[note: reworking the earlier chapters so may take a while before I update again. (aka retl) ] //written on 12/11/2022

Beautiful shakers were stationed at every counter. The back bar had a wide variety of whiskeys, brandies and liqueurs; all assembled together.

The bottles, which must be rare and valuable, were placed on large display-type shelves and were nicely organized as if they were for show.

Being a hideaway, Ryoma and Hazuki were the only customers inside the shop. The décor was typical of a place that serves alcohol, and the atmosphere in the air was nothing short of relaxing.

“So, what do you think of Shine, Ryoma-san?”

Ryoma was approached by a young male bartender dressed in the restaurant’s formal attire.

“A-Ah….honestly, I’m not very used to it. I’m sorry if I said something rude.”

“No, no. Don’t worry about manners and etiquette, so long as you enjoy the drink, that’s all that matters. These words today, are from the master who pushed through his work and is enjoying his family reunion.”

Although his smile was sweet and ironic to the person above, his face was exceedingly gentle. He made it sound like that was plenty of a reason to get all this work forced onto him.
[Tl notes: Basically the master had all the work forced upon him.]

It was easy to see that he had established a relationship of trust with the master of this restaurant since he could freely say these things about him.

“This sake, it’s really nice and easy to drink.”

“Thank you very much. In the future, I’m sure you’ll have more opportunities to drink alcohol, so please come back to this store on that occasion.”

“Yes. I understand.”

He skillfully relieved Ryoma’s worries by the art of conversation, as if caring for him for the first time. He seemed to have the ability to make people feel comfortable.

“Excuse me? Could you stop trying to sell whatever you want to my Shiba-kun whenever you get the chance? If people think you’re in on it, they won’t like you either.”

“I’m sorry about that, but this is my job too……”

“Need me to remind you of the time when you were greedy and gathered a lot of customers, and as punishment, someone came in to fracture your arm?”

“W-Wait a minute. That and this are two separate issues.”

Finding the right time to cut in between Ryoma’s and the bartender’s conversation, Hazuki interjected.

The more impactful the content, the easier it was for Ryoma to join the conversation. Hazuki immediately took steps to make him fit in.

“Eh? You had your arm broken by a customer?”

“I’m not sure if I could really call him a customer, but yeah. It was eight years ago.”

“It’s a very romantic story.”

“Romantic……?”

Ryoma, who has no information on how having one’s arm broken be romantic, urges him to continue with his eyes wide open.

“Um, Kamishiro-san. Please don’t go around telling customers about my past. Because if you do, I’m afraid they’ll start picking on me when I’m helping out on days such as this.”

“Very well. After all, it would be outrageous of me to divulge such information unless I ask permission from the person in question ….Don’t you agree, Ryoma-san?”

“You’re not wondering about how it came to be, right, Shiba-kun?”

“Eh….”

Ryoma was suddenly forced to make an abrupt decision.

He hesitated again and again as they continued to ask him, but of course, he was only allowed to take up one side.

“I’m sorry, but I’m on Hazuki-san’s side, please. I’m really curious about that story…….”

“See, so is it okay to talk about it?”

“Your asking permission from a person who can’t really say no in such a situation….. Please give me a minute.”

With Ryoma on Hazuki’s side, a two-to-one composition was created.

He shrugged his shoulders, perhaps trying not to act too excited, but soon he had a divisive look on his face.

“Fufu, then, be my guest.”

Hazuki opened her mouth, appearing to be in a good mood, and poured the large orange cocktail down her throat.

“As she said before, eight years ago, there was a regular who always came to our store. She was a student in the nursing department, and she was 20 years old, just like you, Shiba-kun.”

“There was a regular my age……”

“That woman had a great look and a wonderful personality, didn’t she?”

“…..I won’t deny that.”

Turning his back and wiping his glasses, he gave a vague reply. He was still too embarrassed to talk about his past since Hazuki had a third party with her.

“Well, it’s only natural that you wouldn’t deny it like that. That woman was so popular that even another college student confessed to her. And yet, she always came to this store on the days when he had a part-time job, and eventually, they got so close that they would go out together.”

“I see. So the woman came to the Bar because she was interested in the bartender.”

“That’s right.”

Love stories are a genre enjoyed by both men and women. Ryoma responds with interest, but this is where things take a turn for the worse.

“But….their relationship didn’t go smoothly. Because of that woman’s popularity, she was a victim of stalking….and this restaurant was a site of it.”
[Tl Notes: site of it = crime scene basically]

“Eh!? This was it….!?”

“Yes. The stalker really didn’t like him. He went on a rampage in the store when he came in, causing so much damage that they had to shut down for a few months.”

Perhaps it was because eight years had passed, but if you were to take a look at this store, there was no trace of that time. It wouldn’t be strange if someone came out and said it was a 『Joke』, but looking at Hazuki’s facial expression and the fact that the victim of the incident was here, this proved to be true.

“So, returning to that point, the bartender suffered a serious injury that broke his right arm as a result of sheltering the women who frequented the bar.”

“I-I see. So the stalker was already prepared to destroy the bartender….”

Love sometimes drives people crazy.

This was probably the case that became a reality.

Ryoma had no sympathy for what the stalker did, but it had to be a catastrophe for the business when it had to shut down due to the serious injuries of the bartender.

“He had to be hospitalized because his bones were broken so badly, and that woman came to visit him every day. And due to that, I later heard the bartender say that he was happy to be in the hospital.”

“Eh….? Wait, then does that mean…”

“Yes. As you may have guessed, that was the beginning of a successful relationship that has lasted eight years.”

“I see, so that’s what you meant. Now I understand why the Master-san tried to make this place into a romantic hotspot.”

“N-No, that’s not true…..a-ah, this is so embarrassing.”

The bartender was showing a profile or normalcy, but the way he wipes the glass with a cloth produces a soft squeaking noise. At this point, it was easy to see that he was discomposed, with how frequently he was wiping the glass. This was probably one of the reasons why the bartender was fairly easy to talk to.

“Well, I know this is an insensitive question to ask…but, after being together for eight years, do you have any plans on getting married?”

“Hazuki-san, they’re listening in….”

“Yes, I do. Now that her work has finally settled down, I plan to propose to her this Christmas. Haha…..”

“Ah! I wish you the best of luck then. I’m rooting for you.”

“You must be really proud of your girlfriend. Even going as far as asking all the staff members to refer by her last name only.”

“H-Hey. L-Let’s not talk about this anymore! We’re about to run out of drinks for you two, so I’ll get some ready, next time, I’ll go with the cassis one.”

He hurriedly prepared the next drink behind the counter. As soon as he was prompted about his past, all composure he had from the beginning disappeared.

“Fufufu, as soon as I mention your single-mindedness, you run away. It’s not like a bartender to ignore our requests and make drinks, is it, Shiba-kun?”

“Ahaha….”

It would be amusing to join in together and tease him further, but Ryoma laughed it off with a bitter smile so that it doesn’t get any worse.

Ryoma felt sympathetic to the bartender. He imagined what it was like to be teased.

“Well, I’ll just say this one last thing. He and his girlfriend have a very interesting relationship.”

“Interesting….?”

“He’s usually the one who takes the lead, but at night, she seems to be the one who’s pulling him along.”

“E-Eh!?”

“H-Hey!? What do you think you’re talking about!”

Ryoma was suddenly taken aback by the mention of adult stuff.

Furthermore, he, the biggest victim of all, leans over the counter with a bottle of sake in his hand and tries to stop Hazuki from saying any further.

“I’m sure your girlfriend’s picking you up after work today and taking you over there, right? Oh oh, or maybe you’ll be the one taking her tonight.”

“Y-You… W-Where the hell did you get that information from, Kamishiro-san!? I-I shouldn’t have let Kamishiro-san and my own girlfriend exchange contact information after all….”

“Fufufu, sorry. I guess I hit the nail on the head with that reaction.”

“…….”

As soon as the bartender hears that statement, his face turns serious. On the other hand, Hazuki, with a grin on her face, looked satisfied, with a tinge of vermillion red on her cheeks.