I’m Ai, 28 years old. After high school, I got a local job and now it’s been ten years since I joined the company. Every year, our department picks one of the younger female employees to be the “team leader,” which really just means the one stuck doing all the grunt work.
Since I refused, the role went to Misaki, who’d just been transferred from headquarters. Whenever she asked me to do something, I’d just say, “No way,” or “Can’t do it,” until she gave up. Then, at the office BBQ, Misaki snapped and came at me: “You won’t lead, you won’t help, so what exactly can you do?”
Mom sometimes texted me about remodeling our family’s old sushi shop. But when I finally went home for the first time in a while, I was shocked. The big, weathered sushi sign was gone—replaced by a small, shiny new one. It looked like a completely different place.
When I slid the door open, Mom greeted me with the brightest smile. I’ve always lived to avoid losing. If something seemed like more trouble than it was worth, I’d refuse and let someone else deal with it. I thought people who just went along with everything were fools. Deep down, I just didn’t want to end up like my mother.