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 - 57-58

Chapter 57: Hasumi’s Invitation

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Tsunagi, do you want to go on a ski trip together if you’re free this weekend?”

While I was having lunch with Hasumi during the school’s lunch break, she suddenly made that suggestion.

“A ski trip…?”

It came out of nowhere, so I reflexively asked her to repeat it.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s just a weekend trip so it’d only be one night and two days, but since we don’t get much snow around here, I thought skiing might be a lot of fun, you know?”

“It definitely sounds fun, but… I’ve never skied before, so I’m a bit worried if I’ll even be able to do it properly…”

“It’s fine. I can ski, at least to some extent, so if it looks like you’re about to fall, I’ll be sure to catch you.”

“That’s reassuring to hear… Since it’s a trip, will your older sister be coming too?”

“…”

At that question, Hasumi suddenly went silent. Then, while fiddling with her earring with her left hand, she blushed and said.

“No… This time, I want it to be just you and me.”

“Eh…? Just the two of us?”

I had assumed it would be like when the four of us had that hotpot not long ago—that we’d go as a group again. But just the two of us…

“If you don’t want it to be just the two of us, I can invite my big sister or your big sister too.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to… But, what about the room arrangements?”

“We’re going to share one together.”

“…”

I took a bite of my meal and chewed on it while thinking. Sharing a room with Hasumi… It wouldn’t be strange for us to share a room if we were going on a trip just the two of us, but still, the idea of staying in the same room as her made me pause on my track.

After swallowing, I voiced my concern to her.

“Are you okay with that, Hasumi? Being with me all morning, noon, and night?”

“Of course I am. I like you, Tsunagi. Why wouldn’t I be okay with it?”

“I-I see.”

When she said it like it was the most natural thing in the world, it made me feel even more embarrassed.

….A one-night, two-day ski trip with Hasumi, huh.

I was sure it would be fun even if it were just the two of us, so I wanted to go, but since it was a trip, I’d have to talk to my big sister about it too. I wasn’t sure if she’d give me the permission.

For now, I should at least let Hasumi know how I feel.

“In that case, I’m okay with it too. But I don’t know if my big sister will give me the go-ahead, so if that happens—”

“If that happens, then next time, you can just come stay over at my place. I’ll kick my big sister out and we’ll have a pseudo sleepover with just the two of us.”

“Are you sure? Won’t you feel bad for your big sister?”

“She’ll probably just crash at a friend’s place or something. She’ll be fine.”

…Come to think of it, if Hasumi’s sister were kicked out by Hasumi, she probably would just shrug and say something like, “Oh well~,” and go along with it. While I was imagining that, Hasumi spoke to me in a serious tone.

“Tsunagi, listen.”

“What is it?”

Because of her serious tone, I straightened up and prepared myself to listen properly.

“I’m not the kind of girl who invites just any guy on a trip, especially not so casually like this.”

“I already know that much.”

“…I invited you because it’s you, Tsunagi. Because I really love you.”

“I already. know that too.”

“Yeah… Sorry. I just wanted to make sure I said that.”

After saying that, Hasumi gave me a gentle smile. Hasumi had feelings for me as someone of the opposite sex and so… How did I feel about Hasumi? How did I feel about her as someone of the opposite sex?  I was sure that on this ski trip with Hasumi, I would find the answer to that question.

And then, after school, when I returned home, I brought it up to my big sister right away… and then.

“Sure! I mean, I live under the same roof with Tsumugu every day, so it wouldn’t be fair for me to say no to Sumire-chan wanting to do the same!”

“I don’t think that has anything to do with it… But, thank you, Nee-san.”

…I thought that would be the end of it, but then my big sister called my name and said something with a certain weight behind her words.

“I’ll be waiting, okay? For when you come back to me… Maybe it’s unfair of me to say something like that though.”

“…I can’t give you an answer to that right now, but… I’m really grateful for your feelings, Nee-san. Thank you.”

When I said that, my big sister gave me a small, quiet smile. …She said she gave me the permission because it wouldn’t be fair otherwise, but I was sure all kinds of emotions were swirling inside her right now. Still, there was nothing I could do about that with the way I was now, so all I could do was express my gratitude. And just like that, Saturday arrived. It was finally the day of my ski trip with Hasumi.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Chapter 58: A Ski Trip with Hasumi

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“I knew it. This place is really cold, huh?”

“Well, we’re at a place where snow can pile up high like this after all.”

Since it was finally the day of our ski trip, Hasumi and I had boarded a train early in the morning and arrived at our destination. After dropping off our luggage at the inn where we were staying, we immediately headed out to ski.

Now, Hasumi and I were holding our ski boards and poles—the sticks used while skiing—and had come to a gentle slope that was recommended for beginners.

“Okay, I’ll go first and show you how it’s done. Try to get a feel for what skiing is like.”

“Got it.”

Saying that, Hasumi put on her goggles securely, then gracefully and swiftly slid down the slope. If I could glide that smoothly, I bet it would be a ton of fun…

As I was thinking that, Hasumi took off her ski board and goggles and walked back to where I was.

“Like that.”

“It looked fun.”

“Yeah, I’ll teach you properly… First, let’s start with you getting on the ski board and practicing balancing with the poles.”

“Alright.”

Just as she said, I got on the ski board and tried to balance myself using the poles, but it was hard. I kept slipping on the snow, and even just staying upright using only the board and poles was difficult.

“Balancing with the poles is tough. There’s a tree right next to the ski course. I was thinking it might be good if I could practice balancing using that tree.”

“I saw a sign saying it’s dangerous to go outside the course because the area is not maintained, so I don’t think you should.”

“I see…”

If that’s the case, there probably aren’t many places with the same gentle slope, so I’ll just have to practice balancing with the poles here, bit by bit…

“…I just thought of something, Tsunagi.”

“What is it?”

When I asked what her idea was, Hasumi lightly touched both of her shoulders and said.

“Why don’t you hold onto my shoulders and try to get a feel for balancing on the snowboard that way? Whether or not you use the poles, you just need to get a sense of how it feels, right? Using me or the poles are pretty much the same then.”

“That makes sense… Good idea, I’ll take you up on that.”

Taking Hasumi up on her suggestion, I grabbed onto both of her shoulders firmly.

“Does it hurt?”

“U-uh, no, don’t worry about that. Just focus on practicing your balance.”

“Alright.”

A few minutes later, I managed to balance myself upright while holding onto Hasumi’s shoulders. This time, I decided to try moving just a little to see if I could stay balanced─

“Oh no…!”

Apparently, snowboards were even more slippery on snow than I expected. Just by shifting my weight a little, I lost my balance and ended up toppling forward—right toward Hasumi—but she caught me and stopped me from falling.

“Sorry, I got ahead of myself… Thanks, Hasumi.”

“I’m here so that if you’re about to fall, I can catch you. So, Tsunagi, feel free to fall anytime.”

“That’s not something you should encourage though!”

With that little joke between us, I continued learning how to ski from Hasumi over the next few hours and slowly but surely, I managed to slide down a few times successfully.

“You did it, Tsunagi!”

“Yeah, it’s all thanks to you, Hasumi… Next, let’s try sliding together.”

“Okay…!”

Hasumi nodded happily. I was able to slide this good definitely because of how good of a teacher Hasumi was. But more importantly, it was also because I wanted to see her smile when I succeeded. That motivation actually encouraged me to ski well. After all, Hasumi always looked so genuinely happy for me.

After skiing together for a while, it was about time for lunch, so Hasumi and I returned to the inn and went back to the room we were sharing.

“Skiing was really fun.”

“It really was… My heart was racing the whole time.”

“Huh?”

“N-no! I mean, Tsunagi, you were actually skiing pretty well by the end of it.”

“Compared to you, I’ve still got a long way to go, though.”

“That’s not—”

As we took off our heavy layers and changed into our room wear, Hasumi asked in a natural tone.

“Hey, since we already shared a bed the last time I stayed over, it’s okay if we sleep in the same bed again tonight, right?”

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー