Chapter 37

"Long time no see." Aoba raised his glass first to greet him.

"Hey, young man, long time no see." Oi Sanzo greeted him as well.

"Long time no see." Kobayashi Masahiro replied to both of them.

At this moment, everyone noticed that he was still holding a small cake in his hand.

"Boss, do you have any matches?" Kobayashi Masahiro sat down at the counter and asked Manager Ono.

"Yes, just a moment." Manager Ono turned around and quickly brought out a box of matches to hand to the young man.

"Thank you." Kobayashi Masahiro took the matches and thanked him, then he opened the small cake, which was only the size of a palm, and inserted the thin candles into it.

Perhaps noticing the curious looks from the people around him, he explained, "Actually, today is my birthday. Since I came to Tokyo alone, I don't have any family or friends to celebrate with, so I didn't plan to celebrate. But when I passed by a cake shop just now, I really wanted to blow out the candles on my birthday, so I bought a small cake for myself."

As he spoke, Kobayashi Masahiro had already inserted the candles and lit them one by one with the matches. Seeing the flickering flames, Manager Ono turned off the lights in the shop.

Suddenly, the entire room was plunged into darkness, with only the faint candles still shining.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you." Aoba started singing first.

Then the two girls, Oi Sanzo, and Manager Ono joined in.

"Thank you, thank you everyone." Kobayashi Masahiro said, took a deep breath, and blew out the candles in one go.

Clap, clap, clap, everyone clapped.

Manager Ono turned on the lights, and the shop was bright again. At the same time, he placed a bottle of plum wine in front of Kobayashi Masahiro. "This is on the house, happy birthday."

"Thank you!" Kobayashi Masahiro looked at the plum wine and then at Manager Ono, and smiled.

"Ah, and mine too." The short-haired girl, who had been clapping along, suddenly remembered something and started rummaging through her bag. Soon, she took out a small box about the size of a fist.

The short-haired girl handed the small box to Kobayashi Masahiro and said, "This is a prize I won while singing with my seniors at the KTV. It's not anything valuable, but if you don't mind, I'll give it to you. Happy birthday!"

"Ah, thank you." Kobayashi Masahiro was a bit surprised but quickly took it with both hands. He then looked at the short-haired girl again and, encouraged by her smile, opened the small box. A clear and crisp melody played from inside, the famous "Castle in the Sky."

It turned out to be a small music box.

"I never thought I would receive a birthday gift. Thank you so much, I will cherish it." Kobayashi Masahiro looked up at the short-haired girl with a determined expression.

The short-haired girl blushed slightly under Kobayashi Masahiro's gaze but still smiled happily.

Everyone clapped along to add to the fun.

"Boss, can you help divide the cake into five pieces? I want everyone to share it." Kobayashi Masahiro said to Manager Ono.

"No problem." Manager Ono smiled, took the small cake, and carefully divided it into five pieces, decorating each piece with some fresh fruit.

Finally, he gave the five pieces of cake to the five people present, including himself, one for each.

"Thank you." Everyone thanked him together.

Then they all tasted the special cake.

"Ah, it's only five minutes until midnight." The short-haired girl noticed the time on the old clock.

"Yes, in five minutes, my birthday will be over, but I had a great time today. Thank you all." Kobayashi Masahiro said to everyone, and he even gave a deep look to the short-haired girl.

The short-haired girl blushed again.

Kobayashi Masahiro had a special birthday at Ono-ya, and the pleasant time passed with everyone's laughter.

The hands of the old clock passed midnight. The long-haired girl and the short-haired girl finished their small portions of cake, then ate the pork soup and small bowls of rice they had ordered, and prepared to leave.

"We have work tomorrow, so we'll leave first!" The long-haired girl stood up and said to everyone she had just met but quickly become familiar with.

"Work hard, good luck!" Aoba raised his glass to the two of them.

"Thank you." The two of them said.

"Um, will you come back again?" Kobayashi Masahiro asked, his eyes fixed on the short-haired girl.

"Of course, this is such a great place, we will definitely come back!" The short-haired girl smiled, no longer nervous as when she first entered the shop. She was the type who was quiet in front of strangers but talkative with friends. Now that she was familiar with everyone, she felt no tension.

"Okay, you must come back!" Kobayashi Masahiro said, looking at the short-haired girl.

"Ah, right, isn't there a serial killer around recently? It might not be safe for you two girls!" Aoba suddenly interjected.

The long-haired girl and the short-haired girl's faces changed, and finally, the long-haired girl managed to smile and said, "We'll be careful."

"How about this, Kobayashi-san, why don't you see them home? You should have time, right?" Aoba gave Kobayashi Masahiro a meaningful look.

"Me? Of course, I have time, I'll see you home!" Kobayashi Masahiro reacted quickly and immediately said.

"Um? But wouldn't that be too much trouble for you?" The long-haired girl said with a strange expression.

"Yes, yes, it would be too much trouble." The more timid short-haired girl was clearly tempted but still felt a bit embarrassed.

"It's no trouble at all! You just gave me a birthday gift! Consider this as a return gift." Kobayashi Masahiro stood up immediately and said.

The long-haired girl wanted to refuse, but she hesitated when she saw the short-haired girl's fearful expression.

"Okay, thank you!" Finally, the two girls agreed to Kobayashi Masahiro's offer to see them home.

Thus, Kobayashi Masahiro left with the two girls, his face full of excitement.

"I can only help you this much, the rest is up to you." Aoba raised his glass to the seat where Kobayashi Masahiro had just been.

"Uesugi, well done." Manager Ono smiled and gave Aoba a thumbs up.

"Young people are so great!" Oi Sanzo shook his head and sighed.

"Another beer." Aoba smiled and said to Manager Ono.