Pressure from a Friend

"What're you reading?"

"A handbook for my part-time job. Kido told me that it'd be best if I went over it and learned everything in advance, so she brought it over for me."

Itsuki approached Amane, having noticed him reading through a binder containing guidelines and instructions for working his part-time job. Ayaka had given it to him, saying, "It'd be best for you to learn this beforehand to help you get ready for work, right?"

Written inside was a compilation of necessary knowledge he needed to learn about his job, including the basics of customer service, the menu, the handling of equipment, the names and the distinct flavor of each type of coffee bean, and so on.

Thanks to getting the hang of some basics during the school festival, it wasn't too much trouble to memorize how to deal with customers and the contents of the menu. However, it was unexpectedly difficult to get familiarized with the different types of coffee, their taste, and the origin of the coffee beans well enough to explain them to the customers when asked about it, so he had taken to reading through the manual whenever he had time on hand.

"Is it okay to take that kinda stuff outside the shop?" Itsuki asked. "Apparently it's fine," Amane answered. "Because it's just an explanation on customer service and how to use equipment. Sounds like Kido got permission since it's not like it's got trade secrets in it or anything. Besides, it'd be better for me to learn the ropes sooner than later for the cafe too, right?"

Ayaka probably went out of her way to follow up on Amane because she felt responsible for referring him to the job, but he suspected that it also came from her confidence in his ability to memorize everything without much trouble.

He couldn't very well depend on Souji for everything, who he was simply supposed to work alongside. Instead, Amane felt that he ought to become a properly trained employee and be of service to the café as soon as possible.

Besides, he couldn't possibly invite Mahiru to come watch him, only to do a sloppy job, so his desire to meet her expectations gave him another reason to diligently read through the manual over and over. Incidentally, Mahiru, who usually spent her breaks with Amane, was nowhere to be seen today, perhaps out of consideration after seeing Amane concentrating.

As Amane resumed committing the lines of text in the manual to memory, Itsuki seemed to be at a loss for words and let out a sigh.

"You're really committed when it comes to stuff like this, huh?" Itsuki noted. "Though I guess it makes sense when you think of it as the power of love."

"Shut up."

His motivations being what they were, Amane really couldn't deny what Itsuki was saying, but having it be pointed out by someone else made his embarrassment boil over, and he instinctively snapped back. But Itsuki just laughed, not bothered in the slightest.

"But man, to think that the once meek and unsociable Amane would change this much… Love really is amazing, huh. It really can change people."

"You've been making fun of me for a while, are you trying to piss me off?" "No, not at all. It's just that… well, how do I put this... I'm dazzled at how heartwarming it all is."

"Why don't you keep getting dazzled until you go blind? Then I won't have to put up with you coming to watch me work."

"That's so mean! I wanna see how you look when you're working hard, too!"

"You're really saying that, when you won't even show me where you work yourself?"

Though Itsuki was making fun of him, Amane knew that Itsuki had a part- time job as well. However, he didn't know where he worked, or what he did. Itsuki was usually candid and open-minded, but for some reason, he didn't bring up the topic of his work very often at all.

While he didn't go so far as to keep it an absolute secret, it felt like Itsuki didn't want to touch on the issue that much either, so Amane didn't intend on digging too deep, but maybe prying a little would be fine.

When he looked up from the manual and turned to his friend, Itsuki chuckled and avoided the topic, saying, "What, me? Well…"

"You say you want to come see me working at my part-time job, but you haven't even told me where you're working part-time, let alone give any thought to taking me along with you, right?"

"Nyahaha, well, it's not like I had any obligation to tell you, so…"

"I mean, I won't deny that, but in that case, it makes me worry that you might be taking on something shady."

"No way I would!" Itsuki blurted.

"Then at least tell me this. What kind of work are you doing?"

"Whaaat? Well, I guess I could tell you… I'm working at a flower shop. An acquaintance of mine owns the store…"

" Flowers? You?"

Itsuki looked awkward as he faced Amane, who couldn't help but widen his eyes at the unexpected line of work that Itsuki had just confessed to.

"And there it is," Itsuki anticipated Amane's response. "I didn't say anything about it because I knew you would react that way. I knew people would say that it doesn't fit my image."

"I'm not saying it's completely unlike you, but... You've never talked about flowers before."

"In what situation would I just start talking about flowers? In the first place, it's not like I'm an expert yet. …What it comes down to is that even this job was only barely approved by my father, since dealing with flowers is related to learning the art of kadou. He refused to give me permission to get a part-time job anywhere else."

Itsuki's frustration, as well as who it was directed at, was plain to see from the way he scoffed, and so wrinkling his brows was all Amane could do in response.

The rules at Amane's school stipulate that if a student wanted to get a part- time job, they first needed to get the consent of a guardian and submit the paperwork before starting.

Fortunately, Amane was easily able to get permission from Shuuto, so he was able to take care of the procedures in short order, but in Itsuki's case, Daiki had the final say on whether he would be allowed to work or not, and Itsuki's father was nowhere near as cooperative.

Even from Amane's point of view, he was an unusually strict man, and he had a feeling that Daiki wouldn't be very supportive of the idea of a student getting a part-time job, insisting that a student's job is to study. According to Itsuki, he did not in fact allow him to work at first. "Even after much compromising, it was a struggle to get him to agree, you know?" Itsuki grumbled.

Amane thought that it may be better off not asking exactly what kind of trouble Itsuki had to go through to get his father to fold, as Itsuki continued.

"I mean, it's not like I have a problem with working with flowers per se… It's just… I hate being told what to do for every little thing. Like, I'm in high school, you know? Why's he complaining about me earning some pocket change of my own? To top it all off, the manager knows my father so he gets reports on how I'm doing anyways. Well, the manager sympathizes with me so I'm sure he keeps the reports harmless."

"Do you have something you want to buy so badly that you went through all that, just to work a part-time job?" asked Amane.

As far as Amane was aware, Itsuki wasn't much of a spendthrift, nor was he the type to spend an unreasonable amount to have fun. He went out for fast food and karaoke from time to time, but other than that, Amane hadn't seen him obviously stacking up expenses. In the first place, Itsuki seemed to get a fairly generous amount of allowance, even when taking his lunch fees into account.

Amane thought that if he was working on top of that, he must have been planning on buying something fairly expensive, but Itsuki simply shook his head.

"Nah, I'm saving up so I can get out of my parent's house if push comes to shove."

"...Wow… Sorry."

Amane realized that he touched upon a subject he shouldn't have, so he apologized right away, but Itsuki only gave him a bittersweet smile in return.

"I didn't talk about it because I knew you'd end up apologizing like that. Well, in the end, this is just me being stubborn, and if you told me I'm being a bit too hasty, I wouldn't be able to deny it."

"...Are things still that bad between you and Daiki-san?" Amane asked in a low voice after checking to make sure that Chitose wasn't in the classroom.

Fortunately, as their classmates were chatting away, Itsuki was probably the only one to hear Amane's question.

He had lowered his voice because he was worried that Chitose would learn of their conversation through their classmates, but Itsuki just gave a carefree- looking smile at Amane's tactfulness. As he understood that Itsuki's smile was not one of happiness, but of trouble instead, Amane could hardly bear to watch his expression.

"Nothing's changed much, you know?" Itsuki answered. "Well, since I went pretty wild in my rebellious period between my middle school and high school days, we barely talk to each other anyway."

Maybe it wasn't too surprising, but there seemed to be little conversation going on between them even after they had arrived home, too. Amane was worried that he might have done something unnecessary at the cultural festival and made Itsuki's relationship with his father even more difficult, but from how Itsuki was acting, that didn't seem to be the case.

"As long as we're in school, our parents have full control over our lives, so if they seriously restrict our freedom, I mean, there's not much we can do. Basically it's a case of being better safe than sorry," Itsuki shared.

"...Still, I really don't think that even Daiki-san would do something so inhumane as forcing you to do whatever he tells you to do by holding your tuition or living expenses hostage."

It was true that even the people around him have the impression that Daiki was, to put it harshly, an obstinate man who does not compromise on his convictions, but at the same time, Amane thought of him as a sensible adult with a fairly strong sense of responsibility.

If he had been the kind of person to use such grounds to shut down any argument on his son's part while seizing complete control over every aspect of his life, Amane wouldn't have let the fact that he was an outsider in the matter stop him from directly protesting his heavy-handed ways, but the fact was that despite the occasional restrictions he may place on Itsuki's activities, it never went as far as coercion.

They had simply come to the point where neither would budge from their positions, though they probably would not force their opinions on each other either. More than likely because he understood this, Itsuki let out a deep sigh of exasperation.

"Yeah, my father's stubborn for sure, but I doubt he'd do anything truly cruel as a human being, you know? Though, that being said, something might come up that would leave me with no choice but to get out of there ASAP, and then I'm gonna need some cash no matter what, right? After all, I know just how hard-headed the old man can be."

"..... You've got it hard, too," Amane noted.

"Tell me about it, man. But it's just the way I am."

Itsuki may appear frivolous at a glance, but in reality, he was thoughtful, reliable, and steadfast. He normally spoke quite casually, but Amane knew full well that those words were built upon the agony of many hard times.

The way he refused to bend to his father's will showed that Itsuki, too, was stubborn in his own way. Amane thought, I guess he takes after his father in that regard, but there was no way he was going to say that to Itsuki's face right now.

"Hey, hey, what're you guys talking about with all that doom and gloom written all over your faces?" Chitose approached them, and noticed their serious expressions.

"Hm? Ah, just talking about how Amane's got it hard with his part-time job and stuff."

Since Itsuki changed the topic to keep Chitose from picking up on the original conversation, out of respect, Amane followed suit. "Yeah, I put my name down for a bunch of shifts, so…"

"Seriously? If you make Mahirun lonely working all the time, I'm gonna make her fall for me instead, okay?"

"That'd be a problem. Of course I'll make sure I don't end up neglecting her either."

"Very well. Make sure you do so," Chitose said, suddenly acting all high and mighty.

"Just who do you think you are?"

"Ouch." Chitose was acting like she was the authority on all things Mahiru, so Amane flicked her on the forehead, and she clung onto Itsuki, crying, "Ikkuuunnn~," pretending to be defenseless. Itsuki gave her headpats, going "there, there," while laughing lightheartedly. It appeared they had succeeded in throwing her off the awkwardness that had been hanging in the air.

Chitose rubbed her forehead and made a cute display of pretending to sulk, even though Amane hadn't put that much force into it, and stuck out her tongue in response to Amane's cold glare.

"Come ooon. Don't make that face," Chitose urged.

"It's your fault for getting carried away," replied Amane.

"Come on~, what's the big deal, we're talking Mahirun and me here. Well, whatever. I'm looking forward to when you invite us to see you at work!"

"I suddenly feel less inclined to invite you guys."

"Why not?! We just want to watch the gallant figure of our friend!"

"Then can you swear you won't make fun of me with a stupid smirk on your face?"

At that, Chitose averted her eyes, and as Amane glared harder at her, she looked anywhere but back at him.

"I don't think I would do... something… like… that?"

"You really think I'd believe that when you can't even look me in the eyes, let alone answer without wavering?"

"But like~ It's a rare opportunity to have Amane use his professional smile on us. You wanna see it too, right, Yuu-chan?"

"Hahaha, well, yeah."

Yuuta nodded with a gentle smile, having approached before anyone noticed, perhaps having seen Amane's little group gathering. Even Yuuta started to pile on for some reason, leaving a grimacing Amane at a loss as to what he could be thinking.

"You say you want to see my customer service smile, but... You guys saw it plenty just the other day," Amane stated.

"But you got a buff because you were with Mahirun that time. Plus, we weren't on the side being served then."

"You guys…"

"Come onnn~ What's the harm, right, Yuu-chan?" "Yeah~"

"Why are you guys so in sync when it comes to stuff like this?" Amane complained. "It's not fair if I'm the only one being put in the spotlight and laughed at, especially with everyone else keeping their job situations hidden… and now that I think about it, Kadowaki doesn't even work anywhere at all because he's busy with track, huh."

As the ace of the track & field team, Yuuta was kept busy by his participation in a sports club, so naturally he didn't have the time for a job. The school's track & field club had a proper and sensible training regimen, instead of the traditional train 'till you drop mindset. But even so, to work a part-time job on top of that, even on their rest days, would be pretty grueling. If Amane were in Yuuta's shoes, getting a part-time job would be the last thing he'd think of.

As for Chitose, it seemed that her parents didn't give her permission to work part-time.

Apparently, she got some choice words of reprimand when she asked, being told that she couldn't afford to work part time when her grades were as bad as they were. Amane wasn't going to stick his nose into her business and tell her off or anything, but he silently agreed that her parents had a point.

"Yuu-chan, you'd totally fit right in working at a cafe or something, wouldn't you?" judged Chitose.

"I can easily picture that," Amane chimed in. "Kadowaki's always polite." "Leaving aside whether I'll actually work or not, isn't it good to smile

regularly to lighten the place up?" Yuuta answered while returning a question. "Well, I guess that's true. When I see you smile, it makes the atmosphere… calmer, I'd say…? Yeah." Amane said, fumbling over his words. "Why was that a question?" Yuuta quizzed.

"Don't think about it too hard," returned Amane.

Amane suggested the subject be dropped. This was mostly because it felt like a number of people of all kinds, that found themselves around Yuuta, were jealous enough that it was like he was constantly surrounded by ferocious beasts. However, Yuuta really couldn't be blamed for this at all, and there was nothing he could do about it anyways, so it was simply better to not dig too deep into it.

Among their classmates, though the boys' jealousy towards Yuuta had died down recently and the girls were fighting over him a lot less than before, this was really only the case within their own specific classroom. There were plenty of girls from other classes with feelings for Yuuta who approached him romantically, and Amane could keenly feel the troubles that came with being popular, just by watching as a bystander.

If he actually got a job working at a café, he'd be popular even outside of school, and it wasn't hard to imagine girls flocking to him from all over. That was probably another big reason why Yuuta didn't try to get a part-time job.

"Well, despite all of that, I hope you get used to your job quickly so you can invite us to see you at work."

" So you're dead set on coming too, Kadowaki?"

"Well, yeah, I guess. It's a rare chance to see a new side of our friend, when he is out there working, so of course we'd wanna go. Isn't that right, Itsuki?"

Itsuki groaned, "Ugh, you're silently putting pressure on me now, too."

Since Itsuki hadn't told Amane where he was working until now, Amane assumed that he hadn't told Yuuta either, and it seemed that was, in fact, the case.

However, apparently Chitose knew where Itsuki worked at least, and only watched Itsuki being subject to the silent pressure of his friends' gazes with an exasperated look on her face, muttering, "Well, Ikkun doesn't even want me coming near his job, so..."

"Well duh, you wouldn't wanna be seen acting seriously either, right?!" Itsuki responded.

"Dude, that's like admitting you're never being serious, you sure you wanna admit that?" pointed out Amane. "Well, I am a bit of a slacker, after all~" "…Sure you are."

Despite his usual carefree attitude, everyone here knew that there was more to Itsuki than that. This applied to Yuuta as well, of course, and so he just shrugged, dropping the issue while flashing a somewhat wry smile at Itsuki. However, his usual smile returned quickly, as he returned his gaze to the others.

"Anyway," Yuuta began again. "I'll be looking forward to watching you working at your part-time job, Fujimiya."

"Your smile's still scary…" "Hahaha."

Despite his objections, Amane felt Yuuta's silent petitioning not to leave him out, and Amane shuddered a little while trying to get them all to drop the topic, by suggesting that they all put a pin in this conversation until later.