By the time I came to, it was already noon. I stretched and let out a sigh. I don't think I've ever studied this much outside of class before.
As I basked in a small sense of accomplishment, a tiny grumble echoed.
"Hehe… my stomach's growling."
Fuuma smiled shyly, and I laughed along with Haruma-kun. A glance at the clock showed it was just past 12.
"Let's eat lunch." Fuuma put down his pen and stood up. "My mom made some hamburger steaks ahead of time. Let's have that!"
"Oh, is it lunchtime for everyone? I'll heat it up, so have a seat."
Yuuma-san was in the living room. He smiled pleasantly at us—I think I was excluded from that smile—and got up. We took our places at the table. He served us steaming hamburger steaks covered in a rich demi-glace sauce. With sides of glazed carrots and potatoes, the colors were perfect and made my mouth water. The smell alone made my stomach grumble loudly.
"Hehe, let's eat."
"Itadakimasu." We put our hands together and picked up our chopsticks. When I took a bite of the hamburger steak, my eyes went wide.
"Mmm…! So good!!"
"Is it delicious? I'm so glad, my mom will be happy." Fuuma said cheerfully.
"The tamagoyaki…"
Suddenly, a quiet voice spoke up. It was Yuuma-san's. A terrible premonition shot through me. I swallowed the rice in my mouth and cautiously looked up, meeting Yuuma-san's steady gaze. His face held a look of pure anticipation.
"Hey—I want to try the tamagoyaki you make, Shigebe-kun. We made a promise last time, didn't we? You always let Fuuma eat yours."
"If it's alright, would you mind making me some?"
He narrowed his eyes, and I gasped. I had no words to refuse him. All I could do was nod at a frantic speed.
***
I held my head in my hands. This was the worst. I'd burned it a little. I ate that part myself, so they would see the relatively clean parts, but still.
Haruma-kun had mumbled, "This is... that..."
What? Do the brothers share information like this? I guess that makes sense. It's intel on a potential danger to their brother, after all. I had no idea what "that" referred to, or how they had talked about it. I gave up trying to think and waited for the moment of judgment. Each of them took a bite of the tamagoyaki. My heart was beating a frantic rhythm as I waited for them to speak.
"…! It's sweet… It's so delicious! I like the sweet kind."
"…Yeah. It's delicious."
"It tastes delicious as always!"
I let out a sigh of relief. It seemed I hadn't offended them. I was so glad they didn't say something like, "What kind of disgusting food are you feeding my precious Fuuma?"
Then I noticed. There was one slightly burned piece left. The burned side had been facing down, so I hadn't seen it. And Yuuma-san was holding it up with his chopsticks, staring at it.
"Ah, you don't have to eat that! Take a different, cleaner one—"
Chomp.
Ignoring my words completely, he put it in his mouth without a moment's hesitation. He chewed and swallowed, and then his well-formed lips curved into a smile.
"The egg whites are so soft and runny, too. I wanted to try a fresh one. Thank you, Shigebe-kun."
He laughed. It's not that he doesn't smile, but this was the first time I'd seen him smile at me with what looked like genuine, heartfelt amusement. Wait, maybe... he's actually kind to me, too? My response came out in a faint, lifeless voice. It was just so unexpected. Haruma-kun, too. Maybe they were both... kinder to me than I had thought.
"Actually, I was the one who was going to make lunch."
Fuuma and Haruma-kun, who were just about to eat the tamagoyaki, dropped their chopsticks and let the food fall back onto their plates. Their expressions were full of despair as they stared at their brother.
"…You didn't make anything, right?"
"My, how rude. I didn't, because Mom and Dad stopped me."
The brothers let out an obvious sigh of relief.
"And besides, I wasn't going to try any crazy combos this time."
He muttered the last part with a slightly sulky pout. It was a face I'd never seen before. So, even he, who I thought was perfect, had a small flaw. And it was an endearing one: he was bad at cooking.
"You really did some terrible combinations last time…"
"Yes. I'm still struggling to understand why you put marshmallows in natto."
"Sweet and salty go together! Natto combinations are a common thing!"
It was so rare to see him, who was always so mature, arguing like a child. I'm not a good cook myself, but a laugh escaped me. I immediately realized my mistake. While Fuuma and Haruma-kun continued to bicker about his past cooking blunders, Yuuma-san's eyes were fixed on me. Then, he smiled again. ...It was a smile whose emotions I couldn't read.
Ah, I got carried away again. I shouldn't have laughed. I'm so sorry.
Unable to interrupt the conversation to apologize, we simply stared at each other in silence.
From that point on, the evening passed surprisingly smoothly.
We played games in the living room until dinner, and later, we enjoyed another delicious meal their mother had made. After brushing my teeth, I let out a yawn as sleepiness finally arrived. Ah, I actually made it through the day. I didn't make as many blunders as I thought I would, and they seemed to have mercy on me. At this rate, I might even be able to go home alive. I didn't have my favorite body pillow, but the exhaustion from studying would probably put me right to sleep.
I let out another yawn. Just then, Fuuma, who had gone to the TV, pulled something out.
"Okay, let's watch a horror movie!! We can just crash here on the floor afterward, right?"
"Eh?"
***
The room was pitch-black, lit only by the television screen. The movie was one I hadn't heard of, but it was surprisingly good. I found myself holding my breath.
On the creepy screen, the male protagonist reached for a storage closet where a strange noise was coming from. Was there something inhuman inside? Or was it just empty? The soundtrack, which sounded like a frantic heartbeat, intensified the fear. It was a typical horror movie, but it was all the scarier for its skillful direction.
The moment the protagonist yanked the door open—
"WAAAAAAAAAH!! AAAAAAAAAH!!"
"Haru, your voice is too loud. You'll bother the neighbors."
"I DON'T CARE!!"
From beside me, Haruma-kun's screams rang out. He was like that during all the climax scenes. Even during the quieter moments, he let out small whimpers. He was always so calm and collected; I would have expected him to scoff at anything supernatural. This was a completely unexpected reaction. He had a blanket pulled up to his head, with only his eyes peeking out. I guess if he didn't watch it, he wouldn't be scared, but he must have been too curious about the story. If I said this out loud, I'd definitely be in for it, but he was kind of cute.
Just as I heard another tiny whimper, I felt a hand grab my arm and squeeze it tightly. He had grabbed my arm on instinct. After a beat, he looked at me with a startled expression. But whether from freezing up or from fear, he didn't let go.
If I choose the wrong words here, I'm dead. I had to find a way to save him from embarrassment, or I was finished. I opened my mouth and spoke to Haruma-kun, whose face was a complex mix of panic and shame.
"…Sorry, I'm actually really scared. Is it okay if we stay like this?"
"…!"
When I whispered that, his eyes went wide with surprise. He looked around a bit, and then he spoke.
"…Well, if you say so. I'll allow it."
I must have made the right choice. I mentally pumped my fist.
I turned back to the screen. A bloody woman with long hair filled the frame, and my arm was squeezed again, this time harder. It hurt a little, but was this what it felt like to be relied on by a younger brother? I tried to hold back my laughter. His grip made me feel warm and fuzzy.
"…I might be a little scared too…"
"You like this kind of thing, Yuuma-niisan, don't you?"
"…Mm."
Next to me, Yuuma-san had a sad, failed attempt at a power play, apparently trying to hug Fuuma.
***
"Nnn… Nnn…?"
The morning light was filtering in. I must have fallen asleep at some point. Just as Fuuma had suggested, we'd all slept together on the floor. Morning had come. I gave a tight squeeze to what I thought was my favorite body pillow. It was so warm. I opened my eyes slightly and, with a jolt, remembered. Ah, I had a sleepover at Fuuma's house last night. I had Haruma-kun teach me math, and I made tamagoyaki for Yuuma-san.
That was so much fun, I thought with a groggy head.
And then I finally realized. There was no way my favorite body pillow would be at Fuuma's house. And this wasn't the texture of a pillow.
Then, this was—
"M-Masato-kun…"
A voice filled with utter confusion. It was Fuuma's.
In that instant, my thoughts ground to a halt. I realized I had been sleeping while hugging Fuuma.
"…Shigebe-kun."
"…Shigebe-san."
Two pairs of eyes, at absolute zero, seemed to shoot me dead. My sleepiness vanished completely, and I became fully awake.
Ah, I see. Today is the day of my death.
"I AM SO SORRY!!"
I immediately scrambled away and performed a dogeza, a deep, head-to-the-floor bow, prepared to accept my fate. I wanted to applaud myself for shouting so loud the house might have shaken. For a spontaneous reaction, it was a magnificent volume, and—it was a dignified final performance. The pain in my forehead from hitting the floor was nothing compared to the fear of death.
"D-don't worry about it! Really!"
"I'm so sorry… I, to your precious brother…"
"…No, it's okay. We were just a little surprised."
That's a lie. Their eyes were terrifying. Yuuma-san's face, usually so gentle, was completely devoid of all emotion. Just remembering it sent shivers down my spine.
"…When you're half-asleep, do you just hug anyone like that?"
"Absolutely, definitely not. It's a misunderstanding. I'm sorry."
The voice was cold and cutting. It was the complete opposite of how he was yesterday—and I mentally hit myself for thinking such a rude thing.
"That's not fair," Haruma-kun muttered quietly.
You're right. You wanted to hug him yourself, right? I'm so sorry.
"Um… next time, I won't make a mistake like this… will you please forgive me…"
"Next time… you're coming again?! Wow, yay!"
"Eh, no."
I didn't mean "next time" in that sense. I meant "from now on." But I couldn't say that. The happily smiling Fuuma would definitely be sad. And if that happened, I'd really be killed. I had already made a huge blunder.
"Hehe, I'm really looking forward to it. Right, big brother, Haruma!"
He smiled and took my hand, turning to ask for their agreement. As for them…
"…Yeah. We're really looking forward to it."
"…Yes. You absolutely must come. We'll be waiting."
They said that with smiles whose true intentions were impossible to read. All I could do was try my best not to faint as the eventful sleepover came to a close.
For now, I've decided to stop sleeping with my body pillow starting tonight. Because if I do the same thing again—it's too scary to even imagine.