Chapter Four
Sitting around a round wooden table at a hole-in-the-wall pub in Osaka with her coworkers, Sajime bounced her foot up and down underneath. Asking for help wasn't particularly her forte. As her team's editor, editing assistant, drawing assistant, and account manager drank celebratory soju, she knew she had to do it like ripping off a bandaid.
"Um, guys?" Sajima cleared her throat apprehensively.
Takeuchi stopped talking and glanced over at her. The uncertainty in her tone alarmed him, and he felt his stomach lurch. He wasn't unaware of her brutal schedule and was immediately worried she was about to announce something terrible. "Please tell me you're not backing out, Sumire."
She shook her head and he let out a breath of relief. "I'm not, but I...I do need some help."
"Pfft, anything for you!" Her account manager Mai Ito laughed, her cheeks rosy and warm from the alcohol.
"Yeah, 'Mire," budding artist Kaneshi smiled supportively. "We've got your back; what's up?"
Takeuchi waited for Sajima to continue, still concerned but not nearly as much. "I've been having trouble finding inspiration lately, and that's part of why I've been running late so often."
"You're always late," Takeuchi's assistant Kenji Kondo pointed out, biting his tongue to hold back telling her that the deadline they give her is always a day early to account for her tardiness. In reality, she was actually consistent with their actual deadlines. They were glad she was constant in her own way.
Sajima rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Yeaaaaah. Sorry about that, guys. I've really been dropping the ball, huh?"
"So, what do you need from us?" Ito piped up.
Kaneshi nodded. "Yeah, how can we help?"
"Well, I don't really know where to find inspiration anymore. I'm working from five-thirty in the morning 'til at least midnight each night, and I can hardly think of anything to draw half the time. I start with the panel outlines and listen to music to try and help get my mind moving, or I people-watch at Jump Start, but it just hasn't been working lately."
"That right there's the problem, Sumire. You're stuck at a table in the same spot for so many hours every day," Kaneshi pointed out. "Live a little. I can take on more work so you can go and have at least some semblance of a life. At least for a short while."
Takeuchi took a swig of his beer. "I agree."
"Me too."
Sajima hummed, thinking about what she might do if she had more free time. She was invited to Sakusa's volleyball game on Friday but planned to bring her sketchbook to work on drafts during any breaks they might take. Maybe he's right. Perhaps she should try to have a life outside of manga again.
"Don't act like it's some huge decision," Takeuchi laughed, flicking the side of Sajima's head. "Just do it. We can always find another assistant if we really need to."
Feeling a weight lifting off her shoulders, Sajima smiled at her coworkers. Her friends. "Thanks, guys. Now I just have to figure out what adventures I'll go on!"
Her assistant raised his glass and tipped it to clink against hers. "That's the spirit! Your struggling student apprentice could use the extra money for art school, so really you're doing me a favour."
Sajima cocked her head to the side, her midnight hair falling into her face in the process. "Don't you still live with your parents?"
Kaneshi shrugged. "Art supplies ain't cheap, babe."
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𝚂𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝙳𝚊𝚢 𝙵𝚘𝚘𝚕 - 𝙺. 𝚂𝚊𝚔𝚞𝚜𝚊 𝚡 𝙾𝙲
Fanfictionꜱᴀᴋᴜꜱᴀ x ᴏʀɪɢɪɴᴀʟ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ Kiyoomi Sakusa was a creature of habit. He had a strict routine for both workdays and days off. Very rarely were exceptions made to these daily schedules. At least they were rare until Sumire Sajima,the slob of a woman wh...
