Tokyo, 1991: Starting as a bank clerk

Chapter 151 I Said, I'll Go Do Escort Services! [Seventh Update, Requesting Monthly Tickets]

Kiryu Yaya walked to the entrance of the shopping street.

Knowing that he would be visiting the Yayoi and Miyazawa families separately over the weekend, he bought two portions of wagashi (Japanese sweets) from a nearby old shop in Kitahama as a gift.

In Japanese culture, showing up empty-handed is considered extremely disrespectful.

He then took his helmet off the handlebars, put it on, got on the motorcycle, and started the engine.

The Honda SuperCub50 emitted its familiar sputtering sound, which sounded particularly brisk in the night breeze.

It takes about 20 minutes by motorcycle from Tennoji to Ezaka.

He walked north along Midosuji, passing through Namba, Shinsaibashi, Honmachi, Yodoyabashi, and finally turned into a quiet residential street near Esaka Station.

The night breeze, carrying a damp scent, blew in from the direction of the Yodo River.

The street is lined with two- or three-story apartment buildings and detached houses, their exterior walls covered with white or beige tiles that gleam softly under the streetlights.

Kiryu Yaya parked his motorcycle in front of a convenience store on the side of the road, intending to buy a bottle of mineral water before returning to his apartment.

He had just taken off his car keys when he heard a loud argument coming from not far away.

"What exactly do you want?!"

It was the voice of a young girl, filled with barely suppressed anger and resentment.

Kiryu Yaya's hand paused slightly.

He recognized the voice.

Yuki Matsushita.

"Yuki, let Mom explain."

It was a woman's voice, carrying an almost obsequious, ingratiating tone.

Saeko Matsushita.

Kiryu Yaya frowned slightly.

He looked in the direction of the sound and saw two women standing facing each other under a dim streetlamp on the side of the road opposite the convenience store.

A person wearing a light gray loungewear T-shirt and dark blue shorts, with messy hair hanging over their shoulders and slippers on their feet, clearly rushed out of their home.

The other one was wearing a light-colored knitted cardigan, her hair was a little messy, and her eyes were red and swollen.

The streetlights cast long shadows of the two people on the damp sidewalk, like two trees swaying precariously in the wind.

Kiryu Yaya hesitated for a moment, initially intending to pretend he hadn't seen it and walk around it.

But Matsushita Yuki's next words made him stop in his tracks.

"Explain what? Explain why you went to Tokyo again? Explain why you went to see those old men again?!"

Kiryu Yaya's finger paused slightly on the motorcycle key.

He didn't have the habit of eavesdropping on other people's affairs, but apart from the convenience store lights, there was only this one street lamp on the street.

If he turns and leaves at this moment, he will only become more conspicuous.

Moreover, Yuki Matsushita's voice was really too loud.

"Yuki, it's not what you think."

"What do you mean? Are you saying you're going to Tokyo to look for a job? Are you saying you're going to Tokyo for tourism? Or are you saying you're going to see the cherry blossoms?! It's May, the cherry blossoms have long since faded!"

"Yuki!"

Saeko Matsushita's voice rose, but she quickly lowered it again, as if trying to control her emotions: "Mom went to Tokyo for work. Really, nothing else."

"A job? What kind of job can someone who didn't even graduate high school find in Tokyo? Work at a club? Or work as a hostess?!"

Snapped!

A crisp slap.

The street was quiet for a moment.

The convenience store clerk peeked out, then quickly withdrew.

Then, Yuki Matsushita's voice rang out, with an almost hysterical sobbing tone.

"You hit me? What right do you have to hit me?! You did those shameful things yourself, and you won't even let me talk about them?!"

"Yuki—I'm sorry—Mom didn't mean it—"

Matsushita Saeko then realized what she had done, her voice trembling as if she were crying.

"You didn't mean to? You always say that! Last time, and the time before that, you always apologized, always said you wouldn't go again, but what happened? You still left!"

"Yuki, Mom really has no other choice." "No other choice? You can find a job here! Supermarket cashier, convenience store clerk, restaurant server—why do you have to go all the way to Tokyo?!"

"Those jobs—the pay is too low—"

"Not enough money? Do you know that every time you went to Tokyo, Grandma would sit alone in the living room with the TV on, but she wouldn't watch it. She was just waiting for you to call!"

Yuki Matsushita's voice changed from anger to sobbing.

"Do you know that Grandma cries secretly every time you leave? Do you think I don't know? Do you think I'm blind?"

"Yuki—Mom knows she was wrong—"

"What's the use of knowing you're wrong? You'll still go next time! You say you went to Tokyo for work, but what kind of work is that?! Do you think I don't know?!"

"Yuki, listen to me—"

"I won't listen! You always make me listen to you, but you just say the same things over and over again! 'Mom is doing this for you,' 'Mom wants you to have a good life,' 'Mom doesn't want you to suffer.'"

"But have you ever asked me what kind of life I want? What kind of life do I want?!"

Matsushita Yuki's voice suddenly lowered, becoming almost inaudible.

"I just want a normal mother."

The streets were quiet for a long time.

A night breeze blew from the direction of Yodokawa, causing the streetlights to sway slightly.

Kiryu Yaya stood at the entrance of the convenience store, still holding his motorcycle keys, unsure whether to leave or stay.

"Yuki————"

Matsushita Saeko's voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible, as if she had just been crying, or as if she was still holding back tears: "Mom went to Tokyo to earn money. After your father passed away, the family was in so much debt—Grandma is getting old, and you still have to go to school, Mom had no other choice—"

"Is there no other way to do that kind of thing?"

Yuki Matsushita's tears fell in a steady stream: "Do you know what the neighbors are saying about you? Do you know how those old ladies point and whisper behind Grandma's back when she goes out to buy groceries?"

Saeko Matsushita remained silent.

Under the streetlights, her shoulders trembled slightly. After a long while, she finally spoke as if she had used all her strength: "Yuki—Mom is going to Tokyo the day after tomorrow. I've already bought the tickets—"

"I mean what I say! If you dare go to Tokyo, I'll... I'll... 'You'll what?'"

"I'll go into compensated dating!"

The streets were completely quiet.

Even the convenience store's sign light seemed to flicker.

"What did you say?!"

Matsushita Saeko's voice sounded like something was choking her.

"I said, I'll go into compensated dating!"

Matsushita Yuki's voice carried a resolute, almost desperate tone: "Aren't you short of money? Don't you think honest jobs don't pay enough? Then I'll find a man to support me! Anyway, I'm not bad-looking, there are plenty of people willing to pay!"

"Yuki! What nonsense are you spouting?!"

"I'm not talking nonsense! I'm serious! I'm going to find an old man and have him buy me a house, bags, and clothes!"

They might even be better than you!

"You, you one"

Saeko Matsushita's voice trembled so much she could barely utter a complete sentence: "Are you crazy?!"

"I'm not crazy! You went crazy first!"

Yuki Matsushita's voice carried a reckless, defiant madness: "If you become someone's mistress, then I'll become someone's mistress too! If you find someone rich, then I'll find someone even richer! Neither of us, mother and daughter, is inferior to the other!"

"Yuki! You're not allowed to say that!"

"Why can't I speak? If you can do it, why can't I? I'm eighteen years old, an adult, and I don't need your permission!"

After finishing her sentence, Yuki Matsushita suddenly turned around as if she were about to run away.

Then, her gaze met someone's.

Kiryu Yaya stood at the entrance of the convenience store, holding his motorcycle keys, looking somewhat embarrassed.

The three people stared at each other for a full two seconds under the streetlight.

Suddenly, Yuki Matsushita's eyes lit up.

Then, almost without hesitation, she rushed to Kiryu Yaya, grabbed his arm, pressed herself against him, and said to Matsushita Saeko, "Look!"

She turned her head, raised her chin at Saeko Matsushita, and said, "I can find a man on the street to keep me!"

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