Chapter 57: Volume 1, - 57: No Reward for This
Morning light filtered through the narrow blinds of Ren’s small apartment, painting pale golden stripes across the ceiling.
Ren woke slowly to the unfamiliar warmth pressed against his left side. Suzune was asleep with her chin tucked against his collarbone, one arm draped heavily over his chest, her soft chestnut hair a glorious, tangled mess across his shoulder. The duvet was pulled up unevenly, twisted around their legs.
Ren lay motionless for several minutes, afraid that the slightest movement would wake her. His heart felt absurdly full, a quiet, expansive warmth blooming behind his ribs.
When Suzune stirred, letting out a faint, sleepy sigh, her eyelids fluttered open. She blinked against the dim sunlight, her amber eyes unfocused before settling on his face.
"Good morning," Ren whispered softly.
A slow flush crept up her cheeks as memory caught up with her. She smiled, slightly embarrassed, and hid her face against his chest. "Good morning. What time is it?"
"Just past six-thirty," Ren said.
As she shifted, the sheet slipped down slightly, exposing the pale curve of her shoulder. Ren’s mind instantly flashed back to the heat of the night before. The sensation of her bare skin beneath his hands, the soft catches in her throat, the breathless hush of their bodies coming together. His breath caught, a sudden spike of physical awareness making his pulse race. He found himself looking at her mouth, his hand moving on its own to trace her waist beneath the blanket.
Suzune caught his hand under the blanket, her thumb pressing against his knuckles. She looked up at him, her lips curling into a teasing, affectionate grin that completely read his mind.
"Ren," she murmured, her voice laced with light, amused warning.
"I didn’t say anything," Ren said innocently, though his face flared red.
"You didn’t have to," she said, letting out a small laugh as she sat up, bringing the duvet with her to cover her chest. Her hair was completely wild on one side. "And just so we’re clear... last night wasn’t a lifetime subscription."
Ren blinked, then burst into a genuine, helpless laugh. The absurd phrasing in such a context broke his sudden wave of eagerness instantly. "Right. Point taken."
"Good," she smiled, leaning in to kiss his cheek before swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. "Now let me use the bathroom first. My hair looks like a bird nested in it.".
By seven-fifteen, they had shared a simple breakfast of toasted bread, hot green tea, and boiled eggs at his low folding table. The atmosphere was a pleasant mixture of soft laughter, occasional awkward eye contact, and comfortable silence.
When it was time to get dressed, Ren experienced the deeply surreal sensation of pulling on his green QuickMart polo shirt and dark trousers while Suzune gathered her clothes by the closet.
"It feels strange seeing you in that after everything," Suzune noted, buttoning her cardigan as she watched him adjust his name tag.
"It feels strange wearing it," Ren admitted, stepping up to her as she reached for her scarf. He took the knitted wool from her hands and wrapped it gently around her neck, pulling her close for one quiet, lingering kiss before they stepped out into the crisp morning air.
Ren’s morning shift at QuickMart passed in a haze of happy distraction.
While stocking refrigerated drink cases, his mind kept wandering back to the sensation of Suzune’s fingers sliding through his hair, or the way she had laughed when he fumbled with the wrapper in the dark. Every time a memory intruded, a bright, stupid grin threatened to spread across his face, forcing him to duck his head behind the glass doors and cough into his elbow, thoroughly embarrassed by his own complete lack of focus.
Across town after the lunch rush, Aya dropped by Akiyama Bakery with a bag of fresh egg-salad sandwiches from the corner stall. Haruka arrived shortly after finishing her shift at the nursery school, carrying her tote bag as she stepped into the quiet back office.
Aya set the food on the desk, paused, and squinted at Suzune’s face.
Suzune kept her pen moving over the supplier ledger. "Good afternoon, both of you."
Aya leaned down, staring directly at Suzune’s glowing cheeks, the subtle mark near her collarbone barely concealed by her scarf, and the unmistakable softness in her posture.
Aya’s eyes widened. "No way."
Suzune’s pen stopped. A wave of heat erupted from her neck straight to the roots of her hair. "Aya, don’t—"
"You did!" Aya gasped, slamming her hands onto the desk. "You and Kisaragi-san! Last night!"
"Aya! Be quiet!" Suzune squeaked, covering her face with both hands. "My parents are in the kitchen!"
Haruka set her bag on a chair with a quiet, amused smile. "So?" she asked gently. "Good?"
Suzune buried her face deeper in her hands. "Yes."
Aya grinned triumphantly. "That’s not enough detail."
"You’re not getting more," Suzune muttered through her fingers.
Haruka sat on the edge of the spare table. "Are you happy, Suzune?"
Suzune slowly lowered her hands, her cheeks still flaming, but her amber eyes grew quiet and warm. "Very."
Aya leaned back against the wall, her teasing grin softening. "Him? Nervous?"
"Extremely," Suzune admitted, a tiny smile touching her lips at the memory. "He was so careful."
"Trust him more now?" Aya asked softly.
Suzune thought about it, picking at the corner of a paper napkin. "Some things, yeah. I know how he feels about me now. But sex doesn’t magically solve everything between us. He still has to build his business, and I still have the bakery to take care of. That part still takes time."
Haruka nodded smoothly. "Fair."
By nine-thirty that evening, Ren was back in his apartment.
He sat at his desk under the warm glow of the lamp, his laptop open alongside his ledger notebooks. He had spent the last hour reviewing the settlement schedules for his old consumer debt. The remnants of the high-interest loans that had haunted him since January.
A quiet chime echoed from his phone on the desk.
Ren picked it up. A notification from his banking app illuminated the screen:
Transaction Notification: Final creditor settlement payments submitted to processing queue. Settlement status: Pending.
Ren stared at the screen. The final creditor payments were now in settlement processing. If everything posted cleanly on Tuesday, every original balance would finally show ¥0.
Ren set the phone down on the wooden desk.
Tomorrow, maybe. He knew better than to call himself debt-free before every creditor showed the same number. The thought should have made him restless. Instead, he felt strangely calm. After months of chasing balances downward, there was nothing left to do tonight but wait.
Still, for the first time, zero felt close enough to touch. He turned off the desk lamp and lay back against his pillows, falling asleep in the quiet dark.