Summer break. Man what a drag. Now you probably think I’m full of shit but hear me out. Sure being away from school and all is wonderful but don’t think for a second I enjoy the dreadful heat or the awful pop songs revolved around this awful season. I just can’t stand it. Normally breaks like this are for typical schools around here but my academy was one of the few exceptions. Not that I enjoyed being in school either. I never liked being around others with the exception of the one guy I tolerated over there since we both had the same ideals of just getting through class and then slack off for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, he’s going off on a family trip of some sort to America so I am gonna be on my own this summer. Talk about a real bummer.
So what the hell am I doing walking into this local pizzeria? It sort of has that Italian flair which is interesting to say the least considering this sorry excuse of a prefecture. I know it’s probably for the school spirit for one of the major girl’s academy “Anzio High”, but I guess it’s nice to immerse yourself into something foreign every once in a while. I heard the other schools involved with Sensha-do have similar establishments in their docks and school ships. The whole tank thing just isn’t my thing. It is a sport for girls after all. Though I do sometimes catch the occasional tankathlon skirmish whenever I got nothing better to do. Anything without rules and regulations is right up my alley. In any case, I figured it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get a summer job. It certainly beats sitting at home playing some crappy video games.
The moment you walk into this pizza joint, you get the feeling that perhaps you are in some fancy restaurant in Italy. From the cozy wooden floors that creek as you walk on them, to the cacophony of vintage looking posters with Italian cuisine phrases and countryside paintings, to the bar and stools, and the couple of regular tables with cloth coverings and my goodness this place would make a great date location if I ever had one! Don’t even get me started on the lighting. It’s not too dark nor too bright. Just the right amount of lighting with those hanging brass lamps. Oh and they got one of those electronic jukebox things where you can pay up and play whatever song is programmed into them. If my friend from school were still around, perhaps he could put some of his edgy shit on there for the lulz. Though for the most part, it seems to just have royalty free Italian cafe jazz and whatever popular music is from that country. Doesn’t seem too busy either around here. Just a few customers around though it is too early for lunchtime.
I gotta find the manager first since that’s what I’m supposed to do when I apply for a job right? I look around for somebody that might work here. Some guy in a black uniform walks out from behind the bar carrying a stack of boxes which I assume have pizza in them. Perhaps he can help me. “Hey excuse me I’ve gotta take these out.” he states to me as he makes his way to the entrance. I respond, “I’m here to see the manager. Do you know where…” “Yeah he’s on the door to your right with the sign that says manager. Are you blind or something? I can’t waste my time right now. You deal with it.” he quickly remarks as he exits out the pizzeria. I didn’t get too much of his details but he had long black hair under a baseball cap and wore some kind of bandanna around his neck. Probably one of those worn by chefs right? Sure enough he was right and it turns out I was an idiot. There is a designated door with the manager’s office. How could I not see it? Already off to a good start. Well, might as well try to save face and make a good impression on the boss.
I knock on the door and announce my entrance before opening the door. This office isn’t very spacious to say the least. It’s like a little square room with not much inside. Just a desk, a couple of filing cabinets and what I assume is a hidden area for safe. The walls aren’t as elaborate as the dining area either with the exception of a whiteboard with some financial goals and calendar events hanging right behind the desk. I’m not alone in this room either. He seems to be engaged with a conversation with this particular girl. She’s wearing a black button up shirt and gray trousers, accented with a simple white apron. Her hair colored like pistacio pale green and is tied into a single pony tail with a black ribbon. She seems to be rocking some spectacles too. Something about her seems familiar though I can’t seem to make any connections. She’s kind of cute though she does appear to be kind of dorky if I had to be honest. They continue their conversation as I try not to interrupt them.
”Miss Anzai, we are all fortunate to have you with us on the team, but we simply don’t have the work force to meet our profit margin. I don’t want to make it seem like I’m making you do all the labor around here.” The girl sighs. “You know, it’s not like I don’t like working here. I love cooking and serving customers here, but I am doing all I can to raise money for my school. But even I have my limits too you know.” she says while twiddling her fingers. “I hope you don’t take that the wrong way sir.” The boss nods. “I understand where you are coming from. From what I heard, your school has improved greatly over the past couple of Sensha-do events. Your school may have not made finals but man what a show that was! We had some customers watch your match with St. Gloriana’s and it made me quite profit.” He then explains “Though we are still very understaffed and it was unfortunate you weren’t around to give my son and I a hand while we were hosting our customers.” The girl then responds. “Yeah, I was kind of busy helping with the team banner as our Duce fought in that match….errr even if it didn’t go as planned.” Now that I think of it, that girl does have the same hair color as their school tank commander Anchovy. She’s kind of a big deal in the Sensha-do scene. Though there’s no way this girl could be her. She comes off as kind of timid, nerdy, and homely. I don’t see her being the great magnificent Duce Anchovy who brought her school from a miserable state into a slightly less embarrassing state. She’s probably a relative I think. I wasn’t aware Anchovy had siblings. At least that’s what I assume.
The boss takes notice of my presence. He’s a balding man in his late 40s. Kind of chubby too. He’s wearing a chef’s outfit in black just like the rest of the staff around here though he doesn’t have his apron on. His face almost looks tired but something about him seems to convey he’s energetic. “Oh yes, I didn’t see you there. Is there something you need young man.” he tells me as the girl he’s talking to also gives a glance at me. She looks a little shocked by my presence but she tries not to look me into the eye. I catch her glance and she just tries to pretend to not stare at me and blushes a bit. How cute. “Uh...yeah sorry to interrupt you two but I was hoping you had a job opening for your pizzeria. I’m off from school and was hoping to do something this summer. By any chance you might be hiring?” God I can’t believe I said that flawlessly though I think I still sound like an idiot. “Well my boy, you are just what we needed at this very moment. Talk about crazy timing eh?” He laughs as he shakes my hand. “As long as you are able to keep up with the customer’s orders and do your duties as your told, you’ll be working like a pro around here in no time. Please. You can refer to me as Benito. I’ve been running this restaurant for 20 years.” I reply: “It’s a pleasure to meet you Benito. I assume that the guy I ran into on the way to your office was your son right?” He gets up and nods his head. “Indeed. That’s Giovanni, my son. He’s our designated delivery boy though he sometimes helps in the kitchen. He usually doesn’t’ have time to chit chat when has a delivery. Don’t take it badly if he’s not able to speak with you, he’ll find you in his spare time eventually.” He then directs his attention towards the girl. And last but not least this is our dear employee Miss Chiyomi Anzai from Anzio High. She works part time here whenever she’s not busy with her Sensha-do duties. She’ll help you around with your tasks in the kitchen and with dealing with the customers. She’s got a real talent in both fields if I say so myself.” I look at Anzai and she finally glances at me once more.
I never really talked or introduced myself to any girls before. I didn’t want to come off as awkward so I attempt to break the ice first by offering my hand for a shake. She doesn’t really hesitate too much before she too accepts my handshake with hers. I can feel her warm hands upon my own. But her grip is rather confident considering her humble appearance. “um….we’ll it’s nice to meet you. I-I’ll do what I can to get you started on the job.” She almost stumble on her speech but I let go of her hand to hopefully ease my and her anxieties a bit.
”Bene!” remarks Benito. We’re having a slow morning today so hopefully Miss Anzai here will get your uniform and show your the ropes around here to get started. Think you can start lending a hand today?” “Of course” I reply. Miss Anzai then motions me to a locker and opens it for me. Inside is a black uniform, trousers, and a white apron. She hands me the uniform and tells me “We have a restroom just across from here. You d-don’t have to change in front of us if that makes you uncomfortable.” The boss laughs at what Miss Anzai said. Wow she’s one bundle of a nervous wreck but somehow she’s still pulls herself through. “When you’re done….meet me in the kitchen and I’ll give you some tasks to do. Don’t take too long though...right.” She then heads out as I take my uniform and head for the restroom. Thus begins my summer in this humble little pizzaria and with this Girl who I’ll be working with. At some point, I have to start asking about her personal life. She’s certainly got more to her than she presents herself.
Miss Anzai was able to teach me everything I needed to know about making these pizzas and dealing with customer orders. Her nervousness seemed to die down once she realized I wasn’t as intimidating as I look. The rules and procedures are easy enough even for someone like me to do without thinking too much all though frankly, I still rely on timers to check on the condition of the pizza dough when it’s being baked. Miss Anzai seems to know when they are ready without the need for any timers. She’s actually really good at this. I have to try one of her pizza pies when I get a chance. I’m not doing too bad for myself considering it’s my first day working seriously. Seems like things will end smoothly for now.
*Ring ring*. That’s a sound I better start getting used to as it’s an indicator that a customer has entered the establishment. Miss Anzai let’s me off the hook for now and says: “Don’t worry, I deal with this next customer. Just follow their order when I give you the list okay? You’ll do just fine.” She walks out from the kitchen door, only to immediately rush back and crouch behind one of the kitchen counters. “Ah crap! I wasn’t expecting them to be here at all! I’m screwed!”. Goodness, she’s in a state of panic. What could have caused her to behave like this. She may have been a little nervous around me but she’s at least was confident enough to do her tasks around her up until now. “What wrong Miss Anzai? Who’s they? Whom are you so afraid of?” Outside of the kitchen door I can hear someone impatiently tapping on the counter bell repeatedly. A girl’s voice shouts from outside. “HEY IS ANYONE THERE? I WANNA ORDER A PIZZA! I’M SOOOOO HUNGRY!” as is soon followed by another female voice. “Pepperoni. They’ll come out shortly. There’s no need spam that bell for I’m sure they know we are here. Besides, we kind of disturbing everyone around here.” Miss Anzai grumbled quietly: “They are certainly disturbing me”. Who ever these girls are, they are certainly making her very uncomfortable. I tell Miss Anzai: “Don’t you worry, I’ll handle it from here.” She nods in agreement and I make my way out of the kitchen and towards the counter where these two girls are waiting.
Wow these girls are cute! They seem to be from Anzio High judging by their uniforms. One of them has black braided hair that’s sort of messy and is grinning for some odd reason. The other one is a blonde hair girl with a more modest look in her appearance and her expression. Now I’m beginning to realize that these two are none other than the side commanders for Anzio and companions of Anchovy. I think I beginning to suspect something with Miss Anzai. I’ll confront her about that later. I clear my throat and begin my facade of being as welcoming as I can possibly be. Though doing that in front of two girls seems challenging initially.
”Ben-Narri-Vata! (man I hope I didn’t butcher that pronouciation) how may I serve you both today? We have a special on a two topping pizza pie for about half off regular price! It’s quite the deal!” I then await a response from these two. The one with the black hair speaks up: “OOOH NICE NICE...emm okay, I think we’ll order one of those. We’d like pepporoni and asparagus as toppings. Ahhhh my appetitite can’t hold it any longer!” The blonde one then interjects: “I know it’s a two topping special but can you also add a third topping. I don’t mind the extra charge for it.” I reply: “Of course, I’m sure we can work something out for your specific order. What kind of topping would you like as a third?” She then answers: “A small amount of chopped anchovies.” I nod. “Don’t worry miss. We’ll have your order ready in the meantime.” I take the written order back with me to the kitchen where Miss Anzai is still sitting in a fetal position. “Miss Anzai. I have the order right here. We better get started sooner rather than later. They want the two topping special with an additional third topping. Pepporoni, asparagus,…” I then look in straight into the eye. “...and small amount of chpped anchovies.” She gulps in reaction to that topping name. “Is something the matter Miss Anzai?”
She shakes her head and gets off the ground and begins work on the pizza. Meanwhile I work on cleaning some of the plates left behind by our last customers earlier. There’s no doubt in my mind this Miss Anzai is none other than Duce Anchovy for sure. But why does she have this secret persona? I mean, she’s really popular at her school if not in the entire country. I don’t even think anyone, not even her own underlings would have any grudges against her. There’s more to this girl that I initially thought and my instincts have been proven right for once. Who knew I could read girls so easily? If only I was as good as asking them out. Oh for fuck sake I don’t even want to think about that at this moment. I got start asking some questions because I never would expect to be working alongside the Duce herself. Though I won’t lie, I did find her rather cute whenever I’d see posters of her around town advertising their latest Sensha-do matches. But I’d never thought she could be this much of an anxiety ridden girl.
”Here you go ladies. Have a good meal!” I place down the pizza for the two girls sitting at the table. The one with black hair immediately starts taking bites out of one of the slices. “Where are your manners Pepperoni? We thank you for the food.” the blonde one tells me. I smile and reply back: “Of course, it’s my pleasure. Say you two are from Anzio right?” The blonde one replies as the other one chows down on her food: “That’s right. I’m Carpaccio and this is Pepperoni. She can be a little high energy sometimes. Everyone from Anzio are always in high spirits. It’s part of our school’s culture.” Yeah, I can definitely see that. Pepperoni finishes her slice and then quotes the following: “Mmmm. The pizza served over here is amazing! It’s just like the way big sis Duce makes them!” “Oh yeah. We do our best to make the highest quality pizza in the region” I respond back (Jeez, when can I try a slice already). “Anyways, we are still kind of short staffed so please excuse me as I must get back to work. Feel free to call out when you are ready pay. Enjoy your meal.” I bow my head and head back into the kitchen.
I get back to doing the dishes as I look and Anchovy (formally Miss Anzai) who appears to be working on another dish of pizza for some other customers. I didn’t want to ask her about the whole ordeal until after our shift was done so I waited. Eventually, we finished our last order and were officially done with our duties. Our boss Benito came by the kitchen and congratulated us on our hard work. “As promised, I tend to pay for your labor per day. Here you go you two. New guy. You did great today. Will you be helping us out for the next couple of day?” I reply confidently (though not really) “Of course, I think I enjoyed working here which was something I wasn’t expecting at all.” “Very good” He said. “Then I’ll be seeing you again tomorrow morning. In the meantime, feel free to take any leftovers for today and relax for a while. My son should be finishing up his final delivery around this time so he’ll be back to lock up the place before you can head home. Have a good afternoon you two.” He bows and then heads out through the front door. Now it’s just Anchovy and myself.
I open up one of the pizza boxes that we had left over and picked up a slice. I like pepperoni and sausage for my toppings so I placed some of those on my slice. Anchovy got her slice as well and we both sat together at one of the tables. It was kind of awkward silence between the two of us. This is not what I had in mind for this evening but I’m finding it hard to speak up. Not just because I tend to get really nervous around girls but also because I am afraid of what kind of reaction I would get out of her if I were to start asking her about what’s going on. She’s really not one to initiate any conversation. That’s so strange considering she’s basically the mascot of Anzio High. I had to get to the bottom of this no matter what the results will be. I clear my throat and then quietly call her out: “Anchovy”.
She gently glances at me before looking down at her pizza which she hasn’t even taken a bite out of. “You know this pizza is really good. I wish I could be as skilled as you when it comes to cooking and baking and all that. The best I can do is microwaving convenient store food.” I forcefully chuckle even though I’m aware I’m probably not helping the situation one bit.”Um…new guy?” She mutters. Wow. she actually said something right now. I set aside my plate of pizza after hearing her speak. “I’m s-sorry for making a scene today. I should have came forward about what I’m trying to do.” So she’s finally going to explain everything to me. “Well….you see...my real name is truly Chiyomi Anzai. But most of the girls at Anzio know me as Anchovy. It’s kind of like a nickname.” She takes off her glasses and pulls out her pony tail. She gets these two black ribbons and ties her hair in fashion only the famous Anchovy of Anzio could ever replicate.
“So you really are Anchovy then. Why the false persona then?” I ask her. “Well the truth is…” She mutters. “Anchovy is the fake persona. It’s basically a second personality for myself whenever I’m doing something involved with Sensha-do. Outside of that, everyone just knows me as Anzai. Only my side-commander Carpaccio and you know of my persona.” I am intrigued but awfully confused. “So why don’t just come forward with your identity as Anchovy? I mean, you’re really popular with the girls at Anzio if not all over this prefecture. Reviving the school’s Sensha-do team is a really big deal. Even if you girls aren’t even that great at it.” She gets slightly infuriated. “Our school is in a tight budget you dickhead! It’s not like we can just get medium tanks for our entire team. We’ve done pretty well with our tankettes even against more capable schools!” She sighs. “Look, I’m sorry to burst out like that but it really means a lot of to me that I leave Anzio High with a more capable team before I graduate in the Fall. As for the whole fake persona thing….well sometimes I just get tired of being Anchovy. It’s just not who I really am.”
”Miss Anzai…” I softly call her. “I-I don’t get you one bit.” She replies: “I don’t blame you. My whole situation is just complicated. The point is, I don’t want the girls to know I’m working here to help them for their future in Sensha-do. We seriously need better tanks for the Fall season.” She glances right at me from across the table as she removes her twin ponytails and let's her hair loose (She's so pretty with her like that too). “Well now that you are here to help, perhaps I won’t have to work as hard as I thought I would. So why are you here new guy?” I was caught off guard by her question after trying to figure out in my mind the whole two persona thing she’s doing just for her school tank team thing. “Well I’m just here to...” as I was talking, I was interrupted by a male voice coming from the entrance.
”...try to flirt with you.” It was the manager’s son who had just returned from doing his deliveries. “Fucking hell, that was a lot of deliveries. I’m exhausted.” He grabs a chair and sits with Anchovy and me. “So I guess we’re finally going to have some extra hands around here. I figured you were here looking for my pops because you were going to complain about an order.” He stands up from his chair: “Be glad you didn’t because I would had beaten the shit out of you for trash talking about our high quality pizzas that our dear Anzai makes!” Jesus the nerves of this guy. Miss Anzai chuckles. Wait, she laughing. I’d didn’t think she be like that. “Don’t worry new guy. He just likes to mess around with people. He’s a really good guy” she tells me. “So tell me, is this new guy harrasing you and making you uncomfortable?” I have no idea if he’s serious with that question and why does everyone keep calling me new guy? Chovy replies “Oh don’t worry, he’s not bothering me at all. He has been a big help while you were gone.” I get up and offer my hand to the manager’s son. “By the way, I do have a name you know. The name is Tomio but some relatives and the few friends I have call me Tommy because they think it’s funny or something.” He burst out laughing but then immediately returns back to his douche looking face. “Tomio Tommy Tom. Alright Tomio. I’m Giovanni, soon to be the next in kin to run this pizza joint but you can call me Gio for short. Since you are working here with us new gu...er I mean Mr. Tomio, I could use your help tomorrow. Of course that means I’m going to keep you away from your girlfriend for a bit if that’s a not a problem.” I quickly shrug as Anchovy blushes. “Oh no, w-we’re not dating or anything like that. I mean we just met.” He then says “Nah don’t worry I’m just fucking with you. But seriously, we have a huge order tomorrow and I’ll need some help taking a big order to one of our clients. You’re going to have to tag along with me tomorrow so I can show you how to cover my shift in case I get sick or something. Besides, Miss Anzai will be just fine without you tomorrow. Pops will be here to help if anything. So do we have a deal?”
”Alright, I’ll help you out tomorrow.” I tell him straight. “After all, as I was saying, the whole reason I’m even working here is because my good friend is out of the country so I wanted to try to be productive for once.” At the very least, perhaps I can ask him more about Anchovy or more accurately Miss Anzai (I should really just call her Chovy but she’d probably get really upset by that). He’s not wrong about the whole flirting thing if it weren’t for the fact I don’t even know how to flirt. But to say she’s isn’t stunning as either Anchovy or Miss Anzai, she’s….oh man. I hope this Gio guy isn't also trying to win her heart too. “Alright, I must lock this place up. You have a ride home Mr. Tomio?” I reply back to him “I have my own bike. It’s good for exercise and all that.” “Well you better pedal your ass over here before we open up because that’s when we need to start making our deliveries. Catch you tomorrow Tombo Tomio Tom Tommy.” We all exit the restaurant. Geo gets into his hatchback, seems to be some kind of Fiat 500 coupe and drives off within a second. Chovy has her moped parked out there. Don’t tell me I’m the only without a proper vehicle. I mount onto my bike and wave to Chovy. “It’s been fun meeting you miss Anzai. See you tomorrow.” She waves back and shouts “Thanks for the help Mr Tomio. Buona Notte!” She smiles and blinks an eye at me as she puts on her moped helmet and drives off down the road. It’s late in the afternoon and it’s still really warm outside. I seriously hate summer. Time to pedal back home. I’m going to have to sleep early if I’m going to work again tomorrow. My muscles groan in pain as I pedal my sorry ass back home.