Makoto's mind reeled. He could feel Yuna's trap closing around him, her chaotic scheme snapping shut like jaws.
He had to get out of this somehow.
"Yuna always says I'm too clumsy," he lied desperately. "She doesn't allow me to touch her costumes, says I'll ruin them." He shrugged, trying to look helpless, and started to turn away.
Mika's face fell. Real disappointment flickered in her eyes. "Oh," she said quietly. "That's too bad."
But Yuna wasn't about to let him escape that easily.
"Nonsense," she purred dangerously. She looped her arm through Mika's, smiling with all her teeth. "He's just being modest. He's a great assistant."
She looked at him, her eyes glinting with silent triumph. "In fact, Mika, why don't you come over next weekend? We can have a cosplay-making party. The three of us."
Her gaze promised vengeance. You're not getting out of this.
Meanwhile, Mika was beaming.
Her disappointment had completely vanished. "Really?" Her eyes sparkled. "I'd love that!"
She looked at him with an expression that was excited and something else. Something that made Yuna's grip on her arm tighten.
Under the table, Yuna's foot found his. She ground down slowly, making both a threat and a promise.
"Well," he sighed in pure defeat. "I will... consider it."
He stood up and gathered the dirty dishes from the table. "You two have fun studying. Call me if you need anything, sis."
He winked, one last attempt at playing it cool. "And I'll go and try that tea now, Mika."
Mika beamed at him, her cheeks turning a delicate pink. "Okay," she said breathlessly. "I'll... I'll look forward to it."
But Yuna was a storm cloud of silent rage.
Her smile looked painful, her eyes like chips of ice. As he turned to leave, she mouthed one word at him: Traitor.
From the kitchen, he could hear them talking.
The murmur of voices, rustling textbooks, clinking teacups. It sounded perfectly studious and domestic.
But every so often, Yuna's voice would get too loud, or too sharp.
"No, not like that. You have to carry the one."
"He's not that great a cook. He burns everything."
"Oh, that? It's just a stain. From, uh, coffee."
After a while, he decided to test the waters.
He brought two cups back to the living room.
Cold milk tea for Yuna, hot Earl Grey for Mika. "Not sure what you like, so I just made some normal tea instead," he said, trying to sound casual.
Mika's eyes lit up as he approached.
She smiled at him gratefully, almost worshipfully. "Oh, thank you," she said. Her fingers brushed his when she took the cup. "This is perfect."
Yuna glared at her milk tea like it had personally offended her. "I wanted boba," she muttered, but she took the glass anyway with sharp, jerky movements.
Mika took a sip, and her eyes fluttered closed in bliss. "This is really good," she murmured appreciatively. "You're a man of many talents."
She looked up at him, her gaze warm and lingering a bit too long.
Beside her, Yuna took a long, aggressive slurp of her milk tea. Her eyes were ice over the rim of the glass.
"So," Mika said brightly. "Yuna was just telling me about the anime convention you guys went to last weekend."
She leaned forward with curiosity. Somehow, that made Yuna's knuckles go white around her glass. "She said you guys had a lot of fun."
"Well, that was just some sibling 'bonding'," he grinned, his eyes sparkling. "I needed to accompany my cute little sis, or some other guys might have tried to snatch her away from me."
He turned to Yuna. "How was the tea?"
Yuna slammed her glass down. Milk tea sloshed onto the polished wood. "It's fine," she growled dangerously. "But it's not what I asked for."
Her eyes were ice, her smile forced and tight. She looked like a coiled spring. A storm cloud. A bomb about to go off.
And he'd just lit the fuse.
Meanwhile, Mika watched them both with an almost clinical expression, her head tilted. "You guys are really close, aren't you?" she murmured curiously.
"It's... it's really sweet." She took another sip, never looking away from him.
That's when it hit him. She wasn't oblivious. She wasn't the naive, innocent girl she pretended to be.
She was testing them.
He patted Yuna's back like a caring brother. "Aha, of course, we have been very close since we were kids. Isn't that right, Yuna?"
He turned to Mika, desperate to change the subject. "Do you have any... brother or sister, Mika?"
Yuna went rigid under his hand. The "innocent brother" act was like throwing gasoline on a fire. Her smile became a thin, painful line.
But Mika just smiled, looking a bit sad. "No, I'm an only child," she said, her gaze moving between them. "I always kind of wished that I had a sibling, though. Especially an older brother."
Her warm, genuine eyes landed on him. "It must be so nice to have someone who has always got your back, just like that."
The simple, sincere compliment hung in the air like a weight.
Yuna let out a sharp laugh with zero humor in it. "Oh, he's got my back, alright," she said with terrifying sweetness. "He's so protective."
She leaned into his side, her body tense and furious, but resting her head on his shoulder in a perfect mockery of sisterly affection. "Sometimes, it feels like he's my own personal bodyguard."
Hidden from Mika's view, her hand found the soft skin of his inner thigh and pinched. Hard.
"Isn't that right, big bro?"
Makoto winked at Mika, playful and challenging. "Well, of course, I need to protect my own little sis."
He let Yuna's head stay on his shoulder. "But I don't mind having someone else who calls me big bro, though. Especially if it's a cute one."
The sound of Yuna's teeth grinding was audible. Her nails dug into his thigh, promising pain.
But Mika just blushed brilliant crimson. She giggled softly, which made Yuna's grip tighten even more.
"I... I don't know about that," she said breathlessly. She took a sip of tea, eyes sparkling over the rim. "I think Yuna might get a little bit jealous."
The playful, innocent words landed like a grenade.
Yuna's head snapped up, eyes like ice. "Jealous?"
Her voice went high and brittle. "Of course not. We're not blood-related."
She forced out a laugh that sounded more like a strangled sob. "He can have as many sisters or stepsisters as he wants."
Her smile was pure fury. "In fact," she purred dangerously, "I encourage it."
Cold sweat trickled down his back. The room had become a minefield, and he was dancing through it blind.
Time to retreat. Time to regroup.
"Ahem," he coughed, carefully extracting himself from their clutches. "You can think about it, Mika."
He backed toward the door. "It seems like your study session is going to take a while. Should I prepare some dinner for you two, too?"
"Oh, would you?" Mika's face lit up with genuine delight, her blush forgotten. "That would be amazing! But you really don't have to."
"My mom is working late tonight, so I was just going to grab something on my way home." She gave him such a sweet, innocent smile that it was almost painful.
Yuna had become a statue of frozen rage. Her forced smile looked painful, her eyes black holes of fury.
"No, he insists," she purred dangerously. "He loves cooking for my friends."
She stood with sharp, jerky movements. "In fact, why don't you go and help him, Mika? I'm sure he'd love the company."
Her eyes promised murder. I will end you.
Meanwhile, Mika was already on her feet, looking hopeful and giddy. "I... I'm not a very good cook," she said shyly. "But I can try."
She looked at him with excitement. Yuna's textbook creaks in her grip.
That's when he realized the horrible truth. Yuna wasn't just testing him. She was testing Mika, too.
And he was the prize.
"No, no, I can't let a guest do the cooking," he said desperately. One last attempt to escape.
"Just focus on your studies, and you can text me what you two want to eat later."
He looked at Yuna. "Give her my phone number, will you?" He grinned, trying for bravado, then fled back to the safety of his room.
"Oh, okay," Mika said, genuinely disappointed.
But she recovered quickly with a hopeful smile. "That's very thoughtful of you."
Yuna vibrated with silent rage, her body coiled tight.
As he turned to leave, she mouthed one word at him: Coward.
He retreated to his room, their muffled voices becoming a distant hum.
He tried to focus on work, on anything except the two dangerous girls in the other room. But his phone on the desk felt like a bomb waiting to go off.
An hour later, it buzzed.
A new number.
Mika: Hi, it's Mika! :) Yuna and I are craving some pizza. Is that okay? She's being really picky about the toppings, lol. But I think we finally agreed on pepperoni and mushrooms.
He was about to reply when another text came through from Yuna.
Yuna: Order it from the place on 5th street. And if you even THINK about texting her back with a winky face, I'll put laxatives in her slice.
Another buzz. Mika again.
Mika: Yuna also says to tell you that you're the 'best big brother in the world.' She's so sweet when she's not being grumpy. ;)
He could practically feel Yuna's rage radiating through the walls.