The moment she made the move, Aragaki Ayase regretted it a little.
She had simply wanted to establish a line of contact to make sure he wouldn’t develop any wrong ideas about Kirino, but the words, combined with the way she’d grabbed the hem of his jacket, came off as far too intimate.
Kousaka Kyousuke was momentarily caught off guard by the sudden request, though he didn’t make much of it.
He took the phone from her hand, entered his newly activated number, and handed it back.
“I look forward to our future acquaintance.
If anything comes up, feel free to contact me.”
His gaze flicked toward Kousaka Kirino, then returned to the girl in front of him.
“Thank you, Onii-san.”
Ayase tucked the phone into her pocket, a faint blush rising to her cheeks.
That bashful expression would have made it impossible for any man to tear his eyes away — but Kyousuke managed just fine.
A shame, really, that she wasn’t into guys.
He didn’t deny that this girl was exactly his type, at least looks-wise, but he wasn’t self-absorbed enough to think he can change someone’s orientation.
Kyousuke shifted his feet and, before leaving, called out a greeting to Kirino.
“Don’t stay out too late.
Come home early.”
“Nobody asked you!”
Kirino huffed and turned the back of her head to him.
…
After bidding farewell to the two young beauties, Kyousuke stepped out of the department store.
A cold wind hit him in the face, making him shiver all over.
“I’ll make that call first.
The number, if I remember, is…”
He pulled out his phone and dialed the number he’d just received the day before.
A dial tone buzzed in his ear, and soon, with a click, the call connected.
“Hello?
Who is this?”
The voice that came through from the other end was a rather peculiar one, almost like it had been electronically synthesized.
“Bajeena?
It’s Sigsawa.”
Kyousuke spoke into the phone using his online handle, which he’d borrowed from the author of Kino’s Journey — the name he went by while roaming the internet.
It was his only means of accessing large volumes of information, relying on the PC running Windows 95 that his father had acquired for work.
This online friend’s full username was Bajeena Saori, a perennial presence on all kinds of emerging forums, especially those related to otaku culture and gaming.
“Oh?
You actually called.
You’re in Tokyo, then?”
“Yeah, that’s why I’m calling.
I was wondering if you’d like to meet up in person.”
“A bit of unfortunate timing.
I’m preparing my submissions for Comic Market right now.
Maybe I’ll be free in a month.”
Kyousuke tilted his head.
“Comiket?”
The Comic Market he was referring to — Comiket for short — was the largest doujinshi convention in the world, and a holy land for otaku everywhere.
Kyousuke had certainly heard of a mega-event of this scale, but he’d never once attended because he absolutely loathed standing in lines.
Given the crowds in previous years, the wait time started at two hours minimum.
“Interested?
How about we meet up at the convention?
At the invitation from the other end of the line, Kyousuke thought it over for a couple of seconds before deciding to agree.
If he could skip the line, there was no reason not to go and have some fun.
“In that case, I’ll see you at CM.
You can put this as my phone number.
I’ll reach out again when the time comes.”
“Got it.
Speaking of which, did you finish that mission of stalking your little sister?
You’re such a creep, honestly.
You’re not actually into her, are you?”
The teasing tone in the other party’s voice made Kyousuke roll his eyes before he could stop himself.
“More or less finished.
You really are a gossip, aren’t you?”
“If this were a galge, this would be a key flag, you know.
You’d better seize the opportunity.
Who knows, you might improve your relationship and eventually reach a happy end.”
“What are you even talking about?” Kyousuke couldn’t help laughing as he scolded him.
This guy had gotten so used to cracking jokes online, and apparently he could just as casually toss out sharp remarks over the phone, too.
“I’m just giving you some friendly advice.
If you don’t appreciate it, forget it.
Let’s leave it here, we’ll chat when we meet up in a bit.”
Some off-screen noise came through, and Bajeena hurriedly hung up.
Kyousuke didn’t think much of it and slipped his phone back into his pocket.
As for this Bajeena person, they’d known each other for three years now, having connected through the internet.
During that period when the memories had been tormenting him, every chat with this guy had let him briefly forget the pain.
Over time, they’d naturally become fairly close friends.
In this relationship, the other party had always played the role of the listener, so Kyousuke knew very little about him — only that he was a programmer who loved anime and games.
It was a shame they hadn’t been able to meet this time, but winter break was still long.
There would be chances.
“Now, to find a place to stay.”
…
Hotels in Tokyo were certainly not cheap.
A single night’s stay cost him ten thousand yen, but it was an unavoidable expense.
The next day, after signing the contract at the Kadokawa building, Kyousuke exchanged contact information with Hayakawa Rumi and boarded the train home.
By the time he reached his front door, the clock had already struck four in the afternoon.
“I’m home.”
He pushed open the door and changed his shoes in the entryway, hearing the sound of footsteps from inside.
“Kyousuke, you’re back?”
Mieko poked her head out from the living room, a smile on her face.
“Yeah.
I stayed an extra day and met up with a friend.”
Kyousuke answered casually.
He’d informed both parents before leaving that he’d be spending a night out, just so Mieko wouldn’t worry.
“Um, about Kirino…”
He stepped toward the living room, ready to report to Mieko on the results of his mission.
The very next second, he spotted the blonde beauty sprawled across the living room sofa, dressed in an oversized hoodie whose hem reached down to her thighs.
She was lying on her stomach without a shred of decorum.
“You!” Kousaka Kirino cut him off as if racing to get the first word in.
“You tell me to come home early, and then you go and spend the night out yourself!”
Mieko stood off to the side, covering her mouth with a soft laugh as her gaze flicked back and forth between the siblings, marveling at how Kirino, who normally ignored Kyousuke entirely, had actually initiated an exchange — even if her tone was somewhat hostile.
“Nobody asked you.”
Kyousuke flashed a grin and threw her own words right back at her.
“You—!”
Kirino practically launched herself off the sofa, striding over to Kyousuke with large steps and looking up to meet his eyes directly.
The sharpness in her gaze was like that of a young tigress.
She grabbed hold of his wrist in one swift motion.
“What are you doing?”
“Come to my room.
I have something to say to you!”
Hiss!
Kyousuke tried to pull free, but Kirino’s hand clamped onto him like an iron vice, dragging him toward the stairs.
What kind of monstrous strength was this?
Had she inherited it from that burly father of hers?
Overpowered, he simply gave up on resisting and shot his mother a reassuring look before being hauled away.
“What’s your deal?
Do you have any idea I was guarding the front door all night and didn’t get a wink of sleep?
And you just went and stayed out without a single word!
You make me so mad!”
Kirino muttered under her breath the whole way before shoving Kyousuke down onto the tatami and seating herself across from him.
The girl sat with the door firmly shut behind her, her bare legs crossed and her arms folded over her chest, fixing him with a thoroughly hostile stare.
“So, what is it?”
Kyousuke let his eyes roam around the girl’s room, which was decked out entirely in pink decor.
Aside from the wardrobe and the bed, the only other piece of furniture was a desk, upon which sat an old-model computer, currently powered on.
“What do you mean, ‘what is it’?
Are you planning to tell them about the manga editorial department?”
“You mean the part where I saw you crying like a little kid after getting bullied?”
“!”
Having her disgrace dredged up, Kirino’s face instantly flushed blood-red, and she nearly lunged forward to clamp her hands over his mouth.
“Shut up!
That never happened.
Erase it from your memory!”
Kirino’s voice carried a threatening edge.
“And don’t you dare tell them about me drawing manga, either.”
“Heh.” Kyousuke shrugged.
“When you’re asking someone for a favor, maybe you should act like it.”
In truth, he had no intention of laying everything he’d discovered before their parents.
But Kirino’s reactions were simply far too amusing, and he couldn’t resist the urge to mess with her a little.
“What’s that supposed to mean?
You want me to grovel on my hands and knees or something?”
Kirino’s eyes were filled with nothing but disgust.
Kyousuke swept his gaze over her from head to toe, and when his line of sight drifted toward her legs, it startled her into instinctively pulling them in and hurriedly switching her sitting position.
“Don’t look at me like that.
You’re not having some kind of gross thoughts about me, are you?”