Band Girls’ Mixology Mission [19]

“Alright then, little Sakiko, I’ll send you the shift schedule later on LINE.”

It was already 8:30 PM. The sky was fully shrouded in night, with the dim glow of old streetlights blending into the bright, silvery moonlight.

At Sakiko’s own suggestion, despite only having interviewed that morning, she officially started work that very afternoon. And as it turned out, her impressive performance during Kikukawa Yuu’s test earlier wasn’t just a fluke.

Though she still had to ask Yuu about certain things, it was only natural—after all, she was new to the job and unfamiliar with some of the finer details.

The more Yuu observed Sakiko, the more she liked her. Smart, capable, and good-looking—not to mention how well she got along with Yuu’s little sister.

“It’s getting late. Be careful on your way home, Sakiko. Don’t take any back alleys,” Yuu reminded her, watching as Sakiko removed her bookstore apron and walked to the entrance. Since the store wouldn’t close until 9 PM, Yuu had let her off early, not wanting her to be out too late.

“Don’t worry, Yuu-san. My house is pretty close—about a ten-minute walk.” Sakiko turned back to face Yuu and gave a polite bow.

As she stepped out of the bookstore, her gaze naturally drifted toward VA-11 HALL-A, still open across the way. After a brief moment of thought, she decided to go in and say hello.

“Welcome… oh, it’s Sakiko-san.”

There wasn’t a single customer inside. Behind the bar, Izumo stood leisurely—wiping down a glass. So bartenders really do spend most of their time doing that, huh?

Meanwhile, Kikukawa Kyo was supplying her with glasses to clean. She was holding a cup of mocha coffee, sipping it slowly. On the counter in front of her, two other empty cups sat with faint traces of liquid still inside, evidence that they had only recently been finished.

“Just how much have you had? Drinking too much water isn’t good for you, you know.”

“Mmm… last one,” Kyo mumbled.

She didn’t even dare to answer properly. That only made Sakiko even more curious about just how much she’d actually drunk.

Izumo chimed in on her behalf. “Don’t worry, Sakiko-san. The young store owner knows her limits. Once she drinks too much, she switches to only taking tiny sips per minute to control her intake. Besides, I keep an eye on her too.”

“So what you’re saying is—she knows it’s bad, but she still refuses to stop,” Sakiko pointed out flatly.

“That’s just part of her charm,” Izumo said with a graceful smile. It was the kind of refined, elegant expression that was almost mesmerizing. Is this just something all “competent” bartenders have in common?

“Why don’t you stay a while, Sakiko-san? This time, I’ll mix you a drink,” Izumo offered, her smile turning subtly enticing.

A natural-born bartender, Sakiko thought.

“Thank you for the offer, Izumo-san, but I was just stopping by to say hello. I’m heading home now,” Sakiko politely declined. “Are you staying until 9, like Yuu-san?”

“Yuu-nee will be walking me home, so it’s perfectly safe. But I appreciate your concern.”

At that moment, Kyo—who had been silently drinking her coffee—finally finished, placing the cup down as she joined the conversation.

“When I say my sister’s a delinquent, I’m not joking. Wouldn’t surprise me if she’s already beaten up every gang in the area since opening the bookstore.”

Wait, what?

Sakiko blinked.

She found it hard to imagine. A woman with a face so similar to Kyo’s, getting into fights…?

Even though she didn’t know Kyo that well yet, Sakiko still didn’t see her as the type to get into brawls. So she had always assumed that Kyo calling Yuu a delinquent was just a running joke.

“Surprised?”

There it was again—that amused little “huff” of laughter that was just subtly irritating.

Sakiko was starting to pick up on a pattern—whenever Kyo was feeling smug or taking delight in someone else’s reaction, that sound would always come out. And, notably, it only seemed to happen around people she was comfortable with.

“Well, I’ll get going, then. Since I’ll be working at the bookstore now, I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other. Goodnight, Izumo-san.”

As always, Sakiko bowed in farewell before turning toward Kyo.

For a brief moment, she hesitated, standing there in silence, as if she were contemplating something.

But in the end, she simply said,

“Kyo. I’ll honor our contract.”

“Until then, I’ll be counting on you.”

Then, she smiled—

A genuine, heartfelt smile.

Since leaving the Toyokawa household, perhaps the first truly sincere one.

For some reason, as she watched her, Kyo thought of the bright, clear glow of the moon.

“Alright, finally closing time! Time to call it a day!”

After double-checking that all the power was switched off, Kikukawa Yuu and Izumo locked up Kikukawa Bookstore and VA-11 HALL-A, respectively, getting ready to head home.

Yuu would be walking Izumo home first. Kyo didn’t mind taking a detour—she was familiar enough with Izumo by now, and in a way, Izumo was even something like her apprentice.

Though, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Izumo had a not-so-subtle thing for her sister. But hey, not her problem.

Once Izumo had been safely seen home, only the Kikukawa sisters remained, walking together through the quiet night streets.

At last, Yuu could no longer hold back her curiosity.

“So, little sis, be honest—do you have some special feelings for this Sakiko girl?”

Kyo rolled her eyes, unimpressed by her sister’s nosiness.

“You’re asking me that? You, of all people, know I can’t tell emotions apart.”

“I was just surprised by how much you seem to care about her. You were never like this with your middle school classmates. If anything, you were… pretty distant with them.”

Kyo tilted her head, thinking it over.

“That’s true, I guess. But I’ve taken an interest in other people before, too.”

“Oh? Who?”

“The members of my old band. Their emotions were way more complicated than my classmates’, so I wanted to figure them out.”

Yuu squinted at her, suspicion written all over her face.

Kyo responded with another eye-roll.

“Are you sure it’s just that? Because Izumo told me you and Sakiko have some kind of ‘contract’? Now, that’s not a word you hear every day.”

Yuu threw an arm around Kyo’s shoulders, grinning mischievously.

“In fact, in today’s world, there’s really only one common use for that term… a marriage contract. So, tell me—what exactly is your relationship with Sakiko?”

“It’s exactly what I said. A contract.”

“And what kind of relationship is that?” Yuu pressed, curious about the terms of their agreement.

“A relationship that’s easier to define than ‘friends,'” Kyo replied, as evasive as ever.

Yuu raised both hands in surrender.

“Fine, fine. I shouldn’t have asked. But at least answer this one question for me.”

“What question?” Kyo shot her a wary glance, already bracing herself to roll her eyes again.

“What did you drink today? You’ve been randomly sticking your tongue out all night. The last time I saw you do that was when you snuck a taste of beer.”

“…Sakiko’s saliva.”

“?”

In an instant, Yuu spun around and blocked Kyo’s path, grabbing both her shoulders.

“I was just joking, but you’re serious?!”

“It was just the same straw,” Kyo clarified, patting her sister’s arm to get her to calm down. “Just a tiny bit. Not even enough to pick up a fragment of an emotion.”

But in its place, something else lingered—

A faint, almost imperceptible sound, constantly circling around her.

Yet, every time she tried to catch hold of it, it slipped away like mist, leaving no trace behind.

It was irritating. Restless. And she had no idea how to deal with it.

Ignoring her sister, who was now dramatically exclaiming, “Incredible!” and tossing aside her growing frustration, Kyo made a decision.

Time to head home, take a shower, and sleep.

—

This is a fan translation of 乐队少女调饮行动 by 林明卿. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!