My name is Nakata Emi. I've been working this part-time job for about a year now, ever since starting university, and I've finally been assigned a junior to mentor. Believe it or not, he's a sixteen-year-old, which makes him a first-year in high school. I recognized him since he used to be a regular, but working together as colleagues is a whole new experience.
"──Good morning, Emi-senpai."
"Hey, morning, Maki. Get ready, because I'm not going easy on you today either."
"Please have mercy… Um, I'll go get changed."
"Mm, go ahead. I'll start getting things prepped."
His name is Maehara Maki. He went to a nearby high school and apparently applied after spotting the help-wanted ad we'd scribbled on the corner of the menu, almost as an afterthought.
According to the manager, he came from a somewhat complicated family background and currently lives alone with his mother, who works at a publishing company. His motivation for getting a job was to, at the very least, earn his own pocket money.
This is just my first impression, but I already like him. He has the quiet air of someone who'd stick to the corners of a classroom, and as our brief chat showed, he's a total introvert. He might be the type of kid some people would write off immediately, but he's surprisingly easy to talk to. For a teenager these days—not that I have much room to talk as a university student—he's exceptionally polite. You can sense a genuine thoughtfulness in the way he chooses his words.
You could just call him timid, but for a boy his age, I bet there are girls a little older, like me, who find it endearing. Isn't he cute? Of course, if an adult acted this way, it'd be a total deal-breaker.
Still, he's a kid with a mysterious sort of charm.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Emi-senpai."
"There you are. Okay, you're on register duty today. Our machine is ancient and a bit tricky, so ask me immediately if you don't get something. It's a weekday, so it shouldn't be too busy… Oh, speak of the devil. Maki, you've got a customer."
"Y-Yes! I'm on it."
I couldn't help but chuckle as I watched him tense up so visibly.
Yep, that's the kind of stuff that just gets to a girl.
And as if on cue, the customers who walked in were, lo and behold…
"W-Welcome to──Huh?"
"Ehehe, hey there, Maki-kun. Keep up the good work."
"We heard from the class rep you had a shift, so we came to mess with you. Working hard?"
"Sorry, Maki. I was afraid this might be a bother, but…"
A trio of high school girls had arrived—Maki's classmates, from what I'd gathered the other day. And what a lineup they were: a trendy, auburn-haired girl with a sophisticated air, a blonde beauty who looked like she'd stepped out of a fairy tale, and a serious-looking girl with short, black hair. He was certainly in good company.
"Well, now that you're here, I hope you plan on contributing to our sales. What can I get for you?" I asked.
"Right. Um… I'll have my usual and a cola. Yuu, Nina, what about you?"
"Okay, I'll have whatever Maki-kun recommends! How about you, Nina-chi?"
"Sounds good. I'll take that too. C'mon, Class Rep, show us what you've got."
"We don't really do orders like that… Um, Senpai?" Maki pleaded, looking completely lost.
"It's fine," I said with a wink. "For my cute junior, I'll make an exception, just this once."
"…I'm so sorry, Senpai. Thank you very much."
As he bowed his head in relief, my gaze shifted to the three girls watching him with equally fond expressions. A thought crossed my mind.
My junior… he may not stand out, but he's surprisingly quite a force to be reckoned with.