Chapter 33: Best Friend and Younger Siblings
Second week of September, Sunday.
10:20 in the morning
I take out the postcard invitation.
I got an invitation to an event called the play-and-sports festival from my best friend Sho's little brother, Hii-chan (Hikaru Tachibana, 4 years old).
Our families and the Tachibana family are close, Sho the eldest son is my best friend, Nozomi the eldest daughter is like a little sister, and Hikaru, the second son, is also like a little brother.
When I arrive at the kindergarten, there's Nozomi giving Hii-chan a piggyback ride—are they in the middle of a race?
Hii-chan "Nee-chan! Nee-chaan!!"
Nozomi "Hii-chan! You'll bite your tongue! Close your mouth!"
They blew past everyone and took first place.
Should I go over there first?
Nozomi's already a second-year middle schooler and Hii-chan is 4. They've really grown up.
Hii-chan is in gym clothes.
Nozomi's in a tracksuit. But she's starting to seem more mature.
Nozomi has started to grow out her glossy black hair.
Her features are becoming more distinct—she's turning into a real beauty.
Hii-chan "Ah! Kousuke-kun! Kousuke-kuuun!"
Nozomi "Kousuke-nii-chan! Long time no see!"
"It's been a while! Hii-chan, we met here around June, right?"
See Chapter 3: Convenient Memories and a New Reality
Lively! They both start talking to me at once.
I'm not Prince Shotoku, I can't follow all this!
"Hii-chan? Thanks for the invitation! ...Did you invite anyone else?"
Hii-chan "Kashi-chan!"
Nozomi "Ah, Kashi-chan means Kashii-senpai! Hii-chan knows where Kashii-senpai lives and delivered the invitation himself, so she came."
What?!
Kashii-san, whose name pops up all the time, is the "perfect girl" of our year, the most talented and beautiful in our generation—the one Satsuki is always aware of.
...And, she's the girl my best friend Sho is in love with.
The day I got dumped by Satsuki, I also found out Kashii-san had gotten a boyfriend...
See Chapter 2: The Big Hole in My Heart
Nozomi "Right now those two are having a really deep conversation! They should've just talked together from the beginning... those two are so frustrating!"
Nozomi looks exasperated.
I mean, even to me, they're clearly into each other, and I thought maybe they'd start dating after graduating middle school, but Sho kept saying, "Kashii-san and I aren't a good match"...
Apparently, Kashii-san is like Nozomi's tennis mentor.
Looking from a distance,
Sho says something, Kashii-san laughs, then Kashii-san says something and Sho's surprised!
The two of them keep laughing, gazing at each other with gentle eyes—it was obvious at a glance how much they cared about each other.
The two of them aren't dating, but they care so much about each other,
Meanwhile, Satsuki and I, who were actually together, just ended up fighting and disappointing each other... People really are a mystery.
Watching those two, I can't help but think about it.
Still, even though my own love ended, I'm honestly glad that my best friend Sho's feelings for Kashii-san didn't, and that their connection is still going strong.
Then, the usually cheerful and blunt Nozomi suddenly looks hesitant,
Nozomi "Kousuke-kun, you broke up with that Mishima person, right? ...I heard it from nii-chan..."
I nod, a little reluctant.
I tell her a little, keeping things vague.
Nozomi, looking irritated,
Nozomi "That girl! Back in elementary school, she'd make the nastiest face and come up to me in 4th grade, saying things like 'Don't cling to Kousuke-kun!' and keep nagging at me!
I used to think, 'Wow, Kousuke-kun has terrible taste!' you know."
That really happened?
Satsuki would say,
Satsuki "I think you spoil her too much just because she's your best friend's little sister."
Or something like that...?
Nozomi "...Hey, Kousuke-nii-chan. Do things really change that much when you become a high schooler, or an adult? Like, you and Kashii-senpai used to be so close, but now you're distant, or you and Satsuki, who seemed to get along, broke up."
I can't come up with a quick response to Nozomi's serious question.
So I borrow my best friend's words.
"It's good that people have things that change and things that don't. That's what your brother said, you know?"
Nozomi "I've heard that! One brother saying that is enough! I've got a mat laid out, so let's go together!"
Hii-chan "Let's go! Kousuke-kuuun!"
I give them both snacks, so they're really attached to me, lol.
I have an older brother, but no younger siblings, so these two are adorable to me.
I don't want to get in their way, so I announce, I'll just watch from here for a bit!
But, Sho looks like he's having so much fun, and Kashii-san is all smiles—it's a really nice scene.
As for Hii-chan,
"I'm going back to my seat! Nee-chan! Thanks for the medal!"
Hii-chan proudly went back with the gold medal from the piggyback race hanging around his neck.
Nozomi "Well then, I'll keep you company, okay?"
With a mischievous grin, Nozomi keeps talking so I can't get a word in.
Apparently, she's pretty popular because of this.
...But don't be fooled by her looks—Nozomi's actually a little beast.
Nozomi talks about studying, tennis, what high school is like,
her brother's part-time job, how he's going to buy her a tennis racket with his next paycheck, how she's been dieting lately, just keeps talking to me the whole time.
I nod and occasionally give my opinion.
After talking herself out, she smiles with a big grin,
Nozomi "Alright! Let's go back to nii-chan now?"
With that, she drags me over to the mat.
Sho "Oh! Kousuke, you came too?"
Kashii "Oh, Kousuke-kun, long time no see!"
Both of them greet me in a great mood!
I can't help but think, distant? These two? They're radiating best friends energy.
Nozomi is grinning mischievously, obviously enjoying herself,
Nozomi "I'm making these two do the three-legged race that nii-chan and I were supposed to do! I'm totally going to get them together! Nihihi!"
My best friend's little sister revealed her evil plot with a wicked grin, lol.