บท 872: Shirogane Kei Doesn’t Want to Get Sentimental
Shirogane was writing questions in his room. The third-year mock exam was coming up soon. Even though he had received a recommendation letter to enter Stanford University, he wouldn't take any exam lightly.
Right in the middle of writing, there was a loud slamming sound from the closed door outside, making him tremble and immediately press the automatic pen refill.
"What, what happened? Is Kei-chan back?"
Throughout the family, only Kei would do something like this and slam the door when she was angry.
But Shirogane didn't offend her, did he? Was it wrong to be inside the room and working on exam questions?
Confused, Shirogane was about to get up and ask Kei for details when the bedroom door opened.
Even though this sibling was in the third year of middle school and the other in the third year of high school, they still shared a room because it was too small, separated tightly by curtains. As long as Shirogane dared to step into her territory, he would immediately receive a glare as if seeing a maggot in Kei's eyes.
"K-Kei-chan, what's wrong?" He opened the curtain and asked anxiously.
"It's nothing, you don't need to worry."
Then she pushed him back forcefully.
His younger sister was still in her rebellious phase, and Shirogane had long been accustomed to this attitude.
"Alright... Remember next time, don't slam the door when you're angry. It'll be really troublesome if the door breaks..."
"You don't have to say it! So annoying, like an old woman..."
Shirogane sighed, glancing at Kei burying her face in the pillow, seemingly unwilling to talk to him at all, opening the curtain, and about to resume working on exam questions.
"...Nii-san, are you dating Kaguya-senpai?"
"Pooft." Shirogane almost choked.
"W-What are you suddenly saying!"
"Are you dating?"
"..." Feeling her resolve, Shirogane fell silent, leaning back in his chair, and sighed.
"Not yet."
"You clearly know that the other party likes you? Why?"
There were so many questions... Shirogane hesitated, scratching his nose, and answered:
"No one said that we have to date if we like each other... Well, Shinomiya and I have a complicated situation, so we can't use it as a reference."
"...Tsk." Kei replied flatly, "It's been a long time since summer vacation, and you haven't started dating. You're really useless, Nii-san."
"Believe it or not, I'll scare Shinomiya in a few minutes!" As if angry, Shirogane raised his chin to defend his dignity.
Kei sneered.
"I've noted that statement, and I'll tell Kaguya-senpai later."
"Nani (What)?!"
"I'm just kidding." Her voice became a bit more cheerful, and Kei seemed to have turned around, no longer burying her face in the pillow. "Even if you're not dating, you understand the other party's intentions and won't act on them. Not worried or afraid... I think that's good."
Shirogane didn't respond because even though he and Kaguya had been on the same page before dating and only confirmed the relationship, they still couldn't contain themselves when they worried and were afraid... But somehow, it didn't seem necessary to tell his younger sister what was happening.
He changed the subject: "I've finished talking about my business, is it your turn now?"
"What?"
"Weren't you just out? You went downstairs to look for Asada? Did she make you angry?"
Shirogane kept asking.
Kei calmed down after hearing this. After a moment of silence in the room, she spoke with a low voice, her tone slightly awkward.
"I really didn't expect to talk about a topic like this with you... Let's talk first, it's just a matter of my friend."
"..."
Okay, this is a familiar start.
Shirogane waited for her to continue.
"Because many things have happened, she has a crush on a certain student... A certain guy. I don't know if it's a romantic relationship, but she might not mind being with him."
Shirogane pursed his lips slightly, took out his phone, and considered whether to send a message to Shinichi and ask him to come out and explain.
As good as Kei was at hiding it on a normal day, if she made potato soup and sent it to Shinichi, it would be too obvious.
Shirogane didn't mind Kei doing this. Besides, Shinichi quietly gave him money, saying, "I want to eat your food in peace."
If he didn't accept it, the other party would quietly slip the money into his shoes. He couldn't refuse, so in the end, he had to let nature take its course.
But he was really tired of eating potato soup lately. Couldn't he change his dish...
While Shirogane was thinking wildly, Kei didn't stop talking:
"She actually doesn't intend to face this relationship. Besides, there's a slight age difference, and there are many girls around that guy, not to mention his friends and relatives, and they seem to like him."
"So, as long as she sets aside these feelings, sooner or later she'll be able to face it calmly, right? Therefore, there's no need for any changes, whether forward or backward, or so she thinks."
Her cold, thin voice, full of confusion, made the room silent.
"But, today changed. Panic when she saw him in the same room with a girl, discomfort when she thought he was intimate with a girl... and also, confusion when she found out about their relationship. Everything has become weird and scary."
"..."
Shirogane listened with a blank stare, his fingers typing a line of words on his phone.
[You bastard, wait for me downstairs, I'll cut you to death right now]
He really didn't expect that the first time his younger sister talked to him about an emotional topic, its content would be so heavy... and it made him feel like a killer to his junior for the first time.
But before the message was sent, another sigh was heard from behind the curtain.
"What should I do in the future, how should I face these feelings, and how should I face Senpai? I really don't know..."
(Hey, hey, hey, Imouto, what are you saying! Where did your friend-theory go? Are you one of those confused people?)
Shirogane sighed inwardly, pretending not to notice, so that Kei wouldn't attack him angrily later.
Kei seemed to turn her body again, burying her face in the pillow, making her tone even gloomier.
"Nii-san, if it were you, I'm not sure if Kaguya-senpai likes you, but your feelings are known to her, and because there are too many opposite sexes who are close to her, she's afraid and says, 'I just see you as a friend' but doesn't dare to face it openly... What would you do then?"
After a pause, she added seriously: "I'm asking this for my friend, don't misunderstand.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah~" Too lazy to say anything else, Shirogane crossed his arms and looked up at the ceiling, deep in thought.
"Well, if it's Shinomiya and me..."
He simulated the scene mentioned by Kei in his mind, His expression first changed from trapped, surprised, and gritting his teeth, then turned into helpless, worried, and frustrated.
If Kei saw him from the side, she might be amazed at how rich human expressions could be, almost like neon lights.
The room was silent for more than a minute, just as Kei asked if he had thought about his answer, Shirogane smiled bitterly.
"I might just step back."
"Because I lack confidence. If there are many men around her who are better than me and I can't know her feelings for me... I'll just pretend nothing happened and maintain a normal relationship."
With a self-deprecating tone, he stood up from his chair, opened the curtains, and looked into his sister's puzzled eyes.
"But, there's no point in making this assumption!"
"In fact, I like Shinomiya, and she likes me too. Sooner or later, we'll be together. No matter how many men come, I'll hold her hand tightly, and no one can take her away."
With a confident smile, Shirogane looked directly at Kei with firm eyes, and his voice seemed to be filled with an inexplicable strength.
"And Kei-chan, you're different from me. You have the strength and courage to face everything. You have the confidence to bear all the consequences. You won't lose heart if you fail, and you won't cry if you fall. You've been so strong since you were little. You're much stronger than me..."
"So, my answer doesn't apply to you."
He said, smiling and patting his chest: "Ask yourself carefully. Are you willing to step back, or unwilling to move forward? Do you not want to decide on the current relationship, or do you not want to remain ambiguous?"
"If it were my little sister, whatever answer you get, you can proudly admit it, right?"
The warm words of encouragement gently fell to the ground.
Kei held the pillow in her hands, staring blankly at her brother, and complex emotions vibrated in her eyes.
After an unknown amount of time, she lowered her head and hugged the pillow tighter.
"...If so, that's my words."
At this moment, her self-esteem pierced through her cotton-like worries, suddenly awakening Kei.
If she's so hesitant and fearful when she likes someone, it's better to give up.
If there's no way to stop liking this person, it's better to fight against these feelings to the death.
Kei didn't want to be sentimental.
If it were her, what she should think about wasn't "What should I do in the future." but "What do I want to do." and when this idea came to her mind, she had to take action.
Better to just relax, then take action, maybe that's it?
"...So that's it."
With a slightly lifted corner of her mouth, Kei chuckled softly, and the sparkle in her eyes returned to normal, even brighter.
"I didn't expect, Nii-san, sometimes you say serious things."
"Moreover, I'm also the student council president, don't underestimate me." Shirogane replied angrily, but seeing his little sister back to her cheerful self, he felt better.
If he had discussed this with her, but Kei was still worried, the intensity of resolving the matter with Shinichi would be about ten times greater...
"So, what are you going to do?" Shirogane asked curiously, but was just glared at by his little sister.
"You don't need to worry about that, go back to your habits."
"...Use and discard, how cruel."
Shirogane opened the curtains and was about to return to his desk to continue writing questions.
"...Thank you, this was very helpful."
Her voice was too soft, and was lost to consciousness once her attention was diverted.
Shirogane shook his head.
"You're welcome."
Shortly after, the sound of the door closing behind him, it seemed like he was calling someone, right? It's impossible to rush down and confess his love.
Thinking like this, Shirogane glanced at his phone screen, and the message was still there in the chat log.
He thought for a long time and decided to delete it and repost.
After making sure that the other party had read it, he switched his phone to silent mode and set it aside, focusing on the questions.
△
Shinichi returned home, took out his laptop, looked at his list of future plans, and began to make changes.
But before he typed a few words, his phone suddenly lit up, and a message notification appeared.
"Shirogane-senpai?"
He was confused, clicked on the message, and his expression became strange.
[If you dare to make my little sister cry, I'll work with Shinomiya to make you cry like a baby]
What's this?
After hesitating for a moment, Shinichi replied to the message.
"Senpai, is your account hacked?"
A minute passed, nothing was read, and there was no response.
He wondered when his phone suddenly rang again.
The caller was Kei. Without hesitation, he answered the phone.
"Hello? Kei-san?"
"Just call me Kei, Senpai."
A calm voice came, surprising him.
"Uh... Kei-chan?" Cautiously, Shinichi chose the term commonly used by seniors to juniors.
"Kei."
Unexpectedly, Kei was very insistent, as if she wouldn't continue the conversation unless he called her like that.
Shinichi didn't feel embarrassed, as he asked, she immediately said: "Kei, what do you want from me?"
"..."
Kei seemed to take a deep breath.
"Next week, I need to help buy some stuff for the school festival. Can you accompany me?"
Her tone pretended to be calm, but there was a slight tremor in the last tone.
Shinichi's eyes widened slightly, and he was a bit overwhelmed: "Sure, but just now..."
"That's it!"
Regardless of politeness, Kei immediately hung up the phone.
Shinichi glanced at the phone, then stood up and walked out the door, walking to a blind spot, and secretly looked at the location of Shirogane's house on the second floor.
There, the girl leaned against the panel door, rubbing her chest and taking deep breaths several times.
Her beautiful face was red, but with a bright smile of satisfaction, she looked up at the sky.
Only after she turned around and walked past the door did Shinichi snap back to reality, his expression gentle.
"What should I do now..."
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