" Miss Tenant , I'm sorry but I have to bring up the deposit.  You know , the economy's pretty bad lately . It's just to make sure I don't lose much if you do a night run ," the landlady said.
    " I'm not going to do a night run ," the reaper chuckled , shaking her head.

The landlady laughed along with her. 
    " I still want 250 dollars by next Sunday. And each month's rent is now 400 dollars ," she spoke sternly.

     " Eh ? But that's a 100 dollar increase ," Chief Park cried.

     " It's your choice. If you want to stay here , pay up. If you don't want to pay , feel free to move out ," the landlady spat , and walked away after she said those words.

    " Argh..! Maybe I should just take her up there ," the reaper huffed in outrage.
She went into the one-room studio apartment that costed her so much , and changed into her work attire.

    " The funeral money isn't going to be enough. I probably need to get an actual job that pays ."

Being a grim reaper doesn't actually earn you money. It's more like a mandatory service - the punishment for what they did in their past life.
Most of them thrived on the money left at funerals , but clearly , it wasn't enough to survive in present day Konoha .

Many of her colleagues had part time jobs , which they somehow squeezed into their tight schedule. 
    " Maybe I should ask them ," she murmured. 

♤

" Gosh ! This sucks ! " she huffed , crashing into her bed.
The reaper had asked all of her colleagues , and the responses were downright frustrating.

i) Cat

    " Part-time job ? Aye , you've got a pretty decent body , Chief. And your face is rather pleasing to look at. Maybe you'd like to become an photoshoot model ? You know , I'm sure you'll get quite a lot of admirers ," Cat grinned cheekily .

    " Oh really ? That sounds so amazing !" the Chief said. " Hell no !" she burst while smacking the back of Cat's head.

ii) Kitty

    " Ah , you're looking for a part-time job ? I don't know any , Chief ," Kitty huffed.

    " Really?  Cat said that you know a lot of places that are hiring ," Chief Park countered.

    " Too bad I don't , Chief ."

From Kitty's scrunched up face , Chief Park clearly saw that Kitty was doing it on purpose. 

   ' If this is how it's going to be '

    " I also wanted to inform you Kitty . From today , the usage of fake eyelashes , hair extensions ,contact lenses , and makeup are prohibited during work. And that applies to you too , Kitty ."

iii) Noir

Yes , she actually asked Noir. He just happened to appear when she went to take the name cards at the headquarters , and she asked him straight away. 

    " Now , Chief Park , a part-time job ? That's shocking , especially for you. 
Well , I do know some.. Do you know about Shirahana ? It's a twist on the maid cafe. Instead of dressing up like maids , the waitresses dress up like geishas.
You know , Chief Park , you'll look good in a geisha ensemble . I go there a lot , and I have quite a reputation there .. Ahem.. I can arrange a job for you , if you want me to ."

She was genuinely surprised. Never did she knew that Noir had such a side to him.

    " No , it's fine. I'm not a big fan of makeup , and I'm allergic to the white foundation ."

The reaper sat up , desperately trying to think of ways to get a job .

  " Maybe I should take Cat's suggestion ? All I have to do is stand in front of the camera , right ?"
Of course , she changed her mind a milisecond later. Apparently it was too revealing and not private enough for her taste .

     "Hey , Chief ! " a voice broke her away from her thoughts.

     " Onyx ," she sighed. " What is it ?"

     " Whoa , Chief. Your apartment is pretty neat and tidy , huh ? I thought your living place would look like a pigsty ," Onyx chuckled bluntly.

    " Does this aura of cleanliness overwhelm your not-too-tidy mind ?" his chief replied sarcastically. 

     " It's just that in movies , I see characters who act neat , clean and collected on the outside , but actually lives in a garbage dump. I thought you are one of those people ," he explained.
Chief Park's eyebrow raised , and her mouth turned into a cringe at the odd statement.

    " But it's alright , Chief. Apparently you are always clean and collected ," Onyx smiled , and winked - the apparent cherry on top.

     " Hey Onyx , do you know any part-time jobs ?" 

Onyx nodded as matter factly.
      " Of course , Chief. And that is exactly why I came here. I heard it from Cat , and then Kitty was throwing a tantrum about how you prohibited makeup.. Nice move , I have to say ."

     " Yes , Onyx. But what's the job ?"

     " Do you know The Brewery ? It's a famous cafe , just along Uchiha Corporations headquarters. "

At the mention of Uchiha , she stiffened.
   " Ah , yeah , I know it ," she stammered with her words. Even Onyx eyed her oddly , as if she had something to hide.

   " I'm the barista , and I make pretty kickass coffee .. Ahemm.."

Now she knew why The Brewery is so famous. They had a hot grim reaper serving up coffee. Impressive marketing strategy. 
   " They're looking for new waitresses. Aye , I think you'll fit that position just fine , Chief. Besides , if you're there , I won't have to be discreet about everything. 
I'll even have someone to chat with.. About these normal things that surround us ."

The female reaper pondered for a while , chewing the inside of her cheek. 
    " What'dya think Chief ? Come on , it'll be great," Onyx encouraged. 

    " What about the payment ? " she asked.

    " It's enough to lead a comfortable life , Chief. Also , you don't have a phone yet , do you ?"

The female reaper shook her head. " I don't see why I need it ."

    " Oh , bless this soul. Chief , you don't have the slightest idea of why you need it . It's a staple - you can't survive without it !" Onyx almost shrilled.

    " I've been surviving just fine , thank you ," the chief replied drily.

    " Were you a caveman in your past life ? Anyways , Chief , it's important for.. Well , to gain popularity. I have a lot of fans , thanks to my overwhelming popularity on Instagram ! The more customers you have , the more tips you get , and the salary is higher ! You should do the same , Chief , you'll get lots of extra money ."

At the mention of money - the thing that she needed so much , she began nodding rapidly.

    " I'll take the job. By the way , Onyx , do you have another of that.. Um , phone ?"

    " Ah, she's finally seeing the bright side of things ! Yes , Chief ! Here ," he said , passing her a shiny , brand new and sleek smartphone. 

    " You can do a lot of things with it. But for now , I want you to take a selfie !"

 " Selfie ? Is it another form of selfish ? "

Onyx shook his head , muttering under his breath. " Aye , she must've really been a caveman."

     " Now , sit in your cutest and most attractive pose. I'm taking a photo for your Instagram profile."

The chief stiffened , like a statue , with a completely blank face.

      " Gosh , seriously Chief ?! This is not your ID photo ! Show more emotions ! Show some personality !"

She cleared her throat as she took off her hat. Instantly , her locks of (h/c) coloured hair came tumbling down in soft wavy curls.

   " I think I have a red lipstick.  Ah , where is it ? Here it is ."

She applied the lipstick on her lips , making her features pop out and look much more radiant .

   " Now pose !"

She tucked a strand of stray hair behind her ear , and gave a gentle yet seductive smile to the camera. 
   " Perfect !"

♤

   Itachi sat in his office , his face blank and emotionless. For the past seven days , he felt as if a chunk of his memories just disappeared.

He wanted to think about someone in particular , but he didn't even know who to think of.

His heart felt so empty , and his surroundings seemed so bland. 
Itachi turned off his laptop , and placed the papers he had been working on back in the ring file.  

For the first time in his life , he felt pathetic. Yearning for someone he couldn't even put his finger on.

     " Aniki ."

Itachi glanced at the slightly open door , seeing his younger brother's face through the small gap.

      " Sasuke ," he spoke. " What brings you here? "

Sasuke slipped inside the room and made himself comfortable on the leather armchair situated in the room.

    " Aniki , for the past week , you've been an utter wreck. You overwork on a daily basis , and based on what I've seen , you haven't been eating well. Mom's worried , you know ," Sasuke replied.

     " You missed the point of the question ," Itachi chuckled darkly.
Sasuke inhaled deeply , his forehead dipping into a frown.

     " Okay , here's the deal. We'll go get some coffee and talk about that broken heart of yours ."

Itachi huffed , taking aback by the statement.
       " Broken heart ? Pfft.."

       " Aniki , you're so immersed in your work that you don't go out anymore. Mom would be more than happy to arrange you on a blind date with her friends' daughters . And I have a lot of spare parts , well , if you need a rebound."

Itachi shook his head , breathing softly.

    " As you said , get some coffee and talk about broken hearts. Let's go," he said , grabbing his coat.

    " Where ? The Brewery ?" Sasuke grinned.
    " I was just about to say it. Well , what about The Brewery ?" Itachi inquired .

    " I'll show you , Aniki. They say she's a real heavenly sight for sore eyes ."