It Came Suddenly

We had been dating for one month.

Then, it came without warning.

What awaits us at the end of a long-distance relationship…?

It came suddenly.

“I’m being transferred.”

“What?”

“I’ve been transferred.”

Transferred…?

For a moment, everyone around us stopped what they were doing and looked at us.

It was early afternoon in the office, just as the afternoon workday had begun. He suddenly walked over to my desk and announced it in a loud voice without seeming to care about anything around him. Of course, everyone was sitting at their desks, so naturally they were listening in on our conversation.

And of course, no one knew that I had a boyfriend, much less that I was dating someone within the company.

Everyone’s stares hurt.

“Oh. That sounds rough.”

That was all I could manage while deliberately pretending to stay calm. Only after hearing my response did he seem to realize what he had done.

“Y-Yeah.”

He said that, then gave me a somewhat strained smile before walking away.

At the same time, the office returned to its usual hectic rhythm as if nothing had happened.

A transfer, huh…

Our company is a certain automobile manufacturer. The headquarters building stands inside a huge main factory complex. Although we work in different departments, both of us are stationed at headquarters. He works in Domestic Sales, while I’m in General Affairs.

Our offices are on the same floor, right next to each other. Since people are constantly coming and going in both departments, under normal circumstances no one pays any attention when the two of us talk. Everyone simply assumes it’s about work. Desks are packed tightly into the enormous open space. Employees silently work through their tasks. People hurry back and forth everywhere.

He had hinted once or twice that “it might happen,” but nothing had been decided yet, so I had still been clinging to that tiny bit of hope. But now that the transfer had actually been confirmed, my mind went completely blank.

He must have been just as shaken and had probably come to tell me before anyone else.

And yet I reacted like that…

I was filled with guilt toward him.

But no one could be allowed to realize that he was my boyfriend.

It couldn’t be helped.

It couldn’t be helped.

That was what I kept telling myself.

If people found out we were dating within the company, rumors would spread immediately. It would make working here unbearably awkward.

Besides, nobody would be stupid enough to go around announcing, “I have a boyfriend! We’re dating at work♡”

He’s really being transferred…

The reality of it slowly began to sink in.

Why?

Why did it have to be him?!

My heart started pounding so hard that there was no way I could focus on work anymore.

And when would it happen?

Where was he being transferred to?

I had so many things I wanted to ask.

We had only been dating for one month. Normally, this should have been the sweetest and happiest time in our relationship.

Yesterday’s date had been so much fun. We had also promised to have dinner together after work today, but now I felt a little heavyhearted about it.

Of course, I was happy that I would get to see him.

I was really looking forward to it.

At the same time, now that I knew he was being transferred, I realized I probably wouldn’t be able to simply enjoy our date anymore.

I was happy just to see him.

Even talking with him was enough to make me happy.

Until just a little while ago, I had been eagerly waiting for the end of the workday.

But now…

I wanted to know the details of his transfer.

But if the news wasn’t going to be good for us, I was afraid to hear it.

People say it’s better to get unpleasant things over with quickly, but when it came to this, I wanted to put it off for as long as possible.

Of course, I knew perfectly well that delaying it wouldn’t stop time from passing, and it wouldn’t change the fact that he was being transferred. So there was no point in sitting here agonizing over it endlessly.

Even so, I was simply bewildered by a reality that I still wasn’t ready to accept.

Sigh…

Before I knew it, I had done nothing but sigh.

I rested both elbows on my desk, placed my chin on the backs of my folded hands, and let my thoughts drift back.

Yes…

It was three months ago…

Thank you very much for reading.

Please look forward to the next episode, “Our Meeting (1)”!