"See you tomorrow, Nagi."
"Mm."
At the gates of an elentary school, a boy with an umbrella smiled and waved goodbye to a girl being picked up by her parents. Then he walked toward the gate alone.
He knew his parents wouldn't co pick him up. But today, his sister would be there waiting.
"Nagi."
"Onee-chan!"
Hearing her voice, Amano Nagi ran forward and saw his sister's familiar face—along with soone else.
Who was the blond guy standing next to her?
Next to Hina stood Rinji, the two of them sharing an umbrella in the rain.
Rinji had co with Hina that afternoon to pick Nagi up. The elentary school was quite far from where they lived, but he finally got to see what Nagi looked like.
A fairly handso little guy.
"So you're Amano Nagi?" Rinji looked down with a gentle smile.
"…Yes. May I ask who you are?"
"Let introduce myself. I'm Takamine Rinji."
Nagi nodded and glanced between him and his sister.
He figured his sister must have told this guy his na. They were sharing an umbrella, and ca to pick him up together… there was only one possible conclusion.
Did sis get a boyfriend?
Nagi guessed silently.
"It's still a bit early for dinner."
Not noticing the suspicion in Nagi's eyes, Rinji checked his phone.
"Let's pick up so groceries on the way back. I'll cook dinner tonight."
"Huh? Won't that be too much trouble?"
"Not at all," Rinji smiled. "Co on, Nagi—let's go ho."
"…Okay."
Though he agreed, Nagi kept his eyes on Rinji's face.
Looking closer… he's cute enough to be a girl. But why blond? Dyed hair? A delinquent, maybe?
In Nagi's mind, dyed hair automatically equaled delinquent.
He wouldn't mind his sister having a boyfriend, but if that guy was a delinquent… that was another story.
"Um… Takamine-senpai."
"Just call Rinji, like your sister does." Rinji turned and smiled. "What is it?"
"What's your relationship with my sister?"
"Relationship? Let think…" Rinji paused, then answered, "You could say we're family."
"!?"
Straight to marriage!?
Nagi looked at his sister in disbelief and saw no signs of shock.
Did she just accept it?!
"But if I had to define it," Rinji continued, snapping his fingers, "I guess you could call your dad."
"..."
Nagi froze, sweating, and turned to his sister.
"Sis… you're really okay with this?!"
"What are you even saying?!" Hina shouted, blushing furiously. "Rinji is Dad's friend. He's just here to take care of us!"
"…Huh? Dad's friend?"
Nagi didn't have many mories of their father, but judging by Rinji's age, he and Hina seed more like peers. How could he be Dad's friend?
---
Back ho after grocery shopping, Nagi finally understood after Hina's long explanation.
He hadn't expected one of their father's friends to find them and offer help.
"So that's the story. Rinji used to live overseas, and only recently returned to Japan. That's why he only found us now."
"Just the fact he found us is amazing."
In Japan, minors are required to live under a guardian's care.
Hina and Nagi were orphans. Technically, they should have been taken in by relatives or assigned guardians through official agencies.
But to avoid being separated, the siblings never contacted any welfare organizations—so the governnt had no record of them.
This was the main reason why Rinji had spent nearly a year looking for them in vain.
After confirming that Rinji wasn't her boyfriend, Nagi rested his chin on the table and looked toward the kitchen, where Rinji was wearing an apron and cooking.
Seeing that, he crossed "delinquent" off the list.
"Rich, good-looking, and knows how to cook… kind of perfect."
"What are you muttering about, Nagi?"
"I'm asking if you really know much about Rinji?"
"I've heard so stuff from a friend I t while working part-ti—Shirogane Kei," Hina recalled. "He's from a rich family, goes to Shuchiin Academy, and works as the treasurer of the student council under Kei's older brother. Apparently, he's helped their family out a lot."
"Whoa… Shuchiin? That super elite school?"
"There's sothing else I wanted to talk to you about." Hina spoke seriously. "Rinji suggested we move to Minato Ward and live with him."
"…Huh?"
"Rinji didn't want to pressure you. He knows transferring schools and leaving your friends behind would be hard, so he asked to talk it over with you."
"This is…"
—
anwhile, in the kitchen, Rinji was busy cooking. The noise from the stove hood made it hard to hear the siblings' conversation.
But the ringtone from his phone in his pocket was still audible.
"Hello?"
"Rinji… we've got a problem."
It was Shirogane's voice.
"President? I'm cooking right now, but go ahead—I'm listening."
"It's Shinomiya. Sothing's off about her today."
"What do you an?"
"She seed cold and distant after school… I can't really explain over the phone. Are you ho right now?"
"I'm not."
Rinji plated the dishes while still on the call.
"Don't worry, President. After last night, Shinomiya's mindset just shifted a bit. She'll be fine soon."
"Really?"
"Of course. Totally normal."
That was a lie.
The words "totally normal" ca out of Rinji's mouth without thinking.
Right now, his mind was entirely focused on the Amano siblings—he had no room for anything else.
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