Living Normally In An Abnormal World - Chapter 3.1: Birthday

Chapter 3.1: Birthday

I’m Yuuto, currently 6 years old, starting elementary school next year. And today is a day I’ve been looking forward to.

Yes, of course, because it’s my birthday. 

When Mana and Yuuna woke up this morning, they both said,

“Happy birthday!!!”

I was so happy, and at the same time, I felt a little embarrassed. I’m not used to being the center of attention.

And the present I received was a wristwatch.

I know what everyone wants to say. It’s definitely unusual for a child to want a wristwatch. But let me say one thing.

You shouldn’t hold back what you truly want!

The design is simple. It’s silver all over, with a stopwatch function, and it’s waterproof and shock-resistant. I wanted it because it was almost the same as the one I had in my previous life.

But when Mana said,

“You didn’t want a solid gold one?”

I panicked. I don’t want to carry something that’s bad for my stomach, like solid gold. And I thought she would tease me about the watch, but instead…

“No, this is fine. Thank you.”

“Hehe, then it’s all right.”

“Nii-cha! Nii-cha!!!”

“Thank you too, Yuuna.”

“Hehehe~♪”

I’ll take good care of this watch.

　And now I’m at an amusement park. It’s a holiday, so there are a lot of people (almost all women).

But it’s been a long time since I went out!! My heart is dancing in excitement!! Mana had been telling me, “It’s dangerous outside, so you’re not allowed to go out!” and “Women are like wolves!” so I had been staying at home these past few years.

And when I teased her by asking, “Are you going to eat me?” she blushed and hid under the blanket. Thanks for the cute reaction.

“Yuu-chan, don’t ever leave my side, okay?!”

“Okay.”

Also, we need to stay hydrated. Today is incredibly hot, and it seems to be around 30°C.

“Nee-cha, what do you want to ride?”

“A woman’s place is on the roller coaster.”

“……I’ll wait for you.”

　……

“Let’s ride the merry-go-round together.”

“Nee-cha?”

“You don’t want to ride with me?”

“No, I do!! Thank you, Ni-cha!!!”

She says as she jumps into my arms. Hey, call me “Nee-cha,” not “Nii-cha.” Other women might hear you and find out. (T/N: They are hiding the fact that he is a boy, Nee-cha is to refer to an older sister/woman.)

I only enjoy things by myself when I’m alone. There’s no point in coming to an amusement park if I don’t have fun with my family. We’ll ride the roller coaster when Yuuna gets a little older.

“Yuu-chan, I want to ride with you too~”

“Of course, let’s ride together.”

“My son is the best in the world!”

What do you mean, “the best in the world”? And don’t call me your son, it’ll give me away.

As you can tell, I’m in disguise. If I were recognized as a man, I’d be surrounded by women and wouldn’t be able to move freely. Yuuna also calls me “Nee-cha” to give it more reality and Mana adds the “-chan” suffix to my name as well. 

I’ve been growing my hair to a semi-long length, and I hide my face under a hat. I use Mana’s perfume to disguise my scent, but because of today’s heat, I’m sweating a lot. 

So I keep reapplying the perfume to cover the smell of sweat, resulting in a sweet fragrance lingering around me.

“Nii-cha!! Hurry up!!!”

“Let’s go, Yuu-kun!”

“Yeah, I’m coming.”

I’m pulled along by the two of them as we head towards the merry-go-round.

But…

“You’re using your usual way of speaking. Be careful okay?”

“”Sorry.””

“Well done, let’s go then.”

　We arrive at the merry-go-round. There aren’t many people in line, so we can ride right away. First, Yuuna and I ride together, with Yuuna in front and me sitting behind her.

“The ride will wiggle a bit, be careful not to fall.”

“Okay!!!”

And Yuuna turns her whole body towards me and hugs me.

“……Yuuna?”

“It’s so I don’t fall!”

“There’s a bar you can hold on to though?”

“It’s actually so Nee-cha doesn’t fall!”

But it’s summer, and it’s incredibly hot today. It’s even hotter when she hugs me like this. So,

“It’s hot, so let go of me for now.”

“It’s fine!!! I’m not feeling it!”

“Yuuna, would you please let go of your hold?”

“I love you, Ne-echa!”

“Okay, understood! Don’t let go no matter what!”

“Kyaa!!!”

And Yuuna hugs me tightly.

Hehehe, what can I do when my cute little sister says something like that?

The women around us smile warmly as they watch us. I don’t even want to think about how their gazes would change if they found out I was a man.

And the merry-go-round starts moving.

By the way, can you really enjoy an attraction that just goes around and up and down a few times?

But well…

“Nee-cha!!! It’s moving!!! It’s moving!!!”

“Yeah, it’s moving.”

I guess it’s fine as long as Yuuna is having fun.

Then, Mana and I ride together.

Unlike before, I sit in front, and Mana sits behind me. 

She wraps her arms around my waist and hugs me, pressing her two biological weapons against me.

……They’re surprisingly soft. The last time I felt it was when I was still a baby, so it’s been a really long time since.

But,

“Mana, it’s hot.”

“Yuu-chan, my heart is cold. Warm me up with your body?”

“……Why don’t you let the hotness of summer warm you up?”

“No, I simply want you, Yuu-chan.”

That’s not something a mother should say or do to her son, is it? Has the summer heat gotten to her? Hey, don’t hug me even tighter. It’s really bad! Chest! Your chest!

“All right, let go if you get too hot.”

“Hehe, even if I get hot, I won’t let go, so don’t worry?”

“I don’t understand.”

　……Well, I guess I have no choice but to give in.

And so, we ride the merry-go-round for the second time. By the way, when was the last time I rode an attraction with my parents? It brings back nostalgic feelings.

I glance at Mana, and when she notices my gaze, she smiles and says,

“This is fun, Yu-chan♪”

“Yeah, it’s fun.”

Even though it’s already my second round.

After that, we enjoyed various attractions, such as the tea cups, the haunted house, and the boat ride.

And before I knew it, it was night. The last attraction we ride is, of course, the Ferris wheel.

In a typical Ferris wheel, you sit facing each other, but Yuuna is sitting on my lap, and Manatsu is sitting next to me.

“Today was fun, Nii-cha!!!”

“You started calling me Nii-cha normally halfway through…”

“Hehehe, sorry~”

“It’s okay, I forgive you.”

I pat Yuuna’s head. What a cute kid.

“So, I don’t have to call you Yuu-chan anymore?”

“Isn’t it fine now? We’re going home anyway… And I’m surprised no one noticed.”

“No one can see your face, and your hair is long. Plus, there aren’t any men who would try to disguise their scent with a woman’s perfume.”

“Thanks to that, I was able to enjoy myself, so it’s fine.”

“Fufu~ that’s true.”

Maybe I didn’t need to go this far with the disguise. I think I’ll cut my hair shorter.

“Yuu-kun, let’s come again.”

“I want to come again!!!”

“Yeah, let’s come back again.”

We get off the Ferris wheel and head towards the exit.

In the meantime, we notice the Electrical Parade happening.

“Let’s go watch that before we leave?”

“Is that fine? Not going home yet?”

“It’s night, so no one will probably notice that I’m a man anyway. Yuuna, you want to watch it too, right?”

“Yeah!!!”

And I take the two of them by the hand.

“Let’s get closer so we can see better.”

I urge them to run with me.

“Eh?! Nii-cha?!”

“……Mou~ Yuu-kun you’re such a~.”

The two of them run while holding my hands. But Yuuna is surprised by my uncharacteristic behavior, and Mana gives me a look that says, “You’re being so childish.” And with a big smile on my face, I say,

“Let’s enjoy ourselves to the very end!!!”

……Later, when Mana told me that she hadn’t seen me smile like that in a long time,

(Am I usually so unsmiling…?)

I felt a little depressed.