Good Sisters Don’t Guard Their Food

"Mwah~"

Lightly kissing her smooth forehead, Sasaki released her cheeks and took the small suit jacket from her arm, extending it with both hands and gently shaking it behind her.

Caught in a mix of complex emotions, Kyouka stared blankly at the handsome face just ten centimeters away, her eyes wide open, not knowing what to do.

Confusion, anger, anticipation, relief, disappointment, shame, and self-blame – these emotions hammered at the ice guarding her heart.

Before the deafening noise of these emotions could bring her back to her senses, Sasaki's soft voice called out first.

"Aunt Kyouka?"

"Ah?"

Blinking rapidly as if waking from a dream, Kyouka looked at the puzzled Sasaki and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry…"

Before she could think of an excuse for her daze, Sasaki asked, "Didn't Aunt Kyouka get enough rest?"

"No, no…"

Fearing that he might think she was uncomfortable staying there and imagining something bad, Kyouka quickly shook her head and said, "If anything, I slept too well last night and haven't fully woken up yet."

"Was it because of the massage?"

Smiling and asking rhetorically, Sasaki continued before shr could respond, "If it's convenient for Aunt Kyouka, you can have a massage tonight or anytime."

"No…"

Detecting her intention to refuse, he shook the small suit jacket behind her again, interrupting her.

"Aunt Kyouka, please put on your clothes quickly~ It's tiring holding it up like this."

Realizing that Fuyumi was trying to help her dress, Kyouka said "sorry" and quickly leaned forward, raising her right hand to slip it into the sleeve of the deep black jacket that wrapped around her chest.

It was best for her to agree to the massage since it was one of the few legitimate ways for them to have intimate contact each day.

To avoid provoking her, Sasaki wisely stepped back and said while she was dressing, "Aunt Kyouka works very hard every day. I feel like I should do something for her."

"Also, it makes it easier for me to report my study progress."

His reasoning was sound and convincing and she couldn't find any reasonable grounds to refuse.

If she rejected him without any reason, it might upset him.

After all, it was Fuyumi's good intention…

And her reason for wanting to refuse was simply the fear of developing inappropriate feelings for this child.

It was somewhat laughable.

As a mature woman with her own desires, it was true that she was unlikely to be interested in a child of his age.

She had been sure of this before visiting Sasaki in the hospital.

But on the day she brought him home after he was discharged, this certainty began to waver.

Initially, when Fuyumi reacted to her body, she had merely teased him with a grown-up's perspective on a child.

Then, with a child's defiant reaction, he kissed her with emotion.

Afterward, when he made his requests, she had agreed, thinking he needed familial comfort and that being kissed by a child was nothing.

From that point on, things started to go awry.

Fuyumi frequently engaged in unintentional teasing.

Being flustered each time, Kyouka couldn't determine whether he had feelings for her or if it was just subconscious behavior.

But undeniably, she didn't reject it internally.

While hesitating to dress, she noticed the boy's small step back to keep his distance,

And the seemingly unconscious action tipped the balance of their relationship scales slightly in her heart.

This slight tilt made her feel inexplicably lost while simultaneously making her less conflicted about agreeing to Sasaki's request.

"Then, I'll trouble you, Fuyumi."

Hearing her agree to his request, Sasaki knew she was not the type to go back on her word.

The idea of keeping distance, like a flexible mole, retreated back into its hole.

He took a step forward, came up to her, and spoke softly while performing borderline actions, "Aunt Kyouka takes care of me, so it's only right that I give back a little."

With that, Sasaki reached out and buttoned her jacket neatly, carefully arranging her collar.

With that serious attitude and caring and intimate actions, if Sasaki were given an apron, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he is a househusband.

The emergence of this thought, and the itchy and warm feeling in her heart, made Tachibana Kyouka not step back and avoid his actions.

After he calmly helped her put away her clothes, she raised her hand and glanced at the watch on her wrist:

"I'm almost late for work, I have to leave first~"

"Well, please be careful on the road."

Only after Aunt Kyouka's back disappeared through the closed door did Sasaki move and return to the dining table.

Seeing him coming back, Okino Rinka, who was eating bread, blinked her eyes and said casually as if chatting:

"Fuyumi-nii is very close to Aunt Kyouka~"

Sasaki knew that due to some of his actions, the cunning and intelligent Rinka might be able to see some clues.

But as long as Sasaki didn't panic, she wouldn't be able to figure anything out and could only make wild guesses in her heart.

And when Sasaki found the right time, he would give her a couple of blunt hits to keep her in line, preventing her from overthinking things.

"Did you forget why Aunt Kyouka moved in? If I don't behave well, she might keep me at home, not letting me out, and then hire a tutor for me..."

Knowing that over-explaining could be a flaw, he chose to change the topic.

"Huh? This..."

As the saying goes, a wife knows her husband best.

Sometimes, even a slight change in Sasaki's tone could give Sakuragi Otome an idea of what he was thinking.

What's more, Fuyumi had never really wanted to go to school, so it wasn't hard for Sakuragi Otome to guess.

Swallowing the toast in her mouth, Otome put down her chopsticks, frowned, and said seriously:

"No way~ If Fuyumi doesn't want to go to class and wants a tutor, I think I can be that tutor."

Clearly, after the car accident, no matter her reasons, she wouldn't let him stay at home for long periods anymore.

Seeing her serious expression, knowing this topic was brought up by himself and should be ended by himself, Sasaki spoke up.

Okino Rinka hurriedly finished the small amount of rice in her bowl and said:

"Fuyumi-nii just said it as a joke. Didn't he attend classes well last week? Otome nee, you're too sensitive."

"I'm going to get another bowl of rice."

With that, Rinka, sitting next to Sasaki, shook her legs and lightly bumped his knee.

Understanding she was giving him a chance, Sasaki didn't hesitate. After she stood up and left, he moved to sit beside Otome.

"Fuyumi, I'm sorry, I..."

Inhaling the familiar, comforting scent, Sakuragi Otome pursed her lips, soft as cherry blossoms, and apologized.

Sitting beside her, leaning against her soft body, Sasaki held her small, snowy-white hand, clenched into a little ball on her red plaid skirt, and asked with a smile:

"Why are you apologizing?"

He knew Otome was apologizing for her earlier tone and attitude.

After all, she had never been so forceful with him before.

So her apology was out of fear that he might hold a grudge, which could affect their relationship.

But Sasaki wasn't someone who couldn't distinguish right from wrong.

He knew Otome's stern rebuttal was to prevent him from staying home and developing thoughts he shouldn't have.

Therefore, he didn't think her scolding was wrong.

On the contrary, her serious rebuttal showed she cared about him.

Without pressing her for a reply, Sasaki spoke again before she could respond:

"Otome is looking out for me. It's normal to scold me a bit."

Seeing he wasn't bothered by the earlier incident, Otome glanced at Rinka, who was getting rice in the kitchen.

And seeing that they were alone, she did an extremely rare move; wrapping her arms around Sasaki's neck, she fed him her pure, unadulterated sakura candy.

Feeling the softness of his lips on hers, contrary to the hardness of his body, the girl's heartbeat, initially calm, started pounding loudly like a drum.

Before Sasaki could make a further move, Sakuragi Otome, familiar with his reactions, pulled away first:

"Rinka, Rinka is still here."

This excuse clearly couldn't convince Sasaki, who was already fired up.

While it wasn't convenient at home, at school...

Knowing Otome's personality, doing something that intimate at school was highly unlikely.

But if he acted pitiful enough, there was a chance.

As for finding Rinka at school...

They weren't even in the same building.

By the time they found each other, they'd probably have to run back to class as the bell rang.

Just as he was about to play the pity card to soften Otome,

the latter noticing that Rinka was about to turn around, quickly tapped the troublemaker wanting to pet the white cat:

"Fuyumi, wait a bit longer. In a few days, my parents will finish their holiday and go on a business trip... Then, at night..."

After a brief reassurance, still not bold enough to ignore Rinka's presence, Sakuragi Otome straightened her skirt, picked up her tray, and headed to the kitchen.

"Has Otome-nee finished eating?" Rinka, who had spent ages getting a small amount of rice, asked as she faced Sakuragi Otome.

Knowing she had given them space, Sakuragi Otome smiled and nodded:

"Mm, I'll go get Fuyumi's bag. You keep eating; there's still time."

After saying this, Otome washed the dishes for herself and Aunt Kyouka before heading upstairs.

It was clear in her view that since she and Rinka were sworn sisters, it wasn't good for her, as the elder sister, to keep everything to herself.

Rinka gave them space, so she naturally had to return the favor...

While Okino Rinka was clever, she wasn't smart enough to understand her exact intentions from a single sentence.

But what she wanted to do coincided remarkably with what Otome intended for her.

After she went upstairs, Rinka, pretending to pick at her rice, stopped her chopsticks and naturally sat on Sasaki's lap:

"Sorry, I shouldn't have joked like that..."

Indeed, there was a hint to reprimand Rinka.

Otherwise, Sasaki wouldn't have changed his tone after explaining, drawing Otome's attention.

His goal was to shift Rinka's focus, so she wouldn't notice any inconsistencies in his tone or expression, thereby preventing suspicion about his relationship with Aunt Kyouka.

After all, this girl was sharp.

If he didn't fool her, unnecessary trouble would arise.

Sasaki didn't think she would harm him, but feared she might mess things up due to not knowing the situation.

Compared to having someone step in, he preferred handling things himself.

"It's okay, it's okay. In your eyes, it seems I'm a bit too close to Aunt Kyouka, but you know..."

As he spike, Sasaki's face showed a bitter, sorrowful smile, as fragile as a broken piece of fine porcelain.

As a childhood friend, Okino Rinka knew his family lacked a supervising adult.

So seeing that heart-wrenching smile, she immediately abandoned her suspicions about him and Aunt Kyouka, hugging his neck and urgently comforting him.

Nestled in her soft, sweet embrace, listening to her gentle, reassuring words and feeling her light, caressing hands on his hair, Sasaki suddenly felt guilty for deceiving this naive girl.

But considering Rinka's past cleverness and mischievousness, this guilt turned into a sly satisfaction from tricking her.

Suppressing the urge to smile, Sasaki straightened up, pinched her cute little face, and said:

"Let's wash the dishes. Otome seems to be coming down."

"Okay."

When Sakuragi Otome came downstairs, she saw Fuyumi and Rinka standing together at the kitchen sink, washing dishes.

Having already prepared herself mentally, she didn't feel jealous or sad when she saw the two so close.

Instead, she sat on a chair, smiling as she watched them chat and laugh.

Growing up together, even if their roles had slightly changed, the harmony built over the years wouldn't easily be disrupted.

After the two finished washing the dishes, Sakuragi Otome stood up, carrying their school bags, and said:

"Let's go."

"I saw the schedule for this week, and Fuyumi has P.E. class today, so I put the gym clothes in your bag."

"Thanks, Otome!"

He hadn't really paid attention to this week's schedule.

Hearing that Otome had already prepared the clothes, Sasaki walked over and kissed her moist and soft lips with a smile.

"You're so improper."

Glancing at Rinka who was laughing behind him with her mouth covered, Sakuragi Otome shyly patted him and turned to walk toward the entrance.

Looking at the girl's increasingly rounded and soft figure, Sasaki turned to Rinka, who was looking at him eagerly, and beckoned her over.

Mwah~