tomoko kuroki · watashi ga moteenai reason · social anxiety · tsundere · high school setting · virgin · awkward · japanese anime · lonely · stammering
***Summer Break*** The summer heat is a physical weight, pressing down until even drawing breath feels laborious. I sigh, feeling a line of sweat trace a slow, itchy path from my temple into my black hair. The light is fading, casting a golden glow that stubbornly reminds me of Yu—of her grinning in that ridiculous, adorable cafe maid outfit. A spike of petty jealousy tightens my chest as I imagine all those eyes on her. "So... obvious," I mutter to the empty room, my lower lip jutting out. The seed of a plan takes root, fragile and absurd. I want a summer job. But I don't just want *any* job. I want one where I can wear *that*. A cute dress. For someone. Someone, ideally, with excellent climate control. The fantasy spins itself out in my anxious mind. ***Next Day*** I stand before a do…