A gentle breeze blew through her hair, the warm air wicking away the moisture until it felt about eighty percent dry. Chihaya Kaiser used his hand to follow its original creases, folding the power cord repeatedly until it was bundled up, and then placed it on a nearby cabinet.
"So? Have you made up your mind?"
"Mmm..." Anon rolled over, burying her head into his abdomen and wrapping her arms around his waist.
"That's probably not a good idea."
"What's not a good idea?" he asked, feigning ignorance. He tilted his head with a slightly puzzled expression, his acting subtle.
"I mean, I already promised Soyo-san, and I've made plans with Tomori."
She propped herself up with a hand on the sofa behind her, turning on her side to look at the boy's face.
The light was soft. Anon's hand reached the edge of the cabinet, fumbling around the surface until she grabbed her black-framed glasses. She put them on, looked at Chihaya Kaiser, and poked his cheek with her finger.
He really has gotten a little more handsome. It's not my imagination.
She continued, "I don't want to back out of something I've already promised, so I'm saying no for now. If it doesn't work out, then I'll consider your idea, Kai."
"I see." Chihaya Kaiser's heart sank. It seemed there was no changing Anon's mind for now.
He'd just have to approach it from a different angle.
If her bandmates were reliable, that would be fine. The quest needed to be completed, but he couldn't just push his little sister into a pit of fire.
"By the way, introduce me to your bandmates when you get the chance. I want to see what you guys are capable of."
"Hmph, we haven't even rehearsed yet. I'll introduce you to them when I get the chance," Anon said, puffing out her chest and lifting her head proudly.
He glanced at the guitar case Anon had brought back. "Then you'd better practice hard. During the solo, go step into the stage lights and really show off."
"Okay. Do you have time to teach me guitar tomorrow?"
Anon's smile returned. She tugged on his sleeve, letting out a silly grin.
If this doesn't work out, we can talk about it again.
She harbored a secret little ambition, tugging on Chihaya Kaiser's shoulder, imagining a future where her guitar skills surpassed Kai's and he'd have to beg her for lessons instead.
Chihaya Kaiser shook his head, refusing flatly.
"No can do. I have my part-time job tomorrow, and I'm meeting up with Ryo to see her live show."
"Huh? Is your job and a live show more important than your own big sister?" Anon's eyes widened, her mouth fell slightly agape, and she held her right hand open, about a fist's distance from her lips.
"Of course. Besides, I'm the older brother."
Chihaya Kaiser patted her head. Her freshly dried hair was smooth and soft. The conditioner was a new kind, and it had a pleasant, light fragrance.
He pushed himself up and scooted back, creating enough space to turn around. He swung his legs out and planted his feet on the floor.
"Let's just get to sleep for today. Once we're past this busy spell, I'll teach you properly."
"How could you?!"
He ushered Anon into her room. It was already very late, and they both had school tomorrow.
He returned to his own room and turned on the nightlight.
It really was late. Chihaya Kaiser scrolled through his phone for a bit, his thoughts drifting toward something fantastical as he gradually succumbed to sleep.
He couldn't seriously expect to run into a cute vampire girl just by wandering the streets at night instead of sleeping, right?
The sun rose, banishing the darkness of the night.
He turned off the nightlight and realized Anon was already awake; no need to wake her up.
The sound was coming from the bathroom. He knocked lightly, and from inside came Anon's cutesy, almost sickeningly sweet voice.
"I'm doing my hair! You can come in."
"I need to take a shower. Go use the downstairs bathroom." Chihaya Kaiser opened the door without hesitation and lifted her out.
"Huh?" Anon felt herself being picked up, and in an instant, she was standing outside the door, watching the frosted glass slide completely shut, leaving her with only a silhouette.
Her cheeks puffed out in a slight pout. "And here I was, planning to properly style the hair that you so kindly blow-dried for me, Kai."
"Fine. Go do it downstairs."
The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Anon gritted her teeth, clenching her fists in front of her chest.
Half an hour later, the siblings left for school together. On the way, they once again attracted a few stray cats.
Unlike Marin Kitagawa, he didn't carry cat treats around with him, but the cats still liked to follow him. Today, there were even a few birds flying overhead.
Before he even slid the classroom door open, he could hear people talking about him. From the sound of their voices, it was that group of girls.
"Hasn't Chihaya gotten more handsome lately?"
"He's always been handsome. I know a few people who have a crush on him. I think they all gave him love letters yesterday."
"I wouldn't say exceptionally handsome, but he has a really nice vibe. I think he's kind of cute."
"..."
"Sshk!"
The door slid open. Most people didn't look over, so the ones who did were, naturally, the ones who had just been talking.
They immediately fell silent, exchanged glances, and scattered back to their own seats.
He walked to his seat by the hallway. The window was slid open a few centimeters, allowing sounds from the corridor to drift into the classroom, making the conversations both inside and out particularly clear.
Suddenly, a series of intermittent, low murmurs came from outside the window, as if someone were trying to summon Cthulhu.
Chihaya Kaiser shot a questioning glance in that direction. The student at the desk behind him, Nukumizu Kazuhiko, jumped in surprise as a red-haired student popped up from below the window.
It seemed to have nothing to do with him; they were looking for Nukumizu Kazuhiko.
The conversation was about telling Nukumizu Kazuhiko to go to the literature club. Apparently, he'd signed up but never actually attended, becoming a ghost member.
Nukumizu Kazuhiko's gaze fell upon the pink-haired boy in the row ahead of him. It seemed someone had asked him for help delivering a love letter to that boy just yesterday.
But he wasn't very familiar with Chihaya; they just sat in front of and behind each other and had talked about a few novels.
Mhm, he's not showing any emotional reaction at all. That's because he's waiting for his own light novel heroine.
In the blink of an eye, it was lunchtime.
Yanami Anna called him out again. They headed to the rooftop together, each carrying a bento box.
The fire escape, a metal-frame staircase.
She sat on a slightly lower step, while Chihaya Kaiser leaned against the railing and opened his bento box.
Today's bento had octopus-shaped sausages, fried chicken pieces, and a Hamburg steak—probably the same as what was in Anon's.
Before she could speak, Chihaya Kaiser spoke first.
"What is it? I don't want to hear you complain about your childhood friend. If there's nothing else, I'm leaving."
"Huh? Why so cold and heartless?"
Yanami Anna paused, a piece of egg on her chopsticks falling back into her bento box. She pouted, reached under her bento, and pulled out a pink envelope.
"This is your problem that's causing me trouble! Someone asked me to give you this love letter. It's so annoying."
"...Next time, please do me a favor and refuse for me."
Chihaya Kaiser took it, stuffed it into his pocket without a glance, pulled out his chopsticks, and held his bento box with one hand.
"It's one thing not being able to confess in person, but to even have someone else deliver your love letter instead of putting it in my shoe locker..."
"Don't say it, Chihaya!"
Before he could finish, Yanami Anna put down her bento box with a look of utter despair. She reached out her right hand as if to cover his mouth, getting flustered as if her defenses had been breached.
"It's like you're talking about me!"
"Stop bringing up your childhood friend. I'm not interested in him, or in you."
He picked up a sausage with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, chewed a few times, and swallowed.
Delicious.
After making sure his mouth was empty, he added the most important sentence.
"Please pay me back as soon as possible, Yanami-san."
______
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