His Childhood Friend is a Beautiful, Reclusive Girl, So He Spends His After-School Hours in Her Room (But He’s Not Her Boyfriend!) - Ch. 73: Onee-chan Changes After Younger Brother Gets A Girlfriend

When she heard my report, Yuika made a difficult face and groaned, “Mmmm.”

“I didn’t think Aoi-chan was real…”
“She really existed. I’ve been lectured straight to the point…”

I’m lying on the floor like a corpse.
My HP was already at zero, so my voice was very low.

We escorted Aoi-chan — After dropping them off in front of the middle school, I headed back to Kisaragi’s house. I left the escort to the house for Iori.
Now that they’ve became lovers, there were things they want to talk about in private.

In other words, the rest was just a matter of young people working together…I felt like I was doing the right thing. It was not because Aoi-chan did too much damage to me, okay? Absolutely not, okay?

“Umm, Souta, you alright? Do you need a lap pillow?”

Yuika patted her knee in a concerned manner.
The lusciousness of those thighs was a home run of oversized arches, and I’d love to enjoy it…I somehow managed to shake off the temptation and sit up.

“No, not today. I can’t have Yuika comforting me that often.”
“Are you sure? You’re in such a mess.”
“If a junior high school girl gave you a stern lecture, you are going to be very unhappy. …If I continue to lose my temper, I’m going to be more unhappy. I have to be patient as a man.”
“Heh.”

I crossed my arms exaggeratedly, and Yuika looked at me like she didn’t know what I was talking about.
For now, I think we should take Aoi-chan’s advice seriously. We can then apply our reflections to the future.

…Actually, this incident has made me keenly aware of the fact that voices can really penetrate this house. I have to be careful not to let Iori hear my strange voice.
For that reason, I’ll try not to get ethically out of line with Yuika. Okay, I’ll do my best.

Anyway, this situation of “my brother has a girlfriend” was shocking. I’m sure this was no small thing for Yuika. So this was not the time for me to be comforted.

I got up from the floor and sat back down, and just as I thought, Yuika started fidgeting.
She averted her gaze, fiddling with the ends of her black hair.

“Are you sure you don’t want a lap pillow?”
“’Fine. I’m a man with a glass heart.”
“It’s already shattered…”
“You don’t mind if I knock you over, do you?”
“Ah, the whole ‘my body is made of swords’ thing. I get it.”

Yuika returned her gaze, which had been averted.
Then she put her hand between her thighs and gave a small shrug.
She murmured with an expression that seemed to ask for my attention.
“Then,” she prefaced, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

“…Can I be spoiled?”

Yuika was always so sweet, but it was not often that she came to me like this. Therefore, I tapped my knee and beckoned her to me.

“Ah, come here.”
“…Yeah. Coming.”

She nodded obediently and came to my side, climbed into my lap, and squeezed me.

“It’s like cuddling a koala.”
“It’s okay that you’re being spoiled.”
“Ah, yeah. You can spoil me any way you like.”

She nuzzled her face into my neck and whispered.

“…I’m sorry.”
“Hmm? What?”
“It’s my fault Souta…got angry with Aoi-chan.”
“It’s not your fault.”

I said, patting her gently on the back of her pajamas.
In fact, the misunderstanding about peeing seemed to be a major factor in Aoi-chan’s sermon to me.

So, it was not Yuika’s fault, and if it started from a misunderstanding, then one day Aoi-chan’s heart will be thawed. That was what I believed. I sincerely hoped so.

“…What kind of girl was Aoi-chan?”
“She was a cute girl. And I could tell that she really liked Iori. That’s it.”
“I see. That’s good.”
“But I can’t believe Iori has a girlfriend…”
“He beat you to it, Onii-chan.”
“You too, Onee-chan.”

We both sighed at the same time and giggled at the same time.
I was disappointed, but more than that, I was happy.
If our precious Iori can live a glorious youth, there was no greater joy than this.

“Where’s Iori? Is he lovey-dovey?”
“No, he’s not. Can you imagine Iori mellowing out?”
“Because I can’t imagine Iori with a girlfriend in the first place. I think anything can happen, I do.”

“What kind of things, for example?”
“Iori hugging Aoi-chan’s shoulders and saying, ‘Souta Nii-chan, women are like…’.”
“Ugh, I hate that! I just saw Iori wearing sunglasses and a leather jacket! Absolutely not, that’s not my Iori…”

“Phew, that’s too bad. Iori is no longer Souta’s. He belongs to Aoi-chan!　In other words, depending on Aoi-chan’s taste, there’s a great possibility that Iori will be born with sunglasses and a leather jacket!”
“NO, STOP IT! Aoi-chan, please don’t do that!”
“Hahahaha! Late! It’s too late! The Holy Grail has already been filled!”

We were getting very excited about our brother’s love story.
After a few moments of high-pitched laughter, Yuika leaned her head against my neck again.
She was still smiling, but with a hint of loneliness in her eyes.

“…Everyone is changing, isn’t it? Normally, thanks to Souta, I don’t have to worry about it, but outside this room, time is passing properly. I wonder if this is how I’m going to get left behind by everyone before I know it…”
“Do you not like being left behind?”
“…I don’t know. But…”

She was so overwhelmed with emotion that I felt her forehead press against my neck.

“It’s a little frustrating that I can’t even say congratulations to Iori face to face…”

Like drops on the surface of water, the words echoed quietly in our hearts.
To me, and perhaps to Yuika herself.
I felt a faint but definite change.

It was frustrating.
She was disappointed that she couldn’t look Iori in the face and congratulate him.
She couldn’t do it.
Yuika said she was frustrated.

That was a change I’ve never seen before.
She mumbled further.

“Souta, I want to…become stronger.”
“Why?”
“I want to tell Iori. I want to tell Iori that I’m happy for him as his sister.”
“I see.”

I stroked her black hair as it flowed.

“You can do it. If you have that feeling, you can definitely be strong.”
“Can I be?”
“Yeah. When one wants to be strong, one has already started to become strong.”
“Is this coming from my brother on the assassination team?”
“No.”

I glanced down at my neck, looked into Yuika’s eyes and chuckled.

“I am Iori’s big brother.”

Yuika let out a small burst.

“You mean there are no guarantees, right?”
“Yes, there are no guarantees, so we’ll just have to do our best to make it work. You and I together.”
“…Yeah. Then I’ll do it.”

Her black hair swayed, and Yuika looked up as she bounced.
Then she stared at me.

“I’ve got a favor to ask. Would you listen?”
“What is it?
“Please give me a kiss.”

Yuika-san begged, her cheeks dyed.
On the other hand, I’m being tormented.

“…Why do you want that?”
“I’m trying to recharge my energy to work harder.”
“Isn’t the hug going to recharge you?”

“A hug is 100% recharging. A kiss is 120% charge.”
“You’re overcharging. You’ll damage the battery.”
“Yuika-chan, the battery, won’t break. Hey, chu, chu.”

She jiggled on my knees as she begged.
I just got a lecture from Aoi-chan about all the unethical things I’m doing…
But well, it was for Yuika to work hard from now on, so…it was fine? In case you’re wondering, Iori hasn’t come home yet either…

“All right, all right. Turn sideways. Turn sideways.”

I thought that lips were a bad idea, so I put my hand on Yuika’s chin and made her turn her head to the side. Then I kissed her cheek for a moment.
As soon as I did, Yuika’s face fell into a grimace.

“Ehehe.”
“You look so happy…Are you satisfied? Princess.”
“Not yet. Do it again, do it again.”
“One more time? It’s pretty embarrassing.”
“Because I’m only at 101% energy, and I need to recharge to 120%.”
“You want me to do 19 more?”
“Are you happy?”
“Embarrassed!”

The selfish princess pouted her lips.

“I can’t help it. Then I’ll do the same for you at…”

She kissed me on the cheek.

“What!? Wha, you…you!?”
“Ah, you look like you’ve lost your mind.”
“Don’t do that, don’t do that!”

My face was getting hotter and hotter.
My blood pressure was rising and the palpitations in my chest were accelerating.

“You’re the one who always does it out of the blue.”
“That may be so, but…”
“Hmm, you’re surprised, aren’t you, Mikami?”
“I am! It’s probably the first time you’ve ever done it…”

I can’t help but touch my cheek with my hand, which left the feel of her soft lips.
I’ve kissed her, or she had made me kiss her, a few times.

But Yuika has never done that to me before. That would surprise me no matter what. But I guess I said it too straightforwardly. Yuika in front of me also turned red.

“Y-You don’t have to say it so clearly…Stop it, you’re embarrassing me.”
“No, you’re the one who did this! Don’t be embarrassed. We’d both die of embarrassment if we felt that way about each other!”
“Then you’ll have to get used to it so you don’t die. Okay, I’ll do it again! —Shoo!”
“W-Wha.”

She kissed me on the cheek again.
The embarrassment accumulated. My heart palpitated at once. Oh no, I’m really going to die if I don’t do something!

“You’re getting carried away…You should feel this surprise too!”

I was so angry that I kissed her back. I pecked her cheek like continuous rain.

“Kyaah! I’m ticklish, haha. I’ll return the favor, here!”
“Whoa! That was a close one. Didn’t I just hit you on the lips? Be careful!”
“I’m careful. It was a close call because Souta freaked out. You scaredy-cat.”
“I’m not scared! Watch it, you!”
“It’s not fair to do it again in a row! I’m ticklish!”

In the end, the mysterious game continued until Iori came back, and in the end, Yuika’s energy had been recharged well beyond 120%.