Chapter 3.4

Saturday came.

“Umm, Onii-chan.”

It had been five days since Akari’s attitude changed. Slowly, but surely, I was getting familiar with the new Akari… But, I still had yet to figure out the reason for her change in attitude.

“W-What happened?”

“How are things with Haruse-san?”

“Hm? With Nanami?”

“You said you started dating just a while ago. I was wondering how it’s going,” she asked.

What’s in her mind? She asked me in a way that sounds like she is worried for her older brother who just found a girlfriend, but it’s quite obvious that the meaning behind those words is something besides that, even if she asks innocently.

Since I couldn’t read her thoughts, I thought it was best to tell her the truth.

“Hmm, we’ve known each other for a long time as friends, so it’s not that big of a deal… But… today we’re going to the theatre.”

“Tsk…”

“And then… did you just say something?”

“Nope?” she subtly denied.

No, no, no, she clicked her tongue just now.

“Anyway, Onii-chan, it looks like it’s going to rain today.”

“No, the weather forecast said it’s going to be sunny.”

I was surprised at how easily she lied.

And the weather didn’t really matter because we were going to the movie theater…

“Well, if you say so…”

This time, she seemed to be thinking really hard… I couldn’t hear what she was muttering, but I’m sure it was something bad.

I thought that Akari might have reformed a bit after her recent changes in behavior, but, surprisingly, the root of the problem didn’t change.

She hasn’t been updating her Notes lately, so I could only guess. However, when I interacted with her like this, I realized that she has an easy-to-understand personality.

She’s the type of person who unexpectedly expresses her thoughts aloud. Even though I was pretending not to notice when she murmured: Haruse-san is a bit too much.

Akari was still not aware that I knew she had feelings for me.

“Well then, I’ve to go,” I said hurriedly.

There was still plenty of time till the meeting, but I knew that if I prolong this conversation, my facade may fall apart. I’m not sure how long we can keep this up. I don’t know how much longer Nanami and I can keep up this act without being exposed.

***

… Something’s off and this situation feels strange.

Thirty minutes after leaving home, I was thinking about this as I waited for Nanami to arrive in front of the station.

Though we planned a movie date, it wasn’t truly the matter of my concern.

Even if we’re in a fake relationship, going to the movie theater with a girl, there’s no way I wasn’t looking forward to it.

It’s just that… my sister is keeping an eye on me from afar. If it wasn’t for this fact, I’d be happy at this moment.

Akari was staring at me.

It felt as if I was haunted by a suspicious shadow. Although she was wearing a mask and a baseball cap as a disguise, I knew it was her.

Why did I know that it was her? Because she had been stalking me ever since I left home.

I noticed a shadow, her shadow, following me about three minutes after I left the house. If she wanted to go unnoticed, it would’ve been better for her to camouflage a little more. She should have at least came out after a time delay… I pushed down the urge to advise the assailant, and came to the station, hoping on the slim possibility that it might have been my imagination… The suspicious figure following me did not disappear until the very end and came this far.

I didn’t expect her to follow me…

However, I was pretending to be unaware.

She was probably thinking that by wearing a disguise, she could follow me anywhere without me knowing. But if I call out to her, then it’d be a hassle to deal with her.

Well, if she’s just gonna watch me from a distance, then it’s fine.

No, I know this situation is abnormal, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I’ll just have to be careful to make sure this date ends without a hitch.

But, It won’t allow me to concentrate on my date with Nanami…

“Sorry! Sorry to keep you waiting!”

As I was pondering over this, I heard Nanami’s voice.

She must have spotted me from the ticket gate and ran here.

“Good morning, Nanami. It’s okay, I just arrived a bit early.”

“Sorry about that…”

She apologised again while trying to catch her breath.

I noticed Nanami was wearing clothes suited for summer, but I wasn’t sure if she’s as cute as Akari. Although, I had to say she looked pretty cute too.

“Oh, by the way, the movie starts at 2 PM, right? There’s still time, do you want to have lunch first?”

“Yeah, that’s why I chose this time. I heard there’s a restaurant that serves very tasty Omurice, so I wanted to go with you.”

“I see, we’ll have lunch first, and then watch the movie.”

I clicked the navigation app and searched for the restaurant. It was about a ten-minute walk from here.

“Well then, let’s go.”

When we were about to move, Nanami looked at me as if she wanted to say something.

“…?”

The expression on her face was as if she was saying: Take a hint.

…Oh, right.

“Your outfit suits you very well. You’re looking great.”

We’re on a date. And it’s my duty as a man to compliment a woman’s outfit.

I’m sure that’s what Nanami wants to hear.

“…Oh, thanks.”

She gave me a more embarrassed look than I expected. It was as if the answer I hadn’t expected had come back to me.

Or. Was there any mistake…?

“No, I mean, that’s what I think.”

I looked away in embarrassment.

“T-that… is what I wanted to hear, you know?”

As she said that, Nanami with an embarrassed look on her face, hugged my right arm.

…wait a minute.

“N-Nanami!?”

“Y-you see. We’re l-lovers, right? If so, isn’t it normal for us to link our arms…?”

I felt the warmth of her body as she stuck close to me. And… they’re soft.

Oh, this is not good.

I’ve never been conscious of her as a girl until now, but when we’re this close, all kinds of thoughts go through my head: she’s a girl… she’s beautiful… she’s cute…. and so on.

Well, I heard from Yoshiki that Nanami is also very popular amongst boys. She’s also one of the top three beauties in the school.

It’s impossible for me to be unaware of it when a girl like her shows this much affection for me.

“Um… Eh…”

It’s funny. I’ve never had trouble having a conversation with Nanami, but now that I’m so embarrassed, I don’t know what to say.

After a few moments of silence…

“Let’s go…”

… Piriririririri

Just as we were about to move, my smartphone rang.

“Sorry Nanami, it’s a phone call.”

As I said this, she unclasped my arms. Ah, I regretted saying that.

“Who’s calling?”

I pulled my smartphone out of my pocket and looked at the screen.

[Incoming call: Akari Namiki]

Oh no, I was so excited that I completely forgot that Akari was watching me from somewhere at this very moment.

|| “Hello, what’s up?”

I answered the call as normal while trying to be calm.

|| “O-Onii-chan. What’d you like for dinner tonight?”

|| “What?”

|| “So, dinner. I was wondering what you wanted to eat.”

|| “Do I have to answer that now?”

|| “Yeah, well. I’m out for groceries.”

What a brazen lie.

|| “Ah, then curry is fine. Curry, OK.”

|| “Curry, all right… Then come home early, okay?”

The call ended. The conversation lasted about 20 seconds. But there’s no point saying that by a call. A text message would have been better.

“…Was that Akari-chan?” Nanami asked.

I turned off the screen and answered her question.

“Yeah. She’s out shopping, so she was asking what we should eat for dinner.”

“Hmm… I see.”

I felt nervous at her remark.

“Well, then we’ve to move now. If we don’t hurry, it might get crowded.”

“Yes, we have to hurry.”

We walked towards the store while maintaining some distance between us. Nanami and I were unable to cross our arms again— otherwise, it’d be impossible to make our way through the crowd.

***