Sasaki stood up and pushed open the half-closed bedroom door next to the TV.
Outside the window, the sky was dark and overcast.
Night had fallen earlier than usual, and the remaining light wasn't enough to illuminate the room.
Sasaki stepped inside and switched on the light.
Under the bright light appeared a room that gave off a very clean feeling, the kind of clean that comes from having very little furniture, making it easy to keep tidy.
There weren't many random items in the room.
A small branch-like bookshelf stood against the wall, every book spine neatly lined up and pressed tightly together.
On the desk beside the bed sat a pencil with red lettering, a black graphics tablet next to it, and several stacked sketchbook-like volumes.
The computer on the desk was already on; the screen displayed an illustration of a character from Sasaki's novel.
It looked close to fully completed.
After looking around for a few moments, Sasaki walked to the desk, moved the mouse, and began flipping through the illustrations Sister Akane had drawn.
The desk was small, and with pencils, notebooks, and other items scattered around, it was easy to knock things over while moving the mouse.
Sasaki reached out to catch the pencil that fell while he was flipping through the sketchbook, then looked down at the floor, searching for the eraser that had bounced who-knows-where.
After scanning around, he couldn't find it, so he glanced at the small trash can beside the desk.
Inside were only a few torn coffee packets — nothing else.
Confirming there was no eraser in the trash, he squatted down and checked under the desk, then under the bed.
Lifting the bedsheet that hung over the edge, Sasaki spotted the black eraser underneath.
If his eyesight hadn't been good enough…he wouldn't have missed it.
Bending down to grab the eraser, Sasaki suddenly noticed something stuffed between the bed slats.
Not sure what that C4-like object was, curiosity got the better of him, and he pulled it out as well.
Only after bringing it into the light did Sasaki realize it was a notebook wrapped in a black plastic bag.
"What the hell is this? A diary?"
Holding the notebook, the boy's eyes filled with confusion.
This had nothing to do with him, and he didn't want to pry into other people's privacy.
After guessing it might be a diary, Sasaki intended to put it back into the plastic bag.
But while doing so, he noticed there were also two sheets of paper inside.
Not just paper, they were hospital diagnostic reports.
Name: Sawamura Asato
Age: 24
Patient's self-reported condition:
No desire for happiness, no horny desires...
Diagnosis: Erectile dysfunction
Treatment plan: …
January 25, xxx6 & Attending Physician: Tamashima…
The most recent one was from January, the one Sasaki was currently looking at.
The other report was older, dated January 12, xxx1.
Squatting beside the bed and holding the two diagnostic sheets, Sasaki's expression turned strange.
With these two reports, the contents of that "diary" were no longer hard to guess.
It really was that diary"…
Had he sent it? Did he really send it? Sent it or not, sent it!
Sasaki shook the plastic bag to make sure nothing else was inside, then stared conflictedly at the diary in his hand.
Now that he already knew what it contained, would opening it still count as snooping?
Forget it. Snooping it is.
For Sister Akane's happiness, he needed accurate information.
After mentally preparing himself, Sasaki opened the door and called toward the two women still busy in the kitchen.
"Sister Ayumi, Sister Akane, how much longer until it's ready?"
"Ah? Fuyumi, are you hungry already? Just wait another ten minutes, oh~ It's almost done."
"Okay~"
Ten minutes was plenty of time to roughly flip through the diary.
Thinking about it, he closed the door, sat down at the desk, and opened Sawamura's diary.
The first page was dated xxx1… so he had been writing it for five years already.
As far as Sasaki knew, Sawamura Asato had only graduated from university one year ago… which meant this diary recorded his university life.
Calculating the timeline,
Sasaki lowered his gaze to the content.
xxx1 April 3: University life has begun. So exciting.
xxx1 June 20:Today I met that girl in the library… I wonder if I'll ever see her again…
xxx1 June 21:She came again today… That's really nice…
Was the girl Sawamura met actually Sister Akane?
From casual chats with Akane,
Sasaki knew they'd been together for almost three years now, but the dates in this diary… they were even earlier than when they first met…
A suspicion formed in his mind. Sasaki flipped forward a bit until he found the name Sawamura used for the girl he was recording.
xxx1 July 10:Today I finally got Takahashi-san's contact info… Should I ask her out tomorrow to hang out together…?
So Sister Akane wasn't his first love…
That was normal.
Sasaki didn't care much and kept flipping through the diary.
xxx2 March 3:Today, my first time with Takahashi wasn't good at all. It only lasted a short while; the erection wasn't very firm… I didn't even get in… Was it because I was nervous for my first time?"
xxx2 March 5:I tried again but… still no good. Takahashi-san seemed a little disappointed… Or am I imagining it?
xxx2 March 19:Took a few days off to rest… still no good…
xxx2 March 22:Looked it up online… This doesn't seem normal… should I go to the hospital to get it checked out...?
…March 25:I went to the hospital behind Takahashi-san's back for a check-up. Diagnosis: ▉▉▉▉▉▉"
Mm… Even though it was blacked out, looking at the diagnostic report he kept, it wasn't hard to guess what he censored…
Sasaki kept turning pages.
…May 5: "Takahashi-san broke up with me. She said being with me was boring… Why… I liked her so much…"
Mm… Sasaki had no comment on this one.
She liked playing games, but your hardware couldn't give her a fun experience, so she had to switch to a better console.
They were just normal boyfriend-girlfriend…
If she wanted to break up, there was nothing he could do.
But did Sawamura Asato really not understand why that girl dumped him?
Why didn't he hurry up and get treatment?
Sasaki glanced at the diagnostic report pinched between his fingers… then pressed his lips together and stayed silent.
Mm… Maybe he did get treatment… and it didn't work.
But if years of treatment still failed… didn't that mean it was incurable?
Then wouldn't Sister Akane basically be living as a widow without any sexual life?
This… so young and already… it just wasn't right.
With a sigh in his heart for Sister Akane's sake, Sasaki continued flipping through the diary.
Just as he suspected, Sawamura Asato's condition showed no sign of improving; if anything, it got worse.
xxx2 October 1:I have taken the medicine prescribed by the doctor for several courses of treatment, but there is still no improvement. But the doctor said my body is fine now, the problem might be psychological."
That made me think again of how Takahashi looked down on me…
…
xxx2 November 3:I went around all the red-light districts near campus. Couldn't find any of that 'man's confidence' the doctor talked about."
xxx2 November 5:The doctor told me that it might be because the girls' quality was poor and they couldn't help with treatment... What the doctor meant was that I need to find confidence from prettier girls?"
…
xxx3 November 1:I finally won over Himemiya Akane. I hope this can cure my problem. The doctor said I need to build a good relationship with my lover. When we do it… she'll encourage me… That's how confidence gets built…"
xxx3 November 21:Tried for the first time… still no good… Gotta be twice as good to Akane! Can't fail!
xxx3 November 22:Went to class, took Akane shopping, she was really happy…
…
The rest of the diary was mostly about school stuff.
Sasaki skimmed it quickly and flipped past.
By the time he finished reading the whole thing, his opinion of Sawamura had sunk to rock bottom.
Sure, from the diary's content, he treated Sister Akane extremely well; whatever she wanted, he gave.
But Sasaki didn't feel a shred of real sincerity in any of that "goodness".
The entire diary was obsessed with one thing: when will my erectile dysfunction get better?
This was straight-up using Sister Akane as a tool.
Sister Akane was someone the previous Sasaki had risked his fucking life to save, how could he let this bastard treat her like that!
He couldn't just stand by and watch Sister Akane jump into this fire pit…
Thinking about it, Sasaki quickly took photos of the diary and the diagnostic reports with his phone.
After capturing all the key parts.
He wrapped the diary and reports back in the black plastic bag and stuffed them exactly where he found them.
Not long after everything was put back, Sister Akane's voice called from outside the door.
"Fuyumi, dinner's ready~"
"Okay."
He answered, stepped out, and walked to the dining table.
Akane untied the apron that reached her thighs, revealing the fresh, youthful sailor uniform underneath, then stood behind Sasaki, tiptoed, and placed both hands on his shoulders:
"Sit properly, sit properly, time to eat~."
"How is it? All your favorites, right? When you were in the hospital, I specially asked Kyouka-nee.
Hope I didn't remember wrong."
She pulled the plates of food closer to Sasaki, then stood at his side, half-bending at the waist, smiling brightly as she asked.
Pressed down into the chair by her hands, Sasaki's line of sight unavoidably landed on her body.
Sister Akane and Sister Ayumi were sisters, so naturally their figures and faces had some similarities.
But they weren't twins, so the differences were pretty obvious.
Compared to Ayumi's sharp, pointed face, Akane's was smaller and rounder on top of her sister's base, giving her a stronger girlish sweetness.
But what clashed with that cute face was a body even fuller and more voluptuous than her sister's.
Those big, round, perky melons straining under the white blouse were bursting with youthful energy and life.
Since they were so close, Sasaki only had to lift his nose a little to catch her sweet fragrance mixed in with the smell of food.
Facing Sister Akane's complete lack of guard, he didn't even know what to say…
However, it only strengthened his resolve that he couldn't let Sawamura get what he wanted.
Did innocent people just deserve to be deceived?
What kind of fucked-up logic was that?
Meeting Sister Akane's smiling face, Sasaki opened his mouth with a soft "Ah~."
Having been taken care of by her big sister her whole life, Akane had never fed anyone before.
So, seeing him being so obedient, the girl felt full of anticipation and joy as she picked up chopsticks, grabbed a piece of tamagoyaki, and brought it to his mouth.
Her faintly pink palm cupped under the chopsticks.
Treating Sasaki like a little kid, she fed him while unconsciously opening her own small mouth with a cute "Ah~."
Seeing how adorably childish she looked, Sasaki swallowed the tamagoyaki and teased her with a smile. "Sister Akane, did you really study art in university? It feels more like you studied early childhood education. So gentle, like a young mother."
"Ah?"
Considering that she wasn't much older than him, suddenly being told that… a shy flush spread across Akane's milky-soft, plump cheeks:
"Fuyumi, you… really… I don't have any plans to be a mother yet~"
"I just mean you're a lot like one. Sister Akane will definitely be an amazing mom in the future."
Made unbearably shy by his words, Akane covered her face with both hands and turned away:
"If you keep saying stuff like that, big sis won't talk to you anymore."
"Okay…"
He barely got the word out before a pair of slender but strong arms suddenly wrapped around his neck from behind.
At the same time, Ayumi's dissatisfied, sulky voice rang out from behind him.
"What are you saying?
Making Akane blush like that… Come on, say something that'll make Sister Ayumi blush too, hmm? You little rascal~."
As she spoke, those deadly soft flesh mashed right against the back of his head.
The way she was squeezing so hard made Sasaki think that if there was even the slightest imperfection in her soft, white skin, something embarrassing would happen.
He patted Sister Ayumi's arm to signal her to ease up, then enjoyed the big-sister brain-pillow boob service while pretending it was hard to breathe. "Oof… so… suffocating…"
"Stop faking, your skin's thick as hell."
Even though she said that, Ayumi still loosened her grip a little.
Meanwhile, Akane, hearing Sasaki's hoarse, pained voice, quickly spun around.
One look and she saw his face flushed red, looking like he was about to pass out.
Panicking, the girl grabbed her sister's arm, voice trembling like she was about to cry. "Onee-chan, you're gonna choke Fuyumi to death! Let go, quick, quick~."
Ayumi knew exactly how thick Sasaki's skin was.
Normally, even when she used full cheek strength in the past, he wouldn't feel a thing… this was nothing, yet here he was playing pitiful in front of her little sister.
Thinking about it, she huffed quietly, then released her arms. "Stinky brat, stop acting. Akane's seriously worried about you."
Sasaki twisted his neck, smiled, and pulled Akane's hand over, gently rubbing it. "It's fine, it's fine. I was just messing around with Sister Ayumi. See~"
Hearing his words, the girl's clear blue eyes followed the slight shake of his neck.
Only after confirming that he was really okay did she let out a relieved breath. "Good… as long as you're okay…"
Just as she was about to raise her hand to pat her chest, she discovered that Sasaki's hand was clasped with hers.
Since she saw him as a little brother figure, Akane didn't think much of it.
But Ayumi, standing nearby, subtly reached over and pinched Sasaki's ear. "Akane, go scoop the rice first."
"Ah? Oh."
Hearing her sister's words,
Akane pulled her hand free from Sasaki's palm and headed to the kitchen.
"You brat, what's wrong with you? I just praised you, and you're already like this? You're eating what's in your bowl while eyeing what's in the pot?
Ayumi increased the pressure on her palm.
.
.
.
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