Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093093152263860/episodes/822139837192717049
September 1st.
About a week remained until Toka’s birthday.
“Onee chan, how’s school?”
“It’s really fun.”
“Hmm, then maybe I’ll go to the same high school as onii chan and onee chan.”
Today was a holiday. Toka and my younger sister, Yuzuha, were having a normal conversation over breakfast. Both of them seemed completely comfortable now; the awkwardness that had been there before was completely gone.
“Yuzu-chan, you’re in the brass band, right?”
“Yeah. It’s not a super competitive club though.”
“I joined a club too. It’s called the Development Club, but—”
“Aaaaaaaaaah!”
I let out a loud scream, barging between them. It’s super embarrassing when family members talk about that stuff!
“Onii chan, you’re so loud.”
“Ryo-kun, loud”
Guh… They’re really getting along now.
But, come to think of it… Because Toka is—.
“Toka-chan, what do you want to eat tonight?”
“I want omurice!”
“Okay, okay.”
Since she started eating at the Kuga house almost every day…
Mom spoils Toka rotten. Compared to when she was always eating convenience store bento, she really has gotten healthier.
“Hm-hm.”
Toka raised her phone and snapped a photo.
Toka, who’s gotten hooked on photography, has somehow started taking pictures of our meals every single time.
The result? Massive pressure on Mom! She can’t serve anything half-assed anymore, and lately, strangely intense dishes have been appearing on the table. When it’s me, though, she doesn’t care about that. She’ll definitely slip up eventually.
“Onee chan, your birthday’s coming up soon, right?”
“Yeah. September 9th.”
“Got plans?”
Yuzuha asked Toka the question I’m most curious about right now!
Good job, good job. You’re doing well for once, little sister.
“I plan to be with Ryo-kun.”
“So you’re coming to our place, right?”
“Is it okay if I come?”
“Of course you can! Let’s eat cake together.”
No, no. When you say birthday, it’s that thing, right? Ask a more probing question. The fact that my plans are naturally all about Toka is something I’ll keep quiet about now.
“This year, Ryo went on a trip, but we always celebrate birthdays together as a family.”
Mom started saying something while serving Toka tea.
“You see, we parents want to celebrate our children’s birthdays too.”
“You mean Mom and Dad?”
“That’s right. We want to thank Ryo and Yuzuha for coming to live with us. We want to say thank you for becoming our children, that’s why we have birthday parties.”
Awkward… Toka might be okay with it, but Yuzuha and I don’t know what kind of face to make hearing that.
“Thank you for becoming children…?”
“Exactly. When you have children, you’re just filled with gratitude and happiness.”
“How lovely…”
Toka’s eyes were getting misty.
Stop it, you idiot! Toka’s actually getting genuinely moved by this embarrassing talk!
Riiing
While nervously watching Mom and Toka, my phone rang.
“Ah!”
The screen showed “Asahina Father.” I hurried out of the living room to take the call.
“Yes, this is Ryo.”
‘Ryo? Sorry to call so early. Is now a good time?’
“It’s fine! Is this about that thing?”
‘Yeah. Well… to cut to the chase, it looks like it won’t work out. I have work scheduled that day.’
“I see…”
“I really wanted to go too, but I have work that day…”
“I understand. Then let’s do it another time! I’ll definitely send you the photos from the day!”
“Ryo kun, thank you so much, always…”
After that, we chatted briefly about trivial things before ending the call.
“Haa…”
A sigh escaped me. The one thing I most wanted to do for Toka’s birthday had already fallen through.
Toka’s mom—.
I really wanted to invite her. For a while now, I’d been asking Toka’s dad to coordinate schedules with her mom. But unfortunately, Toka’s birthday fell on a weekday. I kind of knew it would be hard for her to get time off…
“Cheer up and move on!”
I knew Toka’s mom wouldn’t be easy to handle. I wasn’t going to let something like this get me down. The second semester has plenty of school events. I’ll keep reaching out every chance I get!
(For Toka’s sake, I’ll retrain you! If you truly care about Toka’s happiness, you’ll accept that challenge, right!?)
I’d declared that to her mom the other day.
Truth be told, this was the hidden purpose behind the “Asahina Tohka: Normal High School Girl Transformation Project.” Ideally, I want Toka and her mom to restore a normal parent-child relationship by the end of the second semester. That’s how I feel…
“What should I do…”
I thought her birthday would be the perfect chance. The image of Toka’s perfect birthday I’d envisioned completely shattered. And I was the one who got such a great birthday… I need to put Mom aside for now and rethink Toka’s birthday plans.
“Ryo-kun, what are you doing?”
“Aaaaaah!”
I was pacing near the entrance when Toka suddenly appeared before me.
“Why did you scream like that? Are you cheating on me or something?”
“Of course not!”
Tohka looked puzzled.
Dammit, I can’t think of a birthday present that would make a girl this beautiful happy. Ideally, I’d like to ask Toka what she wants.
“You seem a little off today, Ryo-kun.”
“Oh… really?”
Expensive stuff is out of my allowance range, and I already gave her a comb for our one-week anniversary.
Honestly, I had no idea what to get Toka anymore.
“…Toka, you don’t really seem materialistic, do you?”
“Really? I have plenty of things I want, though.”
Oh, asking casually got me a pretty good answer.
“W-What kind of things do you want, for example?”
“A child.”
“That’s something I can’t do anything about right nowwwww!!!”
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