Episode 267: Big Sister Who Is Thinking About Various Things (Maybe)

The day of the cooking class.

This morning, the classroom was buzzing with talk about after school, from the guys to the girls, left and right.

Looking at a scene like this, it was easy to see how much my classmates had been looking forward to today’s cooking class.

That said, the fact that there didn’t seem to be any lingering effects from Saturday’s incident was surprising in its own way.

After such a massive uproar, I’d expected the number of participants, mostly the guys, to drop at least a little. I thought it might be okay based on yesterday, but now that I’m seeing it for myself today, things remain unchanged.

So, unexpectedly, we’ve reached today with everyone still participating.

Of course, that’s a good thing in itself, and as someone who was somewhat involved in the planning, I’m happy about it.

Yeah… I’m supposed to be happy about it…

「Man, I’m seriously looking forward to today.」

「Just being in the same room as Satsukawa-senpai is too much bliss…」

「I wonder if we’ll get a tasting or something? Maybe I can eat something Satsukawa-senpai actually made.」

「I’ve been counting on that from the start. Hand-made food from Satsukawa-senpai… just imagining it is too exciting!!」

「Takanashi eats it every day, though.」

「「「 DON’T SAY THAAAAAAAT!!!! 」」」

「Is it just me, or am I having major deja vu…」

「No, it’s the same…」

「The fact that there’s nothing but idiots here is the same too.」

「Well, I get how they feel, though.」

The girls said it first, but I feel the deja vu from this exchange too.

And seeing a scene like this makes me feel complicated.

Judging from what I’ve heard, they understand the actual relationship between Sara-san and me. The fact that they can keep up that mood despite that means they’ve likely turned into an「idol fan club.」

「Takanashi, if it’s bothering you, why don’t you just take the plunge and show them what they’re missing?」

While I was watching the guys, Kawamura spoke to me with a wry smile.

Show them what they’re missing… what exactly does he want me to do?

「Show them…?」

「He doesn’t even have to try. They’re going to see it soon enough anyway.」

Hanako-san, who had been directing a dead-eyed stare at the boys from beside me, suddenly dropped a bombshell.

I wondered what exactly we’d be showing them, but I’m well aware that I’ve caused plenty of scenes myself. It’s hard to flat-out deny it.

To top it off, I just added to my track record with a major scene yesterday. Being told that, I can’t even make a sound in protest.

「I-Is that so?」

「The people around us just don’t know. If they knew what Kazunari and the Wife are like normally, those idiots over there would have nothing left but despair.」

「That much…?」

Kawamura stared intently at my face, looking strangely shocked by whatever he was imagining.

Seeing him that surprised makes me curious what exactly is going on in his head.

「No, it’s not actually that incredible…」

「Really? In that case, can Big sister hold Kazunari next time too?」

「「「 Hold!!?? 」」」

Wait!?

Hanako-san’s risky bombshells aren’t exactly new, but this is cutting it way too close!

I quickly checked the surroundings… the boys were still just making noise, and the girls… seemed okay for now.

Phew… honestly.

I don’t know how much she realizes it herself, but Yamakawa isn’t the only guy who likes Hanako-san. If she keeps saying such suggestive things, she might end up shouldering unnecessary trouble like last time.

I wish she’d worry about that a little more.

…Wait, when did Yamakawa and Tanaka even get here?

「H-Hey, what are you doing with Satsukawa-senpai all the time…?」

「It’s… it’s just way too enviable…」

Naturally, I had no comment for their questions.

There are plenty of things about my daily life with Sara-san that I can’t even tell my best friends.

It’s basically top secret.

When I casually glanced at Hanako-san, she seemed to give a tiny smirk for a second…

No, no, give me a break, Big sister…

「B-By the way, Hanasaki-san, how are you with cooking?」

The subject change was so obvious I almost laughed.

I’m sure that’s the topic he really wanted to get to, but this was a bit too blatant.

Plus, he seemed even more nervous than usual, clearly showing how conscious he was of her.

Well, I suppose that can’t be helped since he just got rejected, and we just have to wait for time to heal things.

But if he loses his nerves and gets too familiar, that’ll just lead to Hanako-san disliking him. I should probably make sure he keeps a handle on that.

「What, is it a problem if a girl can’t cook?」

「Eh!? N-No, I didn’t mean that at all!!」

「It was a joke.」

「…Huh?」

Whoa, it’s rare for Hanako-san to tell a joke to anyone besides us.

To the others, it might look like a normal scene, but to my eyes, Hanako-san had a mischievous look on her face. Given her words, though, it sounded like he’d stepped on a landmine, so it’s no wonder Yamakawa panicked.

「O-Oh, a joke. Ha, haha, you had me worried.」

Receiving an unexpected joke from Hanako-san, Yamakawa wore a happy smile.

Considering he’d been ignored or brushed off until now, I think even being joked with is a huge step forward. Compared to the other guys, you could say it’s a world of difference.

「Hanasaki-san joked!? Yamakawa, y-you don’t mean…」

Naturally, seeing a scene like that, it’s no surprise someone would get the wrong idea.

Hanako-san acting like that toward anyone but me is rare, so Tanaka’s shock is understandable.

「No, no, nothing like that…」

「It’s a pain because you try to turn everything into that kind of conversation. I have no interest in any man other than Kazunari.」

「…O-Of course.」

Just when Hanako-san had shown a bit of approachability, Tanaka’s unnecessary comment ruined everything.

And Yamakawa, caught in the crossfire, slumped his shoulders in defeat.

Even if he’s accepted the heartbreak as reality, it wouldn’t be strange for feelings to remain in a corner of his heart, and those aren’t easy to throw away.

Even if he says he fully understands Hanako-san’s fixation on me, that doesn’t mean it’s easy to just move on.

So being told that clearly… even if he knew it was coming, it’s still harsh.

「I’m practicing cooking at home, but I don’t think I’m any good yet. If I can’t at least do half… or a third as well as Wife, my pride as a Big sister will…」

I thought she was going to ignore him, but Hanako-san actually answered Yamakawa’s question.

Though, this felt less like an answer and more like she was just talking to herself, which was a bit awkward.

And in the end, it was still a story related to me.

「Wife?」

「Ah, come to think of it, she was calling Satsukawa-senpai ‘Wife.’」

「Is that because she’s your little brother’s marriage partner?」

「Naturally.」

Hanako-san nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Come to think of it, when exactly did Hanako-san start calling Sara-san「Wife」?

Before I knew it, she was just calling her that, and we all just kind of accepted it.

I thought she just started calling her that because of how Sara-san treats me…

Maybe it happened right around the time she started thinking of me as her little brother. Thinking about it that way makes sense now.

But if that’s the case, does her stubborn use of「Wife」mean she sees her that way from her own perspective, rather than just out of habit from the beginning?

「…Thinking about it again, it’s crazy. You just said marriage so casually, but we’re still just first-years, right?」

「Well, normally it’d be an impossible story, but since it’s Satsukawa-senpai, it wouldn’t be strange for there to be circumstances.」

Kawamura is as analytical as ever.

I’m sure he doesn’t know about the Satsukawa family, but I’m honestly impressed he can look at things so calmly.

Between his analysis of our classmates and everything else, I actually like Kawamura’s type.

His vibe is a bit like Yuji’s.

「Must be nice… having Satsukawa-senpai as a girlfriend is already super enviable, but even having the marriage decided. I bet you’ll get a ton of jealousy.」

「Well, the jealousy has been there for a while. But compared to being with Sara-san, it’s nothing special.」

Tanaka’s point is old news, and I’ve long since gotten used to being envied by those around me or being compared to her as an ill-suited match.

I don’t care what others think; I’ll just walk forward with Sara-san with my head held high.

「I’ve been wondering for a while, but you have a certain detached quality, Takanashi. Normally, can someone our age really think about marriage that calmly?」

「I wouldn’t say calmly, it’s just the natural outcome if I keep dating Sara-san, right?」

「Well, that’s true, but… Takanashi, this is just a general statement, but it’s rare for people to date from our age all the way to marriage. But since you’re engaged, that means from here on, forever…」

「Yeah, I’m never leaving Sara-san. I can’t say the specific reasons, but… I’m only able to be myself because Sara-san is here. So Sara-san is more important to me than I am to myself, and that’s not going to change.」

I know Kawamura is talking about the possibility of a「breakup」in a roundabout way.

But to me, this is absolute, and there’s not a single millimeter of a chance it’ll change. I can say that with total confidence.

「…You can really say it that decisively?」

I don’t expect anyone who doesn’t know the circumstances to hear that and understand it readily.

So Kawamura’s shock is only natural.

「By the way, it’s the same for Wife when it comes to Kazunari.」

Hanako-san spoke up for the part I was thinking but couldn’t say.

I knew perfectly well that if I said that myself, I’d just look like an overconfident jerk. That’s why I purposely didn’t say it.

「…Satsukawa-senpai feels the same way?」

「Yes. Wife is with Kazunari for the same reason. That’s why Wife only looks at Kazunari. No one can get between them.」

「「「 ………… 」」」

Hanako-san’s words might have sounded like an exaggeration.

But no one cut in with a quip. The weight of Hanako-san’s voice and the weight of her words wouldn’t allow it.

You could say Hanako-san is the person who understands Sara-san and me the best.

Natsumi-senpai, who is closest to Sara-san, and Yuji, who saw my past directly, are also understanding, but Hanako-san has a different perspective.

Hanako-san is probably the only one who understands the「feelings」part of Sara-san and me.

And because it’s Hanako-san saying it, her words carry weight.

Before I knew it, even the people around us who had been making noise were quiet. The girls were watching with intense curiosity, and the boys had awkward, disappointed looks on their faces.

…They were listening, those guys.

「W-Wow. The scale of this story is just…」

「No, I actually get it in a way. It’s because they have such a solid commitment to each other that they can already talk about engagement and marriage.」

「W-When you put it like that, I guess it makes sense…?」

Even if they don’t understand the feelings, the reasons exist for us. If they can just understand that, maybe they’ll end up with an impression like Kawamura’s.

「I know it sounds early, but it doesn’t feel out of place to me. I’m never leaving Sara-san, so I think engagement and future marriage are only natural.」

I wasn’t just following Hanako-san’s lead, but since they seemed to be listening, I decided to speak firmly too.

I don’t think they’ll try anything at this point, but it doesn’t hurt to have a preventive line in place.

「Haa… I don’t know how to put it, but Kawamura has a different sense than us, and you’re different too, Takanashi.」

「Right. Sometimes it feels like I’m talking to someone older.」

「 I’ve never really been conscious of that, though.」

I’ve never really thought about how I compare to those around me. Well, if I had to say, it’s true that I think of the guys making noise over there as younger… to be blunt, like kids.

To top it off, I thought basically everyone in my class in my third year of middle school was a kid too. I don’t know if this is a remnant of that or if there’s another reason.

The only thing I know for sure is that the incident with Yamazaki had some kind of impact on me. That much is certain.

「Well, anyway, if you want to shut those guys up fast, I think the shortcut is for you to just show them how close you and Satsukawa-senpai are.」

「I’m not so sure about that…」

It’s true we’ve done plenty of things in public, but that wasn’t exactly intentional. We just simply lose sight of our surroundings… wait, isn’t that exactly what Hanako-san said?

I feel like I just dug my own grave…

「Wife can easily do a hug or a kiss even in public if Kazunari asks.」

「「「 …Huh? 」」」

And with Hanako-san’s bombshell, the eyes were on me again.

This time, even everyone in the vicinity… wait, more importantly, Hanako-san, what are you planning to say next!?

「Like I said before, Wife only looks at and thinks about Kazunari. For Kazunari’s sake, she doesn’t care if it’s in public. If she says she’ll do it, she really does.」

「「「 ………… 」」」

Hanako-san stated it boldly, as if it were neither a lie nor a joke.

And naturally, gazes filled with various emotions focused on me.

Hanako-san is recognized as someone who doesn’t tell jokes, and the classmates also know about me and Sara-san.

If that’s the case, it would be hard for them to just laugh it off as a joke.

…Don’t tell me Hanako-san said that in her own way as a form of backup for me?

She’s a Big sister who’s good at reading my feelings. So, for me, who was feeling complicated about the guys’ farce…

「By the way, if Kazunari asks, I can do it too.」

「…Wha!?」

「…Ugh, why is it always Takanashi…」

「…The world is so unfair.」

…Wait a sec, why are you adding your own appeal there?

What on earth is this situation, where she’s just adding fuel to the fire…

「H-Hey, Hanasaki-san, that’s a joke too, right? Right? Hahaha…」

「I have no reason to joke.」

「「「 …………. 」」」

And for the third time, the eyes were on me.

I’m not quite sure of Hanako-san’s true intent, but for now, I’ll try to think of it positively.

Backup for me.

An attack on the guys.

Hanako-san’s Big sister appeal.

…And maybe a warning to the guys who like her?

That’s just my guess, though…