Now they've left.
With Komachi the only one here, it's just like before.
And then, Komachi briskly lifts all the tea cups away, with tray in hand, marching to the kitchen, seconds later...energy returns.
"Alright, Onii-chan!"
Looking at her I answer.
"What is it?"
"Where is it?"
"Where is what?"
She answers back with a question of her own.
"Oh c'mon, you know"
With arms stretched wide, palms open, facing me, along with a face of anticipation.
She then says:
"Don't try to hide it, hand me my gifts!"
In retaliation, I replied:
"What made you expect that I'll bring any?"
Slightly frustrated, she then remarks.
"You came from a faraway place, with lots of interesting stuff and you didn't bring anything for Komachi!? Nothing!? Not even any American sweets? Do you not love me?! Did you forget about me when you were there?!"
(Geez she might cry)
A drowsy sigh from me, let out as I reach for my suitcase.
*Bzzzt Unzips*
And so I nonchalantly grab a box from within, raising it to Komachi's level in a sense of offering.
"Here you go"
A black box, with stripes of gold layering parts of it, truly an expensive looking box.
Komachi, having taken the box from my hands, now actions to open it, to take a peek.
And so she did, not a second later, her face screamed beaming.
"Wooow! There's so many chocolates here, Ooohh! There's even some that's painted in gold!"
"That's because it is layered in gold, they call it edible gold leaves, you actually eat the gold with the chocolates"
I found it incomprehensible that people like it, even after tasting gold layered food, comparing it to its normal counterpart, I found no difference, it doesn't taste anything, and it is just for status.
(It's just for show off, but it looks like she's happy)
"Thanks! Onii-chan!"
And swiftly she grabs her phone.
*Click*
*Click*
She takes pictures.
And finally she has a ball of chocolate in her palms, devoured in its entirety by her, screeching loudly whilst chewing.
"Eeeeeekk, these are so good!"
And I, close my suitcase yet again, I stand, to exit the living room, leaving Komachi to eat by herself, and Komachi, pausing her enjoyment uttered some important information.
"Oh, Onii-chan, don't worry, we clean your room from time to time so it's not like a dusty attic"
"Ok"
I answered back.
Attempting to climb up the stairs, I halted.
Instead, I glanced at the pictures that were hung up.
(Some things changed, huh)
A picture of Komachi in her uniform?
(Maybe that was when I left?)
A picture of Komachi in her work uniform?
(I'll just make sure no insect comes close to her)
A picture of 8 year old me and 6 year old Komachi?
(Wow...that takes me back)
Unavoidable, a slight chuckle escaped my lips, as I started moving again.
*Step*
*Step*
*Step*
Many more steps followed until I reach my haven.
The hidden room in the dungeon, my last line of defense, my personal chamber, my room.
I move my hands, turning the knob and then...
*Screeeeeeech*
Dark, I see almost nothing; the curtains were closed, and light only appeared from my back, revealing my shadow.
That was until...
*Flick*
And light has covered the room.
Yet again, nostalgia flooding through me.
"Ahhhh, I missed you"
Talking to my room, sounded absurd, but it didn't matter.
(All my stuff's still here?)
From bookshelves filled with differing genres, to my old desk, my old computer, still here, almost everything, still here.
Subtle footsteps, while I stare at nothing but my room.
The room, it was quiet.
That is until...
*Purr*
*Purr*
*Purr*
Something soft, small, and hairy was striking my leg.
It was Kamakura-san.
"Oh, you remember me? I remember you too"
Picking him up, with his consent he allowed it, I give him a straight glare.
"You've gotten heavier huh?"
*Meow*
(Was that his answer?)
"Seems like you're in good shape"
*Meow*
(Was he asking me to let him down?)
"Okay"
And so Kamakura, released, returns to his life and exits the room.
With that, I return to my trip down memory lane.
Approaching the bed, my bed.
Lightly grazing the thing that gave me sleep for 17 years.
"It's been a while, old friend"
Knowing that later on I would have to sleep in this tonight, with glee I lay on the bed, from the tiring trip, the tiring discussion, and the tiring reminiscence, I can now lay down here again.
(I'm sure Komachi could wake me up for dinner)
Seconds passed and I couldn't sleep, nor could I feel comfort.
However unfortunate, somehow I wasn't feeling the same, the feeling, it somehow changed.
A weird feeling, somewhat alien.
(Something's wrong)
All over the bed, no the room, I search for what's bugging me, I see nothing strange, I stroke the bed, thinking nothing was wrong.
That was until my hand felt something odd.
(Soft? Squishy? Pillow?)
Was is it a pillow?
(No)
It's shape, different?
Pulling it out of the sheets that hid it, I now discover the culprit.
(It was)
"Pan-san?"
A Pan-san plushie?
This panda with the scary eyes?
(Why is this here? Actually whose is this?)
(Komachi? Maybe, but she keeps her stuff in her room, and I doubt she's a fan of this)
The longer I gazed at it, the more my mind functioned to solve more questions.
Suddenly, a realization came, about something else I failed to notice.
*Sniff*
*Sniff*
(My room, it smells different, too different)
Almost as if it had changed through the ages, the change, too much even.
(Women's perfume?)
(By elimination, it doesn't smell like men's cologne in here, and that's the only other plausible option)
(Whose is it? Komachi? No, this scent is not the same as Komachi's scent today)
"Incredibly creepy" is what she'd say if she heard that.
(Mom's? no, it smells expensive, even she wouldn't, and she's too old for that)
(It's not Komachi's, nor Mom's, then who else?)
Immediately, a realization came.
(Pan-san, expensive perfume)
(Oh no)
Senses heightened, by the second, my eyes, they, as if balloons, continued inflating.
Rashly, making a break for it, sprinting out the room, running down the stairs, with Pan-san in hand.
(Impossible, impossible, impossible)
With not enough validation for my assumptions, I turn to the one person who can give me a confirmation.
Almost losing breath from the rash sprint.
"Komachi!"
I voiced with loudness enough for her to hear.
Her attention, now grabbed, looked to me.
Easygoing she was, so was her reply.
"Hmm, what is it, Onii-chan?"
I now state my concerns.
"My room, why does it smell like women's perfume, and this, is this yours?"
Raising my hand, Pan-san now in view.
(Tell me I'm wrong, tell me I was just misunderstanding)
While hope that my hunch was wrong was still up in the air, Komachi, destroyed said hope.
"Ahh, that, well of course it's gonna smell that way, we've been using your room after all"
"What?"
(What does she mean by use? What did she do to my room? Wait...what did she mean by "we"?)
"Oh, I forgot to tell you earlier, Yukino-san, Yui-san, even Iroha-san, we use your room when we have sleepovers"
(What?)
"What do you mean sleepovers?"
(Sleepovers? Them? Here? In my house?)
She then casually explains.
"Sleepovers, you know, staying the night here, they visit, we use your room, that's where they sleep"
(That doesn't explain much at all!)
"Yeah, but why use my room?"
Again, nonchalant, she answers.
"What do you want us to do? It's a free room, I'm not gonna have them sleep on the sofa or anywhere else, besides, they were okay with it even after I told them it was your room"
She continued talking.
"Since there weren't any signs that you'd come back, we just used your room, it's better than leaving it alone and not touching it, it would've been a dirty room full of dust and cobwebs"
(They didn't even consider the option of preservation!?)
"Tell me more"
I uttered, expressing my curiosity.
And so she did.
"Well the first time we tried having a sleepover was more than a year after you left, then I thought of using your room, since no one was using it anyway, we just made sure not to touch your stuff"
(...)
"After that, we've had many sleepovers, and eventually, we turned your room into our personal hangout/sleepover room"
(Many?)
"Then, Yukino-san started to bring Lots of Pan-san plushies here, there're lots of them, we hide them in the closet"
(Yukinoshita!? What are you doing to my room!?)
Many questions erupted in my mind, yet one stood out, one question that needed to be answered.
"How many times have you had sleepovers in my room?"
In the process in thinking, her finger in her chin, looking above, then her finger erected straight, a beaming smile comes with the answer.
"Almost monthly"
(What!? That frequent!?)
"Actually, it's less of "almost monthly" and more of 5 times a year"
(Even so, that's too much!)
(All this time, they were using my room?!)
"Why were they visiting anyway?"
I voiced, trying to understand the reason for their visits.
She gives me an answer.
"Well, mostly they visit just to catch up on things, and casual talk, and girls talk, oh Onii-chan, if it's about our girls talk, I'm not telling you!"
(I'm not interested in that)
"They also come here to complain about how hard and tiring their jobs are"
(Figures)
"But that's mostly it"
(Jeez, I'm tired, too much information)
"Why were you curious?
Komachi, now the one questioning.
"It's because my room smells like women"
*Gasp*"Onii-chan! Don't tell me you were sniffing!?"
(Like hell I am!)
"Like hell I am!"
(The scent was so strong that anyone would've noticed eventually)
She continued her delusions.
"Maybe you laid on the bed, and sniffed it!?"
(Oh no, that I can't deny)
My silence gave Komachi an answer.
"You did!?"
I needed to retort.
"Not on purpose!"
With a face disgusted, she utters her insult.
"Uwaah, creep!"
(It's my bed!)
(Call me a creep all you want, but you're the ones that used my room without consent)
Her next sentence caused a reaction in me.
"I'm calling Yukino-san right now, telling her about this, then we'll both call you a creep!"
As if instinct called for it, in a flash I grabbed her phone.
"Wha-hey! Give it back!"
"As long as you don't call her"
"Why!? Don't tell me you haven't told them!?"
I wasn't denying.
"You haven't!?"
Surprised she was.
"No one knows, and you're not telling anyone either"
"Why!?"
Again, agitatedly, she questions.
"Just don't tell them, if you tell anyone, then you're not getting any more chocolates from me"
"Wha-that's unfair Onii-chan!"
With power in my voice I tell her off.
"Just don't tell anyone, if you do just that, I'll order some exclusive stuff from America"
She's hesitating.
"I don't know Onii-chan, it looks like you're just bribing me, isn't that kinda dirty"
"I'll buy you anything; we'll go shopping next week"
With eyes glittering, with a face beaming:
(She took the bait)
"Anything?"
She asks.
(Of course she's gonna ask that)
"Anything, go bust my wallet"
"Deal!"
An immediate answer.
She returns to the sofa, indulging in chocolate.
With this settled, footsteps, heavy, returning to my room.
Gazing at the room I once called my own, words uttered full of melancholy:
"Is this really my room?"
Okay, okay, hear me out, this was at least fun to write. At least this was "fun cringe" and not "insufferable cringe".
Kiryu