Outside, the storm raged, with occasional deep rumbles of thunder.
Listening to the pleasant sound of the pouring rain, Kyoka placed the closed book on the nightstand.
Then she lifted the thin blanket, sat sideways on the edge of the bed, then reached out, took Otome's hands that were lightly clasped between her legs, and gently pulled her to sit beside her.
"Are you here to ask about Fuyumi?"
Before Otome could speak, she had already guessed her purpose, making the latter freeze for a second, lowering her gaze and nodding lightly:
"Mm… I want to know what Aunt Kyoka plans for Fuyumi and Sister Yuka, and Sister Koharu… whether you intend for them to…"
She didn't say it too bluntly, but Kyoka understood what she wanted to say.
That she already knew about the conversation Kyoka had had with Fuyumi.
Hearing her words, Kyoka wasn't surprised; instead, she stroked the back of Otome's smooth hand, then met her slightly anxious and nervous eyes and smiled.
"It doesn't seem like you heard this from Fuyumi… so you came to confirm with me?"
Her intimate attitude and words greatly eased the unease in Otome's heart.
Since Auntie Kyoka knew why she was here and was still so kind to her, the chance of successfully asking her not to separate her from Fuyumi was much higher.
Thinking about it, Otome's expression gradually relaxed as she faced her gentle, smiling eyes, and nodded.
"Mm, Rinka told me… Fuyumi had mentioned it to Rinka before."
"I see…"
Kyoka murmured, then asked.
"Then what do you think, Otome?"
"What I think…"
Sakuragi Otome bit her lip and said:
"Aunt Kyoka… can you not separate us?"
She knew that confronting an adult head-on would lead to nothing good…
Even though she was reluctant, she had no choice but to compromise.
So after those words, she continued.
"As long as… as long as you don't separate us, that's enough."
Her voice was soft, light, with a slight tremble—almost pleading.
To be honest, Kyoka had never thought of separating them; after all, she knew how possessive her lover was.
And considering that this girl was his first one, it was impossible to do so.
But hearing that soft, pleading tone coupled with that vulnerability on the girl's face, even if she had such a thought, it would have wavered already.
Because, from Otome's words,
Kyoka realized that Fuyumi had already completely won her over.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have used the word "separate."
This naughty boy… he works fast.
With a mental sigh, Kyoka reached out, brushed the hair from Otome's ear, and gently caressed her cheek.
"Not separate you… Does that mean Otome is willing to accept Yuka and the others?"
"Mm…"
Of course, she had to accept it.
If she didn't, this family would definitely become a chaotic mess.
Fuyumi, caught in the middle, would also be in a dilemma.
She believed in her lover's feelings for her... But Sister Yuka, Sister Koharu, and Aunt Kyoka's feelings for him were also strong.
It was really uncertain who would win or lose, but no matter who won in the end, no one would be happy.
Furthermore, setting aside feelings, she was at an absolute disadvantage.
On the other side, there were at least three people, plus Aunt Kyoka, an elder, holding down the fort.
On her side, there was only Rinka, who liked to slack off.
How could she win?
Therefore, from every perspective, her backing down and compromising was the best choice.
Although somewhat unwilling, with Rinka as a precedent, it wasn't too difficult for the girl to accept.
At the end of the day, they were sisters who grew up together.
Although she and Yuka had some minor friction, that was just slight jealousy; it didn't affect their relationship.
They were all family, so there wouldn't be any estrangement in how they got along.
Comforting herself in this way, Sakuragi Otome raised her eyes to meet Kyoka's gaze:
"Mm..."
To be honest, Kyoka didn't know when Fuyumi had won Otome over, but it must have been earlier than the three of them.
So, facing the reluctantly compromising girl, she could only show an apologetic smile:
"I'm sorry for this, Otome. I was too despicable. I shouldn't have interfered in your affairs. If Otome has any resentment, you can direct it at me."
Sakuragi Otome certainly had resentment...
After all, Aunt Kyoka was essentially helping her daughters Yuka and Koharu cheat.
This was very unfair to the pink-haired girl, who was competing fairly with all her love and already had one foot on the finish line.
But to be honest, her resentment wasn't very strong...
Because the main reason Sister Yuka and Sister Koharu weren't acting now was that they didn't know about her and Fuyumi's romantic development.
If they knew that she was dating Fuyumi—
Putting aside Sister Koharu... Given Yuka's personality, it was not impossible for her to directly force Fuyumi to close the gap.
Although they could be careful and keep it a secret from the two of them... Sister Yuka's patience wasn't good, and she wouldn't wait indefinitely.
One day she would be unable to hold back.
Aunt Kyoka had merely brought that day forward and given her a legitimate reason.
Although it was somewhat unfair, love itself never had anything to do with fairness or unfairness.
Didn't she also use her advantage of being close to the boy when she was in school to steal him?
Even though Fuyumi was the one who initiated it… and made the girl unable to hold back.
So even though Sakuragi Otome had resentment in her heart, it wasn't as great as Kyoka imagined.
Clasping her soft hand, which was no less soft than theirs, Otome smiled and shook her head:
"Aunt Kyoka's choice was not wrong… Whether it was for the company's consideration or Sister Yuka and Sister Koharu's happiness, choosing Fuyumi was only natural."
"It's already good enough that Aunt Kyoka didn't reject or dislike Otome."
"And, you know, Fuyumi, Sister Yuka, Sister Koharu, and I grew up together. For both sides, we are like family. It's not like I won't be able to accept it."
"…"
It's just that... listening to Otome's words, Kyoka felt even more guilty.
But when she wanted to offer compensation, she couldn't say it for a while.
Firstly, saying so would feel too distant, and secondly, she couldn't find a way to compensate Otome for the time being.
After all, not only Yuka and Koharu—even she was.
Well... matters of the heart… how could they be compensated with ordinary things?
She could only keep this matter firmly in her heart.
…
Click~
Hearing the sound of the doorknob turning, Okino Rinka, who was lying in bed, quickly sent a message to Fuyumi: "Sister Otome is back."
Then she slid the screen and switched the chat interface to a short video.
After Otome entered the room, the girl belatedly paused the short video and sat up from the bed. "Sister Otome, how did it go with Aunt Kyoka?"
After closing the door, Sakuragi Otome slowly walked to the bed, sat on the edge, and stroked Rinka's soft hair, saying:
"Aunt Kyoka won't separate me from Fuyumi…"
After briefly explaining her rough plans for living together in the future to Rinka, she continued:
"Rinka, you must help Sister Otome keep your Brother Fuyumi's heart."
Thinking that Sakuragi Otome meant for her to offer advice and stand on her side when it came to choosing sides, Okino Rinka nodded without much thought.
"I will definitely help Sister Otome!"
After patting her chest confidently as a guarantee, the "dog-headed strategist" began to offer advice to Sakuragi Otome.
"If we live together in the future, it's fine for us, but on Sister Yuka's side, there will be an unfamiliar older sister, right?"
Before coming back, Sakuragi Otome had asked Aunt Kyoka about this, so she knew the girl's name.
"Oh, she's the daughter of Aunt Kyoka's collaborator. She's a second-year at Seishin Academy, named Kurashiki Reina."
"Is she pretty?" Okino Rinka asked, blinking her eyes.
Aunt Kyoka's phone had a photo of that girl, and Sakuragi Otome had just seen it.
So she had nothing else to say about that girl's appearance, only one phrase: "very pretty."
This was not a compliment, but merely a statement of fact.
That blonde girl was indeed very pretty.
Having not seen a photo of that girl, Okino Rinka didn't know how pretty she was.
However, seeing Sister Otome's serious expression, she figured she wouldn't be bad.
In that case… she could play her role even better.
Moving her small, soft behind, the girl sat beside Sakuragi Otome and said to her, "In that case, don't we have much of an advantage?"
"There are three people on the other side."
"…"
Sakuragi Otome, sitting on the edge of the bed, moved her lips but said nothing.
Although they would live together,
during the process of living together, friction would inevitably arise, such as intimate moments with a lover.
To attract Fuyumi's attention, they would definitely use any means short of completely falling out.
Among them, the simplest, most direct, and most effective way was to stick close together.
Hmm… sticking together in a physical sense.
After all, her lover did have an inhuman physique.
That girl named Kurashiki Reina—one didn't even need to think to know she was on Sister Yuka's side.
Three against two… Rinka also liked to slack off, so the pressure on her was indeed not small.
Seeing Sister Otome's worried expression, Okino Rinka shook her arm to get her attention and then said, "Then, Sister Otome, what do you think? Should we bring Chifuyu-nee in?"
"Chifuyu?" Not understanding why Rinka would suggest involving Chifuyu, Sakuragi Otome looked at her with a puzzled expression.
Meeting her gaze, Rinka continued speaking to herself. "Yes, if Chifuyu-nee joins, Sister Otome's pressure will be much less… Otherwise, Sister Otome will be fighting alone…"
"Rinka's words were so strange..."
Sakuragi Otome frowned and said, puzzled, "Chifuyu… doesn't she have a lover? Do you mean she should betray her lover? How can that be!"
"And I'm not fighting alone either; aren't you here?"
Somewhat confused about what Sister Otome was saying, Okino Rinka stared with wide, blank eyes and said,
"Does Chifuyu-nee have a lover? Isn't that just her excuse?"
"I'm only responsible for thinking of ideas for Sister Otome. As for the hard work… could it really be my turn?"
"…"
It felt like there was a misunderstanding between them.
Sakuragi Otome frowned, staring at Rinka's small face, which was equally full of doubt, and remained silent.
After a while, both of them sorted out their thoughts… she spoke.
"Rinka, why would you think we could bring Chifuyu in? This is clearly our own family matter…"
No... hearing her words, Rinka realized something was wrong and murmured:
"Didn't Sister Otome ask Brother Fuyumi to find Chifuyu-nee…? I even advised you not to talk nonsense, that Brother Fuyumi would take it seriously…"
"I…"
Sakuragi Otome was about to say, "When did I ask…", when the latter half of Rinka's sentence made her freeze in place.
At the same time, she recalled the phrase, "Actually, I don't really care if Fuyumi finds other people…"
And Okino Rinka also understood everything from Sakuragi Otome's astonished reaction and her earlier words.
It turned out those words were said by Sister Otome to her.
Sister Otome's original intention was for her to be with Brother Fuyumi.
But she mistakenly thought that Sister Otome was asking Brother Fuyumi to find other people, and that Sister Otome was too embarrassed to tell him directly, so she asked her to convey it…
The result was this…
The misunderstanding had grown big…
Thinking about it, the girl's small face wrinkled as she looked at the stunned pink-haired girl with a wronged expression.
"Sister Otome… I, I'm sorry…"
Having sorted out the situation, Sakuragi Otome took a deep breath, reached out, pinched her brow, then looked at Rinka, whose face was full of guilt. "So Chifuyu originally didn't have a boyfriend, or rather, her boyfriend is Fuyumi?"
To be honest, Okino Rinka wasn't too clear about the situation over there, but with Brother Fuyumi's shrewdness, winning over Chifuyu-nee, who looked a bit airheaded, would be too easy.
So…
Okino Rinka silently shifted her gaze away from the girl. "Not at first… Now…"
"…"
Except for the very beginning, when she had a slight doubt,
Otome never thought Chifuyu would be involved with Fuyumi and only assumed they were very good friends.
After all, Chifuyu had a boyfriend.
But she didn't expect them to be this close… If it were just that, it would have been fine… she could still vent her anger on her lover.
Because he was unfaithful, he would be the one who wronged her.
But… this was also something she had personally brought about…
This was truly… like having fire in her heart with nowhere to vent.
Not knowing what to say, Sakuragi Otome's chest rose and fell as she asked, "Then how did you come to think I was referring to someone else? I clearly said it to you."
"Because… because…"
Not knowing whether to speak,
Okino Rinka's wandering eyes caught a glimpse of Sister Otome's gloomy expression, and she straightened up with a jolt, quickly saying,
"That day, didn't I say I was going back to get a book…?"
Without speaking, Sakuragi Otome nodded, signaling her to continue.
"Sorry, Brother Fuyumi… I had no choice…"
Pressing her dry lips together, Okino Rinka continued:
"On the way, I saw Brother Fuyumi and Chifuyu-nee. They were walking together, looking very intimate, somewhat unlike ordinary friends…"
Reserving a little bit of the truth, Okino Rinka cautiously glanced at Sister Otome's expression and said, "After I got home, Sister Otome suddenly told me that she didn't mind Brother Fuyumi finding other people."
"I thought Sister Otome was saying that because she had also found out about their relationship… but you were too embarrassed to tell Brother Fuyumi directly… so, so you wanted to use me…"
Knowing the whole story of how Rinka misunderstood her words, Sakuragi Otome took a few deep breaths, causing the raised fabric of her clothes to bounce up and down, then said, "Then what about you? What happened later? Even though you misunderstood, how did you end up with Fuyumi?"
"Ah?"
Completely surprised that Sister Otome knew about her situation, Okino Rinka's eyes widened in astonishment.
. . .