[Novel: Venus Syndrome] [428] I want to eat an eclair

The soft evening light fell into the atelier in Kichijoji.
The workshop of the dancewear brand Confeito was filled with sweet colors, with leotards and skirts swaying as they hung from the ceiling. Here, a 'Venus child'—someone born without both arms—worked as a 'Torso-san' (a type of employment for people with disabilities), handling a wide range of tasks from being a fitting model to assisting with product inspections.

Hikari Osato was one of them.
However, lately, she had been feeling quite down. She would start crying for no reason.

'Hikari-chan, what's been going on lately?'
Ikeda, the pattern maker, popped her head up from the cutting table.

'...Ah, maybe it's because I'm on a low-carb diet. I feel like I'm gaining weight. I mean, there aren't any gymnasts or dancers who are overweight, right?'

'That's not true at all!'
Ikeda replied in an exaggeratedly loud voice.
'You have to consume a moderate amount of carbohydrates, or it's dangerous. Some people even collapse. You have to manage yourself. Even with Mie-chan's chubby figure, she just says, "As long as I can dance, it's fine." You're worrying too much.' (Episode405Story )

The moment those words were said, Hikari felt a sharp pang deep in her chest.
(I thought I was being thorough with my self-management... but instead, I'm being scolded to 'manage myself'.)

She found herself thinking about the sweets she had been denying herself all day long.
Before she knew it, the scent of the shopping street before closing time occupied her mind more than Ikeda's voice.

(...I kind of want to buy an eclair on my way home.)

On her way home with her prosthetic arms attached, the evening breeze blew through the neighborhood alley between the bakery and the pastry shop.

Under the lights, eclairs drizzled with thin lines of chocolate were lined up beautifully in the display case.

Hikari smiled involuntarily.
It was okay to forget about the low-carb diet just for today.
Today, she would be kind to herself and go home.

(One eclair, please.)

Even before she said it out loud, she felt a little saved just by the sweet scent.

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