The Maid and the Clerk

They were the kind of person who would call me at any hour of the day whenever they were drunk.

I, who was exhausted by the urban labor society, admired their free-spirited way of life, and I also liked their adorable appearance that belied their age.

At 28, working at a maid cafe, I felt like I was being left behind by friends who were getting married or even having children. I had started working part-time at a maid cafe when I was young, and although I felt it was rewarding, I had just kept on doing it until I was 28. The people around me were all young girls, and it was a surprise to find some as young as 18. When a girl 10 years my junior asked me, 'By the way, how old are you, senpai?', I found young people scary. I could only brush it off by saying, 'I'm already an old lady.' Even though when a master asks me while I'm working, 'How old are you?', I can answer, 'I'm a fresh 18!' While I'm working at the maid cafe, I can pretend to be someone else and don't have to face reality, so it takes my mind off things a little. Come to think of it, in an Instagram story I saw during my break earlier, a friend was announcing her marriage again. Since she's not a celebrity, is there really any need to announce it?

Around 10:00 PM, the magic wears off and I return to being 28.

The pay isn't bad, but it's definitely not going to jump up significantly in the future, and I sometimes despair because I can't see my future. Since I wasn't on good terms with my parents, I suppose it's a good thing that I'm not being pressured about marriage or seeing grandchildren. The days of the magic wearing off, eating food bought at a convenience store, and just going to sleep have continued to this day. This was supposed to be my daily life.

It was truly by chance. I never usually do such things. But on this day, I really wanted to drink alcohol. I had been trying not to drink much alcohol because it's bad for my skin, but on this day, I just had to.

It was a bar I had always been curious about, located right near my transfer station. Indirect lighting was dotted around, it was stylish, and I could always hear happy voices coming from it. Since my lifestyle had become a bit different from my friends', we didn't hang out much anymore, so I felt lonely and envied that place. I decided that I would definitely go in on this day, and just before 11:30 PM, I gathered my courage and pulled the wooden sliding door.

Inside the shop, a few people who seemed to be regulars were chatting while drinking. They looked like they were having fun. Even though it was only Wednesday today.

The clerk guided me to a comfortable spot in the not-so-spacious shop, saying, 'Right here.' 'This is your first time, right?' the clerk asked me. He was a boy with a cute face and shoulder-length permed hair. He was probably about 23 years old.

It wasn't quite a bar, but the clerk was also working while receiving drinks from regulars and talking to them. Since I also make drinks while talking to masters and mistresses, it felt similar, so I felt a sense of familiarity. I ordered a highball. I actually wanted to drink beer, but everyone often says that highballs don't make you fat. I took a sip of what the clerk served me. It was the taste of alcohol for the first time in a while. I had originally liked drinking alcohol.

The clerk asked, 'Nice to meet you, do you work around here?', and even though I don't usually tell people my profession, I ended up saying it. 'I work in Akihabara.' When he asked, 'What kind of work?', I thought I might never come back anyway, so I honestly said, 'I'm a maid, if I may say so embarrassingly.' When I said embarrassing, I didn't mean the maid cafe itself, but rather that I felt embarrassed because I thought people would think I was a person of my age who was still prone to daydreaming. 'Whoa!! That's amazing!! Everyone!! This girl is a maid!!!'

No way!!! Wait, wait, please don't say it out loud to other people, I thought, 'What is this clerk, does he have no tact?', but the reactions of the other regulars were different from what I had expected.

Amazing! It's my first time seeing a real maid! What kind of things do you do??

There was no one here who was put off by it. On this day, a master who always says nasty things to me had been picking at me, saying, 'How long do you intend to continue this kind of work? Are you thinking about your future?', and I had come here to relieve that stress, but I hadn't expected to be welcomed this much. When asked, 'What's your name?', I couldn't find the courage to answer with my real name, so I gave the stage name I use at the maid cafe.

The people who gathered here were of various ages and professions. The lives of many different people intersected here. It was so much fun that I went back a few days later.

The clerk (who everyone says is the manager) wasn't the type to talk much about himself, but contrary to his very cute face, I was curious about his slightly mysterious atmosphere. When I went to the shop that day, there was no one there but the clerk. When I asked the clerk, 'Are you drinking something?', he said, 'Thanks! I was thirsty!' and poured himself a beer. I had a highball as usual. We toasted, just the two of us.

I asked, 'How old are you, clerk? You're younger than me, right? It's amazing that you're the manager despite that.'

When I said that,

I'm 30! I said. I was surprised. Because they looked so young that it wouldn't be strange if they were really 23, or even 21. It wasn't that they were trying to look young; they genuinely looked young.
Their clothes weren't childish. If anything, I thought they were stylish. They had a cute face and were older than me. It's mysterious.
I found myself becoming increasingly intrigued by this mysterious and cute clerk.
That day, the two of us really drank and talked about our views on life and love.

I didn't have anything profound to say, but the conversation flowed and flowed.
It might have been the first time in a while that I had a normal conversation with someone.
I'm a maid who came from a land above the clouds to make everyone happy!
This is magic water!
Together now—! Moe moe kyun!
Because I say things like that, it had become rare for me to have deep conversations with people of a similar age.

It seemed like the clerk worked at the karaoke bar right across the street as soon as this shop closed. That place always looked lively and fun too, but I didn't go there because I could only really sing the 'Eternal Maidism' song.
The only place I could meet the clerk was this small bar with beautiful indirect lighting.

I thought it would be better not to ask for their contact information, but one day the clerk asked me to give them my LINE, so we exchanged LINEs.
My LINE name was a heart emoji, so they never found out my real name.
The clerk's name sounded like something out of a shojo manga, so I thought it was probably a stage name for living in this small nightlife district. It was a beautiful name.

After I left the shop, I got a LINE message saying, 'Thank you for coming today. Thanks for the treat.' How conscientious. At the same time that I thought I wanted to let them drink as much as they wanted next time I went, I worried about whether the clerk got a commission. It's the sad nature of working at a maid cafe. At a maid cafe, it was normal to earn an hourly wage plus commission.

I don't know if our relationship got closer after exchanging LINEs, but the clerk started calling me in the middle of the night.
I was happy because I already thought of the clerk as someone of the opposite sex, but for some reason, I didn't answer.
Usually, right after the call, I'd get a LINE saying, 'I'm drunk.'

I thought they might be the type to call when they're drunk, but since they work in the nightlife district, I figured they probably do this to people other than me. I felt a mix of happiness and the thought, 'You're probably doing this to others anyway!' I hated myself for thinking like this when we weren't even dating, not even friends, just a clerk and a customer.

One day, when I went to the shop, the clerk wasn't there.
It seemed it was their day off. I had never asked when their day off was, but of course, they have days off, so I just drank my highball as usual.
A pair of girls came into the shop and asked another clerk, 'Is the clerk not here?' As soon as they were told, 'They're off today,' they said, 'Then please tell them we came by,' and left the shop.
If they're that cute, young people will come to the shop just to see them, just like a host. As I brought the highball to my mouth, I felt a sense of superiority that those girls didn't know the clerk's contact info, but I did. Hey, hey, this highball tastes good.
Just as I was about to take a sip of my third highball, my LINE chimed. It was the clerk.
Even though I usually don't answer calls, I felt like I had to take this one, so I answered, and they said,
'What are you doing today? It's my day off, and I'm drinking now—would you like to come?'
It was my first invitation.
When I said, 'Um, I'm drinking at the shop right now,' they said,
'Then, bottoms up! Come quickly!!'
I downed the highball I had only taken one sip of and stood up from my seat. I thought, I have to go.
The designated place was less than a 10-minute walk from the shop.
While I was jogging slightly, I remembered the two girls who had left earlier looking for the clerk. I'm liked more than them! I'm a person who gets invited out for drinks! A sense of exhilaration. My heart was pounding.

The clerk was standing on a dark street waiting for me.
When they saw me, they spread their arms and said,
'Come here!!'
Women are creatures who love being told to 'come here,' but only a shojo manga character would say that without shame.
I jumped right into the clerk's arms. Then they hugged me tight and said, 'You're a good girl!!' Is this heaven?

When they said, 'The shop is here,' and we entered a stylish bar, the clerk's friends were there, so I was disappointed.
It's not just the two of us.
But that's right, there are tons of people they say 'come here!' to, and maybe it just happened to be my turn today. Calm down, calm down, don't take it seriously, I told myself.
But it was fun that they introduced me to their friends and that I got to go to a new shop. When I said I was going home after we went to two places, they said, 'Let's drink until morning.' However, this wasn't my nearest station. Since I work at a maid cafe from the afternoon, I declined, saying I had to sleep or it would affect my work. I think that was a wise decision.

'Too bad, let's drink again,' they said as they put their arm around my shoulder.

I desperately tried to act calm, but it was impossible not to have my heart race when someone I was interested in did that to me.

Immediately after we parted, I got a LINE message: 'Thanks for today, let's drink again.'
Maybe they are a thoughtful person. While suppressing myself not to misunderstand, the clerk, who was supposed to be someone I was interested in, had completely become someone I loved.

It was about half a year since I met the clerk.

There was no particular progress, but I just loved the clerk and frequented the shop. I didn't think we could date, and I was fine just seeing the clerk's face, so when I could meet them at the shop, I bought them a drink. They drink beer every time, so I think they really like it.
But I never asked if there was a commission for this or if the clerk's income increased even a little.
Since it's a job where you drink alcohol all night, I thought it would be fine to have orange juice when I'm there, and I even dared to say that, but they said, 'But I like beer!' and kept drinking beer.

The stage name I was called by here felt different from the one I was called by at the maid cafe. I felt like I could show a little bit of my true self.
But because I had answered with my stage name at the beginning, I couldn't bring myself to say my real name anymore. Besides, I thought the clerk probably didn't care about my name; after all, I'm just a customer. Working at a maid cafe every day, I think I understand the customer-clerk relationship better than anyone. But I never thought I would be on the customer side.

One time when it was raining heavily, it was just the two of us again.
After we talked for a while, the clerk gently touched my hand and said this to me with a serious look on their face.

'The backyard, I can lock it so no one will come, want to come?'

Heat ignited in the finger that was touched. I felt like the blood in my whole body was boiling.
For adult men and women to be alone in a closed room means exactly that.
It was sudden and I didn't know how to answer, but just as I was about to say, 'I'll go,' the sliding door of the shop opened.

'Hey! The rain is getting stronger!'

At that moment, I came to my senses.
'It's good that a customer came, I'm going home.' I said that and hurriedly grabbed my umbrella.

Are you leaving already? It's raining, so be careful on your way home,
I thought I heard them say, but my whole body felt hot and my heart was pounding. I felt so embarrassed and wanted to leave quickly, so I ran to the station.

I thought about it after I got home, swaying vaguely on the train. Maybe the clerk likes me too.
No, no, that's probably just me interpreting things in a way that suits me.
Someone that cute, it wouldn't be strange if they had one or two partners.
It was just a coincidence that they happened to be interested in me today.

I didn't know what kind of face to make when I went back, so I couldn't go to that shop for a while.

I spent my days working as hard as I could.
At least when I was working, I could forget about what happened that day.
I had never felt like this before. I had fallen in love.
To think I would fall in love at 28.

But, in the days I spent working so hard, I never heard from the clerk.

After a while, I wanted to see the clerk again, so I stood in front of the shop door.
When I pulled the sliding door and entered, the clerk was there. Thank goodness, it was their shift today.
I talked happily with everyone as usual. I felt like the previous event was just an illusion.
When it was time to go home and I was about to leave the shop, the clerk asked, "Can I walk you to the station?" I thought, "Aren't you a clerk? Shouldn't you be staying at the shop?" but I walked through the night streets to the station with the clerk, just the two of us.

We talked about normal things, like "Thanks for coming," but then, out of the blue,

Do you want to kiss?

they asked. We were right in the middle of the road.
People were walking by normally, and there was a beef bowl chain store diagonally in front of us, so people might see us from there. Even so, I...

Yes!

I said.
Their cute face came closer, and our lips touched.
The alcohol I had been drinking earlier rushed through my body all at once.
My head spun. It wasn't like it was my first kiss or anything.

What a free and lovely person they are.
They wouldn't kiss me if they didn't like me.
This is something I should be happy about.

I was so drunk all of a sudden that I stumbled when I got on the train. Even though I hadn't really drunk that much. When I looked at my smartphone as I arrived home, there was a LINE message from the clerk.

You were cute

I didn't care if I was being played with or whatever, I was head over heels for this person.

What is your name, your real name?
When I asked, the clerk answered as if surprised.
The name on LINE is my real name.
I thought, "No way! Is there really a name like that, like a stage name!" but they showed me their driver's license. On it, the same shojo manga-like name as on LINE was written proudly.

You're the one using a fake name, aren't you?
they said, and I was taken aback.
But I was already prepared to take off my mask.

My real name isーーーーーーーー

The person I love is free-spirited, cute, and loves beer.
And that person has come to love me.
I work at a maid cafe and am 28 years old. I have found happiness.

Come to think of it, the clerk told me that they don't get a commission even if they receive a drink.
We ended up talking about drinking at each other's homes next time.