Volume 6 Chapter 2

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This might be a bit sudden, but I will take a leave from home

Part 1:

“……Ahh, it’s morning already,huh…”

While I was still half-asleep, I slowlyraised my body and checked the time. Though I had woken up earlierthan usual, I didn’t want to go back to sleep.

…Recently, I haven’t been able tosleep well… Maybe it’s because I’m still reeling in shock.

I forced myself to get up from bed andheaded to the bathroom. The cause of my shock is the incident from afew days ago, when Suzuka decided to write a new novel and Maidemanded a competition. In addition, Suzuka said that she wouldn’tuse a little sister character. In my opinion, Towano Chikai was alittle sister novel author, which is why I was really flustered bythat. Though I was satisfied after hearing Suzuka’s reasoningbehind it. Since this will be her new novel, she wanted to broadenher horizons— It really makes sense if you think about it.

“Mmmm… But still, you know…”

Somehow, things still don’t reallyclick with me… But I can’t help it since I don’t know whatexactly is bothering me.

“A new novel without a little sistercharacter… I wonder what she’s thinking…”

Trying to get rid of my misgivings, Iwashed my face. And as I went to head back to my room to change myclothes, I heard noises coming from the living room.

“………Eh?”

“Ah, good morning, Onii-chan. You’reup early today, I see.”

Confronted with an unbelievablesituation in front of me, I completely froze up.

“Ehm… What are you doing…?”

“Just as you can see, I’m packingmy belongings,” Suzuka answered calmly. She was wearing her schooluniform.

Just as she had said, her actions rightnow couldn’t be anything other than packing stuff. Inside a bigbag, I spotted several sets of clothes, workbooks, and othernecessities for daily life. She even put in her favourite cup, so itdefinitely didn’t look like she was just going to school.

While I was still staring at herblankly, Suzuka continued to pack her things. The gears in my brainslowly resumed operation, and a thought entered my mind.

…………Don’t tellme……………………She’s running away from home?

Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?! Wai—?!Ehh?! W-Why is Suzuka running away from home?! D-Did she finally haveenough of me?! Even though we’ve made up?!

“S-Suzuka…! I-I’m sorry, okay?Please forgive me…!”

“…O-Onii-chan? Aren’t you havinga weird misunderstanding or something?” Suzuka bluntly asked.

…No, what is there to misunderstand?If she’s packing her things like this… there’s only one thingthat this could mean, right…?

“Really, you’re thinking ofsomething weird, aren’t you…? Listen, this is for research for mynew novel.”

“……Eh? Research… for the newnovel?”

“That’s right. So from now on, Iwill be leaving the house for a few weeks.”

“S-So you’re still running away?!”

“Like I said, please listen until theend! For crying out loud, Onii-chan…”

She then continued with a “Okay?”with an astonished expression on her face.

“As I just said, I will be leavingthe house for my research. Instead of siblings, the story will beabout a couple, and there are a few things that I have to know aboutthat… O-Of course, as my partner, I will have Onii-chan help meout.”

“O-Oh, so you’re going to write astory like that, huh…? If that’s the case, I don’t mind, butwhy are you running away?”

“Calling it ‘running away’ is notnecessarily accurate… Even if I wanted to write a story aboutlovers, I wouldn’t get any good data if I continued to live here.It would still feel like siblings more than anything. Though youmight think I’m taking it too far, I’ve thoroughly thought aboutthis, and deemed this necessary. That being said, I will be leavingthe house for a while. I-If we don’t live in the same house, we canbuild a better relationship more like actual lovers, don’t youthink?”

I-I see, now that I think about it…But, that being said, leaving home like this for research certainlytakes some dedication.

Just what one would expect from thegenius author Towano Chikai. I mean, even I’m trying to act like alight novel protagonist in order to write better novels, but — howdo I say it — she’s on a completely different playing field.

“…? Onii-chan? Is something wrong?”

“Ah, no, it’s nothing. A-Anyway, Iunderstand the circumstances. But where are you going to stay, then?You’re not saying that you’ll crash at a hotel, right?”

“What are you saying…? I cannotwaste my money like that.”

With all the money from her novel thatshe’s saved, she could surely afford it… but she wouldn’t be mylittle sister if she used it like this.

“I will be staying in the Hakuoudormitory. I received permission to use a room for some time.”

“Huh? Hakuou had a dormitory?”

“It’s mostly for boarding students,in case their home is too far away from the school.”

Well it makes sense that students fromall over the country would attend a famous school like Hakuou.

“I see, if it’s the Hakuoudormitory, then I don’t have to worry… Ah, but what about ourparents—”

“I’ve also received permission fromour parents.”

Yeah, it figures. She even receivedpermission to take the entrance exam at my school. Really, don’tthey spoil her a bit too much?

“Anyway, now that that’s said, Ican research all day, every day. F-For the time that we’re livingapart, we’ll be lovers, so I hope Onii-chan keeps that in mind.”

“Y-Yeah, I don’t mind that, but…”

“But… what?”

“Well, suddenly living apart afterall these years is making me worry…”

“…Yes, that makes sense. LeavingOnii-chan all alone at home worries me as well.”

U-Uhm… I was actually worried aboutyou though… But since I’m always depending on Suzuka, I can’treally say anything back.

“Onii-chan might be able to use thischance to pull himself together a bit more.”

“I will try my best…”

“B-But, well, that’s exactly whyI’m taking these countermeasures…”

“Eh?”

“I-It’s nothing. Anyway, startingfrom today, I will stop being your little sister. Please keep that inmind, Onii-chan,” Saying that, she picked up her bag and headedtowards the entrance. “I will properly explain what kind ofresearch I would like when the time comes. If it would be possible, Iwould like you to come to Hakuou after your classes are over.T-There’s something I would like to do immediately.”

I nodded while sending her off, towhich Suzuka only said “T-Then, I’ll be going,” and slowlystepped out of the house. For a short moment, I thought that her faceseemed to be red, but I decided to ignore it for now.

Again, another weird situation… — I thought as I once more tilted my head.

But I was sure that, seeing how far shewas willing to go, there was no question that Suzuka would createanother masterpiece. Not to mention that it would be a completely newseries. Just when I thought that I was slowly starting to catch up toher, she moved even further ahead of me. I know very well that Ican’t keep going like this.

“…Alright, at the same time Suzukafinishes her new novel, I’ll finish mine for the contest!”

If even a genius is working this hard,a normal person like me has to catch up with effort!

I turned around and hurried back to myroom, wanting to come with a few ideas before it was time for school.It’s important to work even in this short amount of free time,after all.

Or so I thought, but I was so focusedthat I was almost late for school.

…As soon as Suzuka’s gone, I’meven more of a good-for-nothing older brother? Come on, me…

Part 2:

That day, after classes. Just as Suzukahad told me to, I made my way to Hakuou. Since she was living thereright now, there should be no reason for me to come pick her up. Thatmust mean that it has something to do with research… but what kindof research?

“O-Oh, I made you wait, huh?”

As soon as I arrived at the gate,Suzuka came to meet me. Though it was the same situation as ever, forsome reason the word ‘lovers’ popped into my head, and I couldfeel my heart beating faster.

“U-Uhm… So what kind of researchare we doing?”

“First, a scene where the boyfriendcomes to pick up his girlfriend from school. A-And after that, theygo have fun at the boyfriend’s house.”

I see, a simple concept. So thatboyfriend will be me, and even though it doesn’t feel great to saythat Suzuka is my girlfriend, I guess I can’t help it.

“H-Having fun at your lover’s homeis a very important event…! E-Even more since we’ve never beenable to do that…!”

Actually, as of this morning it wasstill your own home too — but of course there’s no way I’d saysomething as dumb as that. Immediately going into full research modeis a very Suzuka-like thing to do, so I have to do the same.

“T-Then, I’m counting on you,Onii-chan.”

“Y-Yeah, let’s go… Wait, why areyou still calling me—”

“I-I know! I really do, but! T-Thisis the only thing I cannot change…! I-It’s completely becomehabit at this point…”

If even the perfect superhuman Suzukasays so, then there’s really nothing she can do.

“I got it. I’ll try my best not topay too much attention to it.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll try to thinkthat Onii-chan’s real name is ‘Onii-chan’ too.”

“Isn’t that the worst name ever?!”

…But, if Suzuka’s fine with it,then I’ll play along. Ahh, just imagining if my name really was”Nagami Onii-chan”… I’d probably make me want to die everytime I introduce myself.

While the two of us were saying this,we started walking. On the way home, we held hands because of thereason “We’re lovers, after all”, and soon we arrived at home.

“S-Sorry for intruding…” Suzukasaid the phrase any girlfriend would say as she entered herboyfriend’s house.

Though this was still her actual housetoo, she played it so well that you couldn’t tell at all. Asalways, she’s way too good at acting like this…

“I-I see, so this is how a girlfriendfeels when she visits her boyfriend’s house for the first time,”Suzuka said.

“I-Is that so? It seems like you canuse that in your novel.”

“Uhm, what about Onii-chan? Bringingyour girlfriend to your home for the first time…?”

Thinking that… I could feel myheartbeat accelerate. Even if I try to think of her as my littlesister, just the thought of her being my girlfriend is reallythrowing me off. Also, I’ve never had the experience of inviting agirl to my home before. All the other guests prior to this also mademe nervous, albeit for completely different reasons.

For example, that stalker classmate,and that blonde-haired perverted illustrator, and that voice actresswho decided for herself to become my little sister.

“……Onii-chan, why do you havesuch a distant look…?”

“N-No, it’s nothing. Anyway, whatare we doing next?”

“L-Let me see. I think that going tothe boyfriend’s room would be a good idea.”

“I see, that’s pretty common. Then,we’re gonna play in my room?”

“P-P-P-P-Play?! W-What exactly do youmean by ‘play?!'”

Eh? I mean playing games, or justtalking about whatever comes to mind… why are you panicking likethat? Even your face is getting red.

“S-So we’re going to do adult stuffnow as girlfriend and boyfriend…?! T-That’s what it means,right…?! I-I haven’t finished preparing myself for this yet…!But, but, this might be good research after all…!”

“U-Uhm, Suzuka-san?”

“Hya?! W-W-W-W-What isch it,Onni-schan?!”

“W-Well, was the idea of playing inmy room that bad…?”

“T-That’s not the case, but…!Uhm…! S-Something like that is a bit too early, I think! O-Ofcourse I don’t mind or anything?! I-I will soon be a high schoolstudent after all, right?!”

…Uhhh, I have no clue what she’sgoing on about now.

“A-Anyway, w-we’ll leave that forlater! Cough, there’s something else that I thought ofbeforehand, so let’s do that,” Suzuka said.

“O-Okay. And, what exactly is that?”I asked.

“Can I borrow the kitchen?”

Kitchen? What are you going to do inthere, though?

“I don’t mind—but why are youglaring at me?”

“This is the first time I’ve comehere, so I won’t know where it is if you don’t tell me.”

“A-Ah, that’s right, sorry. It’sover here,” I said and led her to the kitchen.

When we arrived, Suzuka took out asmall supermarket bag from her bigger one.

“So basically… you’re gonna cooksomething?”

“That’s right. I thought thatOnii-chan wouldn’t have prepared his dinner yet. You were going tomake some instant noodles, right?”

…Uuu, bullseye. I had been planningto make some frozen pizza.

“I can’t accept that. During thisresearch, I will be the one making the food. Your lunch box as well.Though breakfast might be a bit hard.”

“Well, I’d be grateful for that,but wouldn’t that be too much work? I don’t want to burden youeven more.”

“I-It’s not a burden in theslightest. Looking after Onii-chan—N-No, after my boyfriend—makesme happy more than anything. O-Of course, that’s just a generalopinion among girlfriends, right?!”

Suzuka’s cheeks went red as shequickly averted her eyes, and it was the same for me.

…Can you not switch into researchmode so quickly? That surprise attack is really bad for my heart…

“So basically, this is what youthought of doing for your research, right?”

“E-Exactly. Since the boyfriend willbe living alone, the girlfriend, aka me, has to look after him. A-Andthat’s only the setting for the research, so don’t misunderstand,okay?!”

Knowing that I’m the model for thatboyfriend makes me kinda feel depressed when she says that she has tolook after me all the time… though it’s true in reality.

“I get it. If that’s the settingfor your research, then I’ll play along.”

“T-Thank you very much.To look afterher boyfriend, the girlfriend comes to his house every day.B-Basically, a ‘commuting wife’!”

“C-Commuting wife?!” I couldn’thide my surprise after these words suddenly came out of her mouth.

…And where did Suzuka hear such aterm, anyway?!

“T-That’s just what DoublePeace-san called it before, okay? Uhm, it’s not like I had anyinterest in the idea, but I just happened to hear her say it, that’sall…”

“Ahh, now that you mention it…”

She came to our house once with a neweroge, saying that we should play it, and commented on every littlething that made it great. Somewhere in those comments was also thatterm.

…Every time I’m not paying attention,Double Peace-sensei teaches Suzuka bad words behind my back…

Ah, by the way, Double Peace-sensei isthe illustrator for Suzuka’s novel.

“I-I thought that this idea would beperfect for my current research, so it’s not like I was interestedor anything, okay? …Anyway, that’s how we’ll do it, so pleasesupport me as much as you’re able, Onii-chan,” Suzuka said.

“And this way I can look afterOnii-chan without having to make excuses, so it’s two birds withone stone—” Suzuka whispered before continuing.

“A-And also… There is somethingthat I have to do as a commuting wife… B-But, it’s not like Iwant to do it… It’s just something that has to be done, orsomething like that… For now, can you just leave the room for abit, Onii-chan?”

“A-Ah, yeah.”

For some reason, Suzuka’s face wasbright red as she muttered that last part, but I ignored it and didas I was told.

“I will call for you when thepreparations are done,” she added.

For some reason I have a bad feelingabout this , I thought as I stood in the hallway. No matter howlong I waited, however, she didn’t call for me.

She said something aboutpreparations, but what in the world is she doing that would take thislong? —I tilted my head in thought, but in that moment, I hearda quiet “Kya…” from the kitchen.

“W-What is it, Suzuka?!”

Reflexively, I jumped into the kitchen.And what greeted me there was…

“…………Eh?”

“……Eh? O-O-O-O-O-O-Onii-chan…?!”

Confronted with the scene in front ofme, I completely froze up.

There was Suzuka, crouching down on thekitchen floor. She didn’t seem to be hurt anywhere, so I wasrelieved for second, but the problem was her clothes. Normally, she’dbe wearing an apron—but even that wasn’t quite normal. After all,she was wearing nothing BUT the apron. Her white shoulders, arms, andlegs were visible, though they soon turned bright red when shenoticed my gaze. As the words ‘Naked apron’ came to mind, I couldfeel my face getting hot as well.

“Y-You… T-T-T-T-T-Those clothes…?!”

“Hyaaaah?! P-P-P-P-P-Please don’tlook…!!!”

As Suzuka hurriedly hid her body withher arms, she panicked and turned to the side. Because of that, I wasable to see her complete body line—or at least, I should’ve beenable to.

“H-Huh…? I-It’s not a nakedapron…?”

I couldn’t clearly see it when shewas facing me head-on, but she was actually wearing a tank-top andshorts under her apron. But for some reason, they were of a size thatdidn’t fit her at all, and I could catch glimpses of her underwearbeneath them.

…No, she isn’t even wearing hershorts properly, so I can clearly see her panties!

“I-I just said not to stare somuch!!! Auuu…!”

“S-Sorryyyy?!”

Suzuka glared at me, looking like shewas about to cry, so I hurriedly looked away.

…Now that I think about it… Itdoesn’t matter if I was surprised… Why the hell was I staring ather like that…!

“I-I’m really sorry…! B-But, Iheard you shriek, so I thought that something might have happened…!A-And then you were wearing those clothes…!”

“T-This is…! R-Research on a nakedapron…!”

“Research for a naked apron?! Nowthat I think about it… Minazuki-san was wearing one before,right…?”

“T-That’s right…! T-There’s noway that I could’ve done it naked, so I thought back to howSakura-san did it and wore the same clothes…!”

It seems that the size didn’t fither, and her pants were about to drop down when she shrieked. Andthat’s when I came in…

“I-I see, I understand thecircumstances… But why a naked apron…?”

“L-Like I said, I remembered thatDouble Peace-san said something about a commuting wife, and howwearing a ‘naked apron’ is a must…!”

And that’s why she decided on doing afake naked apron…?

“Auuu…! E-Even if it’s not fullynaked, I still can’t do a naked apron it seems…! In front ofOnii-chan, my skin and underwear…! A-Anyway, I’m going to changeagain, so please leave the room…!”

T-That’s right! Why am I stillstanding here!?

I immediately left the kitchen and oncemore stood by in the hallway. Though the image of her in the apronlingered in my mind, I tried to rid myself of such thoughts. Suzukafinally called me back into the kitchen with a bright red face. Ofcourse, her clothes were back to normal.

“U-Uhm, things like a naked apron anda commuting wife… If Double Peace-sensei says stuff like that,please don’t take her too seriously, okay?”

“U,Uuuu… I know… It was still toofast for me… I-I’ll forget about it, so please do so as well,Onii-chan…!”

The both of us nodded at each other…But how am I supposed to be able to forget something like that…?

“U-Uhm, how was that for yourresearch?”

“…F-For now, we’ll continue thecommuting wife research. Without the naked apron, of course,”Suzuka said. She put an apron on, this time with proper clothesunderneath.

“Now I will make dinner, just like acommuting wife would…”

“Got it… But what should I do inthe meantime?”

“Since it’s research, I wantOnii-chan to watch me while I’m making dinner. I-In times likethese, the boyfriend is supposed to watch over his girlfriend…right?”

…I-Is that so? Well, if she says so.

Suzuka turned her back to me andstarted bringing out the ingredients. Maybe it was because of whathappened before, or maybe she was nervous about theboyfriend-girlfriend situation, but I could see her blushing all theway to her ears. And, even though I was only watching her, I alsofelt really embarrassed. Even though this situation had beensomething completely natural before, just thinking of Suzuka as mygirlfriend made this really awkward for some reason. And since I’dnever watched her this intensely while cooking, I couldn’t stop myheart from beating faster.

…Really, watching her like this oncemore reminded me of the fact that Suzuka was an exceptionallybeautiful girl. Thinking that such a girl would make handmade foodfor a guy like me makes me incredibly happy. Wow, I was just thinkinglike this was completely normal…

Wait, no no no! She’s just my littlesister! Not my girlfriend! What am I getting confused for?!

“O-Onii-chan, how is thissituation…?”

“Wha-?! Ah! U-Uhm, that’s…I-I-I-It’s pretty nice, I think?”

“I-Is that so. F-For me, this alsofeels different from when I’m normally cooking. B-But, since thisis research, I’ll be sure to put in a lot of love as a commutingwife, but this isn’t something I’ll do all the time, okay?!”Suzuka continued her monologue.

Though the atmosphere felt a bit stiff,it somehow wasn’t that bad. As time progressed, however, I wasunable to hold back my embarrassment and stood up.

“T-That reminds me, did you go out ofyour way to buy the ingredients?”

“N-No. This morning, I tookeverything I would need from the refrigerator as I left the house.I-It’s my duty as a commuting wife to prepare everything that’sneeded, after all.”

“H-How thoughtful. Yeah.”

Trying to hide my discomfort, I triedto change the topic, but since we returned immediately back to theoriginal one, it felt even more embarrassing.

…It’s really no good. I shouldn’tbe getting embarrassed. Since this is research, I have to watch overmy girlfriend, even if it feels awkward.

In the end, I continued to keep quietand just watched her. The only sounds that could be heard in the roomwere her cutting the ingredients, the sizzling of the hot pot, andher soothing humming. All this in combination with the sight of herworking caused me to feel quite entranced by her.

…I don’t know what she’ll gainfrom this, but there is already one thing I’m very well aware of.Having a girl like her prepare food for me makes her divinely cute…I definitely have to use this in my novel as well.

“Fuu, it’s done… Onii-chan?What’s wrong? You’re spacing out.”

“Eh?”

When I returned to reality, I sawSuzuka looking at me, apparently having finished cooking. Quite a bitof time had already passed, and it seemed like I had been soentranced by Suzuka that I had completely spaced out.

“N-No, it’s nothing! Anyway, you’redone, right? How was your research?” I asked.

“T-That’s…! It was really great…I-I was just spacing out from the happiness…! A-Ah, of course, justas a character! F-For now, the research was a success!”

“I-Is that so? I’m glad to hearthat.”

“So… how was it for Onii-chan?”She asked.

“U-Uhm…I really liked it, yeah.”

Hearing my words, Suzuka’s faceturned red, and she said “I-Is that so…!”

Uuu… What’s with this atmosphere…?I might actually die from embarrassment…!

Trying to change the topic again, Idirected my gaze towards the table.

“Huh? Why is there only a portion forme?”

Since there was clearly only enough forone person, I tilted my head in confusion.

“Because I only made Onii-chan’sshare. I will eat as soon as I return to the dorm… A-And also acommuting wife only prepares the food for her husband.”

I-Is that so? I don’t really get it,but if her inner commuting wife deems it so, she must be right.

“So we’ll both eat dinner alone,huh?”

“I-It’s about that… There’sactually another thing to research that’s left…”

“Another thing?” I asked, to whichSuzuka responded by sitting down across the table to face me.

She proceeded to take out herchopsticks and picked up some food with them.

…D-Don’t tell me.

“I-I will will be the one to feedyou…! T-This is something a commuting wife has to do, after all…!”

I-I thought so! B-But feeding means…

“H-Here, Onii-chan. O…O-O-O-O-O-Openwide…!”

“Of course, right!? But wait! D-Doesthis really have anything to do with a commuting wife?!”

“I-It will be less persuasive if Idon’t do this…!”

So she can’t even leave somethinglike this out, even though she’s just doing research…

“H-Here, Onii-chan…! O-Open wide,will you…?”

“I-I get it already.”

Swallowing my embarrassment, I openedmy mouth. Shortly after, a potato from a meat and potato stew enteredmy mouth.

“H-How is it, Onii-chan? Is it good?”

I-I was so nervous that I couldn’tfocus on the taste at all…! T-To think that something like thiscould be so embarrassing..!

Without being able to say anything, Isimply nodded.

In response, Suzuka happily smiled witha “Thank God.” E-Even if I knew that she was simply acting out acharacter, I couldn’t help but be entranced by her once more.

“A-Alright then, be sure to take abath, brush your teeth, and don’t go to bed too late.”

After what happened, my dinnercontinued with Suzuka feeding me, and when it was time for her to goback to Hakuou, I escorted her there.

After we arrived, she continued to warnme about various things before she finally went through the gate.When she did that, she was very reluctant, as she constantly lookedback at me with a lonely expression. She’s even acting in characteruntil the very end, huh?

“Well, time to go home…”

Now that I was all alone again, Iwalked home as I looked up at the night sky. As soon as I startedtrying to relax my mind, I remembered the naked apron from before, soI hurriedly shook my head to clear my mind of these thoughts. A girlwalking towards me saw that and hurriedly tried to avoid me. Thankyou, but I’m not a pervert, okay?

“But, Suzuka really is amazing, huh…”I muttered. That phrase had a lot of different meanings. Justthinking about it made my heart beat faster.

When I arrived home and opened thedoor, I unconsciously let out an “I’m back,” but of course noone replied. I took a bath just as Suzuka had told me to, properlybrushed my teeth, and spent the night just as I always would. Myparents didn’t come home either, and now that I was all alone insuch a big house, I somehow felt lonely.

“This feels just like a year ago…At that time, Suzuka and I weren’t talking at all…” Saying thatout loud, I laid down on my bed.

Thinking back to it, my relationshipwith Suzuka has really changed. We only made up just recently, andnow that she’s gone, it feels like there’s a hole in my chest…

“Wait, this makes it sound like I’min love with Suzuka…! She just left the house for research, that’sall! Pull it together, me…!” I slapped my cheeks with both of myhands and stood up from the bed, heading towards my desk.

I don’t have time to waste like this.Let’s just think about the plot for my own novel. And I’ll justsay this upfront; it’s not like I’m trying to distract myselffrom my earlier weird thoughts, okay?

I booted up the writing software on mylaptop and looked at the white document in front of me.

“……Nnn? A phone call?”

But in that moment, my phone startedringing.

Who? At this time of the day, it couldonly be Shinozaki-san calling me because she’s bored, DoublePeace-sensei calling me to trouble me about some erotic topic again,Minazuki-san who just randomly calls me for no reason, the Kanzakasisters who start fighting while they’re on the phone with me… Idoubt that it’s Mai so suddenly after that incident, but you neverknow…

However, when I checked, I could onlyforce a dry “Eh?!” out of my lungs.

“S-Suzuka? W-Why would she call me…?”

I don’t know. And we never talked onthe phone before. Flustered, I picked up the call. And…

>Ah…O-Onii-chan?<

Though it should be obvious, it wasSuzuka’s voice that greeted me.

“W-What’s wrong? Did somethinghappen?”

>Ah, no, that’s not it… Uhm, Ijust felt a bit uncomfortable in this environment without Onii-chan…so I just thought of calling you…<

“So you were also lonely?”

>Wha—?! W-W-W-What are you saying,Onii-chan?! T-T-T-There’s no way that I would feel lonely and startmissing Onii-chan or anything! T-That’s right! I-It’s not like Iwanted to hear Onii-chan’s voice or anything, it’s because I’macting like a girlfriend…! B-Basically, it’s just for research!<

I had to pull the phone away from myear for a moment because Suzuka started screaming.

“I-I see, just research, huh! Y-Yeah,there’s no way you’d also feel lonely, ahahaha!”

>T-That’s right! …Huh?Onii-chan, did you just say ‘also lonely’ or something…?D-D-D-D-Does that mean, that…?!<

“Ah, no, you’re wrong! It’s notthat… it’s just… Yeah! I-I was also pretending to be aboyfriend, which is why I said that. It’s not like I was actuallylonely or anything!” That was a complete lie.

>I-Is that so!<

“Y-Yeah!”

The both of us exchanged an awkwardagreement, which helped calm me down at least a bit.

>…I don’t often talk on thephone with Onii-chan like this…<

“Yeah, now that you mention it, wehaven’t really done this until now.”

>I-It feels kind of weird for somereason. Talking with a boy this late at night really makes my heartpound… Ah, I mean that in the context of research, okay?!<

“I-I got it. If I’m able to helpyou with your research, then that’s all that matters.”

>That reminds me, Onii-chan, sinceyou’ve been on the phone with countless people before, this surelyisn’t your first, right…?<

“W-Why do I suddenly feel like yourvoice got deeper for a second?!”

>O-Of course, a girlfriend isinterested in who her boyfriend is on the phone with! There’s noway she wouldn’t get jealous!<

“Aren’t you confusing me with thatfictional boyfriend character?!”

>The boyfriend character in my newnovel is also very thick-headed and doesn’t realize that he’svery popular with the girls around him, so there’s no way I’d beconfused!<

“No, you really are! I’m notpopular at all! It only looks like that because I’m acting as yourstand-in, and you should know that very well!”

>Muu… That way of thinking hassaved me a lot of times, so I can’t say anything to that…!<

“I don’t understand what’stroubling you at all, you know…”

While the two of us kept talking likethat, I completely forgot about the plot of my new novel and justgenuinely had fun talking to Suzuka.

…I know that it’s just forresearch, but still…

>T-That reminds me, I heard that onphone calls like this, you’re supposed to tell the partner thecolor of your underwear, but is that really necessary…?<

“Who told you that?! It was DoublePeace-sensei, right?! It’s gotta be! Don’t take her seriously,okay?!”

Suddenly that loneliness from beforeis completely gone… Am I that dependant on Suzuka? —That grossthought entered my mind, which I hurriedly tried to get rid of byshaking my head furiously.

Even so, I didn’t end the ‘research’phone call with Suzuka until almost midnight.

Part 3:

It was a few days since Suzuka and Istarted living separately.

“Hey, Yuu? Do you have a moment?”

During break in the classroom, ananomaly happened. Mai suddenly called out to me.

“W-What is it? Are you going to talkto me normally?” I asked, flustered, to which Mai tilted her headwith “What do you mean?”

“I mean, we’re technically in themiddle of a competition, right? You haven’t talked to me these pastfew days, and I thought that we had broken up our friendship untilthen.”

“W-What?! W-Why would we have to dothat?! That would mean that I couldn’t talk to you for at least twomonths! Don’t make a joke like that!”

Though these words would normally soundreally cute, she was basically saying “I can’t conduct mystalking activities then!”, so I can’t find it in myself to behappy about it.

“It’s not like I’d be clinging toyou all the time, but I don’t plan to stop researching you.”

“How convenient for you…”

“W-What? This research has priorityover everything else, so I can’t help it. Though I’ve been a bitbusy these past few days with my operation, which is why I haven’thad the time to come talk to you.”

O-Operation…? This word wouldnormally give me a bad feeling even if it weren’t Mai we weretalking about. And since it’s actually her, that bad feeling wasonly worse.

“W-What are you planning? You’renot gonna make me a dead person in order to win the competition bydefault, right?”

“W-What the hell are you talkingabout?! I will win with skill alone! I’ve never once thought aboutusing a method like that! …I-I’ve never thought anything likemaking you fall head over heels for me or anything like that either.”

Isn’t that something oddly specificto have never thought about?!

“That’s not it, okay? I’ll win,plain and simple. And to achieve that, I need you.”

“…I don’t get it. I’m yourenemy, right? So why do you need me to win? You’re not asking me todo something stupid like help you out, right?”

“I-I never said anything about youhelping me out… But,” Mai’s face went red.

She looked at me, and her serious eyesseemed like they were stabbing into me. If you set aside hergood-for-nothing personality, she still holds the rank of being themost popular beauty in the school, and seeing this expression of herswas indeed very cute. To be honest, it’s actually pretty unfair attimes like these.

—And it happened while I was beingcareless.

“B-Basically, I’ll just do this…!”

Just when I thought that her voicesomehow sounded closer than before, her face appeared right in frontof me.

There’s some kind of weird, softfeeling on top of my thighs. And her arms were wrapped around my neckin an instant. Not to mention that plump, voluptuous feeling on mychest—

“W-W-W-What are you—?!”

That’s right, before I realized it,Mai sat down sideways on my lap, and was hugging me!

“W-What the hell are you doing?!” Iasked, trying my best not to lose to the stimuli that assaulted mybrain.

“J-Just as you can see! I’m huggingyou!”

I’m painfully aware of that! I’masking why you’re suddenly doing that?!

“Fufufufu, this is my plan…! Myresearch…!”

“R-Research, you say…?”

“T-That’s right! This is necessaryresearch for me to write my rom-com! I wanted to try out for myselfwhat you’re always doing with Suzuka-san! But since I can’t justask my enemy for research, I thought of something… Basically, I’lljust be all lovey-dovey with you without asking for your permission!That way I can get my data, and also throw you out of thecompetition! It’s perfect!”

“How is that perfect?! As if I’daccept this delusional reasoning!!”

“W-Why! I-It’s not like I’mdirectly asking you for assistance, so it’s fine, right? You justhave to act like usual! I’m just selfishly doing my research here!”

Screw you! As if I could just ignorethe situation happening right now!

…Ahhhhh, for crying out loud! Ithought that she was crazy, but this is taking it too far…! This isbad enough to make her stalker activities look cute…!

“Ahhhhhh, Nagami-kun has Himuro-sanon his lap, serving him?!”

And in the next moment, just as onewould expect, our classmates spotted us, and our surroundings becamenoisy at lightning speed. But since I was still immobilized by Mai, Icould only sit still and accept the situation.

Ahhh… Why is it that these situationskeep happening to me…?

“Shit! Nagami, you bastard! I’m soenvious!”

“W-Why…! Why is it always Nagami…!”

“H-Himuro-san, you’re beingdeceived!”

The boys in the class kept blurting outwhatever they wanted. And, of course, all of their hatred wasdirected at me.

“I’m sorry, but this doesn’t haveanything to do you with you people, so get lost already.”

In response to Mai’s words, whichbefitted her ‘Ice Queen’ title, their gazes only grew moreintense.

…I might actually not get out of herealive…

“Himuro-san really likes Nagami-kun.”

“Maybe she’s just being deceived?It’s possible that he’s abusing a weakness of hers that he’sfound.”

“That’s why he’s using her likethis… Uwa, he’s the worst…”

And their goodwill continued to sink.I’ve always been at the bottom of the class hierarchy, but it seemslike I’ve hit rock bottom now. I have to strike a deal with Mai nowand stop this terrible scene.

“A-Anyway, please let go of me now!Please!”

I tried to forcefully push her away.But no matter what I did, she wouldn’t let go.

“N-No! I will never ever let go!”

In response, her grip on mestrengthened even more. She looked really serious, and her eyesstarted to get watery.

“…T-To beat you… I need thisresearch at all costs…! I-If you really try to tear me off thatmuch then I… *sniff*…”

F-Fake crying?!

What would happen if I, who was alreadybeing treated like scum, made the number one beauty of the schoolcry? That’s a very easy question to answer.

All the gazes in the class gathered onme, and they were filled with disgust and anger.

So you’re making her cry on top ofembarrassing her like this? — Their eyes were saying something likethat.

“*sniff* Waaaah…”

“Ahhhhhhhh, for crying out loud!”

I didn’t know how I managed to musterup enough strength, but I dashed out of the classroom while Mai wasstill clinging to me.

“Haaah… Haaah… What did I do todeserve this…? And how long are you going to fake cry…? Nobody’saround us anymore.”

“*Sniff sniff* Eh? Huh…? Why are wehere? *Sniff*”

“Y-You… You were actually crying?”

“Eh…………? N-No way, right?!T-T-T-T-There’s no way, you know!?” Mai hurriedly wiped the tearsoff her face as she let go of me.

Bulls-eye, huh?

“Haaah… Really, because of you, I’mbeing treated like a criminal…”

“What’s up with that? I won’tforgive anyone who treats Yuu like that.”

“It’s your fault! Your fault! Andwhat was up with that sudden talk about research!”

“I-I told you before, right?! I alsowant to collect data like that! I’m Towano Chikai’s number onefan and rival, so of course I’d try to steal his techniques!”

“W-Well, I can kind of understand theidea… But why does it have to be me? I’m your enemy right now,right? Isn’t it weird to use me for your research?”

“T-That’s… There’s no other boybesides you that I could use for that…”

“Are you serious…?”

Or rather, thinking about itrationally, it’s weird that a beauty like her couldn’t findanybody else. She wouldn’t even have to beg; most of the boys at thisschool would sacrifice anything to help her out.

“And also… I don’t want it to beanyone other than Yuu—You know, to win, I will try every method Ihave!”

“There are limits, you know?! Atleast protect that final boundary, will you?!”

To win against me, she’s forcing meto put up with her crazy research? What kind of crazy logic is that,for crying out loud?!

“W-What about it?! That just showshow serious I am! This is the extent of my resolve!”

I have no idea how to stop thisoverly-serious, good-for-nothing stalker… What should I do…?

I know that I can’t help Mai sinceI’m on Suzuka’s side, but if I don’t do anything, she’llcontinue her selfish research for real.

…T-This isn’t good. T-This isreally really bad. I don’t plan on obstructing her research, but Ialso have no intention of helping her out—That only leaves… onepossible method?

Basically, I have to withstand Mai’sselfish research, but now that I’ve made up my mind to do it, itstill sounds crazy.

“Ah… For now, what is my chance ofstopping the research…?”

“Non-existent.”

It figures. Though I anticipated thatresponse, I still dropped my shoulders in defeat.

…Damn it, there’s no other chancebut to do this.

“I-I got it. But for now, please stopdoing the research in places where other people can see us. If youcan agree to that, I won’t help you, but I won’t obstruct youeither.”

“…Eh? R-Really?”

“I’ll just say this upfront, but Ireally won’t help you, okay?! Just do as you please. I’ll justact like I don’t notice it,” I told Mai, completely giving up myhopes of stopping this situation altogether.

“T-Thank you— …H-Hmpf, this iswhat I had planned for from the beginning.”

“…Really. Still, to think thatyou’d just force me into your research… I expected as much fromyou, but not that.”

In response, Mai pouted and growledback with a “What do you mean by ‘I expected as much fromyou?!'”, only to change her expression into a serious one as shecontinued. “…This is all so that I can beat you. To write a novelthat you think is interesting. In order to achieve that, I will takeevery opportunity I have,” Mai once more stated her resolve as shelooked straight at me with serious eyes.

That wasn’t the face of the usualgood-for-nothing Mai at all, but rather the professional light novelwriter Enryuu Homura. In response, I could only gulp.

“That being said, I’ll pull off myselfish research. However, I really don’t want to make any troublefor Yuu, so I’ll tell you beforehand.”

“B-Beforehand?”

“Yes. Even if you don’t try to letit get to you, you still have to prepare your heart, right? It wouldjust feel awkward if you started panicking in the middle of it, don’tyou think?”

Uuu, getting excited by Mai would bebad… That being said, I’d really be thankful if I knew she wasgoing to do something before.

“Now then, I wonder how long you canignore my approach. I’ll make sure to properly make it so that youcan’t, and make you fall head over heels for me!”

“…Doesn’t it somehow sound likeyour goal has changed a bit?”

“T-T-T-That’s just yourimagination?! It’s just my character for my research, so it’sfine! A-Anyway, our next research time will be during this lunchbreak, so I hope you’re prepared!” Mai declared this with abright red face as she pointed at me.

…Really, why did this have to happen?Especially now of all times…

Well, the only thing I can do is bringMai to a place with no people so that my reputation won’t sink anylower.

“Well then, I’ll go back to theclassroom and tell everyone that they can just ignore what happened.I hope you look forward to lunch break!”

Saying random selfish things like that,she turned on her heel as I saw her off.

She really pulls the strangeststunts… — I thought as I sighed in resignation.

The only thing I know for sure is thatshe’s 100% serious. She’s doing what she needs to do in order towin against me (Suzuka). Though her methods are a bit…

…Well, I guess it’s fine. AsSuzuka’s stand in, I just have to withstand everything. It’s assimple as that.

Go ahead and research all you want. ButI won’t help you. That’s the best I can do. I don’t know whatyou’re planning on doing, but I won’t falter!

…That’s what I thought at the time.

Now, it was lunch break. Mai and I werealone together on the roof.

“…H-Hey, I told you, you’re waytoo close! Why do you have to cling to me like that!”

“I-I can’t help it! It’s myresearch for being lovey-dovey! How about you just don’t pay anyattention to it — Ah, I’ll take that.”

“Ahhh, that’s my lunch?! And don’tjust eat it off my chopsticks like that!”

“I-I mean, this is supposed to be ascene during lunch break. Here, I’ll give you some of mine.”

“Gufbu?! H-Hey, don’t just stuff itinto my mouth like that!”

Though I had steeled my heart to notpay any attention to Mai’s research — it spectacularly failed.

I mean, I can’t help it, right?!After all, we’re sitting so close to each other that our shouldersare touching, my lunch is getting stolen, and she’s feeding me!

I really would have harsh words foranyone who’d claim they could remain calm in a situation like this.Not to mention that every time she moves, a soft, plump feeling hitsmy arms, and even if you spent 1000 years trying to reach Nirvana, itwould all be for naught in this situation.

“I-I see, so this is the ‘feedingeach other’ event. It really is different when you do it in person.I-It feels pretty nice.”

And it pisses me off even more that herresearch is smoothly progressing. Even though I’m the one sufferinghere. However, I could only keep quiet just as I had promised. Ireally wanted to scream out “Stop it already!” at the top of mylungs, but—

I really didn’t want to do that.After all, I can definitely understand her desire to write aninteresting novel. In order to write an interesting novel, you haveto be ready to do anything. That’s what I believe. And that’s whyI can’t obstruct this research, no matter how much I actually wantto.

To be fair, I actually kind of look upto her. It doesn’t matter how embarrassing it is; if it’s for hernovel, she’ll do it.

I have to do the same for my nextnovel. No, I have to be willing to do even more than that, since I’mjust a normal person who can’t win against Suzuka and Mai withskill alone…

“What’s wrong, Yuu?” You’relooking gloomy all of a sudden… D-Don’t tell me, you hate thisthat much?”

“Eh?”

When I came back to my senses, Mai waslooking at me, worried, with her face close to mine.

“Ah, no, it’s not that, I was justlost in thought—”

“I-Is that so? So I wasn’t being abother, huh? Then I’ll continue this research!”

Wha—?! Hey! I never said anythingabout it not being a bother!”

O-Oh no, I got careless and blurtedthat out…! And your face is way too close! Your breasts are goingto hit me!

I heard the sound of a camera taking aphoto, and realized that Mai had taken a selfie. Of course, at thatrange, I was perfectly visible too.

“Hey, why did you take a photo?”

“Well, I thought of using this asfurther research material, but a photo as proof wouldn’t be too badeither so that I can send it to the Towano Chikai LINE group.”

“Proof? LINE?”

“You know, we girls created a TowanoChikai group on LINE, right?”

“This is the first I’ve heard ofit! What even is that group?!”

“It’s like a meeting space for fansof Towano Chikai. Though the group only consists of the people whoknow your real identity. Your illustrator, the voice actress MinazukiSakura, the Kanzaka sisters, and me.”

…I-I had no idea. To think that theyhad something like that…

“And before this research, I got alot of advice from them, so they told me to upload a picture asproof. Really, it’s not like I wanted to do it, but I couldn’thelp it~”

…She says, but she sounds reallyhappy as she gazes at the photo in her phone…

And just when I thought that she wouldkeep admiring it for all eternity…

“And, sent. I-It’s not like I’mhappy and proud of it or anything, but a promise is a promise~”

*Tap* —She uploaded it. I couldn’tstop her in time, huh…?

At that moment, her phone startedringing like crazy, and a cold sweat ran down my cheek as I realizedwhat that meant.

“H-Hmpf, an instant reaction I see.N-Not that I really care or anything~”

“L-Let me see it for a bit,” I tooktook a glance at her smartphone.

I saw that every member of the LINEgroup had already commented on the photo.

[Ohh, I’m glad that your research wasa success, desu! But, it’s unfair if it’s just Mai! Now I want todo that, too! Sensei should be present as well, right? Please tellhim that I will be the next to research with him, desu!] said DoublePeace-sensei.

[So jealous so jealous so jealous!Sakura also wants a selfie with Sensei! If she knew that you woulduse it like this, Sakura wouldn’t have given you any advice at all!She will make sure to get a selfie too, so give him my regards!] saidMinazuki-san.

[That’s nice. I never thought thatyou would ask Towano-sensei to help with your research. But I will bethe one to ask for that next time. And, of course, I will help Senseiwith every research need he has. Please ask him if he’s interestedin writing a more adult novel.] said Akino-san.

[I can’t believe this! Even if it’sfor research, something like that is…! You should really stop beingdeceived by him, don’t you think?! And, Onee-chan wrote somethingweird, so please ignore that! No, just ignore it!] said the youngerKanzaka sister.

“Ah… This is a nightmare.”

“What nice reactions!” said Maiwith a grin, but I couldn’t help feeling depressed. “Now then,the report is finished, so let’s continue the research!”

“Just do whatever you want…”

“Hmm? That’s what I’ve been doingfrom the very start. What are you saying?”

I don’t even have the motivation torespond to that.

With an “O-Okay, then let’s do thatnext!” from Mai, I was pushed over sideways.

“S-So this is a lap pillow, huh…It’s really different from what I imagined. This will surely behelpful for my novel…!”

I heard that voice from above, while Ifelt her soft, warm lap from below, but I didn’t have the energy toreact.

…That’s right. I just have to lether do as she pleases. If I don’t say anything back, she’llsurely be satisfied.

“U-Uhm, then what should we do next…Ah, I know! The ‘sleeping together’ event! Now that that’sdecided, let’s go to the nurse’s office…!”

“You know, I still wish you’d holdback at least a little bit…”

But alas, my grumble didn’t reachMai’s ears.

“Ahhh… What a horrible day…”

After school, I was finally releasedfrom Mai’s torture and I made my way towards Hakuou.

After what happened, Mai unexpectedlyheld back on doing her research in front of other people. However, itwas even worse when it was just the two of us.

Though I won’t go into detail—orrather, I don’t want to go into detail at all—Mai’s researchproceeded smoothly (for her), while I felt like I slowly turned intoa living corpse.

To think that she’d go this far justto write a rom-com novel that could win against me (Suzuka).

“So this is what a professional lightnovel writer is like, huh?”

While I was mumbling that to myself, Iarrived at Hakuou. Of course, Suzuka was already standing at thegate. As I was about to raise my voice to call out her, I stoppedmyself.

…F-For some reason, the aura aroundher is really intimidating…

“You really took your time today,Onii-chan.”

She had her arms crossed as she walkedin front of me. Though her mouth made it look like she was smiling,the same couldn’t be said about her eyes.

“By the way, would you mindexplaining this…?”

And I immediately understood thereason. She shoved a phone screen into my face. And shown there wasthe selfie that Mai took earlier—

“Wha—?! W-Why do you…!”

“Himuro-san sent it to me. Thoughprobably by mistake.”

B-By mistake?! To Suzuka of allpeople?!

…Wait, I remember her sayingsomething about sending me the photo later… She mixed up our emailaddresses?! How empty-headed can you be?! And why do I have to sufferbecause of that?!

“Well, I don’t really care abouther sending it to me. I’m more interested in the picture itself,”Suzuka narrowed her eyes as she glared at me.

“Y-You’re wrong! This is just…uhm… ahhhh…”

Since I had already made enough troublefor myself before, I decided to spill the beans immediately. Ofcourse, I emphasized the part where I said that I didn’t find anypleasure in it and that I was just letting Mai do it to me.

“A-A research…? W-WithOnii-chan…?!”

“Yeah, setting aside her method, sheseems really serious about the competition.”

“B-But, Onii-chan belongs only to me— N-Nevermind! Onii-chan is my stand-in, right?! So what gives herthe right to use Onii-chan to help her?!”

“I-I didn’t help her! I just didn’twant anything bad to happen… or rather, happen anymore, so I lether do as she pleased! But let me just get this straight. I havenever, and will never betray you, Suzuka. Even if it kills me. Ipromise you that.”

“T-That’s… Uhm, t-thank you verymuch…”

I’m Suzuka’s stand-in. She has thehighest priority.

Though Suzuka still looked red like shewas about to explode from anger, she suddenly nodded, and opened hermouth.

“Let me just make sure that Iunderstand everything. This photo was taken without Onii-chan’sconsent, and you didn’t help Mai at all during her research,right?”

“That’s right. It’s just as Isaid.”

“B-But Onii-chan will continue tohelp me with my research, right?”

“Of course. I’m your stand-in,after all,” I responded.

Suzuka lowered her head and muttered aquiet “I-Is that so?”

W-What? A-Am I being forgiven…? Or isit the opposite…?

“…T-Then, Onii-chan, it seems likewe have to research something even more important.”

“Eh?”

“W-Why are you letting out a weirdvoice like that? Himuro-san is going this far, so we also have tostep up our game. Otherwise there’s no knowing if we can reallybeat her!”

“A-Ah, yeah, that’s right,” Inodded as Suzuka stared at me.

Though she still seems a bit displeasedabout something, I’m happy that she’s not mad at me anymore…

“T-To think that Himuro-san wouldresort to such measures… Conducting research with Onii-chan andbeing all flirty with him is my exclusive right… B-But, he reallyis only helping me, after all… Ehe, ehehehehe…”

“So what should we do for ourresearch?”

“Hyah?! P-Please don’t interrupt mewhile I’m in deep thought! *Cough* About the research—There’sno school tomorrow, right? I would like you to come to Hakuou earlyin the morning.”

“I don’t mind, but what are wegoing to do? Are we going out somewhere?”

“T-Though a normal date would be agood idea, this time it will be different… Though to some extent,it still is a date…” For some reason, Suzuka put both her handson her cheeks and let out a weird laugh. “…Ha?! A-Anyway, I’llbe counting on you tomorrow!”

Suzuka finally returned to reality andshe started walking back towards Hakuou’s school grounds.

…Or so I thought, until she suddenlycame a stop.

“I-I almost forgot… B-Before that,there’s something I have to research today, no matter what…”

“Eh? Right now?”

“I-It’s fine. It’ll be overimmediately. I’m sorry, but could you give me your phone,Onii-chan? Mine is an older model.”

“A-Ah, yeah,” I said as I took outmy phone and handed it to her.

“Thank you very much. Then Onii-chan,come here for a bit.”

Listening to her instructions, I wasnow standing next to her. The next moment, Suzuka clung to me, andour cheeks rubbed against each other’s.

As I let out a confused “Wha—?!”,Suzuka put up the phone above us and tapped on the screen. The soundof a photo being taken immediately followed.

“W-What is this about…?!”

“L-Like I said, it’s for research!I can’t have only Himuro-san experience something like this — no,excuse me! I can’t lose against her when it comes to research! O-Ofcourse I also want a selfie! O-Only theoretically and for research,though!”

S-So that’s what this was about? Thatreally surprised me.

“N-Now then, please excuse me!P-Please send me that picture later!”

After saying these parting words, shewalked towards the school gate and slowly disappeared into thedistance. Though I couldn’t move a muscle for a short time, my bodyfinally moved according to my will again and I dropped my gaze to thephone in my hand.

A photo were both Suzuka and I were soclose our cheeks were touching, where both of us were red-faced. Iremembered that soft, warm feeling again, and put my hand on thecheek that had touched hers.

“Uu… So hot… Let’s go homealready…”

It felt like I was trying to run awayfrom my embarrassment.

…E-Even if it was for research…taking such a photo with my little sister…

Part 4:

The following day. Just as Suzuka hadasked me, I made my way towards Hakuou early in the morning. Ofcourse, since there was no school today, there were almost no peoplearound the school and the school gate was closed. However, the momentI arrived, Suzuka, who was wearing casual clothes, greeted me.

“Good morning, Onii-chan. Sorry formaking you come here this early.”

“Morning, Suzuka. So, we’re doingsome more research, right?”

“Yes. And, about that research…U-Uhm, for now, let’s leave the details for when we’re inside.”

“Inside? Where?”

“T-The school grounds…Specifically, the dormitory of Hakuou.”

“……Eh? Ehhh?! Hakuou’s dorm?!T-That’s a girls dorm, right?! W-Wouldn’t it be bad for me to goin there?!”

“It’s fine. You can put in anapplication to invite a person over. Onii-chan is family, after all,and you helped out a lot at the culture festival, so they immediatelygave me permission. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“I-Is that so? B-But, what are youplanning, inviting me in like this?”

“A-Again, it’s research. Today’stheme will be, uhm…”

Suzuka fidgeted like it was somethinghard to say, but she finally made up her mind, and…

“I-It’s a scene where the boyfriendis called to his girlfriend’s room…”

“The boyfriend is called… to hisgirlfriend’s room…?”

“T-That’s right. Isn’t it perfectthat I’m currently living in the dormitory? Since it’s adifferent room from usual, this might be a good chance. And thatshould be the same for Onii-chan, right? Being called to a girl’sroom. You might also be able to also collect some data from this.”

“True. It really might be the perfectsituation for research.”

“It’s research you normallywouldn’t be able to do. We shouldn’t let this chance go to waste.That being said, p-please act as my boyfriend once more, Onii-chan,”Suzuka said and tightly gripped my hand. “I-I will also act like agirlfriend. L-Let’s go,” She added and pulled me along.

…I definitely didn’t expect thiskind of research. This kind of chance really doesn’t come alongthat often. Just as I would expect from Suzuka. Her ideas really areimpressive.

“……Fufufu, you normally can’tdo this after all… I have to show Onii-chan my womanly appeal, andnot as a little sister, but as a normal girl… Himuro-san also seemsto be serious, after all…”

“By the way, Suzuka.”

“Nya?! W-W-W-W-What isch id,Onii-chan?!”

“Ah, well, I just thought ofsomething. Even if the school is fine with it, what will the othergirls in the dorm think…?”

…Something feels off. On otherresearch dates, she also seemed a bit weird, but right now it’seven more than normal…

“A-Ah, it’s about that, huh!*Cough* …It’s perfectly fine. Everyone knows that Onii-chan willbe coming over, and I made sure that they wouldn’t obstruct ourresearch — Uhm, no, I made sure that we wouldn’t bother them!”

“I see. Well, if you say so.”

She says that, but I’m still reallynervous. After all, it’s a famous all-girls school. A place where aboy like me would normally never be able to enter. But, at the sametime, there’s this expectant feeling— …Well, I don’t meanthat anything weird by that, I was referring to the atmosphere, okay?

“……Onii-chan? Are you thinkingabout something weird?” And as always, Suzuka gave a sharp remark.

…I-I’m not thinking about anythingweird, okay?! For a normal boy like me, a girls dormitory issomething like a sacred place, that’s all!

“If anything happens, I willimmediately report it, so please don’t do anything weird.”

“……Y-Yes.”

While she warned me, we walked towardsthe back side of the courtyard. We followed the stone-paved walkway,and Suzuka pointed at a building and said “This is the dorm.”

“Just as you would expect from anOjou-sama school. Even on a free day, it’s pretty quiet.”

“…No, today is special. Rather thanthat, let’s hurry to my room. Staying too long in the receptionarea is dangerous.”

That’s right, a boy like me reallydoesn’t belong here, so we’d best not draw any unnecessaryattention. Though ‘dangerous’ is a bit of an overstatement.

I walked down the hallway with Suzuka,and we finally arrived at her dorm room.

“This is my room. That being said,I’m only using it for the time being, after all.”

As expected, the interior wasextravagant like the rest of the school. Though she didn’t havemore than the barest necessities. Namely, her room had a bed, a tablewith a chair, a closet, and a full-length mirror. It still managed tolook very high-class.

“This is a nice place you have here…And it’s even more spacious than my own room.”

“It really is wasted on me… Butnevermind that. Let’s focus on the research.”

I was casually looking around the room,but those words suddenly filled me with tension again.

…T-That’s right, today we’reresearching a particular kind of event: ‘Being invited to yourgirlfriend’s room.’

Though to be fair, this is actually mylittle sister Suzuka’s room, but it’s in a completely differentlocation. It really feels like I’ve come to a girl’s room I’venever been to.

“U-Uhm, so what exactly should I do?”

“I-It’s about that… I don’tactually know. either.”

“Eh? Wait a second… you wanted todo this research, right?”

“That’s true, but I’ve never hadmy boyfriend come to my room like this, so I wouldn’t know what todo…”

Apparently she wanted to hear myopinion, and she give a disheartened response.

“So, Onii-chan, what do you thinkwould make sense for such an event? What would normally happen?”

“I see… But even if you suddenlyask me that… I don’t have any experience with going to a girl’sroom, either.”

Ah, that made me feel a bit sad.

“…Is that really the case? Youhaven’t been going to Himuro-san’s or Double Peace-san’s roomsbehind my back, right…?”

“Of course not! I’ve only broughtMai home without entering until now, and I did enter DoublePeace-sensei’s room once, but you were with me at the time,right?!”

“N-Now that you mention it… ThoughI really don’t want to remember that…”

“It’s the same for me… Anyway,basically I don’t really know, either.”

“But you should have an idea or two,right?”

Ugh… She’s not wrong about that.There are scenes like this in light novels and manga, after all. And,the number one event would be…

“Normally, since this has the benefitof me being able to see your daily life, showing me your personalthings would be a good start, I think?”

“That would be pretty difficult inthis situation…”

“Yeah… this isn’t your actualroom after all… But it’s still too early to give up. You shouldhave the bare minimum of personal belongings here, right?”

“That would only be my personalclothes though,” Suzuka said and opened her closet.

Stuffed in there were Hakuou uniformsand her personal clothes.

“Ohhh, so you had clothes like these.I’ve never seen them before.”

“I-Is that so? This is reallyembarrassing for some reason… B-But I see now, this is indeed a wayto be lovey-dovey.”

Saying this, she took out some clothes,went towards the full-length mirror, and held them in front ofherself.

“H-How is it, Onii-chan?”

“Ahh, yeah. I think that it suitsyou.”

“I-I-I-I-I-Is that so! Then, I willwear this more often when I come home!”

Like this, she tried other clothes.

…Yeah, isn’t this a niceatmosphere? This might actually work.

“Ah, I’ll try on some accessoriestoo while I’m at it. They’re in the small drawer of the closet,so can you bring me some?”

Just as Suzuka asked me to, I openedthe drawer.

“Uhm, is this one good?” I asked asheld the thing I grabbed towards her.

…This is some soft fabric, with anice color. A ribbon maybe?

“Ah, yes, that’s…………A-Ah…”

However, when Suzuka turned around, herface went bright red and she froze in place.

…What is it? — I thought asI looked at my right hand to check.

And… it wasn’t a ribbon. It was aboy’s eternal romance. A protector of the sacred place. A trianglefilled with charm.

“W-W-W-W-Why is Onii-chan holding mypa… pa—!”

Yeah, it’s panties! And I proudlyheld them up! My little sister’s, Suzuka’s, panties!!!

Wait, this isn’t the time to commenton that!

“Y-Y-You’re wrong, okay! This isjust…!”

“I-I wasn’t talking about thatdrawer… That’s for my underwear…! Ahhhh…!”

“S-Sorry! I just happened to! I’llput them back right now…!”

I hurriedly stuffed my right hand backinto the drawer. But, since I was panicking, I hit the side of thedrawer. With that, the drawer fell out and all the panties danced inthe air and slowly fell to the ground.

“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?!O-O-O-O-Onii-chan?!”

Suzuka hurriedly ran to pick up herunderwear from the floor, half in panic, half in anger. Her eyes werespinning in embarrassment and tears were starting to form. Seeingthat, I almost fainted in agony from guilt. Even though I reallydidn’t do it on purpose, I had made my little sister cry, andembarrassed her to this degree. I really deserve the death penalty.

—No, just die already, me! How manytimes does that make?!

“I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I’m sorry! Though Ireally didn’t do it on purpose, it was 100% my fault! So… I’mreally sorry!”

I jumped down on the floor and loweredmy head. I knew that this wouldn’t be enough, but this was the onlything I could do for now.

“Uuu…!” From above my head, Icould hear Suzuka’s shaky voice.

In response, I once more apologizedcountless times.

“…O-Onii-chan, please lift up yourhead…”

As I finally heard these words, Islowly lifted my head. As I did, I saw Suzuka holding her panties,with tears in her eyes, and a bright red face, glaring at me.

“I-I’m really sorry, Suzuka…!”

“Uuu… it’s fine. I know that youdidn’t do it on purpose… And I should’ve given you betterinstructions, too…”

“B-But still, I’m the one at faulthere! I’ll do anything, so please forgive me…!”

“…Then, will you honestly answer meone question?”

“Yes, of course! I dare not utter asingle lie!”

If Suzuka will forgive me, I’llanswer as many questions as she wants me to. But to think that shewould forgive me just like that… my little sister is so merciful…!

“U-Uhm, were you happy, coming to agirl’s room and seeing her panties?”

“…………Eh?” But in responseto that question, my eyes opened wide.

“L-Like I said, as a boyfriend, areyou happy seeing your girlfriend’s panties…?!”

“T-That’s… Yes. I think that Iwas happy… but…”

“O-Onii-chan really is the worst, youero devil!”

“Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!”

E-Even though you’re the one whoasked me?! N-No, I don’t have the right to talk back!

“…Uuu, but, it’s fine. I’m notmad anymore. Though I was really embarrassed, I just have to think ofthis as research… When we did that panchira research, I also…!”Her small body was slightly shaking as she hugged her panties eventighter. “T-That’s right, if it’s for research, I can dowhatever I want…! If it’s like this… I have to use thischance…!”

Her face was still as red as a ripeapple, and she kept muttering something to herself.

…Is she not feeling up to itbecause she’s so embarrassed…? — I thought, but…

“O-Onii-chan, please turn around fora moment!”

Since that sounded more like a demandrather than a question, I did as I was told with a shaky “Y-Yes!”

I heard some rustling sounds behind me,and I wondered what she was doing. After a short wait, I finallyheard Suzuka’s voice from behind me.

“I-It’s okay now…”

“……Mhm? Suzuka?”

After I slowly turning around, I sawthat her panties were back to where they belonged, and the drawer wasfixed as well.

…Well, that’s fine and all, but…

“Why are you sitting on the bed?”

There were two chairs in the room, soeven if I took one, there should be no need to sit down on the bed,unlike in my room.

“T-This is another part of theresearch, of course.”

“Another part of it? What is it?” Iasked, to what Suzuka responded with “T-That’s,” seeminglyunable to formulate words.

And, after a short pause, it lookedlike steam was coming out of her ears. She seemed to have reached herdecision.

“Uuu…! O-Onii-chan, please push medown on the bed!” She said earnestly, as if her life depended onit.

“E-Eh?! P-Push you down… W-W-W-Whatdo you mean by that?!”

“E-E-Exactly what it sounds like!Onii-chan has to push me down onto the bed!”

“W-Why should I do that?! No, I getthat it’s for research, but still?!”

“D-Don’t misunderstand! I justwanted to experience this, that’s all! W-When my boyfriend comes tomy room, a situation like that might very well occur! This is inorder to write a realistic novel!”

B-But, even if it’s for research,doing something like that is just…!

“I-I didn’t actually plan to gothis far… But now that you’ve seen my panties…! Although it wasembarrassing, I realized that I shouldn’t be hesitating this much!S-So please hurry up and push me down!”

“W-Wait! Aren’t you getting a bitdesperate?!”

“I-I am not! T-This is necessary inorder to write an interesting novel! An essential part of my researchto win against Himuro-san! Also, this might be a perfect chance —N-No, forget about that! Anyway, in order to write an interestingnovel, I’m completely fine with it!”

Uuu… so the genius light novel authorSuzuka is ready to go this far… While a normal person like me isstill hesitating.

“O-Onii-chan just said that he woulddo anything, right?!”

And she threw that statement I had saidright back at me.

…That’s right. I’m Suzuka’sstand-in. Even if it’s embarrassing, or unreasonable, if it’sSuzuka’s research, it’s my duty to help her!

I took a deep breath, took a stepforward, and put my hands on her shoulders. Although her shoulderstwitched once, she remained silent as she looked up at me. I put alittle more strength into my arms, and her upper body collapsedbackwards onto the bed.

“Fua… Auu… Auu…”Indescribable sounds came from Suzuka’s mouth.

I knew that she’s nervous, but it wasthe same for me. Her entire upper body was now lying on top of thebed.

…And what exactly should I do now?

“O-Onii-chan, please come closer…!”

For now, I decided to follow herinstructions… and moved my body above her. Like that, my shadowfell over her small body.

“S-S-S-S-So this is how it feels tobe pushed down…!”

T-T-This is what it feels like to pusha girl down…! W-Wait, she’s my little sister. Calm down, me.Don’t you dare go that direction!

Maybe because she was embarrassed, shedidn’t meet my gaze and just looked around the room restlessly.

“………!”

Finally, our eyes met, and sheswallowed her breath. So did I.

“A-Auu… Onii-chan…”

Suddenly, she closed her eyes.

…Wait, t-this is really bad, youknow?! C-Closing your eyes in a situation like this!

However, Suzuka didn’t move. It wasas if she was waiting for something.

No no no no no?! I-I-It doesn’tmatter if this is for research! Any further than that, and thingswill end really badly! And what the hell am I thinking about?! Don’tjust selfishly think about weird stuff likethaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!

And while I was trying to clear my mindof these thoughts, it happened.

*Bang* !!!

“Uwaaa?!” “Kyaaa?!”

As a loud bang resounded from theentrance, both Suzuka and I jumped up.

“W-W-W-W-What is it?!”

“Y-Y-You people…! What are youdoing there!”

While I was still flustered because ofwhat happened earlier, Suzuka for her part just glared at the door.Her face was as red as ever.

“I-I told you not to push me thismuch…”

“I-I didn’t push you or anything!”

“I-I tried to stop you…!”

“Ah, suddenly making up excuses likethat is unfair!”

For some reason, some female studentswere lying collapsed in the doorframe.

…So, they’ve been listening throughthe door, huh?

“Y-You people… You don’t mean totell me that you’ve been eavesdropping, do you…?”

Every single one of them gulped. Itseems like Suzuka hit the bullseye… And she’s so scary…

As Suzuka walked towards them, they alljumped up and tried to make excuses.

“Y-You’re wrong, Suzuka-sama!”

“W-We just thought of greetingOnii-sama, that’s all!”

“But we thought that it would be rudeif we suddenly barged in, so we decided to wait!”

“I thought I told you not to stayaway from us when Onii-chan visits me…?”

So she put out an official notice likethat? So that’s why it was so awfully quiet when we entered thedorm.

…But that’s not important rightnow. This is actually the first time I’ve seen Suzuka in herstudent council president mode… I’m seeing her from the side, andthat’s plenty scary enough. My body is shivering.

“B-But we still thought that we hadto at least greet Onii-sama once..”

“T-That’s right. After all, weprobably won’t get to see Onii-sama again anytime soon.”

“We haven’t seen him once since theculture festival…”

“We wanted to thank him for before…”

All of them tried to bring their ownreasons to the table. There were even faces that I recognized. Andsince some of them were talking about thanking me… They must befrom the theatre club.

“Oh, so that’s why you wereeavesdropping, huh?”

However, Suzuka didn’t seem to careat all. She just kept glaring at them with crossed arms as a darkaura built up behind her, which made the poor students in front ofher freeze up in fear.

…Maybe she’s mad because herresearch got interrupted…?

“Now now, Suzuka, calm down. Theydidn’t seem to have any ill intentions…” I tried to reason withSuzuka.

“O-Onii-chan?!”

After all, I didn’t want them to bescared of Suzuka like this.

“…I think that, no matter how oftenyou explain the situation, a boy entering a girl’s dorm is justthat big of a deal that they probably couldn’t help but be curious.And not to mention that I’m your big brother, right? We can alwayscontinue our research later, so how we let them off for now?”

“…T-That might be true, but still…Just when it finally got interesting — No, nevermind! If Onii-chansays so, then I can’t help it. I will tolerate it for now,”Suzuka pouted and looked away.

Wheew, that was close. Thank God sheaccepted it…

“Thank you very much, Onii-sama!”

The next moment, all the girls who hadbeen shaking in fear suddenly came closer to me.

“Just what I would expect fromOnii-sama. To pacify Suzuka-sama like this…”

“Just when I was worried what wouldhappen to us…”

“Normally, Nagami-kaichou is verykind, but she’s really scary when she’s mad…”

“Onii-sama really is an amazingperson!”

“Yey, so wonderful!”

“Ah, uhm, excuse me?!”

All of them suddenly showered me withpraise, which left me at a loss for words. Somehow, this was reallyembarrassing.

“Muuu…!”

Though Suzuka was glaring at meintensely, I didn’t have the leisure to pay any attention to it.

“There’s something that I alwayswanted to say if I were to meet Onii-sama.”

“That’s right. Taking Suzuka-samato your own school… Onii-sama is so cruel.”

“I’ll be lonely if Suzuka-sama isbe gone…”

“But I heard that he gave herpermission to live here in the dorm for a bit so that she can spendmore time with us before she leaves…”

“Really? Onii-sama is so kind!”

“Please let us thank you for that!”

“Eh, uhm… Ehhh?”

After being blamed, and immediatelybeing thanked, for something I didn’t even do left me in confusion.

However, while I was still unable sayanything, the female students kept showering me with questions andwhatnot, which left me no other choice but to get swept along.

After that, the mass of students insidethe room only grew larger in number as other students heard theruckus.

“M-My precious time to be withOnii-chan together…”

Suzuka glared at me with a displeasedexpression, but I wasn’t able to do anything to fix her bad mood,or to fix the situation on general.

Part 5:

“…T-Then, I’ll be going home now,okay?” Onii-chan said as he showed me a happy, but still tired,smile.

The sun was currently setting, coloringthe sky a deep red.

After all that happened, we stillcouldn’t manage to make the students go home. Instead, they allloudly begged for some tea, so we spent lunchtime with them andtalked well into the afternoon — until all the time that I hadplanned to spend with Onii-chan was gone. But since I got a littlebit of research done, I decided not to dwell on it for too long.

…That being said, Onii-chan really ispopular. Of course, a lot of it has to do with him being my bigbrother, but a lot of them also saw him at the lecture he gave.However, the most important thing would probably be Onii-chan’spersonality.

He’s kind, and not exactly reliable,which gives him this familiar, easy-to-befriend atmosphere. Andeveryone realizes that and is naturally drawn to him. Normally, theywould think more rationally, but as soon as it’s Onii-chan, they gocrazy…

“…? Suzuka? You seem to be upset.Is it about the research?”

That’s not good. I was so lost in mythoughts that I accidentally made Onii-chan worry. O-Of course, I’mvery happy to see that he’s worried about me in the first place.

“N-No, I think that the research wasmore than enough. With this, I should be able to write a good scenefor my novel.”

That is the truth. Though we wereobstructed at the end, I was able to spend a passionate time —excuse me, a productive time — performing the research. Thanks tothat one particular incident, I was able to ask Onii-chan to push medown on the bed, after all. Normally, I wouldn’t have been able toask that.

…Ah, just from remembering it, myface is getting hot… Ehehehe… My muscles are just relaxing ontheir own… Ehehehe, how troublesome, ehehehe…

“Is that so? I’m glad.”

Ha!? T-That’s not good. This isn’tthe time to dwell in my memories.

When he pushed me down, I was ready togive him my everything. And with these feelings that I still rememberclearly, I surely won’t be able to stop my fantasies from flowingout. I-I have to be content with this for now.

“So do you think that you can writean interesting novel? Even if the genre is different from what sheusually writes, Mai seems pretty serious about it. Though you mightnot be under any risk, she’s going to force me to do something shedemands, after all…”

What are you saying? This is thegreatest possible risk for me! She would surely use that order to belovey-dovey with Onii-chan… No, possibly even more than that…?!J-Just thinking about it makes my blood boil…! I cannot allow thatto happen! I have to fill my novel with even stronger feelings thanHimuro-san does, and show her that she can’t compete against mylove for Onii-chan!

However…

“Well, it’s still not enough atthis point.”

It’s still not enough. It’s stilllacking. It’s far from enough!

I realized it after the incident in mydorm room, as well. As soon as there are other girls aroundOnii-chan, I become just his little sister. And that’s not nearlyenough. As long as I’m not a girl he’s always conscious of, goingto the same school as him won’t make a single bit of a difference.

I cannot let this time go to waste. Ihave to move forward with my research… It seems like I really haveto prepare for that event…!

“*Cough* Anyway, we have to researcheven more. To be precise, on the 14th of February — isV-Valentine’s day!”

“V-Valentine’s Day, huh. Now thatyou mention it, it’s next week, isn’t it?”

“This year, there will be no schoolon that day. Please make sure that you’re at home all day. O-Or, doyou perhaps already have plans?”

“O-Only normies have plans onValentine’s, you know…”

Though Onii-chan looked like he sighedin defeat, I was relieved. All this time, I haven’t been able togive him chocolate, but this year will be different. I will make thisValentine’s a success, and engrave myself onto his heart!Furthermore, I will take that experience, and also beat Himuro-san!Because I will write a normal novel with a normal girl as a heroine,and make it so that Onii-chan thinks it’s interesting!

“Uhm… Suzuka?”

Ehe, ehehehe… a perfect plan… IfValentine’s works out perfectly, our feelings might even becomemutual. With that, we will spend a wonderful evening…Ehehehehehehehe…

“Heeeey, Suzuka.”

“Hya?! W-W-W-W-W-W-W-What is it,Onii-chan?! Please don’t scare me like that!”

“I didn’t mean to, but okay…Anyway, you were saying something about a Valentine’s Day research,right? I got it, so leave it to me.”

“Y-Yes! Please do!”

While gazing at Onii-chan’s back ashe made his way home, I started working out the Valentine’s Dayplan in my head. I can’t allow failure now! I have to make itperfect!

I’ll definitely make it a day you’llnever forget, Onii-chan!