Ch 50 Bad Habits
The study session with Ageha was progressing reasonably well.
Before the break, I was a little restless and couldn’t concentrate on my studies, but after that, things went smoothly.
Ageha, who used to ask me questions at every opportunity, is now staring at her textbook and moving her pencil around.
I’m here to teach her, but I want to study for the exam, too.
While she was concentrating on the questions, I was doing my own thing.
I looked at the clock for a moment and saw that it was already almost seven o’clock.
“Hmm~, hmm~~~~”
Then, suddenly, Ageha put down the mechanical pencil and began to stretch greatly while raising a cat-like voice.
I closed my English word book with a snap while relaxing my cheeks at that figure.
“It’s almost time to go, should we call it a day?”
“I’m feeling really good right now, so I want to keep going! …Ah, but my head feels a little fuzzy.”
“You’ve been concentrating for about two hours, of course you’re tired.”
It seems that the concentration power she had cultivated while studying for the entrance exam was still alive and well.
However, it is hard to regain concentration once it has been broken.
I was about to suggest again that we “finish” when her phone shook with a ringtone.
“Ah, it’s from mom. Please wait a moment.”
Saying that, Ageha left the room with her smartphone.
Talking outside the door
When I turned my gaze to Ageha, who came back after a while, she opened her mouth happily.
“She said, I’ll be home late, so you go out for dinner!”
“I’m so glad. I was just about to finish.”
“Then I told her that Haru-kun was going to be there, too, and she said the three of us should go!”
“What? Me?”
“Yeah. My mom will pay for it!”
It’s a nice story because I didn’t have anything special to prepare for dinner, but…
In Ageha’s words, speak out the part that caught you.
“Three people?”
“That’s right. Me, Haru-kun, and Onee-chan.”
“I heard that Karen caught a cold.”
“It’s a fake illness~”
“Eh!?”
I heard a ridiculous confession.
If the teacher were here, he would definitely give her a lecture.
It is true that Karen, whom I met at the entrance, did not look any different from usual.
“Well, if aunt says so, then so be it… yeah, well, it’s a good opportunity then.”
“Yes! I’ll go get my sister~.”
As soon as I nodded, she ran out of the room and went to call for Karen.
It seems she is very happy to eat out.
But, well, it was a good opportunity.
I would apologize to Karen again when the time was right.
As I put the textbooks spread out on the round table into my bag, I wondered how I should apologize.
◆
“–Do you have all the items you ordered?”
We managed to persuade Ageha, who was about to go to a high-end yakiniku restaurant, and we entered a family restaurant.
The ordered dishes are arranged on the table, and the clerk’s question is answered affirmatively.
“Okay then, I’ll have it.”
“Let’s have it!”
“I’ll enjoy having this.”
I prayed and then reached for my food.
When I was cutting the hamburger steak on the iron plate with a knife, Ageha let out a happy voice, “Hmm~”.
“The meal after studying is delicious! I worked today too!”
With her mouth full of cream pasta, she looks happy from the bottom of her heart.
It is hard to believe that just a few minutes ago she was saying, “My mom is serving me, so let’s go eat something expensive!” I can’t believe she was saying such a scary thing.
She had cream sauce all over her mouth, and Karen, sitting next to her, handed her a paper napkin, saying, “Hey, you’ve got some on you.”
Come to think of it, it might have been a long time since the two of us ate together like this.
Feeling nostalgic for the familiar appearance of the sisters, I bring the cut hamburg steak to my mouth.
“By the way, onee-chan, why are you absent today?”
Around the time when her stomach calmed down, Ageha asked Karen, as if remembering.
I’ve been trying to ask her many times, but I wonder if it’s because she’s sisters or because she’s able to easily ask questions that make her uncomfortable depending on the answer.
…I think it’s the latter.
When I glanced at Karen, she smiled bitterly and said, “Oh,” as if she was troubled.
“I’m not pretending to be sick. I was a little sick from lack of sleep.”
“Hmm, okay.”
Ageha stopped pursuing it any further because of her somewhat deceiving tone.
Reading the flow, Karen cut out, “Speaking of which,” to change the topic.
How are your studies going? If you get a bad score on your first exam, You’re going to be in trouble, aren’t you?”
“I’ll be fine! I’m learning from Haru-kun. If I get a red mark or something, it will be his fault!”
“Why is it my fault?”
I saw a terrible transfer of responsibility.
… Well, looking at today’s feeling, it doesn’t seem like she’ll get a red point.
“I see, yeah, that’s right…”
Seeing our exchange, Karen smiled thinly, as if she was satisfied.
She didn’t giggle or laugh it off, just quietly.
I was a little caught up in that.
I have seen her in this form just recently as well.
…That’s it. That rainy day
It is similar to the smile on Karen’s face as she parted with me after I dropped her off at home.
“…”
Maybe I should say something.
I can pursue the reason for my absence today without airing it out.
Even I know that it is a lie to say that she haven’t been sleeping well.
And that the timing is probably due to that incident before the vacation.
I think if I was alone with Karen… I could have told her.
But–
“Oh, I’m going to get something to drink! Do you want me to get you and onee-chan something to drink, too?”
Ageha stands up from her seat with an empty glass in her hand.
After a moment’s delay, Karen holds out her own glass, saying, “Orange juice, please.”
I still have more than half left, so I refrain from doing so.
After seeing Ageha disappear into the corner of the drink bar, I turned around.
“It’s about what I said earlier.”
When I cut it out, I found that Karen stiffened slightly.
“Well, I’m sorry. I couldn’t apologize properly that day.”
“Why is Haru apologizing?”
“If I had calmed down a bit, I would have understood that it was a joke, but I got irritated and got angry at you.”
“Joke…”
Karen muttered a little and lowered her face.
Her hair hangs down to hide her face.
After a short pause, Karen raised her face, raised her eyebrows and smiled cheerfully.
“I really don’t care. Besides, it was one hundred percent my fault, not Haru’s.”
“But…”
“It’s Haru’s bad habit to think that you’re bad about everything…. well, it’s not something I could say.”
“Yeah…”
If you say so, I can’t say anything.
When I calmly kept silent, Karen spread her hands out.
“Even if I took the day off today, it really has nothing to do with it. Everyone has days when they really don’t want to go to school, right?”
The two hands were gently clasped together as if to say, “This court is closed.”
At the same time, Ageha came back with a glass in each hand.
By the time the glasses were empty, it was around eight o’clock and we left the family restaurant.
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