Drunk on nonalcoholic cocktails

It was a sunny afternoon near the end of summer vacation.

"Okay, man, I'm counting on you today."

Takahiro Mizusawa's older brother Yuji thumped him on

the shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Same time as usual?" Takahiro glanced at

Yuji, then right away looked back at his phone.

"Yeah, six thirty."

"Gotcha. Man, you must be really short on people,"

Takahiro said spitefully.

"Yumiko-san's coming today."

Yuji grabbed the ends of his distinctive ash-gray,

casually styled hair and pulled them into place. His fingers

brushed his simple silver earing, sending it swaying.

"Oh, so that's what this is about…" Takahiro sighed.

"Just think of it as a way to earn some money."

"I don't care about that…but you do realize I'm in high

school, right?" Takahiro raised his eyebrows.

Yuji grinned. "You don't get it, but that's probably a good

thing."

"Don't make it weird," Takahiro said with a snort.

"Anyway, thanks, Takahiro! Oh, and don't forget to do

your hair."

"I know!"

"Good. I'm off to my afternoon shift."

"Yeah, yeah. Be careful."

"Thanks."

With that aloof answer, Yuji walked over to the

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entryway, slipped on his favorite red Air Max's, and headed

out to the hair salon where he worked.

"…Anyway, it's fun, so I don't mind," Takahiro mumbled

before starting to respond to the backlog of LINE messages

on his phone.

* * *

That same day, Tsugumi Narita, aka Gumi, was shopping in

Shibuya with her school friends Yoko Mamiya and Hitomi

Fujii.

"Ahhh, this is so cute!"

"Ah-ha-ha, that looks like something you'd wear, Yoko."

Tsugumi laughed, pinching the collar of the shirt Yoko was

holding between her fingers.

They'd already made the rounds of 109, Hikarie, and

Mark City, and now they were hitting the foreign fashion

brands like ZARA, Bershka, and H&M.

Since they were in high school now, they wanted to look

a bit more grown-up, so they tended to prefer foreign

companies over Japanese ones like Uniqlo and GU, even if

all of them were fast fashion.

"I wanna wear something like this on a date!"

"Yoko, face it. You don't even have a boyfriend," Hitomi

pointed out sharply.

"Shut up! I'll have one soon!" Yoko snapped back.

"Ooh! I like this, too!"

By the time they finished shopping, it was after six.

The orange twilight was threading its way between the

buildings as they walked through the downtown

neighborhood, each gripping their loot.

"We got some good stuff today!"

"I want to wear that coat, like, tomorrow!"

"You really liked that one, didn't you, Hitomi?"

While Yoko and Hitomi chatted, Tsugumi walked along

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in the shadows, escaping the slanting sunbeams.

"Can we stop for a rest?"

Even at this time of day, Shibuya's crowded world of

concrete and people was still hot, and Tsugumi's low stores

of energy had been depleted.

"Ah-ha-ha. It's a miracle you're still standing, Tsugumi!"

Yoko laughed, following her friend's faltering steps with

her eyes. They'd made their way from Center-Gai to the

Scramble Crossing and were now looking out at the sea of

people waiting for the light to change.

"Right? Let's go in somewhere ASAP."

Tsugumi—who was only called Gumi at her part-time job

at Karaoke Sevens—stumbled toward the bottom level of the

Shibuya Tsutaya store.

"Watch out!" Hitomi said, smiling wryly as she followed

in the same direction.

"…Hey!"

Tsugumi had just glimpsed a familiar face heading

across the Scramble Crossing toward them, in the direction

of the Center-Gai. The boy was tall and thin, with a cool,

grown-up aura to him.

"That's…" It was Takahiro Mizusawa, her coworker at

the karaoke place.

But since Tsugumi didn't have the energy left to call out

to him, she just stared at him as he walked across the

intersection.

"What's wrong, Tsugumi?" Yoko asked.

"Nothing, I just saw someone I know."

"Really? Who?"

Tsugumi lifted her limp arm and pointed lazily toward

Takahiro. He'd made it to the other side of the intersection

and was cutting across their path a few meters ahead.

"That guy with the white shirt and the black bow tie…

huh?" Tsugumi noticed something as she talked. "…Why's he

wearing a bow tie?" She wasn't used to seeing this.

It wasn't just his clothes, either. Normally, his bangs

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flopped softly over his forehead, but now they were pushed

up to reveal his face. His hair had more gel in it than usual,

too, which gave him a slightly dangerous edge.

"…Weird…" Tsugumi tilted her head.

"That guy? He's really hot!"

"What?! How do you know him! He looks older than us!"

Tsugumi was a little embarrassed by her friends'

excitement. "Uh, he's from work. He's a second-year."

"Wow! He's so good-looking!" Yoko said.

Tsugumi nodded. "Uh-huh. He's definitely handsome."

"Sure is! Come on, introduce us!"

"Ugh, what a pain."

"I knew you'd say that!"

Meanwhile, Hitomi was staring wide-eyed. "Hey, I

thought you worked in Omiya!"

"Huh? Yeah, I do…"

"But doesn't he look like he's dressed for work?"

Tsugumi nodded. She'd been wondering the same thing.

"Yeah, he does. I mean, he was wearing a bow tie."

A white shirt, a black bow tie, and black slim-fit slacks.

Based on what he normally wore, these were definitely not

his casual clothes. Tsugumi had never seen him show up at

work with a bow tie.

"What do you think's going on?"

"I'm not sure." But Tsugumi got bored easily, so she gave

up on trying to figure it out. "He was headed in that

direction, so maybe he works over there." With that slapdash

conclusion, she pulled a bottle of lemon tea out of her bag

and took a sip. "Ugh, it's so warm…"

"Oh, well that explains everything!" Yoko teased, but

Tsugumi just gazed after him absently.

He was holding a bag that looked like it came from a

convenience store. Since he wasn't carrying a shoulder bag

or anything, she figured he'd been sent out to buy

something.

Then he went into one of the buildings in Center-Gai.

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"Oh, now we know where he's going!" Hitomi said.

"What should we do? Follow him?" Yoko asked eagerly.

She was the one who'd been so taken by his appearance.

"Ugh…" Tsugumi sounded extremely annoyed, but

Hitomi was on Yoko's side.

"He definitely seems interesting."

"Well…" Tsugumi hesitated. The problem wasn't so

much introducing them as walking the several dozen meters

to where he was. There was a Starbucks in the Tsutaya right

in front of them; if only he'd gone in there.

"Come on, it'll be fun!"

"You must really be desperate for a boyfriend, Yoko!"

Hitomi teased, but her own eyes were sparkling with

excitement, too.

Tsugumi thought about it. She really wanted to go into

the Starbucks instead of walking all the way over there. But

it would be even more annoying to argue about what to do.

Finally, she nodded grudgingly. "Okay, but let's make it

quick."

"That's what I like to hear!"

Pulled along by her two friends, who were in detective

mode, Tsugumi headed toward the building Takahiro had

gone into.

* * *

"…This is it, right?" Hitomi asked.

"Yeah, he went down here," Yoko answered.

They were a little ways away from where they'd been

standing, in front of the building in question. A staircase led

underground, with a sign reading BAR AQUA set up next to it.

"…A bar?" Hitomi mumbled, suddenly getting cold feet.

"Well, he was definitely dressed for that," Yoko said, like

everything had just come together.

"Aren't you scared?" Hitomi looked back and forth from

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Yoko to Tsugumi.

"Are high schoolers even allowed in a place like this?"

Yoko asked uncertainly. But it was Tsugumi who pushed

back.

"What? We walked this far, so we may as well go in. I

don't wanna go all the way back."

"It was less than a hundred meters…," Yoko said,

exasperated, but she knew Tsugumi well enough that she'd

half given up already.

"If Mizusawa-san went in, then we can, too. He's a high

schooler like us."

"No way!" Yoko was in shock.

"Yeah. What did you think?"

"I just assumed he was in university…"

"Oh…"

He acted older than he was anyway, and today he had on

those grown-up-looking clothes. Tsugumi could see how

Yoko would think that. "He's just a year ahead of us."

"R-really…?" Hitomi said, glancing down. The bottom of

the narrow staircase was dim, and a bluish light lit up a

simple black door.

"All right, I'm going down," Tsugumi said, tired of

waiting, and tapped Yoko on the shoulder.

"Oh, wow… I guess we're doing this." As the one who

suggested the idea in the first place, Yoko summoned her

resolve.

"Um, okay…" Hitomi nodded fearfully. Still, neither she

nor Yoko budged.

"…Oh, come on." Tsugumi took the lead and marched

down the stairs by herself.

"Wait, Tsugumi!"

"We're coming!"

The three girls stepped into Bar Aqua.

* * *

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"Evening."

As the girls pushed the heavy door open and walked

inside, a male bartender with his hair slicked back, probably

in his early thirties, greeted them as he dried some glasses.

The inside of the bar was dim, with blue indirect lighting

illuminating the colorful bottles and slightly loud EDM

music giving the place more of a trendy atmosphere than a

classy one. This wasn't one of those quiet jazz bars—which

made Yoko and Hitomi even more nervous.

"Hey," answered Tsugumi, who showed no sign of

nervousness whatsoever.

They huddled behind her but managed to get out a "Hhello."

The bartender grinned. "First time here?"

"Um, yes. But I think we know someone who works

here."

"Who's that?"

Tsugumi looked around the bar. "His name is Mizusawasan."

The bartender nodded and raised his voice a little.

"Oh, I see! You're friends of Mizusawa's," he said

casually, then looked over his shoulder. "Hey! Yuji! Some

friends of yours are here!"

Tsugumi suddenly felt uneasy. "…Yuji?"

I was sure Mizusawa's first name was…

But before she could finish her thought, a man came out

from the back. Needless to say, Tsugumi didn't recognize

him.

"Coming!"

The man striding toward them with a sunny smile was

Takahiro's older brother Yuji. He was wearing an oversized

long-sleeved black T-shirt by Off-White printed with the

Mona Lisa and a pair of Mnml skinny blue jeans with big

rips in both knees. Two silver necklaces of different sizes

hung from his neck.

"…Oh!"

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For a second, a confused look flashed across his face, but

then he smiled again and waved at Tsugumi and her friends.

He was giving the three of them a searching look.

"Hey!" he said cheerfully and familiarly—although, of

course, he'd never seen them before in his life.

The three of them looked at one another, puzzled by his

obviously fake smile, and an awkward silence fell for a

moment.

"I think we have the wrong Mizusawa," Tsugumi said

bluntly.

Yuji relaxed into a more natural smile. "Oh, yeah,

probably! I was scared there for a second. I couldn't

remember who you guys were at all!"

"Ah-ha-ha, sorry about that. I think we're looking for

Takahiro-kun," Tsugumi said, matching Yuji's casual tone.

He clapped, as if everything was falling into place, while

Yoko and Hitomi watched from behind Tsugumi.

"Oh, that Mizusawa! He complains about coming and

then he shows up with three girls. Man!" Yuji nodded

happily a few times before telling Tsugumi to wait a second

and disappearing into the back.

"Sure," she answered in her usual lazy way, turning to

her friends. "Same last name, at least. Think they're

brothers?"

Hitomi and Yoko snapped out of their daze and

whispered angrily at Tsugumi.

"How do you act so normal?!"

"You never even met him before, right?!"

Tsugumi was confused. "No…I mean, yeah, I never met

him before, but what's there to be nervous about?" She made

it sound like talking to guys she didn't know was completely

normal.

"Most people would be nervous!"

"Yeah! And this place is scary! All the staff are so stylish

and stuff!"

The two of them were whisper-yelling so that only

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Tsugumi could hear.

She nodded. "Yeah, those two are definitely attractive."

"Definitely."

"They sure are."

Hitomi and Yoko were frustrated that Tsugumi still

didn't seem to get their point, but they were also glad they

could count on her laid-back attitude.

Just then…

"Uh, what? Gumi?!"

This time, the real Takahiro Mizusawa emerged from the

back room. He was still wearing the white button-down shirt

and bow tie, with his bangs slicked back and glistening with

gel. He looked at Tsugumi and her friends in surprise.

"Hey, Mizusawa-san," Tsugumi greeted him, nonchalant

as ever.

Mizusawa smiled wryly. "That's all you have to say?" he

said, scratching his neck. "What's going on? Why are you

here?"

"We saw you crossing the street. And we followed you.

'Cause we felt like it," she said aloofly.

"Oh, okay…" Takahiro sighed.

Yuji, who had come back out to the bar and was standing

behind his brother, listened to the conversation with great

interest.

"So you didn't bring these girls with you?" he asked.

Takahiro frowned. "Nope. They just showed up

uninvited."

"Hey, that was mean!" Tsugumi protested.

"Ha-ha-ha."

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"But anyway, what are you doing here?" she asked.

Predictably, Hitomi and Yoko were listening silently to the

conversation.

"My dear brother here is the assistant manager, so I'm

helping out…" Suddenly, Takahiro looked at the other two

girls. "Are you two friends of Tsugumi's?"

Yoko and Hitomi gulped at the sudden question.

"Uh, um, mm-hmm!"

"Huh. So you're in the same grade as her?"

"Y-yeah!" Yoko said, her voice a little higher than usual.

"Ah. Well, I can't serve you alcohol, but you can hang

around if you want. Counter seat okay?"

"Y-yes!"

The three girls sat down at the counter seats Takahiro

had pointed at. Unlike Tsugumi, who was acting like all of

this was totally normal, the other two were stiff as boards

and nodding compulsively.

"Oh, this is my brother," Takahiro said, "and that guy

over there is the boss."

"Oh, wow!"

"Really?"

Yoko's and Hitomi's responses to Takahiro's

introductions weren't exactly natural.

"Ha-ha-ha. Just relax. Is this your first time in a place

like this?"

"Um, yes," Hitomi said stiffly.

"Ah. Well, how about a drink to start?"

"Um…"

As the two of them were trying to decide, Takahiro spoke

up again. "Hey, since you're here at a bar, wanna try a

cocktail? Do you like sweet stuff?" he asked, like he'd just

thought of it.

"Uh, yes I do," Yoko said.

"How about you?"

"I-I'm okay with sweet!" Hitomi said in a near panic.

"Just okay? I'll get you something else—so one sweet and

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one dry cocktail, coming right up. Nonalcoholic, of course.

Sound good?" Takahiro was talking so smoothly that the

other two could barely keep up.

"O-okay!"

"Thank you very much!"

They were completely at his mercy, partly because of the

overall atmosphere of the place. Takahiro grinned at them,

then finally looked back at Tsugumi.

"How about you, Gumi? Green tea?"

Hitomi and Yoko burst out giggling.

"What the heck?! Give me the cutest drink you got. "

"Of course. Leave it to me," he said, wrapping up the

conversation, and started making their drinks with a

practiced hand. He pulled out three different kinds of glasses

and loaded each one with brightly colored syrup, bubbly

water, and cut fruit.

The three of them, with Tsugumi in the middle, watched

him and whispered to each other.

"Who is this guy anyway?! I can't believe he's in high

school!"

"I was just thinking that!"

Tsugumi laughed wryly as they repeated their

impressions from before. "He always acts pretty grown-up,

but he's especially bad tonight. Ugh, I can't stand him."

Hitomi and Yoko stared at Tsugumi.

"Are you that close?" Yoko asked.

"I'm not sure how to put it…"

"You sure seem close! He's a whole year older and

everything!" Hitomi whispered excitedly.

"What are we whispering about?!"

"Eek!"

Yoko and Hitomi jumped at Takahiro's sudden

intrusion. He chuckled and smiled like he was pleased with

himself. "Here's your drinks."

He set the colorful virgin cocktails in front of the girls

like nothing had happened, though there was a slightly

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sadistic shade to his smile.

"Thank you!"

Hitomi and Yoko stared at their cocktails and tried to

think of something to say, their hearts pounding.

"Um, what are these called?" Yoko asked.

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Takahiro smiled and pointed to the glasses in order.

"This is a Firestone, this is a Waiting for Love, and this is a

Fast Car."

"Wow…"

Yoko and Hitomi nodded, their eyes sparkling at the

sound of the English words.

"…The nonalcoholic versions, of course. I heard they're

all house originals."

"Ah-ha-ha. So you don't really know?" Hitomi laughed.

"I just work here, you know… Oh, by the way," Takahiro

said offhandedly. "Funny that I know what to call the drinks,

but not what to call you?" He looked back and forth between

Yoko and Hitomi.

"Ah-ha-ha. Our names?"

"Yeah."

"I hope you don't mind if they're not fancy English

names…" Hitomi's nervousness was slowly melting away.

"Ha-ha-ha. No problem. Mine is Takahiro, after all."

"I'm Hitomi Fujii."

"Um, I'm Yoko Mamiya."

"Hitomi-chan and Yoko-chan, huh? Pleased to meet

you!"

Tsugumi was staring at him. "Wow, look at this

Casanova, calling them by their first names right away."

"Shut up. You can call me Takahiro-san here if you

want."

"Nah, I don't think so," she said lazily.

Takahiro gave her a meaningful look. "But if you call me

Mizusawa-san, we might have a bit of a problem."

"Why's that?"

"Go ahead, try it. Say 'Mizusawa-san' in a loud voice."

"I will then. Mizusawa-san!"

Yuji jumped out from behind Takahiro and made a goofy

pose. "Did someone ring for a Mizusawa? At your service,

ma'am!"

The other four cracked up at his speedy reaction, since

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he'd obviously been waiting for this.

"Ah-ha-ha. You're just as annoying as your little

brother," Tsugumi teased happily.

"Why thank you ," Yuji teased.

Takahiro held up a fist. "Well played."

"I know. I was eavesdropping."

"Creep."

They bumped fists, and Yuji bounded energetically into

the back room.

Hitomi giggled at the brothers' perfect timing, jostling

the cocktail in her right hand. "This bar is so fun!" She was

already acting tipsy despite the lack of alcohol in her drink.

"Ha-ha-ha. You like it?"

"I do! I love it!" She chugged down her drink and set the

glass on its coaster. "I wish I could drink something real!"

She grinned and rested her elbows on the counter, looking

straight at Takahiro.

"Ha-ha-ha, Hitomi-chan. We'd be shut down if we did

that."

"I know… Just choose something for me again," she said,

sounding disappointed.

"Coming right up." Takahiro set about efficiently mixing

her another drink. "Yoko-chan, would you like another?

Gumi, you're having houjicha tea, right?"

"Just stop!"

They were having a great time.

* * *

"Thanks for tonight!"

It was nine. Considering the three girls lived in Saitama,

that was fairly late, so they broke up the party.

"Thank you. Come again!"

"We will!" Yoko said excitedly, all her tension gone.

"Are you always here?" Hitomi asked.

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Takahiro tilted his head, thinking. "No, almost never.

I'm helping my brother out over summer vacation, but

normally I'm not around."

"Oh, really?! But summer vacation is almost over!"

Takahiro nodded. "Here's my card, just in case. I might

be able to do a shift if you tell me you're coming ahead of

time."

"Okay, thanks!"

He handed them his simple cards, with white characters

printed on a black background.

"Oh, it has your LINE ID!" Yoko seemed very happy

about that.

"Yeah, add me if you feel like it," he said casually.

"I will!" Hitomi said cheerfully.

"Okay, see you later."

"Yeah, see ya," Tsugumi said lethargically. The other two

said their good-byes, and the three girls left the bar.

As soon as he was sure the door had closed all the way,

Takahiro let out a sigh, wiping the glass in his hand.

"…Whew."

"Nice job."

"Oh, thanks, Boss," Takahiro said, glancing around.

"Hey, where's my brother?"

"Taking a smoke break."

"Oh, gotcha."

The boss peered at him with a meaningful smile.

"…What?"

"Those three were tough customers, in more ways than

one."

"Oh, yeah, I guess so."

"You're a natural at this."

"Ha-ha-ha. Thank you."

The boss's mouth quirked up into a crooked smile.

"Especially the two who were hanging back. They really took

your bait. So? What now?" he asked like he had an idea of

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the answer.

Takahiro smiled back with the same look. "Oh, that… I'll

probably hang out with them once or twice." He grinned.

The boss nodded. "It's like you were born for this."

"I think the real bartenders of the world would take

offense if they heard you say that."

"Then don't do anything that would make them mad."

"Good advice."

They smiled like partners in crime.

Suddenly, a serious expression came into the boss's eyes,

though he kept smiling. "Joking aside, don't you want a

girlfriend?"

"I'm not sure." Takahiro set the dry glasses down on the

counter.

"It's fun to play around, but if you ask me, falling head

over heels for someone is part of growing up."

"Ha-ha-ha. Sounds like you're speaking from

experience."

"…Maybe, maybe not. But don't change the subject." He

looked embarrassed for a minute but quickly got back to his

point. "It's different if you really love someone," he

continued quietly.

"I do," Takahiro said nonchalantly.

"What?" The boss's eyebrows rose.

"You're talking about falling in love, right? There's a girl

I'm in love with," he repeated.

The boss froze. "Wait a second. I've never heard about

this!" he said, clearly startled.

"Ha-ha-ha. You never asked!"

"So what's she like?"

"What's she like…?"

"A beautiful older woman? …Don't tell me it's Yumikosan?"

"Uh, no, not her." Takahiro smirked. "Someone in my

class."

"…Wow," the boss said, sounding impressed. "If a high

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schooler's got you hooked, she must be somethin' else."

Takahiro chuckled happily. "Yeah, she is. She's more

complicated than a lot of the older girls that come in here."

"Really now," the boss said before giving Takahiro a

satisfied smile. "That's good." He sighed with relief.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Takahiro asked,

laughing.

The boss thumped his shoulder. "I wouldn't expect

anything less of you."

"How so?"

"When you win her heart, you will be a truly legendary

bartender."

"Ha-ha-ha. I'm just here helping out."

"Ooh, cold."

They smiled at each other again, while Takahiro was lost

in thought.

Win her heart, huh?

At this point, he didn't even know how deep her heart

went.

He picked up a tall, slender glass and held the bottom of

it against one of the blue lights illuminating the bar. The

cold blue gleam was bright in some places and dark in

others.

"I'll wait for her," Takahiro said casually, gazing through

the bottom of the glass. "I'm not really the type to chase

someone down."

The smile tugging at his lips was of one who truly

delighted in the unknown.