When I Thought I Was Reborn, My Family Turned Out to Be a Huge Landmine - Chapter 29: The Snake Watches from the Grass

Chapter 29: The Snake Watches from the Grass

After escorting Arika home, Ryo made a brief stop at the convenience store before returning to his house. As soon as he entered and locked the door, he found himself reminiscing about the dinner scene from earlier that day. The sight of Ren, Asami, and Arika smiling and looking contented was a joyful memory for him. Ever since regaining his memory, such scenes had been exactly what Ryo longed for.

“…?”

Ryo had thought he would sleep well tonight, but something felt off. There was a strangely sweet, almost feminine scent in the air, which puzzled him. It seemed to be coming from the living room, so he cautiously peered inside.

“…”

There was only Asami, alone. Ren appeared to be in his room, not by Asami’s side. Asami looked dazed, staring blankly at the ceiling, seemingly unaware of what was happening around her. Ryo moved silently to stand next to her, like a ninja.

“Asami?”

Even when Ryo waved his hand in front of her, Asami showed no sign of noticing. Well, she might have been aware, but she didn’t react, only slowly following Ryo’s hand with her gaze.

“…What really happened?”

As he asked this, Ryo realized something. The sweet scent was almost like pheromones emitted by a woman, and Asami’s spaced-out, unfocused state… Could it be? Ryo formed a sudden hypothesis.

“Don’t tell me… did you just do it in that short time?”

Despite the agreement made just before Arika left the house, to refrain from any hasty actions, Ryo couldn’t help but wonder… Still, it was understandable why Asami might feel a certain way, living under the same roof with the man she loved.

Ryo could vividly imagine Arika in her room, probably dreaming about the days to come. However, lost in these thoughts, Ryo was brought back to reality when Asami finally spoke up.

“I didn’t do it.”

“…I see.”

Ryo apologized inwardly when Asami denied it with a serious face. Asami, who often seemed to lose sight of everything else when it came to Ren, appeared capable of restraining her feelings for Arika’s sake. Surprised yet smiling at this change in her, Ryo listened as she continued.

“We just shared a deep kiss… I stopped myself before going any further. But he looked so troubled, so I helped him out with my mouth. That’s not really crossing the line, right?”

“…”

Ryo had to retract his earlier thoughts; Asami hadn’t really changed. Indeed, even if it was just that, it was still a significant step beyond the sibling-like relationship they had. Ryo now anticipated that Arika might take some action soon.

“…Hey, Ryo.”

“What?”

Just as Ryo was thinking about heading to the bath and then to bed, Asami called out to him. Though he felt it was a bit bothersome, he turned to look at her and was taken aback. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked bashfully embarrassed – a side of her he hadn’t seen before. Asami often showed a range of emotions over Ren and had even displayed childish jealousy over Arika, but this was something new.

Asami continued speaking.

“When I was kissing Ren, and even just now… I felt it. A longing I’ve never experienced before, an aching desire for something more.”

“That’s…”

“…Fufu, I feel bad for Arika, but maybe this means I’ve truly freed myself from his spell.”

Ryo felt a bit relieved by Asami’s words, even though they weren’t something one would discuss openly. Her confusion was undoubtedly significant, something vital for nurturing love with Ren in the future. If Asami could find joy in an act she previously couldn’t make sense of, Ryo thought it must be a good thing.

“But you, don’t go any further than this, right? At least hold off until the weekend.”

“When Arika stays over? But… that might be tough for Ren.”

Ryo sighed at Asami’s chuckling, wondering what she meant by Ren having a tough time.

“Don’t just tell me to hold off… Ah, Ren’s really in for it, you know?”

“You’re one to talk. Weren’t you the one who was always messing around since our student days?”

“Don’t dredge up the past.”

Feeling that continuing the conversation would only be tiring, Ryo decided to return to his room. On his way, he bumped into Ren, who was just leaving his room.

“Seems like you had a rough time, huh?”

“…Yeah. But, Nee-san seems to have been really considerate of me.”

“Of course, she is. No matter how much she goes off the rails, she always puts you first.”

Ryo didn’t add that things were likely to get more complicated. Ren probably knew that, and the issues ahead were for the parties involved to resolve. Ryo resolved to support them from the sidelines, praying for their happiness and ready to intervene if necessary.

“Good night, then.”

“Good night.”

Finally, Ryo could get some sleep.

That night, he dreamt of Asakura, someone he hadn’t seen recently, which he found curious.

The next day, as I left the house, I headed towards the meeting place with Arika. It wasn’t something we had specifically decided, but it seemed like meeting up and going to school together would become a regular thing from now on. Yesterday, Arika had arrived early, and thinking it would be rude to make her wait, I left my house early too.

“…How many times will I be kissed just in the morning?”

From the moment I woke up until I left the house, Nee-san had kissed me numerous times. Her longing expression made it seem like it was still not enough, leaving me unsure how to react. I managed to satisfy her by embracing her, but I might end up unable to restrain myself, just like yesterday.

“Ah, there she is.”

Arika was waiting at the same spot as yesterday. Surprised that she was already there despite my earlier departure, Arika noticed me and quickly ran over.

“Good morning, Ren-kun!!”

She threw herself into my arms. Feeling a bit embarrassed under the warm gazes of people walking by, I stroked her head as she clung to me and said, 

“Good morning, Arika. I missed you.”

“Me too. It’s only been a few hours since yesterday, but the wait felt so long.”

As we stood there gazing at each other, Arika suddenly twitched her eyelids as if she had realized something. She pressed her body closer to mine and leaned in, sniffing near my face as if trying to catch a scent.

“Ren-kun, you did something with Asami-san, right? It doesn’t seem like you went all the way, though.”

…For a moment, I was actually scared of Arika. Noticing my reaction, Arika laughed, her shoulders shaking. It didn’t seem like she was angry, more like she was resigned to the situation as she continued speaking.

“If I were in Asami-san’s position, I probably would have done the same thing. So, just this once, I’ll forgive Asami-san… even though it’s really frustrating.”

She looked genuinely upset.

I was grilled about what happened and how it happened all the way to school. While Arika and I walking to school together was the same as yesterday, the change in our atmosphere compared to yesterday had a few people surprised.

“Arika, could it be?”

“Yes! Ren-kun and I are now dating!”

“Oh!! That’s great news! Congratulations, Arika!”

“Thank you!!”

It was Arika’s friends who heard this announcement and congratulated her. While they took turns celebrating with her, it seemed to unsettle some of our other classmates. However, I was relieved that no one said anything odd. I caught Arisaka’s eye; he looked surprised at first, then seemed to mouth ‘congratulations’ to me, but I couldn’t be sure.

“Ren-kun~~~! What’s going on hereeeee?!”

“Whoa! Don’t yell right in my ear!”

My heart almost leaped out of my chest at Kenichi’s sudden shout from behind. After silencing him with a quick chop, Kenichi continued muttering what sounded like curses, but he eventually offered his congratulations. Arika and I responded with a smile and thanked him for his words.

So, just like that, the fact that Arika and I were dating spread throughout the class. As I thought yesterday, today indeed seemed to bring a lot of changes for us in many ways.

“I wish I had a girlfriend too.”

“My friend says the same thing, but how about hanging out with her, Watanabe-kun?”

“…Well, now that you mention it, I’m a bit hesitant.”

“She loves manga and anime too. I’ll introduce you.”

“Really!?”

Oh, it looks like Kenichi might find his own spring soon. As I watched Kenichi eagerly learn more about this friend of Arika’s, I suddenly felt someone’s gaze on me and turned to look.

“…!”

The person who met my eyes quickly looked away. After that, they didn’t look at me again, but that brief moment of eye contact lingered in my mind. And that person was…

“Don’t you dare call Yumeno-san by her first name!”

It was him who had pushed me onto the train tracks in that dream.