Chapter 25


TL: Akabane


***


When we got home, I was finally able to tyding up all the groceries my sister had bought.


"Yes, good job.  I'll clean the fridge, so you can put it in later."


"Haiiiiiii."


Well, since the groceries were all my sister wanted, so I told her to tidy them up herself.


I went back to my room and changed my clothes then lay down on the bed.  When I looked at my phone, Haruki, Yukito, and the chairman were all calling me.


"I'll reply them later..."


The three of us usually had a casual everyday conversation.  But right now, I was so sleepy.  Shopping was exhausting.


Rin-chan's performance just now might go in an unexpected direction.  And I was overwhelmed by the tension.


I put down my phone and dozed off into the night.


At dinner, my sister made pasta using red okra that made them look stylish.  It was really delicious, but I didn't feel that it should be mixed with red okra.  Of course, I didn't say that openly because I thought it would be like asking for a beating.


And on a dark Saturday, I spent my idle time doing nothing.


I could have studied on my day off, but I didn't want to do that since I also had free time on school days.


Should I just roll over in bed while watching videos or reading books?


Meanwhile, my sister was playing outside with her other friend besides Rin-chan.


"I'm not in a position to say that Saki is very different from Rin-chan..."


Because my sister is really different from her.


***


Before I knew it, it was about two weeks before the new semester started, and April was coming to an end.


At our school, midterms would start in mid-May, so right after Golden Week was over, it would be exam week.


And of course, most people would only talk about the vacation rather than the exam crisis.


"Do you two have any club activities during Golden Week?"


"I have a sparring match.  What about you, Yukito?"


"I don't know if I'll have a vacation or not.  But it looks like I'll have a scrimmage with another high school."


"That must be hard for both of you."


"I don't really want to be lazy, but after seeing you free all the time, I get jealous."


"That's true."


For two people who joined a sports club, Golden Week was certainly a good time to have a practice match.


If you had so many days off, you could easily schedule matches.


"Since you don't have a girlfriend, what are you going to do?"


"....You don't need to mention the first sentence.  Didn't you hear the answer during spring break anyway?"


"Oh, which one?  The one where you said you were going to sleep all the time?  That time you said you wanted to go out and play, but when you were asked to join a club, you refused.  I'm disappointed in you."


"Shut up!"


In the end, it turned into a ribbing, as if they were criticizing my laziness. This annoyed me.


"Haruki also feels like that, right..."


"Eh?  Why?"


"No, I mean... we don't have much time to get together these days."


"..."


Yup, I couldn't get into the conversation anymore.


"Wouldn't it be nice if you were easy to get along with?"


"We wanted to do whatever we could to make you happy when we could meet, but you seemed to think in a different way, so we started to give up, and I also felt that we were getting distant."


"Well... you're a bit different from the two of us."


"..."


"Touma?"


"It's okay, just keep going."


"Touma... why don't you invite someone to play with during Golden Week?"


Haruki, who sensed the change of mood in me, made such a proposal.


"No, no way I can do that!"


"Why are you so stubborn?"


These two people had a sad expression in their eyes.  It would be easier if they ignored me or teased me with a funny joke.


Even if my friends looked at me with that look, and my heart ached at the sight, I could just go to my usual place after school to study with Rin-chan.


"Good job, Onii-san."


She greeted me with a smile and a cheerful voice.


With this alone, my wounded heart was healed.


"Enough...!!!"


Rin-chan, who knew nothing, tilted her head in astonishment.


"What's wrong?"


"My friends tease me, but for today, it breaks my heart..."


"I see... it must have been hard for you."


I told Rin-chan what happened earlier before we started the study session.


"I thought they were good friends.  After hearing about Saki's boyfriend, I thought your situation was better."


"Really?"


"Maybe Saki doesn't talk much with her brother.  So, I'm only going to say this between Onii-san and me, but she's a troublesome person."


"I see.  I think that's the reason why I thought that her reaction on Saturday was a bit excessive."


"That's what happened.  By the way, did Saki cook with the red okra you guys bought last Saturday?"


"Yes, she made pasta with Red Okra.  Didn't she tell you about it?"


"Saki said, because I didn't say anything to her about my grades, so Saki didn't say anything about her cooking either..."


"I see."


By the way, she seems satisfied, and I think her skill level is quite high.  I wonder if she still feels that she's not comparable to Rin-chan?


The more I heard, the more curious I became about Rin-chan's cooking skills.


"If you say she makes stylish pasta like that, I want to see it."


"Well, I think I should show it to Rin-chan too.  I can't stop wondering about how good Rin-chan is at cooking since my sister speaks so highly of you."


"Do you want to try my cooking?"


"Eh?"


"Eh?"


The words I had spoken to extend our conversation had apparently traveled in a direction I had not expected.


Our surprised tone and dazed tone were different reactions to the pronunciation of the same character.


"What did you just say?"


"Well, if Onii-san is curious, you can find out for yourself by trying it out.  That's why I'm asking if you want to try it?"


"Oh... I see..."


"Ah! You said you don't have anyone with you during Golden Week, right?!"


"Yes."


"During Golden Week, I'll make you lunch!"


"Where?"


"Because I'm the one who's cooking, so of course I'll do it in my house!"


"Then, what about your parents?"


"Probably not."


"What do you mean about probably not?"


"Of course, they probably won't kick you out!"


I thought I had just heard dangerous words, but the expression on her face was smiling, so I assumed it was just my imagination.


"But, I don't want to bother you just for that..."


"Study!  If Onii-san tells my parents that the exam is coming up, they'll understand!"


"Hmm..."


That might be true, but it's not like the tension could be relieved just like that.


"Don't you want to compare my cooking with Saki's?  If you eat my cooking and then praise Saki's cooking, it will make her even more confident!"


"Well, that's true.  But..."


"Don't you want to...?"


Even after hearing Rin-chan's advice, I still couldn't decide, and she almost looked sad.


"I-It's not like that!"


"Then, consider it a debt and pay it back later!"


I don't remember doing anything to get something in return, especially since being close to my sister was more than enough for me, but was she that desperate to say that?


"Alright.  Then, let's set the schedule later."


When I said that, the expression on her face brightened.  She looked much more attractive when her sad face turned into a cheerful face.


"......Yes!!!"


"Then, let's start studying."


"Yes!  Ah, if I recall, there was a notice that there was a quiz for each subject."


"Okay.  Then, let's check the key points in each subject."


Afterward, we faced serious study.


In the classroom where there was little sound from club activities coming in through the window, there was the sound of two people discussing with each other and the sound of pens running over the paper.



PREV | NEXT