Delivery Rider Roruko No. 2, Episode 6: 'A Crossing Worth Only a Few Hundred Yen'

Episode 6: 'A Crossing Worth Only a Few Hundred Yen'

The lunch rush was coming to an end. The delivery destination displayed on the smartphone was at a distance that might just be reachable if she headed there immediately after picking up the order.

'...I might be able to do one more.'

Roruko pushed hard on her bicycle pedals and headed out onto the main road.

The apartment building at her destination was visible right in front of her. It was literally 'just across the road.' However, that road was a major thoroughfare with three lanes on each side. And on the sidewalk where Roruko was standing, there was... no crosswalk.

'...You've got to be kidding me.'

Looking at the map, the nearest traffic light was over 700 meters away. There were no lines leading to the sidewalk on the opposite side, and cars were flowing by mercilessly.

She looked at the clock on her smartphone. Ten minutes left. If she took a detour to the crosswalk now, she might not make it in time.

'If I go now...'

Roruko bit her lip and watched the flow of traffic. For a split second, the wave of cars broke.

'...It's now or never.'

In that instant, she pedaled hard while still straddling her bicycle. She dashed straight across the road.

She cleared the first lane and reached the center lane. Just a little more. Less than 10 meters to go.

──HOOOONNNNNKKKKK!!!

A piercing car horn blared from right in front of her. Roruko slammed on the brakes and stopped. The car screeched to a halt just inches away from her.

'...!'

Her body stiffened reflexively, and she lost her balance and fell over. Her knee scraped against the asphalt, burning hot. Her heart was pounding loudly.

She heard footsteps. In the corner of her vision, she saw a familiar black motorcycle. The person who had gotten off that bike was running toward her.

'...Roruko!'

The moment I heard the voice, I knew who it was. It was No. 2.

He parked his bike on the shoulder and crouched down in front of Roruko. Without a word, he took Roruko's arm and helped her up. He led her to the edge of the sidewalk.

“...Th-thank you...”

As Roruko said in a raspy voice,

“You idiot!!”

No. 2's shout tore through the air. Roruko's shoulders jumped.

“Do you want to die?! Why did you cross there?!”

Roruko kept her face down and said, as if squeezing the words out,

“...I'm sorry...”

“An apology doesn't fix this! It's not just about you. If you get hit, the other person's life is ruined too!”

His voice was a mix of anger, impatience, and fear. Roruko couldn't say anything.

“Risking your life for a few hundred yen is truly stupid.”

No. 2 glared at her for a while, let out a breath, and slowly stood up.

“...If you do the same thing again, I'll blow you away myself.”

Saying that, No. 2 returned to his bike.

The sound of the engine starting up echoed, and eventually, it faded into the distance.

Roruko still couldn't move from that spot. With her gaze cast downward, she muttered, her lips trembling.

“...A few hundred yen, huh...”

Afterword

The other day, I received a DM.

──"Could you write a story that also serves as a safety warning?"

If you are a delivery worker in Tokyo, many of you probably already know about this.
There was an accident in Akihabara where a bicycle delivery rider attempting to cross a three-lane road without a crosswalk collided with a motorcycle and passed away after being transported to the hospital.

The person who sent me the DM said, in light of this accident, "I want you to write a story from a delivery rider's perspective that serves as a safety warning."

Honestly, I wasn't interested at first.
When you deal with themes like this, it inevitably ends up sounding preachy.
"Rorokoto No. 2" is meant to be more laid-back, depicting a heartwarming daily life.
I wanted to stay as far away from heavy themes as possible—that's why I felt that way.

Besides, I don't want to go around lecturing others about their traffic manners.
There are things in this world you can change, and things you cannot.
When it comes to people's traffic manners, the latter is more common.
That's why I have always operated with the stance of,"Being careful myself rather than trying to change others."

I have four years of delivery experience, and I still maintain a gold driver's license.
Even so, there are moments when I get startled or encounter dangerous situations.
That is precisely why the line No. 2 said in the main story,
"Risking your life for just a few hundred yen is truly stupid,"
──is something I feel myself on a daily basis.

Even if you rush, the difference is only a few hundred yen.
Especially on rainy days, you might feel tempted to rush to earn more, but──
if you cause an accident because of that, the money you earned will vanish in an instant.
Above all, if you lose your life, the money you earned that day and all your efforts up to that point become completely meaningless.

That's why I suppress the urge to rush and try to accept that,
"Even if the hourly wage is a bit low, it's okay as long as I finish safely."

However, I do not want toforce that on others.

If a world with zero traffic accidents could be realized, nothing would be better than that.
But, to repeat myself, there are things in this world you can change and things you cannot.

The reasons why people want to earn money also vary from person to person.
For me, the reason I started Uber Eats was because "I was struggling to find money to eat the next day."

──If I don't make over 2,000 yen an hour today, my water will be shut off.
──I can't pay for my child's school lunch.
──If I don't earn 1 million yen this month, I can't pay for my father's surgery.
There might be people in such desperate situations.

Of course, I cannot say that "it's okay to break traffic rules because you are desperate."
Even so, I want to remember thateveryone is riding while carrying something on their shoulders.

And I myself am not riding for someone else, butfor my own sake.
To earn my daily living expenses, to pay off my debts, to stay healthy.
It's an ordinary life, full of debt—but still, I want to live a long life.
There are still many things I want to do.

That is why Icannot risk my life for just a few hundred yen.

※This work is fiction.

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