“If it’s Ani-kun’s wish, I can do any shameful thing you ask of me. Tonight as well, please use me, your servant, as you desire…” Shisei twisted her body seductively.
Akane began trembling. “S-Saito…d-don’t tell me you always make Shisei-san do those kinds of things…”
“This is all a misunderstanding! Shise, think about how you phrase things!” Saito shouted.
“O-ho ho ho.” Shisei kept giggling.
Saito shook Shisei’s shoulders, but she only let out an exaggerated, theatrical laugh.
Dinner was over, and Saito was now dealing with the mountain of dirty dishes. Shisei knelt on a chair, watching the cleanup process with interest.
“Unexpected. I didn’t think Ani-kun would do housework like this,” said Shisei.
“I can’t just make Akane do everything. She cooks, I clean,” said Saito loud enough for Akane to hear.
Akane’s mood didn’t seem great, and Saito was hoping to score a few good-husband points. But Akane didn’t even glance his way—she was sitting at the table, quietly focused on her studies.
“The same Ani-kun who used to leave cups until they rotted…” Shisei murmured.
“Cups don’t rot, even if you leave them out.”
“You used to laugh innocently from the middle of the tragic garbage heap of your room…”
“Stop making me sound like some charity case!” said Saito as he turned off the faucet, wiped his wet hands on his shirt, and sat down on the sofa. Shisei scurried after him and dove onto his lap, resting her arms across his legs and lying down.
“It’s a sleepover, so I want to spend lots of time with Ani-kun.”
“Of course. What do you wanna do?”
“Game. Organ Hazard 3. Co-op mode.”
Akane flinched and looked up from her textbook. “Organ Hazard?!”
“You like Organ too, Akane?” asked Shisei innocently.
“No, I don’t! I can’t stand that stuff!”
“But organs are squishy and cute,” said Shisei.
“C-cute?” Akane was clearly disturbed. Obviously, Shisei’s sense of aesthetics was incomprehensible to normal people, and that included Saito.
He leaned toward her and whispered, “Let’s skip Organ Hazard today.”
“Why? You love it, Ani-kun. That’s why Shise—”
“Akane doesn’t like horror,” Saito whispered.
“Then Akane can just study in her room.”
“Yeah, that’s not really an option…” answered Saito in a hushed voice. Excluding her like that would look like they were kicking her out. And with how moody Akane seemed tonight, that kind of provocation could spell disaster for their marriage.
“Then you choose, Ani-kun. I’m happy as long as we play together.” Sitting on his lap, Shisei looked up into his face. Her expression was blank, but to Saito—who had grown up with her—it felt like she was smiling.
“I’ve got this new cat puzzle game. Well, it’s more like an action game. Want to try it?”
“If Ani-kun will teach me step by step.”
“You got it.”
Still seated on his lap, Saito started up the game with the controller. The TV screen lit up with hundreds of cats—some wearing clothes, some with hats—each with their own unique look.
“The game’s about catching mischievous alien cats that came from space. It’s basically tag. I bought it thinking Akane might want to play since she’s a cat lover…” As Saito explained, he glanced at Akane, but she quickly turned her face away.
“I’ll pass. I have prep work for tomorrow,” said Akane.
“It supports up to four players.”
“Don’t drag me into your weird games!”
“It’s not weird!” Saito objected.
“I still don’t have time to waste on childish games like that!” Even the sound of Akane’s pen on paper was aggressive. Clearly, she was in a foul mood tonight, and Saito still had no idea why.
“Ani-kun, Ani-kun. Let’s play already.” Sitting on his lap, Shisei kicked her white-tights-covered legs back and forth.
“Y-yeah, okay…” said Saito, selecting the game mode and stage, then handing the controller to Shisei. Her player character ran after cats all over a wide, open stage, each cat avoiding the player using different skills. The space cats weren’t easy to catch.
“Darn, they’re fast runners. Don’t we have, like, a flamethrower item or something?”
“What would you even do with a flamethrower?!” asked Akane in alarm.
“Set the player on fire and catch the cat when it comes over to check on them,” replied Shisei.
“Let’s not pursue any kind of deeply psychotic gameplay style, okay? Just use the terrain to corner them like a normal person,” said Saito. Saito placed his hand over Shisei’s and guided the controller. One by one, he caught the alien cats as they got stuck behind pipes and in dead ends.
“Whoa…Ani-kun’s really good,” said Shisei in admiration.
“Right? Now try it yourself.”
“Wait. Just a little longer. I want you to keep helping me.”
“You already get how it works, don’t you?”
“I do. But…having you hold my hand like this feels really nice,” said Shisei.
Shisei nuzzled her cheek against Saito’s hand. Her snow-white skin was smooth to the touch, like fine silk. It felt to Saito as if a kitten was cuddling up to him.
Slam! Akane shut her reference book with a sharp thud. She pressed her hands on the table and glared at Saito, her face red with anger. “Hey, you two,” she growled.
Saito flinched. “Wh-what is it?” The tense atmosphere put Saito on edge.
“…Nothing.” Akane opened her book again.
“That is definitely not ‘nothing’! You’ve been mad this whole evening!”
“I’m not mad!”
“You totally are! Your face looks like a demon!”
“Calling a girl a demon?! Say goodbye to your front teeth!” shouted Akane.
Saito shuddered. “Spare me, scary demon!”
Akane was certainly demon-like in that moment in Saito’s eyes. As Shisei’s older brother figure, Saito couldn’t afford to lose face in front of her, but all he wanted right then was to retreat to his room and barricade the door. If it had come this far already, he needed a plausible excuse to escape this battlefield.
Saito stood up slowly. “It’s getting late, so I think I’ll go take a bath…”
“Shise will join you, Ani-kun.” Shisei, in true form, followed Saito as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Akane jumped out of her chair. “Wait a second! Shisei-san, you’re the same age as us, right?!”
“Technically, we’re not the same age. Ani-kun is eighteen, and I, Shise, am seventeen,” Shisei replied.
“That’s not the point! You’re too old to be taking baths together!” said Akane.
“I, Shise, always bathe with Ani-kun,” said Shisei, clinging to Saito’s waist.
“Always?!” Akane was stunned.
“It’s been a while since the last time, though,” Saito corrected.
“A while? Since last time?!” Akane’s eyes spun in circles.
“If two’s no good, should we go for three?” Shisei tilted her head innocently.
“Absolutely not! One person in the bath at a time! Now hurry up and go!” barked Akane.
“Yessir!” Saito bolted from the ticking time bomb of a living room at full speed.