Chapter 5: Not Completely Hopeless

Rẽad​ ​ｏ​n K&a;tReä​dίn​gＣａf̀ｅ

Tommy, who had been found again, was standing in the hallway leading to the bathroom.

Leaning against the windowsill with a pout, he looked quite sulky.

“I looked everywhere for you, and here you are. So, are you ready to go to the bathroom ‘together’ now?”

Sugar asked with a teasing tone, still savoring his earlier reaction.

But Tommy just turned his head away, showing a completely different reaction than before.

“Tommy?”

Even when Sugar leaned in close, he remained silent, only turning his head the other way.

Hoh.

It seemed like he had switched his stance to “ignore her.” And honestly, that was the right move. The best way to deal with someone like Sugar was to not give her any attention.

But who was Sugar? She was a messed-up adult, but she still had the brain of an adult.

A kid ignoring her didn’t faze her much. She’d just wrap him in her “generosity” and move on.

“Alright. Are you upset about what happened earlier?”

“I’m not upset.”

He spat it out as if to say, I’m not the kind of person to be swayed by someone like you, but it was a bad move. No one would believe he wasn’t upset after hearing that.

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry.”

“…!”

A straightforward apology.

A bad premonition struck Tommy, and he quickly tried to back away, but the windowsill was behind him. Her hand reached him, and his premonition was right.

“There, there. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“Ugh… ugh…!”

It was natural for a kid to be treated like a kid, but for Tommy, having a girl his age do this to him was maddening.

His head was boiling, but he held it in. He couldn’t run away again. He had a plan, after all. He couldn’t show weakness now.

“I was wrong. I’m sorry… for upsetting you…”

Her touch was surprisingly gentle, reminding him of the day she had praised him.

That day had been like this too. She looked down on him, but then smiled softly and whispered in a breathy voice.

Remembering that made his embarrassment double.

“Ugh…!”

“How about it? Are we good now? Shall we go wash up?”

Tommy clenched his eyes shut, gritted his teeth, and shook his head violently.

What humiliation. But there was only a little left. The plan was progressing well.

1. First, ignore her request and refuse.
2. She’ll keep pestering, so pretend to give in and go to the bathroom with her.

It was a simple plan, and he was nearing the end, with success in sight.

Just one more time. If she asked one more time, he’d agree.

Come on, ask me again…!

You airheaded girl…!

“Hmm. Well, I guess there’s no helping it.”

Wait, why is she doing that?

She suddenly backed off and turned around. Her pinkish-white hair swayed with the movement.

“…What? Wait, where are you going?”

“You keep saying you don’t want to wash up. I guess there’s no choice. I’ll have to find someone else.”

She was planning to run away, enjoying the thought of Sugar fainting as soon as she stepped into the bathroom, thanks to the prank he had set up.

Every night, he secretly washed his hair with cold water and covered it with dust to hide its color. It was a daily routine to keep his hair color hidden, and he didn’t want to reveal it for something so trivial.

Had she figured out his plan?

No, there’s no way she knows.

“I don’t want to wash up, but, you know, it’s the director’s orders.”

“That’s true, but after hearing the director earlier, it seems like it doesn’t have to be you. Let’s just drop it.”

“What?”

After pestering him all this time, what was she saying now?

Of course, Sugar had her own thoughts.

To Sugar, Tommy was a kid who pathologically hated washing up. Maybe he had some kind of mental issue related to it.

Why? Because even though there were bathing facilities here, albeit poor ones, he always looked grimy.

So, for now, she decided to send another kid to the director and slowly teach Tommy the importance of bathing. Forcing someone to do something they hated would only breed resentment and trauma.

Sugar was a “messed-up adult,” but she wasn’t completely hopeless.

“W-what are you talking about? It’s fine. Let’s go to the bathroom.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“I’m telling you it’s fine. Just… just go wash up.”

“You don’t have to push yourself. I’ll handle the aftermath.”

“No…! I want to wash up! I want to wash up!”

“Let’s gather the other kids now. We’ll pick a new volunteer. If we find a good one, the director won’t say anything. It’s not right to force someone who doesn’t want to do it.”

“Then why do you keep stealing my food every day?!”

“That’s different. This is this.”

“Aaaah!”

For Tommy, who actually loved washing up, this was absurd.

His plan—to fill the bathroom with bugs and make Sugar faint—was childish, even if he tried to act mature. And now it had fallen apart, leaving him furious.

 

The orphanage kids were gathered.

Not all of them, but enough to pick a candidate.

“Who here wants to go out with the director the day after tomorrow? My face is like this, so she can’t take me. She said to pick someone else.”

The director hadn’t given Sugar the authority to pick someone, but this was the only way to get the kids to listen. It wasn’t entirely a lie.

“What’s good about going outside?”

“I don’t want to go around with the director…”

“That hysterical lady…”

The murmuring grew louder, and the atmosphere turned negative, so Sugar clapped her hands to cut it off.

“If the director’s in a good mood, she’ll buy you snacks.”

If she’s in a good mood, she added. She clearly set a condition. But at the mention of snacks, everyone’s hands shot up.

She also hid how slim the chances were. The probability of the director not yelling even once during the day? Sugar had been the only one going out with the director for years, so this kind of trick worked.

“Alright. Only those who want to go can stay. Those who aren’t interested can go watch from the corner or do whatever they want.”

And so, the selection of the temporary outing representative began in the backyard.

“Me! Me! Me! Me! Me!”

“You’re too cheeky.”

“What about me?”

“Uh… well… no. Sorry.”

“I’d be fine, right?”

“You’re the one who keeps sneaking food in the dining hall, aren’t you?”

Surprisingly, the selection process wasn’t easy.

Some were too rowdy, others didn’t look presentable, and some were just too chubby.

There was a reason the adults had always picked Sugar. Not only was she good-looking, but she was also mature for her age, even before her past-life memories returned.

“What should I do…”

Is there no well-behaved, good-looking kid here?

Since she was going against the director’s orders and handling this on her own, she had to pick someone who fit the criteria perfectly. That way, she could avoid getting scolded—or at least minimize it.

“You’re being too picky, you know.”

“Why are you being so strict?”

“You’re too picky. I’m not fat; you’re all just too skinny.”

“Ugh.”

As the rejections piled up, the kids started to lose interest and drift away.

“I’ll take all your opinions about the director’s preferences and relay them to her, including who said what.”

The backyard fell silent in an instant. The kids who had been complaining all ran away as fast as they could. After all, they’d already been rejected, so there was no point in staying.

With the applicants and onlookers gone, the backyard became quiet.

Sugar sighed and glanced to the side, where Tommy was sitting with a displeased expression, drawing strange patterns on the ground.

Poor thing. He must be scared of the idea of bathing…

Sugar steeled herself and looked around.

Wait, there’s still a kid here. Standing awkwardly between where the applicants had been and where the onlookers had gathered was a girl, hesitating.

Sugar approached her immediately.

“Are you here to apply too?”

“Uh, uh… well…”

The moment she saw the girl’s reaction, if Sugar had a radar in her heart, it would’ve been blaring loudly.

The girl stood meekly, her voice low but resonant. Her messy hair covered half her face, but the glimpse of her jawline was delicate.

“Come here for a second.”

“Huh? Wh-what…!”

Sugar leaned in suddenly and touched the girl’s cheek. With a gentle but swift motion, she brushed the hair away from the girl’s forehead.

Their eyes met.

“…You’re in.”

“Wait, let me go… …Huh? What did you just say…?”

“You’re in. Follow me.”

A well-behaved, good-looking kid. Found her.

 

“Hehe…”

Sugar tried to look sinister as she held the scissors and let out a creepy laugh, but she just looked like a slightly unhinged, bruised-up beauty—nothing more, nothing less.

Still, it seemed to have an effect on the girl in front of her, who was trembling nonstop.

“D-do you really have to cut it?”

“Of course. The ideal child in the eyes of adults is neat, neat, and neat. If you go begging them to take you with that messy hair, well… let’s just say we’ll all be lucky if we don’t starve.”

“Oh… I see…”

By the windowsill in Tommy’s attic. The chosen one had requested a secluded spot, so a makeshift hair salon was set up here.

The cloth Tommy had used to cover the window was now draped around her neck, and the newspaper he’d finished reading was spread on the floor. Perfect.

“But… not too short… Can you leave it long enough to cover my eyes…?”

“No. The fact that your eyes are covered is the biggest problem. How can I leave it like that? If you want to back out now, you can. But then you won’t get to go out.”

“O-okay… I’ll do as you say…”

What a strange kid. She’s so shy that she covers her face with her hair, but she still wants to go out and see the world.

“Why did you decide to apply?”

“Well…”

The girl, Pralin, fell silent as if choosing her words carefully.

Well, let’s just get started. The only sounds in the room were the snip-snip of the scissors and the rustling of hair.

Pralin finally spoke when the gentle touch began to ease her tension.

“I… was abandoned here when I was born… so I don’t know much about the world… I wanted to see it at least once…”

It was a common story in the slums, but it was still a good conversation starter.

“Is there anything you want to see? Besides the city we’re going to. Just things you want to do outside.”

“Uh… uh… first, I want to ride a train. And I want to see the royal palace and the Grand Temple in the capital… and also the floating islands, the ocean, and the eastern desert…”

The way she poured out her dreams made Sugar smile. Kids will be kids.

“You’ll get to see them someday.”

“…Really? Someone like me?”

“The fact that you have dreams in a place like this is amazing. It means you’ll work hard for them. Someday, you’ll leave this place and do everything you want to do.”

Even though Sugar didn’t know the fate of this girl, whose name she hadn’t seen in the original game.

Still, if an unfortunate future awaited them, she hoped they could overcome it. At least for the friends she’d made.

It was a strange bond formed through reincarnation. Since they’d become acquaintances, she didn’t want to hear that they were struggling in the future.

It was also something she wanted to tell herself.

After all, emotions are contagious. If she held onto hope, it would surely spread to them.

“…Yeah. I hope so.”

With that blessing in mind, she snipped off the bangs.

“Gyaaaah—!”

“Shh, shh. We agreed on this beforehand.”

“I wasn’t mentally readyyy—!”

Pushing the kid forward after she’d made up her mind was also part of being an adult.

Tommy, crouched in the back, gave Sugar a strange look before clicking his tongue at the ensuing commotion.

…

“Done! You look much better now. Just wash up and change your clothes, and you’ll be good to go.”

She looked much neater, and with her face revealed, she was cute. It wasn’t salon-level, but it was decent for an amateur.

“Ugh… my eyes… I can’t see…”

“Stop whining and go wash up. The director’s going to start yelling soon.”

“Ugh…”

Sugar thought the girl would be too scared to walk around like this and beg her to come along, but surprisingly, she went down on her own.

Feeling relieved, Sugar was cleaning up when suddenly, Tommy rushed over.

“—Ah!”

“What? Why are you acting like this?”

Without answering, he bolted down the stairs. Wondering what was going on, Sugar followed.

Not long after, she heard a scream.

It was Pralin’s voice.

“What’s going on?!”

When she arrived, the scene was ridiculous. Pralin was sitting in front of the bathroom, trembling, with Tommy standing behind her, looking awkward.

Inside the bathroom, all sorts of multi-legged bugs were crawling around. It was quite a sight.

Stunned by the absurd situation, Sugar glanced at Tommy. He looked both awkward and apologetic, his head hanging low.

Ah. So that’s why he’d been so obedient earlier.

Unable to hold back a smile, Sugar approached Tommy.

“Heeh…”

She whispered in his ear, and he stiffened.

“I wonder where those bugs came from…?”

“…I don’t know.”

She deliberately drew out her words, and his ears turned bright red as he refused to look up. She leaned in to get a better look at his face, but he turned away.

His plan had been exposed, and he’d dragged someone else into it. Tommy closed his eyes, enduring the shame he had to bear.

“How strange…”

“…”

“Did someone catch them and let them loose?”

“…Ugh.”

Meanwhile, Pralin’s cries of “Someone, please get rid of them!” echoed hollowly.