Chapter 54

"Hey, let me see, I'll do it for you!"

"No way, I'll do it, I will!"

When Yuki finished changing and returned to the living room, he heard Miki and Rina fighting over the game controller in front of the TV.

He thought they were at it again, but it seemed they were playing a single-player game together, arguing about how to do things.

At first, Miki was acting like the older sister, but it seemed her true self was already showing. When two younger sisters clash, it seems to end up like this.

"Ah, I fell again! Yuki, you're so bad at this!"

"No, I definitely pressed the jump button! Seriously, you're in your rebellious phase, you old bearded man!"

Yuki, thinking they were being vulgar, opened the refrigerator to look inside, ignoring the two of them.

He thought about making a ham and egg sandwich with toast, but there were no eggs.

Deciding to just spread some jam, he picked up a small jar, only to find that the strawberry jam, which was more than half full yesterday morning, was almost gone, thanks to Rina.

It was a nasty move to leave just a tiny bit.

Feeling too lazy to think about it anymore, Yuki took out some ham and bread from the fridge and sat down at the table, ready to stuff them in his mouth.

"Yuki, wait a minute!"

Suddenly, a "wait a minute" came from far away.

Miki, who had paused the game, grabbed her handbag from the corner of the sofa and came over to the dining table.

"Let's have lunch a bit early."

She suddenly said this, but there was nothing decent to cook without buying something.

As Yuki was puzzled, Miki took out a bento box and a large container from her bag and placed them on the table.

"Ta-da! Bento!"

Miki opened her hands wide in front of the bento.

Hearing the word "bento," Rina abandoned the game and ran over.

"Wow, bento!!"

"There's some for Rina too."

As soon as Miki opened the lids, Rina, who was sitting on a chair, practically pounced on the bento box.

Her eyes widened, and she pointed at it.

"Hey, there are octopus sausages! Are they alive?!"

"They're all skewered with toothpicks."

"That's not the point. It's been years since I've had octopus sausages."

"Um, yeah..."

"Hey, that reaction... You must have secretly eaten them without telling Rina!"

"No, I can make and eat them myself."

"That's not the point!"

Rina, pushing Yuki aside, leaned in as close as possible to the bento box.

"Wow, tamagoyaki!! Katsuage!!"

She screamed as she saw the packed side dishes.

Behind her, Miki chuckled.

"It's a bit of a shortcut, but I made enough for everyone to eat."

"It doesn't look bad at all, better than what Yuki makes!"

Traitor.

But Yuki had no objections.

The bento box contained three types of side dishes, while the container was neatly filled with rice balls wrapped in nori.

While the variety of side dishes was less than the bento Yuki had received before, it must have taken a lot of effort to prepare so many.

Yuki looked up at Miki and thanked her.

"Thank you, Miki, for making all this."

"Well, I thought it might be hard for Yuki to prepare meals every day..."

Miki scratched her head and smiled a bit shyly.

Yuki's lips curved into a smile, and they stared at each other for a moment when Rina started pulling on Miki's arm.

"Hey, can I eat? Can I eat?"

"Um, yeah, go ahead."

As soon as she got permission, Rina reached out and popped the octopus sausage she had been eyeing into her mouth.

Yuki stopped munching on his toast, took a rice ball from the container, and said "itadakimasu" to Miki.

"Wow, it's so delicious!!"

"Try to eat quietly."

"Yuki, you should feed Miki with 'a-an.'"

"Why?"

"Why not? You're dating!"

According to Rina's logic, couples must feed each other.

Yuki recalled that they were indeed in a relationship and, picking up the toothpick from the octopus sausage, held it in front of Miki's face.

"Okay, Miki, a-an."

But Miki didn't budge, just looking at him with a face that seemed to want to say something.

She didn't show any sign of eating.

"What's wrong?"

"Yuki, you're so strong in this area."

"Strong?"

"Like, you should be more embarrassed..."

Miki had a subtle expression, unsure if she was embarrassed or exasperated.

Yuki, who often did this for Rina, didn't feel much resistance.

"I do this for Rina often."

"Is that the issue? You do it often..."

"Haha... Yuki, you must surpass Rina's corpse!"

"She's not dead."

"Barro, that's not what I meant!"

"That's exactly what you meant."

Rina, having said what she wanted, bit into the tamagoyaki and katsuage skewered with the toothpick.

Miki, perhaps noticing Rina's gaze, seized the opportunity and bit into the octopus sausage.

"Ah, you ate it. Good job."

"Please don't say it like you're feeding an animal."

Miki chewed and looked away, blushing.

Rina, noticing this, leaned in and peered at Miki's face.

"How is it? Is it delicious, Miki?"

"It's delicious..."

"Good job, Yuki, it's the power of love!"

"It's the power of Miki's cooking."

Saying it as if it would be tasteless without love.

As expected, Miki looked unsatisfied and muttered.

"Making me say it's delicious because I made it myself feels..."

"Self-praise."

"Well, it is delicious, actually!"

Miki puffed out her chest and decided to be straightforward.

"Okay, now it's Miki's turn to feed Yuki! Get ready, Yuki!"

"Alright, come on."

"Doesn't this feel like a punishment game for me?"

"Don't worry, Rina's turn is next!"

Saying this, Rina picked up a rice ball and waited.

After that, they continued to feed each other from the bento for a while.

Before they knew it, Miki's bento was empty.

Rina, leaning back in her chair, patted her stomach, looking satisfied.

Yuki glanced at the clock, stood up, and urged Miki, who had finished putting away the bento box.

"Let's go then."

"Where are Yuki and Miki going?"

"To the library to study."

"Have a good time."

Rina, who had wanted to come along, quickly turned around and headed back to the TV and sofa.

However, leaving Rina alone was a bit worrying.

"Bye, Rina, see you later!"

"Sure! Come anytime!"

"Rina, study well."

"Leave it to me!"

Rina, remote in hand, gave a thumbs up.

It was a guy's movie. She was planning to watch it leisurely.

Rina had just convinced her father to sign up for a video streaming service last time.

Yuki wanted to complain, but he had plans for later.

He couldn't afford to dilly-dally, so he left the house with Miki.