When Kyousuke finished changing into his kendo uniform and stepped outside, he was relieved to see that the students from Kaihin High had already blended in nicely with the other schools.
Most of them were chatting happily with the others—mostly girls. It seed that the presence of the "Rampaging Angels," who didn't exactly give off the friendliest vibe, had intimidated them at first, but now everyone was getting along fine.
Then, while Kyousuke was doing a headcount, his eyes suddenly narrowed.
Wait… is that Keiichi?
Sure enough, Katou Keiichi, gumi's cousin had joined the group.
The guy was completely alone but sohow fit right in with the high school students.
As expected of a brilliant d student—he didn't look out of place at all.
If Kyousuke hadn't seen him just now, he probably would've forgotten the guy even existed.
Smiling faintly, Kyousuke raised his hand and gestured for soone to hand him his phone.
He snapped a quick photo of Keiichi mixing with the group and sent it to gumi.
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[Kyousuke]: "Your cousin seems to be having a great ti."
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Kyousuke grinned like a kid showing off good behavior, feeling that his "psychological counseling" session with gumi yesterday hadn't been in vain.
As a little payback for her help, he was now doing his best to look after her cousin.
gumi didn't reply right away.
After about two seconds, the ssage was marked as read, and then ca her calm, composed reply—just like her.
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[gumi]: "Keiichi's been looking forward to this day for a long ti. Please make sure he experiences the beauty of kendo."
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A completely ordinary ssage—but it made Kyousuke laugh out loud.
Even through the screen, he could practically feel her suppressed irritation.
That guy Keiichi was always the center of attention at family gatherings, and he loved to force the Katou sisters to sit through comrcials featuring Kyousuke whenever he got the chance.
If gumi could see him struggle a little today, she'd probably be delighted.
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[Kyousuke]: "In return, gumi, could you help take care of Kasuko at my house today?"
————————————————————————
He added that line quickly—partly because he didn't want her holding yesterday's argunt against him.
Her rare burst of anger had been… a little scary.
This ti, the ssage was read almost instantly—but the reply didn't co right away.
After a short pause, gumi finally answered.
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[gumi]: "Okay, I'll bring a present for little Kasuko too."
[Kyousuke]: "No sweets. She and Eriri already had way too much candy yesterday."
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Kyousuke sighed as he typed that last line.
Eriri's idea of cheering soone up was always to feed them sothing sweet.
So the two of them had gone on a sugar spree—chewing through bags of gummies, Kyousuke's homade nougat, and the fruit candies Miki brought from her hotown.
Fortunately, Kyousuke's mother, Mikiko, was the type who believed, "If you get sick, take dicine; if your teeth go bad, just get dentures."
Otherwise, any other parent would've blown a gasket at the sight of two girls happily downing handfuls of sugar while chatting about life.
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[gumi]: "Ok"
————————————————————————
After saying goodbye, gumi set down her phone, her delicate brows furrowing as a troubled look crossed her face.
She rolled onto her side, hugged the blanket between her legs, and let out a muffled groan.
"Ugh… what should I do? Aunt Mikiko's definitely going to give a kimono…"
The girl muttered to herself softly.
The mont Kyousuke said he wanted her to help take care of Kasuko, she already knew.
Even though Mikiko hadn't invited her to skip class with them before, that gentle woman clearly hadn't forgotten about her.
If Kyousuke only wanted her company, he would've said "co keep my mom company."
But the fact that he said "help take care of Kasuko" ant one thing—there'd be a perfect excuse for Mikiko to give her a gift afterward.
Even an expensive one.
gumi's mind was as sharp as ever—quick, observant, and deeply attuned to social cues.
With just one casual sentence from Kyousuke, she could deduce everything behind it.
If Kyousuke knew how much she'd pieced together, he'd probably be relieved she hadn't caught him and Kasumigaoka-senpai sneaking around last ti.
Eriri might be easy to fool—but not gumi.
Still, being thought of like that—having soone buy things with you in mind—was a rare kind of happiness for her.
Especially since she was the kind of person even restaurant waiters often overlooked.
To her, that kindness ant a lot.
In truth, when she'd seen the pictures Eriri had shown off the other day, she couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.
And that was why she felt so conflicted now.
'Ahh… if Aunt Mikiko's giving a kimono, does that an she already sees as family?'
'I just told him yesterday that I wanted to be helpful—and now my wish is already coming true…'
'But… Keiichi's not going to say sothing embarrassing about to his friends, right?'
Her pure white cheeks flushed pink as the thought crossed her mind.
Feeling the heat rise, gumi quickly buried her face in the blanket—but soon the blanket turned warm too.
So she flipped onto her back, waving her hand over her face to cool it down.
Her short bob spread out over the pillow, and strands of her bangs stuck to her forehead with a faint sheen of sweat.
From a distance, she looked as if she'd just finished sothing very intense.
'Clack—'
The door suddenly swung open.
Standing in the doorway was a woman who looked quite a bit like gumi, only older and more mature.
'Bang!'
Before gumi could even process what happened, the door shut again.
"Ah, sorry, sorry, gumi! I didn't know you were already… exercising so early in the morning."
A teasing female voice called from the other side of the door.
'Exercising?'
gumi blinked, completely bewildered.
Before she could even gather her thoughts, her mother's voice drifted up from downstairs:
"gumi! Stop jumping around in your room or you'll make the ceiling collapse!"
"Oh, Mom," her sister replied, voice dripping with amusent, "she's not doing that kind of exercise. It's the kind you can do while lying down."
Katou Hiromi—or rather, Yoshinaga Hiromi now—laughed.
Back in her school days, she was far from the model student she claid to be, often sneaking out on dates under the pretense of "group study."
Marriage hadn't changed her one bit—if anything, she'd evolved into the neighborhood gossip auntie, despite not even having kids yet.
"Sit-ups, huh? Careful not to strain your back!" their mother called out again.
Thanks to the paper-thin walls of their wooden house, her voice sounded as if she were standing right beside them.
gumi, anwhile, finally caught on to what her sister really ant.
After all, her vanity mirror sat right next to the bed.
A simple glance at her reflection told the whole story flushed cheeks, ssy bangs, dewy eyes, and a bit of sweat on her skin.
She really did look like soone who'd been doing a very different kind of "workout."
…And it reminded her way too much of the ti she'd accidentally walked in on her sister's "self-training" back in middle school.
gumi opened her mouth to explain—but her mischievous sister spoke first.
"Ohh, so our little gumi's finally reached that age, huh? Makes sense! If I had a teacher as handso as Hojou-san, I'd be sprinting to the finish line too~~."
"...The finish line?"
The mont gumi caught that double aning in her sister's words, her cheeks, which had just cooled down, instantly flared red again.
Before she even realized it, she jumped up from the bed, her pale feet landing hard on the blanket as she stomped toward the door in two quick steps and yanked it open.
Yoshinaga Hiromi forrly Katou Hiromi—had been leaning casually against the doorfra with a teasing grin on her face.
She nearly lost her balance when the door flew open but managed to steady herself just in ti by wrapping her arms around her sister's waist.
"Wow~ A seventeen-year-old's waist is sothing else! So firm, so smooth… I'm seriously jealous," Hiromi exclaid dramatically as her hands gave gumi's slim waist a mischievous squeeze.
A jolt like electricity ran up gumi's spine.
Her body stiffened, and her short bob seed to puff up as if charged with static.
Right then, their mother's voice echoed from downstairs again, thanks to the house's paper-thin wooden walls.
"gumi! I told you, no jumping around in your room!"
Trying to ignore the lingering tingle, gumi kept her face cold and expressionless as she replied sharply:
"Oh, what a surprise—seeing you here this early, Hiromi. What happened? Did your husband kick you out and you ca running ho?"
"What?!"
Their mother's voice imdiately called out from below, "Hiromi! What's going on between you and Bunta? Did you two fight again?"
So yeah… terrible soundproofing does have its perks. No matter where you were in the house, Mom's lectures always found you.
"Mooom!" Hiromi shouted back helplessly.
Ever since her clueless husband had accidentally confessed that they'd been secretly dating back in college—and thanked her parents for being so "understanding"—her credibility at ho had taken a nosedive.
"He just dropped off, rember? You even asked him to take those side dishes to his office for lunch!"
That seed to do the trick; their mother fell silent, probably going back to whatever she was doing in the kitchen.
"I'll have you know my husband and I are doing just fine, you brat," Hiromi said with mock offense.
gumi coolly pried her sister's hands off her waist. "Sure. And just so you know, I recorded everything you just said.
I'll make sure Brother-in-law hears it. Since you two are so in love, I'm sure he won't mind stopping by later to drop off your luggage, right?"
Rather than looking panicked, Hiromi laughed and gave her sister a big thumbs-up.
"Heh~ You've gotten sharp, little sis."
Then, with a wicked grin, she added, "But you're forgetting—My husband's a huge fan of Hojou-sensei's books. Honestly, I think if he could, he'd turn into a woman just to marry him!"
That did it.
Even Saintly gumi Katou, usually calm and composed, completely lost her composure.
She flicked her sister's hands away and puffed out her cheeks in frustration before plopping back down on the bed with an adorable scowl.
Hiromi, sensing victory, didn't stop there.
She flopped down beside her sister and unleashed another round of teasing that would make any gossip-loving housewife proud.
Within seconds, gumi's face turned bright red, her mind spinning from the onslaught of embarrassing remarks.
"Ugh, you're so annoying! Seriously, you're impossible!"
Her voice ca out half-whiny, half-defensive—completely different from her usual calm tone.
Only around her older sister, soone who knew her inside and out, would gumi ever show this flustered side of herself.
She kept pushing at Hiromi's shoulder, trying to shove her out of the room.
"If I leave, who's going to give you advice, hmm?" Hiromi teased.
"I never asked for your advice…" gumi muttered—but her pushing grew noticeably weaker.
Satisfied, Hiromi leaned close and whispered conspiratorially into her sister's ear.
gumi hesitated, then quietly explained the whole situation she'd been worrying about.
"What—wait, WHAT?! Hojou-sensei's mother wants to give you—"
Hiromi's outburst was cut off mid-sentence as gumi clamped a hand over her mouth, her glare sharp enough to kill.
Hiromi instantly froze. She knew that look well—her little sister could hold a grudge for months if she was really mad.
After a tense pause, Hiromi lowered her voice. "A kimono, huh? For your coming-of-age ceremony, maybe?"
Then she sighed, a little envious.
"Wow… lucky you. I had to rent mine, and it cost a fortune. You're really scoring big here. Even fans at book signings only get al vouchers from Hojou-sensei, but you—you're getting a custom kimono!"
gumi nodded quietly.
She knew all too well how generous Hojou could be.
When she'd once told her friend Rinko about the sea bream hotpot he'd cooked, Rinko actually went and researched the cost.
Fresh, in-season cherry bream of that size and quality was already pricey enough—but factoring in the other premium ingredients?
Even without counting the chef's effort, the al was worth a small fortune.
That was exactly why gumi felt torn now.
It was such an extravagant gift—too much for her to accept easily.
But it was from Hojou's mother, Mikiko… refusing would feel rude.
"Absolutely not, gumi!"
Hiromi suddenly shouted, startling her.
"Eh?" gumi blinked in confusion. Her sister had just been smiling mischievously—why the sudden serious tone?
"The wedding dress has to co from our family, not his!" Hiromi declared solemnly. "We're going to Hojou-sensei's house together to make that clear!"
gumi's lips twitched.
'Yep. Talking to her was definitely a mistake.'
Hiromi managed to stay serious for all of one minute before breaking into laughter again.
"Still, though… what a mother-in-law. So kind, so generous—no wonder you were working out so early, huh? Gotta keep the husband happy~! You're really committed to becoming Mrs. Hojou!"
By that point, gumi's head was practically steaming. Her sister's nonstop teasing overloaded her brain completely.
Even though she had her own life now, Hiromi still had an uncanny ability to strip away gumi's calm façade and get right under her skin.
Still, between all the nonsense, Hiromi did manage to offer a few bits of real advice.
In the end, gumi left the house carrying a jar of homade pickles from her mother—headed to visit a friend.
"Going to Rinko's place?" her mother called out from the kitchen. "Why not invite her over here instead?"
"Not Rinko," gumi answered honestly. "I'm going to see Eriri, the art club prodigy from school."
"Oh, I see. Then why not bring Rinko along too? She walked you ho last night, didn't she?"
"Next ti, for sure," gumi promised, offering a polite smile before stepping out the door, silently apologizing to her best friend in her heart.
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