, she walked over to the desk where her long letter lay at rest. She gently folded the paper in three and placed it into the envelope. Mai carefully peeled the underside of the flap of the envelope and sealed it closed, protecting the contents of the notes inside.

After sitting and pacing around for another hour, she gathered the note and the cake container, and headed out of the door to work.

Along the short walk to the convenience store, she was subconsciously humming the song that Alexa hummed before. It was the song that Mark made especially for his little sister. She thought about how calm it made her feel, and how easy she slept after hearing it.

Mai’s eyes lit up slightly as she saw the store in the distance. With quicker steps, she continued walking elegantly until she got to the store’s entrance.

Peering through the store’s doors stealthily, Mai looked around until she saw Mark by the counter. He was ringing up someone who was purchasing some candy from behind the counter.

“Good afternoon, Mark,” she said softly as she hurried along past them and towards the break room.

“Oh, good afternoon Mai!” Mark said as he turned to where he was being greeted from.

Mark saw Mai briefly as she headed into the break room. He didn’t notice what she was carrying, and just returned his attention back to the customer in front of him.

Upon entering the break room, Mai turned towards the lockers and opened hers up. It was completely empty. She hadn’t had a use for them before, so Mai never placed anything inside of them.

Carefully, Mai placed both the cake container and her envelope into the locker, and closed it shut, making sure that the locker was locked.

Afterwards, she left the break room and headed towards Mark who was working at the cash register. The customer had left the store shortly before she approached him. Despite the smile on his face, the slight bags under his eyes gave away his exhausted nature.

“Hey Mai. You look well today,” Mark complimented as he looked down towards her with a smile.

“Is everything alright, Mark?” Mai asked softly as she focused more on his mannerisms.

“I’m just tired. Last night, a drunkard threw up everywhere,” Mark answered with a tired yawn. “I spent so long cleaning it all up,” he continued as he placed his head down on the clean countertop.

Mai looked around to make sure that there were no customers in the store, took a step towards him and put a hand through his hair. As she did this, Mark closed his eyes, subconsciously moving his head towards her hand.

“You should take a nap,” Mai suggested softly to him.

“A nap? Then you’ll be by yourself. Are you sure you’re ready to work alone?” Mark replied as his eyes remained closed.

“Don’t worry. I can do this by myself,” Mai assured gently as she walked behind the counter.

Mai helped Mark up into a standing position, and the two of them slowly walked over to the break room. Once there, Mai pulled a chair from the table and sat Mark down. His heavy body fell into the chair without any rebuttal.

“Thank you, Mai. I only need a little bit of time to rest. Please wake me up if something happens,” Mark said quietly as he placed his head down on the table.

Within a matter of moments, Mark started snoring lightly. Mai couldn’t help but stare at him in his resting state. He was peaceful. Like a cherry blossom flowing through the wind, Mark was finally able to have a moment of tranquility.

Mai reached a hand towards him and rubbed it through his hair one last time, fixing the hair that covered his eyes. Mark stirred slightly, but ultimately returned to his rest. He was comfortable with her presence.

Mai gave a soft smile to the sleeping Mark and finished fixing his hair. She reached into her locker, quietly unlocking it, and took out the cake and envelope. Pulling out a pen from her pocket, she wrote something big on the envelope.

“READ ME”

She placed the envelope near Mark’s head and placed the cake on the center of the table. Then, Mai quietly closed the locker and left the break room.

As Mai left the break room, she noticed a woman enter the store. She greeted her kindly and took her place behind the register.

*     *     *

30 minutes later, Mark started to stir in his sleep. As he woke up, Mark noticed the two objects in front of him and rubbed his eyes to ensure he wasn’t hallucinating.

An envelope with the words “READ ME” written in ink and a cake that had “For Mark Reyes,” written in red icing. The words had a similar finesse in the way they were written.

“Mai?” Mark thought as he fiddled with the envelope for a few moments until he got it open.

As he read the contents of the letter, he tried to imagine Mai’s soft, tender voice along with her stoic mannerisms.

“Dear Mark,

To give thanks for giving me a chance to perform, I made you this red velvet cake! I remember you saying that it was your favorite type. With this, I’m finally able to keep my promise to you. I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but I want you to know that you are a great friend to have…”

Mai swiveled her head towards the store entrance as a man wearing a black tattered coat over tattered and stained clothes walked into the store.

“Good morning sir. If there is anything I can help you with, please let me know,” she said softly with a genuine smile on her face.

”I hope this isn’t a bad thing, but I’m honestly a little envious of Chloe. When I left with my stepmother all those years ago, she had you and your brother to look out for her. I didn’t have anyone who had time to listen and speak with me. Even though you were going through so many things, you still made time for me and helped me every chance you had…”

“Oh, thank you,” the man replied with slurred words as he staggered slowly around the store. He looked around at some of the snacks, touching them all but not actually grabbing any of them.

“I was alone for so long, but you and Chloe helped me realize how valuable friends were. Though your relationship with Chloe didn’t become romantic like you once wanted it to be, you’re always going to be there for her. That’s what friends do. I want to become good friends like that too, but I’m a little scared…”

Mai watched as the man walked around the store, then watched as he slowly stirred his way towards her. The stench of alcohol and old cigarette smoke reeked from him. The overwhelming smells quickly overtook Mai’s senses, making it hard for her to maintain her elegant composure.

“Excuse me sweetie, can you help me out?” the man asked drunkenly as he placed a hand on the top of Mai’s head, making her recoil slightly like a turtle going back into their shell.

“I think you’re a very interesting person. You’re so kind, intelligent, wise, and strong. You carry the weight of your family, as well as the weight of others, and you do it with a smile on your face. Even when behind that smile is sadness and self-torment, you still smile…”

“I need money. Can you give me some, miss?” the man asked as he looked down at her with hazy eyes.

Mai carefully moved his hand from her head and returned it back to him. Her movements were slow and careful, as to try and calm the situation down.

“I’m sorry mister, but I don’t have any I can give you,” Mai answered softly with a small hint of fear in her voice.

“I don’t know if this is the right word, but I think I’m infatuated with you. The more you speak, the more I want to learn about you. Every time we leave from work, I wish we could spend a few more minutes together…”

The man took the hand that Mai had returned to him and reached into his coat, pulling out a silver handgun. Mai’s body dropped the calm and collected farce, and she began trembling at the sight of the firearm. The man looked at the cash register in a daze, then fixated back on Mai.

“Open it,” the man ordered softly, as if getting some control over his drunken speech.

“I’ve never had my own emotions in order, and I know that you’re still going through your own, but if you ever wanted to do something together, I would love to spend that time with you. Even if we spent that time in silence…”

Mai nodded quickly and stepped over to the register. As she entered a code into the register with one hand, she used her other hand to quickly press a button that stuck out from under the counter. That button was to signal to nearby police that a robbery was in progress.

As she tried entering the code into the register, she realized that the register wasn’t opening. In a state of panic, she used both hands to try and enter the code again, but the register still didn’t open.

“What’s taking so long?” the man asked with an anger rising inside of him. His face was serious and stern, and all of his facial wrinkles conveyed a sense of urgency to Mai.

“It feels so weird to me that my own thoughts are being invaded by someone else, but it honestly feels like you’re lifting me up from darker times. I don’t hang my head down as much anymore. Now, I can look up and see your bright smile…”

Mai continued to struggle with the register. Tears started to rush down her face as she started banging at the register, trying so desperately to get it open.

When the man saw Mai’s tears and fear, his blinded anger suddenly turned into a sense of sorrow and regret.

“What am I doing?” he asked himself quietly, pointing the gun away from Mai and towards the floor.

“Hopefully, we get to continue learning more about each other, and I hope I can learn about myself. I’ve never harbored any romantic feelings towards anyone, nor have I been infatuated by someone else before, but maybe this could be the start of something…”

Mai let out an uneasy breath as the gun pointed away from her. Even though the gun was no longer anywhere near Mai, she was still shaking in terror. She quickly wiped the tears that lingered in her eyes, hoping that he would just leave the store.

“If that car would’ve just hit me…maybe I could’ve disappeared. Instead, I’m just a nuisance to everyone,” the man said woefully, bringing the gun up to himself with shaky hands.

“Even if you don’t reciprocate the feelings I have, I’m glad to finally experience what it’s like to think this way about someone. It’s scary, yet somewhat exciting. There are so many things I want to try, but I’ve always been scared. A relationship is now a new thing I hope I can attain, even though I’m terrified…”

Mai saw the man bring the gun towards himself, and without thinking, she reached up towards the gun with her hands.

“Maybe we can go watch fireworks one day. I think I’ll always be afraid of them, but maybe if you’re there with me, I can finally enjoy them…”

The two of them struggled with the gun. Mai tried to force the handgun away from the man while he tried to keep it aimed at himself. They both grunted and groaned as Mai was gaining some ground on this horrific tug of war match.

“Enjoy your cake!”

The man was angrily struggling to lift the gun up towards him, but Mai was the one who put up the greater fight. As the gun got closer to the countertop, Mai saw her chance to disarm him. She leaned in and gave one last pull.

“With Care,

Mai Sasaki ~”

Pulling against her, the man gripped the firearm with his last ounce of strength, trying to maintain control of it…

BAM!