𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝙰 𝙼𝚒𝚡𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚎 - 𝙷. 𝚈𝚊𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚊 𝚡 𝙾𝙲

Chapter Four

After the show had ended, Yamada thanked Aoki and made his way back to the breakroom to replace the playlist he had taken off the fridge and add his note for its creator before taking off. What he wasn't expecting to see on his way out of the building was his co-worker curled up on the stiff couch in the reception area. Her hood was pulled over her eyes and her wavy brown hair spilled out of the sides. She had taken her arms out of the sleeves and tucked them against her chest to keep herself warm.

Yamada let out a breathy laugh as he crouched down in front of her and lifted up a section of her hood, gaining her attention. He now noticed she had her earbuds in and he reached a little further and plucked one out, causing her to blush. "I know you work in a few hours, but you sure you don't want a ride home?"

She shook her head. "By the time I get to sleep, it'd really only be an hour and a half of sleep before I'd have to get up and head here anyway."

The blond sighed. "Did you set an alarm? It'd probably be weird to be woken up by the Saturday morning weirdos pulling on the door."

"Yep," the brunette confirmed. "Seven a.m."

He checked his phone for the time, it was already half past four in the morning. If she was lucky she'd get two and a half hours of sleep. "You're a good friend, Aoki," he complimented as he gently placed her right earbud back, his fingers accidentally grazing her warm cheek in the process.

"Thanks, Yamada," she gave him a small, sleepy smile. "It was nice to meet you."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Dimples." Yamada pulled her hood back down over her eyes before he stood up and flicked off the lights beside the door. When he exited, he locked the door and pulled on it a few times just to confirm it was secure for her before making his way to his car with a soft smile on his lips.

-

By the time Aoki woke up and dragged her feet into the break room to make another pot of coffee, she had forgotten about the playlist. Of course, as she passed the fridge and saw a bright yellow sticky note attached to her lined notebook paper held up by that cute little magnet, a sleepy smile made its way across her face.

Maybe even better than last week's.
If that is even possible.
Do you have a show?
I'd love to listen.

-Yamada.

Aoki's cheeks reddened as she read his note. Present Mic would listen to a show if she had one? That's a huge compliment to her. She bit down on her lip while pouring herself a cup of coffee, thinking of their interactions from a few hours earlier. Before she met him she didn't think he'd be mean, but she definitely hadn't anticipated him being as down to earth as he actually was. And as she considered how nice he was to her, along with the cute nickname he'd given her, she couldn't help the flutter of butterflies in her stomach.

As much as she wanted to see him again, Aoki was glad that she hadn't taken the job as his content producer. She knew that spending more time with him would just fan the flames of her unrealistic crush and that would inevitably be, well, crushing.

◁◁ ▐ ▌ ▷▷

Ito leaned back in his chair Monday morning, staring at the break room door as he anxiously awaited Aoki's entrance. When she finally walked in, he waited until she was seated across from him with her coffee in hand before he began to pester her. "So?"

Her eyebrow lifted up."So what?"

"Don't play dumb, Aika. How'd things go with your man on Friday night?"

Brown eyes rolled at him. "It went well. And if anyone asks, you were sick. Alright?"

"Oh come on, you gotta give me more than that," he pressed. "You've had the hots for the guy forever and you got to spend hours alone with him yet all you can say is it went well?"