In terms of time, I think that would be enough.
Kiyoshi, who had kept his face down the whole time, finally sat up.
"I, I was careless... I never thought I'd be made to cry by Yohei."
He's back to his usual self now.
I don't dislike serious atmospheres, but... her soft-spoken manner and bright smile really suited Hijiri better.
"--Ah! I, I'm not crying."
"...It's fine if you just cry, so why are you being so stubborn?"
"B-but... Big sister doesn't cry. It would make my little sister worried, right?"
In other words, is it just her pride as an older sister?
I think she never wants to show her weakness to her younger sister Hime.
"I'll keep it a secret from Hime, so don't worry."
When I told her that, Hijiri's expression relaxed as if she was relieved.
"Really...?"
"Of course. I'll keep it a secret."
"...Then I guess I'll just cry a lot in front of Yohei."
"That would be a problem in itself. Well, there's no need to force yourself to laugh though."
"Yes. So I'll just be myself."
Saying that, Hijiri stared at me intently.
...I felt a bit uncomfortable. I felt like I was being stared at more than usual, and I couldn't calm down.
""""
A short moment of silence passes.
What's wrong?
While I was confused and didn't know what Hijiri was thinking, she spoke first.
"...I see. No wonder Hime-chan likes it."
What on earth did he see that allowed him to make that judgment?
Curious, I listened carefully. Kiyoshi slowly and carefully explained to me what she was feeling.
"Yohei is the kind of person who doesn't make people feel nervous."
"Well, I'm aware that I have no dignity."
"Haha. That may be true... but I don't mean it in a bad way, you know? Hime-chan probably felt really calm when she was next to you. That's why she became attached to you."
When you say that, I might feel a little happy.
I don't think it's just that I'm the kind of person who doesn't create tension, or rather, that there's no need for tension. But if that's what allowed me to become friends with Hime and Hijiri, then it wasn't such a bad thing.
"Yes, yes. I knew he wasn't a bad person because Hime-chan liked him, but I'm glad he turned out even better than I expected."
"Really? Well, I'm glad it felt good."
"That's right... I'm relieved that we can get along as well."
Then, Kiyoshi stood up from his seat and took a step towards me.
Perhaps because it was already evening, crimson light was streaming in through the window...and Kiyoshi's face was faintly flushed.
That was in the classroom after school.
With a redder face than usual, Kiyoshi muttered the following.
"B-but--you don't need to worry too much about what Hime-chan said. I'd be happy if you started off as normal friends without being too self-conscious about it... Well then, bye-bye!"
Leaving those words behind, Hijiri left the classroom.
"...Wh, what do you mean?"
At first, I didn't understand what they were saying.
Should I not worry about what Hime says?
Start as normal friends?
I wondered what on earth this meant, and then I immediately remembered.
"--Are you talking about marriage?!"
This is what Hime is saying.
I remembered that she had said to me, "Please marry my sister!"
Hime thought that Hijiri hadn't told her about it because he had been acting normally all day, but... it seems she was wrong.
In fact, it seems that Kiyoshi knew about the marriage.