Parents remarried. Now my lover starts referring to me as "Onii~chan" - Chapter 2 Part 2

“Won’t you feel lonely? You won’t be able to tell anyone that we’re dating.”

Neneka denied, “U-Umm,” as she looked up at the sky. Then she continued with a bright tone.

“I might indeed feel a little lonely, but… I think it’s also exciting to go out with you while trying not to get caught!”

“You are positive…”

“It’s important to live positively!”

“Yeah, exactly as you said.”

We were quite carefree.

Most of our classmates knew that we were on good terms without knowing that we were actually dating. So, we didn’t have to force ourselves in any way to hide that we were actually dating.

If we professed ourselves to be lovers at school, there was a risk that the rumors would reach the ears of our parents.

However, if we didn’t reveal our relationship to anyone at school, we could continue with our gentle and secret relationship longer.

“So, it’s going to be bad if we walk together to and from school, won’t it?”

Suddenly, Neneka said.

“Well… if we go to and from school together, people will eventually figure out that we live under the same roof.”

“Yeah, so let’s make some rules!”

“Hmm? Rules?”

“Yes, it’s rules to be able to keep dating while living as stepsiblings.”

Neneka pointed to the sky.

“Rule 1! If we leave the house together, we separate the moment we arrive at the train station! I’ll ride a different train car than you, Daiki.”

I see. Understood.

I nodded and continued to listen to Neneka.

“So, what about on our way home from school? We’ve been studying together until school ended and walked to the station afterwards. We won’t be walking back to the station together anymore?”

“Hmm… True… Then for rule 2, if we walk home together from school to the nearest station, we’ll take different train cars after that… But if we by chance bump into each other on our way home from the station, then we can go home together again.

“By chance, huh.”

Such a good controlled coincidence.

“But, doesn’t that mean we’ll be travelling in different parts of the train.”

When I muttered that, Neneka looked at my face.

“What happened? Any objections?”

“Umm, if we are in different train cars, I won’t be able to protect Neneka if you are attacked by a molester…”

“Eh!? I-It’s okay! I’ve never been molested before! If anything happens, I’ll send a message to you asking for help as soon as possible…”

“Really?”

“Umm! Rule 3! If your little sister is in trouble, it’s okay for Onii-chan to help on the double!”

“So, I will be helping you as your Oniichan in the end, huh. I understand.”

“Yeah, I think it would be better for us to reveal that we’re stepsiblings rather than a couple if one of our secrets had to be exposed… Well, I don’t think that would actually happen. Thank you for being concerned about me.”

Looking at Neneka’s soft expression on her face made me a little red and shy.

As I came to live in the same house as her, I was able to see various aspects of Neneka. Thus, I started to think that Neneka was indeed cute in a more than usual sense.

If someone were to do something evil to Neneka, I wouldn’t forgive them.

Be it as her Oniichan or even a boyfriend, I would always continue to protect Neneka.

I swore this to my heart.

School was over without any delays, and it was now evening. There was no committee job today and we were not enrolled in any club activities either. We began to follow the rules we decided on this morning and headed to the station together, and then separated.

I arrived at the nearest train station to my house by myself and went to the supermarket in the neighborhood to shop.

While I was at school today, I exchanged messages with Neneka and got a grocery list that she needed.

The neighbors would eventually know that we were stepsiblings. But if I was discovered buying food with a girl in the same high school uniform, I didn’t know what the people around us would think.

As I didn’t like to standout too much, I proposed to Neneka that I could do the shopping alone. I was more accustomed to shopping here because I had lived here for a longer time. Moreover, I couldn’t let Neneka carry all the heavy groceries by herself.

Instead, I asked Neneka if she could return home first and do the house cleaning.

–“I’m home.”

“Welcome back…”

When I arrived, Neneka came to the front door to pick up the shopping bags.

“Isn’t it heavy? Is it okay?”

“I’m all fine, but well, I was surprised by how many things I had to buy for four people since I had provided for only two people before this.”

“Oh, I’m sorry… I didn’t know how much Daiki would eat, so I asked you to buy quite a bit more than what was needed. Maybe because I thought you would eat more than my dad.”

“O-Oh! That’s really helpful! Because I want to eat a lot of dishes made by Neneka.”

“Can you help me, with the prep?”

“Of course.”

I stood in the kitchen and started preparing the ingredients for dinner along with Neneka.

Today’s main dish was meat-stuffed peppers. I was cutting cabbages into thin strips while Neneka was next to me preparing the meat and stuffing them into the peppers.

“Daiki, you’re good at using knives.”

“Is that so? Perhaps because my mom taught me? Well, I’m not actually interested in cooking. I thought having canned food would be good enough for me whenever my mom would return home late. However, my mom lectured me on “being able to make food by yourself” and taught me the fundamentals…”

“I’m all self-taught so I am envious of Daiki. My dad’s cooking sense is utterly devastating, because of that I’ve had this sense of mission that I had to do something about it, and worked hard to accomplish it.”

“I guess then Neneka has a talent for cooking right. The stew that you made yesterday was very delicious.”

When I brought up the taste of the stew I ate yesterday, Neneka laughed softly.

“Umm… Thank you…”

Then, after baking those meat-stuffed peppers, Neneka made a delicious looking egg drop soup quickly, and dinner was ready.

It was almost nineteen o’clock. It was about time for my mother and Neneka’s father to come back.

When I was preparing the table for dinner, I heard someone talking in front of the door.

“Ah, I guess they are back?”

Neneka reacted.

However immediately, she looked dismayed.

“Arre? Doesn’t it feel like they’re in a fight?”

“Eh?”

–No way, was my mother and Neneka’s father fighting?

From the entrance to the living room, the voice of a man and a woman arguing with each other permeated.

One was definitely Neneka’s father. However, it seemed that the female voice was not that of my mother…

At that time, the living room door opened vigorously, and the person who was with Neneka’s father made an appearance.

–“I have no objection to your re-marriage! However, what does it mean to have a man and a woman in their teens living under the same roof!! What would you do if something were to happen to Neneka!?”

There was an old woman in a kimono who came into the living room while yelling.

As soon as she came in, her eyes met mine and she glared right at me with a sharp gaze.

“Are you that person!? The boy who now lives with Neneka and is trying to ogle at her maiden body?”

“Wha–!?”