Her phone vibrated. 11 a.m. Riko was at her desk checking quotations. A message had arrived. The sender was—Ichikawa Yuma. 'Would you be free for lunch today? I'm in the area.' Him. The man who'd called out to her in front of Akasaka Station the other day—her boss Mizuuchi's college classmate. Bright tea-colored hair, always wearing a calm smile. Riko thought for a moment. (What should I do...) There was no real reason to decline. But she wasn't used to sudden invitations, and it made her heart flutter a little. Besides, their last conversation had been enjoyable. He'd told her so much about Mizuuchi. Riko typed back. 'Yes, please.' The message was read immediately. 'Great. I'll wait in the 1st floor lobby at noon.' The moment she was about to put her phone away. "[cold]Ayase." She flinched. Looking up, her boss Mizuuchi was standing right beside her desk. 182 centimeters tall. Neat black hair, a crease between his brows. Those grayish eyes were looking straight at her. "Y-yes!" "Finish the afternoon meeting materials by 2 p.m. today." "Y-yes, understood." Mizuuchi said nothing more and returned to his own desk. His back as he walked away. It was just a routine instruction, yet why was she so tense? Riko wondered. Her fingers on her left hand were unconsciously intertwined. —— Noon arrived. Riko headed to the 1st floor entrance lobby of the Akasaka ASK Building. A bright, glass-walled space. Potted plants scattered here and there. By the sofa, Ichikawa stood looking at his phone. "[gentle]Oh, you came." His bright tea-colored hair was lit by the fluorescent lights. His slightly wavy hair bounced a bit at the ends, somehow approachable. His light brown eyes narrowed when they met hers. An aura completely opposite to Mizuuchi's—soft and warm. "Sorry for keeping you waiting." "Not at all. There's an Italian place nearby. Shall we go?" The two of them walked through Akasaka during lunch hour. The midday sun was gentle. When they turned into an alley between buildings, the breeze became a little cooler. "How's Mizuuchi been lately?" Ichikawa said it with a laugh. "Same as always..." "He's tough, isn't he?" "Yes. This morning too, about the documents..." "Haha. He never changes, that guy." Watching his smiling face, Riko felt something strange. There was someone in this world who could call Mizuuchi "that guy" so casually. —— The restaurant was called "Trattoria Sole." A small Italian place tucked away in an Akasaka alley. A small blackboard by the entrance had today's lunch set written by hand. When they opened the door, the smell of olive oil and tomato filled the air. They sat at a table by the window. "[gentle]What will you have?" "Carbonara for me." "I'll go with arrabbiata." After ordering, Ichikawa leaned forward slightly. "Do you find Mizuuchi scary, Riko?" It was direct. Riko gave a wry smile. "Scary... more like, I get nervous. I can't tell what he's thinking." "I figured." Ichikawa smiled softly and looked down at the table. "He's always been like that. Even in university. Before exams, he'd copy everyone's seminar notes and hand them out. Without anyone asking." Riko was a little surprised. "Mizuuchi did that...?" "Yeah. And he'd just say, 'Want these?' without waiting for an answer, then leave them on your desk. You can't tell if it's considerate or not, the way he does it." She couldn't help but laugh. "...I can actually picture that." "If there's a junior who's struggling, he always says something. But he's bad with words, so he tries to help and ends up making them even more nervous." Ichikawa continued with a chuckle. "The truth is, he cares about people more than anyone. He's just not good at showing it. That's why he loses out in a lot of ways." The food arrived. The rich aroma of carbonara wafted over. Riko held her fork and turned over Ichikawa's words in her mind. (He cares about people more than anyone...) That anonymous message flashed through her head. 'You worked hard today too.' Concise, warm, not a single emoji. The person who typed those words was—— No. That couldn't be. But if—— "[gentle]Riko?" She snapped back. "Oh, sorry. I was spacing out." "What were you thinking about?" "...I think I might start seeing the boss differently." When she said it honestly, Ichikawa's expression shifted to something like surprise—and then he smiled warmly. "He'd be happy to hear that. ...Though he'd never admit it himself." —— 2 p.m. When Riko returned from lunch, the third sales department floor had settled back into its usual rhythm. The sound of keyboards. Phone rings. Someone printing. Riko sat at her desk and got to work finishing the meeting materials. That's when. "Hey, Riko." Her senior, Yano Aya, spoke to her in a low voice. 31 years old. The person in this department who talks to Riko the most. Today she had a slight smirk on her face. "What is it?" "The boss has been looking at you a lot lately, hasn't he?" Huh? "[surprised]...What?" "This morning too. When you went to the copy machine, the boss kept glancing over at your desk like twice." Riko felt her face heat up. "That's probably just my imagination...?" "No way, I'm telling you it's not. That boss doesn't usually pay attention to anyone's seat." Yano lowered her voice and spoke with obvious amusement. "Maybe he's interested in you?" "That's not..." She trailed off and fell silent. Just at that moment, Mizuuchi stood up with some documents in hand. ——She felt his gaze turn toward her. Just for an instant. Those grayish eyes looked in her direction. Then they returned to the documents. "See! Right now!" "..." Riko couldn't say anything. She just pretended to type, trying to hide how hot her face had become. Then. "Yano." A low voice cut through the air. Yano flinched and quickly straightened her posture. "Y-yes!" "[cold]It's a supervisor's job to watch their subordinates grow. Is that a problem?" The entire room went quiet for a moment. Yano stared at Mizuuchi with a blank expression. "N-no, not at all!" "Then stop talking nonsense and get back to work." Mizuuchi picked up his documents and returned to his desk. After the silence, Yano slowly turned toward Riko. A wordless exchange happened between them. Yano's face said: "Did you hear that?" Riko's face said: "Please don't say anything." Yano covered her mouth, trying to suppress her laughter. —— 4 p.m. Riko stood up and headed to the break room on the 8th floor. She wanted just one cup of coffee. A small reward after finishing the materials. When she opened the break room door—— Someone was already there. Mizuuchi. He stood in front of the coffee maker, quietly waiting for his cup. His suited back. His profile. (Maybe I should come back later...) But the moment she stepped back, Mizuuchi noticed her. "[cold]Come in." "Oh, y-yes. Excuse me..." The break room was small. About four tatami mats. A refrigerator, microwave, and coffee maker. A small table against the wall. With two people, the distance was a bit close. Riko reached for the pot on the shelf next to the coffee maker. She was about to make instant coffee by pouring hot water. Silence continued. The coffee maker bubbled softly. That was the only sound in the room. (Should I say something? But what...) As she thought this. "[serious]Are you getting used to the work?" Riko flinched. She carefully looked up. Mizuuchi was still looking at his cup, not at her. But his words were clearly directed at her. "Y-yes... little by little." "[serious]Good. Your mistakes have decreased lately. You're growing." He said it quietly and picked up his coffee cup. Riko froze for a moment. She'd been praised. By Mizuuchi. Something spread through her chest. A sensation of warmth blooming inside. "Th-thank you so much!" Her voice came out a bit too loud. She quickly covered her mouth. Mizuuchi, still holding his cup, narrowed his eyes slightly. Not quite a smile. But the crease between his brows——was just a little softer than usual. "[cold]Don't let your guard down. There's still plenty to do." With that, he left the break room, cup in hand. The door closed quietly. Riko stood alone for a while. She'd forgotten to pour the hot water. The pot was still in her hand. (What was that just now...) The words Ichikawa had spoken came back to her. ——He cares about people more than anyone. He's just not good at showing it. She remembered that moment when the crease between his brows had softened just a little. Making her coffee, Riko smiled to herself. Alone in the break room where no one could see, just a little. ——But that night. Back at her apartment in Nakameguro, looking out at the Meguro River from her balcony while opening her phone. There was no message from the anonymous account "@silent_north_star." Not a single one arrived. Mizuuchi hadn't scolded her today. If anything, he'd praised her. Yet——why hadn't the message come? Maybe this person doesn't send one every night? Or was there some reason...? Riko held her phone and gazed at the river for a while. The cherry tree leaves swayed in the night breeze. (What were you doing today?) She felt like the answer to that question existed somewhere.