Chapter 8

Chapter 8

T he next evening finds me huddled on the hard bleachers of the local amateur soccer pitch, clutching a steaming cup of hot chocolate like a lifeline. A brisk early autumn breeze has kicked up, sending dry leaves skittering across the turf and whipping loose strands of hair into my face.

The days are still warm, but the nights are getting colder each week. I shiver, pulling my coat tighter as the two teams take the field for their warmup drills. This weekly ritual of coming to support my younger sister Rosa at her soccer matches has always been a source of comfort amidst the chaos of life. Rosa, Demi, and I used to play winter sports together, and it was always one of my favorite parts of our relationship.

But tonight, it feels like a mistake to be here.

My mind drifts back to the disastrous restaurant association meeting, replaying every agonizing moment of resistance and dashed hopes on a maddening loop. Then the gossiping busybodies who saw Daichi and me together after… Ugh. The rumors are already circulating. I can feel it in the air.

I squeeze my eyes shut, willing the sting of failure to lessen.

How could I have been so na?ve?

Rallying an entire community to fight for the Book Club’s legacy against such a wealthy, powerful corporation like PairTech — it’s a hopeless, idealistic dream.

Maybe I should just save myself the humiliation of trying and failing so publicly. Quit while I’m ahead, before I destroy the Book Club’s reputation beyond repair…

“Winta!”

Oops, my mom has been talking to me, and I didn’t notice.

Her head tilts to the side. “Are you planning on sitting there moping all night, or are you gonna tell us what’s got your mind so occupied?”

“She’s planning to mope,” Ean fills in, his eyes on the pitch as the ref blows the whistle and the game starts.

Despite my foul mood, my lips twitch at Ean’s sarcasm and Mom’s keen empathy. She’s always shown an exceptional ability to read our emotions.

Dad, on the other hand… “She’s so quiet lately. Hey, what have you done with our bright and happy Winta?” He sips from his cup of hot saké. Despite the heart attack he had a few years ago, he cannot give up drinking, but at least he’s in great shape now.

“Always so delicate, Dad…”

Denshi Kimura lets out a bark of unapologetic laughter as he settles onto the bench beside me with a contented grunt. “Hey, you know me. Now come on, out with it already before your mom starts mothering you.”

I shoot him a sidelong glance, trying to gauge whether I’m in the mood to unburden my troubles or not. On the one hand, my father has never been much for emotional coddling or delicacy. But on the other… his pragmatism has also pulled me out of many a spiral of teenage angst and self-pity over the years.

With a sigh, I relent, launching into a recap of the previous night’s meeting with the restaurant association and their utter unwillingness to even consider supporting the Book Club. As expected, Dad remains stoically silent throughout, simply listening with the occasional nod.

“…and then Akio had the gall to suggest I go hear PairTech’s side of things before dismissing them as the enemy,” I conclude in a heated rush, the old spark of defensive anger flaring up again. “As if their methods of cheapening our entire heritage down to data points aren’t reprehensible enough on principle.”

I break off, chest heaving slightly with the force of my impassioned rant. Dad regards me steadily for a long moment, and Ean turns back to the game to cheer on Rosa.

“You know, I have to be honest with you,” Dad says, sipping his saké. “Akio might have a point about at least hearing these PairTech folks out before you go burning any bridges.”

“Dad! How could you even say that? You’re actually suggesting I go talk to them?”

But Dad simply holds up a calloused hand, silencing my protests with a look. “Just a minute. Let me finish.”

Grrr, Dad. I can’t keep the mutinous scowl from my lips as he lets out a weary sigh.

“Look, you know I’m about as traditional as they come,” he continues. “Hell, I spent most of my career fighting tooth and nail to keep the old ways alive in local government, even when it wasn’t the popular thing. You don’t get to be the youngest mayor this city had seen in decades by being a slave to modern progressivism.”

A laugh rumbles up from his broad chest and Mom smiles. “But even a stubborn old man like me has learned that sometimes, the wiser path is being willing to at least hear out the other side before you go charging in. These PairTech people may have a few valid points in their philosophy, as wrongheaded as it might seem to us on the surface.”

“He’s right,” Mom says, fixing me with a steady look. “We’re not saying you have to compromise your principles or abandon the Book Club’s mission, Winta. We’re just suggesting that sometimes, to win the bigger war, you have to pick and choose which battles you can bend a little.”

The words hang heavy between us for a long moment. I can’t even come up with a rebuttal. There’s a nagging part of me that recognizes their wisdom.

It’s Ean’s turn to butt in. “At least hear PairTech’s perspective before deciding they’re the enemy.”

Sigh. They’re all correct, even if I don’t want to admit it. I’m being inflexible out of defensive pride, right?

Before I can sort through all of that, the sound of my sister’s warm laughter rings out as she joins us on the bleachers. Myra’s face is flushed with warmth as her hand shields her baby belly. She’s really showing at five months pregnant, but I’ve heard that happens with the second kid.

We lean in for cheek kisses, and she looks into the emotions plain on my face.

“Uh oh. It’s not every day that Winta is angry. Something must be up.”

Ean leans between us. “It’s already settled, and now it’s time to watch the game.” He turns to yell at Rosa, blasting the ball down the field.

I manage a half-hearted smile as Myra presses a bag of popcorn into my hands. Mmmm, kettle corn. My favorite. Leave it to Myra to recognize the comfort I need, even without me saying a word.

As the soccer match continues, I can’t shake my parents’ and brother’s unexpected advice. Should I set aside my skepticism to hear PairTech out, or would that betray my principles?

I’m so lost in my thoughts that I almost jump out of my skin when Myra leans over and gives my arm a gentle nudge.

“Soooooo, I heard a pretty interesting rumor about that restaurant association meeting last night,” she says, a teasing lilt to her voice. “Something about a certain young, handsome chef who was seen as your, shall we say, staunch defender against the naysayers?”

My head whips around at her words, eyes widening in surprise. Shit. The rumors have already started.

Myra’s grin stretches even wider at my obvious shock. “Oh yes, I heard all about the valiant Daichi Kaga rushing to uphold the Book Club’s honor against those stuffy old restaurateurs. Apparently, he was quite adamant in making your case to the assembled crowd.”

Heat rushes into my cheeks, and I try to cover it by sipping my now lukewarm chocolate.

“Myra, you know better than to listen to gossip.”

I turn my face from her so she can’t read it, but she leans over into my eye line. “Tell me it isn’t true, then.”

“It’s not true. He was just being a friend,” I manage to say without stammering. But the telltale flush creeping down my neck gives me away. “Not that we’re even friends. I just met him the other day.” I try to chuckle, but it just comes out as a strangled breath. “He wants to help preserve the Book Club’s legacy however he can. That’s really the only reason he’s helping me.”

“Oh please, you can drop the innocent act with me,” Myra scoffs, nudging me with her elbow. “I’ve heard enough whispers to suspect there’s something more than ‘just friends’ going on.”

I close my eyes and groan. “I swear. It’s nothing. He offered to help, and I took it.” I open my eyes and mutter, “Fucking hell. Damned busybodies. Just creating more work for me.” I sigh. “I’ll have to fix this situation now, too.”

Sure, Daichi is warm and insightful and gorgeous in that rugged, understated way of his… but there’s no way he sees me as anything more than some hapless young woman he’s trying to help out of a professional crisis.

And now this?

This is not good. I can’t have his reputation sullied just because he’s been nice to me.

Myra frowns. “Yikes. Sorry. I thought maybe this was a good thing?” She shrugs. “It’s not like you’ve been dating lately, and —”

“I haven’t been dating lately because everyone talks and ruins it,” I interrupt her. “That’s exactly what happened with the last five relationships.” My previous relationship over three years ago was submarined by a bunch of gossip because of my father’s previous stint in politics.

Mom turns around. “Five relationships? I thought you had only dated three men.”

I wave my hand at her. “The other two were insignificant.”

When Mom returns to watching the game, Myra lifts her eyebrows at me for my lie. My parents only know about the five men I ever introduced them to. They‘re unaware of the rest of them.

And we’re going to keep it that way.

“Sorry,” Myra whispers. “Well, then, unfortunately, everyone’s talking about how Daichi Kaga is rarely seen keeping such… attentive company with any young lady these days. The rumors are that you two are either the new ‘it’ couple or that you’re going to wreck him.” She shrugs. “Of course, I think it’s all bullshit.”

Great.

My life is a disaster. PairTech is coming for my job, Daichi’s kind gesture is being turned into a scandal, and the town is looking to make me the subject of rumors and speculation for their own enjoyment.

“Daichi has been a friend, that’s all. Anything more is pretty far-fetched, if you ask me. I’ll have to figure out someway to stop the rumor mill.”

Myra chuckles and rolls her eyes. “Good luck with that. The Yamato Rumor Mill is legendary. Remember what happened to Tilli?” Her eyes widen and I hold back a curse. Yeah, the rumor mill cost her a chance at getting into the Interstellar Agency the first time.

I throw a sidelong glance at her, feeling self-conscious. “Then I’ll really have to fix this soon. Tomorrow. It’s not even remotely possible that any of it’s true. It should be easy enough to deny, right?”

She shrugs. “What if it’s true, though?”

“It’s not,” I stress. “He would never be interested in someone like me.”

“Don’t sell yourself short.” Myra raises her eyebrows. “Maybe the rumors are true.”

I press my lips together and ignore her statement because I’ve learned that denying it too much can also be a sign that something is true.

I’ll have to just talk to Daichi, tell him what’s going on, and let him know that I’ll cut off contact so he can save his good name.