Fuutarou and Mutsumi still stand in the store, this time arguing over a carton of eggs. "I told you, they smell off! I'm doing this for your own good Fuutarou-san!" Mutsumi yanks them away from. "Mind your own business! I've had eggs that smelled worse than these and they till tasted good." Fuutarou reaches for the carton. "You also said Miku's omurice was as good as Nino's dutch baby!" She swats his hands away and waves over an employee.
"Was that dream all you wanted to talk about? Why go through all the trouble?" Fuutarou asks as they walk over to the produce section. "Oh yeah! Give me your phone, I'll send myself a message from it. You already have everyone else's contacts, right?" She reaches for an onion. "Fair enough I guess, you do double check their answers before I arrive so it'll help with teaching them." He thinks about it, reaching into his pocket.
One short message and a few taps later, she hands it back him. "Still, I don't believe it." Mutsumi says. "Believe what?" He asks as he grabs some potatoes. "That you had five, now...nah still five, beautiful girls around you for months and you still haven't made any moves." She says nonchalantly. "Don't tell me you have a secret lover! How scandalous!" She jabs his arm.
"I don't even know where to call you out on first. Anyway, love is..." He pauses. "You know what, I don't know either. I guess you girls aren't as pretty as you think." He smirks. "Be thankful I'm not Nino." She glares at him as her phone buzzes. "Oh, I was waiting for this call, 'scuse me!" She says as she walks to the cereal aisle that's definitely out of his budget.
"Dad...yeah, I'll be there soon. Ebata-san's waiting for me? Tell him to wait a bit longer, I'm just about done shopping." She says as she ends the call. "Fuutarou-san, I'm done shopping so I'll be going now. Let's have another chat sometime." She waves to him as she heads for checkout. She spots him trying for the raffle as she checks out her groceries.
"Isn't your home that way?" Fuutarou asks as they both leave the store. "I'm meeting with someone. Could it be that you're worried about me?" She teases him with an overly girly wink. "Just take care." He quickly turns on his heels and starts walking home. "Young miss Mutsumi, are you well?" Ebata asks as she walks towards the familiar black car. "Formal as always Ebata-san. I'm fine." She sits inside as they drive to the hospital.
"I'll escort you to the Master. Follow me." Ebata leads them into an elevator and down the halls until they stop at a door. The head physician's office isn't open to ordinary people, but Mutsumi wasn't just another patient. "Dad, I'm here." Mutsumi says as she opens the door. Finding her father talking with a rather large man, she quiets herself down to let them finish their conversation.
"Mutsumi-kun. Excuse us a moment, this won't take long. Let's talk elsewhere Takeda-san." Maruo says as he and his guest exit the room. "Takeda...Takeda...The school's director? Why is he here? We all passed, we shouldn't be swapping schools." She asks herself as she sees a clipboard on her father's desk.
Holding it in her hands, she notices six papers. "Nakano Ichika, Nakano Nino, Nakano Miku, Nakano Yotsuba, Nakano Itsuki...I guess I shouldn't be surprised he has our medical records." She mutters to herself, spotting a seventh blank record on the desk; blank save for the name, hers. "If that's mine, then whose is...grandpa?" She feels something trying to push tears out her eyes.
"I can't cry, that'll leave a trace." She rubs her eyes and sets everything back to where they were as Maruo and director Takeda enter the room and shake hands. Takeda leaves, now it's just her and her father. It was silent, with only the sound of the beeping of the scale breaking it once Maruo gets Mutsumi's weight.
"So I saw a raffle while I was out shopping today. One of the prizes was a trip for two to some hot springs." Mutsumi says as Maruo starts taking her blood pressure. "And. I'll take you if you and your sisters return back to the apartment." Maruo turns on the machine. "It's near grandpa's place." She says. Maruo stops momentarily, but only momentarily. "For two, you said. I can assume that you're not happy with that limitation." He says coldly as he pulls out a calculator and plugs in her numbers.
"Let's go around the end of March, though I'll still have to check the weather." She has a faint smile crawl on her face, like a sailor seeing the sun after the storm. "Alright, your examination is over. That would be all for today." Maruo says as he goes back to his work.
It was just past noon when Mutsumi arrived home. "Where were you, we're starving because of you. Itsuki fainted twice." Nino runs up to her and chastises her before they hear a third. "That makes three times." Miku chimes in from the kotatsu as she sips on a can of matcha soda. "Fooooooood!" Itsuki says, or snarls in this case as she looks like a reanimated corpse. "My bad, my bad. I got a call from dad and he wasn't taking no for an answer. It wasn't serious though." She says as she hands Nino the groceries and leans against the door.
"I still need to talk to her about that. I'll apologize in private, but...how to isolate her." Mutsumi thinks as Yotsuba helps Itsuki get her head off the kotatsu. She grins as she pulls out her phone and starts tapping. "Hey Fuutarou-san. Are you busy today? There's something I want to talk to you about, maybe over some coffee." She says, loud enough to get everyone's attention, as she taps her screen.
"What! You too!" Nino's eyes furrow. "That's a bold move Mutsumi!" Ichika says, waking up from her nap. "To broadcast your plan to your opponents, how foolish." Miku stays calm, though she does chug the rest of the soda. "Don't tell me you four have all fallen for Uesugi! Are you really my sisters?" Itsuki regains some life for a moment, though her stomach consumes that shortly after. Yotsuba doesn't say anything, she just smiles. "Hook, line, and sinker." Mutsumi smiles, causing her sisters to flair up again.
"Well, I'll be going out to get ready just in case. Oh wait." She feigns a eureka. "I'll treat you, leave your wallet. Winky face...no just a smile is good enough." She says as she leaves home again. She walks past a salon, past cafés, past clothing stores; she already has a destination. She arrives there, it's barren.
"Now to wait." She says as she pulls a cap and a jacket from her backpack. She sits there alone for hours, the only thing that changes are a few birds landing and flying off periodically. She hears footsteps and hides behind a bench. They walk towards the swings, the sound of the metal links clinking together showing that they got on.
"Uesugi-san got really popular, I'm glad. At first I was scared that nobody would like him, but then Miku fell for him. After that came Ichika, then Nino. Even Mutsumi likes Uesugi-san, even if they always fight. It's kinda lonely, but it's fine as long as everyone else is happy. Uesugi-san...Fuutarou-kun…" A familiar voice stars swinging, her ribbon flowing with every motion. "I love you." She rises. "I always have." Yotsuba moves backwards, the wind blowing her hair in front of her face.
"You know, words like those are useless unless he hears them." Mutsumi says as she starts swinging too. "M-Mutsumi! Did you hear anything?" Yotsuba is caught of guard, gripping onto the chains tighter. "Everything. You're an amazing liar Yotsuba." Mutsumi says as she slows her swing down. "I mean, you lie so well, you might actually start believing that your mindset is good." She says seriously, though her words could've been better.
"Yotsuba, I'm sorry. I told him about our plan in the lake." Mutsumi bows her head. "You what!?" Yotsuba dismounts rather ungracefully, having to roll to not get hurt. "I didn't give him names, I just said that it was one of us." Mutsumi says, trying to make an excuse to avoid conflict. Yotsuba is on her knees, looking away and with her head down.
"Mutsumi! I thought I could trust you!" Her bright and cheery voice gave way to a cold, unfeeling one. "I'm sorry. I just thought...that maybe..." Mutsumi realizes what she's done, getting off and slowly walking towards Yotsuba. "It's better if he doesn't know! It's better if you just minded your own business and didn't do anything!" Yotsuba's words irked Mutsumi.
"Why?! Why hide the truth from him?! What gives you the right to say what he does and doesn't know!" She asks, somewhat frustrated at the roundabout way Yotsuba did things. "You wouldn't know! You weren't here! You left us Mutsumi!" Yotsuba slowly stands up, but her head is still facing the ground. "I shouldn't tell him, everyone else worked so hard so I shouldn't be special just because we met years ago!" Yotsuba gives her reason, though Mutsumi isn't convinced.
"Shouldn't be special?! Yotsuba, stop speaking nonsense! You're special, you'll always be, so let's let him know that so you don't have to keep lying to yourself." Mutsumi puts her hand to Yotsuba's arms, facing her.
"Shut up Mutsumi! You don't know what I've been through! You should've not done anything! You shouldn't have come back!" Yotsuba snaps at her, swinging her arms and hitting Mutsumi's temple. On the ground, Mutsumi finally saw her face, it wasn't angry. "You should just leave! You've done it before." Her voice is serious as she walks home. "Yotsuba...I...I just wanted to help..." Mutsumi stumbles onto her feet.
"Fuutarou-san! Fuutarou-san!" She bangs her arms against the café, it's dark. "Fuutarou-san! Help me! Fuutarou-san!" Her voice desperate as she rests her body against the door. She slumps down, much like the sun at the moment. Nobody counted the minutes, maybe hours, that she just laid there. "Mutsumi-san?" Raiha's voice was surprised as a set of footsteps sounded through the dark. "That's one of the Nakano girls, right? Fuutarou, take her inside. I have to make a phone call." Isanari unlocks the door. "Maruo..."
"I'm sorry...I'm sorry." She mutters to herself as she opens her eyes. "Mutsumi, how did this happen?" Fuutarou brushes away her hair, revealing a bloody bruise. "Raiha, get the emergency first aid. Mutsumi, what happened, you can tell me right?" He sets her head on his lap as he holds a wet towel in his hand and wipes the blood away.
"'I thought I could trust you' No...Yotsuba...I just..." She thinks as she shuts her eyes as tight as possible. "I...can't...I'm sorry." She manages to say it through her sniffles. Raiha comes back, handing Fuutarou a roll of gauze. "I...I'm sorry." That's all she could say.
Fuutarou tried to ask a few more questions, but she still wouldn't answer. "Fuutarou-san...I think I need some time alone. Thank you." She collects herself and starts to head out as there's a knock on the door. "Mutsumi-kun, I'm taking you to your sisters." Maruo appears in the doorway. "You shouldn't have come back! You should just leave! You've done it before." Yotsuba's words echo in Mutsumi's head. Her hands tremble, she takes a step back, her eyes try to plead to not go back. "Come with me." Maruo reaches for her hand, but his gets slapped away.
"Maruo! Look at the girl. The moment you said you'll bring her to her sisters, she was terrified." Isanari snaps at the doctor. "Don't tell me how to raise my child Uesugi. Mutsumi, your sisters are waiting." He turns to her, finding tears rolling down her face. "I...I don't want to...I don't want to go back..." Her voice was shaky, only barely able to be comprehensible.
Maruo turns to Isanari, and with disdain and anger, reluctantly makes an offer. "Fine, but if I hear of anything that you or your son do. Your debt will be the last of your problems." He threatens Isanari, who just sends him on his way.
It was silent that night, everyone was asleep except for Mutsumi. She couldn't sleep, Yotsuba's words kept repeating in her head. "I...I just wanted to help." She stands up from her futon and heads for the bathroom. Splashing water on her face, she rubs her eyes as she looks in the mirror.
She sees her reflection, Yotsuba's reflection. "I'm sorry Yotsuba...I just couldn't keep watching this..." She curls up on the floor. "You were right...I...I shouldn't have come back." She would've kept muttering to herself throughout the night. "Mutsumi? Are you okay? Can you tell me now?" Fuutarou said from the other side of the door.
"Fuutarou-san...am I a bad person?" She leans her back against the door. "I just...I saw someone hurting and I tried to change it...but I just made everything worse." She clutches her legs. "I just wanted to help..."
"Mutsumi, what did you do?" Fuutarou asks. "I...can't tell you...it'd make it even worse." Mutsumi weeps. "I...see" Fuutarou is speechless. "I don't know if you're good or bad, for whatever thing you did." He tries to give advice. "But there are just some things that you can't change. I tried to stop Ichika from acting, but you can tell how that turned out." He gives an example, she can practically imagine him having notes to guide him through this. "So I just dealt with it."
"But it was hurting her...if I didn't do anything then...then..." Mutsumi wipes her eyes. "Then what? Mutsumi, sometimes you just have to trust in them." He sounds like he stood up. "Trust...trust..."
She hasn't come home for days, she's just been isolating herself; even from the Uesugis. She doesn't eat much, nor talk much. She just broods over her thoughts like the thinker statue. "Woah! We won the raffle! There's only two tickets though." Raiha pouts. "We can't have that! I'll buy one for myself." Isanari gets fired up. "Mutsumi? What's wrong, you look like you want to say something." Fuutarou asks. There's a knock on the door before she could answer.
"Miku? Itsuki? What're you two doing here?" She heard Fuutarou's voice and hid away in another room. "We're looking for Mutsumi, has she come here?" Itsuki asks. "She came by yesterday, though she left before the sun went down. Why are you looking for her? Did she go missing?" Fuutarou lies. "Thank you...Fuutarou-san." She thinks silently.
"Yeah, she said she went out to go...err never mind. If you happen to see her, give her this." Miku says. "What could it be? Is it from Yotsuba?" She thinks.
The sisters leave and Fuutarou comes back to the table with everyone. "Mutsumi! You can come out now!" He yells as she comes out of the other room and looks around cautiously. He holds out a ticket, a familiar looking one. "It's for a different boat though, and your sisters will be there." He reads the details.
"I have an idea! Give me a minute!" Isanari beams, leaving the room to make a call. He's gone for ten, maybe twelve minutes. "Alright! Fuutarou, you use that ticket! She'll use yours and be with me and Raiha." Isanari comes back, proud. "What? Explain pops!" Fuutarou, Raiha, and Mutsumi all look to the blonde with curious faces.
"It's simple, I buy a ticket for myself. Then Mutsumi, Raiha, and I will be on one boat, while you use that ticket and go to the island with the Nakanos. Go text one of the girls to tell them that you're going to be using that ticket. I already convinced Maruo, though he will watch over you like a vulture that entire boat ride." Isanari already starts counting money and is heading out the door to get his ticket.
The sun shone brightly as the tapping of feet closed in on a docked boat. Someone was already standing by it, looking off to the side to another boat docked further away. "Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba runs up and tackles him, nearly knocking him into the water. "You're late!" Uesugi pries her off as the other four walk up to them. "You're just early Uesugi-kun." Itsuki says as she takes a bite out of an apple.
"Still, I can't believe that dad let you come with us Uesugi." Nino crosses her arms. "Why couldn't it have been Raiha-chan?" Yotsuba gets up, seemingly annoyed by the opportunity cost of having Fuutarou riding on the boat. "Well, if it was Raiha, then Mutsumi'll be with me and pops...I can only assume he's going to keep an eye on me the whole ride over." He thinks silently as he pinches the bridge of his nose and looks at the other boat again.
"Raiha's more comfortable with dad than I am, my old man ticks me off." He tries to weave a convincing lie. "I see we have that in common, Uesugi Fuutarou-kun." Maruo says, walking out of the boat. "I'll be keeping my eye on you. Do not try anything." His voice looms over everyone. "You were here? Where's Ebata-san?" Miku asks as she struggles to drag her things. "More importantly, why the sudden urge to visit grandpa?" Ichika asks, holding on to a hat as the ocean breeze blows through.
"Does a man need a reason to spend time with his family?" Maruo says, going back on the boat to call Ebata over. They load their things, oddly Nino's is lighter than Fuutarou expected. "Where are all of her fancy clothes? I was sure she'd pack at least some accessories." He mumbles to himself as he looks to that same boat across the docks. He smiles as he spots two flashes of blonde, as they disembark.
Ten minutes, maybe twenty, pass as they are alone with the waves. "I have to find out what happened, and Mutsumi hasn't given me anything to work off of." He thinks to himself as he leans on a rail at the rear of the boat. "Let's see, I think I should write these down just in case." He pulls out a notepad and pencil from his bag.
"She arrived with a bloody bruise on her head, though she could've gotten that on her way to my house, I can't rule out the chance that she got physical with who she fought with." He notes it down, drawing a grid. "Before she recomposed herself, all she could say was sorry. Even after that, she lost her energy. Whatever happened, she thinks it's her fault." He adds more notes. "She didn't want to go back to their apartment, and hid when Miku and Itsuki came over. She may have fought with more than one, or the one she fought with may have told the others. In any case, the number of people that she fought with is undefined." He puts a mark on his grid.
"She can't tell me the details, fearing that it might make things worse. She usually doesn't hide things, so the other party is one that does." His gears keep turning. He looks up momentarily, noticing some gulls landing beside him. "She was the one that started it, with the intention of helping. Who exactly is still unclear, but her saying 'her' means that one person was her initial target. Whether there were others around to hear and interfere is unknown." He jots down as the gulls take off. "Wacha writing." Ichika sneaks up beside him, causing him to hide the page. "I got stuck on a problem, I'm revising my equations and solutions." Fuutarou says, technically not wrong.
"We'll be at the hot springs soon Fuutarou-kun. My sisters and I used to visit all the time." She says. "That's admirable Uesugi-kun. Ichika-kun, come. Let's eat." Maruo interjects. Ichika leaves in a huff, and Fuutarou is left by his lonesome self once again. "And then there's the nature of this trip, if that father of theirs wanted to spend time with them then isn't this overboard?" He thinks, smirking at his pun he made in his head. "No, focus! Right now I need to focus on getting Mutsumi back on her feet. She makes resting at home a hassle." He looks at his notes, feeling his chest hurt at that last thought. "I need more information."
Meanwhile, on another boat. "Mutsumi-san! Look, seagulls!" Raiha points as they stand on the bow of the boat. "Really where?" She has a smile on her face, seemingly better than the last time. She lifts up her white beret slightly to let her hair down. Mutsumi's wearing a tea length dress, a simple vine and floral pattern reaching from the rim upwards starting from her sides; a pair of mid heeled sandals finish her disguise. "Wow, there's so many!" She looks up at the flock flying towards the same island that they're going.
"Mutsumi-san, I already asked you earlier but, why don't you dress like this more often? You dress like onii-san did a few years ago." Raiha asks as they both leave to go below deck. "Ahh...well..erm…" She gets flustered. "It uhh...it doesn't match me...I think." Her face starts going red as Raiha pouts. "But it does! You look great! I'm surprised that we found something for you though." Raiha says. "R-Really? I guess you're right...I used to dress like this all the time." She mutters.
"Really? Why don't you wear them anymore?" Raiha asks as Isanari meets up with them. "Well, there were some people that talked to me because of it, but they only wanted my money." She says, looking away wistfully. "When I stopped dressing in fancy dresses, they stopped talking to me. They never apologized too." She mouths off. "So this is why I have to find her, but I want it to just be us." She thinks. "Come on you two, I can't eat all this myself." Isanari gets their attention as they all take a bite of some food.
"First Nino, then Miku, I don't know if Mutsumi managed to tell him before she ran away but..." Ichika thinks as she sits around a table with her family below deck. "This is good Nino, as always." Itsuki says as she stuffs her mouth with chicken. "Are we still doing that thing when we get there?" Miku asks as she takes a bite of rice. "We always do that, why stop now?" Nino says as she passes a plate of vegetables to Yotsuba. "If I don't do anything, they'll get him, but..." She looks over to Miku and Nino. "Can I really do this to them?" Ichika mulls it over so much that she drops her chopsticks."'...stronger than you think Ichika. If anything this is disrespectful to her because you don't think she can handle getting hurt.' Alright Mutsumi, if this is what you want then bring it on!" She grins as she brings her bowl to her mouth and downs the entire thing. "I want more."
Miku, all this time, has been taking in all of the food. "Why can't I cook like Nino?" She asks herself as she takes a piece of chicken and eats it. "It's good...I'll never be able to..." She catches herself. "No. I promised myself that day. I promised her. No more barriers, I'm giving this my all." She focuses on her tongue. "Chicken breast, faint hints of peppercorn, garlic, and rosemary. This texture...it was marinated before she cooked it. It's slightly sweet and floral, honey?!" She swallows. "No more rock croquettes."
A short while after that, Yotsuba finds herself on the port side of the boat, looking down at the ripples their boat leaves. "Mutsumi..." She looks at her hands. "I...I didn't mean it...please come back..." She recalls that night. "Yotsuba..." Mutsumi's voice rang out that night, it seemed to be the only thing that kept her together as her world spun around her. "That's..." Her voice couldn't even let out her sister's name as she saw her with a young blonde boy. "Ichika...Yotsuba, are you alright?" Mutsumi turned to face her, her hands getting dampened by Yotsuba's tears. "It'll be okay, I'm here..." Mutsumi pulls them aside and hugs her sister tightly. "Come back...I'm sorry." Yotsuba mutters to the ocean as the once calm waters get broken by the boat she's on. "Don't leave again."
They arrive on the island, Yotsuba gets nervous as Itsuki hands her a bag that she had in her luggage. "Don't lose those, I'm running out of spares." Itsuki says as Fuutarou breaks away from them. "I think Raiha and Dad are going to dock soon, I'll wait for them." He waves them off as the second boat docks ten minutes after.
"We're lucky I taught myself how to do it." Isanari says as the three of them get off. Mutsumi brushes her blonde hair, tied into a fishtail braid that rests on her shoulder. "D-Do I look weird?" She asks. "We've been through this on the boat, you look fine. Take these." Raiha hands over a pair of fake glasses and a makeup kit. "Alright, but if one of your sisters comes up to you, what're you going to do?" Fuutarou asks. Mutsumi clears her throat. "Hello, my name is Uso Uesugi. I'm Fuutarou and Raiha's cousin." She says with her girliest voice.
"It's so weird to hear that from you, a complete 180 from normal." Fuutarou comments as Mutsumi punches his arm. "There, better?" She asks sarcastically. "Follow me, I used to go here when I was younger." She takes the lead, looking around at the familiar scenery around her. "Uesugi-kun, there you are. Did you find them? If not, stay near us. You might get lost." Itsuki yells from ahead.
"What's this bell?" Fuutarou asks as he bends over to inspect it. "The bell of vows, legend has it that the man and women who ring this bell together will be bound by fate for eternity." Two voices say simultaneously. "Ah, who are you?" Yotsuba turns to the blonde woman. Mutsumi does her rehearsed introduction. "I was fascinated by the island when uncle Isanari invited me, so I did my own research. Did you know that there's an Inn nearby?" Mutsumi lies enthusiastically. "Yeah! Actually, we're going there now." Yotsuba calls over the rest of the family. "Oh fuck." Mutsumi and Fuutarou think as the rest of the sisters come over.
"Wow, quintuplets! You weren't lying Fuutarou-kun! I still can't believe it." Mutsumi lies, taking Itsuki by the hand. "Let's see, who did he say had the star pins...Are you Miku-chan?" She intentionally gets their names wrong. "Fuutarou, teach your cousin better! She only got Ichika right!" Nino snaps at Fuutarou. "Fuutarou? You're calling him that now?" Miku asks, coming up to Nino. "Hmm, if you're that mad about it, then how about a nickname." Nino thinks. "Fuu-kun! We'll be going now!" Nino smiles as Maruo comes over. He looks over at his sixth daughter, noticing Isanari's glance and wink, he remains silent.
"That was close." Fuutarou sighs as Raiha and Mutsumi walk ahead towards the inn. The Uesugis look around, only finding an old man in the room. "Hi grandpa. It's me, Mutsumi. I'm back." She whispers to the old man. "Mutsumi? It's been a while child. Your sisters are in their usual room." Gramps replies, through a weak voice. "Actually, I'm here with my boyfriend and his family. Don't tell them." She lies, while pointing to Fuutarou. "I said something stupid." She thinks to herself.
Fuutarou sits in their room as the sun starts setting, looking at his notes, when Mutsumi walks in. "I accidentally told my grandpa that you're my boyfriend." She says as she collapses onto the floor in embarrassment. "What? Why?! Why didn't you just say I'm your cousin again?" Fuutarou fumes up, dropping his notepad. "Because he actually knows who my cousins are. He saw through my disguise the moment he saw me." She says, still planking face down on the floor.
"Well, no matter, we still have a job to do." He says. "Someone dropped this with my things while dad, Raiha, and I were in the bath. Judging by the handwriting it's Itsuki." He holds up a note. "The courtyard huh. I'll go and shadow you." Mutsumi suggests, reaching for the notepad Fuutarou dropped. "I'd appreciate that. There's a lot on my mind right now." He says.
"So, you want to help me huh, your notes are spot on." She leaf's through it. "I'll fill it out for you, but don't tell anyone. It was Yotsuba. Though I don't know if she told the others, or how she feels right now. I think I want to meet her one on one." Mutsumi fills out the notes. "I'm sorry Yotsuba, but if he's going to help me here, I'm going to take it." She thinks. "So, can you distract the others while I talk to her?" He just turns and smiles to her question.
Midnight that night was cold, cloudy. "Oh yeah, I don't know why, but I think Itsuki can teleport." Fuutarou texts Mutsumi. "WDYM?" He reads. "She told me she wanted to talk to me, so I tried following her. She somehow kept winding up in different places whenever I lost sight of her." He text back as he walks down the stairs. "Odd." Mutsumi replies as she hides behind a wooden beam just behind Fuutarou.
Footsteps ring out as Itsuki walks down the other hall and meets with Fuutarou. "Uesugi-kun, why are you here?" She asks. "I..what...you said to meet you in the courtyard. What do you want to talk about." He says. "Err uh, let's go to the courtyard." Itsuki tries to walk away. "No, you're not getting away again. I've had it up to here." Fuutarou says. "Uesugi-kun, how would you describe your current relationship with us?" She asks. "I thought I told you before, actually you were the one that said it yourself. We're partners right?" He answers, confused. "That is not the case. We're no longer partners. Let's put an end to that."
"What? Explain! Did your father say this!" He snaps, grabbing her and pushing her against the wall. "Ow." Was all he could hear before he felt himself being pushed to the ground. "If you ever lay your hand on my granddaughter again, I'll kill you." Gramps whispers in his ear as Itsuki leaves.
"What the hell...it looks like we have another problem on our hands..." Mutsumi walks over and helps him up. "I'll go ask her myself, where are they?" He says, furious and confused. "I doubt you can, I suspect that dad will be with them." Mutsumi reasons. "Let's head back to the room, we need to think things through before we act rashly." She suggests.
The next day, she and the Uesugi siblings sit awake. Fuutarou looks over at Mutsumi. "Let's focus on your problem first, mine can wait." Mutsumi rubs the back of her head. "Even if you say that, we might miss our chance to fix it. I'd say yours is more important." He says as Raiha's phone begins to ring.
"Itsuki-san? Yeah, he's awake?" Raiha says as the other two look to each other. Raiha hands the phone to Fuutarou as he puts a finger to his lips, telling Mutsumi to keep quiet. He sets it to speaker as he speaks. "What the hell happened last night! You threw me off guard!" He yells. "I could say the same to you, why didn't you go to the courtyard? I waited for ten minutes before papa caught me!" Mutsumi and Fuutarou's eyes widened. "Let's talk face to face, I'm so confused right now." He says. "I'd like to, but I'm being watched." A lightbulb fires off in Mutsumi's eyes as she whispers into Fuutarou's ear.
"Demi-glace." Fuutarou says as he soaks in the mixed bath, setting something aside on his towel. "Ham...hamburg steak..." Itsuki says from beyond the wall. "So, what is it you wanted to talk about? Why did you say you wanted me to stop being your girls' partner?" He asks. "I didn't say anything, I didn't even see you last night." Itsuki replies.
"So if it wasn't you...then..." He ponders. "Yes, it could only be one of my sisters." She states. "On that note..." She begins as someone starts walking into the mixed bath. "Why do I always run into you in the bath?" A Nakano walks in. "Uhh...which one are you?" He asks before he sees something coming towards his head. "Asshole!" The Nakano storms out.
"That was your fault." Itsuki says from the other side. "Don't be unreasonable, you all have the same face." He says. "Back to the topic at hand, there's something bothering me. Ever since spring break started, everyone's been acting differently." She states. "Do you think it's related to how they were on the boat? Maybe they're just worried about Mutsumi."
"I don't think so, it feels different. Don't get me wrong, I'm worried about her. When Yotsuba came home and said she couldn't find her, everyone panicked. That feeling is different from how they acted on the boat, it was closer to that time right after we got our scores." Itsuki reasons.
"Speaking of Mutsumi, do you know what happened? I'm getting worried." Fuutarou asks. "Sadly, I do not. Yotsuba arrived and collapsed onto the futons. She must've looked hard, she passed out covered in sweat. She said she didn't even get a clue of where she was." She says. Fuutarou reaches over and picks up something from his towel. "You hear that? It looks like Itsuki doesn't know about your fight. Maybe you can ask her for help too." He whispers into it.
There's a beep as footsteps sound in the woman's bath. "Uso-san! H-Hi." Itsuki gets flustered as Mutsumi sits beside her. She lets her hair down and turns to her. "It's been a while sis." Mutsumi says, embracing Itsuki. "I...need your help right now. Let's meet at the bell with Fuutarou-san later. He's already caught up." Itsuki's face goes red. "Mutsumi...you're okay! Thank goodness! Don't scare my like that." Itsuki finally recovers from the shock and embraces her back. "Don't tell anyone yet, I want it to be a surprise."
At the bell, the three of them meet. "What?! Why is everyone dressed like you!?" Mutsumi and Fuutarou both exclaim. "Mutsumi, remember the last time we came here with mom? Yotsuba started wearing her ribbon then, right?" Itsuki states, Mutsumi just nods. "We came to visit again after you went abroad. By that point, we all started looking and acting differently, especially Yotsuba. Grandpa thought we were fighting and fainted." Itsuki tells the story. "So that means..." Fuutarou says. "The fake Itsuki could be anyone." Mutsumi finishes. "It would also explain your 'teleporting' around the place yesterday. I just kept spotting one of the others." He says.
"So right now, we have three problems, one of which is solved. The first, who did Mutsumi have a fight with, we know it's Yotsuba so all we need to do is isolate her. The next, the things worrying your sisters. I have a hypothesis already, but I won't say it unless I've confirmed it. And finally, the identity of the Itsuki I met last night." Fuutarou sets the notepad on the ground.
"You should be fine, as long as you have love, you'll be able to tell us apart." Itsuki says. "Don't you remember what happened with Nino? I can't tell." Fuutarou complains. "But you have Mutsumi with you." She retorts as Mutsumi's eyes widen. "I...thought that fake was you. I couldn't tell who she was." Her downtrodden look took the other two by surprise.
"I...well, you were gone for years." Itsuki reasons. "I have a plan, and a spare wig." A lightbulb turns on in her brain as the winds pick up. "Mutsumi, you go in with the others while disguised as me. Maybe you'll get to talk to Yotsuba too." She hands over something from her bag. "And you, Uesugi-kun. You start training." She grins. "Training? On how to pick you out from your sisters. How am I supposed to practice that?!" He shouts. "Grandpa can do it with his eyes closed, ask him." She turns. "Let's get to the bottom of these problems. Hopefully before we leave the island." Fuutarou cleans everything up. "You think I can really pull off this plan? I'm not a good copycat, I'm more used to camouflage." Mutsumi asks. "You're my sister."
The three head back, passing Maruo and Isanari on the way. "Alright, if anything goes wrong, call me first. If the others see Mutsumi's contact on your screen, they'll start asking questions." Fuutarou says as they split up.
Uesugi and Itsuki watch as Mutsumi heads for the sisters' room with the wig in her hands. "Do you think she'll be able to fool them?" He asks the fifth sister. "Maybe. She can't copy any of us perfectly, but that also means that my sisters don't know what to look out for to identify her." Itsuki says. "Why have her do it?" Fuutarou rolls up his sleeves. "To test her. She's been gone for years, no wonder she couldn't tell us apart." Itsuki says. "Wasn't your whole thing about how 'love' is all you need?" He asks. "How can you love people you don't know, Uesugi-kun. She knows our names, but not us. If that makes sense."
Fuutarou rubs the back of his head as he spots the Sextuplets' grandpa ten minutes later, walking to the dining hall. "Uhm...Hello?" He asks as he reaches him. Gramps doesn't respond, only drifting closer to the dining hall like a ghost. "I'm sorry for last night..." He says, still nothing. "Master! I have a request! Please help me!" He steps ahead of him, bowing his head. Grandpa walks past him, leaving Fuutarou in his bow for ten seconds. "After breakfast..." Gramps says into Fuutarou's ear.
"For someone that looks like a reanimated corpse, he sure eats like a teen on puberty. Is this where Itsuki gets it from?" Fuutarou thinks to himself as one by one the sextuplets enter. First is Itsuki, practicing her Itsuki impression. Next is Itsuki and Itsuki, talking amongst themselves. "Ugh...my head hurts just trying to think about it." He says as Mutsumi walks in, the wig in her hands.
"Did she get found out? Did she get to apologize to Yotsuba yet?" He thinks as she sits with her sisters. "At least they're not fighting." He mutters to himself as the fathers sit at the table. "Blonde looks good on her." Grandpa says as he places some fish in his mouth. "Wait, didn't Itsuki say that he fainted because the sisters were acting different? How come he's okay with Mutsumi's hair?" He thinks to himself, glancing at gramps. He sees Maruo's death glare in his periphery. "Oh come on Maruo. It was her idea, ease up on my boy." Isanari says, trying to calm the doctor down.
"Y-Yeah it does..." Fuutarou agrees, looking at Mutsumi. "Mutsumi says that you're her boyfriend. That was a lie, wasn't it?" Grandpa asks. The whole table goes silent, Fuutarou can feel the doctors anger through his unexpressive face, his dad's confusion through the clinking of his chopsticks on his bowl of rice, and his own stress building. "You knew? How?"
"Because I love her. I can tell when they lie." He says. "I can understand that, you just kinda know right?" Isanari pipes up, grandpa just nods. "I'm so confused." He says as another pair of Itsukis walk in. "Test yourself Uesugi Fuutarou-kun. Which among the sisters just walked in?" Doctor Nakano asks. "If you get it wrong, I'll deduct it from your salary."
"You don't pay me anymore...well..." He looks at them. "It can't be Mutsumi, for obvious reasons. So..." He racks his brain. "Is it...the actual Itsuki and Miku?" He says nervously. Raiha comes up and sits beside Isanari. "Oh, Nino-san and Ichika-san are here now? I was looking for them earlier." She says, grandpa smiles.
"Look closer, child. See that one's boldness? How she clenches her fist every so often, that one is Nino." Grandpa says as the entire table listens intently. "Is that all this 'love' thing is? Your granddaughters exaggerated it as some mystical force." Fuutarou groans. "Paying attention to someone's behavior, their little quirks, their fidgets and tone of speaking. If you devote time to know those things, would you not call that love?" The whole table smiles, except for Fuutarou. "Their...hmm" He closes his eyes.
"That was what your request, yes? You wanted to be able to tell them apart?" The old man asks. "Let's go fishing, I will test you then." He stands and leaves the room. "This...why didn't I see it sooner? If I just practice, then..." Fuutarou gets up and walks to the sisters' table. "You know who you are, meet me tomorrow at the courtyard. I'll find you this time." He says, seeing six pairs of eyes look at him.
He meets up with the old man some time before noon. They both sit down with their lines in the water. "Alright, Mutsumi is there with one. Who is she?" Gramps asks. Fuutarou looks closely, that Itsuki's smile is wide and cheeky. "Where have I seen that before? Not Miku...hers is more contained. Nino's is bolder. Yotsuba...That's Yotsuba!" He exclaims, seeing a small smile on the old man's face. "Two more are coming. Who's on the left and who's on the right?" Fuutarou spots them. "The one on the left arcs her back and stretches her hands, she's yawning...Ichika! The other is looking to the sky with her hand to her lips. That looks like Miku's thinking face from that first mock exam I gave them." He says as he feels a tug on his rod.
"I think you're ready. It appears you already had what you needed, you just didn't know how to do it." Grandpa says. "I have a question though. Why is Mutsumi hiding from her sisters?" He helps Fuutarou reel in his catch, a black rockfish. "Could it be..." He asks himself. "Mutsumi had a fight with Yotsuba." Itsuki says as she approaches the two of them.
"Hmm, that prideful look, not bold enough to be Nino. Her hands are stretched downward, like Itsuki's when she's surprised or angry..." He mutters. "You're analyzing me like I'm a test!" She snaps. "And that...You're the actual one!" He says, proud. "I see, good work." The old man pats him on the back. "Now about that. You say they fought."
The three of them talk as the sun goes across the sky. "I-Is that why you haven't talked as much on this visit than last time? Grandpa..." Itsuki gets up and embraces the old man. "Ever since I lost Rena, you girls were the only ones I had left. I didn't want you to feel the pain of losing another loved one." The old man says. "Grandpa..." She hugs him tighter.
"Rena? So...Mutsumi used her mom's name that time at the lake." Fuutarou mutters to himself. "He knows that it was Mutsumi! That means...Is that why Yotsuba and her fought? I can't tell him, it'll only expose Yotsuba further." Itsuki overhears it. "That's also probably what's been bothering Yotsuba."
"Uesugi-kun, let's go. I think I know what Yotsuba's problem is. Thank you grandpa. We will be back again, I promise." Itsuki bows as the two teens leave the old man. "Rena...You brought him to them huh...You always were a good mother." Gramps mumbles to himself as he catches a large black porgy.
"So what troubled Yotsuba?" Fuutarou asks. "If I tell you, then her worries will come true." Itsuki says. "Mutsumi! Come back!" They hear the sisters yell, followed by Mutsumi running down the stairs and down the hall. "She's been found out." Fuutarou exclaims as the others dash down the stairs. In hot pursuit, Itsuki and Fuutarou follow behind the others. "Yotsuba, where is she?" Ichika asks as Yotsuba starts sniffing the air. "That way!"
Yotsuba leads them to a bush and pushes the branches aside, revealing a bottle of perfume with it's contents spilling out. "Ugh...there goes mom's bottle." Fuutarou thinks. "Over there!" Miku points as the blonde sister runs up another flight, before a loud thud sounds out.
"Mutsumi!"
Go back! Rewind! What happened!?
Mutsumi splits off from Itsuki and Fuutarou, clutching the wig in her hands. "Can I really pull this off?" She thinks as she heads for the nearest toilet. "Okay...okay...I just have to act like Itsuki for a while, until I can find Yotsuba..." She ties her hair up, trying to hide the strands of blonde under the wig. "How does Itsuki act?" She wonders to herself as she rubs her head, her injury left her a scar. "How does Itsuki act?"
She manages to shake off her nerves, heading up towards the room. "Mutsumi-kun." Maruo says, waiting at the top of the stairs. "Are they inside?" She asks, walking to the door; Maruo nods. She slides it open slowly. "Itsu-wait..." Itsuki says, seeing her. "You're not Itsuki, who are you?" Itsuki walks up to her. "Well, that ended horribly." She thinks as she takes off the wig.
"Uso-san? Why were you wearing a wig?" Itsuki sits down by the kotatsu, beckoning all of them. "I really wanted to get to know Fuutarou-kun's students, but your father wouldn't let me in." She silently prays that they buy it. "Oh, it must be really confusing for you then. We're all dressed the same way today." Itsuki smiles as the five of them sit around.
"It's not a problem, Itsuki-san told me in advance. I still can't believe it though, even if I can see it." She says. "I wonder what they're thinking about. Have they figured me out yet?" She thinks as her lips curl. "S...So, he told me that there were six of you, but I've only met five on the island." She asks nervously. The four Itsukis look to each other. "We don't know, she...ran away from home." Itsuki says. "Do you have any idea on where she could be? I'll gladly help find her if you let me."
"Actually, now that you mention it, we don't really know." Itsuki says. "We've been together for around five months, but...she doesn't really talk much about herself, does she?" Itsuki asks Itsuki, Itsuki nods. "I'm worried about her, to be honest, I wanted to stay behind and look for her, but papa wouldn't take no for an answer." Itsuki says. "So...if they don't know where I'd be, then they probably haven't figured me out yet." She thinks, noticing an Itsuki looking down at her hands.
"That depressed look must be Miku right? I mean, that's how she was from my memory." She reaches out her hand. "Miku-san? What's on your mind?" She asks. "She's not Miku, I am." The Itsuki to her side says. "Ugh...this is embarrassing." She thinks. "I guess they really have changed. I can't rely on my notes and memories anymore. I have to get to know the current version of them if I want to find Yotsuba." She thinks, glancing down at her phone melancholically.
"Hey, why don't we get to know each other a bit. Uso-san, how was Uesugi-kun when he was little?" An Itsuki asks, while another whispers into Miku's ear. "Ahh, well..." She thinks for a while. "Well, there was a time when we were all at his place. Auntie used to make dinner for us; he'd always eat too much and end up getting sick." She lies. "Speaking of her, do you like this perfume? She gave it to me before she...err...never mind." She pulls out a small bottle from under her beret. "Uesugi-kun's mom had really good taste though, it smells nice." The depressed Itsuki pipes up.
"Hmm, what can I do to figure out which one Yotsuba is? I can use that but...no, I have to figure it out before we leave this island." She scratches her chin. "And there was this one time he went on a trip to Kyoto. It would've been six years by now. He said he met a girl there, though he wouldn't tell me anything else." She says, pretending to be annoyed. "Fuutarou-kun's first crush. A girl he met by chance and will probably never meet again. How romantic and tragic." She dramatizes it, looking for a reaction; she gets nothing.
"Ugh, this is harder than I thought." She thinks as the door slides open and grandpa calls them over for breakfast. "Hey Ichika, want to take a bath before breakfast? Oh, Uso-san, wanna join us?" An Itsuki asks. "She might be Yotsuba, but the other two could be too...if she isn't Yotsuba, I can just leave the bath early and go to the dining hall..." She thinks as she accepts the offer.
They take off the wigs, their hair is short, but they're not Yotsuba. "Hey, Uso-san. Have you ever had a boyfriend before?" Nino asks, her bangs covering most of her forehead. Ichika and Mutsumi blush. "N-No...not yet..." She stutters, her face going red. "Well, what would you do if someone confessed to you?" Nino asks. "I...I don't know...Am I really the one you want to be asking?" Mutsumi replies, hiding her face in the water.
She pulls her head up, her hair drifted aside and exposed her scar. Ichika sees this and moves next to her. "Are you okay? Did you get that when you ran away?" She whispers into Mutsumi's ear. The blonde stands up, and towels off. "Ahh, I already took a bath with Itsuki-san earlier...If I stay any longer it'll waste my day. See you girls." She rushes out and gets dressed again.
Heading into the dining hall, finding three Itsuki's already sitting at a table. "D-Did Ichika figure me out?" She thinks as she sits next to Itsuki. "Oh, Uso-san. How did the disguise go?" Itsuki asks. "She knew about it, it must be the real one." Mutsumi theorizes, only to confirmed by a sly thumbs up from under the table. "I was found out almost immediately." She groans, handing the wig back.
"I can't get a handle on this. I don't know their recent habits, I can't distinguish them at all." She frowns. "Is something wrong?" One of the faux Itsukis asks. "Ah...no. Just something on my mind." She turns to find Fuutarou sitting with gramps, their dads sitting down afterwards. "I hope your plan is going better than mine Fuutarou-san." She grimaces as Nino and Ichika walk in, disguised again.
"I'm astonished at how you can tell who's who. My head hurts just having to try." Mutsumi complains, eating some roasted carrots. "It's because of love. With love, we're able to tell who we are and almost know what we're thinking." An Itsuki says. Those words irked Mutsumi, causing her to stop eating. "So the sixth girl, you don't love her? You said you were having a hard time figuring out where she could be, so that means you don't know how she thinks." She makes a scathing comment. "Hey! You don't know anything, so shut up!" An Itsuki says.
"You wouldn't know!" Yotsuba's words echoed in her head. Her breathing gets heavy and she starts clenching her fist. "Hey Nino! Now isn't the time." Itsuki says as an imposter holds Mutsumi's hands. "Calm down, we're not going to leave like the ones in your dream." The pseudo-suki whispers, Mutsumi's face is shocked before she calms down just as Fuutarou comes up to their table.
"You know who you are, meet me tomorrow at the courtyard. I'll find you this time." He says before leaving. "What is he talking about?" They starts talking. "Okay, he must be onto something for the fake Itsuki. We know it's not the actual Itsuki. Nino doesn't want to push him away or get him fired, she was still thinking of romance in the bath and she just confessed to him when vacation started. Miku confessed that one night I brought her to his place, I think; for her to make this move would be shooting herself in the foot. So that leaves Ichika and Yotsuba..." Mutsumi glances about.
"First Ichika, then Miku. How come they could see through my act so easily?" She thinks to herself as she walks on the beach with a fake Itsuki. "So, Uso-san...are you having fun?" Itsuki asks. "Sorry about breakfast...and yeah, I am!" She smiles, the Itsuki's smile reaches all across her face. "That smile...are you Yotsuba-san?" She asks, Yotsuba nods. "Yotsuba...actually, there's some-" She gets interrupted by a loud and audible yawn.
"A yawn? It's nowhere close to night though. It must be that sleepyhead Ichika." She turns to find Ichika stretching her hands. "Oh, is that Fuutarou over there?" The other one looks up at the docks, putting her hand to her lips as her eyes are enraptured by Fuutarou. "That look, she's Miku." She finally makes some headway.
"What's everyone doing here?" Mutsumi asks as the two join them. "We wanted to talk with Yotsuba, but it's okay if you hear it." Miku says. "Yotsuba, about Mutsumi..." Ichika starts. "Are you sure that you didn't find her?" She asks, glancing back and forth between them. "Yotsuba didn't tell anyone! Thank goodness. I wonder what they'll think of me if they knew we had a fight." Mutsumi sighs. "I really didn't...I didn't see a trace of her." Yotsuba rubs her hands as she tries to hide her lie. "I'm feeling tired, I'm heading to the room." She dashes off.
"Mutsumi, what happened to you?" Miku asks as Ichika brushes aside her hair to show Miku the scar. "So you saw through it, huh...how did you? What gave me away?" Mutsumi asks. "The way you looked at your phone, I'd recognize that face from a mile away." Ichika says. "The way you clenched your fists during breakfast, it's just like that one time at the lake." Miku rubs her scar. "Damn, and here I was struggling to figure out who was who." She groans.
"Yotsuba didn't tell you what happened, right?" Mutsumi asks. "It's better that way, I think you knowing would only make things worse." She turns and starts walking to the inn. "We're glad you're okay. When are you coming home?" Ichika asks, her voice shaky; she's about to cry. "Once I talk to Yotsuba." Mutsumi looks over her shoulder, a smile on her face.
"You said you had a hard time telling us apart." Miku states. "Do you not love us?" She asks, her tone down and deep. "Of course I love you, it's just..." Mutsumi pauses. "I only really remember the version of us six years ago. Sorry." She hangs her head, feeling a hand on her shoulder. "We love you too, you'll get to know the new us soon. I know it." Miku smiles as they meet up with Nino, who was in the kitchen looking at the ingredients and assisting the staff.
They make it to the room. "I wonder if she's mad..." She thinks as she slowly slides the door open. "We'll leave this to you." Ichika winks at her as Mutsumi shuts the door behind her. Yotsuba was looking out the window at the sky. "Mutsumi..." She mutters emotionlessly.
"Yotsuba." Mutsumi says sternly. "Uso-san! What're yo-" Yotsuba stops herself as Mutsumi lifts her hair and reveals her scar. "She's not mad is she?" Mutsumi wonders as Yotsuba turns and slowly starts walking towards her.
"Mutsumi...I'm sorry...I...I can't move. I'm so scared." Yotsuba thinks to herself. "She's walking so menacingly...is she...cracking her knuckles?" Mutsumi starts sweating as she takes a step back. "These...these hands hurt her...she took a step back. She must be scared." Yotsuba thinks as she rubs her hands together.
"She's...she's definitely still mad. I-I...I can't do this." Mutsumi starts to remember that night as Yotsuba reaches her hands towards her. "I don't want to get hurt again." She turns around and starts running, feeling Yotsuba's hand on her hair as it flows free when she removes the scrunchie keeping it braided.
"Mutsumi!" Ichika and Miku yell, giving Nino a shock. "Come back!" Yotsuba screams as the four of them start running after her. "Fuutarou said that Yotsuba could find Nino with her smell alone, I need to throw her off!" She reaches for the bottle of perfume in her beret. "I'm sorry Ms. Uesugi." She makes a short prayer as she tosses it into a bush and hides in a room.
"Yotsuba, where is she?" Ichika's voice sounded off from the other side of the door. "That way!" Their silhouettes all move towards the bush. "Okay...now I have to be really quiet..." She tiptoes out and down the hall. "Over there!" She hears Miku's voice behind her. "No...I gotta run." She dashes up the stairs, not looking where she's going. She has her eyes closed as she reaches the top, bumping into something.
"Ugh...what happened?" She sits up from on a bed, reaching for her head. "Cloth...and it's wet." She thinks as she looks at her hand, it's stained. "Mutsumi..." Yotsuba peeks in, opening the door slightly. "Crap...is she still mad." Mutsumi hides her face behind a pillow as footsteps get closer.
"Mutsumi...I...I'm sorry..." Yotsuba kneels on the side of her bed. "I...I shouldn't have...I...what I said...what I did..." She fumbles with her words as tears start flowing down. "Shut up Yotsuba..." Mutsumi says as she gets down on the floor and pulls her into an embrace. "I should be the one saying sorry..." Mutsumi pulls tighter, her tears falling onto Yotsuba's shoulder.
They spoke nothing else, staying like that until they wiped away each other's tears. Yotsuba makes one final glance at her before leave the room. Mutsumi looks out the window, it's sunset. "I...I think I'll sleep early today."
Mutsumi lies with her eyes closed in a silent room. It's cold, almost uncomfortably so; her breathing is visible if only her eyes were open to see it. Her face scrunches as she tosses and turns through the night. "Ugh...I can't sleep!" She mumbles angrily as she sits up and rubs her eyes.
Glancing about the room, the moonlight shining gently in through the window. On the table rests the dress she wore earlier that day, a tiered sundress, the normally white fabric stained slightly red. On that is her beret, stained more heavily. "Ms. Uesugi...I'm sorry, and thank you." She clasps her hands and bows to the clothes.
In a chair, beside her bed, sits a man asleep. In his hands is a roll of gauze and beside him is a small container of water and a towel. Mutsumi smiles as she recognizes him.
"Thanks dad. You really helped me a bunch this time." She mutters to herself as she exits the room. Like a lantern lit street on a cold winter night, the inn is shrouded in a surreal calming air. She wanders through the halls, finding herself at the entrance.
"Why did you want to meet me here Nino?" Fuutarou's voice resonated, it came from the bell. "It's about what I said at the store." Nino replied, calm and collected if not slightly giddy. "Oh...I..." Mutsumi decides to walk towards them.
"Oh, what're you two doing here?" She feigns surprise. "M-Mutsumi?! You're awake!" Nino says, stuttering. "Are you feeling better?" Fuutarou asks, his gaze focused on the wraps around her head. "Yeah, I am Fuutarou-san. Am I interrupting something?" Mutsumi rubs her head, seeing a grimace on Nino's face.
"N-Nothing really. Fuu-kun, let's talk another time." Nino decides to call it quits. "She really wants her fantasy love story. I guess I put a stop to it, for now." Mutsumi thinks as Nino stomps away. "What're you doing here?" Fuutarou asks.
"Nothing really Fuutarou-san. Just wandering about." Mutsumi steps up beside him, both of them overlooking the cliff from the railing near the bell. "How's the hunt for the fake Itsuki?" She asks, leaning against the post holding the bell up. "I got a hunch." Fuutarou smirks.
It turns silent for a while, the air gets colder. "Hey..." Fuutarou pipes up. "Yeah?" She starts unwrapping her head. "Did you really have to break the perfume bottle?" He asks, irritated. "Y-You're the one that told me about Yotsuba's nasal feats!" She retorts as he breaks the mood.
"Couldn't you have just opened it and splashed it around?" Fuutarou raises his voice, causing some birds to fly off. "I didn't have time!" Mutsumi punches his arm slightly harder than usual. He smiles, looking at her. "Welcome back." He says a breeze blows through them.
"Hey, Fuutarou-san." She says. "You said that they were with you on that last bit of the bonfire right? Do you think they held your hand before you woke up?" Mutsumi looks down at the sea below. "Who knows. That legend is complete bull anyway." He shrugs it off, trying to see the constellations in the sky. "Well, it's only fair that I have this legend to myself, right?" Mutsumi thinks.
"M-Mutsumi, what're you-" Fuutarou can barely get out in shock as the ringing of the bell drowns out all other sounds. "You said it yourself right, these legends are BS. What's the harm?" Mutsumi has a smug look on her face as she lets go of the rope, along with Fuutarou's hand.
They stand there in silence, it doesn't feel as cold as before. "So..." Mutsumi breaks the silence this time. "So?" He looks at the bell. "I'm sorry about the dress. I'll give them back washed." She lowers her head slightly. "You better, I'll consider that payment for that perfume." He smirks. "Boy, you really know how to ruin the mood." Mutsumi giggles as his smirk turns into a smile.
"This is the second time you've helped me, Fuutarou-san. Thank you." Mutsumi says somberly as they see the sun rising. "I still don't understand how I helped you at the lake though." He says, laughing nervously. He stares off to the horizon. "We should head back soon."
"Fuutarou-san..." Mutsumi says again. "Ye- hey!" Mutsumi covers his eyes with her hand, pressing him against the bell post. "I love you Fuutarou-san." She says as she presses her body against his. He struggles slightly, his face getting red. "M-Mutsumi...what're yo-" He feels something on his lips as Mutsumi removes her hand from his eyes.
"Haha, you're blushing." She taunts as she pulls her finger away from his lips. "I hate you..." He grumbles as the two of them walk back.
"Itsuki-san, where is everyone else?" Raiha asks as she soaks with two of the sisters in the bath. "They're in the sauna." Itsuki replies as she gets splashed by water. "I think I'll join them."
"Not giving up yet?" Nino asks. "I...I can still go on!" Miku says, panting. "I'm not going to let you two run away with what you want. Big sis is stepping up this time." Ichika smirks as the door to the sauna opens up. "Have room for one more?" Yotsuba grins as she sits facing her sisters. "Always." Mutsumi pats the space next to her.
"You may have beat me during the exams, but I won't lose next time!" Miku says, a menacing aura fills the steam. "Ara ara. Miku's not holding back anymore!" Ichika smiles condescendingly. "Bring it on, don't forget that he likes a girl that cooks. He's mine!" Nino gloats. "I wonder what Uesugi-san is thinking right now?" Yotsuba asks as her ribbon flops down due to the moisture. "Probably a way to get his revenge on me. I did basically freeload at his place for a while." Mutsumi glances around at all of the glares of her sisters as they think.
"Did you...with him?" Miku asks. "Who knows?" She smirks and chuckles as they continue their sauna. "Just going to ask, why did you go into the sauna with the wig on? It's hot enough in there." Nino reaches for Mutsumi's hair and pulls it, getting a yelp of pain from her sister. "It's real!" The sisters all exclaim.
"W-What would grandpa do if he sees you like this? What did he do when he saw you?" Yotsuba paces around in their room as they fix their things. Suddenly, their door swings open and the man himself greets them in the doorway. "Ah, you're all here. Your father is waiting, along with the Uesugi family. You'll be leaving soon." Gramps says. "And Mutsumi...blonde looks good on you." He adds as he walks away.
"I guess he's okay with it..." Itsuki mutters. "Then it's okay if we..." Ichika takes off her wig and gets a change of clothes. "Though, it feels weird to not be a redhead, pass me that wig." Mutsumi reaches out as the sisters all get changed.
"I'll be taking it then." Everyone strikes a pose in front of the bell as Ebata holds a camera. "I wonder when you'll get your red hair back?" Yotsuba asks. "In a couple months I guess, until then, I'll let it grow." She shrugs it off. "Oh no, I think I left my phone in the room." Nino says. "One of my ribbons is missing too." Yotsuba checks her bag. "Let's look together, the more of us look, the faster we'll find it." The sextuplets all head back towards the inn.
"Uesugi Fuutarou-kun." Grandpa asks as Fuutarou stays behind by the bell as the others leave. "Yes Master?" He bows. "Tell my granddaughters to be themselves. I believe that my daughter brought you to them for a reason." He says as he looks off towards the beach. "I will. I'll make sure that they're strong enough to overcome that loss this time." He straightens himself. "Come again, Fuutarou-kun. Make memories with them." Gramps starts to walk away. "With them and you. I promise." Fuutarou steps away from the bell, leaning against the railing.
Isanari walks up the path, rather slowly. "I guess that's that, huh. Everything's been settled." He mutters to himself as he spots his son looking at the horizon. He reaches out as a blur of red crosses his vision and tackles his son to the ground. "I...ahh young love." He turns around and heads for the boats.
On the voyage home, Mutsumi sits with her sisters this time. She's wearing her usual wear, an oversized tee with jeans. "Seriously, who would've guessed that Uesugi-san's family would be on the island at the same time as us?" Yotsuba asks as she holds her hand of cards as she's locked in a furious battle of old maid against Ichika. "You're welcome~ I'm glad I asked dad for this." Mutsumi speaks up. "Sheesh, when did you plan it? It feels like it went just how you wanted." Nino asks as she taps on her phone.
"I talked to dad before I ran away, remember?" Mutsumi turns on her phone. "Everyone! Smile!" She holds her phone up as they all strike a pose. Yotsuba holds up two fingers and closes her eyes as her smile is wide. Ichika takes the chance to look at Yotsuba's hand. Miku looks up with a subdued smile and her headphones on her ears. Nino smirks as she poses while showing off her nails. Itsuki looks up surprised, hiding the fact that she's eating by swallowing it and covering her mouth with her hands. Mutsumi puts a finger to her lips and winks as the photo is taken.
"Ah, I think I blinked!" Ichika exclaims as she takes a card from Yotsuba's hand. "You always have your eyes closed anyway. It doesn't make a difference." Miku jokes as she shuffles to the next song. Mutsumi readies a text for Fuutarou. "Who was the fake Itsuki?" She looks at it before deleting it. "I guess it's his problem, not mine." She thinks.
"Why am I included here?" Fuutarou asks as he and five of the sisters line up with their hair all tied the same way. "She says she wants to practice distinguishing us." Miku says as Mutsumi puts her hand to her chin. "Miku, Nino, Ichika, Yotsuba, Itsuki, Fuutarou." She exclaims. "Wrong, it's Yotsuba, Fuutarou, Nino, Itsuki, Miku, Ichika." Nino says angrily. "How did you get me wrong!" Fuutarou flicks her head with a finger. They all chuckle as they hear the oven ding. "Ah, time to eat." Nino walks off as she goes to get the cake.
"Welcome back Mutsumi!"