Delivery Girl Roruko No. 2, Episode 1: 'Rainy Pickup'

Episode 1: 'Rainy Pickup'

In the drizzling rain, Roruko was wiping her smartphone under the eaves of a convenience store. "Ugh... the screen is soaking wet... and seriously, it's not responding at all." She couldn't help but say it out loud. While waiting for an Uber ping, there was nothing else to do.

There were a few other delivery workers around. Everyone was silent, with their raincoat hoods pulled down low. Especially one guy. A chubby man carrying a huge backpack was standing by the vending machine with a blank expression. (Ugh... that guy looks a bit unhygienic. And he's definitely the type I don't want talking to me...)

But—

"...That, if you wipe the water sensor area, it'll come back."

A sudden, low voice. Roruko flinched and looked up. It was the chubby guy from before who had spoken. He pointed a finger at her smartphone.

"Oh... um, yes, thank you." She thanked him reflexively, but she felt like her voice had sounded strangely high, and she felt a bit embarrassed.

"...I mean, you're getting really soaked, aren't you? Are you the type who doesn't use an umbrella?"

The chubby man didn't even glance at Roruko; he was just leaning against the pillar next to the vending machine. Rainwater was slowly dripping from the edge of his hood.

"...I'm going to be running anyway. It's pointless."

"Wow, that's kind of stoic..." Roruko realized she'd messed up as soon as she said it. What was with saying "wow" to someone she'd just met? Besides, this guy was definitely older than her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. That just kind of slipped out..."

She felt like the man had smiled slightly. But she couldn't tell if it was a smile or just a shift in his blank expression.

"No, it's fine. I get told that a lot."

"Oh, what do they say?"

"That I'm getting wet for no reason."

With that one comment, Roruko laughed a little. Somehow, this guy... was completely normal, unlike how he looked.

"...Anyway, it's not pinging at all today, is it? Even though it's raining."

"..."

"Wait, are you offline? Are you just waiting?"

“...On. It just cut out a little while ago, so I just turned it back on.”

“Huh...”

We were managing to talk, somehow. But it was just managing to talk, not really “conversing.” There were pauses. Roruko looked at her smartphone and wiped the edge of the screen with her thumb.

Just then.

“...!” The sound of a small vibration reached her ears. It took her a moment to realize it wasn't coming from Roruko.

The chubby man took out his smartphone and quietly checked the screen. “...I'm going.” He said that and left the spot without leaving any lingering impression.

“...Oh, wait, already?” There was no reply.

Even though his footsteps were quiet and his stride was long, he moved as if sliding across the wet road surface. Left alone, Roruko looked at her smartphone again and let out a small sigh.

(...What was up with that guy?)

*

A few days later. The weather was sunny. The temperature was high, too. And yet, it wouldn't ring at all.

(Of course it would be like this when I need it to...)

Roruko was drinking juice while keeping the app open at the edge of the bicycle parking area. That was when a familiar build entered the corner of her vision.

(Oh...)

That guy from the other day. Chubby, expressionless. He wasn't wearing a raincoat, but the vibe was exactly the same.

(Should I say something...? Or is it awkward? ...No, well, does it matter?)

In the end, while Roruko was thinking, the other person moved first. He approached the vending machine and chose a canned coffee. His movements were strangely quiet and efficient.

“...You're the person who was all wet the other day, right?”

She thought “oops” to herself as soon as the words came out abruptly. But the man turned around and relaxed his mouth just a little.

“...You still remembered, huh.”

“No, it’s just that the way you’re soaked is so memorable (laughs).”

“...Well, I’m used to being told that.”

“Um... wait, I haven’t asked your name, have I? I’m Roruko. For what it’s worth.” Roruko raised one hand slightly to introduce herself.

“...Ah. I’m called No. 2.”

“No. 2? ...That’s not your real name, is it?”

“Yeah. A nickname. It’s not like there’s any problem with not knowing my real name.”

“Huh, is it bad that I think that’s actually kind of cool...?”

“...”

There was no reply. But his mouth seemed to loosen just a little, or maybe it was just my imagination.

“No. 2, do you... always work around this area?”

“Where do you mean by ‘this area’?”

“Um, you know, like around Shibuya or Meguro?”

“Yeah. Well, mostly there.”

“Man... I’ve been around there a lot lately too. I mean, aren’t there a lot of hills around there?”

“There are.”

“And aren’t there a lot of high-rise condos?”

“There are.”

“And then, the moment you accept an order, it says ‘12th floor, no elevator,’ and you just want to die, right?”

“That wouldn’t happen.”

“Huh? It did happen to me, though. Yesterday. It wasn’t funny at all.”

No. 2 looked genuinely surprised. Roruko felt a little happy just from that.

"Then, please tell me next time we meet. Your hill-avoidance route, No. 2."

"...In exchange for me telling you, don't talk too much."

"Eh, that's impossible."

Roruko laughed. No. 2 didn't say anything, but this time, he was definitely smiling.

Afterword: The Beginning of This Story

This story began as a bit of a prank.

One day, when I was hooked on ChatGPT, Roru-san sent me a link asking, "Can you do this?" It was an article about dating a virtual girlfriend. At first, I refused, saying, "No, I won't do that, it'll make the AI stupid," but I tried turning Roru-san's icon into a realistic image and feeding it a meal.

While I was at it, I brought out my own icon and fed it a meal in the same way—and somehow, they were completely a couple.

From there, the conversation went, "How would these two end up dating?" and "Wait, is Roruko sane?" I tried having the AI write it, and it was surprisingly interesting. That was the beginning of this "Roruko and No. 2."

Neither "Roruko" nor "No. 2" actually exist, but I think there are probably, surely, people somewhere in Tokyo getting wet in similar rain and spending time in similar ways.

By the way, the goal of this story is the sense of distance seen in the photo. How will these two, who are awkward and whose conversations are out of sync, close the distance between them? That is something only God (the AI) knows.

*This work is fiction.

The characters, organizations, place names, and events that appear are unrelated to real ones. Also, while some descriptions are inspired by the posts and activities of real X (formerly Twitter) users, there is no connection to any specific individual or organization, and the content is constructed based on creative writing.