-----
-----
Having officially taken on the role of a "home security officer," Sagiri dashed up and down the house, checking every room at lightning speed. Only after making sure everything was fine did she return to Blake's side and sit down to eat their bento together.
"I'll take care of the kitchen waste," Sagiri said brightly, her silver side ponytail swaying gently. "Blake just needs to rest today."
"Much appreciated." Blake stood up. "I'm going to take a shower first."
After hiking all day, he was drenched in sweat. Not washing up would feel unbearable.
But not long after he started, Sagiri's shy voice suddenly came from outside the door—
"…Blake, want me to help scrub your back?"
Blake froze in shock.
Come in and scrub his back?
Did she eat too many weird mushrooms or something?!
"No need. Go away. I'll wash myself."
A clean triple rejection.
He was already in high school—letting his little sister scrub his back would either make him an idiot or a creep.
Sagiri stood outside, still sounding worried. "If water gets into your wounds, it could get infected, right?"
"I'll be careful," Blake replied firmly. "I'm kind of thirsty. After I'm done, I want some tea. Can you make me a cup of barley tea?"
"…Alright," Sagiri agreed reluctantly. "But afterward, you have to let me check your body, okay?"
Her footsteps pattered away, and Blake let out a sigh of relief. He sped up his shower, even skipping the bath entirely.
Once he finished, he changed into his pajamas and stepped out.
"Big bro, you're done?"
Sagiri was sitting on the sofa. She turned toward him, her voice soft and sweet.
"The barley tea's ready, but it's still a bit hot. You'll have to wait."
"No rush." Blake sat down beside her. "I'll work for a bit first."
"If you're injured, you shouldn't be making games. You need proper rest." Sagiri leaned closer. "Also, hurry up and take off your pajamas."
Blake instinctively leaned back. "What are you doing?"
"Letting me check your body, obviously!" Sagiri said brightly. "You rolled down a mountain—who knows if you got hurt anywhere else? Hurry up and let me check."
Seriously? Who strips naked in front of their little sister for a body check?!
Blake reached out and pressed a hand against her small head.
"No need."
Sagiri puffed her cheeks. "If you won't show me, does that mean you're hiding other injuries?"
"I'm not."
"Then take everything off and let me see."
"Please let me keep my dignity as a human being!"
"…"
After a long back-and-forth, he finally managed to talk Sagiri out of it. Blake gulped down his barley tea in one go, then headed upstairs to his room.
But it was still early—no way he could sleep yet. So he sat at his computer and resumed working on his game.
Click.
The door quietly opened, and a small head peeked in.
Blake turned at the sound and saw Sagiri puffing her cheeks.
"I knew Big bro wouldn't actually rest."
Keeping a straight face, Blake said, "Sneaking into a boy's room in the middle of the night is dangerous. Go back and sleep."
"I'm not scared." Sagiri wrinkled her nose and muttered under her breath, "You won't even let me scrub your back. Big bro only talks dirty."
"What was that?"
"Nothing…" Sagiri walked in, carrying her sketchpad, suddenly all business. "I drew several key frames today. I want you to take a look."
Using work as an excuse—he couldn't exactly kick her out.
"Alright, let me see."
…
Time slipped by as they worked, and before they knew it, it was already 10 p.m.
"Ahh…" Sagiri lay sprawled on the floor, covering her mouth as she yawned.
"It's getting late. Let's call it a day." Blake shut down his computer and rubbed his temples. "Go back and sleep."
"No." Sagiri shook her head. "I'm staying in your room tonight. You're in a dangerous condition—you need someone watching over you."
Blake couldn't help but complain, "I just scraped my head. It's not a terminal illness."
"You look fine now, but what if you feel worse after falling asleep?" Sagiri crossed her arms, firm and unyielding. "Anyway, I'm sleeping here tonight."
"…"
Seeing how determined she was, Blake had no choice but to agree.
"Big bro can take the bed. When I'm in my room, I sleep on the floor all the time." Sagiri hopped up. "I'll go grab a blanket and a pillow."
A moment later, she returned with a pile of supplies, quickly setting up a futon on the floor. Hugging her shark pillow, she happily rolled around.
Watching her, Blake couldn't hold back his curiosity.
"Did something strange happen to you, Sagiri?"
"Huh?" She tilted her head, her side ponytail now undone, silver hair cascading over her shoulders, making her look especially cute. "Why do you ask?"
Blake spoke softly.
"You used to be too scared to leave your room, and you barely talked to me. Now you've got the courage to come sleep in my room… It feels like you're a completely different person. Like you've been possessed by some weird ghost."
"I'm not possessed!" Sagiri denied confidently. She had just started New Game Plus, that's all. "Don't overthink things, Big bro. Trust science!"
Blake closed his eyes and turned off the lights.
"Sleep."
"…Good night, Big bro."
Her gentle voice echoed softly in the darkness.
"Good night."
Blake replied quietly, drifting off to sleep.
—
Nothing happened that night.
The next morning—
As Blake woke up, he immediately felt a strange numbness in his arm.
"…What's going on?"
He opened his eyes in confusion—and a silver-haired girl came into view.
"Sagiri… why are you sleeping in my arms?!"
Looking at her flushed little face, Blake took a deep breath before finally calming down.
"…Right."
Last night's memories came back to him.
"I stayed on the bed… which means Sagiri must've snuck up here at some point…"
He quickly checked his pajamas—they were still neat and intact.
"…Good. Still qualified to be human."
"Mmm…"
Sagiri slowly opened her eyes, still hazy with sleep. Her voice was soft and fluffy, like freshly made cotton candy.
"Good morning… Big brother…"
As she spoke, she rubbed her face against his chest like a sleepy kitten.
Something's off…
This level of affection is definitely off!
Blake tensed. "It's morning. Get up."
"Nooo, it's cold outside…" Sagiri mumbled, burrowing deeper into the blanket. "Huh? What's this? Is this your phone, Big bro?"
Blake's eye twitched. "Don't touch that!"
"Eh—EH?!!"
After a brief silence, Sagiri suddenly threw off the blanket and bolted.
"S-s-sorry!!"
It took Blake a while to calm down. He got dressed, left his room, grabbed a quick breakfast of bread, and headed out to school.
At the train station—
A long-haired "angel" stood quietly in the corner.
Blake wasn't planning to greet her, but as if sensing him, Mahiru Shiina lifted her gaze. When she noticed the bandage on his forehead, she frowned slightly and walked straight over.
"Mr. Blake, how did you hurt your head?"
".....'