kscans

Chapter 109 - My Summer Vacation with Satou

(…I'm really glad we didn't bring the kids along)

Yesterday was truly awful. I couldn't have let the children see adults in such a disgraceful state. After everyone threw up, they all just gave up and went completely wild. It was fun as hell, but in terms of being role models for children, it was the worst.

(Oh, here we are)

I stop in front of an impressive single-family house and ring the doorbell.

"Hey there, welcome Satou-kun"

"Pardon the intrusion"

After a moment, the president comes out to greet me. Only today and tomorrow remain of the Obon holiday. I had planned to take it easy today since I was still tired from yesterday, but the president invited me over. I could have declined, but he said he had something to discuss with me. My curiosity was piqued, so I decided to accept the invitation out of sheer nosiness.

"Come on in, come in"

I'm led into the living room. I don't sense anyone else around, so his wife and daughter must not be home. After a while, the president returns to the living room with cold barley tea and some sweets.

"Oh, kashiwa mochi... that's a good choice"

"I'm honored by your praise. Well, please don't hesitate to dig in"

"Much appreciated"

I moisten my throat lightly with the barley tea before biting into the kashiwa mochi. ...I wonder why that is. It's not something I keep stocked as a regular snack. But sometimes I get this sudden craving for kashiwa mochi, you know? Before I know it, I'm running to the supermarket.

"So what's this consultation you wanted to have with me?"

"Well... I took my family back to my hometown for the holidays starting from the first day of the break"

The president returned to Tokyo yesterday since work starts the day after tomorrow, but his wife and daughter are apparently still there. The fact that she wants to stay at her husband's family home suggests they have a good relationship with his in-laws.

"That was Hokkaido, right? This season must be nice there"

"Speaking of which, didn't you say your mother's family is from the Tohoku region or something?"

"Yes, Akita. In summer I'm busy with Obon activities here so I don't visit, but I basically go to show my face at year-end"

"You're surprisingly good about maintaining family relationships... but that's not the point"

Oops, we've gotten off track. I bow my head slightly and encourage him to continue.

"My hometown is in rural Hokkaido, you know. Frankly, there's nothing to do there"

"? I see"

"My wife and daughter say they can relax, but I'm the type who can't settle down unless I'm doing something"

On his usual trips home, he would apparently hang out with friends or spend time at movie theaters. But this time, his schedule didn't align with his friends' and the movie theaters were packed.

"So I had nothing to do and started rummaging through my old belongings to pass the time"

"Oh?"

"My mother is good at keeping things. She's held onto quite a lot of my stuff"

There were manga, games, and toys he used to love, and the president laughs about how he returned to his childhood for the first time in ages.

"Then I suddenly wondered, what kind of games do kids play these days?"

The president's motto is to act immediately when inspiration strikes. He apparently started researching right away. While he was impressed by the evolution of video games, they didn't particularly capture his interest, but...

"...the toys look incredibly fun"

"Well, toys have evolved tremendously these days"

There's quite a gap even between me and the president. It would be even greater compared to today's kids.

"I'll be frank with you because it's you, but I really want the latest hobby stuff. I want to play with it. To my heart's content"

"Well... then why don't you just buy some?"

He's the president, so naturally he has money. According to his wife's stance, he can spend freely as long as he puts aside money for household expenses and a certain amount for savings. If he wants toys, he should just buy them. Even expensive ones would cost much less than drinking at a high-end club.

"It's embarrassing. A middle-aged man at my age"

"It's not particularly embarrassing. What's wrong with adults playing with toys?"

Adults play with toys too. Not in a weird way, you know? Unlike in the past, in today's era of diverse values, the idea that you can't do something just because you're an adult... come on. Well, if it's a situation where you need to act appropriately as an adult, then you should. Using toys as an example, if it's limited quantity and you're pushing kids aside, that would be embarrassing, but otherwise you should do what you like.

"Yes, that's it! I called on you because I was counting on that kind of thick-skinned attitude of yours!!"

"Huh? Am I being insulted?"

"Satou-kun, let's go buy toys together. And let's play with them together!"

"Eh... but two middle-aged men is okay?"

"I'd worry about people's stares if I went alone, but having someone thick-skinned who doesn't care about such looks beside me would be reassuring"

Is that how it works...?

"But if you're embarrassed, couldn't you just buy them online?"

"You don't understand! The real pleasure of toys is choosing them in the store with your heart racing!!"

"What a pain... but well, talking about it has gotten me interested too, so fine. I'll go with you"

"That's Satou-kun for you. I'll give you my kashiwa mochi too"

"Thanks"

The kashiwa mochi is delicious...

"...Come to think of it, I think there's someone in our department who uploads hobby videos as a hobby? Should I ask them to come if they're available?"

"No, no, that would be too much to ask"

"What about me?"

"Well, you know, Satou-kun is... you know?"

What's that supposed to mean.

"You maintain a clear distinction between public and private matters. In public settings, you properly respect me as president, step back, and maintain appropriate distance as a good subordinate. But in private, aside from minimum courtesy, you're completely unrestrained. You're about as casual as a relative uncle"

Well, yes.

"Even today, if you weren't in the mood, you would have flatly refused, right? You came mainly because... well, your curiosity was piqued by my consultation, and it was pure rubbernecking"

Dead on.

"That's why I can invite you without worrying about power harassment and such... but with the other kids..."

"Ah, they'd feel obligated even in private settings"

"Well, there are kids like Inoue-kun who are the type to be genuinely rude when told anything goes"

"He's an exception. Even I was sweating bullets at that time. I was relieved afterward thinking 'oh, that was actually okay'"

"Ha ha ha, that's why. I'd rather have someone play without reservation than worry about being considerate to me"

"Understood. But it should be fine to ask for a little information, right?"

"Of course. The real voice of someone who still plays with hobbies would be valuable reference"

If we're going to play anyway, we want to have fun. The voices of predecessors are important.

"By the way, which toy store are we going to?"

"I was thinking we'd just casually hit the toy sections of nearby electronics stores and department stores"

"Got it. Well then, let's get going..."

"Ah, no time like the present"

We wolfed down the tea and sweets and left the president's house. He offered to drive since he had invited me. He volunteered to be the driver since he was the one who extended the invitation. Sitting in the back seat watching the scenery flow by, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

(A middle-aged man playing with children's toys the day after drinking himself into a disgraceful stupor...)

That's genuinely pretty pathetic. We really can't be role models for children.