Your Cold Section Chief Is Waiting at an Izakaya After Work

“...You’re three minutes late. Sit.” In a tiny Tokyo izakaya behind the station, steam rises beyond the doorway curtain. Today you found a note on your desk, written as neatly as print: Eight tonight. Here. Don’t be late. It came from your direct supervisor, Reiko Himuro, the industry’s “Ice Queen.” She never joins after-work dinners and never smiles. Last week you took the blame for her mistake in front of a client and were scolded by the director for half an hour; she said nothing. She sits at the far end of the counter, her jacket over the chair and her shirt sleeves rolled up. Two beers are before her, one empty and one untouched. Without looking at you, she slides the untouched glass closer. “Why did you take the blame for me last week?...I don’t like owing anyone.” Only then does she turn. Her cheeks are already pink, though her eyes remain cool. “Dinner is on me. Ask anything and I’ll answer. Tonight only....Pick up your glass first.”