When her younger brother insisted on cooking tonight, she knew something was up. He had either messed up or he wanted something. Taishi probably learnt it from their father. When their father wanted to buy a brand new car, which he insisted was for the entire family, he prepared dinner for the entire family for an entire week. A small shudder wracked through her body. It was a long and horrible week. Her father was a shit cook. But he kept at it and he wouldn't let their mother enter the kitchen, wouldn't even let her make a small salad for their starving children. Not that she was saying he was a horrible father. It's just that he was a horrible cook. At least her brother hadn't inherited their father's terrible cooking skills. He was somewhat decent and made the food look edible. How was it that no one in the family had inherited their grandmother's legendary cooking skills, Saki wondered. But there was hope for the family yet. Keika-chan was young. And who knows, what with the way their parents acted, being all lovey-dovey, she might actually end up with another younger sibling.
"Onee-san, do you have someone you like?"
As a high schooler, someone closer to being an adult, at least compared to her younger brother, she expected herself to be at least a little bit thrown off by the question. But she wasn't. Though she stopped chopping the tomatoes she needed to make the salad. It wasn't because the question had an effect on her. Not at all. But it was dangerous to talk while chopping things with a knife. She could do it because she had enough practice as she had been preparing dinner since she was in middle school. But her brother didn't have the same experience. She didn't want him to think it was okay and safe to talk while handling a knife. He could accidentally cut his finger or worse. She was just being a responsible older sister and leading by example. Her mother would probably say something corny and turn it into a catchphrase for Keika to repeat, something like, 'never handle knives while talking about love.' The woman could act really stupid to teach her children a thing or two about life. Too bad she had missed out on how to respond to such a question, when the person asking was not a total stranger or someone from school, but your younger brother. As she picked up the knife, she decided to play, what her father had dubbed the 'onee-san trump card'.
"Isn't that my line? Shouldn't I be asking you the same question?"
It should be pointed out that she hadn't asked him a question yet. She was ready to give him an out if he would let go of this topic and move onto more important things. Like how not to mess up their dinner. Being the dutiful daughter she had shot a text to her dad immediately when she found out her younger brother was serious and he really wanted to cook tonight. Her father had immediately responded to her message and told her not to worry, he would be bringing takeout. But shortly after she got a text from her dad saying takeout was cancelled, because mom refused to waste money, when there would be a perfectly fine home cooked meal waiting for them when they returned home. Either mom was being sarcastic, which was unusual or she loved her son too much and was blind to his faults. And one of his faults was being frank and honest about his feelings.
"Actually, there is someone I really like."
Oh. Oh God, he was being completely serious. Was he old enough to like someone, she thought. But she knew the question to that. Of course he was. And it wasn't even his fault. It was their whole accursed family. She had heard stories about it in every family gathering, from weddings and funerals to everything in between. But she didn't even have to go that far. She was sure he didn't remember it, but back when he was little, her brother wanted to marry his elementary school teacher. And even before that, when he had just started to understand what 'love' and 'marriage' and 'family' were as faint concepts, one fine day when they were in the middle of the bath, he loudly proclaimed that when he grew up he would marry both her and their mother. Of course, it was back when he was okay with being called, 'Taishi-tan', so it happened many years ago, but she remembered those beautiful days like they happened yesterday. It's funny how time passes by in the blink of an eye. She couldn't help but wonder how her parents saw them as they grew up. Maybe she will somewhat understand if she dared to ask her brother another simple question.
"Oh, is it someone I know?"
A blush. A timid nod. But nothing said out loud.
Saki tried once more. "Who is it?"
He stirred the contents of the pot and refused to meet her eyes. When he finally opened his mouth, his voice came out as a whisper.
"It's Hikigaya-san."
Hikigaya. Hikigaya-san. Oh. Oh God. Don't panic. Stop panicking. Stop freaking panicking. Just pick up the knife, grab the nearest vegetable you can find and continue where you left off, chopping things down with a knife. You are making a salad. You are making a salad for your family. You are making a salad for your brother. Your brother is gay. Okay. Okay, so what if he is gay. Are you gonna start hating your brother because he loves men, are you that kind of person Kawasaki Saki. Because if you are, because if you treat your brother any differently because he finds men attractive and wants to probably marry one in the future, then you don't deserve to be called his older sister. Now pull up your big girl panties and respond like a proper adult and a loving and understanding older sibling. He is probably waiting on your response with baited breath.
"Since when?"
"I don't know. Sometime after I met her."
Her. Her? Oh, thank god. He was talking about a girl. False alarm. Nothing to worry about. Wait, no, he was still talking about being in love with a girl. Of course there was something to worry about. It was her goddamn brother and he was in love with a girl. How could she not be worried? She was definitely worried. But a little less worried then before.
"Have you told her how you feel?"
"Of course not. I don't want to ruin our friendship"
Friends. Well, it was good to know her younger brother had friends. She had a couple in middle school, but she lost touch with them after she graduated. It was perfectly normal. Friends come and go as they please. That's why she didn't bother making any when she became a high schooler. It was a lonely existence. But she didn't mind. Besides, she had seen the people in her class. The blonde bitch, the pervert with the glasses, the pink airhead. She was doing herself a favour. She wouldn't get along with them to begin with. So why make the effort. She was just different. But her brother had a chance. He was perfect, had a friendly personality and he didn't have any emotional baggage. What kinda middle school girl wouldn't like him?
Oh, right.
"What's her name again?"
Taishi smiled wistfully and tinkered with the knob of the stove. What a dangerous, bad habit. He could get hurt, ruin dinner and burn the whole house down. She immediately slapped him on the back of his wrist, making him wince and yelp and take his hand off the stove. He looked at her, then back at the pot and finally the flame, before he lowered his head and mumbled under his breath something which sounded close to an apology. Really, her brother was growing up. When he was young, he didn't feel embarrassed while saying sorry for doing something stupid or moronic. But nowadays he had a hint of pride in himself and she didn't know how to feel about it. Having pride in yourself was a good thing. But it also let to your downfall. She didn't know where her brother was headed.
"Her name is Hikigaya Komachi."
Right. She remembered her. Short. Cute. Flat-chested. Wait, weren't boys his age more into girls with huge breasts. At least that's what they showed in anime and manga. She wasn't a huge anime freak or a manga fan, but she would sometime check on the stuff her brother was watching on television or the things he was reading and yeah, like a normal, hormonal teen going through puberty, he liked women in revealing clothes with impossibly huge breasts. But now his brother had developed feelings for a girl with practically no chest. Who was short for her age and talked like she was a little brat and behaved like a hyper energetic toddler. Wait, don't tell me, her younger brother was a loli-con. No, she was making assumptions. And that was a stupid thing to do. She wasn't stupid. She just needed to know a few more things.
"Um, so, what do you like about her?"
Immediately his entire body language became closed off. Since when did her younger brother start to shut himself out? Just when did this happen? They were close as siblings and she thought they could talk about anything. They were brother and sister. They were family. But no, he didn't want to share with her what he liked about a girl.
"It's kinda embarrassing." He replied with a chuckle.
Saki smiled too. "Why? Is it something perverted?"
He flushed pink. "Of course not. I like Komachi-chan's face. Her eyes. Her hair. Her nose. Her mouth. Her lips. Her -"
She cut him off with a wave. "Don't know what to tell you, little bro. But the last two sounded a bit ecchi"
Taishi stammered. "Get your mind out of the gutter onee-san. I was just thinking about k-k-kissing. It's not perverted. It's pretty wholesome. But onee-san wouldn't know."
She frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Taishi gave her a look, but he kept his mouth shut. She could almost feel the inner struggle going on. She could only guess but maybe her younger brother was finding it difficult to say something and not hurt her feelings. Or piss her off. After all, she was holding a knife. Not that she would ever hurt him. At least not with a knife. C'mon, she was a responsible older sister. She could handle whatever he could throw at her. Besides, there was no way her younger brother could do some serious damage. She was a big girl. She had probably heard worse things. And he was her younger brother. He wasn't going to go out of his way to hurt her feelings, right?
"Onee-san is in high school, but she hasn't been kissed by anyone."
Wow. Just wow. Okay. That hurt a little.
"Eh, onee-san, why are you holding the knife like that? That's how a killer holds a knife."
"Oh. Sorry."
Right. Younger brother. Can't actually kill him. Mom will kill me. And dinner will be ruined. It was probably ruined already. Taishi added sugar into the vegetable curry. But dammit, he said something really stupid. And hurtful. Now why the hell did it hurt, huh? So what if she hadn't been kissed before. It's not like she needed someone to kiss her to make her life worthwhile. She had a loving family. And stuff like falling in love, it can wait, it can happen later. She had a plan. Graduate high school. Get into a university. Get a job. Fall in love. Marry. Have a couple of kids. Retire. Die. She would be the first one in her family to do this 'love' thing properly. Her brother could learn a thing or two from her. Who the hell falls in love in middle school? Not her at least. She couldn't say the same thing about her family. Her kid brother was in love and talking shit. She had to do something. But first, let's put the knife down. Her brother watched her and actually let out a sigh of relief. But she wasn't done talking. She was just getting started.
"What about you? You talk a lot of shit for a guy who hasn't kissed anyone."
Fire burned in his eyes. "At least I have someone I want to kiss."
That's it. Saki Kawasaki crossed her arms and glared at her younger brother. "You wanna pick a fight."
Thankfully he was still her younger brother and though he was growing up, he still had a good head over his shoulder and knew how to deescalate a situation. At least he had inherited something worthwhile from her parents and knew how to put it to good use. He maintained a small distance between them and focused all his attention on her face, meeting her eyes and not shying away from her heated glare. The pot on the stove simmered and he found his voice.
"Of course not. Onee-san, I'm just – how should I say this." He looked troubled as he added some spices to the curry. He stirred the pot with all his might and started to talk really fast. It was almost like he was embarrassed to say these words out loud. "I have a plan."
Great. This could go either way. Like dinner. "I'm listening."
"Okay. So, I like Komachi-chan. And there is a chance she likes me. But from what I can tell onii-san probably doesn't like me. So, I was -"
"Stop, stop, stop!" Saki waved her hands frantically. Onii-san. Onii-san? Who the hell was he calling onii-san? No way. Absolutely no freaking way was her younger brother referring to that dead eyed bastard as onii-san. He didn't deserve to be called onii-san. He was a lazy ass with a bad personality and a bit of brain and he would probably grow up to become an embezzler, duping people out of their money with various pyramid schemes. He would probably be a deadbeat too, four times divorced and always behind on paying child support and alimony. No way was that guy gonna be Taishi's onii-san. Besides, the only way he could become his onii-san was if – no way, she had better standards. She could definitely do better. But first, better set things right with her younger brother. "Taishi, hate to break it to ya, but you will never have an older brother. So don't go around calling people onii-san. It's weird. And feels wrong." She shuddered. "So very wrong."
But her brother smiled a wicked grin. "Actually, there is a way he could become my onii-san."
Saki Kawasaki paled. She hoped he wasn't trying to say what she was actually thinking. No, her brother was a nice guy. It couldn't be that. Yeah, the other thing made much more sense. "What are they teaching you in school? That's not how biology works. Do you want me to tutor you when I come back from school? I have loads of free time now that I have quit my part-time job."
Taishi's smile widened. "No thanks onee-san. I was hoping I could study with Komachi-chan. But I was thinking, since you have loads of free time, maybe you can spend it with onii-san."
Saki Kawasaki blushed. "Stop calling him onii-san!"
But he wasn't listening. "I think you would be great together. You two are kinda alike."
She sniffed. "Oh yeah. How exactly?" It almost felt like an insult.
He was silent for a moment, thinking. "Um, you both have younger siblings who you really care about and who in return care about you. That's two, right?"
Saki shook her head. "I will count it as one."
"No fair! Let's see, what else? Um, you both look scary and intimidating and you are hard to approach, but inside you are a bunch of softies."
She scoffed. "There's no way that guy is a softie. He is just a sis-con."
Taishi mumbled something under his breath which she didn't quite catch. But she was done listening to him talk. He was speaking absolute nonsense. Hikigaya and her being a couple, going out, k-kissing. Her face started to heat up and she shook her head to clear the stupid thoughts out of her mind. It was probably all the exhaustion. Preparing a salad was a hard job. Yeah. That's right. Besides, the guy was a pervert. He sneaked a peek at her panties and said it out loud to the whole class that she wore black, lacy underwear. If that middle aged teacher wasn't in the room, and if she wasn't tired from her part-time job, she would have killed him then and there.
But he did help her out. No, he helped out her brother. It was Taishi who went to him with the request. Of course, he would probably say something stupid like it was a team effort and all the members of the service club pitched in, but she had a good look at those two girls and what they did to help out. All they did was just look nice in a dress. How pathetic.
But just because he helped her see reason and told her about the scholarship and how she didn't need to work part-time, especially the night shift at a bar where she lied about her age to get the job in the first place, doesn't mean that she owed him anything. She was pretty sure he didn't think like that. But that's the thing, she didn't know what he thought. She barely knew the guy. Just his name. Hikigaya Hachiman. Though the pink haired bimbo did call him Hikki. Was that his nickname or something? Is that what he told his friends to call him? Sounds pretty stupid. But what the hell did she know.
But her brother knew something. Or at least that's what he thought. "Look, all I'm saying is, if you became friends with Komachi-chan's brother, it wouldn't be a bad thing. Think of it like doing me a pretty huge favour. I want to date Komachi-chan. But her brother doesn't like me. If you date her brother, he will have no choice but to think of me as a nice person. And then I will have his permission to marry Komachi when we get older."
Saki chuckled darkly. "So let me get this straight. You want to whore out your older sister so that you can shack up with a chick. Am I getting this right?"
Taishi looked livid. She had obviously touched a nerve, crossed a line in the sand. The curry in the pot boiled. He didn't act like a petulant child, but more like a grown up. But he couldn't quite shake the tremor from his voice. "You know what, fine! Die alone. See if I care!"
Saki Kawasaki let out a world weary sigh.
"What's a whore?"
Both their heads snapped at the direction of the cute and innocent voice. Dammit, how did they forget about Keika-chan, who was sitting on a chair, playing with a doll on the table, within hearing distance of the kitchen, probably listening to her older siblings talk while they cooked. And now because of them, she had learned a bad word. It would be a nightmare if she asked this question to their parents during dinner.
"Shit!"
"Shit!"
The two older siblings just blurted the word out without thinking. It was a knee jerk reaction, a response to what they heard their little sister ask. Of course, their eyes widened when they realized what the two of them had just said, and they hoped, no, they prayed that their youngest little sister won't copy them.
Keika Kawasaki giggled and laughed like the sweet and innocent child she was. But in between laughs, she would say the new word she had just learned. "Shit! Shit!"
Kawasaki Saki was about to turn on her brother and blame him for this little fiasco, but for some reason she didn't have to. Kawasaki Taishi stepped up and took full responsibility. But there was a catch. "Look, I will deal with Keika-chan. And if she says those words during dinner, in front of mom and dad, I will throw myself under the bus. But in return, promise me that you will talk to Hikigaya onii-san."
Saki grumbled. "Fine. I will try to talk to him tomorrow."
But Taishi shook his head and remained rather adamant. "Why wait? Talk to him now. I will give you his number. You don't have to do anything. Just send him a text. If he doesn't respond, well, that's too bad. There's nothing we can do about it. But promise me you will give it a shot and at least try to be friendly."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."
She left the kitchen and made her way to her room, leaving her younger brother to handle the rest of the cooking. She didn't care much about dinner. If he could cook curry, he could make a decent salad. She just hoped he wouldn't forget to prepare the rice. Who was she kidding, he would probably forget all about it. She should probably go and check on him soon, before her parents returned. But for now, she needed some peace and quiet, some alone time to gather her thoughts.
As she lied on her bed and checked her phone, she found a text from her brother with a number. It simply said 'Onii-san' and she found herself getting a little bit annoyed. Where did he even get his number? Hikigaya didn't seem like a guy who would go about exchanging numbers with people he just met. He was a loner. Like her. That's another thing they had in common. Now that she thought about it, perhaps his sister had something to do with it. Just like Taishi was trying to force her to be friends with him, maybe his sister was doing pretty much the same thing. But she probably wasn't getting anywhere with him, because he was a stubborn piece of work. But she was different. She made a promise to her brother, so she will give it a shot.
[Hey.]
[It's Kawasaki]
Okay. She kept up her end of the bargain. She sent him not one, but two text messages. And he hadn't bothered to reply. Well, there was nothing you could do about it. Taishi would probably be disappointed, but she was not the one who was being a jerk. Okay, better go check on –
1 new message received.
It's him.
No way. That was way too fast. Was he waiting for her text? Did his younger sister put him up to this? Probably not. She was just being paranoid. What did he say? Well, you will never know if you won't open the text, will you. But she hesitated. Why was she hesitating? It was just a text. There's nothing to it. He probably replied back with something simple like, 'hi', 'hello' or 'yo.' Okay. She was just wasting time now. Better check it out. C'mon it wasn't hard. Just click on the screen and here we go.
[Where did you get this number?]
Ass. Hole. Of course he had to be a jerk. She could almost hear his voice through the words which flashed on the screen. So, he had no idea what was going on. His sister hadn't told him anything. There goes her theory that their younger siblings were working together behind their backs to force them to become friends. But there was a chance his younger sister had put her younger brother up to this, while keeping herself at a safe distance, so that she could wash her hands off the entire mess when it blew up in their face. Well, she wasn't going to get away with it.
[From your sister.]
There was a short break before he responded back. She got the distinct feeling that he had gone to ask his younger sister if this was true. Now if she lied to her older brother to protect herself, well then, things ended here. She didn't have to do anything. Hikigaya would see to it that they never talked. Probably block her or something. Well, it's not like she really cared. But she will be telling her brother that the love of his life was a big, fat, ugly little liar and if he married her she was gonna lose his older sister forever. Let's see how he feels about that. But she didn't have to go that far. His response was to the point.
[What do you want?]
It was a perfect opening for her to simply add, 'I want to be your friend', but she wasn't that kind of person. And neither was he. He wouldn't appreciate it. In his mind it probably made sense that if someone was talking to him, or in this case texting him, they probably wanted something from him. Now that was a miserable way to live. But it's not like she could do anything about it. It was his life and he got to choose how he lived. She was just an outsider. At least for now. But he had asked a pointed question and she needed to respond. But she didn't know what to say. It was at times like these she decided to do something she had skimmed from those bimbos at school. Girls her age talked utter nonsense. They said whatever the hell they wanted and it was up to the boys to make sense of it. She never did such a thing, but she was a girl. She could probably do it. So that's exactly what she did. She started to talk utter nonsense.
[Nothing.]
Okay. She could do better. How about a simple question.
[I was just wondering if you remember my first name.]
There was an even longer break and she thought he wouldn't respond back. She was horrible at texting. And talking bullshit. What kinda lame ass question was that? Did he remember her first name? What the hell was she trying to do? Make him say her first name, so that they could be on a first name basis. That's not how things worked. At least she knew that much. You have to be friends, actual friends and real close to call each other by their first names. There was no way they could start calling each other by their first names, just because they exchanged a couple of texts. At least that's not how things should work in the real world. But perhaps things had changed and she hadn't kept up with the times. Maybe now it was common to talk to people you barely know using their first names – he hadn't responded back. What was taking him so long? Did he get bored and label her a nuisance and just stopped using his phone to respond back to her.
Ping.
1 new message received.
This time she didn't waste any time and checked his text instantly. But it left her feeling a bit confused.
[Kawasaki Kuro]
Kuro? Why the hell did he think her first name was Kuro? If she remembered correctly the name Kuro is primarily a male name that means ninth son. But wait, Kuro also means black. Hmm. Black. Black. Black!
Kawasaki Saki blushed a horrible shade of red and started to type rapidly.
[Go kill yourself!]
[PERVERT!]
Kawasaki Saki was left fuming and embarrassed. This rotten dead fish eyed bastard was the absolute worst. He didn't remember her first name. Instead, he remembered the black, lacy underwear she wore to school. He was probably thinking about it right now. He was probably thinking all kinds of naughty and perverted stuff. And her brother wanted her to be friends with this creep.
Kawasaki Saki laid her head on the pillow, stared at the ceiling for a minute, thought about his stupid face and scoffed.
"Fat chance."
A few moments passed.
Then,
Ping.
2 new messages received.
[Gn8]
[Kawasaki Saki-san.]
Well, would you look at that. He probably got her name from his younger sister. Well, he could have done it before. But he probably was feeling too lazy to get off his lazy ass and talk to her. As she said before he was a right bastard. But he was putting in a little effort. And he corrected himself after making a stupid mistake. And he wished her goodnight. But, he could have at least apologized for being a pervert. Well, he was a guy. If they started to apologize for being a pervert, they would be here all day. She should probably cut him some slack. But she wouldn't text him back and wish him goodnight in return. She was still mad. A little less mad then before, but still. Better not give him any weird ideas and let him think she was easy. Besides, he was probably thinking about her in black lacy underwear. All men were perverts and he was no different. But, if she woke up feeling nice and fresh, she might just wish him good morning.
If.
And it was a big if.
And who knows, maybe somehow they will end up as friends.
Or something more.
Kawasaki Saki scoffed again. "Yeah right."
A/N: I decided to re-upload this story in this account. I don't know why, but for some reason I feel queasy writing stuff on my other account. I don't know how to explain it. Anyway, I think I will use that account to post stories which are not related to Oregairu. Speaking of which, I was thinking about writing fanfics for other fandoms too. I think I am ready to explore a little. So, which other fandoms should I write for? If you can, let me know in the reviews.
Also, I listened to you guys and I started posting my fanfics on other sites as well.
In Archive Of Our Own, my user name is "Betrayed_Dreams" and there you can find "Labcoats and Loners" and "8man's Journal: Looking Into The Mind Of An Unstable Police Detective."
In SpaceBattles, my user name is "Betrayed Dreams"
In Wattpad, my user name is "BetrayedDreams."
But let me say this, I still enjoy writing and uploading stuff here. This is the best platform, in my humble opinion.
Now it's time for a poll -
Poll#1: Which Fic Should I Update Next?
Option 1: The Big If.
Option 2: Ikebukuro : A Bohemian Rhapsody.
Option 3: Ore Ga Iru : As I Expected, My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong.
Please pick accordingly.
Hope everyone enjoyed reading this chapter.
Leave lots and lots of reviews, follow and fave.
Won't betray your dreams.