Yukinoshita's calm heart shook entirely. It was as if her heart had become a vortex that swept all the happiness she felt at this moment, turning them into many emotions.
If they were found by his girlfriends, she might not think too much.
However, her older sister was different!
Her heart was beating so fast, and she was quite panicked. Yet she didn't let his hand away. Instead, she held it even tighter.
"How about you? Alone? Where's your boyfriend?" Shishio asked mockingly.
"...." Yukinoshita and Haruno.
"You little bastard!" Haruno jumped into Shishio and fought him to death!
Their hands were released naturally when Shishio and Haruno fought each other.
However, Yukinoshita stared at them silently, wondering when their relationship would become closer.
"Okay! Okay! Stop! Do you want me to smack your ass?"
"Do it if you dare!"
"I'll slap it if you continue!"
"Then, do it!"
Shishio stared at Haruno and wanted to smack her ass, but not with his hands. Instead, with his waist. However, this wasn't the place to do that since he wasn't an exhibitionist.
"Okay, stop! Stop!" Yukinoshita quickly stood between Haruno and Shishio.
Haruno looked at Yukinoshita annoyedly and asked, "Are you going to help him?"
"It's you who is causing trouble!" Yukinoshita also didn't want to lose.
"...."
Shishio was silent, looking at the two, wondering why it felt like he was a young man who was found out two-timing by his girlfriend.
"Come on, Shishio! Let's leave her." Yukinoshita took Shishio's hand and walked away.
"...Okay." Shishio was speechless, but he agreed that it was better for them to leave. After all, he could see the crowd was looking at them. Still, he didn't care since being the center of attention was always his everyday matter.
"Hey! Hey! How can you leave your older sister!" Haruno pouted and took Shishio's other hand naturally.
"....." Shishio.
"What are you doing?!" Yukinoshita barked.
"What? You hold his hand, right? Why can't I do it?" Haruno asked with a grin.
Yukinoshita and Haruno continued to fight with each other.
However, Shishio sighed and pulled his hands away from the two of them.
"....."
This action stunned Yukinoshita and Haruno, thinking Shishio was angry. However, who would have thought he would wrap his hands around their waist at the same time?
"Anyway, we have met here. Let's eat together. Yukino-senpai will treat us," Shishio said. Anyway, he had many experiences dating two sisters at the same time.
"...." The two sisters were looking at Shishio as if he was a scumbag. Yet they weren't wrong since he was a scumbag.
"I'm not going to treat my sister," Yukinoshita said while looking away.
"It's okay." Shishio nodded.
"It's okay?!" Haruno grumbled, then smiled and asked, "So you're not satisfied with Yukino-chan, and you want me too? Do you want to do "shimai-don"?"
(Shimai-don: a situation commonly found in pornography where someone can get their way with two sisters).
"..." Shishio.
"What is Shimai-don?" Yukinoshita asked curiously but still tried to act like she didn't care.
"Oh, it is..." Haruno moved closer and wanted to tell Yukinoshita the meaning behind her word, but Shishio pushed their backs and said, "Alright, alright, I'll treat you two." Anyway, even if he planned to do a "shimai-don," it was impossible for him to say so. Still, he was more interested in the "oyakodon," though.
Unfortunately, he didn't have a chance to do so.
Haruno and Yukinoshita looked at each other before they smiled.
However, Yukinoshita quickly realized what she was doing and quickly looked away.
On the other hand, Haruno only smiled and didn't even care about Yukinonoshita's reaction since she felt their relationship had become closer than how they were.
The three of them went to the okonomiyaki store that Shishio had told them about previously.
Many people might not know what okonomiyaki is, but in simple terms, it can be said that it is a savory pancake in Japan. There are two styles of okonomiyaki: Osaka-style and Hiroshima-style.
Nanami, who was coming from Osaka, also often cooked okonomiyaki for him.
It was also the reason why he decided to choose the Hiroshima-style since he had never gotten one before.
"Is this place really good?" Haruno looked around curiously.
The interior of the store was fairly standard. It had a Japanese design where it used mostly wooden elements, giving a detailed yet comfy feeling.
They sat at the table of four with a large flat grilling pan in front of them.
Yukinoshita and Shishio sat naturally between each other.
Meanwhile, Haruno sat on his opposite, so she could see him better.
"I have heard this place is quite good," Shishio said.
"From who?" Yukinoshita asked.
"My friend," Shishio said perfunctorily.
"Do you have a friend?"
Somehow Yukinoshita and Haruno asked this question at the same time in surprise.
"......."
Shishio was speechless and asked, "What's with that expression? Do you think that I don't have a friend?"
"Well..." 2x
If it was girlfriends, they didn't doubt him since this guy had many advantages to getting women.
However, a friend was different.
Unlike love, a friendship was something more natural.
Whether it was Yukinoshita or Haruno, they had hardly any existence that could be called friends.
Still, Yukinoshita was lucky since she met various people such as Yui, Hikigaya, and many others, so they became her friends now.
On the other hand, Haruno's situation was more complicated since she had to be the head of her family, manage the business, and forge the connection between her family and others. In other words, it was extremely hard for her to be able to meet someone that she could share this matter with.
Shishio also didn't feel surprised by their reaction since, standing on the top, he also had to sacrifice many things. The friend was one thing. After all, it was impossible for him to make everyone like him. Many people also hated him since they were jealous or something. However, people weren't stupid and wouldn't show much emotion on their faces.
His status would also make people feel inferior, and they could only look away. This was also why most people chose someone similar to become their friends.
The beautiful girl with the beautiful girl. The otaku with the otaku. BL lovers with BL lovers.
After all, even if it was possible, could a lion become a friend with his prey?
Still, even so, he felt love and friendship were quite similar to each other. If there was a difference, then it was their passion since friends didn't have sex with their friends.
However, the fact he had a friend didn't change.
Like Shiro-san, Ryuunosuke, Hikigaya, and a few others.
"Anyway, how about we order something?"
They agreed and also followed his recommendation by choosing the Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki.
If the Osaka-style okonomiyaki was like a normal pancake by combining everything into one.
The Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki was more complex. It was like a construction building, where everything started from a thin, crispy skin before being slowly stacked with cabbage, fried noodle, a layer of meat, and another layer of delicate skin. Everything was covered with a thick, glistening sauce before being showered with nori, spring onion, and bonito flakes.
The three of them ate the okonomiyaki with relish.
The crispy, savory okonomiyaki was devoured by the three of them naturally.
Still, Yukinoshita couldn't help but ask, "When did your relationship become so close?" After all, their only meeting was only when they ate Thai food in the past, yet she felt they had met more, which made her frown.
"Oh? You're curious, Yukino-chan?" Haruno gave a meaningful smile toward Yukinoshita.
Yukinoshita wasn't sure, but she felt annoyed at that moment.
"You might not know, but his mother has a good impression of me," Haruno said smugly.
"...What?" Yukinoshita looked at the two in a dumbfounded manner.
Shishio didn't think it was worth hiding and told Yukinoshita about what had happened. He didn't let Haruno explain since she could tell this young woman might plan to say something weird.
While Haruno pouted, Yukinoshita stared at Haruno, wondering what kind of luck her big sister had that she could meet Shishio and his mother when she was out. Her heart was restless since she had only met his mother for a while. On the other hand, Haruno had met his mother for so long, and they even went on the trip together.
Yukinoshita wasn't sure why she felt this feeling, but this feeling was uncomfortable. She glanced at Shishio, who didn't overthink and felt even unhappy. Still, she understood that he didn't have a reason to explain since they weren't in a relationship. Yet she didn't like it when she knew that Shishio and Haruno were going out together.
What's even worse, Yukinoshita could see how close Shishio and Haruno were.
Fortunately, they didn't stay with Haruno too long, and she didn't join them too long.
The reason might not be clear since Haruno might be busy, or she might notice the unhappiness of her little sister.
Anyway, after they parted from Haruno, they returned to the car and decided to go back. However, their current situation is far from how they previously were.
Yukinoshita was quite cold, looked away, and didn't intend to say a single word.
Shishio also didn't say anything and just shut his mouth.
"....." Watching this, Yukinoshita wondered when she had become so weak. When she saw him like this, she felt she was being abandoned and almost cried. However, her stubbornness didn't allow her to show her weakness to anyone, so she just looked away without saying anything.
However...
"Huh?"
Yukinoshita felt something on her lap and saw that it was a bag. "...What is this?" She knew that it was from Shishio.
"For you," Shishio said simply.
Yukinoshita glanced at Shishio for a moment, completely stunned, wondering when he had bought this. However, she thought that it might be when they had visited various stores previously. She was quite curious and took out the thing inside her bag. "...Bookmark?" The bookmark was carefully created with a purple wisteria dry flower in the middle. Her head was blank, and she asked, "...is it for me?"
"Yes." Shishio nodded, then asked, "I chose it since it was quite nice, and you often read books, right? So I thought it could help you or something, but I'm not sure whether you like it." His words were unlike his usual confidence. Instead, he was quite hesitant, wondering whether Yukinoshita loved his gift or not.
"Well, it's okay." Yukinoshita didn't dare to look at him and kept looking away. After all, she was afraid the bright smile she showed at this moment would be seen. In other words, she was too embarrassed. Her snow-like heart melted, blooming in happiness like the flower in the spring.
"I see... that's good."
"Yeah..." Her voice was soft, then she said, "Thank you."
"No problem."
"Also, I'm sorry for before."
"Me too."
"Should I give you something?"
"Oh? You'll give me something too?"
"...I'll think about what I should give you later." Yukinoshita felt it was better to think about what kind of gift she should give him. After all, she loved this bookmark very much.
"I can't wait for it."
The relationship between the two returned to how it used to be and became even closer.
Still, if there was something that Shishio hadn't told Yukinoshita, then it was the meaning of the flower on her bookmark.
Wisteria.
With this flower, he wanted to tell her he wouldn't let her go.
However, it was better for her to realize this by herself instead of uttering the meaning behind this flower.
Also, he didn't need to say it since Yukinoshita had been staring at the flower on the bookmark, carefully holding it so it wouldn't be damaged, showing how much she loved his present.
Shishio must admit Yukinoshita was so sweet.