Volume 5 - CH 5

The cold morning air snuggled up to me under my blanket, making me rub my legs together after I woke up. Since we’ll be getting closer to the full-blown winter season from now on, waking up in the morning will only get more painful from here. I immediately began missing the warmth of my blanket after I kicked it into the air to force myself up from bed. At roughly the same time, my alarm rang. I didn’t for a moment, slamming my hand against it to silence the ear-piercing alarm.

“I won.”

Of course, there’s absolutely no benefit to me winning this imaginary battle, but small victories help in shaping my mood for the day… Well, I guess that’s a bit of an overstatement. Either way, today is Narasaka-san’s birthday party. I was assaulted with an odd feeling of pressure because of that, trying my best to ignore it while preparing for school. I’m just a tad bit worried that I won’t get along with the other people she’s going to invite.

After finishing my preparations, I made my way to the living room. It seemed that Ayase-san had already finished her breakfast, as she was now cleaning the dishes she used and putting them into the drying rack.

“Morning. You’re up early, huh?”

“I’ve gotta stop by the train station to buy a present.”

When I called out to her, she immediately grabbed her bag. I see. She’d mentioned that she was going to buy a present this morning. I remember now.

“I’m heading out.”

“Yeah. Take care, Saki-chan.”

“See you later, Nii-san.”

“Yep. Later, Ayase-san.”

“Mhm.” Ayase-san nodded and stepped outside.

“You’re fine taking your time, Dad?”

“Yep. I’ve got no need to rush today.”

I guess he’s had a lot less work forced onto him lately? I opened the rice cooker and a bit of steamy air hit my face, greeting me with the sweet scent of golden-yellow rice tickling my nose.

“This is…”

“Chestnut rice. It’s quite delicious, you know. Saki-chan is so good at making rice that it’s almost unfair.”

If Ayase-san was still us, she’d probably just say something like “All I did was add a few other ingredients in with the rice.” But, just as he said…

“It looks delicious.”

I put some of it in a small rice bowl and took a seat on an open chair. What else…? Pickled daikon radish with eel, and some plums. And you can’t forget the usual miso soup, either. And there’s even some onions on top today. The rice bowl in front of my old man was already empty.

“Want another serving, Dad?”

“No, I’m okay. I have to leave soon anyway.”

“Gotcha.”

The chestnuts mixed into the rice were about the size of my thumb. I picked one up with my chopsticks and stuffed it into my mouth.

“Hot!”

I chewed on the steaming chestnut, which quickly broke apart and filled my mouth with a sweet taste. This truly is the taste of fall.

“Yep, it’s delicious.”

“Right?”

“I could eat this all day.”

Ah, that’s why she had kept the side dishes to a minimum. My old man eventually headed off to work, and I proceeded to clean my own dishes and put them into the dishwasher. I even had two extra servings today. I feel a bit bloated now. Ayase-san left the house quite a while ago, too. Thankfully, if I take my bike today, I’ll still make it in time before classes start. I ended up being fairly uncomfortable because of the cold air making my hands hurt as they clung to the handles. It wasn’t cold enough to see my own breath, but it also wasn’t warm enough to make for a pleasant ride to school. It’s about to be winter for real, after all.

I managed to make it to the classroom three minutes before the bell rang.

Classes ended in a flash.

“I’ll catch you tomorrow, Asamura,” Maru gave a brief goodbye and made his way off to his club.

Now then, it’s time for the birthday party.

Ayase-san had sent me a message this afternoon that read: ‘I’ll travel there separately, so you can leave first.’

Ayase-san wearing casual clothes, huh? I would have used to feel tense and awkward when heading out while wearing my own clothes, but things are different now. I just have to walk confidently and trust Ayase-san’s fashion decision. I made my way to the front entrance and changed into my outdoor shoes. There I spotted a boy running around while wearing a jersey. Since he wasn’t holding his student bag, he probably wasn’t heading home anytime soon. He’s probably headed out for a sports club or something similar.

It’s hard to tell brom the back, but…That’s Shinjou, isn’t it? Wait, is he not going to Narasaka-san’s birthday party? I totally expected to see him there. Or is he going to join us after his club practice is over? I didn’t know that he was that passionate about tennis practice, to be honest. Either way, I pedaled my way back to the flat on my bike. Ayase-san wasn’t anywhere to be seen. She had probably left already after changing into her casual clothes, or she hadn’t made it home yet in the first place. Well, we’re meeting up at the actual place anyway, so there’s nothing to really worry about.

All I knew is that I didn’t have to worry about my outfit anymore. Trusting in Ayase-san’s skilled and discerning eye was all I needed. I changed into the jacket I had just bought and booted up my LINE app. A few moments after I asked Narasaka-san for her address, she sent me a response with a map attached to it.

“Around there, huh?”

It was close to the prep school, and I had happened to run into Ayase-san before when she was headed to Narasaka-san’s place, so I had a vague idea already. And it has a small area to keep my bike safe and secured, as well. After hopping on it, it didn’t take me much time to reach the area close to Narasaka-san’s home. I opened up the map and zoomed in. After looking to my left and right, I spotted the name of a company on a large green billboard that matched up with the map I had on me. Thanks to that, I managed to pinpoint my location.

From that point onwards, I continued to push my bike instead of riding it. The sidewalk alongside this narrow street was so bumpy that my bike bounced up and down the entire way. Thankfully, it only took me a few minutes to reach the flat in question. I parked my bike at the designated location she had mentioned in her message and headed inside.

Before ringing the doorbell, however, I instead opted to first send her a LINE message. I’m hoping that she’s home right now, but I’d be genuinely lost if someone else from her family answered the intercom. Luckily, there was no need to worry in that regard. Before I got a response on LINE, I spotted Ayase-san and Narasaka-san walking toward the building from the opposite side of the street. The door of the front entrance opened and they approached me.

Ayase-san was wearing a denim skirt with a fluffy cardigan and a loose knitted sweater that hung off one shoulder below that. It was an outfit very much like Ayase-san. I did feel a bit worried she’d be cold during this cold weather. She spotted me and gently waved her hand. Narasaka-san went above and beyond as always, waving her hands like those people who direct planes across the airport. All of her gestures look so much like…I don’t know, a small animal.

“Did you wait long~?”

“Nope, I just got here.” I also waved my hand and looked around.

As far as I could see, the two of them were the only ones who had showed up so far.

“Now, let’s get this started! Into the elevator with you two!”

Huh? Hold on. Something isn’t right.

“Where’s everybody else?”

“Hm?”

Why are you looking at me with a confused expression that practically says ‘What are you talking about~?’, huh? I’m the one who’s baffled here.

“The other people you invited…”

“Nobody else is coming~ I just invited the two of you.”

“Just the two of… Ayase-san and I? Why?”

“Err, cause I felt like it?”

I’m not accepting that as an answer. What kind of explanation is that?

“Come on, come on, we shouldn’t be talking out here, it’s cold.”

“R-Right…” I was unsure of what to even say, so I looked over at Ayase-san in a plea for help, but she just looked away.

Wait, did she…know about this? I was so focused on Ayase-san’s expression that I completely missed the short murmur from Narasaka-san that quickly vanished into empty air.

We got off the elevator and arrived in front of a door with a welcome mat greeting us. She took out a key from her pocket and opened the door.

“Okay, come on in. There’s no need to be polite. Make yourselves at home.”

“Maaya, can I use these slippers here?”

“Ah, yeah. You can have these, Asamura-kun.”

I nodded and slipped into the slippers that had a bear motif on them. After we walked through the narrow hallway leading up from the entrance, we reached the living room and kitchen. My first impression was that it was quite spacious. It’s built like the average apartment, mostly the same as my own home.

“We’re heading over here today!” Narasaka-san said, opening up a door with her left hand.

“We’re not staying in the living room?” Ayase-san asked, sounding oddly confused.

“It’s just us three, after all,” Narasaka-san nonchalantly responded.

Wait, so we’ll be in Narasaka-san’s room? I was more than just bewildered. When I thought about a girl’s room, I felt cold sweat running down my back. Ever since Ayase-san and I became step-siblings, I’ve tried my hardest to not be conscious of her room at home, even looking away from the door when it was closed.

And yet, Narasaka-san showed virtually no hesitation as she guided us into her room. Right as she opened the door to storm inside, Ayase-san grabbed her sleeve to stop her, closing the door once more.

“Maaya, this isn’t going to bite you back later, is it?”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“Well…I’m fine with it, but Asamura-kun’s with us, remember? Are you okay with him just waltzing inside?”

“Errm…” Narasaka-san put one finger on her chin, staring up at the ceiling as she delved into the realm of thought. “I was a good girl and made sure to hide all of the adult books I could find in the drawer, I cleaned up any fresh underwear I had lying around, and I put my uniform into the closet, so it should be fine.”

With this large number of bombshells dropped on me, I immediately opted to empty my mind and thoughts. I am nothingness. Void. The void is me, and I am the void. I didn’t hear anything just now. How does any of that make you a ‘good girl,’ though?

“Y-You dummy! Keep your voice down!”

“I’m not saying it in front of my brothers, so no sweat.”

“That’s the least amount of common sense I expect from you!”

“So what’s the problem, then?”

“Like…is it safe?”

“You’re such a worrywart, really! It’ll be totes fine. There’s no need to be scared.”

“That line alone has only made me more terrified!” Ayase-san sighed and removed her hand from the door, allowing Narasaka-san to open it once more. “Sorry for intruding…” Ayase-san mumbled and stepped inside, with me following closely behind.

The room was about 10 square meters with a bed next to the window. Along the left side of her wall was what seemed to be her studying desk. That much I could tell without having to ogle at every small detail. I simply minded my own business and attempted not to stare too much in the advent that something was still poking out from anywhere. Absit omen! I chanted an ancient proverb to calm my flustered self. This particular one was against snow, as I’d rather not see Ayase-san getting buried by a mountain of snow. Well, I have no confirmation if this chant actually works with a massive avalanche that could bury a person alive.

“Wow.” Ayase-san let out a voice of admiration. “So you do keep it clean.”

“If I don’t, my brothers will just have a bad example to live by.”

That makes sense. She really is an older sister at heart.

“Come on, have a seat.”

She placed three cushions around a round low table, urging Ayase-san and I to enter the room. She was the first to sit down, with the two of us following suit. Ah, Narasaka-san sat on the cushion closest to the door. Right as Ayase-san and I had taken a seat, she immediately shot up again, saying “I’ll go grab some drinks,” and leaving the room instantly. As I thought, she chose this position to best treat her visitors. At this rate, we’ll be the ones taken care of, even though this is her special day.

“It doesn’t really feel like a birthday party, huh?” Ayase-san commented.

“Then again, it’s not like we can just walk around like we own the place…”

“Yep…”

We were both a bit bewildered and unsure of what to do. Narasaka-san swiftly returned with a 1.5-liter bottle of tea, as well as three cups.

“All right, then let’s get this party started!”

“Again, stop trying to worry about hospitality and have a seat.” Ayase-san grabbed the girl’s hand and shoved her down onto the cushion.

“But it’s the host’s job to look after their visitors, right?”

“At least for today, that logic doesn’t work. It’s your birthday, so relax a bit!”

Narasaka-san made a dissatisfied pout, but Ayase-san was clearly in the right here. That being said, I’m in no position to press my own opinion, I should just leave this to Ayase-san.

“Stuff like this happens all the time. It’s not a big deal~”

“It is! Here.” Ayase-san slid a plastic bag across the table.

“Hm? Wazzat? It’s not a present, is it?”

“We haven’t eaten dinner yet, so it’s just a small snack.”

Narasaka-san opened the plastic bag and pulled out a white box that contained three small cakes. Ayase-san had apparently bought them at the cake shop near the train station. She hadn’t planned on this at first, but coming with nothing at all would’ve made her uncomfortable, so she bought them in a hurry. At least that’s what she said. I see. That’s what she went off to do before coming here. I should pay for my share later. The slices were a shortcake, a mont blanc, and a cheesecake. It was a clever idea so that everybody could eat one slice without having to sit one out.

“Ohh, it looks delish!”

“Of course. Sadly, I don’t have any candles.”

“Cool, I’ll grab some plates and forks!”

“Again, stay down. There’s no need to go overboard with the hospitality.”

“Hmph.”

Narasaka-san sat back down again, and her birthday party truly began. I know I grumbled about this before, but… it really is just the three of us, huh?

Before we started eating the cake slices, we decided to give her our presents. I gave her the mug from the anime she liked so much. It didn’t have a giant picture of a character imprinted on it, so it should be just fine to use at home. She accepted the mug gladly. Seems like she’s happy, at least. Ayase-san followed up with a teaspoon and cake fork set. They had flower motifs on the handles, and the tip looked like a crown.

“Ooo, it’s so cute!”

“Sadly it isn’t genuine silver.”

“This is more than enough! Thanks, Saki! Now we can eat the cakes properly!”

“I didn’t think that far ahead. There are only two pairs, too.”

“Ah, I’m fine. I’ll use the one they sent with the box.” I grabbed the plastic fork from inside the cake box.

“I’d like to eat with the new fork,” Narasaka-san said and picked up the fork.

“You should probably wash them first, no?”

“Good idea. I’ll do that real quick. You’ll allow me to do that much, right?”

“Well…”

“Okie-dokie! Be right back!”

Narasaka-san left the room to wash the tableware, quickly returning after a minute or two. In the end, she’s still the person caring for us…Well, old habits must die hard, I guess. She’s been an older sister for basically her whole life, I guess. We filled our cups with tea and made a toast. As we started eating the cake, Narasaka-san’s mother came in to greet us with some sweets in hand. She really resembled Narasaka-san a lot, and she seemed like a gentle and caring mother. Of course, we had no reason to turn down said sweets, and I started getting slightly worried we wouldn’t leave room for dinner later.

That reminds me, my old man mentioned he’d be coming home late after eating dinner with his coworkers. And Akiko-san won’t be coming home until late at night, so we won’t have to worry about preparing dinner for tonight. At the very least, my old man seems to have survived another crunch at his workplace.

Once we finished eating everything, Ayase-san and Narasaka-san started talking about that one time we went to the pool together. I was a bit nervous at first, but I finally managed to relax a bit, and I placed my hands behind the cushion, simply listening to their conversation… only for my back to bump into something, which made me jolt forward. The room was pretty small, and it had a bed, a study desk, a low table, bookcases, and so on, so I didn’t have much room to stretch out.

I took a glance at the small box I had bumped into, which looked like it was just a container for holding things. I was relieved to see I didn’t just break something super expensive. I looked around some more and spotted some familiar-looking anime figurines. That supported Ayase-san’s statement that Narasaka-san was actually into anime quite a lot. Though I guess those aren’t technically figurines. They’re more like robots, right? That thought helped me remember instantly. Last summer, Maru mentioned he’d be sending the same type of stuff to his online friend. I guess this must be pretty popular, after all.

“On the topic of birthdays, yours is coming up next in December, right Saki?” Narasaka-san’s voice brought me back to reality.

I didn’t even begin to notice the topic changing like that.

“Hey, hey, Asamura-kun, when’s your b-day? Since you’re technically her older brother, it should be before Saki’s, yeah?” Narasaka-san shoved her face towards me as she asked.

“Also in December.”

“Huh? You both have birthdays in the same month?”

“Mine’s a week after his,” Ayase-san said.

“Oh, really? So you’re the older brother by a week?”

Now that she mentioned it, I guess that’s right. A week after me, she’ll turn the same age. Then again, we’re not in grade school anymore, so I won’t feel much more like an adult just because of one week. Nor would I want to be treated that way.

“Well, on paper,” I said.

“But I bet you must be happy to have a cute girl like Saki call you ‘Onii-chan’, right?”

“Maaya, drop it already,” Ayase-san grumbled with a straight face.

“There’s no need to be embarrassed~”

“I’m telling you to stop because it makes me uncomfortable.”

“Then…what about ‘Onii-san’?”

“That’s no different from before.”

“Then, then…as my final guess… ‘Nii-san’?”

This isn’t a guessing game—is what Ayase-san and I probably wanted to retort with—but we had no chance to do so. Instead, we both froze up. The mannerism and tone Narasaka-san used made it sound like it had come straight out of Ayase-san’s mouth. For a moment, I thought I was hearing things. As things are now, Ayase-san only calls me Nii-san in front of our parents, so Narasaka-san bringing that up now really shook my composure.

“Sto…p…”

“Huuuh? That much should be fine, no? You’re his actual sister. Or… do you already call him that?”

“Asamura-kun is Asamura-kun. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“But that’s so boring~”

“And what does that matter? Enough about this, already!”

CLAP, Ayase-san clapped her hands together. Narasaka-san seemed evidently perturbed and annoyed that she didn’t get to have her fun, only to immediately flash a bright smile that made it look like she had already forgotten.

“Since you’re here celebrating my birthday with me, we’ve got to plan a huge party for the both of you in December!”

What does ‘huge party’ even entail? I’m starting to feel a bit worried over here. I’m really not too fond of the idea of holding a birthday party in the first place. After all…

“When your birthday is in December, you tend to just combine it with Christmas.”

I spoke from my own experience up to this point, and Ayase-san quickly agreed. I had a hunch that that would be the case. As for the situation of my family at that time, a birthday was something I looked forward to. After all, at least on that day, my parents wouldn’t fight. So if my birthday was combined with Christmas, I would have no complaints… However, I now admitted that it felt like a bit of a waste. Ayase-san nodded, showing that she probably had gone through something similar.

While we were discussing that, I heard a faint creak from the door. When I looked over, I spotted a young boy, probably still in kindergarten, peeking inside the room. Narasaka-san turned around at about the same time.

“Hey, I told you I’d be spending time with my friends. Go play with Mom for a while!”

She said, but the boy kept staring at us. Or more accurately, when you followed his gaze, he seemed to be looking at the sweets on the table. Narasaka-san seemed to notice this as well, and she calmly shook her head.

“Nope. We’re going to have dinner soon.”

“Not fair…”

“Oh, come on!” Narasaka-san got up and trotted towards the boy. “You’ll get your own share later, but dinner comes first, okay?”

“Buuuuuut!”

Despite him throwing a temper tantrum, Narasaka-san remained calm and spoke with a gentle voice. Her younger brother still didn’t seem too satisfied, but after being patted on the back several times, he reluctantly left.

“Off you go.”

“Snaaacks!”

“After you’ve had dinner.”

“It’s not fair that only you get them, Maa-neechan!”

“Hey now! Is this the mouth that keeps on complaining, huuuh?”

“Oufies!”

Narasaka-san dragged the boy out of the room while indulging in some casual sibling banter. After that, I heard a few other complaints from outside the room. How many brothers does she even have? At least it’s gotten a lot quieter now.

“Sorry about that. I thought he was busy with other stuff.”

“No worries.” Ayase-san shook her head at Narasaka-san’s apology, and I nodded along.

“He’s got energy, all right,” I said.

“He’s one of the smaller ones. He’s basically the youngest.”

From the sounds of it, there was quite an age gap between Narasaka-san and her younger brothers.

“It’s tough work taking care of so many brothers~”

So she said, but she clearly seemed to be enjoying herself. It’s obvious that she deeply cares for her brothers, and I think that’s important for a healthy family relationship. That reminds me, siblings that are close in age usually have some kind of rivalry for who can get more affection from their parents, but when the age gap is far greater, like in this case, it turns rivals more into family members that need protection. Basically, she’s treating them almost like her own child.

“I bet you’ll be a great mother in the future, Narasaka-san.”

She definitely wouldn’t neglect her children to run off somewhere. I had meant my words as nothing but praise, but Narasaka-san gave me an exhausted look for whatever reason.

“Asamura-kun, you should only say that to Saki, okay?”

“Maaya, what are you talking about?”

Huh? Only towards Ayase-san…? It took me a moment to realize how my words could be twisted from ‘You’ll be a great mother’ to mean ‘I’d be lucky to have you as my wife.’ I guess I really shouldn’t be saying that to Narasaka-san, and instead… Wait, no.

“Huh? You don’t want him to say that?”

That’s not the problem here.

“That’s clearly not the problem here.”

It seemed as if Ayase-san agreed with me.

“You don’t want to be a mother? You could become a father instead, too.” Narasaka-san asked Ayase-san.

“I have nothing but respect for my mother, but that’s not the point here. I’ve never once even thought about that. Also, there’s no way I can become a father.”

I mean, it depends if you look at it from a biological standpoint or from the social construct of what being a father entails.

“Ah, understand.”

“…What is it this time?”

“You wanna be the son-in-law!”

“How would you even reach that conclusion?” Narasaka-san was met with a voice cold as ice, along with a stern gaze.

I have no idea how much she knows that she’s able to tease us this way. Ayase-san shook her head and sighed.

“Why am I being tortured on Maaya’s birthday?”

Isn’t that because Narasaka-san is continuing this comedy skit? Narasaka-san noticed my gaze and started sulking.

“Keep staring some more and you’ll start to drill holes into my body, Asamura-oniichan. See? I’m not scary at all~” She said, pointing her small index finger towards me.

What exactly am I supposed to do with this?

“It’s okay, I won’t feel a thing even if you bite it.”

“I won’t, so there’s no need to worry.”

“Right, because Saki’s with us.”

“I wouldn’t do it even without her around.”

“What are you on about, Maaya?”

It seemed like Ayase-san was blissfully unaware. I dodged a bullet right there. This, however, wasn’t the end of Narasaka-san’s teasing. I’m genuinely impressed Ayase-san managed to keep her poker face during the entire afternoon.

Since it was about time for Narasaka-san’s father to come home, Ayase-san and I decided to depart from the Narasaka household. From what she said, she’ll be celebrating with her family after this. He’d probably prepared a huge cake with candles on top, which will be complemented by her mother’s cooking to make it a merry celebration. And with her younger brothers sitting around her, I can only imagine them being all smiles and happiness.

“You’ve got such a happy family. Everyone’s on such good terms.” Ayase-san commented as we left the flat.

Narasaka-san seemed slightly bewildered by this comment, though.

“What are you talking about?”

“Huh?”

“Saki, that’s my line.” Narasaka-san formed her hand into the shape of a gun, pointing it at Ayase-san.

Then she slightly moved her hand to point it at me, next. Without creating a sound, she fired an imaginary bullet as her hand recoiled.

“You’re pretty close, right?”

“Seriously, what is it now?”

“Oh? Maybe you don’t want me to say it? That you’re siblings on such good terms?”

“Wait, wha…?”

“I see, I get it. You’d rather have me say ‘lovey-dovey married couple,’ yeah?”

“W-Who’s a married couple…?!”

“Your mom and Asamura-kun’s dad, right?”

“Ack…”

I think this may have been the first time I’ve seen Ayase-san truly defeated like that.

“But they are, right? You mentioned it before.”

“I-I guess so.”

The reason Ayase-san’s cheeks looked a bit pink most likely wasn’t because of the cold breeze blowing against us after we stepped outside. Especially when you looked at Narasaka-san, who couldn’t hide her bright grin.

“Hmmmm? Who’d you think I was talking about?”

“I’m going home. See you tomorrow.”

“Okieees! Bye-bye! Escort her home, Asamura-kun!”

Seeing that Narasaka-san knew when to stop herself from teasing made it clear that she valued her friendship with Ayase-san. The wise royal clown knows how to make the jokes hit home without letting his head roll, as they say.

“Have a great rest of your birthday, then.” I bowed slightly towards Narasaka-san and trotted after Ayase-san.

“Geez, all that girl knows how to do is tease people,” Ayase-san grumbled to herself.

“But, you know…”

Ayase-san looked toward me.

“If we looked like a good pair of siblings, maybe our current distance is perfect?”

“That… makes sense, but…”

On the way home, Ayase-san did some more grumbling, complaining, being flustered, and all of it was related to the conversations she had with her good friend. It was an endless loop of ‘curse that Maaya’ until we got home. To me, they just looked like really good friends. How beautiful it is to have good friends, as Muyanokouji Saneatsu once said. He’s an influential author of Japanese literary history, but I haven’t read much of his work, to be honest.

It’s not like that mattered right now, though, because I myself was happy that Ayase-san and Narasaka-san got along so well. It’s the kind of joy you feel when you see someone you care about getting along with others. The same goes for best friends, good friends, and even when looking at married couples. I thought about my old man and Akiko-san, and then glanced at Ayase-san’s profile. They’re getting along more than well enough to not fight in front of their children.

I thought about all the possibilities that could happen in the distant future. However, an average high school student like me didn’t have any particular future in mind. My body involuntarily shuddered from the cold, and I heard the leaves of the trees above us rustling in the wind.