Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093093152263860/episodes/16818792436173574442
Toka approached, muttering, “Well, I guess I have no choice.” Kagurazaka followed close behind, tiptoeing to stay right on her heels.
“Are you idiots?! How could you show that to elementary school kids?!”
I couldn’t help but jump up from the bed!
“No, Ryo-kun, you haven’t slept yet.”
“That’s right. You’re not feeling well, are you? You really need to get some proper sleep.”
The two child prodigies ganged up on me. You two, how dare you…!
“I’m fine now! I was just sleeping!”
“Then stick out your tongue right now?”
Toka unexpectedly demanded a health check.
“Huh? What are you—”
“Come on, tongue!”
They immediately pursued me all the way to Kagurazaka.
“Onee chan, checking body temperature is important, right?”
“Exactly. You can tell by looking inside the mouth.”
That’s a lie… Who checks like that these days?!
“Seriously, why are you two so in sync!? Creepy!”
Both of them sat seiza-style beside my bed and started scrutinizing my health for whatever reason. They’ve completely taken control of the situation. Kagurazaka’s attachment to Toka is also off the charts.
Or rather, Kagurazaka is the one imitating Toka right now…?
“Okay, Ryo-kun, open wide.”
“……”
My alertness peaked. Toka’s psychological barrier against kissing is starting to drop significantly. There’s no doubt another surprise kiss is coming, just like last time. If I kiss her now, it’ll be bad for Toka’s re-education and Kagurazaka’s training…!
“…Hey, hey, Onee chan, why did you fall for this Onii chan?”
“Hmm…”
Kagurazaka suddenly started asking Toka that out of nowhere again.
“There are so many reasons. I don’t think I could explain it all in just one sentence.”
Toka said this to Kagurazaka, her voice quiet but somehow eloquent.
“You can’t explain it all…”
“Well, you don’t fall for someone because of just one reason, right? It’s like all these little things pile up bit by bit, and before you know it, you realize you like him.”
Somehow, Toka just said something incredibly profound…
“Hmm… So that’s how it is…”
Kagurazaka looked at me and Toka alternately, wearing an expression that was somewhere between understanding and not quite getting it.
“What did you like about onee chan?”
“Huh!?”
What the hell? Out of nowhere. Kagurazaka keeps pushing me with these tough questions.
“Ryo-kun, what did you fall for in me?”
Toka gives me a hopeful look. Stop it! Don’t stare at me with those clear, beautiful eyes! What is this atmosphere? It’s almost like there’s pressure saying, “If you don’t answer something here, you’re unfit to be human.” Asking for a confession of love in this situation is pushing it way too far.
“There are so many reasons. I can’t put it into words.”
The words that came out of my mouth sounded like I was just repeating Toka’s lines.
“You can’t put it into words?”
“At first, I just couldn’t leave you alone. You were a mess, always sloppy, always oversleeping…”
“That’s rude.”
Toka murmured a quiet protest. But she didn’t sound angry. More like embarrassed?
“But I wanted to see all of you, everything. The good parts, the bad parts. So I guess I just ended up liking you. Well, I was already a fan of Toka’s anyway…”
“Wow~” Kagurazaka murmured, clasping her hands together in admiration.
“Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful! This is what being lovers is like!”
Kagurazaka’s face was utterly dreamy. Stop it. I’m trying my hardest not to burst into flames right now.
“How nice! How nice! I totally envy that ‘I just realized I liked you’ thing!”
Kagurazaka looked at us as if we were something sacred.
“Ryo-kun, this is embarrassing, you know…”
“Uh, yeah… well, that…”
“Then why don’t you actually say it? Say ‘I like you’ properly.”
“Huh!?”
Toka launched an unexpected follow-up. And with a deadpan face!
“Hey, Onii chan. It’s important to properly tell someone special how you feel, you know?”
“Y-you…!”
“Come on, hurry up~”
“You two, did you both come here to bully me!?”
While I was fussing and fussing, Toka was smiling brightly, and Kagurazaka’s eyes were sparkling.
“Ah, but Ryo-kun. You have to sleep.”
“How the hell am I supposed to sleep in this situation——!”
◇
Kagurazaka Kaede did whatever she wanted and made it home safely.
She was like a storm. I think I might not be good with that girl.
“Haaah, all that commotion…”
While cleaning up the wrecked kitchen, I couldn’t help but grumble. I can’t even relax and sleep! My fever’s gone, and I don’t feel sluggish anymore. My body’s completely healed!
“Ryo-kun! Are you sure you’re okay doing the dishes?”
Toka rushed over, her voice panicked.
“I’m fine. I’m all better now. Lying down would probably be worse.”
“Bu-but…”
“I really am fine! If I don’t do anything, my body gets stiff. Moving around a bit actually feels better.”
When I said that, Toka stood beside me, looking a little uneasy.
“Are you sure you’re not pushing yourself?”
“I took my temperature earlier, remember? It was normal. I’m really fine now.”
“Really, really!?”
“Really. I’m completely cured!”
Toka stared at me silently for a moment, then suddenly murmured softly.
“Ryo-kun…”
Toka let out a weak voice and suddenly hugged me tightly from behind.
“I’m so glad… I’m so glad your cold’s better…”
Along with her trembling voice came the sound of her sniffling. I felt something damp and warm against my back.
“You… you’re crying!?”
“I’m not crying.”
“But you sound like you are!”
“I told you I’m not crying! It’s sweat! Sweat!”
“So Tohka, sweat comes out of your eyes?”
As I tried to turn around, Toka frantically clung tighter to my back and hid her face.
“No! Don’t look!”
“You’re overreacting just because your cold’s better.”
“But, but… Ryo-kun was sleeping all the time, and even when you woke up, you were all woozy… It scared me… I thought maybe you’d just… die like that…”
“Die?! Like I’d die from something like that!”
“But, but… Ugh, shut up! Just let me hug you quietly!”
Despite her strong words, I could tell Toka’s arms were trembling slightly. So I decided to stay silent and just stand there like that.
From now on, my health isn’t just my own anymore… With someone who worries about me this much, I have to be careful. Thinking that, I suddenly felt an overwhelming tenderness for Toka.
“Toka.”
“Huh?”
Before I knew it, my hand was already reaching out.
“Ryo-kun…?”
I placed my hand on Toka’s cheek and lifted it slightly. Her eyes flickered with unease and embarrassment.
“My cold is gone, and Ive been through enough. It’d be unbalanced if I didn’t do something too!”
“Eh, eh…?”
Without hesitation, I pulled Toka’s face closer.
The instant she lost her words, I pressed my lips to hers. Just a touch. When I pulled away, Toka stared at me with eyes wide as saucers. Her face was flushed bright red all the way to her ears, and she stood completely still, as if she’d forgotten to breathe.
“I… I didn’t exactly want to avoid it either…”
“Y-yes…”
Toka’s eyes glazed over like she was feverish. I do this sometimes too, you know! I had to make sure she understood that.
“H-huh? Somehow… it feels different from before…”
Toka started messing with her hair and her eyes began darting around. She seemed so unsettled now, it was hard to believe she was the same girl who’d been clinging to me and crying just moments ago.
“Wh-what should I do…? I, um, right now… I feel… really… weird… like…”
Her face grew even redder, her eyes darted around frantically, and then—
“If you keep doing that, I’ll end up liking you too much and it’ll be a problem…”
For some reason, Toka had switched to formal speech.
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