“Shiraishi-san, do you have a moment?”
The voice behind me brought my fingers on the keyboard to a sudden halt.
“Yes. How can I help you?”
I turned around to find Kuze-san standing there, holding a stack of documents in one hand.
“I took a look at yesterday’s analysis report.”
“Thank you very much. Was there any issue with it?”
“Nothing major,” she replied. “There were just a few details I was curious about.”
Kuze-san stepped closer to my side, leaning down slightly to peer at my monitor.
“I think it would be better to compare the market size trends on a year-over-year basis for the same period. Leaving it as it is mixes in seasonal factors.”
“Ah… you’re right. Comparing it solely by quarters isn’t quite sufficient, is it?”
“Right. The numbers themselves are accurate, and the structure is solid. Matching the conditions for comparison will make it much more persuasive.”
“Understood. I’ll make the adjustments and resend it to you.”
“Thanks. Your documents are always so clean and easy to read. It’s a huge help.”
With those words, Kuze-san gave a soft, gentle smile.
“…Thank you.”
“Fufu, you don’t need to be so formal.”
“No, really—it makes me happy to hear that.”
“I see. Then I’m glad.”
She checked my screen once more, pointing at a specific spot with her fingertip.
“Also, right here. Could you add a one-line supplementary note?”
“Yes. Regarding the comparison targets, correct?”
“Exactly. I love how quick you are to catch on.”
Kuze-san let out a quiet laugh.
For just a fleeting second, I found myself staring at her profile.
The straight, elegant bridge of her nose.
Her beautifully shaped eyebrows.
And the slender nape of her neck, peeking through the strands of hair tucked neatly behind her ear.
“Shiraishi-san?”
“…Ah, yes!”
“Are you okay? Was there anything you didn’t quite understand?”
“No, not at all. Everything is perfectly clear.”
“Then I’m glad. I’ll leave it in your hands.”
“Understood.”
Kuze-san offered a light wave of her hand and headed back to her desk.
I turned back to face my monitor and let out a quiet, trembling breath.
…I did it again.
Staring at someone’s face while they’re giving work instructions.
And she almost caught me in the act.
Seriously, what am I doing?
My hand rose toward my burning cheek, but I stopped mid-air and gripped the mouse again instead.
I am a lesbian.
It was a long time ago when I first realized I was romantically attracted to women.
Oddly enough, there wasn’t any major confusion or distress when the realization struck.
While the girls around me were enthusiastically talking about boys, the ones my eyes naturally followed were always women.
Seeing a beautiful woman would make my heart flutter.
Being treated gently by one would fill me with joy.
However, those feelings almost never evolved into actual romantic love.
I had never dated anyone.
I had never confessed to anyone, nor had anyone ever confessed to me.
Being in my mid-twenties with zero romantic experience might be considered a little unusual.
Yet, I never felt rushed or anxious about it.
I always believed that romance wasn’t something you forced yourself into.
And then came the very first woman I fell deeply, truly in love with.
It was Kuze Iori-san.
I met Kuze-san for the first time in the spring when I had just joined the company.
In the Corporate Planning and Business Development Department where I was assigned, she was one of the senior staff responsible for my training.
My very first impression of her was simply that she was a gorgeous woman.
She was tall, had impeccable posture, and spoke in a calm, soothing voice.
Honestly, I was a little intimidated at first.
However, Kuze-san turned out to be far more approachable than I could have ever imagined.
“If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask me. No one can do everything right from the start,” she had told me.
I still remember those words clearly today.
Of course, I didn’t fall for her just because of that.
Kuze-san was kind to everyone.
There was never a time when I was given special treatment over anyone else.
Even so, there was a clear turning point that made me start viewing her in a different light.
It happened about six months after I joined the company.
For the first time, I was entrusted with preparing meeting materials all by myself.
Even though I was certain I had double-checked everything, a discrepancy in the numbers was discovered right before the meeting was set to start.
My mind went completely blank.
There was practically no time left to fix it.
“Shiraishi-san, what’s wrong?”
The one who called out to me was Kuze-san.
When I explained the situation, she quickly skimmed through my screen.
“I see. The reference source is one version outdated.”
“…I’m so sorry.”
“You can apologize later. Let’s fix it right now.”
No scolding, no useless pity.
Kuze-san pulled up a chair beside me and began going through the necessary corrections together with me.
“I’ll verify this part, so Shiraishi-san, you handle aggregating the data.”
“Yes!”
We finished the task just five minutes before the meeting began.
The moment relief washed over me, my hands shook so hard it was almost pathetic.
“…Thank you so very much.”
When I bowed my head to thank her, Kuze-san tilted her head slightly.
“Shiraishi-san.”
“Yes?”
“You don’t have to forget about what happened today, okay?”
I thought she was going to lecture me.
But the words that followed were completely unexpected.
“If you understand why you failed, you can prevent it next time. That’s more than enough.”
“…Yes.”
“Besides, I was watching you—you tried your absolute best to fix it yourself until the very end.”
I think it was at that exact moment.
The person who had simply been a beautiful senpai transformed into something entirely different within my heart.
I want to become like Kuze-san.
That was what I thought initially.
Yet, before I knew it, that feeling began to shift, taking on a different shape bit by bit.
Whenever I heard her voice, my head would snap up.
On days when she wasn’t in sight, my eyes would unconsciously wander to check her empty seat.
Whenever she talked and laughed happily with other women, my chest would ache for no discernible reason.
It was an emotion that could no longer be explained by mere respect.
Admitting it was simple.
I was in love with Kuze-san.
So deeply in love that I couldn’t help myself.
“…Alright.”
Muttering softly to myself, I got to work on revising the documents.
More than two years had passed since then.
Now, I was trusted with more work on my own, and opportunities to ask Kuze-san for reviews were fewer than before.
Even so, being praised by her still filled me with joy.
Just hearing her call my name was enough to make me a little nervous.
Kuze-san has no idea about my feelings.
And I am doing everything in my power to keep her from finding out.
Because I’m terrified of breaking the relationship we have right now.
Just as my eyes returned to the screen, a notification from our internal office chat popped up.
The sender was Kuze Iori.
Shiraishi-san, there was one thing I forgot to tell you earlier.
Immediately followed by another message:
Do you have a little time right now?
I found myself staring fixedly at the screen, my heart skipping a beat.