Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093093152263860/episodes/16818622175624995994
It’s 8 o’clock at night.
After dinner, Toka stands in front of Yuzuha’s room, who immediately shut herself in.
“I’m nervous…”
Toka murmurs this under her breath.
“Y-Yuzu chan really loves movies, doesn’t she?”
“Yeah, she was really into them until just recently.”
Since Toka seems concerned, I give her a brief introduction to Yuzuha. I tell her that Yuzuha loves movies and manga, and that she joined the wind instrument club because she liked the theme song of her favorite TV drama. I also tell her that Yuzuha is not good at housework, but that she is a very kind person at heart.
It seemed that Toka wanted to do something with Yuzuha, so based on the information I gave her, she decided to watch a movie with her.
“…Which movie should we watch? I want to avoid something that makes me cry, and horror is definitely out of the question.”
Toka used her smartphone to scroll through movie thumbnails on a video site. But her finger kept hesitating and couldn’t decide!
“Yuzuha, she said she’s been into youth stories lately. Like club activities and friendships between students.”
“Oh, really… Alright, then this one!”
Toka chose a youth movie about a student band aiming for a national competition. I think she just picked the first one that caught her eye, but it’s exactly what Yuzuha would like.
“Alright…”
She seems so enthusiastic, but is she okay? Maybe Toka doesn’t really want to watch a movie after all. But I’m happy that she’s trying so hard for my sister. If anything happens, I’ll of course step in, but for now, I’ll let her do what she wants.
Toka took a deep breath and knocked on Yuzuha’s door. After a moment, the door slowly opened.
“…What’s wrong?”
Yuzuha, wearing a green pajama set, looked at her with a slightly wary expression. Toka hesitated for a moment, then awkwardly opened her mouth.
“Y-Yuzuha chan! I was thinking we could watch a movie together… Would you like to watch one on with me?”
Toka’s voice trembled slightly. Even though she had come on her own, her voice sounded like a lost child asking for help. The smartphone in her hand was also trembling uncontrollably.
Yuzuha stared intently at Toka’s expression. Her wary face gradually changed into one of confusion and surprise.
“Eh, a movie…?”
“Uh, yeah. It’s a youth story about a student band… I heard you like that kind of thing… I think you can watch it on TV from your phone, right?”
“Why is Asahina Toka being so considerate of me!?”
Yuzuha’s voice had a hint of anger mixed with confusion. Probably, she was angry at herself, not at Toka. Toka clutched her smartphone tightly as she replied.
“Yuzu-chan, lately you’ve been going straight to your room after you finish eating… I was wondering if there was anything I could do…”
Toka seemed confused about what she was saying. Still, she didn’t stop talking.
“I thought it would be fun to watch a movie with Yuzu-chan… Oh, wait! You don’t have to worry about me, okay!?”
When Toka’s words trailed off, a brief silence fell between them. Yuzuha looked down, staring intently at the floor. Her long bangs hid her expression, making it impossible to tell what she was thinking. Eventually, Yuzuha lifted her face.
“…Then shall we watch it together?”
Her face was slightly red, but Yuzuha was looking directly at Toka. Toka looked surprised for a moment, then nodded hurriedly.
“Sure! Let’s watch it together! You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to, and if you want to stop halfway through, that’s fine too!”
Seeing Toka’s earnestness, Yuzuha relaxed her lips slightly.
“Actually, I’ve been wondering about that too…”
At those words, Toka’s expression brightened. Her eyes sparkled with joy.
“Yay!”
“You’re making me feel embarrassed now… Shall we watch it on the big TV downstairs?”
“Yes!”
I quietly watched the two of them walk downstairs.
(That’s good…)
I didn’t have a role to play this time. Yuzuha and Toka… Both of them are taking steps forward. I’m very happy about that, but it also makes me feel a little lonely.
“Ryo-kun, Ryo-kun.”
“What’s wrong?”
Toka came back, walking slowly.
“How do you watch TV from your phone?”
“I don’t know either!”
Toka’s mechanical ineptitude (?) kicked in, and I ended up rushing to the nearby DVD rental store. I couldn’t take a girl there at night, so of course I went alone!
I thought it was rare to use a phone for anything other than calls, but here we are! Fine, fine, if it helps them get along, I’ll gladly be their errand boy. Next time, I’ll have to look up how to output the screen from my cell phone to the TV in advance…!
After riding the bicycle I borrowed from Yuzuha for about ten minutes, I arrived at a DVD store attached to a drugstore. I was in such a hurry that my back was soaked with sweat.
“Please don’t tell me it’s already rented out…”
I entered the store and started looking for the movie title I had written down. It was fairly new, so it should be in the section for recent Japanese films.
“Ah, there it is.”
I found it right away. Hmm, I haven’t watched any movies lately, but it seems to be quite a popular one. There were several copies of the same title lined up on the shelf. I picked up the package and casually glanced at the back.
“Hm?”
The back had the plot summary and cast information. Among them, a certain name caught my eye.
“Kagurazaka Kaede”
The former child prodigy Asahina Toka’s junior, now a child prodigy who’s on TV every day—her name was clearly written there.
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