"Please, can you tell me what happened, Onoda? Kazuha-nee… she… doesn't want to talk to me about it. I can't even ask a question…"
I have no idea what's really running in his mind or if he has given up already but that's Ogawa's first words to me as soon as we entered this private space. While his expression remained dark and grim as if he already lost faith in his future, the way he even stuttered at saying all that was nothing short of pleading.
Rathan than my expected barking of this guy, he's actually imploring me to give him peace of mind by telling him what happened last night. Or if not that, to confirm whatever his guess is.
I mean, it's not hard to connect the dots if Kazuha-nee chose that path of shutting him off completely. But considering she's possibly overwhelmed by what happened, it's quite normal to do that.
And from the way he described it, his older sister wasn't intentionally tormenting him this time.
If I have to guess, she's still in the process of coming to terms that 'it' happened.
Anyway, I let a few seconds of silence pass before giving him a reply that was not a reply at all. I considered acting oblivious to grief him but that's a little tasteless at this point. Besides, I'm not so free to watch him reel in rage in front of me.
"Tell me, Ogawa. Why do you even want to question her? Does Kazuha-nee need to report to you, her little brother? In the first place, why are you curious?"
Throwing those questions back to back, the idiot almost choked on his spit. He recovered soon enough though and while coming to terms with the validity of that question, he took a deep breath before answering.
"I… Isn't it normal for a brother to be worried about his sister? It's you we're talking about, Onoda. You're not just a menace…"
Well, isn't he a great little brother? Worried for his elder sister, huh? Unfortunately, that's not enough to justify the course of action that he took.
On another note, it's a surprise. Really. Now, that's a surprise. He's finally subscribing back to reality, huh? If I could interpret what he just said… he finally believed that the reason the girls around him got stolen was because of my ability and not just because I tricked them.
He deserved a round of applause for breaking out of his fantasy.
I guess it needs Kazuha-nee to be involved or… this just showed the method my girls started doing was already showing its effects.
"I won't deny that I'm more than a menace to you. But Ogawa, is it really just your concern? Looking at you, you already have an idea of what exactly happened, you're just here to get a clearer picture of it."
As I pointed that out, Ogawa unconsciously took a step back. When he noticed that, the guy's face twisted into another show of his dread. He despairingly sighed, possibly berating himself in his head.
"I… I'm not—"
Before he could finish that pathetic deflection of his, I cut him off.
"Let's be honest here. Do you think I have no idea that you're peeking at us from your room? Hina made it very obvious, you know?"
Ogawa took another step back but this time, it was even heavier than the first. It's like a reaction to being caught for his mischief.
At the moment, it's probably wrong to call him handsome anymore, he has this extremely sour look that's reminiscent of those idiots still who's trying to deny their crimes even if it's already very obvious.
At the very least, he didn't appear desperate yet.
"So, what now? Are you going to admit that you're trying to confirm if Kazuha-nee also did it with me? If I say yes, I pressed her down on that bed after she closed the curtain, will that satisfy your kink?"
"Kink?! I have no such—"
"Alright. I'm not saying it happened but dude… have you fallen this low? You're fine with watching your childhood friend do all those things with me but when it comes to the possibility that your sister did the same, you're acting like this? This is why Hina hates you. You're a self-centered idiot who never really cares about her."
"N-no… That's different! You're in a relationship with Hina but Kazuha-nee is unrelated to you! T-that's why!"
"Huh. And who says Kazuha-nee isn't related to me? Who will prove that to you? Hello? Let me remind you again, I'm the guy with multiple girlfriends. Who's stopping me from going after your sister?"
"Sh…. Shut up!"
Ah. It's over. I'm losing interest in stepping on his flimsy pride. This guy could only amount to this. What a pathetic response. Very fitting for someone who's going to run away from reality again.
"Well, you can shout all you want. But Ogawa, let me tell you something… You just admitted to peeking at us. And for the sake of Hina and Kazuha-nee, I will never tell you about what exactly happened. For me, everything stays in that room. And clearly, I never saw you there. You're unrelated."
"You can keep trying to get the answer through Kazuha-nee. But let this be a warning… If you're really concerned about her, you'll be a good brother to her and not press her about it."
"And if you really want to protect her from me, you're free to do whatever method you have in store. Tell her my relationship, all my secrets, anything. However, at the end of the day, the more you pull, the more Kazuha-nee will be pushed toward me. Stop being an idiot for once and think carefully…"
"I will never be threatened by your existence. In my eyes, you're not that much different than those clueless guys whose girlfriends I've stolen. Moreover, Nami and the others are only being kind enough to salvage the fragile friendship you cultivated. If I asked them to throw you out of the club, they would unhesitatingly do it for me. I'm saying that with full confidence. That's why… it's your choice, really. If you keep on crossing me, your situation will never improve."
After saying all those without giving him any chance to rebut, I stepped out of the room. There's no need to gawk at his despair. Even though that's not close to destroying him, it's enough to make him question himself.
All the bad choices that he made were coming back at him. Of course, he also had good choices but like he said, I was more than a menace to him. My existence alone was enough to bring him devastation.
-
-
"Did I make you wait, senpai?"
I had no idea if my expression changed because of what happened. Just to be safe, before continuing to the neighboring room to pick up the girl next, I took a moment to clear my head and massage my face to bring it back to default.
However, that's probably unnecessary.
Not a second after I opened the door and stepped inside, I found my face pressed and gradually got buried deep in Nakanishi-senpai's fragrant valley.
As I felt her arms tighten around my head, her fingers started brushing my hair as if she was trying to calm me down.
Following that, the gorgeous temptress whispered in a voice full of concern and appreciation, "Onoda-kun, I think you did the right thing. I'm clueless about the entire story but from what I observe… you're already doing your best to reform him."
Yep. Instead of staying put, Nakanishi-senpai heard us in the other room. And this is her interpretation…
Reforming him? Nah. Shouldn't she start by asking me about the context of our conversation? Weird senior… or maybe, she only heard and understood a part of it.
In any case… I'm not going to reject this unexpected pampering from her. It's warm and comfortable…
