“What’s wrong, Kaoru?”
“Oh, no, it’s nothing. I was just thinking it must be rough for Kisaki-san since she has to move by herself to a place she’s unfamiliar with.”
“That’s right. But apparently she often comes to this area to have fun. Apparently, her little sister works at a company around here. They’ve always been close, and even now she stays over at her house, it seems.”
“R-Really?” I know about that. I even know the address if you want it. After all, I’ve hung out there a bunch of times. “K-Kisaki-san’s little sister, huh? I-I wonder what kind of person she is?”
“Kisaki-san said that unlike herself, her sister is shy and quiet. On her days off, she stays home all day and plays video games, apparently.”
I know she does. If you want to hear about it, I even know the types of games she plays. I also know that even though she likes video games, she’s bad at games that test your reflexes, she’s a super casual gamer, and she’s the type of person who hates playing with people on the internet she doesn’t know. I also know that lately she’s gotten hooked on the video game let’s plays that she used to avoid.
“Oh yeah, now that I think about it, she also said that recently her sister had gotten a boyfriend.”
“W-Wow! Y-You don’t say!”
“She said that he’s a member of the elite who works at a major IT company. She sounded happy about how she was glad her little sister had found the right man.”
“...I-I see.” My stomach was in knots. I didn’t know if it was guilt or nervousness, but a vague sense of danger was assaulting my stomach.
“I heard he’s involved in computering. Do you know about computering, Kaoru? Computering is work that’s related to important programs that play a central role in computers, you know?”
“...”
I-It’s spreading! The tiny lie that Orihara-san said is gradually spreading. The mysterious new word “computering” has spread to the generation that doesn’t understand computers, and everyone is believing it without question.
This is so embarrassing! Oh man... What even is this unpleasant feeling? It’s so awkward the way my dad is smugly talking about this made-up information. I mean, this whole thing is awkward.
I can’t take it. I really have to do something about this. This isn’t something I can just blow off. I have to fix this as soon as possible.
“...Hmm?”
As I was seized by my sense of danger, my smartphone buzzed inside my pocket. When I looked, I could see that it was a text from Orihara-san. It was an urgent invitation that said, “Can you come right now?” It was a terribly straightforward text that felt more urgent than curt.
Panicked, I texted, “I can, but did something happen?”
Then what came was an unexpected response: “I got in an argument with my sister and ran out of my house.”
♡
I guess I should have been impressed with how much of an adult Orihara-san was. Even though she’d said “ran out,” it wasn’t like she had lost her cool and ran out of the house with just the clothes on her back. Instead, she had the bare minimum of her possessions with her, like her purse and her cosmetics. Also, she’d left in her car. To me, it felt like driving your car after getting in a fight was such an adult living in a rural town thing to do.
“I mean...even though it’s your apartment, you were the one who left, Orihara-san?”
“That’s right! That’s messed up, right?! Even though it’s my apartment, why do I have to be the one who leaves?!”
“Still...you left voluntarily didn’t you, Orihara-san?”
“Th-That is true... But it’s my sister’s fault too! She said, ‘If you can’t listen to what I say, then leave right now!’ like it was her apartment...”
“...”
“I lost my temper and said, ‘Fine! I’m never coming back to this apartment again!’...even though it’s my apartment...and I’m the one paying rent...” Orihara-san looked dissatisfied with the situation as we sat in her beloved Nissan Cube. After we’d texted each other, we met at the same large convenience store parking lot we always did. Orihara-san didn’t seem that sad as she sat in the driver’s seat, but...it looked like she had been crying.
“So, was your argument about...?”
“...Yeah. It was about you and me,” Orihara-san groaned. She then reluctantly said, “This weekend, my sister is going to cook for your family, right?”
“It seems like that’s the plan.”
“That’s why my sister asked me to teach her how to cook. It isn’t like my sister can’t cook, it’s just that I’m a little better at it than she is. Apparently, my sister has been getting spoiled at home recently and hasn’t been cooking at all either... But all of that was probably just an excuse.”
“An excuse?”
“An excuse to come to my apartment and...talk about the future.”
“...”
“I somehow guessed that was the case, and I figured it would be a good opportunity to talk with her. I thought if I talked about it calmly with her, surely she would understand.”
Sensing her sister’s intentions, Orihara-san prepared an opportunity to have a discussion with her, because she thought if they talked it over her sister would see her side of things. However, Kisaki-san perhaps had the same idea and wanted to do the same thing. Without a doubt, they were both thinking, “If I talk to her, she’ll understand that my point of view is correct.”
“After the cooking was done, my sister initiated the conversation. I thought we were talking peacefully at first, but gradually we got emotional, and...in the end, the conversation had become more like an argument.”
The anguished look on her face made my heart ache. Maybe it was only natural that their discussion got out of hand. They both thought if they talked it over then the other would understand. They’re sisters; because they both trust each other and sincerely want to be on the same side, they get frustrated and butt heads when they don’t understand each other. The fact that they don’t want to fight might be why they fought in the first place.
“In the end, my sister wanted me to break up with you. No matter how much I talked to her, she didn’t understand me at all,” Orihara-san said like it was a death sentence.
I guess Kisaki-san’s stance on the matter was quite firm. Of course it was. When you think about it sensibly, Kisaki-san is the one who’s overwhelmingly in the right.
“My sister got pretty mad and said, ‘If you won’t listen to me, then maybe you’ll listen to mom and dad’...”
“...” In a way, that was probably inevitable. Kisaki-san probably didn’t want to make things difficult, but if she couldn’t persuade Orihara-san, then it was only natural that she’d turn to her parents. There’s no way her parents would allow their twenty-seven-year-old daughter to date a high schooler.
“Then we got into a fight and I ran out...so I don’t know what happened. M-Maybe...she’s already told my mom and dad about us...”
“I-It’s okay. I’m sure that Kisaki-san was just going back and forth with you. She wouldn’t contact your parents all of a sudden...”
My words were so hollow that I hated it. I was just saying “It’s okay” without any proof that it actually was. The fact that that was all I could say was truly frustrating.
“I’m sorry Momota-kun. This is my fault.”
“No... It’s my fault since I’m a minor.”
“No! You didn’t do anything wrong, Momota-kun!” Orihara-san pushed back strongly as I complained. “Um... I did it first, but let’s stop apologizing for our age difference. It’s not like it’s our fault.”
“...You’re right. I understand.” It was just like Orihara-san was saying. It would be easy to act like a victim and run away by apologizing, but that wouldn’t solve anything. I wasn’t to blame, and neither was Orihara-san. Also...Kisaki-san wasn’t to blame either. We had to fight this in a world where no one was to blame.
“Anyway, what shall we do for tonight?”
“...I don’t want to go home. If I see my sister, we’ll just fight again.”
“But don’t you have work tomorrow, Orihara-san? If you stay the night somewhere...”
“Yeah... I’d have to sneak back home early in the morning since I didn’t bring my business suit with me.”
“I see... Well, a manga cafe...would be dangerous, so maybe a hotel—”
Suddenly, Orihara-san reached over from the driver’s seat, grabbed the sleeve of my shirt, and gave it a light tug. When I turned to her, she was looking straight at me. Her eyes were shaking with uncertainty, but she also had a look of determination about something. Then, in a voice that made it sound like she had cast off her doubts but was still a little high from how nervous she was, she asked, “Momota-kun...is it okay if you stay out late tonight? I-I want to go somewhere where we can be alone together.”
My eyes widened involuntarily, and I was speechless. Orihara-san’s face was bright red, and she seemed embarrassed, but she kept staring at me without looking away.
“Does that mean...”
“...Yes.”
“It means what I think it means...?”
“...Yes.” After nodding the same way twice, Orihara-san grabbed my hand instead of my sleeve. It was like she was refusing to let go as she intertwined her fingers with mine.