Vol. 1 Chapter 27 – Unexpected Sleepover

“Eh…? Wh-Why…?” (Reiya)

At the unexpected visit, my mind went blank.

A hallucination…?

Or maybe a dream the real me is having after collapsing from a massive caffeine overdose…?

The situation was strange enough for such wild ideas to pop into my head.

Usually, when she came to my room, even after practice, she would change into casual clothes.

But now, she was wearing slightly sweaty tennis wear.

Almost as if she had run away in the middle of practice, abandoning everything…

“Sorry, for showing up so suddenly. It’s probably annoying, right…” (Hikaru)
“F-First, come inside… It’s not good out there…” (Reiya)

Without giving a clear answer, I invited her inside.

On the way, I pinched my cheek hard, and it definitely hurt.

She naturally settled into her usual spot, and I sat down in my chair too.

I typed on the keyboard, sending a message: ‘I’ll be away for a bit too’.

A heavy silence, where neither of us uttered a word, continued.

I felt I had to say something, but I didn’t know what to say.

Asahi-san, who had said she couldn’t come today because she was practicing with her mother, had shown up still in her tennis wear.

Something undesirable had undoubtedly occurred.

I debated whether I should finally ask about the circumstances, but—

“F-For now… want to play a game or something?” (Reiya)

Whatever happened, that was the foundation of our relationship, so I offered her a controller.

“…Yeah.” (Hikaru)

Perhaps sensing my complicated state of mind, Asahi-san nodded slightly and accepted it.

“Actually, there’s this super interesting multiplayer game. I was definitely planning to play this the next time you came over, Asahi-san.” (Reiya)

‘If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to.’

Conveying that implicitly, I acted as usual.

“…Really? What kind?” (Hikaru)
“An action game where you move clumsy, floppy humans around to solve puzzles.” (Reiya)
“What’s that? Just hearing about it sounds fun already.” (Hikaru)

Hearing the description, Asahi-san let out a small smile.

“Right? Hold on, I’ll get it ready now…” (Reiya)

I operated the computer, setting up the game.

While we were here, we would just focus on having fun together, without thinking about unpleasant things.

“Hey, Asahi-san! Don’t grab my butt!!” (Reiya)
“B-But if I don’t grab on, I’ll fall!” (Hikaru)
“Yeah, but if you grab me like that, we’ll both fall… Ah…” (Reiya)
“Ahh! We fell!” (Hikaru)
“Hahaha! See, I told you!” (Reiya)

Even if it was just escapism, we spent the time having fun according to the rules we’d set.

“Ahh… I think I’ve laughed enough for a whole year…” (Hikaru)
“This is even more of a silly game than I imagined…” (Reiya)

Some time after starting, having experienced the instantaneous force of the silly game, Asahi-san had completely returned to her usual mood.

Nevertheless, the time inevitably comes when you have to face reality.

“Ah, sorry… My phone… Just a sec.” (Reiya)

Suddenly, my phone’s notification sound went off, and I temporarily put down the controller.

Checking the screen, a message had arrived from Taiju-san.

‘Is Hikaru over there?’

A short message that conveyed a faint sense of tension.

I hesitated for a moment, but I couldn’t possibly ignore it.

‘She is. She just arrived.’
‘Figured. How’s she doing?’
‘Seems normal for now. Did something happen?’
‘Got into a fight with Mom and stormed out during practice.’

So that’s what it was… pretty much exactly as I’d expected.

‘What should I do?’
‘For now, I’ll tell Mom she came to my place and I’ll look after her overnight. Seems she contacted Ayaka-chan too, so before things get serious.’
‘Understood. Then I’ll just act normally like always.’
‘Sorry, causing you trouble.’

His wording was solemn, different from the usual Taiju-san.

It conveyed that, one way or another, he cared deeply for his sister.

‘So, when can you come pick her up?’
‘Eh?’
‘What do you mean, “Eh?” If you don’t come get her, what’s Asahi-san supposed to do alone?’
‘Well, you’re there, aren’t you?’

At Taiju-san’s completely unaffected words, my fingers stopped typing the reply.

‘One night should be fine, right? Hikaru will probably be more comfortable at your place right now anyway.’
‘No no no no, it’s not fine at all.’

I was a healthy high school boy, not exactly withered myself.

Spending a night alone in the same room with a girl I wasn’t even dating was extremely unwholesome.

I couldn’t help but think about that kind of thing, and others would likely assume the same.

‘I trust you. I’ll handle the other troublesome stuff somehow, so I pray for your success.’
‘What success are you praying for!?’

No read receipt appeared for that reply.

As always, he treads the exquisite line between reliable and unreliable…

“…Could that be… my brother?” (Hikaru)

Looking at me, Asahi-san asked, looking just a little bit awkward.

Perhaps because the exchange had dragged on, she had evidently figured it out.

“Mm… Yeah, he said he’d take care of the troublesome stuff.” (Reiya)

Since there was no point hiding it, I told her the important parts concisely.

“I see… I caused trouble for my brother too…” (Hikaru)
“…Well, let’s just say it cancels out with the trouble he usually seems to cause you.” (Reiya)
“Ahaha, that might actually be true.” (Hikaru)

Although still somewhat lacking in energy, seeing her laugh like this was the most reassuring thing.

After that, we spent more time just playing games together.

As we had decided before, Asahi-san didn’t show any signs of guilt towards me either.

And so, we continued playing even after the time she would normally go home.

“Mmm… I think I’m getting a little tired from laughing…” (Hikaru)
“Me too, need to rest my diaphragm a bit…” (Reiya)

As the clock passed eleven, we both stopped playing, seemingly simultaneously, and a short break arrived.

An hour when early sleepers might already be in bed.

Asahi-san still showed absolutely no sign of leaving.

Honestly, having been awake for a day and a half myself, I was also nearing my limit.

The time to decide was approaching.

“What do you want to do? It’s already pretty late…” (Reiya)

Therefore, though it was sneaky, I decided to entrust the decision to her.

“If it’s okay with you, Kageyama-kun… I’d like to stay here just a little longer…” (Hikaru)

As if she had already decided, Asahi-san answered immediately.

A little longer… If a little more time passed, it would cross midnight and the date would change.

That implicitly meant she wanted to spend the night here.

“…Okay. Then, I’ll sleep on the floor, so you can use the bed, Asahi-san.” (Reiya)

Resigning myself to the situation, I decided to at least show maximum consideration.

“Eh… N-No! That would be too much trouble, so I’m fine on the floor!” (Hikaru)
“No, no, that’s not right for a guest. Besides, even though it’s the floor, I have a futon, so it’s fine.” (Reiya)
“If there’s a futon, then all the more reason I should take the floor…” (Hikaru)
“But it’s one I haven’t used in a while, so it might be a little dusty.” (Reiya)

After several rounds of such back-and-forth, I somehow managed to yield the right to sleep in the bed to her.

I took out a set of bedding I hadn’t used in a long time from the built-in storage and set it up.

Having come this far, all that was left was to sleep without thinking unnecessary thoughts, with an empty mind.

As soon as I wake up, I’ll contact Taiju-san and have him come pick her up.

“Um… After all this trouble you’ve gone to, I feel really, really bad asking, but…” (Hikaru)

Just as I thought that and was about to lie down on the floor, Asahi-san began apologetically.

“What? Ah, maybe you can’t sleep if the pillow is different? If so, what should I do…” (Reiya)
“N-No, that’s not it… Um…” (Hikaru)

Uncharacteristically, she trailed off, hesitating to speak.

I had yet to anticipate that in the next few seconds, the greatest ordeal of my life would arrive.

“Before sleeping, would it be okay if I just took a shower…?” (Hikaru)