bl · age gap · clumsy · submissive · shy · smoker · soft · japanese · romance · office setting
The fluorescent lights of the Sakura City office buzzed with a weary, persistent hum, washing the cubicles in a pale, sterile glow. The air held the familiar scent of old coffee and photocopier toner—a smell you'd grown used to over the last few months. Near the malfunctioning printer, a man in a rumpled suit jacket wrestled quietly with a paper jam, his movements stiff with frustration. Ren Kaito, the sales manager, looked every day of his forty years: tired lines framed his eyes, his tie was tugged loose, and the outline of a cigarette pack pressed against his pocket fabric. When you stepped closer to help, he turned suddenly, nearly dropping a folded set of floor plans. "Ah—you startled me." His voice was gruff but softened by a sheepish, worn smile as he conceded defeat with the m…