Chapter 106 - Trouble

When I woke up, I realized Erina nee-san had gone to Hotaru's house to try to talk to him before we went to school. They would walk to the nearby park so they could talk without being interrupted. Yesterday, I sent him a message saying that Erina nee-san wanted to talk to him earlier in the morning, if possible. Of course, I asked my sister if she was okay with this before sending the message. I don't know how things will go between them from now on. The only thing I can wish for is that everything ends well for everyone. Though, the chances of my sister ending up sad are really high. Anyways, I should start getting ready for school. … ♦♦♦ “~SIGH~~~” - I'm exhausted. “Tomoki-kun… is everything okay with Erina-san?” - Ayame could already tell what was going on. “I already told you, don't stress over this.” - Ryuichi said. “The thing is, guys… I can't support my sister in this anymore. Hotaru intends to take Himari seriously.” - I said. “Tomoki…” - Ayame said with a concerned expression. “Bro… yeah, it'll be complicated.” - Ryuichi said with a concerned expression as well. “And to add to that… he actually lives nearby my house.” - I said. “Does that mean Erina-san met him?” - Ayame asked. “And did you tell her about his intentions?” - Ryuichi asked. “Yes… to both questions. She was really shocked.” “Tomoki, is there something I can do for you?” - Ayame asked. “Yeah, bro. I don't know how I can help you, but… if there's something on your mind, ask us.” - Ryuichi said. “It's okay, and thanks, guys. I'm worried about my sister, but she's strong. I have faith in her.” “Fufu~ you're there for her. I know everything will be fine.” - Ayame reassured me. “Honestly, I think you're the only brother in the world who thinks this much about his own sister. She'll be fine.” - Ryuichi said. “Thanks.” And suddenly… “Hey, guys! Anything new to share?” - Himari asked us. “Himari-san, is everything going well with him? We were just wondering if you've made any progress.” - Ayame said. “Hehe, well, to be fair, we're friendly, but I don't know how we can go beyond that. Tomoki, if it's okay, do you have any idea how?” - Himari asked me. If she just confessed to him, he'd accept for sure. But telling her only that wouldn't be convincing enough. “If possible, try to go on a date with him this weekend. You don't need to force anything; just having fun together is enough. After that, you can try confessing your feelings to him right away.” “Already!? Honestly, I think it's important to spend more time with him until I see some hint that he actually sees me as a woman rather than just a friend.” - Himari said. At this point, I guess Hotaru will be the one to confess to her first… but that's something I shouldn't tell her. “He sees you as a beautiful woman, so don't worry. You don't need to force yourself if you don't think you're ready. There's another way to tell him if being direct is too difficult. Actually, it's something he'll definitely like.” “Really!?” “Yes, a love letter. Trust me, he'll be happy just knowing that a girl wrote a love letter for him.” “Seriously? Will he really be that happy instead of annoyed? Tomoki, I'm gonna trust you.” “If he gets annoyed, then I'll shave my head.” - I said. “Hehe! If you say it that confidently, then I need to think about what to write… What should I write?” “That's up to you. Good luck!” “Thank you, Tomoki!” Then Himari went to her desk and started thinking about what to write. “You really gave her a thoughtful idea. Do you actually have any experience with being confessed to? Or maybe you were the one who tried to confess?” - Ryuichi asked. Couldn't he ask this kind of thing when Ayame wasn't right beside me? I guess he's just that curious. “Not exactly experience, but more like something Hotaru and I already talked about. You know, about how it would feel to be popular with girls. We always heard about some guys receiving love letters, but as for us… nothing at all.” “I see… wait, WHAT!? You two haven't received any kind of love confession from girls!?” - Ryuichi asked, surprised. “What kind of girls have you two interacted with?” - Ayame asked. I was so focused on not telling them anything related to my childhood friend that I made a little blunder about our real past… though I don't think it's a big deal. “This is how it is, guys… That's why I can't imagine Hotaru being annoyed by a love letter or any kind of confession he receives from a girl, especially from one he's starting to know and like.” - I dodged the question. “You're really confident about what your friend thinks about Tachibana-san. But… would you really shave your head in case… you know?” - Ryuichi asked. “Yeah, I will. After all, I know he likes her and really wants to have a girlfriend. That's how confident I am. So, there's no reason for Himari to be afraid of being rejected. Instead, she should try to create something memorable with him… Ah!” “What? Did you forget something?” - Ryuichi asked. “Just in case, both of you don't even try to mention this deal anywhere. If Hotaru hears about this, there's a chance he'll make a deal with Himari just to force me to shave my head.” “What kind of person is your friend?” - Ryuichi asked. “The kind who takes jokes too far.” “Okay…?” - He looked confused. “But Himari already knows about this… Is there a possibility she'll tell him about it?” - I started thinking. “Fufu~ I don't think so, Tomoki. The only time she might tell him about this is if her confession succeeds… Though, I can't imagine Hirose-san making a deal with Himari-san just to joke about this.” “He would, Ayame, especially in this case.” - I said confidently. “Hmm… well, I see… I still can't believe it, but if you're saying so. By the way, Tomoki, what kind of letter would you like to receive? Just out of curiosity.” “If you ask me… a neat and cute letter. Having beautiful and delicate handwriting, with some cute drawings on the paper, would be nice too. Oh, right! And having a heart-shaped seal on the envelope would be the cherry on top.” “I see, I see… and what kind of drawing would you consider cute?” “A flower or heart shape would be the standard, I guess… Haha, though I've never received one, so I don't know if that's actually the standard. Hahaha… sigh—” Wait… why am I talking about this with Ayame again? Am I crazy? But more than that… “Ayame?” “Yes?” “What have you been writing down since the beginning? I'm really curious.” And again… she just smiled and put away her notebook. Well, I guess it's time to head to the student council. The day when I'll have to discuss male and female concerns in the auditorium is already near. … ♦♦♦ “Good work, both of you! Until tomorrow.” - Shirakawa-senpai said. “Thank you very much, President and Vice President.” - Ayame and I replied. “You two really help us a lot with matters concerning the students. By the way, if either of you has some kind of trouble you want to share, feel free to tell us, okay?” - Kirishima-senpai offered. “Thank you, Kirishima-senpai. Then, if you'll excuse me, goodbye, everyone!” - I said. “Likewise. Then, until tomorrow, everyone. Goodbye!” - Ayame said. But when we were almost out of the student council room, Shirakawa-senpai spoke up. “You see, maybe I'm not always present, but at least I can tell how my coworkers usually behave. I won't pry any further because everyone has the right to keep whatever they have on their mind to themselves. But even so, I want to tell you this: you two are my precious junior students, and I want you to know that we'd be happy to help you with anything… okay?” I guess she noticed. “Thank you, President. See you tomorrow.” “Until tomorrow.” - Shirakawa-senpai replied. I decided not to tell her. ♦♦♦ Right now, I'm in my room skimming through my notebook. I won't lie, this is actually boring, but whenever I feel like giving up, I start remembering how serious Ayame was when she helped me. Though sometimes I just slack off. But I swear, only for a few hours! [Notification received] [Tomoki, I'm gonna call you.] - Hotaru typed. [Sure.] Then, instead of texting each other, we talked over the phone… I can already guess the reason. “[Hey, Tomoki. Is it too late?]” “[Hey, Hotaru. Did you forget that I once watched an entire season in one night?]” “[Haha! True! Well, the thing is, I talked with your older sister and, in the end… I couldn't reject her. I just… couldn't.]” “[What happened? Didn't you say you intended to date Himari?]” “[I told her that I intended to only date Tachibana-san. Then she started… well, she cried a lot, to the point that I couldn't just stand there and watch. So I started telling her that she's a wonderful person and that she would find someone worthy of her. But I forgot an important detail.]” “[Finding a man who's worthy of her is really difficult in this world… So? How did she react?]” “[She told me that finding a man who would at least treat a woman with care is difficult. It's even harder to find a man who would stand up for a woman. So she asked me something I couldn't answer right away.]” “[What is it?]” “[She said she'd give up on me only if I told her that I hated her, that I found her ugly and a nuisance… I was shocked by how desperate she was. Since I remained silent, she told me that she'd wait in the park every day at the same time. She told me it was okay for me to just ignore her if that was what I wanted… Tomoki, you know I wouldn't be able to ignore her. After all, this is the first time a beautiful girl has been willing to go this far for me, and honestly, that made me really happy. ~Sigh… maybe I'm a scumbag after all.]” “[No, you're not! Let me talk to her. You should focus on Himari. Leave Erina nee-san to me.]” “[Thanks, pal. I don't know what I would do without you. I guess it's already time to sleep.]” Now I'm worried about him. “[You're right. Not to mention that from now on, you need to catch up with your lessons too. It's no joke. But hey, I'll say this only once, so listen well: you're like my brother. I don't know what's going on in your head, but you're not a scumbag or a bastard. And if by any chance you become one, I'll be there to punch you in the face with all my strength. So much so that you'll end up going back to our world.]” “[Haha! Fine, fine… I get it. Thanks. Like always, you really know what to say when we need to hear it the most.]” “[Come on, what do you mean, 'like always'? You know I was a quiet kid back then. If not for her, I wouldn't even have been able to give a proper greeting.]” “[…No? Sure, you were quiet, but… wait, did you forget? Come on, man, this was a special moment for me! For us! You'd better try to remember, otherwise I'll tell your friends about your preference in women.]” “[Hold on. Don't you dare say that in front of Ayame!]” “[Who knows? Better remember, little brother… Haha!]” - He hung up. This guy! But well, if he can joke around like this, I guess he's getting better. Okay, it's already getting late. I'll grab some water from the kitchen and then go to sleep. And when I open the door… “Tomoki-kun. It was Hotaru-kun, right? Let's cut the crap. WHAT do you WANT to talk to ME?” In times like this, I miss the older sister who would only pamper me…