Chapter 31.2

She didn’t even let me prepare my heart first. She pulled me by the arm and we headed for the living room.

All of my family has already gathered there.

As soon as I entered, my legs froze and I couldn’t move. I moved only my gaze to scan the whole room.

My mom and dad were sitting at a table for four. My younger brother, Mei, was sprawled on the sofa a little further away.

My sister let go of my arm as I stopped moving, then walked over to mom and dad.

“…Err.”

I have something to talk about. That’s what I said today to gather everyone here. But I didn’t think it would be this fast.

It was my fault that I didn’t specify the time, but I didn’t expect my dad to take a day off work… I thought we would talk at night.

And yet, it was actually so soon.

I wonder what should I talk about first.

I hadn’t even decided on that yet. I couldn’t even look at them straight in the face.

Because I usually kept my head down even when we have a meal together. I also rarely left my room much even when I was at home.

…But, I have to talk about it properly today.

I have decided to do so, and I have taken the trouble to gather everyone here.

I thought so, but the words couldn’t come out of my mouth.

“—Hey, the atmosphere is too heavy.”

Before I could say anything, it was my younger brother, Mei, who spoke up.

He stood up from the sofa and stretched his body. Then he strode towards me.

“Big bro, congrats. I heard you got a pair.”

“Huh…?”

He circled his arms around my shoulder firmly.

Mei is two years younger than me, but he was already taller than me. He also had a good physique, so I’d stagger if he put his weight on me.

“…Why?”

“Hm? Isn’t it something to be celebrated?”

Mei tilted his head seeing my puzzled reaction.

He wasn’t wrong… But, I never expected he would say something like that. My mind couldn’t catch up with the unexpected words.

As I froze, this time my mom approached me. Behind her, dad also stood up and stared at me.

Mei moved away from me, as if to give space for mom.

“…I don’t know how to talk about something like this.”

My mom who was standing in front of me held my hand.

She was shorter than me. She held my hand and looked up at me.

“I heard that your partner is a good person from Kazuki. But… I’m still worried that it might be too fast for you to become a pair with him… Sou, are you okay?”

“Huh…?”

“Will that person take good care of you?”

She held my hand so tightly that it hurts.

My mom who looked so worried contorted her face, looking about to cry anytime soon.

“Yuugo— said that he’ll cherish me. I… also promised that I’ll cherish him.”

“…So he’s someone you want to cherish.”

“Yeah.”

I answered just like what I was asked.

But I still didn’t really understand what was going on. I also still didn’t know why my mom asked something like that to me, or if that was the right answer.

Mom looked back at dad.

Dad who was standing behind her then approached me. He stood next to me, put his hand on my head, and ruffled my hair intensely.

It was the gesture that he would do since I was little, when he praised me.

“Sou, congratulations. I’m glad you’ve found a good partner.”

I suddenly realized it from dad’s words.

Were they happy that I have a pair? Did this mean that they approved of me and Yuugo?

I thought they would be against it… I felt a bit surprised at how easily they accepted it.

“…You’re not against it?”

“I would never do that. That person is the only pair for you, right? If he were to hurt you I’d be happy to punch him, though… He’s not like that, right?”

“Punch…?”

Mom, who was shorter than me, said she would punch Yuugo— For a moment, I was taken aback by her words.

I imagined Yuugo’s face as he got punched, and I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Now wasn’t the time for that, but I couldn’t hold back my laughter.

“I finally get to see your laughing face after a long time.”

“That’s right. It’s been so long.”

Mom nodded in response to dad’s gentle voice.

Come to think of it, I think I rarely laughed in front of my family.

Maybe it was because I’ve been subconsciously suppressing all my emotions so that I wouldn’t unleash the irrational anger that has always been simmering inside me.

Dad also smiled as I laughed. So did mom. There were a few tears at the corner of her eyes.

Mei and my sister were also smiling.

It felt like it had been a long time since I had seen my whole family laughing like this.

*

{So, you reconciled with them?}

“It’s not really reconciling… In the end, I think I might be the one who had built up a wall between us. My family hasn’t changed at all.”

It wasn’t my family who changed, it was me.

My family was just a little confused, but I distanced myself and built a wall between us… I was the one who made the awkwardness worse.

My sister seemed to be aware of this.

She said she didn’t say anything because she knew I wouldn’t listen to her even if she forced me. Because that side of me is similar to her.

She also said that she and Dr. Kazuki were just watching over me to make sure I didn’t do anything reckless.

That’s right, before I met Yuugo, I might not even listen to advice like that. I’m just as stubborn as my sister in that respect.

“When I tried talking about it, it was just like usual. But they were surprised when I said your name. It seems like my mom is your fan.”

{My fan?}

“It’s really surprising, and you aren’t even a celebrity. But she said so. It was pretty crazy, she even had a collection of your pictures.”

My mother likes good-looking people after all.

She even bragged that she bought a business magazine even when she never read it, just because it had Yuugo’s pictures on the cover.

Well, I also took a picture of it with my phone, though.

{Now it feels like the bar has been raised for me to meet your parents.}

“Why is that?”

{What if your mom said that I’m different from her impression of me?”

I couldn’t stop my laughter as Yuugo said that seriously with a worried face.