CH 34

Suzuka’s parents have gone on a trip.

In the evening, the time when her mother would have come home.

This trip back to our hometown is to report what’s going on.

We have reported to the Mita family already, but not to my Shindou family, yet.

So, Suzuka and I took Yuka and went to my parents’ house.

“Oto-san! Hold my hand!”

Yuka-chan took my hand as we walked.

Although she is now calling me “Oto-san,” she sometimes slips into “Yuki-ni” which is cute.

Such is the case with Yuka.

Since I married Suzuka, she is my sister-in-law? I hold the hand of the girl that is to be my sister-in-law with my left hand.

“Mother! Hold my hand!”

Yuka-chan makes Suzuka hold the other hand that she is not connecting with mine.

She squeezed my hand and Suzuka’s hand tightly and started to play with her hands dangling together.

“Yuka. It’s dangerous.”

“No!”

“I won’t give candy to a spoiled child, okay?”

“Ugh. You mean…”

Yuka-chan quit hanging on to my and Suzuka’s hands in a huff.

While thinking about how well I am used to treating my sister, we arrived at my parents’ house, the Shindou house.

I don’t have a key to my parents’ house today, so I ring the intercom as usual and call for someone inside.

The door opened with a clunk, and inside was my mother.

“I’m home.”

“Ara ara, welcome back. When did you have a child, by the way?”

My mom laughed as she saw Yuka-chan standing between Suzuka and I.

Then Yuka-chan also smiled.

“New father and mother! Isn’t it nice?”

“Oh my, when did you change them?”

“Hehehe~, just now!”

Mother is comforting Yuka-chan.

No need to stand around and talk, we enter the house and go to the living room as usual. I leave Yuka alone and give her an update on what’s going on.

We talked about college, her new house, and many other things.

When we were almost done with that, my mother started to say something difficult to us.

“When are you going to have a real child?”

“… Ahaha.”

Suzuka could only give a dry laugh.

I didn’t know how to react, so I just kept my mouth shut.

“Well, well, well, since you both are fine with money, it’s always fine.”

Don’t come after me when I say it’s awkward.

Then we continued to get uncomfortable, or rather nerve-wracking, questions.

Before I knew it, the awkward time was over and I was enjoying my parents’ house for the first time in a long time, eating a pizza delivery that my mom had ordered before I knew it.

She suggested that Yuka and us stay here since her parents were away on a trip. But Yuka said she wanted to go home, so we went back to the Mita house.

Yuka was full of energy.

She was always asking me to play with her, and I was always getting tossed around.

If I could have used my right hand, I could have played with her a little more.

“Onee-chan! I’m thirsty. Juice!”

Yuka-chan, who knew there was juice in the fridge, exclaimed.

If you get too used to sweets from a young age, it will become the norm, so don’t go overboard.

Suzuka said the juice is only once every three days.

Earlier, while we were eating pizza at my parents’ house, Yuka was drinking a glass of orange juice…

“Didn’t you drink it earlier?”

“No good?”

“No. Tea or milk will do, okay?”

“Boo. It’s no use. Milk will be fine.”

“Who does this girl think she is? Yes, yes, just a minute.”

She took milk out of the refrigerator, poured it into a cup, and handed it to her.

4 years old.

Her hands are small, yet clumsy.

She dropped the glass of milk she had started to drink and got milk all over her.

“Exactly. Yuki, we’re going to go take a bath.”

“Oh, okay.”

She and Yuka went to take a bath after taking a milk soak.

I visited the Mita family many times when I was little, but I never relaxed by myself and I get restless.

I have only one action to take.

“Alright, let’s explore Suzuka’s room.”

I start exploring her room, which Suzuka never let me in after I passed the middle school age.

A neat and tidy room.

Opening the wardrobe and rummaging through things, I reach a place that probably contains old clothes that are no longer in use.

“From elementary school gym uniforms to middle school gym uniforms. All sorts of things.”

Nostalgic for the past.

Petite Suzuka.

Even now, she can still wear her elementary school’s headdresses, but middle school’s might have room to spare, right? As I continued to look around for something, thinking how ridiculous it was…

“Tei! Don’t go through people’s rooms without permission!”

“Kuh, did you get mad at me… What happened to Yuka-chan?”

“I just came to get Yuka’s clothes. Then I found Yuki rummaging around in my room.”

“I see.”

“…I don’t want her to be alone in the bathroom so I’m going to go back. Don’t fish any more, okay?”

Suzuka came to get a change of clothes and left early.

When told not to fish, it is a man’s nature to want to do so.

After all, I went to Suzuka’s room and fished out a lot of things.

It was past time to fish in her room.

Tired of playing with me, Yuka took a bath and cleaned herself up.

She seemed to be a girl who could already sleep alone in her room, so she went to sleep in her room as usual.

“Well, Yuki, let’s take a bath, shall we?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

I still take care of the bath.

…I’m a child, just like Yuka? Was I? I waited for Suzuka in the bathroom of Mita’s house, thinking.

“She didn’t come.”

Suzuka said she was going to change her clothes so that she wouldn’t get wet.

When she didn’t come, I left the bathroom and went to look for her.

She was not in the changing room, so I went to the living room.

She was not in the living room either, so I went to her room and saw an amazing sight.

“Yu, Yuki!? No, no, don’t look!”

“Hey, I thought you weren’t coming, what are you doing in your school swimsuit?”

“Hey, because all Yuki did was look at the wardrobe where all the clothes and stuff from the past are… I wondered if Yuki liked this kind of thing. But it’s a little tight and I was hesitant to… let Yuki see it because I was embarrassed… Ugh, I’m so embarrassed…”

Suzuka fidgeting in embarrassment.

The school swimsuit she is wearing is probably the one she wore in middle school.

It’s a little smaller, obviously not the right size, and a little tighter …

I can’t bear to hear that she couldn’t muster up the courage to show up in front of me because she was worried about it.

“You are really too sneaky!”

“Ugh~. I’m so stupid. Why did I do this…”

Suzuka regretted intensely after putting on her school swimsuit.

I was so intoxicated and giddy with cuteness that I wavered between quitting and waiting for my right hand to heal.

That’s when it happened.

“Onee-chan, what are you doing…”

Yuka-chan sleepily appeared.

At the same time, we get a phone call from her parents, who are worried about us.

“Oh, yeah. We’re fine. How are you two doing?”

As soon as Suzuka starts talking, Yuka realizes that she is talking to her real mother and father, and rushes over to her.

“Onee-chan! I want to talk! Take over!”

She was forced to struggle and gave her cell phone to Yuka.

She is a strong girl who does not cry when separated from her parents, but she is still lonely.

I was watching her talk with her real mother with a smile on my face when she said.

“Speaking of which, I saw Onee-chan in a swimsuit doing something to Yuki-nii!”

“Bufu! Geho, Geho”

She vigorously blurts it out.

Oh, well, now Suzuka was still wearing her normal school swimsuit.

Suzuka was in a panic as well, so she grabbed the cell phone from Yuka and tried to fix the situation.

“Mom. What Yuka said was a joke, okay? Okay?”

Then, after some conversation, Suzuka handed the cell phone to me.

“Um, Mother-in-Law. What’s wrong?”

“You guys can do whatever you want. But, please don’t let Yuka see too much of it, okay? Well, I’m sure you want to continue soon, so I’ll leave it at that. Now then, let me ask you about Yuka. Yuki, don’t make Suzuka hate you by forcing her to do too many special things, okay?”

“…Oh, yes.”

I heard the call disconnect.

After that, for a little while, we had no choice but to laugh dryly because we were deeply wounded in our hearts.