Stealing Spree

“What a wonderful coincidence, isn’t it Kazu-kun?” Kazuha-nee smilingly said as she addressed her little brother.

Unlike the first time I saw her when her whole figure was shrouded by the darkness, I finally got a good look at her. I also failed to get a good look at her during that time when I videocalled Hina. True to my initial impression, Kazuha-nee was a real hottie. If Koizumi-san earlier had the cool, fashionable vibes surrounding her, Kazuha-nee was like Nakanishi-senpai. A natural seductress.

However, instead of the emphasis on her sexiness, Ogawa’s older sister possessed a strong presence that would prevent anyone from not locking their gazes on her.

Add to that, like Nami and Shizu, she has smooth-looking, long black hair reaching as far down as her knees. It’s not decorated with anything else yet it also feels like any hairstyle would fit her.

At the moment, her hair was swaying gently at her every movement.

And because of that, men and women alike could only stop to admire her natural beauty. Without needing to do anything else, her draw was that strong.

Of course, her wide hips and narrow waist were also superb but I’ll give a higher point to Nakanishi-senpai in that department. Only a few could match that girl; Miwa-nee and Yukari, for example.

“Y-yeah.” Ogawa, not knowing how to react at seeing me here, could only force out a nod to his sister’s question.

The guy was still rather confused. He’s probably trying his hardest to think when I get acquainted with his sister.

Actually, I expected him to be aware. But Kazuha-nee probably refrained from telling him about that night.

Was she being considerate of Ogawa’s feelings? I mean, even though it was one-sided on Hina’s part, they’re still childhood friends. Besides, there’s that particular night when Ogawa walked out of his room.

She’s a caring older sister, huh?

Unfortunately for him, Kazuha-nee failed to pick up on his confusion. The same as him, the woman’s eyes were focused on me. Probably not because she was taken in by my appearance but because I was alone and I was holding a paper bag from one of the clothing stores in this mall.

She’s probably wondering if I was accompanied by Hina. But when she couldn’t find the girl’s figure anywhere, her eyes slightly narrowed as a hint of suspicion gradually filled them.

Following that, she continued approaching me, sitting down on the seat next to me. Due to that, I could only sit back down and change my plan of going somewhere.

As for Ogawa, the guy remained silent as he stood next to his sister. His eyes warned me not to do anything as if that was going to change anything.

Ignoring the cuck, I played it cool and rested my back comfortably before saying, “It’s been a while, Kazuha-nee. I never thought I’d run into you here. Ogawa too.”

Even though I included Ogawa, I only gave the guy a passing glance before focusing completely on his sister. If he’s going to do something, he’d probably wait for his chance. Not that I was looking forward to it. I’d prefer him to remain like a statue there and allow me to talk to his sister.

“Uh-huh. How long was it? Two, three weeks? The last time I saw you were through Hina-chan’s phone. Have you stopped visiting her?” Kazuha-nee acknowledged that with a nod.

But this woman, by purposely mentioning Hina, she’s obviously trying to probe me.

If I had to guess, she started suspecting that I was cheating on Hina. I was alone here and it probably looked like I was waiting for someone by sitting here.

How should I answer that? Although I wasn’t worried about Ogawa’s presence, I still had to be a little cautious. This woman warned me not to hurt the girl or their whole neighborhood would hunt me for my head. The threat was certainly negligible but it’s better to stay on her good side.

To torment Ogawa.

Just kidding. If he stays this way then he’s going to get a plus in my book.

But yeah, I had to tread carefully and remove that suspicion.

“Uhm. We’re always together at school so I probably neglected it a bit. But now that Kazuha-nee mentioned it… Yeah, I realized that I should visit her again and do more as her boyfriend. And that’s the reason why I’m here today…”

“Oh, I see… Are you scouting for your date?”

“Yeah, you can say that. I also bought something to wear for it. I’m not that keen on fashion but I feel like I shouldn’t take her out in these clothes.” Instead of becoming a point of suspicion, I made use of the bag to get out of it.

Kazuha-nee looked into it and nodded faintly. Obviously, she’s not totally convinced yet.

Our conversation continued and the woman took full control of it as she centered our topics around Hina.

I kept my confidence up with my answers. However, most of them were half-truths. I couldn’t simply be completely honest with her or everything would be ruined.

Luckily for me, Kazuha-nee bought my act and eventually got convinced, stopping her probe in its entirety.

I captured her switching gears. The woman relaxed completely and the intense pressure she was exuding disappeared as though it wasn’t there in the first place.

“I see now why she’s so in love with you. You’re a very thoughtful boyfriend, Ruki-kun. Good job.” She praised before turning to her silent brother, “Hey, Kazu-kun. You’re classmates, right? Why don’t you ask him for tips? Nanami-chan will slip off your grasp if you keep being like that.”

Upon hearing that, Ogawa’s face instantly turned sour. Kazuha-nee had just stabbed her little brother twice without being aware of it.

I thought of playing into the act but considering it might push the guy over the edge, I refrained from saying anything and watched this situation unfold by slipping into the role of ‘Ogawa’s classmate’.

“… I don’t need his tips, aneki. I can do it by myself.”

Oh? He’s calling her ‘aneki’? That’s surprising, I thought he’d use the usual ones like onee-chan or simply ‘sis’. Ane-ue would also fit. Thinking about it, the way he called her spoke about his closeness to her. It’s both filled with his respect and intimacy.

He probably looked up to her a lot and considering he remained standing there, he was more than ready to defend her sister against me if I ever tried something funny.

“Really, now? How long has it been? Have you at least made some progress?”

“That…” Ogawa gritted his teeth. He couldn’t say that his progress was already destroyed and there was little to no hope for him anymore. I mean, saying little was already generous. For Nami, he’s nothing more than a friend in their circle. And because of his previous acts, her goodwill toward him got reduced to almost nonexistent.

Anyway, that answer was interpreted differently by Kazuha-nee. She shook her head and sighed, “See that? You haven’t made any, have you? Onoda-kun, can I ask you a favor?”

“W-what? Aneki, don’t do that. Of all people, you shouldn’t…”

… trust me? Right? I completed his sentence in my mind.

“Shouldn’t what? Are you two on bad terms with each other?” Her forehead creased as she alternately looked at us.

But this woman… isn’t it obvious? There’s no reason for us to get along with each other. She even mentioned back then that she was aware of Hina’s infatuation with her brother.

Normally, there’s no way a guy will be cool with his girlfriend’s previous crush.

Did she forget that?

Anyway, I guess I should butt in here. I looked at Ogawa and his ugly complexion. I’ll save him this once. Let’s say it’s my appreciation for him not telling her sister about our secrets.

I know. There’s an obvious reason for that. Ogawa doesn’t want to put Nami in a bad light in her sister’s eyes. He still cares for the girl.

Or I can also count on the reason that he’s afraid to tell her that he already lost everyone to me.

“Kazuha-nee, I’m probably the one to blame for that. I’m jealous of him.”

“Eh? Oh! Is it because Hina used to like him?” Finally realizing that point, Kazuha-nee laughed at her silliness.

“Yeah. That’s the case.” I confirmed.

Kazuha-nee stared at me for a few seconds then switched to her brother. As though an imaginary light bulb lit up, she excitedly clapped before squeezing me to the side and pulling her brother down to sit on the same bench, “This boy… Okay. Let me be your mediator then. Kazu-kun, sit down here!”

“Huh?” Although confused, Ogawa could only react like that. His sister easily overpowered him.

“Stop acting like a fool there. You both care for Hina-chan. Isn’t that a great reason to be on good terms with each other? Do it for Hina-chan’s sake.” While flashing the whites of her teeth by grinning widely, Kazuha-nee grabbed our wrists and pulled them to her front.

Yeah. She’s forcing us to handshake. What a pushy mediator.