CH 59

Finally, a Conclusion for This Matter Too

Translated by HamletJr

Edited by HamletJr

There was a certain couple who was having a conversation.

“Hey, did’ja hear?”

“Hear what?”

“There’s this girl who just moved in next door, and she’s one hell of a beauty.”

“…You know, you must really have some nerve to say that in front of your girlfriend.”

The woman responded to the man’s words in a disgusted manner. It was certainly as the woman had said; calling another woman beautiful despite having a girlfriend was…well, it depended on the situation, but it was certainly something to be frowned upon.

The man apologized and proceeded to explain why he’d brought this up.

“But, you know, it looks like she actually has a partner.”

“Hmm? And?”

“Her partner is, well…basically, the complete opposite of the girl. He looks like a total delinquent.”

This was what the man said. The woman who moved in next door was a college-aged girl, and she was very pure and innocent looking. However, despite her pure and tidy appearance, her body was said to be incredibly lewd and dirty.

“Is that part really necessary?”

“Oww?!”

Well, it was only natural that the woman would hit him. But, that wasn’t the point. The man’s story continued.

“I saw her partner…and, well, he’s really the complete opposite of her, y’know? At first I found it suspicious, but then I saw that the girl was really head over heels for him too.”

“Well ain’t that great?”

“…At first, I thought she was being pressured or threatened, but maybe I was wrong.”

“So she hated him at first, but then he made her fall for him and now she’s head over heels for him? Something like that, you mean? There’s no way such a manga-esque story is possible.”

“Thought so.”

But well, the difference in appearance and atmosphere between the man and woman he was referring to was quite a ways apart from each other, so the man’s thought process wasn’t unjustified. 

Nevertheless, perhaps because of what she’d heard from her boyfriend, the woman got a little curious too, and she hoped she would be able to see the mysterious couple someday… And it just so happened that, whether God was playing a prank or not, that encounter would happen on that very same day.

“C’mon, let’s go.”

“All right.”

They left their room with the intention of having dinner outside, but it was at that moment that the mysterious couple came out from the room beside them.

“Ah…”

“…I see now.”

The woman looked at the two and immediately understood. The man looked every bit like a delinquent, but the woman was really meek and gentle looking, and it was no exaggeration to say that the two were polar opposites.

…Her boobs are massive.

She was dressed comfortably and coolly for summer, but the girl’s breasts were so overwhelmingly large that their size could be easily grasped even through her blouse. The woman then glanced down at her own chest. It wasn’t as if hers were as flat as a wall, but in the face of such overwhelming might, it was absurd to even compare them.

“I see. So Shizuna-chan’s together with Sakie-san today.”

“Yep. I’m kind of scared to think about what they’re going to talk about, just the two of them.”

“Fufu, it’ll probably be about you, Ryuichi-kun. ♪”

“…Yeah, probably.”

The man had a sort of yearning expression on his face. His melancholy look was somewhat heart-stirring, and the woman had a vague feeling that he was probably popular with older women.

“Thanks for today.”

“No, no, I wanted to be with you too, Ryuichi-kun.”

The girl walked with him, leaning against his strong, dependable body. Even though it was still a little hot at night, the woman was smiling as she wondered how much the girl must’ve liked hugging the man.

“We should get going too.”

“Yup.”

We won’t lose to that couple; we’re just as lovey-dovey as them, the woman thought as she held hands with her boyfriend.

Now, unaware that he was being watched by total strangers, Ryuichi ventured out into the city with Satsuki. As he’d mentioned earlier, Shizuna was not by his side today. Ryuichi was thinking of spending the day alone, but he never would’ve thought that Shizuna would have contacted Satsuki. Incidentally, it seemed that she’d also contacted Chisa, but Chisa was going back to her parents’ house today.

“It’s pretty hot even though it’s nighttime, huh?”

“Yeah. Us linking arms makes it even hotter, though.”

“But you don’t hate it, right?”

“…Damn, you really know me well, don’t you?”

Ryuichi was half-joking when he said it made it even hotter. A cool breeze blew by from time to time, so it wasn’t hot enough to make one sweat, and it was actually just the right temperature for nighttime.

“Let’s have some sushi.”

“Sure. I’m pretty sure there’s a sushi restaurant around here that I’ve heard is pretty good…”

Walking with Satsuki, he looked for the sushi restaurant and soon found it. They entered the restaurant and sat at the counter together; after ordering tea, they took the plates from the belt as they flowed by. While they enjoyed their sushi, Ryuichi suddenly mentioned this.

“…Now that I think about it, I kinda don’t know anything about Chisa’s parents’ home.”

“Really? But now that you mention it, neither do I.”

Although Ryuichi has been to the apartment where Chisa lives now, he hasn’t heard much about her parents’ home before…or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that he hasn’t heard anything at all.

“I’m pretty cool with them, y’know? But…they do seem to have a problem with how free-spirited I am.”

He remembered having this sort of conversation with her, but no matter how much he dug up his memory, that was the only instance he could think of. He wasn’t particularly worried because at least her family wasn’t a broken one like his, but Chisa has helped him many times, so if anything were to happen to her, Ryuichi would definitely try to help her.

“…’I’ll definitely protect her’ is what your face seems to be saying.”

“Huh?”

“I think it’s really cool, Ryuichi-kun.”

Apparently she’d seen the look of determination on his face. With a giggle, Satsuki brought a characteristic egg sushi to her mouth and smiled widely at its deliciousness as she slowly chewed it.

“Of course, that goes for you too, y’know? Now that we’re a thing, I’ll make sure to protect you.”

“! …Cough!”

“Hey, hey…”

The unexpected blow made Satsuki choke on her food. Ryuichi chuckled exasperatedly and offered her a cup of tea, which she hastily accepted and chugged down her throat. With the sushi safely down her throat, she took a deep breath in and out as if to calm herself down.

“It isn’t that surprising, and it’s not like you aren’t used to hearing that, are you?”

“I-It’s not that!”

“What do you mean?”

“Lately, you’ve been very gentle, and your expression has been…very kind, like it is now, Ryuichi-kun! That’s why I was more startled than surprised!”

“O-Oh… Well, just calm down for now.”

He somehow managed to calm her down by putting his hand on her shoulder, because he knew causing a ruckus here would disturb the other customers. However, Ryuichi’s expression was gentle enough for Satsuki to say what she did to him again. Naturally, he could not see that himself, so he could only reply to her what he did to Shizuna when Shizuna said the same thing to him.

“I don’t think I’m that different from my usual self, though.”

“Try looking at yourself in the mirror real hard, and you’ll see what I mean.”

“Hell no, that’s gross.”

Ryuichi didn’t want to stare at his own face for that long.

After that, he and Satsuki, who had regained her composure, had a nice chat, filled up their bellies, and left the restaurant feeling satisfied. All that was left to do was drop Satsuki off at her apartment since they had nothing more to do, but it seemed that today was truly a day of destiny, this time in a different meaning.

“…Ah, Onee-chan.”

“Eh?”

It was a familiar voice. They didn’t even have to think about who it could be to know it was Akira.

…I can’t believe he’d chase her all the way here…though on second thought, that doesn’t seem to be the case here.

After thinking things that far, Ryuichi shook his head in dismissal. Although he still had distorted feelings for Satsuki, it seemed that Satsuki was being careful about what was going on around her, so naturally, Akira couldn’t have known about her apartment. He had likely been on his way back from having dinner with his friends for summer vacation.

“…You!”

“…Damn, you’re such a pain in the ass.”

As Akira was glaring at him, Ryuichi took his gaze away from Satsuki and glared right back at him. Although he wasn’t consciously aware of it, his stern glare, which was already intimidating under normal circumstances, seemed even more intimidating than usual, and Akira took a step back as if frightened.

“Akira…”

Satsuki’s voice had completely changed; it wasn’t one that thought of him as a younger brother, but one that sounded dismayed at him. It was as if she was implying that the evening was supposed to end on such a pleasant note after eating delicious sushi and having a good time, yet his appearance had completely soured that mood…Ryuichi, however, nodded his head and thought that this might be a good opportunity.

“C’mere, Satsuki.”

“Ryuichi-kun?”

Hiding Satsuki behind his back, Ryuichi looked straight at Akira. He couldn’t let this drag on forever. He wanted to give Satsuki peace of mind, and more importantly, he wanted to show Akira the reality of the situation, even though Ryuichi had no obligation to do so.

“For God’s sake, stop lusting after your sister like a woman.”

“…What the hell?!”

“Don’t you realize? Because of what you did, Satsuki doesn’t see you as her brother anymore.”

Akira looked shocked at Ryuichi’s words. Ryuichi understood his feelings of disbelief and his desire to cling to the illusion that it couldn’t be true, but he was too far gone if he couldn’t tell what Satsuki thought of him after she was almost attacked by him, her own brother.

“…Akira.”

“Onee-chan…”

Akira’s body shuddered at her overwhelmingly cold voice. Satsuki then told him directly… Those words she’d never said this whole time, words that urged them to part ways, even if it was painful.

“That incident has created an irrevocable rift between you and me. So please, don’t bother me anymore—Akira-kun.”

“Wha?!”

Satsuki turned her back to Akira. Just like that, she pulled Ryuichi by the hand and walked away, but Akira made no attempt to follow them.

“I think things will be okay now that I’ve said that much. I don’t think he’ll let his emotions get the better of him and try something. He doesn’t have the guts.”

“I see.”

“…It’s a bit sad, but as his sister, I at least know that much.”

Because he’d watched his own family fall to ruin before his very eyes, Ryuichi believed that if a little talking could help them make up with each other, then that’d be good. However, there were some family relationships that became strained precisely because they needlessly spoke to each other. He felt like he’d learned once again that having relationships with other people was a happiness that not only he felt.

“Oh, right!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Shizuna told me that you rubbed her breasts to push her partner to give up.”

“…Oh yeah. That did happen.”

“I was just thinking that things would’ve gone much more effectively if you’d done that back there, too.”

It seemed that she had held a small hope for him to do that. As expected, Satsuki, too, seemed to be a bad girl in a different way from Shizuna.