The Case Where I Found Out My Big Sister with a Brother Complex Was Actually My Stepsister, Tried to Hide It, but She Found Out Immediately and Became Uncontrollable - 49-50

Chapter 49: Nee-san and Shopping

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“Which one should I get~!”

Yesterday morning, the three of us—me, my big sister, and Hasumi—had breakfast together. After that, Hasumi went back home, effectively ending her sleepover. And today, my big sister and I were out shopping for Christmas decorations.

“Since bringing a Christmas tree home would be a pain, we’ll have to get it delivered, but you know~  You just can’t skip stuff you hang on the wall like this~!”

“Yeah. Then once we buy those, let’s go check out some Christmas cakes to make a reservation on Christmas day.”

“Let’s do that!”

After my big sister and I bought some Christmas decorations together, we headed over to a part of the department store lined with shops selling Christmas cakes. Along the way, there were so many Christmas-themed sweets that it was hard not to get distracted, but we managed to make it here somehow.

“Nee-san, which cake should we—”

“Huh? Sumire-chan?”

“…Eh?”

I followed my big sister’s gaze and saw someone with bright brown hair, wearing earrings similar to the ones Hasumi always wears, a white coat, and black boots—basically, a super stylish-looking person… But—

“Nee-san, that person is—”

Before I could tell her something important, my big sister already called out to that person.

 “Sumire-chan! Are you here to pick out a cake too?”

“Eh?”

The woman, suddenly spoken to, turned to face us, surprised… Her face definitely resembled Hasumi’s, but she looked a bit more mature.

“…Eh?”

My big sister also seemed to realize this wasn’t Hasumi, and looked just as confused as the woman… But I knew who she was.

I’m the only one who can clear this situation up.

“Nee-san, that person is—”

Just as I was about to introduce the woman to my sister, my sister quickly gave a small bow and opened her mouth.

“I’m so sorry, you look so much like someone I know that I mistook you for her—”

“Huh? Tsunagi-kun?”

Just as my big sister was about to apologize for mistaking her, the woman—Hasumi’s Onee-san—seemed to notice me standing behind my big sister.

“L-Long time no see.”

“…You know Tsumugu?”

My big sister raised her head and asked me that. The pace of everything until now had been too fast for me to introduce them, but now I finally had a chance. I decided to properly introduce Hasumi’s Onee-san to my big sister.

“Nee-san, this is Hasumi’s Onee-san. Her name is—”

“Akari Hasumi~! Oh! Wait, wait, wait, are you Tsunagi-kun’s Onee-san!? I’ve heard a little about you from Sumire, but you’re seriously a high schooler!? You’ve got such a mature vibe to you~!”

“Eh? Y-You’re… Sumire-chan’s… O-Onee-san? …Really?”

My big sister didn’t seem to doubt the resemblance in appearance, but the difference in personality from Hasumi seemed to throw her off… I understood how she felt. I had the exact same reaction at first.

“She’s totally different personality-wise, but she really is Hasumi’s Onee-san.”

“I see… Nice to meet you, Sumire-chan’s Onee-san.”

“You’re so uptight~! Just call me Akari-chan!”

“Uh… then, I’ll call you Akari-san.”

“Well, I guess it’s fine since you’re willing to use my first name now!~”

Even though they didn’t seem compatible, my big sister actually had the tolerance to roll with Akari’s wild personality. So surprisingly enough, maybe they’d get along just fine.

“So, you two came together as siblings to pick out a Christmas cake?”

“Yeah. Do you have any recommendations, Hasumi’s Onee-san?”

“This year, the chocolate cake at that shop right in front of us is the big recommendation. It’s made with super rich chocolate and is getting a ton of buzz lately… Ah, but it’s heart-shaped, so it’s more of a hit with couples than siblings—”

“Thanks for the tip, Akari-san. We’ll take that cake.”

“…Huh?”

“Nee-san…!?”

My big sister gave Akari a polite bow, then immediately headed to the cake shop… She probably decided so quickly because she knew I liked chocolate cake, but… Judging from her reaction, it seemed my preference for chocolate cake wasn’t the only reason. 

Just as I was about to follow after  my big sister, Hasumi’s Onee-san turned to me. Her eyes sparkling as she asked me this question.

“Hey hey, what was up with your Onee-san’s reaction just now? There’s no way you two are just siblings, right?”

“Th-That’d take a long time to explain, so… Please ask Hasumi instead!”

Saying that, I practically fled from Hasumi’s Onee-san. I hurried after my  big sister… We’d just come out to prepare for Christmas, but instead, I ended up with this strange new connection between my big sister and Hasumi’s Onee-san.

My big sister and I then carried our Christmas decorations back home together after making our reservations for Christmas cake.

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Chapter 50: Hasumi and Christmas Eve

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“Just like I thought, it’s really cold outside this time of year.”

“Yeah, it’s cold.”

It was December 24th—Christmas Eve night. Since I had promised to spend the day with Hasumi, I was out with her now… Though calling it “going out” might be a stretch. We hadn’t made plans to go anywhere specific. We were just strolling around the city.

“Look, they’ve got illuminations up… It’s so pretty.”

“You like illuminations, Hasumi?”

“Yeah, I really like those sparkly things.”

Hasumi had a fashionable vibe that matched well with glittery lights like those, so if she said she liked them, it made perfect sense. They suited her. As I was thinking that, Hasumi, who had been looking at the illuminations, turned her gaze toward me and gave a gentle smile as she spoke.

“But, I like Tsunagi more than the illuminations.”

“…! How can you say something like that without getting embarrassed?”

“I used to feel a little shy about it at first, but now I just really want to express how I feel to you, Tsunagi, so I don’t get embarrassed anymore.”

Now that she mentioned it, back when she had just confessed to me, she had seemed a bit bashful at times. But lately, she hadn’t shown even a trace of that. Maybe Hasumi had stopped getting embarrassed, but no matter how much time passed, I could never get used to hearing her say she loved me.

As we walked together up to the illuminations, Hasumi glanced at me as if to gauge my reaction, before asking me this question. 

“Hey, I don’t want to come across as annoying, but I kind of want to take a photo with you in front of these lights…”

As she said this, she held her phone in both hands.

“Annoying? Why would that be annoying?”

“Well, it’s a picture on Christmas Eve with someone who might dump, right? Doesn’t that bother you?”

I took the large phone—probably the latest model—from Hasumi’s hands. The front camera was already active, so I adjusted the frame so that both of us would appear in the picture with the illuminations in the background.

“T-Tsunagi?”

“I want to make a memory of this special time with you, Hasumi… There’s no way I’d ever hate something like that.”

“Tsunagi… I really, really love you!”

As she said that, Hasumi suddenly clung to my arm tightly. Thanks to that, the frame I had just worked so hard to line up got completely ruined.

“Hasumi! The frame is—”

“I can frame it better than you can!”

With cheerful confidence, Hasumi took the phone back from me and, in a flash, captured the perfect angle with both of us and the beautiful glow of the lights in the shot.

“Th-That was amazing.”

“Right? Okay, let’s take the picture!”

After that, the two of us smiled and took a photo together and then we looked at the photo we had taken.

“It came out really well.”

As I admired it, Hasumi looked at the photo and said.

“…I’m smiling better in this photo than in any other photos I’ve ever taken.”

“…It really is a great smile.”

After that, we walked down the street lined with more illuminations then, as we strolled along, I noticed Hasumi—who had been walking with her palms open just moments ago—had now balled her hand into a fist.

“Are you cold?”

“Huh? What makes you think that?”

“Your hand was in a fist… Am I wrong?”

“…You’re right. You really notice small things like that, huh?”

So she was cold. In that case, we should probably duck into a warm store for a bit. Or so I thought when Hasumi looked down at her own hand, then looked at mine. She then suddenly reached out and held my hand with hers. 

“Hasumi…!?”

“In this way… I won’t feel cold anymore.”

“I thought we could just go into a store if you were cold?!”

“Then let’s keep holding hands until we find a good place.”

“…Only until we find a good place, alright?”

“Okay!”

Hasumi gave me an even brighter smile than she had in the photo just now and that smile was so irresistibly cute that I couldn’t help but think so, despite myself. I ended up carrying that feeling with me as we continued walking hand-in-hand, looking for a cozy place to rest.

Later, after we spent some quiet time together talking inside a warm shop and then stepped back out, we still kept holding hands all the way home. After I saw Hasumi to her door, I headed back to my own place, and that was how our Christmas Eve came to a close.

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