Translator: Lilo
Editor: Ryuubii

Chapter 1: Makabe Shizuru and His Seniors

Act 2

That week on Sunday, I visited his house.

I took a subway to his house. The house of the Hasumi family was just a short walk away from the station.

It was a large mansion. As expected of a doctor, I suppose.

At first he offered to pick me up, but I refused. Partly because I wanted to think things over while walking slowly on my own feet, and also because I thought it would be better to buy some snacks. Thanks to this, I had a large sports bag filled with the necessities in my hand, as well as a paper bag of Japanese sweets I had bought at a store in front of the station.

I looked at my watch to confirm that it was 1 o’clock in the afternoon, which was the appointed time. I took a deep breath, then rang the chime.

[…Who is it?]

Soon after, a somewhat listless female voice answered over the intercom.

“It’s Makabe.”

[……]

But there was no response.

Instead, I thought I heard a faint sigh.

[…Come on in. The gate is already open, the front door will soon open too.]

After a short pause, that was all that was said, and the intercom was cut.

I decided to do as I was told.

The gate was indeed open, and as I walked up to the front porch, the door opened as if it was timed.

A girl came out of the door wearing an open-shouldered top and denim shorts. She had short brown hair and large eyes. Perhaps because it was Sunday, her makeup was conservative and she looked like a sporty girl.

I involuntarily widened my eyes.

It was Hasumi Shion.

But the liveliness I always felt when I saw her at school was nowhere to be found. Now she was looking at me without a trace of a smile, and was fuming. To put it simply, she seemed to be in a very bad mood. It was not the kind of attitude one would put in front of a visitor.

Now that I thought about it, the business card he gave me mentioned his name to be “Hasumi”, I thought I heard it somewhere, so it was Hasumi-senpai, huh?

“That reaction-”

Hasumi-senpai continued.

“Looks like you know me?”

“Well, you’re quite famous.”

Along with Takinami Ruika, she is our school’s bright jewels. There is no one in our school who doesn’t know them.

“So you’re a student of our school, huh? If I’m not mistaken… you’re from the library committee, right?”

“….”

It seems that Hasumi-senpai also knew me. It’s true that I’m a member of the library committee, and I remember seeing Hasumi-senpai visiting the library several times. We must have exchanged a few words, though it was probably not much.

“Geez, this sucks…”

She looked up to the sky.

But she immediately turned to look at me.

“Well, whatever… Come in.”

After saying this, Hasumi-senpai released her hand that was holding the door and disappeared inside, asking me to follow her. I grabbed the door knob as it was about to close and followed her in.

I was led to the living room.

The living room is as spacious as the exterior of the mansion. It was naturally incomparable to the house where me and my mother lived, and it was larger than any other house I knew.

And there is no one there.

I had assumed that Hasumi-san would be here.

“Sit down wherever.”

“Thank you.”

I took her word and sat down on one of the sofas. I put my sports bag and a paper bag of Japanese sweets beside it.

“Excuse me, but where’s y̶o̶u̶r dad?” [TN: This is a word play, I really can’t translate this.]

At that moment, Hasumi-senpai sharply glared at me.

I immediately sensed what was upsetting her.

“I meant your dad. I’m also not convinced either. I still can’t get my head around it.”

“…Dad was called to the hospital on short notice because something happened to one of the patients he was in charge of. It happens all the time.”

It happens all the time, huh?

Did the patient’s condition suddenly change? I hope the patient is fine. It’s quite hard when a person around us dies at a completely unexpected time. Thinking of this, I felt as if my chest were tightening.

“I can’t get my head around it either.”

Hasumi-senpai suddenly spoke.

I looked up to see her walking toward me from the kitchen, holding a tray with two glasses of what appeared to be cold tea.

Hasumi-senpai silently put the glass on the low table and sat down on the sofa.

“I really loved my mother. Although, she already died five years ago.”

“……”

“I don’t really dislike my dad. I’m an only child, so it’s just him and me now.”

I was from a fatherless family, and Hasumi was from a motherless family.

It must have been extremely painful for her to be separated from her mother, who had been by her side everyday. I was only with my mom, that’s why I can understand her painfully.

“But now what? You’re telling me that dad was actually cheating and I actually have a little brother?”

Hasumi-senpai spoke.

“What’s more, he’s my junior at the same school. Gimme a break!”

There, she lifts her back from the sofa, leans forward, and declares once and for all.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I’ll be able to recognize you as a family anytime soon. Just remember that.”

“…..”

I was silent without any words to say back. I softly sighed in my mind. “Good conversation partner” my ass. It doesn’t look like that’s going to happen at all. It seems that Hasumi-san has failed to understand his daughter.

But if anything, I can sympathize with Hasumi-senpai’s feelings. It would be stranger for her to suddenly accept the fact that her dad cheated in the past, and then be told that she has a half-brother. Furthermore, having suddenly made to live with that half-brother of hers, her complaints were valid to say the least.

Even I would be perplexed if a girl only a year older or a year younger than me suddenly became my older sister or younger sister and had to stay with me. I wish that kind of development would only exist in a novel.

But on the other hand, I had a feeling that I should give Hasumi-san some face, or rather, let him be satisfied. It would be easy for me to leave this place, considering Hasumi-senpai feelings. But if I did so, Hasumi-san would not be able to fulfill his duties as a parent.

Then there were not many options for me to take.

‘After a month, I’ll leave…’

I made up my mind to do so.

That would give Hasumi-senpai her ordinary life back, and would also satisfy Hasumi-san to some extent for his duties as a parent.

This was what had happened in the last few days.

The rapid development of this drama-like situation was just nothing but astonishing.