While I Was Shutting in My Room for One Year, My Parent Remarried and Now I’m Living Together With Super Beautiful Stepsisters - Chapter 24-25

Chapter 24: I Won’t Give Up on Yuzuna-chan

The heavy atmosphere caused by Haruka’s arrival finally returned to normal after she left.

“Man… that girl was intense in a lot of ways,” Yuzuna said.

Haruka’s presence had overwhelmed even Yuzuna, the flashy gal, in more ways than one.

(Haruka… I had no idea she was so hung up on me while we were apart.)

Her appearance had become even more refined as a second-year high school student, but to think her emotions had become so volatile…

I’d heard that high school girls deal with a lot—rebellious phases, complicated relationships with other girls—that can be mentally exhausting. Maybe that was it for Haruka.

Though, come to think of it, she seemed awfully focused on me… talking about how she missed our school days together or what she had for dinner.

But learning, a year later, that I wasn’t the only one who felt sad about failing my entrance exam wasn’t exactly joyful—it filled me with guilt.

“Big Brother, you doing okay with all this?”

As I was lost in thought, Yuzuna peeked at my face with concern.

“Oh, uh, yeah. Meeting Haruka again after so long made me nervous, but it was good to see she’s doing okay.”

“Well, less ‘okay’ and more like she was acting weird,” Yuzuna replied.

“Uh, Yuzuna, just… stay the way you are, okay?”

“What? I’m not gonna get all heavy like that!”

I said it half-jokingly, but Yuzuna denied it with full seriousness.

☆☆

Afterward, with Yuzuna’s guitar repaired, we left the shop and started walking home.

Yuzuna was in high spirits now that her guitar was fixed, but I couldn’t help feeling anxious, knowing I’d have to hear it again.

Those seasick-inducing chord progressions—couldn’t something be done about them?

“Big Brother, Big Brother! When we get home, you gotta listen to my fixed guitar!”

“Uh… y-yeah! Sure thing!”

I forced a smile and eagerly nodded at Yuzuna’s invitation.

As her big brother, I didn’t want to let Yuzuna down.

“…Big Brother? Your face isn’t, like, twitching, is it?”

“Huh!?”

I flinched, thinking she’d read my mind.

“Maybe, Big Brother…”

Oh no, had she finally figured out I’d been enduring her guitar playing, thinking it was noise!?

After all, Yuzuna, the prickly gal, had opened up to me, seeing me as someone who shared her musical vibe… Damn it!

“You’re still all messed up about reuniting with Haruka-san, aren’t you?”

“Huh?”

I thought she’d caught me thinking her guitar was noise, but it seemed she assumed I was still hung up on Haruka.

Apparently, she had no clue her guitar might be considered noise.

“You really like Haruka-san, don’t you, Big Brother?”

“Well… I’m not sure.”

“Huh? But weren’t you planning to confess to her if you got into the same high school? Or am I wrong?”

“Well, yeah, that’s true, but…”

I hesitated, answering with a complicated mix of feelings.

My feelings for Haruka now were hard to pin down.

After a failed crush and a year apart, emotions inevitably change.

If I could’ve kept that one-sided love going for a whole year, I wouldn’t have shut myself in my room. I would’ve kept pursuing Haruka even at a different high school.

Locking myself away meant I’d lost sight of my goal—it was the same as giving up.

“So, Big Brother, how do you feel about Haruka-san now?”

“It’s like… my feelings for Haruka are complicated. Love’s like a campfire, you know? When I was chasing Haruka, the fire was blazing with good airflow. But failing the entrance exam was like dousing it with water, and I got depressed. After shutting myself in my room for a year, the fire just… went out. Whether it’ll spark again is a whole different story.”

“…”

As I gave a vague, hazy response, Yuzuna suddenly pulled a notebook and pen from her… not her big breast, but her chest pocket, and started scribbling.

“What’re you doing, Yuzuna?”

“Oh, I just thought it’d make good song lyrics.”

“Hey, don’t use me for inspiration! Writing lyrics based on a lame guy like me? Come on.”

“You’re not lame! You’re not lame at all!”

Yuzuna declared, pointing a pink-nailed finger at my chest.

“You were serious about love, weren’t you? You loved so hard that when it failed, you were down for a whole year. Sure, that might seem like a negative, but it just shows how serious you were about it! So, you’re not lame!”

“Yuzuna…”

Her words hit me hard.

She was the only one who’d framed my year of moping and shutting myself away in such a positive light.

So… I was that depressed because I’d been so serious about my feelings for Haruka?

“…Thanks, Yuzuna. I think I can finally see that year in a slightly better light.”

“I didn’t do anything worth thanking me for.”

“Oh, and while we’re at it, how about an apology for calling me a love-obsessed idiot before?”

“Nope. You are love-obsessed.”

“Huh!?”

That was the one thing Yuzuna wouldn’t budge on.

—

Chapter 25: A Dinner That’s Just Too Big ♡

After finishing the guitar repairs, we finally returned home.

Momiji, Nanoka-san, and Anzu were already back, all three wearing aprons and preparing dinner.

“Oh! Welcome back, Yuzuna and Aoto-kun! ♡”

“Welcome… back.”

“Yeah, I’m home.”

Noticing our return, Momiji and Anzu greeted us.

Momiji’s always in the kitchen, so it’s a familiar sight, but seeing Anzu help with dinner feels kind of new.

“Oh, welcome back, you two. Aoto-kun, thank you for helping with Yuzuna’s guitar.”

“Yeah, no problem. I just tagged along, though.”

Nanoka-san thanked me, and I replied, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Well, tagging along led to some pretty wild stuff, but still.

“Mama, I’ll help with dinner too!”

“Oh my, then hurry and change.”

“Oh, I can help with something too!”

“No need, Aoto-kun. These girls are just helping out as part of their bride training whenever Mama’s around.”

“I-I see. Well, I’ll go clean the bathroom then. Feels wrong to be the only one not doing anything.”

“Oh my, Aoto-kun, you’re such a good boy. You’ll make a great papa someday! ♡”

“Haha…”

All I could do was give an awkward laugh.

A great papa, huh?

She’s pushing marriage with her three daughters and calling me a great papa… Am I the only one who feels like she’s boxing me in here?

With a bad feeling creeping in, I dropped my stuff in my room and headed to the bathroom.

☆☆

After cleaning the bathroom and taking the first bath, I returned to the living room, where dinner was being set on the table.

“Thanks for cleaning the bathroom, Aoto-kun! Dinner’s ready, so sit, sit!”

“Oh, thanks, Momiji.”

Urged by Momiji, I took a seat.

Dinner was potato salad, stew, and hamburgers… It looked insanely delicious.

The rich aroma of the cream stew clashed with the thick, savory scent of the demi-glace sauce on the hamburgers, neither giving an inch.

The five of us sat around the table, but with the other four having such… voluminous figures, the usually large table seemed oddly small.

Everything’s just too big… I thought to myself.

“Tonight, all five of us are eating together! ♡ Mama’s so happy to share a meal with everyone.”

“Mama, you’re so dramatic. Alright, let’s dig in!”

Following Yuzuna’s lead, we all started eating.

The hamburgers and stew were so good, I couldn’t help but think, ‘This is it.’

The vegetables in the stew had the perfect texture, and the hamburgers were cooked just right.

“Starting tomorrow, Mama’s going to Uncle’s place again, right?”

“Yes, but Momiji will take care of cooking, so I’m not worried.”

“Leave it to me! ♡ Big Sis will make anything you want!”

“Oh my, then I’ll have to buy you a new cookbook when I come back.”

I listened vaguely to their conversation while eating.

Anzu, as usual, didn’t join in much, just silently devouring her huge portion of rice… Impressive as always.

(Though, this might be the first time I’ve really looked at all four of them together like this.)

Yuzuna and Momiji look and are built so much like Nanoka-san. It’s like Nanoka-san was made younger and split into a gyaru and an honor student.

But Anzu, the youngest, while her face resembles Nanoka-san and the others, her figure… it’s bigger than Yuzuna, Momiji, and even Nanoka-san.

(Is Anzu so big because she eats so much?)

But her waist is as slim as Yuzuna’s and Momiji’s, so how does only her breasts get that big? Is it just natural proportions?

Maybe I stared at Anzu too long, because she noticed, flinched, blinked rapidly, and looked down, embarrassed.

“Uh, um, I’m gonna get more rice!”

With that, she stood and headed to the kitchen.

Crap, did I stare too much?

“Anzu’s eating a ton as always, such a good girl. Momiji, Yuzuna, you should follow her example and eat more.”

“What? I’m on a diet, so I’m not eating that much.”

“Yeah, I don’t have a body like Anzu’s that doesn’t gain weight no matter how much I eat.”

Doesn’t gain weight, huh?

Is having large breasts so normal to them that they just gloss over it?

But if they’re triplets, why does only Anzu have that kind of body? Why is her breast even bigger than the other two?

“Come on, Aoto-kun, eat up like Anzu so you can become a man who can go multiple rounds! ♡”

“N-Nanoka-san, maybe don’t say stuff like that during dinner.”

“Oh my, Aoto-kun, you’re so lively! ♡”

“Ugh, Big Brother…”

“Aoto-kun… not at the dinner table.”

“Why’s it sound like I said it?! Nanoka-san’s the one who said it!”

As expected, I’d fully become the punching bag for this overly… voluminous new family.