Shohei's – full name, Shohei's Towers – is a local chain that specializes in tall sliders, tiny burgers that are only two and a half inches in diameter, but are stacked high with various toppings and patties. They're also popular for incorporating various seafoods into their miniature sandwiches, and they even offer the option of using a rice bun instead of a normal bread bun. Their biggest that's available on the menu is the Burj Shoheifa, which is slightly wider at three inches in diameter, but stands at six inches in height.
Shohei's is an establishment that's deeply ingrained with the community, and is a frequent sponsor of local festivals and celebrations. Every year they even hold their own eating contest, where giant-stomached participants strive to stuff as many single-patty sliders down their gullet as possible for a grand prize of $100,000. The current, reigning, four-time champion is a 33 year-old man by the name of Harold Ichimori, whose record stands at a nigh-untouchable 173 sliders in ten minutes. His portrait currently hangs on a large bronze plaque near the entrance.
What's more interesting, however, is what goes on behind the curtain. Shohei's is the first local fast food chain in Los Angeles to have adopted a fully automated operation. By getting rid of human employees for a series of robotic arms that hang from the ceiling and work together to make consistently perfect burgers at breakneck speeds, the modest joint's daily output of food skyrocketed to an absurd degree. Customers get their meals faster and they never have to interact with another human to do it, eliminating potential communication errors and offering a greater sense of control over their orders. There is still one living, breathing person working at each location, and it's the maintenance staff – a single individual whose job it is to spend all day toiling in a room near the back and only come out to fix malfunctions and clean up the occasional mess. Due to the combination of higher-than-minimum wage and a significant amount of paid downtime, it's a greatly sought-after position with a low turnover rate.
After no more than a minute of waiting behind several other people, Atreus reaches the kiosk and inputs his and Devin's meals of choice, a prompt task that takes mere seconds. After a successful payment, he simply steps to the left, and waits for the tray with his corresponding order number, shown on a small digital display in the corner of the tray itself, to finish filling. After a little over another minute's wait, his food has been cooked and is ready to be consumed. In a mere two minutes, Atreus waited in line, placed his order, and received it, proving that Shohei's expeditious automated experience is the ideal standard in fast food service.
Atreus brings the tray of delectable sliders – which, thanks to the precision of the robotic arms, look almost exactly the same as their appearance in promotional photos – to Devin, who's sitting at a small table for two in the seating area with his head lazily propped up by an arm.
“Man, I can't begin to tell you how delicious this looks right now.” The drunk gangster remarks as he begins to dig into his meal. The number five combo he asked for is two double-patty teriyaki sliders, dripping with a sweet, original-recipe marinade, with a side of seasoned fries.
“My last meal was a single donut, so I'm pretty hungry, too.” Atreus comments in a similar admiration of the food in front of him. His order was a number seven combo – a triple-patty bacon slider with Pepper Jack cheese and a side of both regular fries and six-piece chicken nuggets. “So, did you enjoy your time at Crown?” He asks as he takes his first bite of his miniature burger.
“Hell yeah. Especially with Reiko. I like her – quite a lot.” Devin, beginning the process of sobering up, gives his answer after swallowing his first big bite of one his own sliders. “She can't really pry me away from Ami, but if I were to have met Reiko first, she'd probably be the one I'd currently be obsessing over. How about you? You seemed to get on well with that Max girl.”
“Yeah, she's a new girl who started at Crown only a few weeks ago. Apparently it's her first gig as a hostess.” The augmented man replies after scarfing down a cluster of fries. “She has that really unique, punky style that really sets her apart from other women, but instead of being alienating to others, its actually proven to be pretty popular in its own way. She attracts a demographic that none of the other girls cover, really.”
“But do you like her?” Devin redirects the topic back to the detail he initially wanted to hear about. He takes a sip of his drink with a raised brow, expectant of a good response.
“She's pretty nice, easy to talk to. She really likes my arms.” Atreus pauses, holding the last bite of his slider in front of his mouth without placing it inside. “I do kinda like her style, too.” He completes his thought and punctuates it by finally devouring that final portion.
“Guess you're part of her demographic, then.” The hostess club fanboy remarks with a wry smile. “Don't think I didn't hear her practically inviting you to meet up outside of work. You should take her up on it.”
Atreus quickly becomes listless at the idea, though not due to disinterest. “I'll think about it.” He contemplates while popping a chicken nugget into his mouth.
It doesn't take long for their food to disappear, and instead of leaving immediately, they decide to sit and allow their meals to digest. Devin is leaning back in his chair, feeling triumphant in a night of successfully entertaining debauchery.
“Tonight was good.” He says with a content nod. “You doing anything tomorrow?”
“Not in the morning or afternoon, but I have my shift at Crown in the evening.” Atreus answers.
“I gotta talk with Ryuji in the morning about setting up that meeting with Raymond Ernst, and in the afternoon I have to help with money collection for Koda Loans. Guess we won't have any time to hang out tomorrow.”
“Seems so. You calling it a night?”
“Yeah.” Devin forces out a sleepy nod. “You know I get tired when I get drunk, and now I have a full stomach, too. I'm beat. I'm gonna order a ride back to my place.” He pulls out his smartphone and begins to organize an immediate pick up for himself.
“I'll probably just walk home.” Atreus comments in a melancholic tone, staring at their empty tray for no reason.
Outside, after the two men finally collect the will to stand and leave, they wait next to the street for Devin's approaching ride – a silver, self-driving electric sedan with Mecanum wheels, sporting the Automa company logotype emblazoned on the side, along with other logos and insignias of companies partnered with the service.
“Alright, man. I'm outta here.” Devin holds his hand out, and Atreus grabs it for a quick grab-and-hug handshake.
“See you tomorrow.” Atreus bids farewell, and watches his friend enter the driverless vehicle. It pulls back out into the still-glistening street and heads west.
Now alone in the neon sea of one of Kyoba's many highly active streets, the gangster decides to call it a night, himself. He once again takes out his electronic cigarette for a puff, and begins his short journey north at a deliberate pace. The buzz of mechanical whirring from passing vehicles and sounds of advertisements, music, voices, and the natural ambiance of the metropolitan jungle of steel and concrete slowly mix together into an unintelligible white noise as he slowly leaves the area. The vibrant lights of Kyoba's bustling nightlife fall behind him, and only the alternating red and blue strobes of the occasional overhead police drone dot the sky before him.
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Atreus eventually enters one of the less active hotel and apartments sections of the district, where the lights are only name signs of various housing facilities instead of twenty-foot-tall holograms. The taller buildings of eight floors or higher are the area's hotels, varying in levels of grade and affordability. Illuminated windows of visitors still wide awake are scattered along each side of them. The apartment complexes between each towering hotel are dwarfs in comparison, never standing higher than three levels, but are of respectable architectural quality.
At the northern-most side of the area, the gangster finally reaching his destination: Yazawa Commons, a two-floor apartment building. His cigarette still perched between his lips and his heavy eyelids beginning to weigh themselves down, Atreus walks up the outdoor staircase to the second floor, turning left when he reaches the landing to continue across the veranda to his room. However, he looks up and immediately halts. Down the walkway, right in front of his door, is a woman in a dark blue dress leaning against the metal railing, overlooking the empty, barely lit street below with an electronic cigarette of her own between her fingers. He hesitates for a moment, staring at her from a distance before letting out a tiny sigh and proceeding onward. His footsteps create an audible clacking noise that draw her attention as he reaches his door. The woman turns and reveals a familiar face.
“You're home a little earlier than usual.” The woman, Reiko, remarks.
“So are you. Did you get off early?” Atreus asks, seeming a bit more rigid than he was a minute ago. “You weren't waiting for me or something, were you?”
“Yeah, I got off early; you and your friend were my last customers. And... I'm not sure.” She replies, not seeming confident in her answers to his respective questions. “I just felt compelled to stand out here. I guess for a moment, I thought I had something to talk to you about. I haven't been here long.”
“Did you want to talk about my visit at Crown?” The yakuza, ignoring the vagueness of her response, tries to be more specific. “I let Devin pick who he wanted, and he wanted you.”
Reiko shakes her head. “No, no, that's fine. I don't mind being with you when you come as a customer. It's my job, after all. Devin seems nice, by the way; it was nice to finally meet him. Who is this 'Ami' girl he mentioned?”
“His muse who works at Mystik. She wasn't available tonight, which is why we went to Crown.”
“Oh, yeah. I think you mentioned that before.” She smiles again and takes another puff of her cigarette, which is a glossy white Tiberius Tobacco creation. “Was that also your first time having a real conversation with Maxine?”
Atreus nods. “It was.” He responds as he leans against the railing too. “She seems nice, though maybe a little too eager to ask me about my arms. She mentioned you helped her get used to the work environment there.”
“I was just being a courteous coworker. I vividly remember what it's like to be the new girl in the club. It's not always welcoming, especially when the others only care about looking after themselves. Thankfully, a lot of those types have left since then and things are more professional.”
“She definitely seems like she's capable of becoming a top girl there, and I'm sure her unique looks bring in customers who otherwise never would've came in.”
“You made a really good first impression on her.” Reiko says as she hangs her head, staring at the pavement directly beneath the balcony. “After you left, she said you're her type.” She starts to fidget with her cigarette, listlessly toying with it.
Atreus doesn't respond to the comment immediately. He furrows his brow and stares blankly down to the ground level of the property, turning the gears in his brain to approach the discussion with delicacy. Yet, in a layer behind that, he wonders why he's trying so hard to find a delicate way to answer to begin with.
“I'm not so sure if she's mine yet, to be honest.” He forces out a rather non-comm ital response that doesn't offer any certainty one way or the other. “She gave me the invitation to hang out with her outside of work. I don't know if I'll take her up on it.”
“You should.” Reiko replies, but somewhat quietly and without a semblance of confidence.
“You think so?” Atreus turns his head and ponders, but not in a curious or hopeful manner. Instead, more of an interrogative one, trying to pry for sincerity. “Why's that?”
“If you... got along while you were at the club, then why not?” She answers, still without any gravitas to her words and without even turning to look him in the eyes while saying them. “You might be a good match for each other, so no reason not to try, right?”
His brows slope inward and he suddenly becomes visibly annoyed. It's not the fact that she's saying such things that bothers him, but the fact she says them with a clear lack of conviction. If she isn't comfortable uttering such statements, then why is she forcing herself to? Fed up, Atreus pushes himself off the railing.
“I'm gonna head inside.” The gangster announces, and turns to approach his door, room 209.
“Did you have dinner already?” Reiko suddenly finds her voice in a last-second invitation before he even touches his doorknob. “I haven't eaten yet, so I was going to make something. Do you want to join me?”
“I ate before I got here.” Atreus answers coldly, barely turning his head at all to face her. “Maybe some other time.” He inputs the eight-number passcode of his keyless touchscreen deadbolt lock, turns his lever knob, pushes the door open, and walks in. “Good night.” He bids her farewell just as the door clacks shut behind him.
Atreus's apartment is a modest single-room studio, though still large enough to comfortably accommodate a roommate as well, if he had one. At the moment, however, it's only him and his somewhat frugal lifestyle. Immediately upon stepping inside is the small entryway and shoe rack, where he slips off his sleek black pair of Oxfords and steps up to the polished wooden floors of his home. To the right is the pantry door, but after that is the small kitchen that boasts full-sized, stainless steel appliances, including a fridge, oven, stove top, microwave, and even a large double-bowl sink. Unfortunately, countertop space is a tad scare, limited to a small section that faces the living room.
To the left, near the end of the short entry hallway, is the conjoined laundry and bathroom. Upon entering is a small space where the washer and dryer sit side by side, but a glass wall separates them from the bathroom proper, which is covered in off-white sandstone tiles. It features a single porcelain sink and toilet, and a combined bath and shower.
The living room, as a studio apartment, is also the bedroom, with a queen-sized bed against the wall to the left and a single nightstand next to it with a small closet in the adjacent corner. The rest of the furniture in the room are a five-drawer dresser and wall-mounted mirror next to the closet, and a television, coffee table, futon, and five-shelf bookcase of various media to the right side of the room. This layout leaves a fairly significant amount of unused space in the middle. The walls are a clean, but bare white with little in the way of décor adding personality to them – no pictures, paintings, or posters.
Still content with his large fast food meal and exhausted from the short and seemingly innocuous conversation with Reiko, Atreus gathers a new set of comfortable cotton house clothes and makes for the bathroom for a long shower in nearly scalding hot water. The entirety of his back is covered by a dense and detailed tattoo of a black wolf leaping upward with an open, attacking mouth and fierce expression over a background of swirling circles, flowers of different hues, dancing flames, and twisting smoke in a traditional irezumi art style and sumi ink boasting vibrant, nearly blinding color. It was received under the painful, time-consuming, and expensive process of tebori tattooing using a wooden rod with inked needles at the end, instead of the common, modern use of an electric needle.
Afterwards, he takes a load off by throwing himself onto his futon and absentmindedly channel surfacing until his eyelids begin to weigh themselves down, with nothing on the endless streaming services to keep his interest enough to fight off the desire for slumber. He soon tosses himself into bed, using the touchscreen tablet – a centralized interface for all of his home electronics – on his nightstand to shut off his lights, and quickly falls asleep.