Chapter 31 To Repay Irara
#18ZenkouSeitoTo Repay Irara
After school.
Finally, the pair dance practice began.
Boys and girls participating in the pair dance gathered in the gymnasium to learn choreography from third-year students, the so-called leaders.
Naturally, with no experience, I was trembling and thinking, “Can someone like me even dance? I have absolutely no sense of rhythm…”
Meanwhile, Irara…
“Dancing is all about the vibe! You just go, swoosh, move your body like this, twirl, and bam! Strike a pose perfectly! Plus, it burns calories, so you can lose weight! Then I can eat more sweets… Ehehe. Let’s get ice cream on the way home.”
If you eat back what you burn, you won’t lose weight, though…
But I’ll save that remark for later.
Irara, likely a natural when it comes to dancing, seemed thrilled.
…Sigh, I feel so out of place.
On top of that…
“H-hey, look at those two.”
“So the rumors were true, huh?”
“Why Irara-san and Kyogoku?”
“What kind of punishment game is this?”
“Is she spiraling after breaking up with Nakano?”
“I heard Kyogoku threatened her.”
“Ugh, that’s the worst…”
“Shh! If he hears, we’re in trouble!”
“Yeah, you’ll never lift your arms above your shoulders again!”
“Eek! Scary…”
Their stares—mostly negative—were relentless.
Though I’m used to this level of attention, so it wasn’t that much of an issue…
Turning to Irara, I see her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Noticing my gaze immediately, she asks,
“What’s wrong?”
“Uh… nothing.”
It seems Irara isn’t bothered at all.
That’s at least a small relief.
If she started feeling down, I wouldn’t know how to handle it.
“You seem really fired up, Irara.”
“Of course! It’s a school event! And the pair dance is the highlight of the sports festival! How could I not be excited?”
“Ahaha… I’m shaking for entirely different reasons, though.”
“Huh?”
Irara tilts her head, mouth slightly open.
“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”
I can’t let even a fraction of my gloom spread to Irara.
I’ll keep this virus within my own body.
For world peace.
“Ehehe~ I’m so looking forward to it~”
Irara beams with a radiant smile.
Her restless movements and constant fidgeting clearly show how much she’s looking forward to it.
“Kyogoku-kun! Let’s win first place together!!!”
Irara was kind enough to invite me.
In these short 16 years of my life, I don’t think I’ve ever been in such a spotlight.
This might be the first and last time.
And like a child waiting for Santa, Irara is so excited for the sports festival.
Then, I absolutely mustn’t ruin Irara’s enjoyment.
I need to make sure she enjoys it to the fullest.
To repay her kindness and support.
“Yeah, let’s do it.”
I’ll give it everything I’ve got.
For this adorable girl who’s so excited.
“Ah! B-but, um, just so you know, it’s not in a weird way or anything!”
“Weird way?”
“Y-you know! There’s that jinx and everything, but I just purely want to enjoy the pair dance with Kyogoku-kun! That’s really it! No weird meanings at all! I just want to have fun, straight up!”
“O-okay.”
Jinxes, weird meanings… I don’t really get it.
For now, I nod, and Irara lets out a small sigh of relief.
“I have to be careful not to let it slip…”
Irara murmurs to herself.
But her voice is too quiet for me to catch the words.
“Did you say something?”
“!!! N-no, nothing at all!!!! Ahaha… C-caramel? Want one?”
“Uh, sure.”
Irara hands me a caramel, and I pop it into my mouth.
…By the way, just how many sweets does Irara have hidden in her pockets?
Watching her nervously eat the caramel, trying to distract herself, I can’t help but wonder.
Practice ends.
I walk home with Irara and finally reach my house.
“I’m home!”
As I step through the door, a sharp voice greets me.
“You’re late, Onii-chan! What took you so long to buy the mirin?!”
Standing in the doorway, a girl with twin-tailed black hair plants her feet firmly, hands on her hips.
Her expression is stern as she glares sharply at me.
“It’s priced like cooking oil, Sayu.”
“Nya?! I-I was just trying to add a little flair, that’s all…”
Sayu turns away, puffing out her cheeks in a pout.
“You’re so picky, Onii-chan. No wonder you don’t have any friends…”
“But when I come home, I get to see you welcoming me like this, so I’d say my life is pretty rich, wouldn’t you?”
“!!! I-I wasn’t welcoming you!!! I just happened to be walking by when you came home, that’s all…”
Sayu huffs and pouts.
—But I know better.
Keeping my expression as downcast as possible, I take off my shoes.
“I see… You don’t like me, huh, Sayu…”
At my words, Sayu panics and quickly says,
“T-that’s not true, Onii-chan! I was really waiting for you! I’ve been waiting for you for twenty minutes!!!”
She clings to me for a moment, but then snaps out of it.
“…Hmph! I was just really bored.”
Returning to her tsundere persona, Sayu crosses her arms.
As always, she’s a delicate balance of tsun and dere—a fragile tsundere.
—Kyogoku Sayuri.
My adorable little sister.