I’m an Introvert, but After Taking Care of the School’s Most Beautiful Girl Who Lives in an Apartment When She Was Sick, She Became Attached to Me and Started Inviting Me Over to Her Place! - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

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“Wowww, I never thought you’d be Sorato-kun’s little sister! I was totally surprised~!”

“Right~? Besides, no one ever says that the two of us look alike!”

“I can’t believe Suzuya-kun is an older brother~! That gap is something else~”

“I kind of thought he might be an older brother since he’s so good at taking care of people. Kanau-san is cute too.”

“Thank you so much~!”

Just a few minutes after the group entered Sorato’s house, Kanau and the three girls—bonding instantly through that uniquely female style of communication—grew close in no time. Perhaps because they were all high school students, they animatedly chatted about cosmetics and trendy clothes.

Everyone sat together on the living room chairs, enjoying the tea Mami had prepared. Meanwhile, the male members, as expected, couldn’t keep up with the topic and could only watch the girls with awkwardly wandering gazes.

“…How should I put this…”

“They seem to be getting along better than I expected… Right?”

“Also, weren’t we supposed to be here to visit Sorato? Is it really okay to be relaxing this normally?”

“It’s fine. He probably won’t be able to hold back and will come out soon anyway… Please excuse me for not being able to offer anything proper.”

“Oh, no. Thank you very much for your kindness.”

While lightly warning themselves that they were starting to forget their original purpose, Kohaku and the others—who had no intention of leaving—had already completely lost the motivation to move. Among them, Mami, who had quietly gone about her tasks without pushing into the conversation, placed a plate piled high with assorted bagged snacks onto the table.

And without saying anything, she left the room.

“Huh? Kanau-chan’s mother seems to have gone somewhere…”

“Ah~. Mom’s probably the type who thinks, ‘It’s better if I’m not around,’ and goes out at times like this, so don’t worry about it~.”

“Is that so? Did we make her feel awkward?”

“She actually likes lively places like this. Even if she doesn’t look like it.”

Kaon and the others worried that they might have been a nuisance, but Mami was simply not very talkative. She actually didn’t dislike noise at all. Apparently, she had gone out because she thought that if she stayed, everyone might feel unable to talk freely.

(Huh?)

In fact, she loved lively commotion so much that she often said, “If I’m going to sit somewhere, I’d rather sit at a game center than a library.”

“Oh, that’s a relief then.”

“More importantly, more importantly! Tell us about how my brother is at school!”

For a moment, Kanau’s eyelid twitched, and she grinned as she half-forcibly changed the topic.

“Huh? About Sorato-kun?”

This time, Kanau leaned in eagerly toward Kaon and the others. Naturally, she wanted to hear about her brother, whom she rarely saw in such a setting.

“Exactly! Today he just suddenly told me, ‘My friends are coming!’ and dumped everything on me. And then he goes and has a bunch of ridiculously handsome guys and beautiful girls come to visit him—like, seriously…!”

“Th-that’s… That’s good… I guess?”

From Kanau’s point of view, both the boys like Tenma and the girls like Kaon looked exceptionally good-looking. She couldn’t quite believe it—thinking, “There’s no way my brother could be surrounded by people this attractive…!”

“Sorato-kun, huh~! How do I put it… He’s really, really good at taking care of people!”

“He always helps organize everyone’s opinions and makes discussions go smoothly.”

“He listens to my bragging without making a face and gets happy for me like it’s his own success… That’s the kind of guy he is.”

“You just naturally get drawn to Sorato. I wasn’t originally someone who liked socializing that much, but with Sorato and the people around him as well makes me feel like I want to get involved with them.”

“——Uh… I know I was the one asking, but… Are you sure this is my big brother you guys are talking about?”

Kanau had tried asking her friends about their impressions of her brother, but the difference from how he usually acted at home was so great that she was left speechless rather than impressed.

They had shared joys and hardships as siblings for nearly sixteen years, yet she had no idea what kind of life he had been living to end up with such beautiful friends who liked him enough to come visit him.

“Hmmm~? Come to think of it, Kaon-chan has not said anything yet, right~?”

“Ghk…!”

Saki had been sending suggestive glances toward Kaon, who was sitting beside her, for a while now. Finally unable to hold back, she teasingly brought it up. She had been watching Kaon repeatedly try to voice her impression of Sorato, only to look down shyly each time.

“That’s true, you haven’t said anything yet.”

“Kaon rode the Ferris wheel with him too, so she should be able to say something.”

(Wow… Those two are so naturally teasing Natsuki-san…)

Setting aside Saki’s mischievousness, Kaede and Tenma also unintentionally went along with the flow, further stirring Kaon’s maidenly heart.

“Hey, Saki, you’re making Natsuki-san uncomfortable—”

“H-He’s kind!”

“Huh?”

Almost at the same time Kohaku lightly smacked Saki on the head, trying to put a stop to her mischief, Kaon steeled herself and forced her words out.

“He’s kind, and when you’re troubled he holds your hand, and he always has eyes like someone’s mom, and he’s always paying attention to all kinds of people, and he’s really good at being considerate, and… He makes you want to depend on him… He’s just that kind of person—!”

She blurted everything out at once, pouring out her honest feelings with all her strength, wrapped in a fleeting fragility. Every word came straight from her heart. She confessed everything she had felt while watching the young man named Sorato. Overwhelmed by embarrassment, she didn’t leave any room for interruption, gasping for breath as she finished in a red-faced rush.

“So that’s how you felt about Sorato-kun, Kaon-chan! Hee~?”

“Saaaki~!? You’ll pay for that later, okay!? …Ah! Kanau-chan, please keep what I just said a secret from Sorato-kun—”

Getting back at Saki could wait. Kaon, half in tears from embarrassment, tried to hold it together and begged Kanau to keep quiet… If only Sorato himself didn’t hear it.

But Kanau’s next words froze Kaon completely.

“So she says, Onii.”

“““Huh?”””

With a serious expression, yet a gentle, happy smile at her lips, Kanau said that while looking at a spot about two heads taller than Kaon. Everyone turned toward the direction of her gaze. And standing there was…

“Man, Kanau. Don’t tease Natsuki-san too much. Look, her face is bright red.”

“S-Suzuya-kun!? Since when…!?”

Sorato looked subtly unsure how to compose his expression. As Kaon turned around, her face flushed with heat once more. Kanau and Saki exchanged looks and smiled as if to say, “Gotcha!”

To tell the truth, until just moments ago, Sorato had been cleaning up the stacks of manga and scattered study materials on the floor, considering the possibility that Tenma and the others might come into his room. After finishing that, he apparently couldn’t resist the friendly atmosphere leaking from the living room. Wearing his mask, he had quietly joined in on the conversation.

“Since when…? Hmm, honestly, I think I came in at the same time Mom left the living room… Maybe.”

Kaon, Kaede, and Tenma—who were sitting with their backs to the living room door—hadn’t noticed, but Sorato had slipped in just as his mother Mami left.

“Hey, are you feeling okay? …Here, these are the things we all bought to visit you.”

“Whoa~ that helps a lot. …But those chips and drinks are definitely Kohaku’s doing.”

“Hehehe, busted?”

“Only Kohaku would pull something like this. I’ll gratefully accept these jellies, though.”

“We picked those jellies!”

“I hope they suit your taste.”

“Thank you very much. I’ll eat them when I get a little hungry.”

“～～～!?”

“Hey, Kaon, how long are you going to keep groaning in that weird voice?”

“B-But, but! He heard me…! That’s the kind of thing you’re absolutely not supposed to let the person hear…!”

Saying, “I can’t face anyone anymore…,” Kaon, now completely weakened, pulled away from the table as if fleeing from the calm, unshaken Sorato. Just like that, she flopped onto the sofa beside her, forgetting all restraint.

“Well, well, we did compliment Sorato’s good points too.”

“Still, Kaon-chan’s feelings sounded pretty intense, don’t you think~?”

“Hey, Saki, stop it. Natsuki-san’s turning red like a boiled octopus.”

Tenma tried to subtly step in and support her, but he got swept up in Saki’s unstoppable momentum. Only after Kohaku lightly knocked her on the head did she finally calm down with a “Okay, okay~.”

“…What on earth happened while I was gone? Hey, Kanau, what did you do?”

Still unable to fully grasp the situation, Sorato asked his sister—who had astonishingly blended in with his friends in such a short time—what had happened. Judging by everyone’s reactions, he had already concluded that Kanau and Saki must have done something.

But sensing that she was now at a disadvantage, Kanau stood up from her chair with a dramatic, “Eek~♡ Onii is scaaary~♡,” hid behind Kaede like a shield, and faced Sorato while resting her hands on the girls’ shoulders.

“Don’t use Kaede-san as a shield! Answer my question properly!”

“No waaaay! Why should I answer a question from a trash, weakling big brother like you!”

“What did you say, you little brat!? I don’t do club activities, but I’m not weak! Look! Go ahead, touch my abs!”

“That’s gross~! Why would I want to touch the abs of some introvert who only reads weird novels? They’re probably flat like a cutting board anyway~?”

“Hahahaha! You’ve slipped up, my dear sister! ‘Cutting board,’ you say? I’ll return that word right back to you! Your chest is a totally flat cutting board!”

“I’ll kill you.”

“Oh… Such a simple insult…”

“Wow, wow. Looks like something troublesome started over here too.”

“Ohhh! Sparks are flying! Do it, do it!”

“Sorato-kun being rough with his words is rare… It feels refreshing somehow.”

“It’s kind of funny how they’re egging each other on.”

Surrounded by plenty of spectators, the familiar sibling quarrel unfolded. Of course, neither of them was truly angry, but once something was said, neither could feel satisfied without firing back.

“…Anyway, I can’t keep this up when we have guests.”

Sorato said, reining himself in first. He cut off the argument and began rummaging through the shelf next to the refrigerator as if remembering his original purpose.

“…Oh? It’s my favorite bread! Lucky.”

“What!? That’s one I’ve been liking lately too!”

“Hehehehe~ I’m not giving it to a cheeky little sister like you. Nom. Mm! So good~! I was starving!”

“I’m sorry! Hey! I apologized, didn’t I!? One bite! Just one bite!”

“You’re such a hopeless sister. Here, big brother will give you some.”

Finally seeming to behave, Kanau was lured out from behind Kaede by the strawberry cream bread Sorato had found and toddled over. Now completely in the dominant position, Sorato wore an incredibly unpleasant, smug grin, made Kanau submit, and then handed her the bread.

“Don’t come near me with that gross face.”

“Want me to snatch that bread back right now?”

While watching the close sibling interaction, the friends quietly expanded the topic among themselves, unbeknownst to Sorato.

“Sorato-kun talks so roughly when he’s with his little sister, huh.”

“Yeah, it’s unexpected. He always speaks so softly, I thought he’d be like that at home too.”

“I kind of get it. I get sharp-tongued when I talk to my siblings too.”

““You have a sibling?””

“I have an older sister too. I’m the middle of three sisters.”

“Hm? What are you all talking about?”

“Oh, we’re just enjoying seeing an unexpected side of you, Sorato.”

“An unexpected side…?”

Having successfully placated his sister, Sorato joined the small talk as well, still wearing his mask.

“At this point, I’m not even sure whether we really came to visit someone who’s sick.”

“Well, I’m already mostly better anyway. Since you’re here, make yourselves comfortable.”

“U-um…So then…?”

^[1]What do we do about her…?

All three of them turned their eyes at once toward the same place, toward the silver-haired girl, who was still motionless with her face buried in a cushion.

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