Gave the Ragged, Poor Girl a Pricey Cake for 10 Cents, and then…
Japanese Manga in English
Manga video to learn English
Japanese Manga in English
Manga video to learn English
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LearningTranscript
00:00Man, another slow day today.
00:03I'm Eito Sasaki, a regular 27-year-old who runs a small cake shop.
00:09I graduated from a pastry school, honed my skills at other bakeries, and opened my own
00:14shop three years ago.
00:16However, with our higher prices compared to chain stores, and my own shyness, the customer
00:24count has been steadily dropping.
00:26I have confidence in the taste, but the other day, I forced a smile and it scared people
00:33away.
00:34What am I gonna do?
00:37Huh?
00:38That girl's been watching for a while now.
00:41What's up with her?
00:42Hello there!
00:43Would you like to come inside the shop?
00:46Huh?
00:47I-I'm sorry.
00:49Uh, guess I startled her.
00:54Do you like cakes?
00:56Feel free to come closer if you want.
01:00She's got some stains on her clothes.
01:03I wonder if something's up.
01:05Um...
01:06Hm?
01:07I have a favor to ask.
01:12Could you just give me some frosting, please?
01:17Just frosting?
01:18There's gotta be a reason for this.
01:21It's my birthday, and I wanted to buy a whole cake.
01:26Can I get just the frosting?
01:28Oh, I see!
01:31It's your birthday!
01:32Alright, um, I got it.
01:34I'll give you... this one.
01:37But I can't afford such a big cake.
01:41I'm closing the shop for today anyway, and it's better for the cake if you eat it.
01:47But I don't have the money.
01:51Then consider it a birthday present from me.
01:55Oh, if it's your birthday, how about I add some chocolate with your name on it?
02:00What's your name?
02:02Oh, uh, it's Lisa.
02:07Alright, Lisa it is.
02:10How about this?
02:12Thank you, so much.
02:15I'll put it in the box for you, just wait a bit more.
02:19Okay.
02:21All set!
02:23Be careful on your way back.
02:25Okay, thank you so much, sir.
02:29Happy birthday!
02:31Thanks, bye!
02:34I... I've been baking cakes just to see smiles like that.
02:39It might not boost the shop's sales, but I was happy knowing I made her smile.
02:45And then, the next day...
02:48Ah!
02:50No reservations again today, huh?
02:54I wonder how many cakes I'll sell.
02:58Um, excuse me?
03:01Hm?
03:03She's really pretty!
03:06Wait, no, gotta focus on serving her properly.
03:10Welcome!
03:12Um...
03:15Just call me over if you've decided on something.
03:19No, I...
03:21Sir!
03:23You're the girl from yesterday!
03:26Um, the cake I got yesterday was incredibly delicious.
03:31Thank you.
03:33Uh, what?
03:35Let me reintroduce myself.
03:38I'm Lisa Okada.
03:40I'm sorry if my daughter caused any trouble yesterday.
03:44Thanks for yesterday.
03:46Nah, there's no need to apologize.
03:50Oh, no, but...
03:52No, really.
03:54If you enjoyed it, that's all that matters.
03:58Hey, you know?
04:00I had some money saved up to buy a cake even before I came here.
04:04But I tripped just before I arrived.
04:07People around me helped search for my money on the street,
04:11but we could only find ten cents.
04:13They searched really hard under vending machines and stuff.
04:17I see.
04:18That explains the dirt on her.
04:21I made it to the cake shop, but with just ten cents, I couldn't afford a whole cake.
04:26That's when you talked to me.
04:28So I thought, maybe I could buy just the frosting?
04:32I swear, I didn't even think about getting a whole cake from the start.
04:37I said the cake was a gift from me, right?
04:40So don't worry about it.
04:42Yeah.
04:44How was the cake?
04:46It was the best cake I ever had.
04:49I'm glad you enjoyed it, Lisa.
04:52Um, Lisa is me.
04:56Uh, so, it's your sister's birthday, I guess.
05:03No, I'm her mother.
05:06What?
05:08Darn, it was so rude to call her like that.
05:11I'm really sorry.
05:14It's fine.
05:16I guess I look young enough for you to mistake me for Meg's sister.
05:20I'm happy.
05:21That's true, but you didn't seem married, so...
05:25Actually, I'm not married.
05:28I'm a single mother.
05:30So, even though we caused trouble for your shop,
05:34I was really happy that my daughter wanted to buy a cake for me.
05:39Your daughter is very kind.
05:42Yes, she is.
05:45I realized that I've been working so much every day,
05:49and hadn't shared a cake with her in a while.
05:53I felt like I received the gift of that time from these cakes.
05:58Um, I see.
06:01That's good to hear.
06:03That's why I wanted to pay for that much at least.
06:07The cake is a gift from me.
06:09There's no need for payment.
06:11But I can't just...
06:13Just enjoying my cake is more than enough.
06:17All right.
06:19In that case...
06:22I've fallen in love with the taste of the cakes from the shop.
06:26So would you let me work here?
06:28What?
06:30I've worked at a cake shop before,
06:32so I'm good with customer service.
06:36As you can see,
06:38this shop is small and I can manage it on my own.
06:43But what if customers come and you can't see them from the kitchen?
06:47That's... true.
06:50Um, and also,
06:53I can't really, um,
06:55afford to hire anyone right now.
06:59All right.
07:01I still have another job, so I'm not thinking of getting hired right away.
07:05Glad you understand.
07:08So, let's consider it a trial period for now.
07:12Can I work on my days off, like Saturdays and Sundays?
07:16Hmm?
07:18Well then, let's consider the payment I made yesterday
07:21for the cake as an advance for my salary.
07:24And so, in a somewhat coerced manner,
07:29I ended up with Lisa helping out at the shop.
07:33Saturday
07:35Wow!
07:36Just having Lisa here is attracting more customers than usual.
07:41Thank you. Have a nice day.
07:44Sales are doing much better than usual.
07:47She's got that customer service experience.
07:51Do you still have strawberry shortcakes?
07:54Oh, yeah, we do.
07:56I'll arrange them.
07:58Oh, I'll do it.
08:00Sorry, I'm really sorry.
08:03No, I'm the one who's sorry.
08:05Ken, which cake do you want?
08:09Um...
08:11Hi! How are you guys doing today?
08:15That scared me.
08:17I'm already pretty shy,
08:19and working with such a stunner is raising the stakes too high for me.
08:24I want this one, this one, and this one too!
08:29That's too many, dear.
08:31You can't finish them all, you know.
08:33No! I want them all!
08:35I want to eat them all!
08:37You have to finish the cakes today.
08:40You can't eat that much cake no matter how much you love it.
08:43Uh-huh. I think your mother is right.
08:47No! No!
08:49I... get that feeling.
08:52Wanting to eat them all?
08:54You know what? How about...
08:56Hey, buddy!
08:58Try these cakes and tell me which one you like the most, alright?
09:01Angel?
09:03Can I really eat these?
09:06Yeah.
09:08And then you can have your mom buy the one you like the most.
09:11Okay!
09:13So, if that works for you...
09:18I'm sorry. Thank you so much.
09:21No, it's fine.
09:23These are all my pride and joy cakes.
09:27But the best part is seeing people enjoy them.
09:32Here you go.
09:34Thanks! I'll come back again!
09:36Sure. Anytime, buddy.
09:39Thank you so much!
09:41Thanks, Eito.
09:43You know, you really are kind.
09:47Huh? Not really.
09:50If anything, I'm often at a loss for words and can come off as intimidating.
09:56You know, if I scared you, Lisa, I'm sorry.
10:01I've never found you scary.
10:04When you helped Meg, and even now,
10:07everyone understands that you're a kind person.
10:11Huh?
10:13So, the taste of the cakes you make reflects that kindness.
10:19That's so kind of you.
10:23Being told that for the first time is quite something.
10:28It feels good.
10:31Gradually, Lisa working on the weekends became the norm,
10:35and she started getting a little salary, and she continued to help out.
10:40Wow, it's like magic!
10:42If you practice, anyone can do it.
10:46Well then, I'll practice hard to be more like you.
10:50No, I still think you're doing great.
10:53Don't worry, I understand.
10:55I think I'm getting better at understanding what you really mean to say, Eito.
11:01Mom! You and Eito are like best friends, huh?
11:06Meg!
11:08Cuz, Eito is always talking with Mom and never does anything with me.
11:14Alright Meg, how about we make an extra fancy cake together on your birthday?
11:21Really? You promise?
11:23My birthday's next month, so don't forget, okay?
11:26Yeah, I promise.
11:29These days, I've been asking Lisa to taste test the new stuff more.
11:34Check this out, it's a new one.
11:36Mind giving it a try?
11:39Wow, looks nice.
11:41Lots of fruit, and it's gotta be delicious.
11:45I'm kinda sweating the balance of tartness though.
11:49Um, I'm a bit tied up right now.
11:53Could you feed me a bite, please?
11:56Huh? Well, I mean, both of your hands are free, right?
12:01What are you talking about?
12:03Anyways, please get on with it.
12:06Are you serious?
12:08I've never done those things before, you know?
12:11Aw, I want some too!
12:17I've been enjoying these days, hoping they'd last forever.
12:22Thanks to Lisa and Meg, we did see an increase in customers for a while.
12:27But we still couldn't shake the reputation of being an expensive shop.
12:33To make matters worse, a chain store opened up nearby.
12:38Just keeping this place open is causing us to bleed money!
12:43Even though Lisa and Meg have been a huge help,
12:46if things keep going this way,
12:49I've started thinking about closing down the shop.
12:53If I'm gonna go through with closing it, I need to do it soon.
12:58Isn't Meg's birthday coming up soon?
13:02I made a promise to create an extravagant birthday cake.
13:07Alright.
13:09I decided to create a luxurious birthday cake for Meg
13:13as my final big project before closing the shop.
13:17A few days later, on one of our days off,
13:20I invited Lisa and Meg over, and we started making the cake together.
13:25Meg was excited to help.
13:28It's done!
13:29Eito, thank you so much for doing this for Meg.
13:33We've made a really special cake that I've never seen before!
13:37Yeah, I can't wait to taste it!
13:40Let's prepare it right away!
13:43Mmm, it's delicious!
13:45Eito, thanks for keeping your promise.
13:48You're welcome.
13:50But you know, today,
13:53there's something important I want to talk to you two about.
13:57Why so serious?
13:59What is it?
14:01I'm thinking about closing the shop.
14:04So, I created Meg's birthday cake as my final major project.
14:10You're closing the shop?
14:13Yeah.
14:14You can make cakes this good, and you're thinking of quitting?
14:18Ever since that chain store opened up, our sales haven't been great.
14:23I've been thinking it might be time to close up shop.
14:29You can't give up.
14:31Especially when you can make such delicious cakes.
14:34But...
14:36Hey Eito, why don't you teach people how to make cakes?
14:40I'm sure they'd come to learn from you.
14:42Huh?
14:44You taught us today, and the cakes turned out great, right?
14:48Exactly! You're right, Meg.
14:51I'm sure people would come to learn if you taught them.
14:54But...
14:56I'm not that great with words, you know.
14:59No, you've got the skills.
15:02When it comes to sweets, you're a natural,
15:04and your teaching style is very clear.
15:07My friends are curious about how to make these cakes,
15:10and actually, many customers have asked about it too.
15:14I mean, if I can do it, it's not just for grown-ups, right?
15:18Eito, let's start a cake-making class.
15:22Uh...
15:24If you guys say so...
15:26I'll give it one more shot.
15:28Yes! Let's give it our best shot!
15:32And so, I decided to start a confectionary class, not just my store.
15:37At first, it wasn't smooth sailing.
15:41But by the next month, our class was fully booked!
15:46Uh...
15:48If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
15:52This was also thanks to Lisa's support.
15:55As I got more comfortable talking to the students,
15:58I started hearing various opinions.
16:01These cakes are so delicious!
16:04But I guess cakes are still a luxury.
16:07Your cakes use high-quality ingredients,
16:10so they are a bit on the pricey side.
16:14Yeah, I guess I need to think about that.
16:18I'd be happy if I could buy cakes with my own money.
16:22Cakes that kids can buy too, huh?
16:25I see...
16:27Anything else?
16:29If they were smaller cakes, you could try more flavors, right?
16:33True.
16:35No matter how delicious, kids tend to get bored quickly.
16:39Listening to these various opinions,
16:42I decided to reconsider my store's lineup.
16:45Cute little cakes!
16:47This way, even Meg can buy them with her pocket money,
16:51and they'd be more affordable with various flavors, right?
16:55Yeah!
16:57But we might need to limit the quantity so that Meg won't buy too many.
17:02Come on, don't worry about it!
17:06Oh my, but I bet Meg's pocket money will be gone soon because of the cakes.
17:11Stop teasing me, you two!
17:14Anyway, I'll show my friends these cakes. Bye!
17:18The store and the classes are going smoothly.
17:22I'm glad I didn't close up shop back then.
17:26What's wrong?
17:28Why are you staring at me?
17:31All this success is thanks to you and Meg.
17:35Thanks.
17:37I'm just a fan of your cakes, so it's really nothing.
17:41Just...my cakes?
17:44I hope I'm not being too forward.
17:48But I like you, Lisa.
17:51What?
17:53Always so positive, always so happy about my happiness and success.
17:58That's why I fell for you.
18:00You're not being too forward at all.
18:03I've admired your dedication to your cakes and how you approach them, so I...
18:08Admired?
18:10Not just that, but I've gradually been drawn to you, too.
18:15I like you, too.
18:18Afterward, my store became well-known as a confectionery shop with classes,
18:23and was featured in magazines and on TV.
18:26Of course, my relationship with Lisa was going smoothly.
18:32And today is my birthday.
18:35It seems they're going to make me a birthday cake together.
18:39Can I help with something?
18:41Just sit down and wait.
18:43Behave and wait or we won't give you any cake.
18:47We're done!
18:49Is this...
18:52Um, is it okay if I ask for your answer now?
18:57At a time like this?
18:59Man, I never expected for you to ask me first.
19:03Huh?
19:05A ring?
19:07Of course I already know what to say.
19:10That means...
19:11Lisa, let's get married.
19:14Meg, from now on, I'll be your dad.
19:18Thanks, Eito.
19:20Promise to keep making delicious cakes for Mom, okay?
19:24Even though the future is uncertain,
19:27as long as I have them, I can overcome any challenge.