Sazuki Nagihara, a 24-year-old sales representative at an advertising firm, lives in fear of her boss—the infamous department head Masato Watase, known for his ruthless perfectionism and cold demeanor. Every day he scolds her more harshly than anyone else, earning them a reputation as a disaster pairing.
But everything changes one night when Nagihara receives a mysterious message. "You did your best today." "You're doing just fine." The sender is Watase himself—her tyrannical boss hides a gentl
Secret Gentleness, Identity's Trap - The premonition of truth that silence reveals
It was past 1 AM.
Nagihara Satsuki lay collapsed on her bed, staring at her smartphone screen.
The third floor of "Maison Harukaze." Beyond the balcony, the dark silhouette of Yoyogi Forest was visible. The night breeze struck the window glass with a faint sound.
She opened Liite. The chat screen with "yoru_no_niwa."
Seio's words kept circling in her head.
——Director Watase seems to be leaking something only toward you.
The moment their eyes met in the cafeteria during the day. When she went to the private room with the revision list, the pastel green screen visible through the glass. Kashiwagi's confession. Seio's words. Scattered pieces were slowly taking shape.
There was no choice but to confirm it now.
Her fingers trembled.
She typed into the text input field, one character at a time.
"Are you Director Watase?"
She stared at the screen for a while. She thought about deleting it. But she couldn't.
She pressed the send button.
The message changed to "sent."
Nagihara remained motionless, staring at the screen. 30 seconds. One minute. Two minutes.
No read receipt appeared.
(Maybe he's sleeping since it's the middle of the night......)
Thinking that, she placed her smartphone on her chest. But her eyes were wide awake.
Even after an hour passed, there was no read receipt.
——
The next morning, when Nagihara arrived at the third floor of the Akasaka Tomei Building, she was 30 minutes earlier than usual.
There were still few people around. Only the sound of her own keyboard typing. The low hum of the air conditioner and the distant sound of a vacuum cleaner. The morning workplace was so quiet, she thought vaguely as she opened her computer.
But her hands wouldn't move.
She checked her smartphone. No read receipt.
(Still......)
She looked at Watase's private room. No one was there yet. Just a chair visible through the glass.
After a while, employees came in one by one, then two by two.
"Morning, Nagihara. You're early,"
Kashiwagi Kohei appeared with a coffee cup in hand, his chestnut-colored semi-long hair tied back in his usual careless style. His amber-colored eyes looked at Nagihara and narrowed slightly.
"Oh, good morning,"
"You don't look well. Couldn't sleep?"
"I'm fine. I just... had a lot on my mind,"
"I see,"
Kashiwagi placed his belongings on his desk and glanced at her once more. He didn't ask anything further.
Ten minutes later, Watase Yuto arrived.
Dark brown short hair. Gray eyes. A tall frame of 182 centimeters in a perfectly tailored suit. His usual, flawless appearance.
Nagihara reflexively looked away.
(Is this person... ignoring all of those messages?)
Watase gave a light greeting to the staff members and went straight into his private room. The door closed with a sharp sound. She could see him opening his laptop through the glass right away. Nothing had changed. He was calm, matter-of-fact, and perfect.
(......Nothing's changed at all)
That made it even more painful.
Throughout the morning, she checked her smartphone several times while organizing documents. Three times. Four times. Five times.
No read receipt.
Around 2 PM, Kashiwagi came over to Nagihara's desk.
"You really haven't been yourself lately. Are you worried about my confession?"
"Oh, no. It's not about you, Kashiwagi... I'm just worried about work,"
It wasn't a lie. But it wasn't the whole truth either.
"Is there anything I can help with?"
"I'm fine. Thank you,"
Kashiwagi seemed like he wanted to say something for a moment. But in the end, he just said, "I see. Don't push yourself too hard," and returned to his desk. Watching his back, Nagihara sighed.
(I can't tell anyone......)
Even if she did, what would she say? "I thought the anonymous message sender might be Director Watase, so I tried to confirm it, but now he won't even read my messages, and I don't know what to do"——she could never say something like that.
In the evening, Seio Mariko passed by Nagihara's desk and spoke to her.
Her chestnut-colored medium-wave hair swayed. Her deep green eyes turned toward Nagihara quietly.
"Nagihara, are you able to concentrate?"
"Yes, I'm fine. No problems,"
"You don't have to push yourself. Let me know if anything comes up,"
With just that, Seio returned to her seat. She didn't ask unnecessary questions. But she was watching carefully. That warmth seeped into Nagihara gently.
——
The third night.
Nagihara sat on her bed hugging her knees, holding her smartphone.
She opened Liite.
The sent message. "Are you Director Watase?" Only those characters remained at the edge of the screen. No read mark. Either the other person hadn't read it yet, or——they had read it and were ignoring it.
(Maybe the account disappeared......)
The moment that thought crossed her mind, her chest suddenly tightened.
The words that had arrived every night. "You seemed down today." "I want to see your smile more." "Someday, I'll tell you everything"——all that warmth might disappear completely.
(Maybe I shouldn't have asked......)
She opened the text input field. She thought about apologizing. If she sent "I'm sorry for asking something weird," maybe they would talk to her again.
But her fingers stopped.
If she apologized, it felt like she would be giving up on something. This feeling of wanting to know who you are. Making the fact that she asked disappear, as if it never happened.
——She didn't want that.
Nagihara lowered her smartphone.
The corners of her eyes grew warm.
She didn't even know if she wanted to cry. Was she sad? Scared? Or——did she just want someone to understand?
The night room was quiet. Beyond the balcony, the trees of Yoyogi Forest stood. Each time the wind swayed them, the leaves made a faint sound.
(If it really was Director Watase... why are you staying silent?)
That question had no answer.
The image of Watase's face during the day floated up. Calm, perfect, and unchanged profile. Nagihara had no idea what kind of feelings that person held. Seio had said that for nine years, emotions leaked only toward you. But now, there was no sign of that in Watase.
——
The fourth morning.
Nagihara arrived at work with heavy steps, greeted by the usual bustle of the floor.
Phone rings, keyboard clicks, someone's laughter. Everything as usual. Nothing had changed.
Watase was facing his laptop in his private room. His suit was perfectly neat today too. The small piercing in his right ear glinted faintly in the fluorescent light.
Less than ten minutes after Nagihara sat at her desk, the internal line rang.
It was from the private room.
"Get the third draft of the Cosmo Flora project done today. Don't be late,"
A flat voice. Emotionless. The usual voice of Director Watase.
"Y-yes. Understood......"
After hanging up the receiver, Nagihara couldn't move for a while.
(This person hasn't changed at all......)
The silence continued. For three days, he hadn't even read her message. Yet during the day, he gave instructions like this, normally. Nagihara still didn't understand what this gap meant.
Lunch break. Kashiwagi called out to her.
"Let's go to lunch together today. The Lighthouse Terrace has chicken nanban today,"
"......Yes. I'll go,"
"You look gloomy,"
"I'm fine. I'll eat properly,"
"I see,"
Kashiwagi didn't ask further. But in the elevator on the way up to the 14th floor "Lighthouse Terrace," he casually stood next to Nagihara and said only, "If anything's wrong, tell me. I might not be useful, but I can listen."
Nagihara couldn't respond well.
"......Thank you,"
That was all she could manage.
From the window of the Lighthouse Terrace, Tokyo Tower was visible. The red iron tower stood clearly against the blue sky. It was the usual view, but today everything felt distant.
As she stood to leave after eating, Seio noticed her at the entrance and raised her hand lightly. Her deep green eyes looked at Nagihara's face intently for just a moment. As if confirming something. But without saying anything, she nodded slightly and headed to her own seat.
(Does Seio... notice?)
Even if she did, she wouldn't say it out loud. That was the kind of person Seio Mariko was, Nagihara thought.
——
That night.
On the third floor of Maison Harukaze, on her usual bed, Nagihara opened her smartphone again.
The Liite screen. The chat with "yoru_no_niwa."
The read mark still hadn't appeared.
(Four days, the whole time......)
A deep sigh escaped her. Outside the window, the wind rustled the tree leaves.
——But.
As she stared at the screen, something quietly shifted inside Nagihara.
This silence meant something.
If it were someone unrelated, they would just send one word: "No." That's all. Yet for four days, he hadn't even read it——wasn't that because he was struggling with the answer?
Wasn't he staying silent because it was the truth?
(Maybe... you're scared too, of giving an answer)
Nagihara gripped her smartphone tightly and looked out the window.
She still didn't understand what this silence meant. But——maybe she wasn't the only one avoiding the answer.
When that thought crossed her mind, strangely, the tightness in her chest eased a little.
The sent message still remained on the screen.
Nagihara left it as it was, without closing the screen.
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