Gimai Seikatsu - Days With My Step Sister

December 19th (Saturday) – Ayase Saki

I should have expected that Omotesando would be crowded on a Saturday like this. The street was so full of people that at times I couldn't even see the sidewalk ahead of me. The highway was so crowded with cars that it must be absolute hell to be driving there. Not to mention that it was currently lunchtime, so the majority of people were walking around in search of food. I took out my phone and checked the map. We were talking about a cafe near the prep school, so—Wait, this prep school… The name sounds familiar.

"Sakiii! Over here!"

I raised my head when someone called my name. Looking ahead and down the street, I spotted a girl jumping up and down while waving her hand at me. I tried my best to fight my way through the crowd and reach her.

"Maaya, this is so embarrassing!"

"What is?" She asked me with a straight face, which made me doubt myself.

Am I the weird one?

"Oh, whatever," I said and stood next to Maaya.

We were standing in line for a cafe with a smaller terrace on the outside, which had three tables that sat four people each. Even now, despite the fact that it was pretty chilly outside, the place was packed. And we were waiting in line for this cafe which had a…French…or maybe an Italian name. Personally, I just wanted to get inside as quickly as possible. Luckily, an employee came out and asked the other guests for their reservations. It didn't take long for our turn to arrive.

"I have a reservation for Narasaka; Two people."

"Yes, a reservation for 12:30 pm for Narasaka-sama, I can confirm."

After this, we were guided to our table inside the cafe. The concept of this place seemed to be "An oasis inside the big city jungle." It was plastered with green everywhere and decorative plants were lined up at every corner. Deep inside the store, there was even a small pond of sorts, emitting the sound of running water. We were brought to a table by the window, offering a view of the street outside. On the table was a small plaque that read "Reserved". The table was beautifully set for two people.

Upon sitting down, I spotted the prep school across the street that I had seen on the map. That's when I realized that it made sense for me to remember this place since it's the same prep school Asamura-kun attends. Out of curiosity, I checked the current time: Half past 12. He's probably about to finish his last lecture for the morning.

"What's this? What's got you so engrossed with that place?"

Upon hearing Maaya's voice, I quickly tore my gaze away from the glass and back towards her.

"Nothing."

"Ooooh?"

"Come on, let's figure out what we're going to eat."

I was going to hand her a copy of the menu that was sitting on the table, but she waved her hand at me.

"No worries, I already finished ordering everything when I put in the reservation. It's my treat today~"

"Really?"

"I can't wait for the pancakes… So what were you looking at?"

"Again, I wasn't looking at any—"

"Oh, it's Asamura-kun!"

My face immediately turned back towards the window. Only then did I realize that this may have been a trap set up by Maaya, but I actually spotted Asamura-kun in front of the building. He had just stepped out of the prep school's entrance, and he started running somewhere. Since he's on break now, he might be going out to eat someplace. He quickly vanished amongst the crowd of people though, so I didn't know where he went.

"That's a cram school, right? I had no idea he attended one."

"He's been taking classes since last summer."

"Oh…hoh…hoho…You've got your older brother's daily activities memorized down to a T, eh? Oh yeah, his grades went up, didn't they?"

Where did she even hear that from? But it was true, so I nodded. Then again, I think this much knowledge would be normal between close siblings like we are.

"So it's thanks to that cram school. Still, he must have been in a rush. I was waving my hand at him but he didn't even see me."

"You…what?"

She waved at him through the window? Isn't she embarrassed to do that? I looked around in a panic, but thankfully all the other customers were too busy with their own food to look at us.

"Yep, and he didn't even see me!"

"Well… Are you really surprised by that?"

Omotesando is a street big enough to support two lanes of car traffic. And since the sides of the street were filled with sidewalks, it was actually pretty hard to see across to the other side. And I bet it'd be even harder to see inside a cafe like this. Not to mention that you wouldn't expect some crazy girl to just wave at you like she did. Personally, I'm happy he didn't see us. I didn't want him to think I came all this way out here just to meet him.

"But Saki, you spotted him immediately, right?"

"Ack… Th-That's…because we're siblings?"

"Hee, hee."

"Again, it's not what you think…"

She keeps pushing the conversation in whatever direction she wants. Well, I'm used to it by now.

"Apologies for the wait, here is your order." An employee arrived at our table.

Upon seeing what they brought, I couldn't keep my voice under control. Maaya simply said yesterday that we should celebrate my birthday at a popular pancake store, so here we are. And since she never made it sound like anything special, I figured we'd just be eating some pancakes together. But this is…

"Happy birthday, Saki!"

The tray the employee set down didn't have pancakes on it. Instead, it was adorned with a genuine cake that had "Happy Birthday" written on it. Not to mention the adorable candles on top of the cake. The employee took out a lighter from her apron and lit them up, too. She then began singing happy birthday, and Maaya joined in. Since they did it at a considerable volume, it started getting attention from other customers.

"Come on, come on! Blow out the candles!"

I panicked and did as Maaya told me. Everyone started applauding right after. Ah, so much attention… Everyone's looking… They were all smiling at me. I'm happy to have this many people celebrate for me, but this is still way too embarrassing. I've never had a birthday celebration like this before.

"This is how you do a surprise! Tehe!" Maaya puffed out her chest with a bright grin on her face, which soon looked quite smug.

"That final 'Tehe' was unnecessary."

"But now you know how it feels!"

"I didn't need to…"

"Hee, hee. You're happy though, right?"

"Well… it doesn't feel bad, at least."

"Anyway, here's my present."

"Huh? But, you're already treating me to something…"

"This isn't much. So c'mon, open it up."

Since it fit into the palm of my hand, I was careless and didn't think it was anything major. But when I opened the package, I was greeted by—chapstick.

"You can't have enough of these, right?"

"Yeah…"

I gazed at the object in my hands and admired Maaya's sense once more. First, the design of the container is cute. It wasn't particularly flashy, as it was fairly cylindrical in shape, but the narrow part in the middle, and the color of the lid and fitting with the handle, all make me think that it looked pretty nice. When I turned it over and opened it up, I was greeted with a bright red color. It had a certain charm to it but wasn't so gaudy that it could cause problems for a high school student to wear.

"And it's moisturizing, too. Perfect for this season."

"…Thanks."

I realized that she had given this present a lot of thought. I didn't dislike living with just my mother up until now. That being said, since we had to prioritize our own lives over anything, it was hard for me to request anything as a birthday present from her. So having my birthday celebrated by a friend like this might be a first for me. Then again, I've never had a friend wish me a happy birthday before. I only recently became friends with Maaya, too. I guess we only really got this close after she went to see Asamura-kun for the first time. That's probably why I didn't expect a present in the first place.

"Sooo? How's it feel to be on the receiving end of a surprise?"

"I'm frustrated."

"The heck!"

"Hee, hee."

Thank you. But if it was something this important, then I wish she'd told me sooner. I feel frustrated that I couldn't do something like this for Asamura-kun's birthday. If I knew how happy one would feel to be surprised, I would have thought of something. But at least the pancakes were delicious.

Later that day, our shift at work ended. I walked next to Asamura-kun as always on the way home to our flat. As we passed the entertainment district, the lights around us started to decrease in number, and the stars in the sky began to illuminate our path instead. Upon the dark canvas that was the night sky, I spotted a belt of three stars. I wonder what that constellation is called? Maybe Asamura-kun knows? I glanced at him. More specifically, his neck.

"You're wearing it, aren't you?"

"Of course. I really appreciate the warmth, so thanks a lot."

I had no idea I'd feel so happy to simply see him wearing the neck warmer I had bought for him. And tomorrow, it's my own birthday. We got permission from our parents to dine out as just the two of us. This'll be my first time spending my birthday with the person I like. I think I might pass out from the excitement. I asked him about it, and he said he had yet to find a good reservation. "Look forward to it," he said. Those words made me feel dubious for a moment.

"Hm…?" I let out a voice in the heat of the moment, but quickly followed it up with "Yeah, I will" and pretended that I didn't notice.

'Look forward to it'…? That's an odd way of phrasing things. If he had already found a restaurant, it would make sense. But he just said he hasn't put in a reservation yet. So I'm supposed to look forward to it without even knowing where we're going to eat? Doesn't that mean he's plotting something? I was so lost in thought about it that I stopped talking at all. And since Asamura-kun didn't say anything either, we spent the rest of our way home in silence. But unless I'm just assuming things… Could it be possible that Asamura-kun is preparing a surprise? If so, then I shouldn't think about it too much. I wouldn't want to ruin his surprise, especially after I had just learned about how nice it was to surprise someone like that. Thus, I'm going to just look forward to it without knowing a thing.

Once we made it back to our apartment, Asamura-kun and I finished dinner, and I returned to my room. I got everything ready for the next day, took a relaxing bath, and entered my bed. I set up an alarm and started to reminisce about today's events. Next time, I'm definitely giving Maaya a surprise for her birthday, too. And I also wonder what Asamura-kun is planning for tomorrow's dinner. Plus—I still couldn't forget Asamura-kun's words he uttered in the heat of the moment.

He told me to look forward to it. It was slightly different to him saying "I'm looking forward to it," but I just can't help but think he's planning something to surprise me. Snuggling deeper into my bed, I kept thinking.

Doesn't this mean that I've gotten better at reading Asamura Yuuta's thought process and body language? Since I'm still not very good at modern literature, I don't have much confidence in being able to read what he's thinking… But I'm looking forward to the answer I'll get tomorrow night. It's weird. When my father left home back then and Mom was out working, I never looked forward to Santa's present… and yet here I am, waiting in excitement for my own birthday.

Engulfed in the warmth of my blanket, my mind slowly drifted toward the dark abyss that is sleep. Once I wake up, it'll be my 17th birthday, so… Good night.