All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

”I still remember her kneeling in front of me, crying her eyes out as she said,

’I didn’t mean to lose it all. I just felt that my luck was good that night. I was sure I could double it and win it back! That way I could even earn your living expenses for university!’

”If my high school homeroom teacher hadn’t taken pity on me—paying out of his own pocket so I could attend university and even selling the only valuable television in his home to help my family repay the debt—I might have had to give up on going to college and stay in my hometown working to pay off what we owed.

”When university was about to start, my homeroom teacher carried part of my luggage and sent me to the train station. On the platform, he took out the only ten-thousand-yen bill in his worn-out cloth wallet—along with a pile of loose change—and stuffed it into my hand without giving me a chance to refuse. He told me, ’A poor family should still be generous when someone travels far. The train ride is long. Don’t go hungry.’

”I knelt in front of him, wanting to kowtow, but he pulled me up and scolded me: ’Useless! Has such a small favor already made your backbone as a man go soft? Study hard at university and change your circumstances.’

”That’s why every New Year when I go back to my hometown, the first place I visit—with bags full of gifts—is my homeroom teacher’s house.”

Hidari Okumuro knew about Yukki Takashi’s rough youth, but he had never spoken of it in such detail before. Perhaps he was simply tired. When Yukki Takashi was exhausted and about to close his eyes for a short rest, he always ended up talking for a while—growing sleepier as he spoke, so he could fall asleep more easily.

”Do you hate your mother?” Hidari Okumuro asked.

Yukki Takashi merely chuckled.

”I’m a middle-aged man now. By this age, you understand that nothing in this world is purely black or white. People are complicated. My mother was like that. Maybe I hated her before. But when she died of illness and I saw her lying cold on the hospital bed, the only word I could use to describe what filled my heart was congestion.

”Did I hate her? It didn’t feel like that anymore.

”Forgive her? How could I forgive her? If she had been willing to share even a little of the family’s burden instead of drowning herself in gambling, my father might not have been worked to death at the construction site.

”Looking at her body after she passed away, I couldn’t help wondering what had been on her mind in those final minutes. Did she have anything she wanted to say to me?”

”This New Year, do you want me to go back to your hometown with you?” Hidari Okumuro suddenly asked.

Yukki Takashi was silent for a long time before muttering,

”I don’t even know if we’ll get time off this year... We might have to work overtime. I’m still a member of the Metropolitan Police Department. The nurse rampage incident at Chiba Municipal Hospital still hasn’t made any progress. Ishimizu is already sprouting several white hairs because of it.

”The schedule at the Metropolitan Police Department isn’t as free as yours, Mr. Private Detective. Honestly, ever since people found out you opened a private detective agency, quite a few former colleagues have envied you. At least you don’t have to treat overtime like a daily routine, turning night into day.”

”Then why not resign from the Metropolitan Police Department and run this agency with me? We could even change the name to—Hidari & Yukki Detective Agency.” Hidari Okumuro’s tone carried genuine invitation.

Yukki Takashi fell silent for a long time, as if thinking—or perhaps already half asleep. Then he spoke again.

”That’s an offer that makes it hard to refuse. How about this? Once we completely uncover the truth behind the continuous murder cases at Sengetsu Girls’ Academy in Showa 31 and the Gokugu Village serial killings, I’ll submit my resignation. Then we’ll run this detective agency together and build such a reputation that we can afford to stay closed for three years after a single job.”

”Deal. Neither of us is allowed to go back on our word.” Hidari Okumuro smiled.

”Don’t worry. You know me—my finest quality is keeping promises.” Yukki Takashi laughed heartily, blinked once, and then fell into a deep sleep.

Hidari Okumuro didn’t disturb him. She picked up a blanket and draped it over him before continuing to flip through the documents on the table.

After an unknown amount of time, her heavy eyelids told her it was time to rest.

After all...