Episode 12 

[It’s so delicious ! How can Grandma make such a delicious meal?]

Akari talks to an old woman with gray hair sitting at the table next to her.

The old woman answers in a cheerful tone.

[I love it. I love the regulars who come to my restaurant, Takeru, Mayu, and of course, Akari chan. I guess that’s why.]

The old woman……Takeru’s grandmother smiles as she says this.

Akari didn’t quite understand what the old lady was saying.

[Ummm? If you love something, you can make it taste good? Like magic?]

She laughed out loud when she said that.

[Ahaha, magic….magic, huh ! It’s something close to magic !　If I had to say it, I’d say it’s the magic of love.]

[Magic of love….?]

When Akari tilted her head further, Grandma laughed shyly.

[Yeah, Akari chan, you like Takeru and Mayu too, don’t you?　Don’t you ever feel powerful when you think of them?]

[Yeah ! I do ! The other day, I got rid of a boy named Kazuki kun who was always messing with Ken !]

[Ahaha, exactly.  Akari chan, thank you for protecting Takeru. It’s a relief to have an older sister like you.]

[Yeah, leave it to me ! I’ll definitely protect Ken as a big sister.]

Akari tapped her chest and made a big smile to reassure Grandma.

Then, Grandma patted Akari’s head lovingly and carefully. Akari loves to have her grandma pat her head.

[So, Grandma will always be with….]

She was about to continue, but Grandma let go of her hand from her head with a smile on her face and turned her back to Akari and walked away.

Akari rushes after her and tries to grab her hand, but Grandma’s hand slips away and Akari’s hand grabs the sky.

[Wait, Grandma ! Don’t go !]

Akari desperately runs after Grandma, but somehow she cannot catch up with her, who seems to be walking slowly.

The more she ran, the more the distance between her and Grandma opened up, and she became frustrated. 

[Grandma, don’t go ! Don’t go away ! Please ! Wait—-]

When she came to, a familiar ceiling appeared.

“What, it’s just a dream.”

Akari was relieved.

The actual dream is actually a memory of the past that actually happened until about halfway through the dream.

[I’ll definitely protect Ken as a big sister.]

This is a promise Akari made to Grandma when she was in elementary school.

Takeru has always been kind to everyone. However, because of his kindness, he seemed to look timid and was often ridiculed, if not bullied, by his classmates. To protect Takeru, Akari made a pact with Grandma.

Takeru’s heartless classmates who make fun of him will leave feeling awkward if Akari, who has a good face in class, takes one look at them.

Akari had always protected Takeru like a big sister, just like she had promised Grandma.

“Oh no, I must’ve overslept.”

Looking at her watch, she saw that it was already 1pm. She had two periods today, but they were already over.

She knows the reason why she overslept. It was because of what Chisato said to her yesterday.

The more she thought about what the relationship between Takeru and Chisato was, why they were having lunch together, and why Takeru didn’t want her to meet her, the more she became bothered and her eyes became dim.

Besides—

“It’s not insurance.”

Akari muttered to herself as she stared at the pattern on the ceiling.

Chisato has been calling it [insurance,] but that is absolutely not the case.

Insurance—definitely not because if she breaks up with Yasaka, she can date Ryuto.

In fact, she has tried many times to tell Takeru that she was dating Yasaka. But she just couldn’t say it.

She doesn’t want Takeru to know that she was dating someone.

Not knowing whether it was out of embarrassment or out of fear that it would affect her childhood relationship with Takeru, so when he asked her the other day, she couldn’t give him any answer.

But now that she sees that her relationship with Takeru has actually soured, she regret not having said anything.

Dozens of messages were sent and she checked her phone.

As she quickly checked the list of messages, she found that most of them were from Yasaka and her friends, who are taking the same class as her, and they were concerned that she would not be able to come to class today. Akari sent a message to each of them saying, [Haha, I overslept…] and an appropriate stamp.

The corners of Akari’s mouth naturally turn up when she checks the last message.

The message was from Takeru, and it said, [Are you okay?] that the only word that came.

She was relieved because she had thought she had offended Takeru with the incident at lunch the other day.

“Fufufu, what the heck, you’re worried about me, aren’t you?”

Akari only replies to Takeru’s message later and jumps out of bed.

If she remembers correctly, Takeru only took classes up to the second period today, so he should be home by now.

Akari hummed and started to get ready to go outside.

Arriving in front of Takeru’s house, she rings the intercom, which she has rung a thousand times since elementary school. Usually, it opens within a few seconds, but unusually, there is no response.

She wonders whether she should give up, when Ken opens the door and appears.

“Eh, Akari? Why…?”

Takeru gave her a displeased look. He always does this these days. He is always trying to get her away from him because she has a boyfriend.

However, Akari had no intention of cutting ties with Takeru, no matter how many boyfriends she had.

She made a promise with Grandma, that’s why she can’t afford to lose out because Takeru is an indispensable friend to Akari.

“Ken, thanks for your message. I’m sorry to have worried you, but I actually just overslept–“

Akari stepped forward to come in.

Usually when she does this, Takeru would step aside and let her in, but today he didn’t move away at all.

“Ken, can I come in?”

Akari’s words made Takeru look troubled.

“No, I’ve told you many times that it’s not a good idea for you to come in, since Akari has Yasaka senpai.”

There it is again. Akari replies with a glare at Takeru.

“I’ve told you, you don’t have to worry about it !”

“That’s not going to happen.”

Takeru, who is not a very assertive man, is unusually stubborn about this matter.

Akari presses Takeri’s chest with both hands, trying to force her way through.

“Let me in~~! Fununununununu……! !”

“No, you can’t go in. I’m sorry, but you have to leave.”

She pushed as hard as she could, but Takeru didn’t budge at all.

She checked Takeru’s expression while stepping on it, but Takeru has a dumbfounded look on his face and doesn’t seem to be putting much effort into it.

Come to think of it, Takeru used to be thin and small, but now that she looks at him again, his body has improved to the level of an average man, and the chest plate that she is touching now seems to have thickened.

“Ken was a man after  all. How cheeky !”

“Eh ! What do you mean !?”

Takeru looks upset for some reason by Akari’s words.

In the midst of her shoving struggle with Takeru, Akari’s eyes caught a pair of black boots on the front porch. They were women’s, high-brand, and clearly stood out in the ordinary foyer of Ken’s house, giving off an aura of strangeness.

“Ken, whose shoes are those?”

In response to Akari’s words, Takeru follows Akari’s line of sight and notices her boots, then replies as if it’s nothing.

“…..They are Mayu’s.”

However, Akari didn’t miss the momentary twitch in Takeru’s face.

“Those boots are the new Tior ones, aren’t they? Do you know how much they cost?”

“Eh…about 20,000…or rather, about 50,000…?”

Takeru looked at Akaris expression and corrected the price, but he didn’t seem to understand the value at all.

“The price is one digit off, it’s not Mayu’s, is it?”

Takeru’s family is not wealthy enough to afford high-brand shoes. The boots belonged to a woman other than Mayu.

A bad premonition crossed Akari’s mind.

She pushed Takeru, who looked astonished when he heard the price of the shoes, and pushed her way into the house. Maybe it’s the stupid power of the fire scene, but he succeeds in moving Takeru, who had not moved until now.

“Wait…you’re getting stronger all of a sudden…!”

Takeru was saying something, but she didn’t care. She brushed aside Takeru who stopped her and stepped into the living room.

In the living room, there was Chisato sitting in the chair that Akari always sits in, reading a book.

Akari’s bad premonition had come true.

She was the only person she could think of who owned a high-brand product that she could flaunt around.

Chisato looked up from her book and gave Akari an elegant smile, unperturbed by her sudden visit.

“Hello, Sato senpai. How can I help you by suddenly coming to Takeru’s house?”

“……Why are you here, Chisato chan?”

“Even if you ask me why, is it strange for me to come to my friend’s…Takeru’s house?”

Chisato’s replies were curt.

Even though she understands this situation better than anyone else, she get angry at her for pretending not to know anything.

“Chisato chan, you know why I’m angry, don’t you? Why are you making such a strange face?”

Akari can’t help but become aggressive.

“Umm, I’m sorry, but I don’t understand. Does it mean you don’t like me being in Takeru’s house?”

Takeru, Takeru,Takeru,Takeru,Takeru,Takeru.

Every time Chisato mentions that name, Akari’s mind starts to whirl. She can no longer remain calm.

Whether she knows it or not, she calls Takeru’s name repeatedly with emphasis, and every time she does, the blood rushes to Akari’s head.

As Akari and Chisato glare at each other, Takeru interrupts them, coming running from the doorway.

“W-wait a minute. Akari, there’s a reason why Chisato san is at my house right now…….”

“Takeru, you don’t have to explain everything to her.”

Just as Takeru is about to explain, Chisato interrupts.

“Chisato chan, will you please shut up?”

Akari glared at Chisato angrily, but the strong-willed woman wouldn’t back down a step.

“No, I won’t shut up. On the contrary, I ask you, what do you care, Sato senpai? I’m just visiting a friend’s house. If Sato senpai were Takeru’s girlfriend, he would have to explain the situation to you, but of course that’s not the case, is it?”

[That’s……true, but……] Akari couldn’t deny Chisato’s words and clammed up.

“Then I don’t have to explain myself to you.”

Certainly what she says makes sense. It is true that Akari has no right to tell Takeru who he lets into his house.

But Akari knows nothing about the relationship between Chisato and Takeru. She made a promise with Grandma.

She knows why Chisato  is approaching Takeru. As his protector, she can’t involve Takeru in her personal affairs.

If Chisato would not leave, she would have no choice but to persuade Takeru to get rid of her.

Thinking this, Akari glared at Takeru sharply.

“Takeru, you said you weren’t dating Chisato chan, right? Isn’t it strange to let a girl you aren’t dating into your house?”

Chisato sighs and shakes her head from side to side in exasperation, but ignores her and glares at Takeru, waiting for an answer.

Takeru holds his head down with one hand and answers.

“Akari, there’s a bit of a situation with this.”

“So what’s the situation ! ! ! I’ve been asking you for a while now !”

Gradually, she became irritated with Takeru.

If there’s nothing wrong, he should be able to explain it to himself. However, Takeru looked at Chisato with a troubled expression on his face.

The fact that Takeru is holding Chisato’s shoulder and appeasing Akari is also not good. Whose side is Takeru on?

As she was about to raise my voice again, the front door opened and Mayu’s voice came out.

[Oh, Chisato chan, you’re here !?]

After the sound of footsteps coming from the front door, Mayu opened the door to the living room with great energy and peeked out.

“Chisato chan, let’s play Smapla—…Akari chan also came…what’s the situation? Is this a scene of chaos?”

Mayu widened her eyes at Akari, then looked at her and Chisato alternately and stiffened her face.

What do you mean? How does Mayu know about Chisato and why is she so friendly with her? More and more questions came to Akari’s mind.

When Akari’s face was drawn, Chisato answered for her.

“Hello Mayu chan. Sato senpai and I used to be friends in the same club.”

Chisato’s words made Mayu’s face fall as if she was relieved.

“Eh, what the heck, you were friends–so you want to play Smash together, Akari chan?”

Now is not the time to play games. Akari made an apologetic face and declined Mayu’s invitation.

“I’m sorry, Mayu chan, but right now, Ken and I have something we need to talk about.”

Mayu senses the disquiet in Akari’s stronger tone and gives her a dubious look.

Then Chisato sat up and walked over to Mayu.

“I’ll go to Mayu’s room then. I’ve been practicing my Smapla too, so I won’t lose today.”

Maybe Chisato was just trying to keep Mayu away.

Chisato left the living room with Mayu as it was.

The living room, now alone with Akari and Takeru, was silent, with only the ticking of the clock echoing through the room.

Akari looked at the living room door with distant eyes as Mayu left and opened her mouth.

“Mayu chan and Chisato chan are getting along very well, aren’t they? It’s as if this isn’t the first time she’s been here today.”

Takeru is silent for a moment, then replies as if he has given up hope.

“…..Well, sometimes.”

“How many times?”

“Four times,…..or is it five? My dad and Mayu like her so much, they keep asking me to bring her here.”

Five times,……and she seems to be getting along well with his father.

“…..When did this….happen…..”

She muttered this in a voice that Takeru could not hear, and because of the pain in her chest that she had never felt before, she sat down to fall into her own chair where Chisato had been sitting earlier.

Akari then lightly pats the table that is her seat.

She was sitting right in front of Takeru, and she felt a little tickled when she saw him start eating.

She has been playing with Mayu since she was in kindergarten.

She also ate Takeru’s homemade lunch every day.

All of it, all of it, all of it, was her precious place.

But then she realized that it was Chisato who was in that place.

Akari bites her lip hard, then she is ready and opens her mouth.

“Ken, you know, actually Chisato chan and Yasaka senpai are…..”

[Akari, Chisato san is] Takeru interrupted Akari’s words in a strong tone. Takeru continued speaking with a gentle smile. [She’s always cocky, has a bad mouth, and is extremely competitive.]

At that moment, there was a thump on the other side of the door. When looking toward the noise, she saw through the frosted glass of the door a figure that looked like Chisato, who seemed to be listening to their conversation. Takeru, however, did not notice it and continued speaking.

“But she’s just clumsy. If someone is in trouble, she can’t leave them alone, so she reaches out to them in her own clumsy way. She’s not a bad girl at all, just easily misunderstood. No matter what anyone says, I believe Chisato san as I see her with my own eyes.”

Takeru looked Akari straight in the eye and said so.

Takeru has always had a keen sense of insight. He must have known that Akari originally did not have good feelings toward Chisato. And before Akari said anything bad about Chisato, he warned her not to say anything strange about her.

Takeru believes in Chisato more than he believes in her words. Even the trust she has built up over the years is no longer a match for her.

When Akari remained silent to hold back the tears that were welling up in her eyes, Takeru lowered the tone of his voice and continued.

“Besides, Akari said earlier that it’s not right to bring someone I didn’t date home, but what about you, Akari? Isn’t it weird for you to come to my house even though we aren’t even dating?”

“I mean, even if you say so, you’re just Ken !? You should not be so concerned about it…..”

“How can you say that ! !”

Takeru raised his voice, which was unusual, and Akari was surprised and shut her mouth.

Takeru looked down, clenched his fist tightly, and continued speaking, his voice shaking with anger.

“Can you tell Yasaka-senpai…that you come to eat at my house every morning? In front of Yasaka senpai before, you pretended that we were just childhood friends, so why haven’t you told him?”

“That’s…not what I…..”

The trembling mixed in with her own voice as well. The tears are coming from the surprise and fear of Takeru’s anger.

The fear is not that she’s afraid of Takeru, but I’m afraid that he will hate her……and give up on her.

Takeru continued speaking with a stronger tone.

[It’s because you couldn’t, right? Akari, you also knows somewhere in your heart that it’s strange for you to go to a house of the opposite sex even though his not your boyfriend.] Takeru paused the conversation and continued speaking as if he were talking to himself. [I also wanted to stay in the same relationship with Akari forever. But Akari has moved on…our relationship has to move forward too.]

Akari finally noticed Takeru’s words, which seemed to have been wrung out in pain.

Until just now, she thought that everything that had accumulated over the past ten years had been taken away by Chisato.

But no. This was thrown away by herself.

This was brought on by her own arrogance in trying to take both her boyfriend, Yasaka senpai, and her childhood friend of the opposite sex, Takeru.

“But Ken …! I…I……! !”

She absolutely didn’t want to lose her current relationship with Takeru. She also knows that if she doesn’t say something back to him now, her relationship with him will end.

But she can’t find the words. Everything is her own fault, she can’t take it back, and she can’t even come up with an excuse.

Takeru noticed her crying, and his tone became calm and comforting, and he continued.

“I’m sorry, Akari, but don’t cry, okay? It doesn’t mean that we are no longer friends. It’s just that we’re going to start over at a reasonable distance as friends of the opposite sex.”

No, that’s wrong. I don’t want to be just a friend to Ken.

I want to be his childhood friend, his big sister, and his special family …..

“So, um, maybe I should start by changing how I call you.　Like…..Sato san?”

Sato san, Takeru basically calls her a stranger, and Akari’s spirit is shaken to the core.

Moved by emotion, she tensed her cheeks as hard as she could at Takeru’s smiling face.

“Ken you idiot—-! ! ! ! !”

Leaving Takeru with a blank look on his face, Akari ran from the scene as if she were running away.

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