I had somehow managed to survive my ordeal with Hikari and Akane.
While buying two pairs of shoes was detrimental from a financial standpoint, I had at least managed to keep the peace.
And isn’t that what’s best?
Yeah I know, I’m still coping.
But at least this day couldn’t possibly get any worse, right?
Still, I held my head up high knowing that the craziness for the day was over.
“At least I’m finally home and can relax,” I muttered.
Those were my final words before disaster struck.
The moment I opened the front door, I immediately sensed something evil lurking inside the house.
My younger sister, Kiyomi Sakamori, was upside down on the couch like a cryptid pretending to be a human girl.
One leg dangled over the armrest while she lazily held her phone above her face.
Without even looking up, she spoke.
“Welcome home, womanizer.”
I froze.
Slowly, carefully, I closed the front door behind me.
I walked in with the exhausted expression of a man already losing a battle he hadn’t agreed to fight.
Womanizer?
I had the feeling she somehow knew more about today’s events than even I did.
And I was literally there!
“I’m going to my room…”
“Sit your butt down, big bro. We need to have a talk.”
Why did she sound like a detective in a crime drama?
I slipped off my shoes with the look of a man walking toward his execution.
Personally, I’d choose the firing squad.
Tadashi once said he’d pick “death by naked girl avalanche,” but I’m pretty sure that’s not legally recognized.
“Why do I feel like I’m about to be interrogated by the police?”
Kiyomi gasped dramatically.
“How could you say that to your cute little sister? I merely wish to discuss your questionable actions as of late.”
“What ‘questionable actions?’ And who says ‘as of late’ anymore?”
She finally sat upright.
Then her green eyes drifted downward.
Toward the shopping bags in my hands.
Her expression changed instantly.
Like a shark detecting blood in the water.
Then she walked over.
Slowly.
Like she was approaching evidence at a crime scene.
I could tell that the blood spatter analysis was not going to end up in my favor.
“Oh em gee.”
“What?”
“You ACTUALLY bought both.”
I paused.
“How did you know about that?”
“Tadashi told me.”
“When did you talk to him?”
Kiyomi blinked at me slowly.
“Well, you see, Onni-chan…” She waved her phone in front of my face as she spoke.
“We have these magical devices called phones now. They let us communicate with other human beings. Aren’t they neat?”
“I regret asking. Wait… why does Tadashi have your number?!”
She hopped off the couch and approached the bags like a scientist discovering proof of alien life.
Then she turned slightly to the side.
Like she was addressing an invisible camera crew.
“Ladies and gentlemen…”
“There is no audience.”
“…we have officially reached the ‘I’ll just buy both’ stage of emotional avoidance.”
“That is NOT what happened.”
“Textbook behavior. Even the fans are confused about this latest development.”
“There is no textbook. And there are no fans! Stop narrating.”
“Oh, there totally is a textbook. And of course there are fans.” She waved emphatically at the imaginary camera.
Kiyomi grabbed one of the boxes and opened it immediately.
Her eyes sparkled.
“Ah. Tsundere-core.”
“That is not a term,” I replied with the tone of a person who was slowly losing all hope.
“Black. Aggressive. Stylish. Screams ‘I don’t care’ while caring violently.”
She opened the second box.
Couldn’t contain the glee on her face.
“And THIS…”
Her grin widened.
“…is soft-girl emotional support footwear. Very Deredere.”
“Stop categorizing them like they’re Elden Ring character builds.”
“They are character builds.”
“They are PEOPLE.”
“Debatable.”
“IT IS DEFINITIVELY NOT DEBATABLE! ”
Kiyomi closed both boxes before slowly looking back up at me.
Then she smiled.
It was the kind of smile villains made before their super secret master plan went into full effect.
Please don’t let there be a monologue.
“So…”
I immediately didn’t like where this was going.
“…which one do you like more?”
I froze.
Completely.
My brain blue-screened.
Kiyomi’s grin widened like the Cheshire cat.
“Ooooooh.”
I stayed silent.
I felt every possible answer was the wrong answer.
Like the most screwed up multiple choice test of all time.
“You froze,” She said with her eyes staring at me for any potential hints as to my emotional state.
“I was thinking.”
“That’s worse.”
“How is that worse?!”
“You like them both, don’t you?”
Silence.
Deadly silence.
Kiyomi stared at me like she’d just discovered classified government documents proving the moon landing was fake.
By the way, the Americans did not land on the moon.
Because the moon doesn’t exist.
I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore.
This girl has my brain all discombobulated.
“Oh em gee.”
“Stop saying that.”
“You actually do.”
“No I…”
“You bought BOTH shoes because each girl picked one for you.”
I looked away immediately.
“That’s not what happened…”
“That’s EXACTLY what happened.”
I rubbed my temples slowly.
I felt like my brain was going to burst out of my skull.
“They both made valid arguments,” I tried to say confidently.
I wasn’t even fooling myself at this point.
Kiyomi stared at me for several seconds.
Then burst into laughter.
“YOU TURNED SHOE SHOPPING INTO A DIPLOMATIC CRISIS.”
“It wasn’t that serious.”
“You spent extra money to avoid hurting either girl’s feelings.”
Silence.
“That… sounds worse when you say it out loud.”
“BECAUSE IT IS.”
I headed toward the kitchen with the exhausted posture of a man losing a psychological war.
Kiyomi followed immediately.
Like a predator.
Or a raccoon.
No, definitely a racoon.
She’s giving off major trash panda vibes to me right now.
And I’m the trash.
I grabbed a water bottle from the fridge before leaning against the counter.
I knew I needed to stay well hydrated in order to survive this skirmish.
Kiyomi leaned against the counter, watching me carefully now.
Her long pink hair perfectly framed her face as she maintained her predatorial gaze.
“You know what your problem is, big bro?”
“Right now? You. But go on.”
“You hate making choices that might hurt people.”
I paused.
Only slightly.
But Kiyomi noticed instantly.
Because of course she did.
“You think if you stay neutral long enough…” she continued quietly, “…nobody gets hurt.”
The kitchen suddenly felt smaller.
Like the walls were about to collapse in on me.
I looked down at the water bottle in my hand.
I started playing with the label, slowly tearing it off.
“That’s… not unreasonable.”
“It is when feelings are involved.”
Silence settled briefly.
Rare.
Kiyomi usually weaponized silence.
But this one felt different.
Then, Kiyomi suddenly pointed at me dramatically.
“ANYWAY.”
Moment ruined.
“You are accidentally inside a romance manga.”
“I am literally just living my life.”
“That’s what all romance protagonists say before the opening theme starts.”
“I am not a protagonist.”
“You bought two pairs of shoes to avoid emotionally damaging girls. Sounds like a rom com protag to me.”
“That was a logical decision.”
“That was Episode 3 behavior.”
“Don’t assign episode numbers to my life. You need to stop watching so many rom-coms and reading Shōjo manga.”
“Never!” She threw her hands up into the air emphatically as she yelled.
I walked toward the stairs.
A retreat.
A strategic retreat.
Unfortunately, Kiyomi simply followed me upstairs while continuing to speak.
“Let me break it down for you, my dear Onni-chan.”
“I would prefer you didn’t.”
“You like Akane.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You like Hikari.”
“I didn’t say THAT either.”
“You are entering the unresolved emotional tension arc.”
“That is not a real thing.”
“It totally is. And instead of progressing the plot…”
She pointed at the boxes.
“…you bought DLC. You’re doing all the sidequests instead of getting further on in the main storyline.”
“That doesn’t even make sense.”
“It makes perfect sense.”
I entered my room and immediately collapsed backward onto my bed.
Kiyomi walked in behind me like she paid rent.
“Get out!” I yelled to no avail.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
She grabbed both shoe boxes before tossing them onto my bed beside me.
Then she pointed dramatically.
“Pick one.”
“No.”
“Pick one.”
“I’m not doing this.”
“PICK ONE.”
“I REFUSE.”
“COWARD.”
“Stop escalating everything!”
“THIS IS THE CLIMAX OF THE SCENE.”
“This is not a scene.”
“IT IS NOW.”
We stared at each other like we were about to get into a gunfight.
After several moments, I finally managed to get some words out.
“You’re not going to stop, are you?”
“No.”
“Even if I say nothing?”
“I will monologue harder.”
“That is concerning.”
Pause.
Eons passed between words.
Then, very quietly, I spoke.
“I… I like them both.”
Silence.
Kiyomi froze completely.
Then, very slowly, she turned toward the imaginary audience again.
“Did you hear that, everyone?”
“There is no audience.”
“HE SAID IT.”
“I’m going to regret this.”
“You can’t take it back now. It’s canon.”
“That is not how reality works.”
“It is how stories work.”
“This is not a story.”
Kiyomi leaned closer.
Whispered directly beside my ear.
“It is to me.”
Then she pulled away grinning.
“Say it again.”
“No.”
“Say it again.”
“No.”
“Say it again.”
I let out a large sigh.
“I like them both.”
Kiyomi placed a hand over her heart dramatically.
“Oh this story is going to be PEAK.”
“I hate you.”
“He says that, but he doesn’t mean it,” She said, looking at the camera like Jim from the Office.
“I MEAN IT.”
“See?”
I buried my face into my pillow.
Kiyomi sat cross-legged on the floor now, watching me like a cat playing with a dying mouse.
Then her expression sharpened again.
“You know what’s really interesting?”
“No. But I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”
“Hikari stresses you out.”
“That is objectively true.”
“But she excites you.”
“What?!”
“And Akane relaxes you.”
I slowly lifted my face from the pillow.
“But she wears you down emotionally. ”
“That’s not…” Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“Hikari challenges you from the outside.”
I frowned slightly.
“What does that even mean?”
“She pushes you. Forces reactions out of you. Makes you panic. Makes you adapt.”
Then Kiyomi’s expression softened slightly.
“But Akane…”
She paused.
These dramatic pauses were slowly starting to get to me.
“…Akane makes you think about yourself.”
“How so?”
“You’re calmer around her. But you also become more honest. More aware of yourself.”
“Kiyomi…” I frowned slightly.
“How do you even know all this?”
For once, she didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, she looked at me quietly for a second.
“I’ve been watching you for years, big bro.”
Her tone was lighter than usual now.
Less teasing.
More like she was just stating straight facts.
“You always make the same face whenever something actually matters to you.”
Silence.
Then her grin returned instantly.
“Besides, your emotional stealth stat is garbage.”
“That was cringe. Never say that again.”
She stood there like she was about to drop the most profound knowledge of my life.
“You become different around them but in completely opposite ways. Yet somehow, you also manage to stay the same. A different animal and the same beast.”
I opened my mouth.
Then stopped.
Because unfortunately, as freaking stupid and confusing as that sounded, it sounded correct.
I think the potential concussions were finally starting to get to me.
Kiyomi immediately sensed weakness.
Her eyes lit up like your average seasonal festival.
“Oh this is AMAZING.”
“It really isn’t.”
“You bought both shoes because choosing one felt like rejecting the other.”
I stared at the ceiling.
“Maybe…”
“OH MY GOD HE ADMITTED IT.”
“I admitted to nothing!”
“You’re accidentally becoming self-aware. You’re a real boy now.”
“That doesn’t even make sense!”
“It does if you’re not emotionally constipated.”
“I am not emotionally constipated.”
“You are romantically illiterate.”
“That is not a real condition.”
“It is now. Don’t question a licensed love doctor like yours truly,” she stated emphatically while placing her hand on her chest.
I stood up immediately and moved to my desk before booting up my PC.
If I was going to be psychologically assaulted in my own room, I was at least going to do it while gaming.
Kiyomi watched me carefully for several moments.
Then, slowly, a truly horrifying smile spread across her face.
I felt a fear I had never known before.
“Oh…”
“What now, Kiyomi?”
“I’ve figured it out.”
“That sentence has never led to anything good when coming out of your mouth.”
“You need emotional development.”
“I need peace.”
“You are WELL past peace.”
“I am literally sitting in my room. The only thing stopping me from having peace right now is you.”
“You bought both shoes.”
“CAN YOU STOP SAYING THAT?”
“I’m bringing it up at your funeral.”
“I’m fine with that. At least I’ll be dead and no longer in this conversation.”
Then, she suddenly pulled out her phone.
Typing rapidly.
Fast.
Too fast.
Teenage girl fast.
I narrowed my eyes immediately.
“Who are you texting?”
“Nobody important.”
“Kiyomi…”
“What?”
“…Who are you texting?”
She smiled brightly.
Dangerously.
The smile of someone seconds away from utterly destroying my life.
Then my phone buzzed.
I looked down slowly.
One new message.
Hikari:
WHY IS YOUR SISTER ASKING IF I’D LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN “COMPETITIVE ROMANTIC PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE”?
I stared at the screen.
“Kiyomi…”
Another buzz.
Akane:
Your sister is very funny
Though I’m slightly afraid of her right now
I slowly turned toward her.
“Kiyomi!”
She looked absurdly proud of herself.
I stared daggers at her.
“What exactly did you send them?”
Kiyomi cleared her throat dramatically before reading aloud from her phone.
“To Hikari…”
She grinned.
“‘Kaito is currently suffering from advanced emotional cowardice. I require assistance applying pressure. I would like you to help me with what I like to call competitive romantic psychological warfare. I do hope you’ll say yes.'”
“What is WRONG with you?”
“And to Akane…”
She grinned wider.
“‘Hypothetically speaking, if someone was terrible at understanding his own feelings… what would be the most effective way to emotionally corner him? Asking purely for research purposes…'”
“You are a menace.”
“Correct.”
“Kiyomi…”
“What?”
“…You cannot psychologically manipulate my friends.”
She tilted her head innocently.
“Counterpoint: Yes, I can. And it’s REALLY funny.”
“You are making my life worse.”
“No, Onni-chan…”
She paused for dramatic effect.
I was really getting sick of these damn pauses.
“…I’m advancing the plot.” I swear I could see her eye actually glint as she looked into the imaginary camera.
“I hate you so much right now.”
“You love me.”
“I’m leaving.”
“You live here.”
“I DON’T CARE.”
Kiyomi stood up dramatically.
Then pointed toward me like a shounen protagonist declaring war.
“WELCOME TO CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, BIG BROTHER.”
And somehow, somehow, I had the horrible feeling deep down in my gut that she was just getting started.
What fresh hell awaited me?
What new torment is this gremlin going to concoct?
Announcement on Older Chapters Will also split older chapters in future.
TY to all my readers!