Chapter 6 part II
[Author's Note]
Part 2 was made because character limit was reached. Lol.
Janine
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WHEN I woke up every morning onwards, the cicadas buzz outside my window every 10 in the bright morning. The thought that my all-around job description was now at downtime occurred to me. I checked my LinkedIn account in hopes that Jackson might have messaged back. He didn’t. At least not yet. Bummed, I fixed my rumpled room in what obaa-chan said was a “messy place.” To which I digress wholeheartedly—Hai. So a little futon folding and dusting off around my lime green and neon pink space then after that I’ll lounge in the pool.
Again?
Ii yo… I don’t want to be a pool couch potato anymore. It’s not fun piling up my body mass with idle fats. The accumulated effects of it speaks so much of my indolent lifestyle. I need a gig. Soushite… Off I go again to the place where I think I can do some refresher when it comes to the good old hustle.
I was walking around the alleyway of my typical route in Shinjuku. It was a narrow alleyway before you reached the pub, when I saw a silhouette of an old man standing nearby a vending machine holding a cigarette. Puffing it quickly before he let out an easy smoke. He had his necktie loose and somewhat forgot to shave when the stubble of his growing beard was quite prominent. When he turned around, it happened that it was Ito-san all along.
“Ito-san~ Doushita no?” I said, wondering what he's doing around here in the middle of the day.
Ito-san had that restless gaze of detachment when it was immediately replaced by recognition, his expression moved as much as his eyes widened. “Eli-chan… hisashburi da. Where have you been?”
Ah, my good old man. Same old things. I began to walk with a flair with this high stilettos my stylist recommended for a day as I began to romp like a pageant queen in every Philippine Festival here in Tokyo. I also made a hair flip for the effect. “Why look elsewhere, Ito-san? When I’m here in front of you?” I said, buttering up this mundane encounter with a short giggle. When I reached in front of him, I bat my well-coated black eyelashes. Until I broke character minutes after I laughed with candor at this farce. I flipped my wrist. “Nande? You miss me already?"
Ito-san only made that lifted quirk of his one cheek with a feeble smirk when he followed his gaze around my face. He later cleared his throat until he reached out his hand to cover mine. “Eli-chan… listen. I may not have everything like youth but you can rely on me that I will never leave you.” He tightened his hold.
O-okay? Nani?
Ito-san’s eyes focused on me. “Eli-chan, marry me. I have the annual five million yen and you’ve known me long enough that you’re my favorite hostess.”
“You’re my favorite customer too, Ito-san.” I nodded wholeheartedly.
“Marry me. Let’s get away from this place. Let’s find somewhere warmer.”
Oh… so Ito-san is on his retirement. I nodded again, understanding where he’s coming from. “You’re a bachelor, Ito-san?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Iie. But you believe me, my children are all functioning working adults in this society now.”
Curious, I asked again, “How old are they?”
Ito-san pursed his lips but he nodded in eagerness. “Around your age, Eli-chan. However, I don’t see you like them. I see you as a woman.”
Okay…
Ima, where is this going again?
My head spins to calculate all the factors that consider the options I have in life. Still, my first priority will always be Jackson. Second, okane—which Ito-san probably has a lot of, so check on this tickbox. But is it aligned with Jackson?
It didn’t. Uwaa~ It didn’t meet the criteria, Ito-san. Gomene. For now, I have to settle with someone with the okane plus Jackson-aligned. Hai. Demo, I’m grateful for Ito-san too.
“Ito-san, you know, I think I should thank you for teaching me about the five million yen. You see, someone offered that to me earlier and I accepted it.”
Ito-san was taken aback, he withdrew his hand. “Ha? Who is this?”
“Ito-san, do you remember when I said about me being a Minato-ku girl?” When Ito-san sat with that information, I pouted, asking for his consolation. “I’m now a MInato-ku girl.”
“The audacity. How dare he…” he exhaled as he braced his hips when his temper rose. “I’ll double it, Eli-chan. Divorce him.”
Oh, wow. Ito-san fights, it seems.
“Ito-san… ano…” I blurted. “It’s actually triple.”
Ito-san’s face drained when his facial muscle dropped. “Ha?” he croaked.
I gestured my hand. “And a little allowance. Ma, basically, the tripled five million yen is my annual base. Eto…”
Ito-san grew quiet and frozen. His lips moved without making a word, until he began to utter sounds and then pushed a stifled slight cough in his throat. “Ma.” Ito-san straightened his posture as he began to fix his tie. “I do hope you’re happy with him, Eli-chan. You just know what kind of man you’ve lost. Jaa.” Then he walked past me at a quick pace soon after.
Aré? What did I do?
I turned my head around, quizzical with my furrowed brows at what just happened. Ito-san, however, was already meters away from my horizon with his back the only one visible from view. Until it’s drowned out by the throng of crowds. With a slight shrug, because I have no idea why Ito-san is suddenly sulking, I entered the pub. And here, I remember the sounds, the chatter and the smell of an aging beer. Mama-san greeted me and I said that I want to apply for a part-time job. She agreed without question, and that’s how I began as a rehired hostess once again.
This is the place where I knew all the crooks and cranny. Shinjuku, Tokyo somewhere around 4-5 chome and you see me pouring drinks. No questions.
The only time I actually felt lost was probably that time when I first met Masato’s family. I know about Masato speaking nonsense. Damn, however, when it comes to his oka-san. Masato's oka-san has the same look as Takahashi-san and Hanazawa-san. This one. however, is more pronounced with a question in Masato’s oka-san’s quick gaze: “Ima, who's this stray dog you picked up from the streets, Masato? Are you sure this one has a breed? It does look like a mongrel.”
I tried not to do the same devilry I did like the last time I was at a gala. But then I struggled so hard to recollect the one that I’ve been learning for so long. Shit, what did I learn from Yumeko-san's very pure, very innocent, very demure, very soft, very cute, very everything in between again?
I tried to recall.
Dakedo…
I forgot them. Kuso! Where are you when I needed you the most? Pure girl energy, come on! Bring your inner pureness in me.
Nothing came. I was left to be made like a slob.
Keep in mind, Janine, this is a job paid well. You've got to do your own public relations management. A job is a job and I'm here to get paid. Keep my eyes on the price. Stay choosy, oka-san—oh, wait…
Bingo! A bright idea.
Then I started calling her oka-san. And damn if that didn’t crept on her like it’s a worm about to shed her skin. I was later welcomed into the family. It wasn't easy. Talk about not having a clear job description.
Ha~
Imagine the stress. Thank goodness I’m now at downtime. I can visit my own oka-san who suddenly tells me she wanted to island hop around Awaji Island next week, posting it later on her Facebook account with her thick sunglasses on. Good for her.
Having the time to browse on my own SNS, I visited my favorite forum site again to share my helpful tips about life questions. I found a very long question which I think needed a comprehensive answer. This user is lucky I’m currently on my relaxed time to give him my own extensive thoughts.
The Yahoo Chiebukuro’s question for the day asked:
“My wife is a Filipina and her sense of money is hopeless. She belongs to a financially stable family but spends a lot as if there's no tomorrow. She doesn't know how to save. When I discussed saving money with her, she cried and asked me why we were talking about money. What should I do? How can I tell her we need to save for our future?
Is this truly their national trait?”
And here’s my answer, sighing out in satisfaction to enlighten the unseasoned ones:
“I'm sorry. But it goes on to say that your Filipina wife is not that different from any ‘financially stable’ Japanese wife. Let me be honest: you're just financially insecure. Which has nothing to do with their national ‘trait.’
Since you say she's from ‘a financially stable family,’ your wife is probably pampered. Where she's been a princess when you took her away. Her father's mantra is probably ‘happy wife, happy life.’
The national trait impressed by every Nihonjin here in Nihon is that they have a stable yen. That's it.
She'll probably divorce you eventually and would find someone more capable like her father through an American Dollar, a Spanish Euro, a British Pound Sterling, a German Euro or an Australian Dollar for example. And she'll be happier because her cultural and high lifestyle has always been Western-oriented. I'm sorry if that's the case, you can't afford her.
But try talking to her again. If she doesn't want to discuss your worries like a mature adult that she should be by now, and your Filipina wife sulks instead, then divorce her. Just cite incompatible personalities as the cause of divorce. Easy.
Daijoubu ne. Kōrō-shō already expected your fallout. You both top the international divorce rate statistics anyway. Another ordinary day at the office in Kōrō-shō.”
♠|♠
[Author's Note]
Releasing this in celebration to Bini and Esbi performing in Summer Sonic 2026 at Osaka and Tokyo.
Weeee(/^ω^)/♪♪
My initial plan is to release the two chapters (Ch. 6-7) simultaneously. But I'm done with this and I'm busy fangirling to Esbi and Bini. So out my first finished draft go for this chapter.
