The salesgirl immediately understood—yes, the store could indeed handle deliveries.
Whenever new arrivals came in, posters and introductions would be sent out to regular customers. If they saw something they liked, they would simply contact the manager via phone or Line, pay online, and the manager would have the staff pack the clothes and send them out by courier.
"That's possible, but you'll need to pay in advance, including shipping costs."
"Even for local delivery, there's a fee?" Kotomi Izumi asked.
"For local delivery, there's no charge. But since it's local, wouldn't it be easier for you to just take it home and give it to your friend directly?" The salesgirl asked, a little puzzled.
Kotomi coughed, thought for a moment, then explained: "Actually, that 'friend' I mentioned earlier is… my lover. I think this long down jacket is nice, so I wanted to buy one for her too."
"Oh! I see, you want to surprise your lover, that's why you're having it delivered instead of giving it yourself. When she opens the package and finds the down jacket you sent her, she'll definitely be touched.
"And the friend who's trying on clothes in the fitting room right now—she came with you to help pick a gift for your lover, right? Is this your first time in a relationship? That's totally normal. Back in school, the first time I dated, I also brought a friend along to help me pick a gift for my boyfriend. We spent half a day choosing. Ah, youth really is wonderful. In the blink of an eye, I'm older now, and that boyfriend from school has long since become someone else's husband.
"Ah, sorry, once you reach a certain age, seeing young people makes you sigh like this." The salesgirl finished with an apologetic smile.
The one trying clothes in the fitting room is also my lover. And how are you so good at talking? I didn't even come up with an excuse yet, and you already finished making it for me… Kotomi thought silently, then nodded.
"Ah, yes… that's right. Sister, you should talk more like this. I think before long, you'll be able to replace the manager."
"Oh no, you flatter me. I just know how to talk a little. In this business, being a sales clerk isn't about other skills—you have to know how to speak. People who are too shy could never do this job."
The salesgirl often flattered customers, but rarely got compliments herself. Hearing Kotomi's words, her smile widened, and she eagerly continued:
"These days, girls rarely take the initiative to create romantic gestures for their lovers. Relationships can't just rely on one side giving. There has to be balance."
Among the same long down jackets, Kotomi didn't pick the khaki color, but chose a white one instead.
"This one. But change the size for me, this one's a bit too big."
"Got it, no problem. Please wait just a moment."
Not only was the salesgirl good with words, she was also efficient. She noted down the product code and jogged off to the stockroom, quickly returning with a white down jacket.
Just then, Megumi Kato came out of the fitting room wearing the khaki long down jacket.
It had to be said, the khaki coat suited her very well.
"How does it look?" Megumi spun around in front of Kotomi, asking.
Kotomi was never good at saying fancy words like the salesgirl. What she feared most while shopping was when her girlfriend asked for her opinion after trying something on. All she could manage was a simple: "Really pretty."
Even though it was just three plain words, Megumi still felt very happy hearing them. Smiling brightly, she turned back to the fitting room to change out of the jacket and get ready to pack it for purchase.
As Kotomi watched Megumi walk back inside, she quickly turned to the salesgirl and said: "Three down jackets, check out. Also, give me an address slip. I'll write down the address and have it delivered today. I'll cover the shipping fee as well, understood?"
The salesgirl nodded vigorously, her expression saying I get it, you young people are so romantic. She swiftly brought out the payment code and address slip. After paying, Kotomi picked up a ballpoint pen and began writing on the slip.
Kotomi wrote down the Yuigahama family's address, putting the recipient's name as: Yui Yuigahama.
After all, this white down jacket was meant for Yui.
The salesgirl began helping with the packaging, first wrapping up the white down jacket and setting it aside near the counter to avoid Megumi Kato noticing when she came out. Only then did she slowly start wrapping the two khaki coats.
When Megumi came out of the fitting room, she noticed Kotomi had already paid. She leaned close to her ear and whispered: "So the great author Izumi-sensei has this much money now? These two coats aren't cheap."
Not two… three… Kotomi thought awkwardly to herself, forcing a smile.
"While I was waiting for you, I just went ahead and paid."
"Kotomi, aren't you going to try on your coat in the fitting room? If the size isn't right, you can still change it now. But once we go home and cut off the tag, you won't be able to exchange it."
Megumi glanced at the two khaki coats being wrapped up as she spoke.
Kotomi shook her head. "Since high school, I've always bought this size. No need to try it on."
After saying that, Kotomi suddenly felt bold. She reached out and held Megumi's hand. "You're really that eager to wear matching couple outfits with me, huh, Megumi~?"
"What else?" Megumi chuckled in reply. She had long realized her little cutie loved to flirt without even noticing, making her want to kiss her right there on the spot.
If it weren't for the salesgirl still being present, Kotomi's lips would have already been captured by Megumi's.
The salesgirl, after finishing the packaging of the two khaki coats, was just about to call out to them, but then she caught sight of Kotomi and Megumi holding hands. She didn't think much of it—just assumed it was a sign of close friendship between two girls.
After all, back in her own school days, she herself had always liked touching her female desk mate's thigh.
"Ladies, your coats are all wrapped up. Anything else you need?"
"No, thank you." Megumi said, taking the two bags.
"Thank you for your patronage. Please come again!"
After leaving the store, Kotomi and Megumi strolled around some more, though they didn't find any other tops they liked.
"Should we buy a dress? When you win the Tokyo Metropolitan University National Youth Art Prize, you'll probably need a formal dress for the event, right?"
"The second exhibition hasn't even started yet. It's way too soon to think about prize-winning pieces. There are lots of excellent entries—I can't guarantee I'll win anything." Kotomi laughed playfully.
There was also something she didn't tell Megumi: in the Izumi family, all the formal wear, dresses, and shoes for events were custom-tailored in advance.
There was no need to go out and buy a dress at all.
But Kotomi didn't say it, because she didn't want Megumi to feel the gap in their family backgrounds was so wide.
Well-matched families?
Even if Megumi's father was the section chief of finance at Tokyo Central Bank, looking up, he still had no qualifications to directly face the Izumi family—let alone be considered well-matched.
"I remember there's a movie theater upstairs. Want to go check it out?" Megumi Kato noticed that Kotomi didn't seem to enjoy shopping for clothes very much. Remembering how much Kotomi liked movies, she made the suggestion.
"But none of the movies showing here look interesting…"
Kotomi flipped casually through the shopping mall brochure she had picked up earlier. It listed the features of each floor and the distribution of shops—like how the third floor was focused on food. It also listed the movies currently showing in the cinema, along with posters and ads.
After glancing over the movie titles and posters, Kotomi didn't find anything she liked.
"How about swimsuit shopping, then?" Megumi suggested.
"Swimsuits? But it's almost winter."
Kotomi was confused. Most outdoor pools and water parks had already closed for the season. In autumn and winter, people who wanted to swim usually went to indoor pools.
"My dad's friend gave him a few tickets to a hot spring water park. My dad doesn't have time to go, and my mom can't swim and isn't interested, so he passed the tickets to me and told me to invite some classmates. I haven't decided who else to give them to yet, but one ticket definitely belongs to you, Kotomi."
"Heh, so you just want to see me in a bikini, huh?" Kotomi grinned mischievously, deliberately teasing Megumi.
Every time they got intimate, even if Kotomi was the one to start it, things would gradually shift until Megumi was the one in control—and Kotomi ended up on the receiving side.
Kotomi had always thought of herself as the "top" in their relationship, so she had strong opinions about this. Whenever she got the chance, she would say whatever came to mind to tease Megumi. Seeing Megumi blush always gave her a huge sense of satisfaction—enough to keep her in a good mood for the whole day.
"Stop… Can't I even have a little secret? You've already seen right through me." Megumi answered shyly, a blush spreading across her cheeks.
Of course, she was pretending. She had long realized that Kotomi loved seeing her blush, as if it gave Kotomi a great sense of accomplishment, making her happy for an entire day.
So whenever Megumi wanted something, she would just play along, feigning embarrassment at Kotomi's teasing. Once Kotomi was in high spirits, she would agree to anything.
"Then let's buy swimsuits. The hot spring water park… even if we don't swim, we can just relax in a hot spring pool. One ticket for you, one for me. What about the rest—have you decided who to give them to?"
Kotomi thought she had succeeded in making Megumi blush again and was feeling smug about it.
"Not yet," Megumi said lightly.
Because it'll just be the two of us going to the water park… Megumi thought to herself with a smile in her eyes.
Her father really had received hot spring water park tickets and given them all to her. But she hadn't told Kotomi the exact number. Instead, she had vaguely said "a few" to make it unclear.
In truth, there had only been three tickets.
And Megumi had secretly torn one up, leaving just two—so she and Kotomi could have the water park all to themselves.
She had even heard that right next to the water park was a five-star hotel.
Thinking about that, her smile deepened. Looks like I need to get Kotomi to buy a few swimsuits~
They arrived at the swimsuit shop inside the Chiba Shopping Mall.
With online shopping so convenient, far fewer people came to shop at malls these days. Some floors barely had any customers at all throughout the day, leaving the place feeling quiet. The only lively spots were the supermarket on the first floor, the food court on the third, and the cinema at the top.
It was no exaggeration to say that now, about 80% of the people who came to the Chiba Shopping Mall were heading there for the cinema. After all, it had an IMAX theater, one of the most popular in Chiba City.
What's more, part of the reason the restaurants and food court on the third floor could still keep business was thanks to the cinema. After watching a movie, many customers would naturally head down to the third floor for a meal before leaving.
Now that it was autumn heading into winter, even fewer people came to buy swimsuits. Those who did enter mostly just walked a circle around the shop before leaving. The swimsuit shop manager was even considering whether to close early in a few days.
Across from the swimsuit store was a women's clothing shop that had customers year-round. Every time the swimsuit shop owner looked at the crowds over there, he would sigh: If only I had opened a clothing shop instead.
The staff had gone from five people down to just one.
This one remaining clerk had a pretty easy job these days. With autumn already here and winter around the corner, almost no customers came to buy swimsuits. She would open the store at 9 a.m., sit on the sofa behind the counter all day, and sometimes not even see a few customers enter.
Her daily routine was simple: play on her phone, buy lunch at the third-floor food court, take a nap on the sofa afterward, then watch dramas, movies, anime, or read novels with her headphones on. She would slack her way until 8 p.m., tidy up, lock up, and head home. That was her workday.
Of course, there were occasional busy times too, and when that happened, she still worked diligently. After all, she hoped even more than the boss that the store could keep running. A job this easy was almost impossible to find again.
Today, by the shop's standards, business was considered lively. A pair of swimming goggles and two swim rings had already been sold, enough to make the lone clerk feel a little overwhelmed.
It's been a long time since the store has been this busy, she thought.
When Kotomi Izumi and Megumi Kato walked into the store, the clerk quickly greeted them. "Welcome. How can I help you? Are you looking for swimsuits or goggles? We also have snorkeling gear."
"We'd like to pick out some swimsuits first."
"Would you like me to introduce some styles?"
"No need, thank you. Oh, by the way, do you have fitting rooms?" Megumi asked.
"Of course. Just head upstairs, the changing rooms are on the second floor. Please take your time browsing, and if you need anything, just call me."
With that, the clerk hurried off to help some other customers pick out goggles. After all, the store would be closing soon for the season, only reopening near summer next year. Until then, she needed to sell off as much stock as possible.
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