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It was morning. The sparrows were chirping. So this was the so‐called 'fast‐ forward to the next day' that happens in stories.
I opened my eyes, blinking in surprise. I was greeted, not by my usual scenery, but by an unfamiliar ceiling. By that, I mean I was in the living room. It seemed we had somehow fallen asleep while we were studying. The last thing I remembered was interrogating Komachi about her relationship status and talking briefly about basilisks.
"Hey, Komachi. It's morning," I called out.
That was when I realised I couldn't see my little sister anywhere. I looked around my surroundings for Komachi for about two seconds. Next, I peered out the window. The sun had risen quite high. It took about three seconds to confirm this. Then a sinking feeling came over me and I looked at the clock in a cold sweat. It was nine o'clock. I looked it up and I looked it down, but it was still nine o'clock. It took a full five seconds for this to process.
The impact of the situation hit me in the span of those ten seconds.
"I'm gonna be super late…" I hung my head, depressed.
A breakfast of toast, ham and eggs lay on the table, along with a letter Komachi left behind before she had departed.
Dear onii‐chan, I'm going ahead since I don't want to be late. Take it easy!
S.P. Make sure you eat your breakfast!
"Dumbass… you think you're the Security Police?"
The right way of writing it was P.S., as in Playstation.
Anyway, since there was no use getting worked up over something I had no control over, I chewed down the breakfast she'd prepared for me and prepared to go to school, muttering under my breath as I did so. It seemed my parents had already gone to work. Since both my parents worked, mornings in the Hikigaya household started early. My mother made breakfast but Komachi was usually in charge of dinner.
And yet not a single person had woken me up despite all of that. While I did worry about whether I was loved and all that, I like to believe in the kindness of letting someone sleep in. My sleep schedule could get rather erratic.
My blood was pumping as I changed my clothes. After making sure the door was locked behind me, I left the house.
As I cycled leisurely down the riverside, I looked up and saw gigantic columns of clouds stretching across the sky rapidly.
Today, the path to school was beautifully quiet. It put me at ease. Usually, the route to Soubu High was a cycling racecourse where students from other schools pitted themselves against each other. Overtaking the others and shouting 'Go! Magnum!' was the best feeling ever.
Today, the back‐and‐forth action was between older ladies trying their very best to lose weight and older men walking their dogs, and it was about as intense as watching someone go fishing. Going to school this way wasn't bad once in a while. Actually, now that I think about it, cycling underneath a blue sky felt quite good. It was just the sort of thing you'd tell someone to get them to skip school with you, and it works around fifty per cent of the time.
And yet, why was it that as I got close to school, a sudden melancholy came over me…?
Despite that, I didn't move stealthily. In fact, I entered school the normal way. At this time the teachers were in class, you see, so there was no way they'd spot me for being late. Just being scared was pointless. I learned that from the seventy‐ two times I was late last year. This was already my eighth time being late this year, which would probably affect my school record at this rate. I wanted two hundred victories by my third year of high school.
Getting into the school gates was easy. The problem was the classroom. I stopped my bicycle at the parking area and turned briskly towards the entrance. As soon as I entered the schoolyard, I felt like the power of gravity increased in one hit. I dragged myself up the stairs and down the hallway where there were no people, until finally I arrived at my classroom on the second floor.
I took a deep breath in front of the door. Then I put my hand on the handle. In that moment, I had butterflies in my stomach.
The door flung open.
And then all eyes were upon me at once, no one saying anything. Silence had come over the entire classroom. The whispering and the voice of my teacher's lecturing died down into nothingness.
I didn't hate being late. What I did hate was this atmosphere.
For example, if it was Hayama doing this, I'm pretty sure they'd be all like, 'Hey, Hayama! Come a little later next time!' 'Hayama, you're so slow, man!' 'Hahaha, Hayama you dork!'
But in my case, nobody said anything, and for a moment I got stares from all directions asking, 'Who is this guy?' I answered with silence as I entered the classroom with heavy footsteps. The moment I sat down at my seat, a sudden fatigue came over me.
I sighed inadvertently. For my teacher, that was the final straw.
"Hikigaya. Come see me when the class ends," Hiratsuka‐sensei said as she slammed her teacher's desk with her fists.
"Okay…"
…I was screwed. I hung my head in response, prompting Hiratsuka‐sensei to nod in satisfaction as she turned around and resumed writing on the blackboard, her white coat fluttering behind her.
Wait up, it's only fifteen minutes until the end of class!
And the cruel thing was that those fifteen minutes went by so quickly. While I was ignoring class and thinking of a hundred different excuses for being late, the bell chimed.
"That's all for this lesson. Hikigaya, come up here," Hiratsuka‐Sensei ordered as she beckoned to me impatiently.
I looked at her face with an overwhelming desire to flee.
Hiratsuka‐Sensei scowled openly at me. "Now then, before I punch you, I'll ask you why you were late, just to be nice."
She'd already decided to punch me!
"No, you're mistaken. Please wait a moment. Don't you know the phrase 'fashionably late'? Basically, this is a rehearsal for when I become a powerful, elite executive."
"I thought you wanted to work at super-kamiokande."
Damn.
"Urk!" I winced, but soon regained my footing. "W‐well! It's a mistake to think that being late is inherently a bad thing. You get it? The police start moving after the incident happens. It's well established that the hero arrives at the last minute. In other words, they're always late. But who blames them for it?! No one! The irony here is that tardiness is justice!" I shouted from deep within my soul.
When I finished, Hiratsuka‐sensei had a distant look in her eyes for some reason.
"…Hikigaya. Let me tell you one thing. Feeble justice is no different from evil."
"…f‐feeble justice is even better than evi‐ wait! Don't hit me! No!"
Hiratsuka‐sensei's fist sunk into my liver with precise accuracy. My body groaned from the damage. As I keeled over and fell to the ground, I let out a cough.
Hiratsuka‐sensei sighed with astonishment while I writhed in agony. "Geez… there's no end to the problem children in this class." But she didn't say that with disgust ‐ in fact, she looked happy more than anything. "I'm talking about one other person when I say that."
Completely ignoring that I had fallen to the ground, Hiratsuka‐sensei clacked her heels against the floor and faced the backdoor of the classroom. I looked in the same direction from my position on the ground and noticed the appearance of a lone female student holding her schoolbag.
"Kawasaki Saki. Are you fashionably late too?" Hiratsuka‐sensei called out to her with a wry smile on her face.
But the girl named Kawasaki Saki only answered with a silent bob of her head. Then she walked right past my sprawled‐out body on the floor and made for her seat.
Her long, black hair fell all the way down her back; the unnecessary parts of her shirt cuffs were loosened up; her long, sharp legs looked made for kicking.
But what made an impression on me were her ambitionless eyes, which gazed vacantly into the distance. Not to mention the black lace that seemed as if it had been embroidered by an artisan.
I swore I'd seen that girl somewhere before… wait a minute, if she was in my class, then no shit I'd seen her before.
Since I could see up her skirt from my curled‐up position on the floor, I sprang to my feet with a start. I didn't want anyone to get suspicious of me.
And at that moment, something clicked in my head.
"You're that girl, aren't you?"
With that, all my doubts cleared away at once.
Inadvertently, I flashbacked to a scene that had burnt itself into my eyes. I recalled the girl who had suddenly made fun of me when she saw me on the roof
Oh, so she was in my class, huh? It was time to confirm once more that this was the girl I understood now to be Kawasaki Saki. Instead of going to her seat, Kawasaki stood where she was and looked back casually over her shoulder at me.
"…are you a moron?" Kawasaki Saki asked. She didn't kick or punch me. She wasn't blushing with embarrassment and her face wasn't red with anger ‐ it was as if she had no interest at all. She was just mildly annoyed.
"I'm not bright…" I confessed. I meant it too.
If Yukinoshita Yukino was frigid, Kawasaki Saki was just cold. It was like the difference between dry ice and normal ice. Yukinoshita scalded anyone who touched her.
With a disgusted look on her face, Kawasaki brushed up a loose strand of hair before facing her seat this time. After she pulled out her chair and sat on it, she looked at the window blankly as if she was bored. It was as if she was looking outside so she wouldn't have to look inside.
There was no one in the world who wouldn't notice her 'don't talk to me' aura. But her 'don't talk to me' aura was still weak. No one would talk to me in class even if I had my 'please talk to me' aura on.
"Kawasaki Saki, huh…?"
"Hikigaya, quit muttering the name of a girl whose skirt you looked up with deep emotion." Hiratsuka‐sensei placed a hand on my shoulder. Her hand was awfully cold. "We'll have a nice talk about this later. Come see me in the staffroom after school."
"You fuckin' floored me!" I protested.
She hit me again in the stomach.
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After a short hour of being lectured to by Hiratsuka‐sensei, I stopped by the bookstore in the Marinepia shopping centre instead of going straight home.
I eyed the shelves and purchased a single book. There went my thousand‐yen note, along with the small change jiggling around in my wallet.
After that, I went to the café, thinking I may as well study. But it seemed everyone else was thinking the same thing, because the place was crowded with students of all sorts. Just when I was figuring I should have gone home after all, I spotted some familiar faces.
A jersey‐clad Totsuka Saika was staring down the showcase cake. (At our school, you could wear the uniform or a jersey ‐ it didn't matter which.) The vibe from that scene was even sweeter than fresh cream, and I was drawn to it like ants are drawn to sugar. I'm one of those 'it has to be just right ' kind of people. Hey, I'm pretty much Goldilocks.
"Okay, it's your turn to ask a question next, Yukinon," said familiar face number two.
Yuigahama and Yukinoshita weren't wasting their time as they waited to get served and were absorbed in their studying.
"Right, a Japanese question then," Yukinoshita stated. "Complete the following expression: 'When the going gets tough‐'"
"…the Tokyo‐Chiba line shuts down?"
And Yuigahama got the answer wrong too. The correct answer was 'These days, there are more trains that slow down without stopping.'
At this mistake, Yukinoshita's face clouded over too, just as you'd expect of her. "Incorrect… next question, then. This one is more about geography. Name two of Chiba's local specialties."
Tick tock, tick tock. The hands of the clock ticked away. Yuigahama gulped. "Miso peas… and boiled peas?" She had a deadly serious look on her face.
"Hey. You think all we do is grow peas in Chiba?" I asked.
"Whoa!" Yuigahama jumped. Then she said, "Oh, it's just Hikki. For a moment there, I thought you were some weird guy chatting me up..."
"I resent that. I am a weird guy." I breezed my hand through my hair.
At Yuigahama's exaggerated reaction, Totsuka turned around and faced me. Then a bright smile lit up his face. "Hachiman! So you were invited to this study group too!"
Totsuka sidled up to me, grinning. But naturally there was no way I had been invited, and Yuigahama had a sour, 'What a pain. This guy's not one of us,' look on her face. Oi, quit it, you're bringing up memories of my classmate's birthday party in elementary school. Even though I'd brought a present and everything, they all gave me the cold shoulder and I was on the verge of tears.
"Hikigaya was never invited," Yukinoshita said. "Is there something you want?"
"Yukinoshita, stop confirming the facts for the sole purpose of making someone feel bad."
Geez, if I didn't have such a strong sense of will, you would've gotten your just desserts, bitch.
In actuality, I would probably have yelled something incomprehensible and hit her with a chair. I wanted her to apologise to my exceptionally strong ego.
"Aah, I was meaning to call out to you, Hikki, but I had food in my mouth…" said Yuigahama.
"Nah, I'm really not bothered." I was used to this kind of thing.
"Did you come here to study for your exam as well, Hikigaya?" asked Yukinoshita.
"Uh, I guess. You guys too?"
"Of course. The tests are only two weeks away," Yuigahama declared.
"Man, before you study for your exams, you better brush up your Chiba trivia. That last question was basically giving it you."
"I don't particularly think it was giving us anything… it was more of a geography question: 'Name two of Chiba's local specialties.'" Yukinoshita uttered the same question from before flatly, as if testing me.
"The correct answer is 'Chiba's famous customs: festivals and dancing.'"
"I said 'local specialties'. I'm quite sure no one would know the lyrics of Chiba's folk songs." Yukinoshita was dumbfounded. No, I'm quite sure she knows them. She just couldn't keep up with the times.
As all of this was going on, the people ahead of us got served, and soon enough it was our turn. At that moment, Yuigahama broke out into a grin. "Hikki, I'll pay for you," she chirped.
"Huh? I said I wasn't bothered… are you going to dress up as my grandmother next? Grandmother, what big teeth you have."
"I'm not the big bad wolf! I'm just trying to be nice even though I don't want to pay for you!"
Did she just dig her own hole? There was no reason why Yuigahama had to treat me in the first place.
Yukinoshita, who was watching our exchange, let out a short sigh in exasperation. "You're being disgraceful, so stop it. I don't like that sort of thing. I despise two‐ faced people."
For once, I agreed with Yukinoshita. "Yeah. I hate those types too."
"Huh?! Th‐then I won't say it, then!" Yuigahama insisted.
"Nah, it's fine when it's a joke among people you're close with," I said. "I suggest you just say it to people you like in your inner circle?"
"Yes, indeed," said Yukinoshita. "You're not in my inner circle, so I don't mind."
"I'm kinda shocked that you don't treat me as part of your inner circle!" Yuigahama looked at Yukinoshita with teary eyes.
Meanwhile, it was my turn to get served. When I ordered a blended coffee, the shop assistant who was capable of making one whipped one up promptly. "That'll be 390 yen."
It happened when I put my hand in my pocket. My memories of what had happened just before surfaced in the back of my mind. I'd bought a light novel at the bookstore, and then what? I'd paid 1000 yen, the exact amount of money I had on me, and I'd used up all my change too… which meant I had no money today. But the coffee was already made so it was too late now to refuse it
I started talking surreptitiously to the two girls behind me. "My bad. I've got no money today, teehee. Sorry, but could you pay for me?"
"…despicable." Yukinoshita wasted no time in labelling me as trash.
Yuigahama sighed, a stunned look on her face. "Huh, guess it can't be helped."
...Y‐Yuigahama‐san! You came for me, my goddess! How I worship thee!
"I'll have that coffee, so how about you drink water, Hikki?"
…this demon. Was she Lilith or something?
"Hachiman, I‐I'll get it for you! So don't worry about it, okay?" Totsuka smiled at me kindly.
Totsuka was a total angel.
Just as I was about to hug him, Yukinoshita's cold voice came in as a wedge between us. "It won't do him any good if you coddle him."
"Say that after you've done something nice to me for once."
Totsuka ended up paying for me, so I looked around for seats as I thanked him. It was the least I could do while the other three waited for their orders.
At that exact moment, a group of four people vacated their seats, so I slipped into their place without a moment's delay. I put a tray on the table and hastily flung my schoolbag down. In my overzealousness, my bag fell under the cushioned seat.
A good‐looking schoolgirl sitting on the adjacent seat nudged it back to me. I bowed courteously in response to her uncomplaining, graceful gesture.
"Oh, it's big brother."
The good‐looking girl was my sister, Hikigaya Komachi. Clad in her middle school uniform, she waved at me with a cheerful smile lighting up her face.
It took me a very long moment to respond. "What are you doing here?" I demanded.
"See, I was just listening to Taishi's problems," Komachi said as she turned her gaze back to the seat opposite of her. Sitting there was a boy in a middle school uniform.
He quickly ducked his head and bowed in my direction. I eyed him warily without thinking. Just why was this boy with Komachi…?
"This is Kawasaki Taishi. I told you about him yesterday, y'know? The guy whose sister became a delinquent."
Now that she mentioned it, I had a feeling we had a conversation along those lines. Almost all of it had gone in one ear and out the other since I was intent on memorising dates at the time. Just what even happened in the year 694 again…?
"So yeah, he was just asking me how he could get his big sis to go back to how she used to be. Oh, right. You asked about it too, big brother. You said I could tell you if I ever had any problems."
Oh, I somehow got the feeling I might have run my mouth and declared something like that yesterday. 'Leave it to me and go on ahead!' or whatever. Yeah, I might intend to do something like that if it was for my sister's sake, but to be completely honest, I had no such intentions when it came to her friends, much less for a boy…
"Yeah, I get it. But you know, I reckon he should talk things over with his family without any delay. Yep, in fact, there's no time to waste."
I figured I could weasel my way out of this if I strung some pretty‐sounding words together. Then I could get rid of Komachi and go home. As those thoughts went through my mind, that Taishi kid started mouthing off like I was his senpai or something.
"You're right about that, but… lately, nee‐chan's been coming home late and she doesn't listen to what our parents say at all. She gets angry at me and tells me it's none of my business when I say something to her…"
Taishi hung his head as he spoke. It seemed he was brooding over it in his own particular way.
"…you're the only one I can rely on now, onii‐san."
"You have no right to call me onii‐san!"
"Why are you shouting things an obstinate father would say?" a cool voice uttered behind me.
I turned around to find Yukinoshita and the others already approaching. Judging them to be my acquaintances from how they wore the same uniform as I did, Komachi wasted no time projecting a businesslike smile.
"Hi there! I'm Hikigaya Komachi. Thanks for being there for my brother," Komachi greeted them with a knowing smile. One of her special traits since she was little was being able to fit right in wherever she went, often to a baffling degree.
Meanwhile, Taishi, the other customer, preferred to keep to himself. He lowered his head halfway in a dutiful bow and only introduced himself by name.
"You're Hachiman's younger sister?" Totsuka said politely. "Pleased to meet you, I'm his classmate. My name's Totsuka Saika."
"Oh, you're so polite, how charming. And oh my, what a cutie. Right, right, big brother?"
I grunted. "He's a boy."
"Haha! Funny joke! Hahaha, what are you saying, my idiot brother?"
"Er, um. I am a boy…" Totsuka said shyly as he turned his face away, blushing.
…holy crap! Is this guy really a boy?
"Uh… really?" Komachi asked, nudging me with her elbow.
"Sorry, I wasn't sure for a moment there, but he's probably a guy. He's cute, though."
"Y‐yeah…" Komachi stared straight at Totsuka's face, only half‐convinced. As she murmured stuff like, "What long eyelashes you have. What pretty skin," Totsuka blushingly looked away from her gaze, fidgeting uncomfortably.
I wanted to gaze at Totsuka's adorable form forever, but when he made eye contact with me as if saying, 'Help meeeeeee…' I tore Komachi away from him. "That's enough for now. Anyway, this is Yuigahama and that's Yukinoshita."
Komachi finally looked at the two of them after my brief introduction. When their eyes met, Yuigahama laughed nervously. "P‐pleased to meet you," she introduced herself. "I'm Hikki's classmate Yuigahama Yui."
"Oh, hi, nice to meet you t‐" Komachi stopped moving and stared straight at Yuigahama. "Huh…"
Yuigahama avoided her eyes, sweating profusely. What, were they the snake and frog? Their stare down lasted for a whole three seconds until a voice diffused the standstill.
"…are you done yet?" Yukinoshita interjected calmly, having waited patiently for quite some time.
It was amazing how just the sound of her voice made Yuigahama and Komachi shut up and pay attention to her. Her transparently cold voice was extremely quiet and subdued. And yet the message got across, loud and clear. It was like listening to the sound of fresh snow piling up on the ground.
So perhaps it would be more accurate to say that ‐ rather than merely shutting up ‐ they were in awe of her. Komachi opened her eyes wide and sat rooted to the spot in front of Yukinoshita. As she beheld Yukinoshita, she was spellbound for a moment.
"Pleased to meet you. I am Yukinoshita Yukino. Hikigaya is my… what is Hikigaya to me, I wonder…? He is not my classmate, nor is he my friend… I am loath to admit it, but he is my acquaintance, I suppose?"
"I fuckin hear you. Yukinoshita. I get it." And I did. I really, really did.
"You see, I was wondering if acquaintance is the proper term. The only thing I know about you, Hikigaya, is your name after all. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I don't want to know any more about you than that. And yet still I call you my acquaintance."
"I'm flattered," I bit out. "You done? Get it all out of your system? Something like 'fellow student' is good enough for now."
"Indeed… then allow me to correct myself. I am loath to admit it, but I am his fellow student Yukinoshita Yukino."
"You're still ashamed to know me!" Well, you know what? I'm just as ashamed to know her!
"But there's no other way I could put it."
"Oh, um, it's fine. I think I pretty much get what kind of relationship you have with my brother," Komachi said kindly to the slightly perturbed Yukinoshita. I was grateful my sister was so quick on the uptake, but her sisterly love was sorely lacking, in my opinion.
"…excuse me, but what am I supposed to do?"
I turned my head. "Huh? O‐ohhh…"
Taishi was at an impasse, a worried expression on his face. Here he was pouring out his heart to me, but his only acquaintance was Komachi, which made his situation messy and difficult for him. No, honestly, his position was that of an acquaintance of an acquaintance, and it wasn't like he could follow the strange turns of conversation. To say nothing of the fact that he was surrounded only by people who were older than he was. He really was in a bind. Far from drawing attention to himself by talking out of turn, he was in the sort of position where people asked him what his problem was. 'Why so quiet?' and so on. If I were in his shoes, I'd want to die. Your only choice is to nod along to the conversation and occasionally laugh and smile awkwardly.
Given all that, the fact that Taishi was determined to speak his mind displayed some impressive communicative powers. I suppose you could say he was a boy with good prospects. (Not that I'd ever let him take care of Komachi, though.)
"Excuse me, I'm Kawasaki Taishi. Nee‐chan's an eleventh grader at Soubu High… oh, and her name is Kawasaki Saki. Nee‐chan is… how do you put it…? A delinquent? She's turned rotten…?"
I had a memory of hearing that name quite recently. As I stirred the milk in my blended coffee, pondering, I was attacked by an onslaught of memories. The contrast between black and white formed a gradation that stimulated my vision.
"You mean the Kawasaki Saki in our class?"
"Kawasaki Saki…" Yukinoshita uttered that name and cocked her head slightly, which showed how little she knew about Kawasaki.
But Yuigahama, who was in the same class as Kawasaki, clapped her hands in recognition, just as expected from her. "Oooh. Kawasaki, right? She's kinda the scary, delinquent type."
"You're not friends?" I asked.
"We've talked, I guess, but we're not really friends…" Yuigahama responded delicately. "And hey, that's not something you should ask a girl. It puts us in a hard position."
Even with girls, there were the groups, cliques, unions, guilds and what have you. Anyway, from the way she spoke, it didn't seem like Yuigahama's group had a particularly good rapport with Kawasaki.
"But I've never seen Kawasaki get along with anyone…" Totsuka remarked. "I feel like she's always staring blankly out the window."
"…oh, that's pretty much what she's like." I remembered how Kawasaki Saki acted in the classroom. She was a lone girl with grey eyes who just peered at the moving clouds. Come to think of it, she wasn't looking at anything in the classroom but rather at some faster‐moving place beyond her line of sight.
"So about when did your sister become a delinquent?" Yukinoshita asked Taishi suddenly.
He reacted with a start. "Y‐yes'm!"
It should be noted that he was nervous not just because Yukinoshita was scary but because a beautiful older girl was talking to him. It was the correct reaction for a boy in middle school. If I were a middle schooler I'd probably be like that too. But when you become a jaded high school student, you'd realise that she was just plain scary. God what a bitch.
"Er, uh… it was probably around the time nee‐chan entered Soubu High since she was a super serious student back in middle school. She was relatively nice back then and often made dinner and stuff. She didn't change much even when she was in her first year of high school… she changed only very recently."
"So it was when she entered eleventh grade?" I asked, to which Taishi answered in the affirmative.
Upon hearing that, Yukinoshita began to ponder. "In regards to changes when she became an eleventh grader, does anything come to mind?"
"This is just a generic answer, but didn't she change her class? It was after she entered class F."
"In other words, it was when she became Hikigaya's classmate."
"My, my, why are you saying it like I'm the one who caused it?" I broke in. "What am I, a virus?" I literally ain't do nothin' to nobody!
"I said nothing of the sort. You take your persecution complex too far, Hikigerma."
"But you said it yourself. You clearly said 'germ.'"
"A mere slip of the tongue."
No, seriously, stop it. This was bringing up traumatic memories of being treated as if I had germs. Elementary schoolkids are too cruel. They'd start being all, 'It's Hikigermaaaaa!' 'You're it!' 'I used a barrier just now!' just from touching me. 'Barriers don't work against Hikigerma!' they said. Just how powerful was the Hikigerma?
Yuigahama looked at Taishi. "But y'know, when you say she comes home late, just what time does she come back? I get home relatively late and stuff too. It's not so unusual for a high school kid, y'know?"
"Oh, huh, about that." Taishi looked away, flustered.
see how it is. He was being shy because an awfully sexy older girl was talking to him. It was the correct reaction for a boy in middle school. When you become a jaded high school student, you come to realise that you can in fact say what you like to a s-someone like Yuigahama.
"But coming home at five o'clock and stuff is too late," he went on.
That's more like morning…" And she'd be late too, oh my. She'd only get around two hours of sleep, if any.
"And your parents don't say anything to her when she comes home at th‐that hour, I take it?" Totsuka asked Taishi worriedly.
"No. Both our parents work, and we have a younger brother and sister, so they don't really yell at nee‐chan. Plus, it's just so late they rarely see her around anyway… well, I guess bringing up so many kids means you've got quite a lot on your plate," Taishi answered, relatively unshaken.
Hmph, a middle school boy like him had yet to realise Totsuka's charm. When you become a jaded high school student, you're bound to realise that Totsuka is, in fact, cute as hell.
"On the odd occasion we do come across each other, we end up fighting, and whenever I say anything, she gets really stubborn and says, 'It's got nothing to do with you'…" Taishi's shoulders drooped. He was greatly perplexed.
"Family reasons, huh…" Yukinoshita said. "Every family has them."
She had a deep look of melancholy on her face that I had never seen before. She looked just like Taishi, who had come to tell us of his troubles. By that, I mean she was on the verge of tears.
"Yukinoshita…" But as soon as I called out to her, the clouds covered the sun and a shadow came over her face. Because of that, I couldn't read the expression on Yukinoshita's downturned face clearly. But the mere sight of her feeble, drooped shoulders told me she had let out a short sigh.
"You said something?" Yukinoshita answered me as she lifted her face.
Her expression was no different from normal ‐ cold and withering.
The clouds had only covered the sun for a moment. I had no way of knowing the meaning of the sigh she had breathed in that split second.
The only one who had noticed the change in Yukinoshita's demeanour was me. Taishi and the others went on talking normally.
"And that's not all… nee‐chan gets all these phone calls from a weird place."
At Taichi's words, a question mark floated over Yuigahama's head. "Weird places?"
"Mmm. From Angel something‐or‐other, probably some kind of store… the manager guy talked to her."
"What about it is so weird?" Totsuka asked.
Taishi banged his fist against the table. "I mean think about it! Angel?! It's a totally sleazy store!"
"Huh, I don't get that vibe from it at all…" Yuigahama said somewhat hesitantly, but I totally got the vibe
See, the thing is, my horny middle school boy senses were tingling. Try imagining this 'Angel' word displayed in Tokyo's red‐light district. See what I mean? The perverted factor just went up by fifty per cent. And while we're at it, the word 'Super' feels forty per cent more erotic.
Without a doubt, this was one sleazy store.
This brat had realised that, much as you'd expect.
"Hey, calm down for a sec, Taishi," I said. "I understand everything."
Delighted at being understood, Taishi wiped passionate tears from the corner of his ears and embraced me in a passionate hug.
"O‐onii‐san!"
"Hahaha, did you call me onii‐san? Do you have a death wish?"
As the two boys were binding their souls together under the god named Eros, the girls calmly decided on their future plans.
"In any case, if she's working somewhere, then we need to come up with a special plan," Yukinoshita said. "Even if it's not a dangerous store like this idiot seems to believe, the fact that she's working until dawn is troubling. We need to find out where she's going and stop her."
"Yeah, but if we do manage to stop her, she might start a new job somewhere else, y'know?" Yuigahama said.
Komachi nodded in agreement. "Out of the frying pan and into the water."
"…you mean into the fire," said Yukinoshita.
Oh, my little sister. I ask of you, please, don't bring shame to the Hikigaya name. Look, you're making Yukinoshita feel embarrassed for you.
"In other words, our only option is to simultaneously treat the symptoms and eradicate the root source," Yukinoshita concluded at approximately the same time I tore Taishi off me.
"Hey, wait a minute here. Are you planning to make us do something?"
"But of course. Kawasaki Taishi‐kun is the younger brother of Kawasaki Saki‐san, a student of our school. This is to say nothing of how the bulk of his worries concerned her. I believe it is within the Service Club's line of work."
"Yeah, but all club activities are suspended for the midterms…"
"Big brother." Someone poked me incessantly in the back. When I turned around, Komachi was smiling broadly at me.
It was Komachi's smile whenever she asked me to do something for her. A long time ago when Komachi wanted to have my Christmas present, she had this expression on her face too. Why did Santa have to ask for my Love and Berry cards3 ? There was no way I could fight against Komachi, who held the strongest trump card known as our parents' sympathy. Damn it, she wasn't cute at all…
"I'll do it…" I said reluctantly.
Taishi bowed enthusiastically, like an engine in high gear. "Th‐thank you!" he shouted jubilantly. "Sorry for bothering you! I promise to do my best!"
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-WG
