The Protagonist's Sister Loves Me, But She's Definitely a Yandere. - Chapter 09: Morning Shuraba

Chapter 09: Morning Shuraba

The next morning, I left my house at the usual time.

My mom, who had just finished her night shift, wasn’t home yet, and my dad was still snoring away in his room. The morning was eerily quiet, but by now, I was used to it. This was just my normal routine.

But after walking just a few steps, I narrowed my eyes suspiciously.

From the house next door —the Ichinose home— I heard loud arguing.

Looking over, I saw two familiar figures clashing at the front door.

“Haha, I get it.”

In an instant, I understood what was going on and decided to stay out of it.

For context, I always made sure my morning departure time didn’t line up with Hinata’s.

I left a little early to avoid walking to school with Hinata and Rika. Otherwise, I’d get dragged into their chaos. I just wanted my mornings to be peaceful.

Right when school started, Runa had asked me to walk to school with her, but I’d turned her down. No explanation needed.

Though knowing her, my opinion probably didn’t matter much anyway.

Just yesterday, she’d practically forced me into a “practice date.”

Our message thread was already buzzing with ideas for date spots.

I wasn’t sure if she genuinely liked hanging out with me or if she was just teasing me.

But sometimes, I wondered: didn’t she worry about the weird rumors people might spread if they saw us together?

“…She’s a strong-willed one.”

Runa always prioritized her own opinions over anyone else’s.

As long as she was having fun, she didn’t care what others thought.

It made sense that she and Hinata didn’t always get along.

I knew she often dragged me along with her plans, but honestly, I didn’t mind.

If Runa —who felt like a real little sister to me— was happy, then I was happy too.

“—Just go by yourself!”

Well, that snapped me out of my thoughts.

The sharp voice belonged to Rika Sakuragi. Her usual calm demeanor was nowhere to be found. But considering who she was facing off against, it was no surprise that her irritation was showing.

The girl opposite her had even darker hair, which cascaded down to her back. The morning sunlight, hinting at the arrival of early summer, seemed to vanish into that dark sheen.

“My, how rude. Forget her; why don’t you come with me instead?”

“Ugh, just stop getting in the way! Come on, Hii-kun, we’re leaving!”

Yuri Himeno. Our high school’s student council president and a third-year.

She was tall for a girl, and her looks were nothing short of stunning. Her sharp eyes gave off a cool, intelligent vibe, though they softened whenever she looked at Hinata.

I didn’t know the details of how they met, but somehow, she’d ended up as part of Hinata Ichinose’s harem squad.

“Come on, you two, don’t fight. Can’t we all just get along?”

Hinata, caught in the middle of the argument, looked troubled, but there was a hint of confidence behind that expression. I recognized it as his usual escape tactic —a face he wore when he couldn’t decide and wanted to avoid confrontation.

Who knew what he was really thinking? But watching from the sidelines, it didn’t feel good.

“Yesterday, you forced yourself into our plans!”

“Well, I was free, so what’s the harm?”

“That’s not the point!”

It all made sense now. Yesterday, Hinata, Rika, and Yuri Himeno must have been hanging out.

Originally, it was probably supposed to be just Hinata and Rika, but somehow, Yuri ended up joining them.

Even someone as patient as Rika had her limits. No wonder she was so angry.

I didn’t know who, if anyone, would win Hinata’s heart in the end. As a childhood friend, I just hoped they’d resolve it peacefully.

I didn’t hate Hinata, but this situation was a ticking time bomb.

Harems might work in manga, but in real life? Not so much.

Jealousy, resentment, bitterness —human emotions could get ugly.

I’d experienced enough of that darkness firsthand.

“You’re supposed to be his best friend.” “I expected more from you.” “You’re so boring.”

I’d heard lines like that so many times, I’d lost count.

I had no romantic experience, but I knew how twisted people could be.

Hinata needed to make up his mind and choose someone already.

Leaving things ambiguous wasn’t kindness —it was just running away.

“Time to go. Getting caught up in that mess would be a nightmare.”

I didn’t have the courage or energy to step into that volcanic war zone.

I quickly and quietly slipped away —only for someone to suddenly jump out from behind a utility pole.

“—Good morning! I’ve found a high school boy with a grumpy face!”

Her light brown hair swayed gently, and a mischievous grin spread across her face.

It was a girl in a school uniform.

“Whoa!? Jeez, you scared me…”

“Mission accomplished! Let’s walk to school together, Shin-nii!”

“…Wait, were you waiting for me again, like yesterday?”

Yesterday, Runa had waited for me after school, and now she was waiting for me in the morning, too.

Her persistence never ceased to amaze me. What would she have done if I’d left earlier? A heads-up would’ve saved me from this mini heart attack.

“Of course. I figured you might head out early, though.”

“Exactly. Next time, just send me a message. My heart can’t take this.”

“Got it. Also… I didn’t want to get dragged into that.”

Her eyes drifted toward the trio in the distance.

Even from here, I could still hear faint traces of their argument.

I groaned in understanding. “Ahh, yeah…”

“So, let’s walk to school together starting tomorrow. I was really sad when you said no after spring break ended, you know…!”

“I don’t know how ‘so’ connects to that, but… yeah, sorry about that.”

But I had my reasons, too.

Sure, maybe it was selfish of me.

Like I’d mentioned before, if people found out I was close with Runa, the guys who didn’t have the courage to talk to her directly would start pestering me. That would end up causing trouble for her, whether directly or indirectly. If anything happened because of that, I’d never forgive myself.

But Runa didn’t care about any of that.

She’d flat-out said, “If anything happens, you’ll protect me, right?” Her trust in me was unwavering.

Lately, she’d been closing the gap between us even more.

I couldn’t help but wonder if something had happened.

But knowing Runa, she probably just enjoyed teasing me. Maybe, surrounded by unfamiliar faces at her new school, she was finding comfort in messing with me. Either way, I was powerless to stop her and could only nod along.

“If you perfectly escort me on our date, I’ll forgive you.”

“…This is supposed to be practice for when we actually get dates, remember?”

Her tone made it sound like we were really dating, so I had to call her out.

“Even so, I’m still a girl, you know. I want to experience a proper date! Like dinner at a fancy hotel with a view of the city lights!”

“What do you expect from a high school guy? The best I can do is a café.”

“Geez, you’re hopeless.”

She shrugged her shoulders in mock exasperation, but I could tell she was pleased.

Our school was about a twenty-minute walk from home. Even if we took our time, it wouldn’t take more than thirty minutes.

The sunlight was warm and dry, carrying a hint of summer. But before that, we’d have to deal with the damp and gloomy rainy season. Beads of sweat were already forming on the back of Runa’s neck, reflecting the approaching humidity.

“The cherry blossoms are completely gone now, huh?”

“Yeah, once May hit, they disappeared in a flash. Maybe we should do a hanami next year.”

At the mention of “hanami” (cherry blossom viewing), Runa’s ears perked up.

Just as I expected.

“Okay, let’s go next year, then.”

It was just a casual conversation.

Maybe that’s why I tensed up when I saw her.

“…Ah.”

Our eyes met. Then a polite nod.

I instinctively nodded back, like any typical Japanese person would.

Her face was unmistakable.

In fact, it was too familiar.

She was the girl who had accidentally called me out during that awkward confession mix-up.

“Uh… hey.”

In front of the school gate, I froze alongside the girl.

I was the one who broke the awkward silence first.

That embarrassing mix-up was technically her fault, but it wasn’t worth holding a grudge. A quick greeting and moving on seemed like the best plan.

“Oh, it’s you from that time.”

“Yeah. Um… just, you know, be careful next time. I really didn’t know how to react.”

“Ahaha… Sorry about that.”

The air between us was painfully awkward.

After a few short exchanges, she jogged away. It seemed like Runa hadn’t noticed, thanks to the morning chaos around the school gate.

“Uh, sorry about that… Runa?”

I had no intention of explaining what had just happened. But ignoring her completely felt wrong.

Even though it had only been about a minute, I apologized for leaving her hanging. But Runa was still staring after the girl who had just walked away, her gaze sharp and intense.

“Oh, yeah, sorry. What did you say?”

“You looked really scary just now.”

“Huh, really?! No way! I wasn’t! I just saw a bug in my peripheral vision, and it was annoying. Anyway, let’s go, Shin-nii!”

She grabbed my hand lightly as she spoke.

It was May, the season when bugs start becoming more active. But was that really it?

I’d never seen Runa show such obvious dislike toward anyone before.

Maybe it really was just a bug she couldn’t stand… or maybe not.

“Umm, can you let go of my hand? You know why! Seriously!”

“Nope! Not happening!”

Runa’s face, still wearing that playful smile, glanced back at me as she pulled me along.

Her slender fingers, her soft palm —it had been a while since she last held my hand. Even though it was just Runa, it still felt a bit embarrassing.

I could feel the warmth from her hand.

“Shin-nii, do you have someone you like?”

“…Huh? What’s with that question out of nowhere? No, I don’t. If I did, I wouldn’t have agreed to that whole ‘practice date’ thing yesterday.”

If I liked someone for real, going out with another girl would make me feel guilty.

I wouldn’t want the person I liked to misunderstand.

“Thought so. My poor lonely Shin-nii.”

“Hey, that’s basically an insult!”

“Ahaha, Shin-nii’s mad!”

Her grip on my hand tightened just a bit.

She turned her head further away, hiding her face. But her light brown hair couldn’t hide everything —her ears were flushed red.

If she was embarrassed, she didn’t have to hold my hand.

The words hovered at the back of my throat, but for some reason, I chose not to say them out loud.

Unfortunately, the price for that silence was having to explain myself to my classmates later.

─────

[Author’s Note]

Thank you for reading! 

Thanks to all of you, my humble story has made it onto the rankings. I’d like to express my deepest gratitude here. If you’re someone who doesn’t enjoy reading author notes, I’m sorry for the intrusion. Please bear with me…!

I plan to gradually introduce more yandere and romantic comedy elements as the story progresses.

It might move a bit slowly at times, but I hope you’ll stick with me. Your comments, ratings, support, and follows — they all encourage me so much. I really appreciate it and look forward to your continued support!

Yanderes are the best! Yanderes are the best!