The Neat and Pretty Girl at My New School Is a Childhood Friend of Mine Who I Thought Was a Boy

Chapter 55 - Himeko's brother

Lunch break.  The time that frees students from boredom which called lesson.

That was also true at the middle school where Himeko attended, with people hurrying to the cafetaria, gathering with their friends in class to eat bento, and going to other classes or the clubroom, their actions varied.

Like many others, Himeko really loves this time.

Especially eating bento which is really good.

At Tsukinose, a place where elementary and middle school are housed in the same building, they get food from the school, but at this school, they have to prepare bento or buy it at the cafeteria.

Not cafeteria food, but bento – this is the part that makes Himeko feel a bit like an adult and she really loves it.

Himeko is a pretty simple girl.

“Ugh...”

However, as soon as she opened his bento, she frowned and made a strange sound.

When her friend, Torikai Honoka, saw what was happening, she found just a normal bento with omurice as the main course, accompanied by cherry tomatoes and broccoli which gave the bento its color.

"What's wrong, Himeko-chan?  Your bento looks delicious.”

"I don't like tomatoes"

“Maybe it was just a coincidence it was there?”

“This is not just a coincidence.  This must be revenge from my brother.  Last night, he cooked some really bad looking food and I was complaining about it."

“Wow... wait a minute.  Is it true that this bento was made by your brother?!”

"Yes, right.  Even though he always makes food for me, but this time…. aaah, do you want to try some?”

"Of course!"

Finally, Himeko gave Honoka a piece of omurice after losing to her friend's curiosity and enthusiasm.

Licking his lips, Torikai Honoka eagerly tried the food and exclaimed “ohh” or “wow”.

With such an astonished reaction, even Himeko felt embarrassed even though she didn't make it herself.

“Ittadakimasu... Hmm, this... Tofu?!  No, mushrooms?!  There were a lot of mushrooms and they tasted more Japanese than if they were made with chicken... Ahh, how delicious!  Your brother really knows how to cook, right?!”

“E-uh, yes, he can cook, actually he's only good at cooking alcohol accompaniments.  He was rude when he woke me up in the morning and even cleaned my room without asking my permission first.  So, it's not very good…”

"So he's not only good at cooking and making bento for you, but also getting you up in the morning, cleaning your room, and taking care of you?!"

"Honoka-chan, what do you mean?"

Himeko actually just wanted to complain about her brother as usual.

However, somehow, certain red threads connected, and Torikai Honoka suddenly opened her eyes wide, then grabbed Himeko's hand enthusiastically.

And it seems, she's not the only one who feels attracted to that red thread.

“Kirishima-san, tell me more about your brother.”

"What's your brother like?  How tall is he?  Where does he go to school?  Do you have his photos?  Most importantly, does he have a girlfriend?!”

“With a face like Kirishima-chan and being able to cook and care... he's really great...”

“Hey, can you introduce him to us during the holidays?!”

“A-Alright...”

Himeko was confused.  To Himeko, her older brother, Hayato is someone who likes to interfere and is a bit insensitive to situations.

Himeko is grateful that he cooked for her, but her brother has messy hair that is allowed to grow long and always wears a straw hat in a strange fashion when going downtown.

Therefore, Himeko doesn't understand why her friends are attracted to her brother.

However, for her classmates like Torikai Honoka, it was different.

Basically, even though Himeko has flaws, she is considered a beautiful girl by her friends.  It was impossible for them not to have high expectations for her brother who had the same blood as Himeko.

“But, that's not a good thing, right?  He acts like a know-it-all even though he's only a year older than me, the clothes he wears are also very outdated, he's never had a girlfriend and doesn't look like he can have one either."

“Yes, yes.  Don't say things like that, Himeko-chan!”

"Let's get him to play together next time."

“We can go karaoke together!”

“Eh, my brother…Wait a minute, karaoke?!  You don't mean karaoke in the convention hall or bus, but private karaoke room in karaoke places, right?!”

“”“..........””””

Now, it was Himeko's turn to be interested.

In Tsukinose, the village where she lives, there is no karaoke place.  Even if there were, they were limited to places where oldsters gathered and only had collections of old songs.

So, going karaoke with her friends is her dream.

Seeing Himeko's eyes sparkling with passion, her friends and Torikai Honoka's eyes were full of kindness.

"Yeah, how about we go to karaoke after school today?"

“How about at the karaoke place in front of the station?  I have a discount coupon.”

“Alright, we'll pay for Himeko-chan this time!”

“Eh?  Eh?  Eh?”

Regardless of Himeko's confusion, her friends got excited.

As it turned out, that was the moment where the plans for today's after school were decided.

+×+×+×+

Summer sunset feels so slow.

After spending an hour and a half with four girls singing at karaoke place after school, there was still some time before sunset.

After parting ways with her friends who were walking in different directions, Himeko walked languidly along the shopping street in front of the station.

“... Ah”

When she remember the karaoke just now, she let out a long sigh.

(They're all so good...)

Not only that, all of her friends looked like they were used to it and very excited.

Torikai Honoka in particular is very clever, and makes a great contribution to livening up the atmosphere around her.

On the other hand, for Himeko who is her first time at karaoke, she messes up when using the touchscreen panel, gets anxious and shakes when she holds the microphone, and instead of singing, she just babbles in a low voice because she doesn't know how to sing properly.

Her friends didn't make fun of her, but instead smiled gently at Himeko's awkwardness.

Despite this, Himeko felt a little sad.

(I have to practice with Onii-chan and Haru-chan before the next karaoke!)

After deciding to get back up and prepare herself, Himeko met a familiar face.

“H-Hime-chan!?”

“Oh, Haru...chan...?”

It was Haruki who was on his way home from school.

The two meet by chance and Haruki tries to say hello, but they are immediately surrounded by a group of girls who appear from behind Haruki.  Surprised by the situation, Himeko's voice became smaller and smaller.

“This girl is Nikaido-san's childhood friend, huh?”

“Oh, this is the girl Kirishima-kun likes, huh?”

"She's in the 3rd grade of junior high school, one level below us, right?  Her uniform, she is my kohai.”

“Oh, she's quite tall huh, like a model.  I understand why I hesitated to introduce a beautiful girl like this to  boys.”

“Uh, err, that… that… Haru-chan?!”

“A-Ahahahahaha...”

When suddenly surrounded by older girls and with nowhere to run to, Himeko was at a loss for what to do.

Himeko tends to be shy around people she just met.

She seeks help from Haruki, but Haruki just smiles and looks unable to help her.

(H-Haru-chan~!)

Haruki and Himeko were confused as they saw each other's troubled faces.

Around the two of them, the girls had eyes like predators that had found their prey.