After the morning classes, it was time for lunch.
As soon as the bell rings, Arihiko moves from his seat to mine, where he grabs my shoulder to say:
─Tohno, would you like to invite me to lunch?!
But as soon as it arrives
It's the same speed that I stuck a pencil in his leg. Arihiko pulls his body back towards the wound, where he groans in pain from the wound made.
─Guh...
Look, I didn't use the [Mystic Eyes of Death Perception] as you could have died if I pierced a [Point].
Well, it's revenge enough.
─Why so much enthusiasm to go to lunch? ─. I ask disinterestedly, as I pull out my lunch box.
─Touko-san prepared this for you?! ─. Arihiko sounds surprised saying that.
Huh?
What makes you believe that?
─No. I cooked for Touko-san and Aoko-san, left lunch for Touko-san, and prepared a lunch box for Aoko-san's trip. With the leftovers, I did this. Also, you should know that the Aozaki sisters are terrible at cooking.
─What...?! Tohno cooking?! Did you bring something for me?!
─No, but I can share you. In fact, I have to return the money that Aoko-san and Touko-san gave me, since I doubt that I will use it.
─Surely they gave you a lot of money, those ladies come from a wealthy family.
─If by a lot of money you mean 2000¥, I have them.
─Are you complaining about that?! It is enough to survive two days!
...
Well. This conversation is useless.
It is not because I dislike talking to Arihiko, but rather that his speech and intonations are not the volume I usually hear at home.
I guess it's time to introduce it... I haven't.
He is Inui Arihiko, a red-haired boy who looks like a delinquent ─He is the real delinquent─, he wears his uniform quite carelessly and his facial features are very similar to those of the criminals in fictional stories. Not to mention his attitude and the way he talks about him, he is without a doubt a criminal.
Although those are only appearances, I who have known Arihiko since elementary school, I know that he is not a bad person. We tend to hit each other a few times, but this is for proper correction or to joke with each other.
Shiki Tohno and Inui Arihiko are the best of friends. That's it.
But of course, we both think that the other is a headache that we can't get rid of no matter what we do. Only at the end of the day, we consider unconditional support for the other to be the foundation of our friendship.
If someone told me that Arihiko robbed a bank, I would ask him first before reaching any conclusion.
...
If he's found guilty, I guess I can't do much for him.
But hey, let's leave things as they are.
─I'm really jealous of you, Tohno. You are able to live with two beautiful women, you also have some suitors like Sacchin- Ah! Ignore that!
─Yumizuka-san? What about her?
─I told you to ignore it, anyway, Tohno! Have you heard about Ciel-senpai?!
─Shir-senpai?
─No, no, Ciel! Ciel-senpai! She is the star third-year student, don't tell me you've never heard her name.
I feel like I've missed an important detail, but what does that "Ciel-senpai" have to do with all this? Besides, isn't her name too weird too, like "Noel-sensei"? Tell me that I am not the only one who perceives these details.
Intrigued by the topic, I decide to continue this conversation.
─Hm, I think I've only heard it a couple of times... Isn't that the person ranked first in the school?
─Exactly her! And I, your best friend, Inui Arihiko, I managed to make her agree to eat with us, we are going to Sacchin to go eat with Ciel-senpai!
That...?
─Why would she want to talk to us?
─I don't know! But it sure is because he likes me, ahh, Ciel-senpai, how I love you! She's just the kind of girl I like, come on Tohno, don't let your best friend go without moral support to talk to the girl he likes!
Weren't you the one who said that he should "take the woman I love by the shoulders and honestly tell her how I feel"? This is where you contradict yourself, my friend.
I don't know if you noticed, Arihiko, but you yelled at me to try to convince me to confess to Aoko-san, that your behavior changes at this point seems very confusing to tell the truth.
What's more.
─I'm sorry, Arihiko. But I have to go to first year classrooms. You see, I got a call this morning and well...
It was while she was making breakfast.
Aoko-san answered the phone and informed me that he was directed towards me.
Who was speaking. He was my father.
Makihisa Tohno, he is the man who exiled me from the family for several years. The last time I had talked to him, it was to tell him that I would start living with Aoko-san instead of living in the home of the Arima Family, of my uncles.
But of all the days, he called me today.
"Shiki. Years without hearing your voice, my son"
It was the first thing he said to me when he answered.
"Yes, I suppose it has been eight very long years" ─. This is what I responded to his comment.
"Certainly. I decided to give your sister Akiha all the letters you sent over the years recently and you can't imagine how excited she is about all of that."
"I imagined that something like this had happened, since I never received an answer coming from her, well, what do you want old man?"
In order not to drag things out on this, I decided to get straight to the point.
My father told me what happened, that he had had some mental health problems a few years ago, but with proper medication, he can now stay stable without too much trouble.
Akiha has grown a lot these years, both physically and mentally and she is poised to become the head of the Tohno Family.
"I have two things to ask of you, Shiki. I would like you to come visit me today, I would like to see how much you have grown. And I would also like you to take care of Akiha for today, your sister transferred to the school where you study because she thinks that It is the best"
The phone almost fell out of my hand when Makihisa Tohno gave me that message.
It was quite shocking news for me.
I conveyed to Touko-san that he was probably going to be home late for my visit to [Tohno Mansion] after school.
But most important of all those things...
─Damn, damn, damn! Why didn't you ever tell me you had a little sister?! Ugh, you have to introduce me to her tomorrow, see you, Tohno!
...
It seems that tomorrow I'm going to have a lot of discomfort.
Arihiko takes our classmates, Satsuki Yumizuka, wherever she goes to have lunch with this Ciel-senpai that I don't even know in person.
I wait a pair of minutes, to mentally prepare myself for the unimaginable task of having to see my little sister at the same school.
I don't know what Akiha looks like today, but she sure has grown into a very beautiful girl. She was very cute according to my memories... but I don't know how she will react when she sees me.
I get up from my seat and carrying my lunch box, I leave my classroom to head towards the freshman classroom where my sister is. She told me that she belonged to class 1-A of this high school now.
In the surroundings there are many people hovering around.
The first impression I had upon arrival was a surprise, as there was a good crowd of people here.
I guess the murmurs I heard when I got to the school building were about her after all...
At the cost of pushing people from all directions, I was able to enter the classroom with great difficulty.
Then...
─Oh, Shiki-sama identified!
─Akiha-sama, we have identified Shiki-sama.
Two colorful girls with distinctive pink hair surround me in front. They are a couple of girls who are as different as oil and water. They have the same face, but their faces feel so different that it makes me doubt what my eyes are seeing.
Hey?
Waiting.
"Shiki-sama"?
"Akiha-sama"?
Such a level of respect is something that only employees or servants give, isn't that so?
My arms were taken by each of these girls dragging me like a sheet of paper through the crowd surrounding a single seat.
─Please give me a chance to be your boyfriend, I promise I will never disappoint you, Akiha-chan!
When I got to the front row being dragged by the girls who looked like a Bulldozer moving so many people out of the way, a very impressive scene came to my eyes.
There's a third-year student bowed on his knees, begging for...
The person at the desk, arms and legs crossed, looks at me and I look at her. She has black hair and blue eyes, a small nose, and a pair of pink lips. She is a beauty like no other, to be honest. Her posture on her seat is teacherful and worthy of admiration in a way, it enhances her elegance and beauty at the same time.
For a moment she almost forgot to even breathe...
Based on what I heard─
─Akiha-sama, we have brought you Shiki-sama! When she ordered us to look for him, he was already entering the door, it is very timely, right? ─. The cheerful girl sounds glad she got a job done.
─It was quite lazy to send Nee-san and me, to find someone according to a photograph from eight years ago, but we are confident that we did an excellent job. ─. While the other one, which is almost totally expressionless, seems to sound somewhat annoying.
It doesn't matter how many times they call her that way.
Equally.
I'll be surprised if you tell me that the beautiful girl sitting here is Akiha.
I swallow hard.
Praying not to ruin any of this.
But different from all my thoughts, no matter where we look at it...
─Too long no see, Nii-san!
The fact that Akiha (quite old now) lunged towards me to hug me affectionately was what took me out of place the most.
All my thoughts were sent flying with it.
Like me, everyone who had had a noble image of Akiha was shocked to see such childish behavior coming from her. But as long as she is smiling, I am not able to say anything to get her out of her happiness.