[CH.25] The boss who was teased by her childhood friend (Part 2)
"Um... What does that mean?"
"Sigh... What foolish things am I saying? Forget about it."
The manager fell silent as if suddenly realizing something.
Nishina-san's feelings of being expelled from the head office were becoming the inspiration for a creative genre.
"Could the trauma you mentioned earlier have something to do with the manager's web novel work?"
"...Did you ask Nishina and Hinata?"
"It's not like that... I just had a thought."
"Well, my reasons for creating are nothing compared to Nishina and Hinata's, it's a small matter."
Manager Mimasaka looked a little lonely.
"There was a boy who grew up next to my childhood home, the same age as me."
"A childhood friend?"
"Yes. We went to the same elementary school, middle school, and high school, and I always thought we would stay together like that. I liked that boy."
Director Mimasaka had a childhood friend. It seemed like she had a boy she admired.
"But I've always had a tough personality and said some pretty strict things. I never meant to be controlling, but... I guess I can't blame him for thinking that way."
"...Is that so?"
"Yeah, one day in my third year of high school, he suddenly told me to stop clinging to him. He said he felt miserable when he was with me, that he wasn't really weak. And next to my childhood friend, he was smiling... he had a girlfriend."
The manager continued her story.
"It's what they call 'sweet revenge' on a childhood friend, I guess. I was the one who got a taste of it. I used to wake up early every morning just to wake him up because he was always oversleeping, I made him bento lunches, helped him study for exams when he was about to fail, and nursed him when he got sick. I guess I was a noisy childhood friend to him. But the moment he got into college and didn't need my help anymore, he treated me like this."
"..."
"I guess I had a personality that liked to take care of others. I thought if I could be of help to my childhood friend, I could get closer to him little by little, but I lost everything. And since then, I've been afraid of suddenly losing what I've built. So even now, I'm afraid of losing big projects... of the company suffering, and of losing Nishina and Hinata, who I've nurtured."
"Do you still think about your childhood friend like that?"
"Haha, it's strange, isn't it? I used to like him, but now I don't even want to hear his name. But even though I wasn't rewarded, I wanted my childhood friend to be happy. I don't want him to become like me, whether it's in reality or fiction. I really want my childhood friend to be happy, no matter what."
Is that the reason why the manager continues to write romantic comedies about her childhood friend? I thought she had been expressing her innermost feelings all along.
"But looking back, I had a tough personality, and it wouldn't have been strange for him to abandon me. If Nishina and Hina had told me, 'You're too strict, we can't keep up anymore'... well, that would have been understandable."
"I don't think that would happen."
I can say that with confidence.
"I talked to Nishina-san and Kuhou-san the other day, and all they had were words of gratitude for the director. Everything they said was about how much they appreciate you."
"Is that so?"
"Even though you three are together all the time, it might be hard to see from the inside, but as an outsider, I can see it clearly. Nishina-san and Kuhou-san both really love the manager."
"Hey, don't say embarrassing things!"
"That's why I'll do my best to become someone the manager can like. I'll absorb all that strictness and become a proud subordinate."
"Um, when you say it like that, it becomes a bit complicated! Well, that's enough."
"The manager's guidance is filled with love. I never thought anything she taught me was wrong... If I had been living the same way since childhood, I think that childhood friend would be a clueless idiot for not realizing the manager's love."
"Hanamura-kun..."
"Someday... if that childhood friend really does come and say he can't live without you, you can tell him this!"
I raised my fist.
"It's too late, idiot!"
"Haha, that's right... Oh, it's a red light!"
"Huh!?"
I hit the brakes hard because we were about to run a red light due to our momentum.
Since it was a company-owned car without the company name on it, I didn't think it would be a big deal, but I had messed up.
This... I'm going to get in a lot of trouble for this.
"Ahahaha, Hanamura-kun... you're unexpectedly mischievous!"
She laughed more than I expected.
"I was feeling a bit down, but your words helped me snap out of it a bit... thank you."
The manager smiled softly like that.
...I want to keep working under this person. I felt like I could definitely grow under the guidance of my ideal boss.
"But make sure to report this near-miss incident properly."
"Yes."
But the manager is still strict, after all.
And we arrived at the client's location.
I got out of the company car after Manager Mimasaka, who had gotten out earlier.
"Hanamura-kun, it's a big showdown from here."
"Yes."
"You stay in the background for now... but there might come a time when we need to hear your opinions as a developer. When that time comes..."
"Yes, please feel free to ask anything. I'll support the manager!"
"Very well. Let's go then."
The manager and I called the client representative and dealt with the situation.
The result was...
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