ACTION!
This man works even when drinking.
I sighed as I placed his iced coffee in front of him before sitting down.
"Is there a problem?" He immediately asked.
"No, I just wondered if you ever get tired." I offhandedly said.
"Excuse me?" When I heard the chilling tone, I sat up straight.
"I-I mean, don't you ever take time off for yourself? You seem to constantly think about your family's business and studying. You're not overworking yourself, are you?" I quickly rambled to hide my rudeness.
"..."
Oh.
"And you haven't collapsed yet?" I became actually concerned.
"I'm careful not to overwork myself to that point." Tatsuya simply answered as he lazily stirred his coffee. "Only an imbecile would."
I mentally facepalmed.
"Alright, lets address this first." I said as I slid my hand down my face. "Tanaka-san, do you have any hobbies or ways to relax?"
"Not necessary."
"As expected." I muttered into my drink.
"You seem to enjoy mumbling under your breath, Suzuki-kun." Tatsuya bitterly mentioned.
"I don't know what you're talking about." I hid behind my smile. "Anyway, let me ask this then. Do you enjoy your work?"
"Define "enjoy.""
"Uhm, like, you aren't constantly stressed and are actually happy working." I roughly explained.
"...Then, I suppose I don't enjoy it." Tatsuya quietly replied.
Oh ho?
"All the more reason you should take breaks then." I latched onto his answer. "You should find a hobby you enjoy or that helps you relax and unwind. If you don't, your life's gonna be on the shorter side." I softly scolded him.
"My life?" Tatsuya scoffed.
"I'm not lying! Don't you know how common Karoshi (literally "overwork death") is!?" I reminded him, distressed.
"As I mentioned before, only imbeciles overwork themselves to that extent." Tatsuya calmly said, pissing me off.
But, I bit my tongue to stop any outbursts.
"..."
Silence reigned as I could no longer bring myself to speak with him.
"Why are you so upset?" Tatsuya asked after a minute of silence. He seemed genuinely confused.
I rolled my eyes.
"You're actually oblivious to some of the working conditions here, aren't you?" I asked, slightly baffled.
"Then, explain it to me." Tatsuya seriously said.
I took a breath to calm myself.
"Some "imbeciles" can't avoid overworking. Management can be shitty. The working hierarchy here can be abused. If you didn't know, people can be fired for not overworking, and some people can't afford losing their jobs!" I spat with a scowl. "Though, you probably wouldn't understand as a CEO's son, who only knows the top of the ranks and not the underlings who suffer." I muttered the end.
Ah, why am I getting so worked up? This isn't good for building a friendship!
"..."
Shit.
"Ahm, look, I'm—"
"I see." My eyes widened.
When I looked up, Tatsuya looked like he was contemplating over my speech.
"See what?" I cautiously asked.
"I see why you were upset. I apologize for calling those in unfortunate situations imbeciles." Tatsuya apologized in a composed manner.
"M-Mhm." I abruptly felt awkward.
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to find a hobby of some kind." Tatsuya smoothly spoke.
"Y-Yeah! It could even be something as simple as reading a book as long as you get to relax." I quietly said as I gathered my bearings.
"What do you do?"
Uh oh.
"I, uh, like to play games or watch shows or read something." I was careful to not seem like a total otaku (nerd, basically).
"Hm."
"Haha, yeah."
AND CUT!