Chapter 28: Resolved! (Humbly Begging for Continued Reading!)

"Thank you, Haruhi."
Even at a time like this, the gentle Mrs. Uehara still expressed her gratitude to the very person responsible for her predicament.
It was truly touching.
After helping Yoshimi Uehara to the sofa, Haruhi did not leave. Instead, he walked to the door, locked it, and decided to reward the beautiful, kind lady a little more.
"Hm?" Hearing the click of the lock, Yoshimi Uehara was startled.
She had just turned her head when her rosy lips were already claimed by his kiss before she could utter another word.
She struggled for a moment, then fell still.
"Haru—Haruhi, we shouldn't be doing this."
Catching her breath in the brief pause, Yoshimi Uehara spoke quickly.
A strange sensation tingled at her neck.
Haruhi Narano said nothing, simply carrying out what he intended.
Yoshimi Uehara wanted to protest, to say no, but her hands, which had meant to push him away, now lay weakly on his broad shoulders, her strength utterly gone.
Considering that Mirone Kiyoshi, the little delinquent, was still waiting outside, Haruhi resolved to finish quickly.
A dozen minutes later,
Haruhi helped Yoshimi Uehara dress, wiped the sweat from his brow, and stepped out of the break room.
He saw Mirone Kiyoshi sitting at the register, her face drawn with displeasure, and at last breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hey, let’s go. We're done for the day."
Having already secured permission to leave early, Haruhi was eager to head home and shower; he was drenched in sweat.
This convinced him: he absolutely had to lose weight—sweating this much was intolerable.
Mirone Kiyoshi said nothing, acting as though she hadn’t seen him, her head bent over her phone. Japanese girls could be stubborn.
Haruhi didn’t try to coax her. He simply went to the staff room to change, then returned to the register.
"I’m really leaving, you know. I’ll just go eat by myself," he called as he walked toward the door.
"Eat?"

At the mention of food, Mirone Kiyoshi, who had been sulking, swallowed and quickly got up to follow Haruhi.
"What are we having tonight?"
She hadn’t eaten since school let out, and sitting next to the oden earlier, the aroma had awakened her hunger.
"What’s wrong? Not sulking anymore?" Haruhi teased.
"You stupid fatty!" Mirone Kiyoshi’s cheeks flushed as she punched his shoulder—a blow that was more playful than painful.
"Don’t think a meal is enough for this lady to forgive you."
With a haughty turn of her head, she snorted, "I’m just giving you a chance to redeem yourself! Don’t get cocky!"
"Alright, alright." Haruhi said, carefully locking the store from the outside.
Yoshimi Uehara's condition wasn’t good tonight; she couldn’t move around. The store would have to close early.
Once Mrs. Uehara recovered, she would exit through the back; after all, her home was right next door, where she lived with her daughter and mother-in-law.
"Why close up so early? Does the convenience store always shut down like this?" Mirone Kiyoshi asked curiously.
"Mrs. Uehara isn’t feeling well, so we had to close early," Haruhi replied, putting the keys back into his bag.
"Oh, I see." Mirone Kiyoshi didn’t press the matter.
"So what are we eating tonight?"
"We’re eating out. I’m not going home," Haruhi sighed, exhausted from two rounds of strenuous activity.
"How about yakitori?"
"Sounds great!" Mirone Kiyoshi brightened, but then caught herself, coughing and regaining her cool demeanor.
She waved a delicate hand, "Well, I’ll let you buy this lady dinner—just this once!"
Haruhi was amused by her act and, grinning, pulled the little delinquent into his arms, leaning down to whisper in her ear,
"Kiyoshi, don’t you think I have the makings of a Tokyo heartthrob?"
He even licked her petite earlobe, playful and mischievous.
"Ah! You jerk!"
Mirone Kiyoshi covered her licked ear, stumbling several steps back, her face flushed scarlet.
"Stop being so full of yourself, you stupid fatty!"

Despite her words, she couldn’t help sneaking a glance at Haruhi.
In the dim light, there was something about him, some indefinable quality, a stirring that made her heart skip—a hint of genuine potential, perhaps.
[Kiyoshi Mirone's current status: Happy (mild) because of yakitori, and strongly embarrassed from having her ear licked...]
Seeing this, Haruhi grinned broadly.
"Hey, delinquent girl, stop sneaking peeks at me. Given our relationship, you can just look openly—I won’t mind."
"Idiot!"
Yakitori might sound fancy, but in Japan, it’s just skewered grilled meat.
They arrived at a small yakitori joint, chosen by Mirone Kiyoshi, who swore by its authenticity.
The place was compact but spotless, with only a handful of customers since it wasn’t the dinner rush.
Mirone Kiyoshi seemed familiar with the place. As soon as they sat, she started ordering without hesitation, picking out plenty of dishes—a clear sign she intended to eat Haruhi into bankruptcy.
Haruhi didn’t mind. At this stage, making money was easy. If he ever ran out, he could always go see Yuriko Ogata, steal a kiss or hold her hand—ten million yen would last him a while.
If not, he could just work harder at Uehara’s convenience store, though it took a toll on his body.
Soon, the food arrived.
The appetizer was a plate of sushi. Haruhi didn’t know why they served sushi first, but the seaweed-wrapped chicken breast, shiso leaves, sushi sauce, and a dab of plum sauce on top made for a pleasantly tangy bite.
After the appetizer, the grilled meats came—small skewers with a few chunks of meat each. The taste was good, but the portions left something to be desired; it just wasn’t the same as the barbecue he remembered from his previous life.
Still, Mirone Kiyoshi, the Japanese girl, ate with relish, her expression full of contentment.
After dinner, the two walked to the station.
It was a good way to digest, and the night in Shinjuku was lively as ever, with scantily clad women standing on corners for mysterious reasons, and a couple of runaway girls lying on park benches.