Chapter 2 Interlude: A Blunt Kindness

Maybe it’s because I went there almost every day, including the weekends, but I finished the course in no time and passed the exam surprisingly easily.

I had a good time at the driving school, but when I got on the bike I got from the school and drove it on public roads, it was even more fun than the school, so I would drive it every day.

My father would even follow me along in a flurry of excitement, making me practice even riding with two people, which I really shouldn’t do at all.

My mother would complain to me about it every day, but unlike my sister, my test scores weren’t that bad, so she would let me do whatever I wanted

She was married to my father, so she’s very understanding

And today, with the last day of the test coming up tomorrow, I took advantage of the fact that I had to leave school early and went home immediately.

My mom is supposed to be gone today, so she won’t be complaining about me today.

Just before I opened the front door, the door opened on its own without me even touching it, and there I met my sister Saki.

“I’m home. If you don’t stop talking, mom will get really angry with you.”

“Welcome back. It’s okay, I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. Unlike you.”

“Gross. You don’t need to be able to pass the test to live.”

“You…”

I tell her that to advise her, who’s on the verge of a red mark every time.

I’m about to tell her that the only reason mom gets really mad at you is because you keep drawing comic books even though you get bad grades, but then I realize something was wrong.

“What’s wrong?”

She’s not sleep deprived because of mom’s nightly rounds during the test period, but her usually abundant energy doesn’t seem to be so full today.

“…nothing’s wrong.”

“I knew it. Something’s wrong. What is it? I don’t want to get caught in the middle of Mom’s moodiness, so why don’t you tell me about it now? If I think it can be avoided, I’ll

figure it out with you.”

My sister is an idiot and often makes mom really mad. And since I get the brunt of it every time, I’ve been trained to notice even the slightest change in her mood.

“…I got into a fight with a friend at school.”

“You always do that.”

“Maybe but not this time. Now that I think about it, I feel like I said something really horrible.”

This is going to be a long day, I think, and so I decide to give up riding my bike today

I silently squeak my jaw and sit down in the living room.

Then, while making my sister’s favorite cocoa, I asked.

“What’s going on?”

“I was reading a friend’s comic book today. I couldn’t help but say it was boring. But I knew that she worked really hard on it.”

I see. I think again that this girl really is super clumsy. She is single-minded and emotionally dedicated to one thing with no second thoughts at all.

She’s not very good at stringing together a conversation, and she can’t even hope to come up with any witty comments or words.

“Sometimes your choice of words is the end of humanity.”

“Oh, God! My brother’s an idiot! But it’s true. There were other things I wanted to say, but I couldn’t piece them together at all.”

This girl is often just very bad at explaining things and doesn’t take offense to much at all. However, many of her good friends are also emotional-first types of people, so perhaps the gears have been completely mismatched this time.

“I don’t have to force myself to summarize, I can just string words together like a kindergartener, or I can use pictures and words like my favorite cartoon.”

She makes mistakes because she tries to communicate well. That’s exactly what I think, and if I tell her exactly what I’m thinking, she’ll understand that I didn’t mean to offend her in any way.

Besides, her personality, not to mention her head, is very likable. If you show her what’s on your mind, she won’t have a problem with most things.

“No, you can’t do that. You have to tell them that with words.”

“I can’t do that, which is why I’m in this situation. It’s okay, as long as he gets the message. Conversation is just another tool. That game I’m playing right now, you know? I can only speak with gestures.”

“What’s that? That doesn’t convey anything at all, does it?”

“No, it’s surprising how well someone can communicate with each other. As long as they’re both looking at each other.”

That would be conveyed even more so with the accumulated time.

I have a father and sister who seem to think and move at the same time, and a mother and I whose faces are devastated with their thinking.

But even if we don’t say everything in words, or even if it’s not a conversation, it’s still understood. That’s all right.

“It’s okay. If you tell them how you feel, you’ll be able to make it up to them.”

I placed a hand on her crestfallen head and gently stroked it, she seemed to cheer up a little.

“…un, Thank you, onii-chan.”

“You’re welcome.”

Somehow, she seems to be looking a bit better. She really is a handful of a sister.

“But you’re so kind, aren’t you, big bro? Sometimes you’re even so considerate.”

“Hey. You’re wrong.”