CH 33

“Sorry to have kept you waiting!”

“Yes, waited too……no it is alright, I did not have to wait at all”

After the billing was over, Kaede returned with a contented look on her face. I thought of letting out my honest feelings but looking at her expression, I stopped.

Eyes, lips, the angle of her head, voice, everything seemed to have been too perfect in that expression of hers. It seemed to command a forceful vigour.

Towards that expression of hers that seemed to say, “Don’t say anything”, I straightened my hunched spine and received the bag she held out.

“Nii-san……women take time when they are shopping, you know?”

Kaede let out a giggle to my reaction. I grasped my left hand that had no luggage, tightly with my right as I started walking.

When I asked Kaede about the future course of events, it seems like there is already nothing left for us to do on the first floor. Ignoring the popular shops standing in a row on both sides of the passage, we took the escalator. As we went up to the second floor, different from the first, shops classified by genres were lined up.

“Next is, this shop!”

“……were you not going to shop for tomorrow?”

“Let’s go!”

Kaede ignores me brilliantly as she enters a shop that has nothing to do whatsoever with tomorrow.

Like the exterior, the interior too had a woody style to it that seemed to create a calming atmosphere. Plates and glasses, mugs and so forth, different kinds of dinnerware were beautifully displayed.

“The cups we are using were bought a long time ago. I thought it was time we replaced those”

One by one, she picked up the articles she was curious about, confirmed the sensation upon touch. She was comparing the products with a serious gaze.

It is true that we have been using those cups since quite a while back, but they still looked pretty and did not deteriorate to the point that would warrant a replacement.

But, a few days back, I had spectated her disposing of unused glasses and cups. So, she must have had plans for buying new ones from the get-go.

As it looked like it would take her some time in finding something she liked, I appropriately went around the shop exploring.

It was a shop that specialized in dinnerware, but glassworks in the form of small objects and ornaments had been assembled too. It was an interesting shop to look around that did away with boredom.

On the upper shelves, there were several expensive items that differed from the rest of the store. If I carelessly bumped into those items and ended up breaking them, my pocket money won’t suffice as compensation. They had such price tags.

“……too expensive”

I softly distanced myself from the shelves. Then, I noticed that the exterior of the shop had gotten noisier than before.

“What?”

It was a different kind of ‘noisy’ from when there are too many people.

The curious me looked outside of the shop but did not see people gathering in front of it per se.

Moving only my neck, I surveyed the vicinity. A little ahead on the right-hand side, a crowd entered my field of vision.

I exited the shop and as I slowly approached the crowd, I saw women gathering in droves for some reason.

“……let us return”

Before I confirm who is at the centre of it all, I will return to the shop.

Many females, towards the high-pitched voice that I seem to hear every day in the classroom, people gathering in circles……

I was somehow able to pull off a prediction.

……more like, it is definitely that guy.

Since I am only shopping with my sister, an accidental encounter with him is particularly, not an issue.

But recently, there had been many cases where I got entangled in troublesome stuff. So before getting found out, there is nothing better than hurriedly departing from that place.

Turning the direction of my body around, as I decided to retrace my steps back to the shop, this time, the shop had become noisy.

“Who is it this time……”

Going back the way I came, I am walking towards the end of the passage. As I closed on in the spot to confirm who had garnered so much attention this time, I could hear two voices from the centre of the crowd that I have had heard before.

“Excuse me, can you let me through?”

“Can you move out of the way? You are a hindrance”

The two people in the centre looked like they were trying to enter the shop that I was aiming for, but the men surrounding them were a nuisance. They let out tired voices to such a situation.

Upon hearing these voices, I was able to discern their identities but this time, I did not turn around. I immediately advanced towards the end of the passage.

If I went back the other way, I would only bump into the crowd of females from before.

While the girls were still not able to get out of the crowd of people, I ought to bring Kaede out of the shop and distance ourselves from this spot. The moment I lay my hand on the door of the shop, the two girls pushed their way through to the shop front, Shizuku and Kirasaka. Our eyes met.

“Are?”

“Ara?”

“……you got the wrong person”

“I have not said anything yet”

Kirasaka returned these words calmly. As I was about to take refuge inside the shop, Shizuku caught my arm.

The arm that was pulled vigorously from behind got pinned down. It had automatically become something similar to that of a locking technique in Judo. Intense pain assailed me as my walking had naturally come to a halt.

“Please wait a moment!”

“I wish you had said that before I pinned your arm down……”

Shizuku returned these words in her usual slow-paced speech pattern as Kiraska grasped the other arm.

“Like this, you will not be able to escape”

It had become a drama-like spectacle where the police are arresting the runaway criminal, but by no means had I done anything bad.

The cold gazes of people passing by were directed towards me. I was immensely bothered by it but I would like to believe that I was wrong.

“Nii-san, I have decided! Let’s get this cup……what are you doing?”

Then, with bad timing, Kaede came out of the shop and witnessed the spectacle of her real brother being put down in a Judo lock by two women. She directed her cold gaze to me……no, Kirasaka and Shizuku.

“Huh? Isn’t it Shizuku-san and Kirasaka-san!”

As she noticed the two people pinning me down, Kaede returned to her usual expression as she rushed over to our vicinity and tilted her head in confusion.

“……was Nii-san being a seducer?”

“Yes, received a passionate attack”

“Don’t lie through your teeth……”

Towards Kirasaka’s smooth lie to Kaede’s question, even Shizuku nodded her head as if to show her contempt.

I feel that recently, even Shizuku is getting influenced in a bad way because of Kirasaka……