"Mutsumi-chan... are you okay?" Soft and muffled footsteps approached the bed in the sixth sister's room. It was dark, disheveled, and tense. Her desk was a mess, with crumpled balls of paper covering a half-completed circuit board and her chair toppled over. Her bed was bare, save for the large bundle of blankets that Mutsumi wrapped herself in; her pillows were lying on the floor. The redhead didn't reply, at least not verbally; the only thing that came out of the mass of blankets was a gentle sob.
"I haven't seen her like this in so long..."
"Tsubaki-chan? Takebayashi?" She rolled over, falling off of her bed and out of the sheets. "Why are you two here?"
"You were acting weird for a few days." Tsubaki walked over, kneeling down beside Mutsumi as she covered her face. "What happened?"
"Onee-chan... Ichika-nee is leaving..." Mutsumi sniffled, wiping away her tears and cleaning her nose. "She's leaving! I don't want to be alone again..." She let the waterworks flow out, not even trying to compose herself anymore.
"Mutsumi-chan, you won't be alone..." Tsubaki said, gently sitting the redhead up and patting her back. "I know that we can't replace Ichika-chan, but Takebayashi-chan and I are here for you. Matsui-chan and Maeda-kun too. Your other sisters aren't going anywhere either."
"But..."
Mutsumi took some time to compose herself, sitting on the edge of the bed with the others sitting on the opposite side, their backs facing each other. "Thanks..." She said, slouching over and resting her weight on her arms as she placed her hands on her knees. "I... I don't know why... why this affected me so much. I should've been used to this by now." She forced herself to smile, letting out a hollow laugh as she brushed her hair out of her face.
"It's still tough, isn't it. I'm not gonna say that it won't hurt." Takebayashi spoke bluntly, turning her body to look at Mutsumi. "But you have us."
"And Ichika-chan is going to be a real actress. I mean, she already was, but still..." Tsubaki chuckled to herself. "I wish we could've recorded something like a play with her before she had to leave. I'm sure the broadcasting club would love to get an article on her."
"Yeah, I'm sure onee-chan would be the star of any play or film our class would make..." Mutsumi said jokingly. After the words left her mouth, silence filled the room as all three of them widened their eyes. "...hiring onee-chan." Mutsumi quickly turned around, smiling enthusiastically at the other two.
"I'll talk to the rest of the broadcast club, but what are we going to have her do?" Tsubaki smiled, happy to see Mutsumi back to her usual self.
"I have an idea." The redhead grinned, concocting another scheme. She was certain that this one would work. She wished her friends a safe trip out of their home as she noticed that the sun was setting over the skyline.
"Nino, look! It's the commercial that Ichika's in." Itsuki's voice rang out early in the morning of the next day. She and Nino were sitting on the sofas, listening to the tv until the commercial came on. "Hey, are you looking?" She turned, finding the second sister's stare stuck to the screen of her phone.
"I'll make this a summer you won't forget." Ichika's voice came through the speakers as footsteps approached them from behind.
"I haven't even been awake for an hour, and you're already making so much noise..." Mutsumi groaned, holding onto some papers and her laptop as she descended the stairs. "It's just Ichika-nee. What's the difference?"
"It's different. The Ichika we see here, and the Ichika we see on tv and movies are different. On the screen, she shines and she looks like she's having so much fun that you can tell that it's what she wants to do." Itsuki retorts, doing a half-turn with a simple smile on her face.
"Another textbook response..." Nino muttered, but it was just loud enough for the other two to hear.
"Even if you don't think that these words are my own, my feelings of wanting to support her are genuine. It's the same with both of you, is it not?" Itsuki added, glancing up at the clock before she left for her own job, leaving Nino with Mutsumi.
"What's that?" Nino asked, looking over at Mutsumi's screen. There was a long text file displayed on it, and Mutsumi's typing only made it longer; the content of the file was very familiar to the second sister.
"It's how we get Ichika-nee to graduation!" Mutsumi smiled, her fingers deftly extending the word count of the file. "What are you going to do today? The shop is still closed, right?"
"I don't know." Nino crossed her arms, looking at her phone again as she typed something into her search engine. "Ichika went out again, and Yotsuba was gone before I woke up."
The sound of creaky swings echoed through the air. "You already told him, huh?" Ichika chuckled, her hair blowing in the wind. "I didn't expect that. When did you do it?"
"After we got back from the trip." Yotsuba smiled, gaining momentum as the two of them talked.
"I really am sorry, Yotsuba. I can't even begin to imagine how you felt when you cheered me up that night. And we were still worried about Mutsumi-chan at the time too." Ichika put her feet on the ground, skidding to a halt. "I really am a failure of an older sister. I wanted to get this off my chest before I started to work more demanding roles. Thanks for listening, Yotsuba."
"Are you really quitting school? You guys were the ones that made sure I wasn't alone, and we all worked together to welcome Mutsumi back." Yotsuba said, slowing down and fixing her gaze on Ichika. "If you're quitting, then I..."
"Don't do that, Yotsuba," Ichika said, averting her gaze from her sister. "You already know what you want to do, right? You don't have to give that up just to be with me."
"Ichika... thank you." Yotsuba hopped off her swing, looking at the sky as it approached noon. "I'm a bit hungry, do you want to get some bread?" Yotsuba asked as the two of them walked out of the playground and down the street until they reached Komugi-ya, finding a familiar face, wearing a similar uniform to Miku's, taking his break while sweat dotted his face.
"Fuutarou-kun?" Ichika gasped, covering her face in genuine shock. Fuutarou was leaning back in a chair in the empty bakery, panting heavily as he recovered his energy.
"Ichika, Yotsuba, what brings you two here?" Miku walked out from the back, holding a tray of freshly baked bread in her hands which she put on the display.
"We were kinda hungry. Why is Uesugi-san here?" Yotsuba asked, walking up to the glass display that showed all off the bread and pastries for sale. "Oooh, that one looks nice."
"Fuutarou was looking for work since Revival's manager was hospitalized..." Miku said before she was interrupted by a voice from the kitchen.
"Sorry!"
"Anyway, he started working here." The third sister took Yotsuba's order while Fuutarou and Ichika had an awkward encounter.
"Are you sure you don't want to reconsider?" Fuutarou asked, covering his face with his arm as he looked up at the ceiling. "It could work. It's going to be hard, but it could work."
"My answer won't change..." Ichika answered, looking away from him since she was unable to stomach being in the same room as him; her feelings just wouldn't let her. "With all the time I'll have, I'll be able to take on many more roles. I'd spread my name. I'm doing what I want to do with my life. Nothing you can do or say will stop me now." She said, stubbornly; the words from Fuutarou's mouth yesterday still echoing in her head.
"I see..." He muttered, too tired to continue the argument. It was then that his phone vibrated in his pocket. Pulling it out to glance at the screen, a small smile curled on his face. "Well then, good luck. I hope you get some good roles." He chuckled, standing up with some newfound gusto as he made his way to the back of the store. "Enjoy the rest of your summer."
The season passed by quickly, the six sisters getting over the shock of Ichika's announcement after a few days. Mutsumi was seldom out of her room, only leaving to go and meet with her friends or Fuutarou. Ichika was rarely home, already feeling the effects of her decision since she'd be gone for days at a time. Miku was working hard at the bakery, she also had the duty of teaching Fuutarou what he needed to get through his shifts. Nino, with nothing to do, took to organizing their camping trip whenever she wasn't spying on the third sister at her job. Itsuki talked with Shimoda, enrolling herself in extra classes to attempt to improve her grades over the vacation. Yotsuba went around the place, assisting her sisters and Fuutarou whenever she was called; mostly Fuutarou and Mutsumi though.
"What, you can't come?" Mutsumi asked the person on the other end of the phone call. Frowning slightly as Yotsuba walked up to her, Mutsumi sighed.
"Sorry, Sanada and I decided to spend it together at his place. Tell the others that I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you guys somehow."
"It's alright. Just enjoy your time with Sanada-kun." Mutsumi chuckled. "And don't forget the prot-"
"Mutsumi!" That was the last word she heard before Takebayashi hung up. Finally turning her attention toward her sister, Mutsumi extended her hand to take what Yotsuba was offering her.
"Oooh, a corndog!" She squealed, taking the food and biting into it gleefully as a camera's shutter reached her ears. "Tsubaki-chan!" She whined, puffing up her cheeks as she trudged over. "Hey, the script is done. Most of the props are too..." She whispered, watching Maeda, Takeda, and Fuutarou compete at the goldfish catching stall. "Hey! Don't get all of them!" She grinned, rushing over to join the contest. Tsubaki just watched, a quiet smile on her face as Matsui walked up to her.
"Oh, hello there." Fuutarou said, sitting down in the waiting room of a talent agency while flanked by two of the Nakano siblings. Oda walked up; Ichika following close behind with a surprised look plastered all over her face. "How's Kiku-chan doing?"
"You finally decided to join my talent company, huh?" Oda said, smiling before Mutsumi interjected.
"Oda-san. We've come here for business, yes, but not that kind." The sixth sister stood up, handing Miku her laptop.
"Is it another photoshoot, Hex-san? Or an interview?"
"Neither. We've come with a proposal." She said, smiling as her childlike aura was replaced with cold seriousness. "Speaking frankly, we've come to hire Onee... Nakano Ichika-san."
"Hire me? For what?" Ichika asked as she watched Fuutarou rise to his feet.
"We've decided to shoot an independent film." He said, gesturing to the laptop as Miku turned on the screen. The laptop showed Oda and Ichika a completed script and storyboard, the title of the movie extremely simple: The Sensational Sextuplets.
"The story will be simple. A group of sisters is close to failing. When all hope seems lost, one of their classmates was assigned to tutor them." Mutsumi put her hands in her pocket.
"We can cover the funds. And Mutsumi has already reached our for the crew and equipment. All that's left is hiring the star, Ichika." Miku held up a small envelope.
"Why? Why would you go that far?" Ichika asked, her eyes quickly darting back and forth between Mutsumi and Fuutarou.
"I'm pissed, you know. You guys dragged me back when I tried to quit, yet you go out and do things like this. I won't be satisfied with just that. I'll-" Fuutarou raised his voice before he was jabbed in the gut by Mutsumi.
"He wants to thank you. It was all because you worked hard that he was hired again. So he wants to thank you for that, and all the other things you've done for him." Miku said, acting as the straight man, much to Fuutarou's embarrassment.
"You know, Onee-chan. I've worked with a lot of people when I entered those competitions overseas. Time after time, the same thing happens. I'm the only one that manages to keep up to the task since they get lazy and dump their work on me." Mutsumi said, looking at her sister. "So I want us to do this together; to graduate together. Because I don't want to be left alone; I don't want to leave anyone behind either. So, do you accept?"
"... you know. It's not a bad idea for me to just focus on my career like this, so why should I work so hard to study and go to school? Won't I just be a burden?"
"Onee-chan... You'll never be a burden. So let's enjoy this year together. We won't stay like this forever, I know that, but is that really a reason to rush into the adult world like this?" Mutsumi walked up, taking Ichika's hands in hers.
"I went to the beach with some people from class a few days ago. That's something I never would've done if I just stayed how I was then. It's something that I could only do now. There are things that we can only do now, and I want to do as many of them as I can." Fuutarou said, taking the envelope from Miku. "Of course, that's with you included." He offered the envelope, but it was snatched away by Ichika's manager.
"What do you say, Ichika-nee-chan?" Mutsumi smiled, looking at her sister with eyes full of hope as Oda gave a short nod after glancing at the contents of the envelope.
"We have a deal. I'll be in your care, Mutsumi-chan." Ichika smiled back before she reassured her manager that her schedule would be fine. It was only the beginning since Ichika's schedule was still packed, they would have to film sporadically. For the rest of the summer break, whenever they were free, they would be filming. Mutsumi was the producer, the scriptwriter, and the one in charge of all the behind-the-scenes bits like props; Tsubaki was the director, managing to get the equipment as well as a few members of the broadcasting club for the film; Fuutarou and the other Nakano sisters would assist by checking the script for any corrections.
"Ichika-nee, come look at this." The sixth sister had her laptop open as she sat at the dining table. Ichika just arrived home from her practice session for a different role, already tired from all of the work she'd done. "I'm on the phone with Tsubaki-chan, and I think we'll need to shoot this scene again." The scene in question was a short dance sequence in a dark warehouse.
"Ehh?" Ichika groaned, placing her hand to her chest. It would continue like that until classes resumed.
"Well, I'll be going this way." Ichika said, looking at her five sisters as they split up at a train station.
"Do your best!" Yotsuba cheered, cupping her hands around her mouth to make her voice louder.
Please tell us about it when you come home, okay?" Itsuki started walking to school first, and one by one they followed.
"Take care of yourself!" Nino said when the others were too far to hear. A few tears started to form in the corners of her eyes as she quickly turned around.
"I will... see you later," Ichika said, wiping away a few tears of her own before she left to board the train. And like that, Ichika took a break from school. Each day, graduation inches ever closer, and with it comes the adult world. A world that would surely push them apart bit by bit, but until then...
"Hey! How many times has it been now? Six? Seven? Stop falling asleep!"
"Give me a break! I've been working all day! I need to rest!"
"If you keep this up, you won't be able to graduate with them."
"It isn't just my sisters I want to graduate with..."
"What? Did you mean m-"
"There's this girl who sits next to me, Yumi-chan; she's in the tennis club."
Until then, they'll be savoring the time they do have with each other.
"Geez... Onee-chan, you're not subtle at all." Mutsumi says, looking at her phone during lunch break as she hit replay on the video that Ichika sent her.
"Still, we're making a lot of progress with this film. You said that we can stop at the camping trip, right?" Tsubaki leaned over, watching the scene from over Mutsumi's shoulder. "We need a place with a lot of trees."
"I know a good spot..." Mutsumi said, smiling as she touched her cheeks. Something felt different this time she looked at Fuutarou. It was probably nothing.