Finally making it through the morning, the bell for the end of class finally rang, instantly bringing the classroom to life.
Ms. Lin stretched, stuffed her workbook into her backpack, got up, and was ready to leave, but a few girls she occasionally chatted with came over.
Thanks to her youthful and attractive appearance, she was quite popular in class. Even though she never initiated conversations, people would still steer topics toward her from time to time, regardless of gender.
But unfortunately, Ms. Lin was just a filthy anime fan. In her view, compared to the hassle of managing troublesome interpersonal or romantic relationships, it was much easier and more enjoyable to just grin foolishly at her monthly-updated anime waifus on her phone.
"Do you want to go shopping at Takeshita Street later?" Faced with the invitation, Ms. Lin, switching into customer service mode, curved her eyes into a smile as she shook her head and politely declined, skillfully using the excuse, "Next time for sure."
While the other person was still pondering this ambiguous promise, she suddenly reached out and affectionately pinched the girl's cheek. In the moment of the girl's stunned blushing, she had already deftly sidestepped around her, quickly leaving the classroom without looking back.
She glanced at her phone. Good, it was exactly twelve o'clock now.
Her part-time shift started at one in the afternoon. Deducting the commute time, she still had forty minutes to grab lunch.
Ms. Lin made her familiar way to a relatively famous Japanese chain ramen shop near the station called "Tenka Ippin"—this chain's lunch set was extremely cost-effective.
Ms. Lin used to be completely unable to understand some Japanese meal sets. After all, the main course was fried rice, the side dish was pan-fried dumplings, and the soup was a bowl of ramen. This carb-bomb combo seemed way too ahead of its time no matter how you looked at it.
But now, for Ms. Lin who had already experienced the 'delicious reality', satiety was the only pursuit.
The rising steam blurred her phone screen. She slurped noodles while mechanically scrolling through short videos, enjoying the easy feeling of those abstract clips passing through her brain.
When the last drop of soup was gone, the countdown to her part-time job began—she wiped her mouth; not a single drop of soup was left.
Walking through the automatically opening glass door, the familiar electronic chime sounded immediately. Ms. Lin nodded to Manager Morikawa behind the counter, who responded with a gentle smile.
Heading to the cramped employee break room, she swiftly changed into the slightly oversized uniform and returned to the front counter to take over her shift.
Morikawa had already tidied up the cash register. Today, she had loosely tied her long hair in front of her chest, with a few stray strands falling against her fair neck, shimmering with fine light under the convenience store's fluorescent lamps.
"Manager, thank you for your hard work. Besides replenishing the oden ingredients this afternoon, is there anything else I need to pay special attention to?"
Hearing this, Morikawa let out a soft sigh, but a smile still danced at the corners of her eyes. "How many times have I told you, just call me Sister Morikawa."
She leaned forward slightly, a faint scent of laundry detergent drifting from her. "Do I really look that serious?"
Without waiting for Ms. Lin's reply, she suddenly straightened up childishly and lightly tapped the name tag on her chest. "Come on, say it with me—mo-ri-ka-wa～" Her tone rose slightly at the end, carrying a hint of coquettishness.
The gentle gaze and playful tone formed a strange contrast, making Ms. Lin feel a bit unable to withstand this temptation. She stared at the gaps between the floor tiles and stammered.
"O-okay... Sister Morikawa."
"That's more like it～" Morikawa narrowed her eyes contentedly, like a satisfied cat.
"Remember to keep an eye on the stock levels on the drink shelves. I'll leave the afternoon to you. I'll be in the break room if you need anything."
Then she stretched her waist, let out a lazy hum, and walked toward the break room.
Meanwhile, Ms. Lin stood behind the cash register, putting on her customer service smile, her mind wandering as she began reflecting on her disappointing performance just now, thinking that next time she should at least look the other person in the eye when replying.
"Can't let myself be looked down on," Ms. Lin clenched her fist, inexplicably fired up.
The convenience store work was as monotonous as ever.
Ms. Lin stood behind the cash register, mechanically repeating the mundane processes of checking out, accepting packages, and handling utility bill payments.
Every time she helped a customer with the cash register, she would remember the convenience of how these things could be done in three seconds with a phone back in her home country.
Back home, she always heard about how convenient Japanese convenience stores were. But after experiencing it firsthand, she realized many things could already be handled by phone back home.
Japan's technological gap always felt dissonant to her.
One moment, a customer in front of her would pay with the latest iPhone using electronic payment, and the next, someone would pull out a yellowed flip phone. This wasn't limited to the elderly; it happened among office workers and students too.
Moreover, the user experience of some commonly used apps or websites wasn't great. Some apps were just web launchers, opening directly to a webpage, giving off a distinctly outdated, 2015 vibe.
Time passed slowly amidst the busyness. Ms. Lin leaned against the cash register, gazing blankly at the pedestrians rushing by outside the window.
Today's shift was relatively lucky; at least she hadn't encountered any difficult customers.
She couldn't help but recall that troublesome afternoon last week. A burly man in his fifties, speaking in a thick local accent, slammed a coupon on the counter, loudly demanding to redeem it.
After repeatedly checking, Ms. Lin found that the crumpled coupon belonged to the neighboring Rollin convenience store.
"Sir, I'm really sorry, but this is an 811 convenience store. This coupon cannot be used here..." Before Ms. Lin could finish, the man began pounding the counter excitedly.
Manager Morikawa, who had been organizing shelves, hurried over upon hearing the commotion, her chestnut hair swaying slightly with her light steps.
"What seems to be the matter?" Her gentle voice was like a breeze.
After understanding the situation, Morikawa gave a slight bow and skillfully apologized and placated him. As she spoke, she adeptly guided the man toward the entrance, even thoughtfully pointing him in the direction of the Rollin convenience store as he left.
After dealing with the troublesome customer, Morikawa walked back to the cash register with measured steps. Seeing Ms. Lin's sullen, aggrieved expression, she couldn't help but smile.
"You've had a tough time～" Morikawa gently ruffled Ms. Lin's hair. The warmth from her fingertips made Ms. Lin unconsciously relax her tense shoulders.
Then, Morikawa turned and took a skewer of freshly heated yakitori from the warming cabinet, the golden chicken skin still glistening with tempting oil.
She gently placed the bamboo skewer into Ms. Lin's hand, then enveloped the back of Ms. Lin's hand with her own warm hands.
"Don't be upset anymore～" she said softly, her breath carrying a faint scent of mint candy. "This is the manager's special treat to cheer you up."
'Should I buy a few skewers of yakitori for a late-night snack today...' Ms. Lin's mind was wandering aimlessly when she was suddenly pulled back to reality by the sound of rain starting outside the window.
Raindrops lightly tapped against the convenience store glass, tracing winding trails of water on the pane.
Ms. Lin secretly breathed a sigh of relief—fewer customers on rainy days, yes! Time to slack off hard! She relaxed, leaning against the cash register, enjoying her time as a wage thief.
In the rain curtain, several high school girls in short skirts stood under the bus stop shelter across the street, their fair legs particularly noticeable in the damp air.
Ms. Lin couldn't help but admire the cold resistance of Japanese girls, until the "ding-dong" of the electronic door chime pulled her back to reality.
After helping a few customers who were drenched like drowned rats pay for their umbrellas, Ms. Lin's gaze involuntarily drifted back to the window.
The high school girls from before had already left. Just as she thought there was no more scenery to watch and she could only continue spacing out like a Slowpoke...
A figure in a loose beige knit sweater hurriedly dashed into the bus stop shelter, black hair tracing an arc in the rain.
As the girl tiptoed over a puddle, the hem of her miniskirt fluttered with the movement, her black knee-high socks flickering in and out of view through the rain.
After steadying herself, she faced the direction of the road, lifting her skirt slightly with both hands and giving it a gentle twist.
Through the rain curtain, only the darkened, soaked hem of her skirt and the occasional glint of water droplets were visible.
Watching her lift her skirt slightly as if no one was around, trying to wring out the rain-dampened miniskirt, Ms. Lin, feeling the action was somewhat suggestive, awkwardly averted her gaze.
She tapped randomly on the cash register a few times. Feeling bored to the point of restlessness, Ms. Lin still turned her head, thinking of continuing to watch the high school girl at the bus stop across the street to kill time.
After all, this could also be considered a form of people-watching.
For some reason, Ms. Lin inexplicably felt there was something odd about that high school girl. This feeling came without any basis. If forced to make a comparison, it was like suddenly passing an Inspiration check in a game. Ms. Lin's Inspiration had passed, but she couldn't articulate it clearly.
When she focused her gaze again, the sense of dissonance grew stronger.
The girl first tilted her head suddenly, as if someone had spoken to her, then her entire body noticeably stiffened.
Ms. Lin instinctively leaned forward, trying to see the direction of the girl's gaze, but only saw empty rain.
Then, the girl mechanically leaned out to look at the road. Her movements were so stiff it seemed less like checking for a bus and more like being on guard against something.
But it was strange, Ms. Lin thought to herself. If she was just checking, her body shouldn't be that rigid. Was she too cold?
No, if she were too cold, she would probably hug herself or stomp her feet on the spot to promote blood circulation, not just stand there blankly.
Squinting her eyes for a closer look, Ms. Lin noticed more details—although the girl was looking down and fiddling with her phone, the knuckles gripping her skirt had turned white, and her thin shoulders were trembling slightly. Everything conveyed one thing—
She was feeling uneasy.
Ms. Lin found it strange. From her perspective, the area around the bus stop was clearly empty.
There was no suspicious stalker, no delinquent with bleached hair, not even a chubby otaku holding a phone with a pink-glowing screen.
Did she see something on her phone? An extortion message? That didn't seem right either. This JK's strange reaction existed *before* she looked at her phone. Looking at the phone seemed more like a cover.
So that was strange. Ms. Lin couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she thought. This girl's reaction was as if she had seen a ghost.
"Seen a ghost?" Ms. Lin laughed at her own absurd thought and shook her head.
"Haha, as if that's possible."
Just as Ms. Lin was about to dismiss the JK as a weirdo, planning to withdraw her gaze, stop slacking off, and work hard to repay Manager Morikawa's kindness—
The JK on the platform suddenly looked up sharply.
Those rare golden pupils pierced through the rain, crossed the street, and directly met the gaze of Ms. Lin standing inside the convenience store behind the cash register.
This made Ms. Lin's breath catch, unconsciously tightening her grip on the barcode scanner in her hand.
Ms. Lin, who often read web novels, thought those descriptions of eyes containing 'a hint of indifference, a touch of nonchalance' like pie charts were complete nonsense.
But at this moment, Ms. Lin genuinely felt from those golden pupils—one hundred percent fear, mixed with a desperate plea, like a drowning person grasping at the last straw.
'Hehe, what a delicious expression,' Ms. Lin began fiercely condemning her own conscience for her first reaction. She was truly corrupted by twisted fan creations.
Raindrops trickled down the glass, blurring the girl's figure into hazy patches of color.
But that gaze was exceptionally clear. Ms. Lin could even feel its heavy weight.
What was she afraid of? Was she seeking my help? How should I help her? Will I get hurt? Will I get into trouble?
Before her steps could be tripped up by the doubts in her heart, Ms. Lin flipped up the counter flap, rushed out without even taking off her uniform jacket.
Grabbing a transparent long-handled umbrella from the rack by the door, checking left and right for cars, she crossed the street in a few quick strides.
The girl on the platform seemed stunned, her eyes reddening as she looked at the sudden appearance of this unfamiliar convenience store clerk.
In Miko's eyes, the convenience store lady had a high nose bridge and distinct features. Her rain-dampened hair clung to her cheeks, making those worried almond-shaped eyes appear especially bright.
The hand that had been tightly clutching her skirt out of fear was now firmly held. A strange sense of reassurance spread from the warmth transmitted through the back of her hand toward her heart. Following that force, she stumbled forward a few steps, her whole body uncontrollably falling into the clerk's embrace.
The moment she was pulled into the embrace, that terrifying figure suddenly vanished from her sight—the grotesquely swollen head, the bleeding, hollow eye sockets, the exposed, rotting innards—all were completely blocked by this strange girl's shoulder.
Miko could smell the faint scent of laundry detergent and bleach on her uniform, could feel her rapid heartbeat from running. These real sensations made her nearly frozen blood begin to flow again.
"Can you see me... gah... can you see me..." The spirit's hoarse whispers still drifted in the rain, but now they sounded as if from a great distance.
Miko buried her face deeper into Ms. Lin's shoulder, seeking a sense of security, realizing she was no longer being stared at by those hollow, blood-tear-streaked eye sockets.
Completely unaware, Ms. Lin held the umbrella and tightened her embrace around the trembling body in her arms, shielding Miko as she hurried through the rain.
She instinctively tilted the umbrella toward Miko's side, letting the cold rain soak through her uniform along her left shoulder.
Ms. Lin's embrace was unexpectedly reassuring. Miko could even hear her muttering with concern, "It's okay now, let's get back to the store first..."
Raindrops exploded into countless tiny splashes, blurring the figures of the two girls into hazy silhouettes.
When the convenience store's automatic door chimed "ding-dong" as it opened, Manager Morikawa had come out to check due to the commotion Ms. Lin had just caused.
Seeing the two of them drenched, she widened her eyes in surprise. "My, what happened?"
Ms. Lin He shook the umbrella, feigning composure.,Water droplets splashed onto the anti-slip mat at the door..
Leaning against Ms. Lin, Miko kept her head down, her wet bangs covering her eyes. "I... I came to buy an umbrella..." Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
Morikawa's gaze shifted between the two of them, and she finally let out a helpless sigh.
She reached out and lightly flicked Ms. Lin's forehead. Watching Ms. Lin's exaggerated, teeth-baring grimace, she couldn't help but purse her lips into a light laugh. "Alright, alright, I won't pry into you young girls' secrets."
Turning away, she deliberately softened her voice, as if coaxing two wet kittens. "I'll go get you some towels. Don't catch a cold."