MCFW 07

Chapter:07

1

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It was the promised Sunday.
Today, I was supposed to go shopping with Kana-neechan.
Apparently, we were meeting at my house—but we never actually decided on what time to meet.
I wonder what time she’s planning to come.

Just then—

Ding-dong.

The doorbell rang.
Since neither of my parents were home today, it had to be either me or my brother who answered.
But my brother made no move to leave his room—in fact, I could hear him strumming his guitar, so he clearly had no intention of answering.
I sighed and decided to go myself.

“Coming!”
“It’s me—Kana, your big sister.”
“Kana-neechan.”

Without hesitation, I opened the front door.
There stood Kana-neechan, dressed in cute clothes clearly picked out for going out.
She always looks great even in her usual outfits, but today she looked… even cuter than usual.

“Morning, little brother. I came to pick you up.”
“Ah… okay, give me a minute. I’ll go get ready.”
“Then I’ll come wait in your room with you.”
“Uh… I’m about to get changed, so maybe not…”
“Oh, come on. What’s the harm? Or is it inconvenient for me to see you getting changed?”
“N-no, it’s not that, but… having a girl watch me change is kinda embarrassing.”
“Embarrassing, huh? I wouldn’t be embarrassed if you saw me changing though.”

What the heck, Kana-neechan.
Just imagining her changing feels like I’m committing a sin or something…

“Even if you’re fine with it, I’m embarrassed. So just wait in the living room, okay? I’ll be quick.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll take you up on that offer.”

She said that with a grin, stepped inside, and headed for the living room.
I left her there and went to my room to change.

We took the train two stops and arrived at a big shopping mall.
It was Sunday, so the streets were full of couples around our age.

“Wow, it’s so crowded!”
“Yeah. It’s Sunday, after all. Lots of couples out today.”
“Couples, huh… Do you think we look like a couple too?”

She asked that out of nowhere.
What kind of question is that!?
No way.

“I don’t think so.”
“Why not?”

Kana-neechan tilted her head curiously.

“Because we’re like siblings. There’s no way anyone would see us that way.”
“Right. You’re my little brother, after all. No one would think we’re a couple.”
“Exactly. No one would ever see us like that.”
“I see… So we don’t look like a couple, huh. That’s kind of disappointing…”

She said that with a small, awkward laugh.
This wasn’t a date—it was just shopping.
At least, that’s how I saw it. I couldn’t say for sure how she felt.
Still, I tried not to think too much about it.

Walking beside her, though, I could feel the stares from guys around us.
I even overheard whispers like—

“Why’s that guy with her…”
“Damn it, I can’t even talk to her with that dude there…”

Kana-neechan must’ve heard them too, because she suddenly wrapped her arm tightly around mine.
She must not like those stares either.

“By the way, little bro—no, Kaede-kun. Is there anywhere you want to go?”

She deliberately used my name instead of calling me “little brother,” probably so the guys around wouldn’t catch on.

“Not really… What about you, Kana-nee—ow!”

Before I could finish, she pinched my arm, frowning slightly.

“I’d prefer if you didn’t call me Kana-neechan here. Just call me Kana, okay?”

Uhh… seriously?
I’ve never called her that before.

“I-I can’t just call you Kana, that’s—ow!”
“What was that? Didn’t hear you~?”

She smiled sweetly while pinching harder.
Once she gets like this, there’s no point arguing.

“Okay, okay! Kana-san, then! Just stop pinching me…”

I groaned, and she sighed in mock defeat.

“Fine, I’ll let you off with Kana-san.”
“Sorry… It’s just, you’re my senior at school too, so I can’t help it.”
“Now that you mention it, yeah. Sorry, I overreacted.”

At least she understood.
Kana-neechan was both like a big sister and a respected senior.
That’s why I had to treat her properly.
Romance? That’s still way out of my league.

“You don’t have to apologize. Anyway, let’s get your shopping done.”
“Right. My stop’s just straight ahead.”
“Oh? What are you planning to buy?”
“You’ll see. It’s a secret.”
“A secret? Even though we’re already going there?”
“Yup. If I told you now, you probably wouldn’t want to come.”
“Huh? What kind of place would make me not want to go…?”

I couldn’t even guess.

“Well, you’ll find out soon enough.”
“Alright then. Lead the way.”

We strolled through the mall at an easy pace.
This mall was popular among both boys’ and girls’ school students.
As expected, I spotted some upperclassmen from my boys’ school walking around.
They were the same guys who’d talked to me by the lockers recently.
I looked away, hoping they wouldn’t notice—but since Kana-neechan still had her arm linked with mine, it was too late.

“Oh, Suou, right? Didn’t expect to see you with your girlfriend today!”
“She’s not my girlfriend…”
“Not your girlfriend!? Then why the hell are you walking arm-in-arm with Nishida-senpai!?”

The moment they realized who she was, they rushed toward us, eyes blazing.
Whoa—too close!

“Hello there. Are you friends of Kaede-kun’s?” Kana-neechan greeted them with her usual calm smile.
“Y-yes, Nishida-san. We’re schoolmates. He’s my junior—right, Suou?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
“Huh, I see…”

She looked slightly puzzled by the awkward exchange, but before she could ask more, they pressed in closer.

“So, where are you two headed today?”
“Oh, we’re on a date,” Kana-neechan said casually.
“A… a date? What do you mean by that, exactly?”

One of them asked, forcing a smile—but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.
He was clearly hostile toward me.

Kana-neechan noticed, tightened her grip on my arm, and answered clearly.

“What I mean is, I invited him.”
“Eh?”
“I asked Kaede-kun if he’d go shopping with me on Sunday, and he said yes.”
“I see… In that case, mind if we tag along? It’ll be more fun with a group.”
“Well…”

That was hard to refuse outright.
I hesitated, unable to come up with the right words, but Kana-neechan spoke first, smiling.

“Sorry, but I don’t feel like walking around with other guys today. If you want company, ask someone else.”

Her tone was polite but firm.
The seniors looked at me bitterly.

“…Got it. We’ll back off for today.”
“But we’ll come again another time,” one muttered before they finally left.

After they were gone, Kana-neechan looked at me.

“Those guys… they’re really your acquaintances?”
“Yeah, seniors from school. The main one’s named Takizawa, I think.”
“Takizawa-kun, huh. I’ll remember that.”
“You don’t really need to—”
“Of course I do. He said he’d ‘come again,’ didn’t he? If he ever bothers you, I’ll make sure he regrets it.”
“That’s… reassuring, I guess.”

Though honestly, I’m pretty sure he’s after her, not me.

“And that goes for you too, Kaede-kun!”
“Huh? Me?”
“You’re not allowed to get close to any other girls!”
“That’s… unreasonable…”

Come on, give me a break.

“It’s not unreasonable—it’s prevention! Anti-cheating measures!”
“Cheating!? We’re not even dating…”
“Even if we aren’t! You’re still not allowed to date anyone else!”

She clung tightly to my arm again, pouting.
She was clearly upset about the seniors hitting on her earlier.
Otherwise, she’d never say something like that.

“…Fine, fine. I get it. Just, please stop clinging—it’s embarrassing.”
“As long as you understand. I’m so lucky to have such an obedient little brother~.”

She beamed at me, hugging even tighter.
Apparently, she wasn’t planning to let go anytime soon.
Was she seriously going to stay like this all the way to the store?
People were already staring at us enviously…

Their gazes stung, but all I could do was smile awkwardly and keep walking with Kana-neechan through the mall.