Chapter 18.5: Sweet dream

Anemachi, was tired.

"Anemachi! Where is the damn report submission!" Yelling out loud, the middle aged man stood before Anemachi, bald head reflecting light.

Messy desk, opened file cabinets, piles of files that haven't been sorted, and an arrogant superior who recently was caught cheating by his wife. This was her current working environment, unpleasant and stressful.

"Yes, it's done already." Passing the report that she had worked overnight to finish, Anemachi continued. "I have also included a detailed analysis of the project possible flaw and-"

Yet before her sentence ended, an oily hand had already snapped the file away, followed by the fading of rapid footsteps.

"Finally, youngsters nowadays are so lazy. In my earlier days, I would have done it without having people to ask me for it…" Small grumbles echoed from the hallway, leaving Anemachi alone in the office, and an angry girl behind.

'F*ck that pervert, I haven't slept properly for weeks, and this is how he treated me?' Grasping her fist, restricting herself not to curse, Anemachi endured..

She had been working for two months, and it has been nothing but misery. Anemachi wasn't happy, and truth be told, she wanted to quit. No doubt with her previous life experience she can find a better job than this, even if she was still in high school a few months ago.

But she can't, at least not now.

A soft tap on Anemachi's shoulder proceeded, followed by a female's voice, her colleague worrying about her. "Anemachi-san, are you alright?"

'I'm not.' Thoughts went through her mind, but Anemachi's mouth said otherwise.

"I'm fine, just have some insomnia from last night." Anemachi gave an excuse, not wanting to make others worried.

Turning back her head, Anemachi took a look at her colleague. Straight, black hair reaching her waist, cute amber eyes blinking.

"I see, want me to help you grab a coffee?" The colleague said.

"Sure, less sugar, cappuccino." Not refusing, Anemachi took a seat on her desk and continued. "I will pay you back later, thanks."

Laying her head against the desk, proceeding to close her eyes after hearing the sounds of the door being closed, Anemachi decided to catch some sleep, or at least rest a while before her work continued.

And as she closed her eyes, the same images that had been bothering her past few months appeared yet again. A man with a hesitant face, a woman in tears, kneeling on the ground. In the end, the image ended with the slamming of the door.

"Bam!"

"Your coffee, Anemachi." Hot coffee on the desk, Anemachi's eyes blink, not fully awake.

"Nightmare? Your face doesn't look well." Drinking her coffee, the colleague asks. "You should take a rest...Your boss has been manipulating you, you should let the HR know about this."

The colleague was from the production department, she couldn't help Anemachi much in this regard even if she wanted to. And Anemachi's boss was indeed unpleasant, in many regards. (Present Tense)

Claiming Anemachi's work as his own, giving last minute work that required Anemachi to work overnight, the colleague was worried about Anemachi's health.

"I already did that, the HR won't give a damn about it." Waving it off, Anemachi lifted herself. "Ah, why did you buy a hot one?"

"Drinking cold beverages in the morning isn't good for you, Anemachi-san."

"Hmph, busy body." Grumbling, Anemachi opened the lid of the coffee, allowing it to cool off.

Anemachi tongue is sensitive, she can't take in hot things fast.

Watching Anemachi blowing off the steam cutely, the colleague however wanted to know about something else, something that has happened in Anemachi's family recently.

"Your mom still hasn't accepted it yet?" Silence set in, till the colleague saw a small nod from Anemachi, to which she then sighed and responded. "I will be there if you need me, don't hesitate."

"...Thanks." Anemachi responded.

Could she help? Anemachi doubted that, not from distrust, but from knowing the difficulties of it. She has tried everything she could think of, but nothing works.

She was just afraid, that mom will end up doing something stupid.

'But no point in worrying...I still have work to do.' Taking a sip, the bitter caffeine stimulated her dopamine, warmness from the heat covered her stomach.

'Not bad, the coffee.' Anemachi thought.

She still had a long day to go, and the coffee certainly will help.

"Anemachi, where are you god damn it!?" Though it seems like someone won't leave her alone, as an irritating voice pierced through the closed door.

"For heaven's sake… At least let me finish my drink."

"Need me to hold him back for a while?" The colleague asked.

Shaking her head, Anemachi's leg began moving, leaving the half cup of warm coffee behind that she hadn't finished yet. She hated troubling others.

"Thanks, I will be fine."

The door closed, the colleague stared at it, and sighed.

The girl has always been independent, too independent, rejecting many offers of help from others. The colleague wished that Anemachi could at least try relying on her.

'Ah, I wonder why I keep snooping my nose into her affairs…" Thinking to herself, she guesses she just has a motherly nature deep inside, wanting to help everyone around her.

And she knew, although Anemachi may look mature despite her age, she was as fragile as a glass.

When broken, it can no longer be repaired.

Thus, the day of endless work and limited wages started, till the sun set and the street light glowed.

"I'm home." Closing the door behind her, Anemachi managed to drag her tired body back home, the boss as usual threw her another bunch of work that she needs to finish before tomorrow.

Back straining from all the office work, it's only at home where she can relax and recharge her energy.

"Welcome back, onee-chan." And before her of course stood Suisei, still in her school uniform, ponytail swinging around from the running she did after listening to the opening of the door.

"Dinner is ready, you wanna eat first?" Suisei said.

"Sure, I'm starving already." Her mood got better after seeing her cute sister, Anemachi felt that everything she worked hard for was worth it.

However, Anemachi noticed someone was missing when she entered the dining room.

"...Mom is still in her room?" Asking, Suisei replied with a slow nod.

"Did she eat her dinner?" Anemachi asked again, worried

Suisei, who was still walking, stopped her trail. Hesitated, Suisei speaks the truth.

"She barely ate any, only having some rice before going back." Suisei still has trouble accepting their mom acting in this way

"Alright." Nodding, Anemachi tried to not comment much, and walked towards the door.

"Knock, knock." Two quick knocks, Anemachi continued. "Mom, are you inside there?"

After a brief silence, a small "Yes" voice managed to come out.

Giving a breath of relief, Anemachi was afraid her mom would not respond, resorting to the worst solution.

"Take care alright, we are all depending on you." Leaving at that note, Anemachi decided to leave her alone, allowing her to think.

She had tried everything, talking , shouting, convincing, but nothing seems to be able to go through her mind now. Sighing, Anemachi tried to not think too much. Instead, focusing on the people that are around her now.

"Suisei your cooking has been getting better it seems." Biting through a fried tempura, Anemachi commented. "Where did you learn all these? From the TV?"

"One of my friend's family businesses is a classic Japanese cuisine restaurant, she teaches me a few tricks at school." Shaking with a smile on her face, Suisei was happy that Anemachi enjoyed it. "It's not as hard as it seems, maybe I could teach you, if you have the time."

Though looking at the pile of paper Anemachi had brought back home today, Suisei felt a trace of bitterness in her heart. The only thing Anemachi lacked now is time, time to rest.

"More jobs?" Nodding her head slightly, Anemachi tried to ignore Suisei's worried face. "It's alright, it may look a lot, but most can be finished fast."

The harsh truth was: they need the money. Their family doesn't have much savings, and with mom still acting like this, the burden falls upon Anemachi's small shoulders who are still before her twenties. They still need to pay the mortgage for the house, interest to the bank; food, electricity bills…

And as terrible as this job was, the pay was good, perhaps the only redeeming point of this company. In fact, so good that Anemachi hesitated when she knew they were willing to accept a young girl without any apparent working experience. And as she has suspected, there is a catch for this salary, handling workloads that normally will require two people or more.

And that didn't even take into account the terrible boss she has. So it's not surprising that this job has been vacant for a while

"God, who is the idiot that had messed up the balancing for the raw materials." In the living room where the light had been switched off, Anemachi after finishing her dinner immediately began working with her laptop.

Eyes tired from the long screen time, the mistakes from colleagues aren't helping at all. Typing noise being produced in the darkroom, a girl trying to finish her job at hand, tired and sleepy.

Thankfully just like everything, through enough determination and caffeine, every work can be done.

"Fuff…" Making sure to save her file and make a backup, the laptop finally can go rest after a long day, just like Anemachi.

The clock now, 3:12 am, perfect time for a rest.

But, she was lazy though, and her eyes were blurry.

Soon, darkness reigns in the girl's world.

…

And from the darkness, a girl silently crept in, lifted her dear sister, and eventually tugged her into bed.

"You worked very hard, sweet dream." A kiss on the forehead, arm around the body, a smooth snore set in. A worried little sister put her head against a warm chest, engulfing herself within the sweet smell.

She wanted to do what little she could to help Anemachi out, any little things.

It may be hard, the situation they are in.

'But we can do it together.' Printing the faces of her sleeping beloved in her memories, she hoped that she would have a sweet dream as well, even better if the dream involved the person before her.

The girl closed her eyes.

"Good night, onee-chan."