More than the fact that a war broke out in a distant country, or that a politician's slush fund scandal was uncovered, the removal of the 65-yen rice ball was a major issue for me.

In a corner of the supermarket, I was standing in front of the shelf.

I was out shopping for dinner.

The cheap rice balls that had been sold for sixty-five yen until then. It was gone. The shelf was filled with rice balls priced over a hundred yen.

A 65-yen rice ball. For a poor student, it was like a blessing from heaven.

I'm worried that it can be this cheap and still be profitable.

Seeing it being removed, it seems they really weren't making any profit at all.

It's not just rice balls. From eggs to detergent, and even toilet paper. Everything was getting more expensive.

"Yet, Tofu, you're amazing..."

I picked up the silken tofu and put it in the shopping basket. Three pieces for 85 yen, tax included. About thirty yen per meal.

How to secure nutrition while living alone is the most important issue.

Vegetables are expensive. Besides, I can't use them up even if I buy them. I can finish cutting vegetables, but I've heard that they actually don't have much nutrition. They say that nutrients are lost during the manufacturing process. I don't know if it's true, but ever since I heard that story, I've been avoiding it for some reason.

Eggs are also expensive. I would buy them, but they're expensive. Apparently, a while ago, I could buy a pack for 100 yen. It's a story from before I started living alone. Now it costs around two hundred yen, or even close to three hundred yen in some cases. It's three times.

There, tofu. It's cheap. Moreover, it's delicious. It also has nutrients. It's the best. Natto is good too. If I have tofu, natto, and eggs, I will manage somehow.

I do consider nutrition to some extent, but I don't particularly want to live a long life. I just don't have the resolve or guts to fully embrace the life of a rogue.

I put the cheapest eggs, tofu, natto, and packaged rice into the shopping basket. A can of mackerel in water, too. It was when I was moving around the store, thinking I might buy some chicken for a change.

"Hello, Clerk-san."

There was also Twenty-five-san, who was holding a shopping basket. When she noticed me, she waved her free hand lightly.

"Thank you."

I bow slightly.

"But, when I'm called Clerk-san in this place, it gets a bit complicated. It's just that other customers might mistake me for a supermarket employee."

"You might be asked where the product is."

"Well, I can guide you, but... It's on the way, after all. More than that, I was surprised. Even you, Twenty-five-san, go grocery shopping at the supermarket, huh?"

"How do you see me?"

"How should I put it, there was no sense of everyday life."

She comes to the convenience store, but she always only buys a pack of cigarettes. She doesn't buy anything else. There was no scent of life coming from her.

"Did you think I only lived on water and dust? I also do normal shopping, you know."

A silver can was carelessly tossed into her shopping basket.

"Is that alcohol?"

"Yes. I like it. It's a highball."

"You smoke and drink alcohol too?"

"I like sweet things too."

Usually, people who drink alcohol don't like sweet things, and those who like sweet things don't like alcohol. However, it seems that Twenty-five-san enjoys both. It feels unusual.

"Is there anything else you want to buy?"

I asked.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I was just wondering if you came to buy groceries for dinner."

In the shopping basket, there are only cans of alcohol. There is nothing else in it at all. There is no hint of life.

"Just alcohol. When I buy alcohol and cigarettes, I don't have any spare money."

"I'm sorry to ask, but are you eating properly?"

"I'm eating, you know? Maybe."

"Then, may I ask about today's menu?"

"In the morning, I have coffee and supplements, for lunch, I have melon bread, and for dinner, it's undecided, but I think I will probably have alcohol and canned tuna."

"...Huh, is it like that every day?"

"That, yes. Mostly."

"..."

I was left speechless. It was much worse than I had imagined. This is still somewhat better than prison food.

"Then, you really should eat more. You will collapse."

"Eh? But I'm healthy, no?"

"That may be true for now, but you might just drop dead one of these days. No matter how I look at it, you're not getting enough nutrients. Natto and things like that are good."

"Natto is slimy and I don't like it."

"Well then, tofu or something."

"The flavor might be too bland and unsatisfying. I also have to buy soy sauce."

"How about the eggs?"

"I have to cook, which is a bit of a hassle. I don't have any cooking utensils at home, you see."

"Not even one?"

"Not even one."

It seems that Twenty-five-san never cooks for herself at all. Even if she doesn't cook for herself, I thought she would at least have one cooking utensil at home.

"To begin with, I don't really like eating. It's just kind of a hassle. Eating alone is boring. Isn't it easier to take supplements?"

"Could it be that Twenty-five-san is really lazy?"

"It might be."

"Maybe, or rather, definitely. Recently, you haven't even thrown garbage bags onto my balcony anymore."

"I know I should throw it away, but before I realize it, it becomes a hassle and I end up putting it off."

Twenty-five-san explains as if making an excuse.

Maybe it's just been left behind without being thrown away. If she doesn't cook much, there probably won't be any food scraps, and the smell should be fine.

When Twenty-five-san looked into my shopping basket,

"Isn't Clerk-san really thoughtful about nutrition?"

She said it as if she were impressed. And then, she asked without a second thought.

"Could it be that you want to live a long life?"

"If I were asked that face to face, it would be embarrassing, but..."

I don't particularly want to live a long life, but I don't want to die young either. I want to live, but I don't have any particular reason to want to live at all costs.

When I think about it that way, her ephemeral way of living seems more beautiful. Like a shooting star that shines the brightest just before it burns out. It seems to be shining.

There's absolutely no way that's true.

"Please really pay attention to your diet. First, you should make sure to eat three proper meals a day."

"Hehe. You don't have to worry. Besides, even if I were to collapse, I wouldn't cause any trouble for Clerk-san."

"That's not it!"

Before I knew it, I was raising my voice.

"It's not about being a burden or anything like that. I don't want you to collapse. I want Twenty-five-san to stay healthy."

A way of life is like a shooting star that shines brightly just before burning out.

People watching from afar might be delighted by the beautiful sight. They might cheer and say it's cool.

But I'm not happy. Even if she doesn't emit light, I don't want her to disappear. I want her to continue existing in the night sky without burning out.

I thought so. That's why I was mumbling.

"...I-I see..."

Suddenly, when I raised my voice at her, Twenty-five-san's eyes went wide. It was the first time I had seen her look so surprised like this.

After a pause, shame welled up inside me. I ended up raising my voice inside the store. The customers passing by cast a glance at us. I am struck by an indescribable awkwardness.

"I received a scolding."

Twenty-five-san muttered self-deprecatingly. Rather than directing it at me, it was as if she was revealing what was in her own heart.

"If a younger boy scolds me to my face, I really have to listen to you."

After saying that, she suddenly smiled. And then she asked for my opinion.

"Clerk-san, could you accompany me for a bit longer while I shop?"

☆

After leaving the supermarket, we walked towards the apartment.

The sun is setting, and the city's dark shadows are stretching across the asphalt.

Both of our hands were carrying shopping bags. Mine is an eco-bag. Twenty-five-san had an L-sized plastic bag.

The grocery bag was filled with food items. Canned mackerel and packaged rice, for example. Instead, the number of canned highballs had decreased.

"I'll carry your luggage."

"Is that okay?"

"I’m the one who pretty much made you buy all this."

If things had gone according to plan, it would have just been alcohol. It was just a can of Highball. There were added mackerel cans, rice, and cut vegetables.

The added weight is my fault. So I thought I would carry it.

"Thank you very much."

She says with a smile.

It was a simple word of thanks. Not thanks or thank you, bunny. I wonder if she only uses other expressions when she's at the convenience store.

Carrying shopping bags in both hands, I walk down the road dyed in the evening sun and think. Why did I raise my voice so much earlier? I'm feeling embarrassed about it now, even though it's too late.

Her eating habits shouldn't have anything to do with me. Even if she were to collapse, as long as it doesn't cause me any trouble. And yet.

"Um, I'm sorry about earlier. I raised my voice. Moreover, it was inside the store. I was also seen by the people around me."

After making a puzzled face, Twenty-five-san says teasingly.

"If they remember your face, it might be a bit awkward to go to the store next time."

"...I'm sorry."

"But, I was scolded for the first time in a while. Even though I was often exasperated, I was hardly ever scolded to my face."

"Weren't you so cheeky?"

"That's true. I was a bit cheeky."

She broke into a gentle smile.

"I was happy that you were worried about me. I was happy to know that you don't want me to collapse."

Twenty-five-san had walked a little ahead of me, stopped, turned around, and looked back. By that time, the sun had already set, and the blue of night had arrived.

With her hands clasped behind her back, she says.

"By the way, I also want Clerk-san to be well."

"Is it because there will be no one to take out the trash?"

"It's lonely when I don't have friends."

The lit street lamp faintly illuminates her figure. She was faintly smiling.

After all, the night suits her.

Feeling the weight of the shopping bags in both hands, I was thinking about such things.

Chapter 8: Bumping Into Someone at the Supermarket