Minutes by Yukino Sanada, Personnel Department <2-5 Choosing a Room is Choosing a Life>

Episode 2: I Don't Understand Sales

Episode 5: Choosing a Room is Choosing a Life

The sound from the FM radio dissolved into the car without forming any meaning.

At Ms. Toba's unexpected word, "divorce," it felt as if the air had been sucked out of Yukino's thoughts.

There is no one around Yukino who has experienced a divorce.
And, she cannot see the expression of Ms. Toba sitting in front of her at all.

What should I say to her...

Should I calmly accept the fact by saying, "I see"...?
But she went out of her way to confide something difficult to say.
Then, should I empathize by saying, "That must have been hard"...?
Would she think, what could you possibly understand?

On social media, it was written, "If I get divorced, I want to be told congratulations," and many comments of agreement were posted.

However, "congratulations" is definitely not right for the back of Ms. Toba's figure right now.

I felt like no one had the correct answer.

"U-um, th... tha..."
Trying to force her voice out, she ran out of breath.

At that moment, Area Manager Natsume in the driver's seat said quietly,
"I am also someone who has experienced it. It was a long road, wasn't it? Thank you for your hard work."
Yukino hurriedly swallowed the sound she was about to make, "Eh..."

She heard Ms. Toba let out a light sigh.
"...Yes, it is. I'm just so tired."

Then, Ms. Toba began to talk little by little about the events leading up to the divorce, facing the Area Manager sitting next to her. Feeling as if she were eavesdropping, Yukino put her Moleskine notebook into her bag.

"Everyone is like that, aren't they..." she prefaced, then said, "I got married thinking, 'This is the only person for me.'"

From the time they were newlyweds, the couple was always talking about how many children they wanted, whether they would be girls or boys, and what their names would be, but there were no signs of pregnancy at all. Even when they went to a clinic specializing in fertility treatment, they were told there was no cause.

At first, they were positive. Every time her period came, they thought of the next step. Acupuncture, mugwort steaming, herbal medicine, fertility shrines... she said they did everything considered good for fertility, regardless of whether it was science or praying to the gods.

"I thought we were both working hard at it the whole time. But, I was the only one running."

Even though I told him when I was ovulating, my husband would come home late as if on purpose, and I would get impatient, frustrated, and lash out at him with harsh words. The arguments became constant, and our marriage was no longer what it used to be. And then, one day, there was a shadow of another woman around my husband...

Having said that much, Ms. Toba turned around for the first time to look at the backseat where Yukino was sitting. Her expression was somewhat softer than before.
"I'm sorry, that wasn't a story for a young person to hear. But... I just felt like talking about it..."
"Oh...!! As for me, please, don't mind me... I'm fine... so... please... talk until you feel at ease!"

I desperately waved my hands, but I felt pathetic for not being able to say anything clever. After all, even romance is far from Yukino's life, so the hardships of marriage, and what lies beyond that, are a world hidden in the fog no matter how hard I try to look.

The area manager gripped the steering wheel lightly and increased the car's speed slightly.

"From now on, only good things will happen. Let's find a nice room. Because choosing a room is choosing a life."

＊

Passing through the fully grown street trees, a residential area came into view after turning into a small path. Detached houses, apartments, and condominiums were mixed together.

Before long, a building with a whiteness that reflected the sunlight appeared before our eyes.
"The first one. It's Prime Garden Shin-Nanka."

Yukino looked over the documents for Prime Garden Shin-Nanka again.

Trees surround the pure white exterior that stands out in the residential area. I could see laundry swaying in the wind from the balcony from time to time.

Ms. Toba said, "It's stylish, isn't it?" with a lively voice.

The three women got into a small elevator. When we opened the door to room 302, the smell peculiar to a cleaned property hit our noses.

We put on the provided slippers and went inside. Even though the lights were not on, it was bright due to the whiteness of the flooring and the natural lighting.

(If it were me, I think I would decide on this property...)

However, Ms. Toba's face was slightly clouded.
"I'm sorry... it might feel a little small..."

Ms. Toba continued with a serious look.
"Since there were two of us where I lived before, I have nothing to compare it to, but it feels a bit cramped. Also, I have a lot of things from when I was married... I want more storage."
The area manager nodded.
"It's okay. We still have two more, so let's go to another property."

However, the remaining two properties did not please Ms. Toba either. When she saw the exterior, she seemed to have some expectations, but when she entered the rooms, the light in her eyes faded away.

Green Terrace Shin-Nanka, which is close to Shin-Nanka Station, had a pale gray tiled exterior. It's amazing that the exterior looks this new even though it's 13 years old... Yukino thought as she looked over the documents in her hand again.

However, upon entering the room, the interior did not have the same brilliance as Prime Garden Shin-Nanka. The fact that it had not been cleaned yet seemed to be one factor.

Ms. Toba said apologetically, "I'm sorry... I just can't really picture myself living here."

The third property, Belfino Nanka-Nishi, was a long, narrow apartment building facing a main street.
Although it was said to be an 11-minute walk, it was a straight path from the station, so Yukino thought while looking at the documents that it probably wouldn't feel that far in practice.

When we went inside, there was storage everywhere compared to the previous two places. Just as the Area Manager had predicted... but as I thought that, Ms. Toba looked down again and said, "I feel a bit uneasy here."

It was true that the traffic was heavy, and it might feel noisier compared to the first two places. However, I could sense something more than that from Ms. Toba's expression... something that made her unable to make a decision.

(Perhaps she isn't mentally prepared to start a new life yet...)

Facing Ms. Toba, who was looking down, the Area Manager looked up at the ceiling of the room for a moment.
Then, she turned back to Ms. Toba.

"Ms. Toba, you are free from now on. What would you like to do from here on out?"

Ms. Toba muttered, still looking down.
"I don't... want to do anything."
The Area Manager nodded gently.
"I've always done things for my husband, and to conceive a baby. I'm tired of those goals. For a while, I want to take a break from having any goals."
"...I understand."

The Area Manager took a ring memo pad out of her bag and began writing something quickly with a wine-red ballpoint pen.

She handed it to Yukino.
"Sanada-san, I'm sorry to ask, but could you do me a favor?"
"Yes! Of course!"
"Could you call this phone number and ask if the room is available?"

Yukino was stunned when she looked at the ring memo.

"Is this... a property name? Does 'Otherworld Real Estate' really... exist?"

The Area Manager said nonchalantly.
"It does. It's a bit of an unusual property, but... Ms. Toba, would it be okay if it's a little far from the station?"
"Yes, the distance from the station... I have a car, so honestly, I don't really mind that."

Yukino dialed the number she was given on her company phone and waited for the other party to answer.
A somewhat high-pitched male voice answered.
"Welcome, we carry floor plans from other worlds."
"Huh...?"
When I looked up in confusion, the Area Manager prompted me in a low voice, "It's fine, go ahead."

"Oh... I'm Sanada from the Shiroyama Corporation Nanka Branch. Um... is the 'Time Shrine' available...?"

Then, the person on the other end of the line suddenly became enthusiastic.
"The Time Shrine! My, you have a discerning eye! Are you climbing Mount Everest?! It's available! The agency commission is 150%, so please, by all means, bring them over!"
"Oh... thank you! Then, I will bring them over."

Yukino was overwhelmed by the sudden shift in tone and hung up the phone.

"So, was it available?"
"Ah... yes, it was available, but... are you sure this is a reliable real estate agent...?"
"It's fine. They might seem like that, but both the property and the real estate agent are perfectly legitimate."

The sun was setting outside, but the temperature hadn't dropped yet. Summer was beating down on the windows. None of the three spoke inside the air-conditioned car.

"We'll be there soon."

After driving for about ten minutes, the surroundings shifted from the city to a residential area filled with low-rise detached houses. In front of where they parked the car stood a small detached house, different from the apartment buildings they had seen so far.

"Wow... how cute."
Toba-san exclaimed.
"A detached house... is it?"
"Yes, a small, one-bedroom single-story house."

It was an exterior unlike anything she had seen before. While the wood-grain front suggested a traditional single-story house, the sides were made of exposed concrete, giving it a modern feel. It was impossible to tell the age of the building just by looking at it.

"It's been renovated while preserving the charm of an old folk house. It has character, doesn't it?"

After stepping up into the dirt-floor entryway, you immediately pass through the washroom. The blue mosaic tiles were refreshing, and a sense of coolness came through her slippers. A small, rectangular washbasin stood out in white there.

Passing through this washroom leads to the living room. Since both the walls and floors are wood-grained, the room seems filled with dappled sunlight when the light shines in.

"It's strangely relaxing, isn't it?"
Toba-san took a slow breath.
"What I want to show you is coming up next. Let's climb these small stairs."
"Stairs? Isn't it a single-story house?"
"That's right... it's a loft."

(A loft, huh...)

Yukino remembered that a friend's house had a loft when she was in college. Yukino had admired the loft, which felt like a secret room you climbed into using a ladder, but her friend had said, "It's not as great as it looks."

"It's hot... and I'm always afraid I'll fall off the ladder when I'm groggy..."

The loft she saw when she visited had a makeshift ladder, which felt unstable for daily use.

However, the stairs leading to the loft in this "Shrine of Time" were small but sturdy enough to climb. They remained stable even when three adult women climbed them one after another. Natsume climbed first, followed by Toba-san, and finally Yukino.

As they climbed, a soft, pleasant, and somewhat nostalgic scent drifted toward them.
It was the smell of new tatami mats.

The entire four-mat loft was covered in tatami.
And the whole space felt faintly bright and white.

Looking up, she noticed a small window in the attic.
Through the skylight, she could see today's deep blue sky.
Yukino felt as if her field of vision had opened up.

It was a loft just big enough for three women to sit side by side.
For a while, they gazed at the blue beyond the skylight.

“Um... excuse me.”
Then, Ms. Toba said timidly.
“Yes, what is it?”
“Would it be... alright if I... laid down for a moment...?”
The Area Manager smiled.

“Go ahead. Take your time.”

Ms. Toba lay down on the tatami mats while adjusting her hair. Then, she looked up at the sky through the skylight. Yukino... and surely the Area Manager too, could not look at Ms. Toba's face, and instead stared at the sky through the window. Perhaps the three of them had their gazes fixed on the same point somewhere in the sky.

Yukino heard Ms. Toba mutter something softly at the edge of her hearing, but she could not make out what she had said.

＊

“It’s a very strange house, but I want to live here. Looking at the sky, forgetting about my purpose for a moment... then, I feel like I might be able to make a fresh start.”

Saying that, Ms. Toba decided to apply for this property on the spot. Since it would be late by the time they returned to the office, after securing the property, they promised to fill out the necessary items and have the paperwork done later.

When they parted ways with Ms. Toba at the station, the summer sun was beginning to set, but the heat had not yet faded.

Yukino moved to the passenger seat. In the car alone with the Area Manager, only the sound of the air conditioning on high echoed with a low hum.

“Area Manager, I’m sorry... I couldn’t do anything...”
Even though she had said she would handle this customer, a sense of helplessness pressed upon her chest once again. However, the Area Manager shook her head.

“Actually, I was a bit flustered too. I had heard about a transfer, so I was thinking for a while... that this wasn't what we had discussed.”
Yukino opened her eyes wide. Then, she remembered how the Area Manager had handled the situation.
“Come to think of it... um... is it true that you are... experienced?”
“It’s true. I’m remarried now and have an eight-year-old child. I didn't lie, did I?”

Yukino nodded desperately.
“Yes... of course...!! You didn't lie!”

Seeing that, the Area Manager chuckled.
“Self-disclosure is a primer, you see. To draw out the customer's story.”

Yukino took out the “minutes” she had kept in her bag and scribbled a note with a ballpoint pen.

(But, it’s not just that...)

Seeing Area Manager Natsume’s composure, one can't help but want to confide in her. Even the fact that Yukino is not a morning person, which she had never told anyone before, feels like something she could safely say in front of her. In the same way, perhaps Ms. Toba was able to talk about such a difficult topic.

However, there is no doubt that the Area Manager’s words gave Ms. Toba the courage to speak. And, in the end, she was able to make a choice she was satisfied with. Yukino hoped, with all her heart, that Ms. Toba would be happy no matter what form that took.

Then, the Area Manager continued.
“Rent 95,000 yen. Advertising fee 150%. A total of 144,000 yen in sales. We did it.”

Hearing that, Yukino felt a little disillusioned. In the end, what it comes down to is money... sales. The words of her senior, Hoshihara, that this isn't volunteer work, struck Yukino like stepping stones.

"Hey, Sanada-san, do you... hate sales?"
Asked as if she had seen right through her, Yukino panicked.
"No...!! That's not true...! It's... necessary for the company, right!"

Then, Director Natsume raised the corners of her mouth.

"I, for one, love sales."

Then, she stopped at a red light and looked at Yukino beside her.
"Sales are packed with all of the customers' choices, you see."
"Choices..."

Hearing those words, it clicked.

Ever since she heard Hoshihara's story, there was something Yukino had been thinking about constantly.

Sales coldly become results, comparing one person to another and hurting them.
Ignoring people's hearts and pushing them around.
Sales don't reflect the heart.
Even so, for the sake of the company... management... I have no choice but to chase after them.

(But, that's not it. It was my eyes... that were cold.)

The important choices in life, the owner's wish for someone to live here.
Even though everything is riding on it, I was the one ignoring it.

"I feel like... I don't really need to go out of my way to do the survey."

The light turned green.
The area manager turned back to the front, and only her smiling profile was visible.

"Is that so? ...I don't mind either way. I was planning to leave it up to your choice, Sanada-san."

(Continued in Episode 6, Chapter 2 Final Episode)

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