Late at night.
After finishing dinner, Yukino sat on the sofa, staring at her phone with a hesitant expression.
"Should I ask…"
Recalling Masuzu's words, recalling every action she had taken so far.
Her wavering heart gradually steadied. Yukino took a deep breath. She picked up her phone and opened her contacts.
Her sister's number appeared. Her fingers paused for less than half a second. She immediately pressed call.
She slowly pressed the cold receiver to her ear. The tuuut busy tone seemed to ring in sync with her heartbeat. The surroundings were so silent she couldn't hear anything else.
At this point, Yukino actually calmed down.
She closed her eyes slightly before the call connected. She silently organized the questions she wanted to ask in her heart.
Based on the information Masuzu revealed, her sister didn't just love Yuu—she considered her hers. She acted from the perspective of a girlfriend in handling everything related to her.
This included eliminating rivals, placing spies, and even deliberately bringing Masuzu to meet Yuu that day—all to show her the consequences of playing around with so many girls…
The last point felt like Masuzu's fabrication, so Yukino temporarily didn't believe it.
Overall, it was precisely because of the delusion that Yuu was her boyfriend that Haruno showed an extremely angry expression for the first time when she said, "You'd better give up on her soon."
If put in another scenario, it was like telling a wife, "Your husband prefers his mistress. You should divorce him." It'd be strange if she wasn't angry.
Even so, Yukino felt no remorse toward her sister and had no intention of retracting her words.
Treating herself as the girlfriend was still understandable. But Haruno sent Masuzu to interfere with their relationship. She had pulled so many petty tricks behind the scenes—like a real crazy fan.
As Haruno's younger sister, Yukino truly couldn't stay silent.
That's why she decided to call, to clearly ask her thoughts and stop her before she went too far.
Not just for the two of them, but for herself too…
To prevent the request Yuu gave her from being disrupted by that extremely troublesome person, Yukino felt she had to talk properly with her sister.
TUUUT—
The phone rang about seven times before being picked up.
"Yukino-chan? What's up so late?"
Haruno sounded lazy and relaxed, as if resting in her room. The faint sound of keyboard typing could be heard.
"Mm, you're free to talk now."
Yukino spoke calmly. She had no intention of making the atmosphere heavy like an interrogation.
As if nothing had happened before, Haruno chuckled. She still used that teasing tone: "Of course I'm free~ What is it, what is it? Have you missed your big sister after so long and want to whine to me?"
"Seems your life is still in kindergarten." Yukino replied with a faint smile. Then the curve at her lips vanished. She got straight to the point.
"I want to ask—are you really in love with Tenkuji-kun?"
"…" After a brief silence, Haruno seemed to smile helplessly: "Why this question again? Geez, is it weird for me to like a guy? Or should I get a girlfriend and bring her home for Yukino-chan to think it's more normal?"
"That's not what I meant. I just want to confirm." Yukino sighed softly. She asked carefully: "Is your liking for Tenkuji-kun the kind where you want to be his real girlfriend, or the kind where you treat him as a toy or possession?"
"Hmm—" Haruno dragged out the sound, as if thinking how to answer.
But Yukino felt her sister wasn't pondering the answer to the question, but whether to tell the truth or dodge.
Though they were the closest family, it wasn't the same as when facing Yuu—when Haruno lied, Yukino had a high chance of not noticing. She would evade all questions with her explanations.
"I hope you'll answer honestly."
In the end, Yukino could only plead like a little sister.
"Ara?" Haruno sounded slightly surprised. Then she burst into laughter, as if finding it amusing and a bit indifferent. The keyboard typing truly stopped.
"What's this, sisterly heart-to-heart time? And the awkward Yukino-chan is voluntarily starting it? Waaah, scary, scary~ Is tomorrow the end of the world? I need to tell Mom right away~"
"…" Yukino bit her teeth, cheeks slightly flushed. She fought the urge to hang up. She said coldly: "If you don't talk, this will be the last time I try to communicate normally with you."
"Yo, even using threats? Yukino-chan's grown up too." Haruno didn't care at all. She laughed casually: "Alright, let's share our hearts. Come to think of it, this is something sisters in normal families do, and it's our first time experiencing it."
Yukino retorted sarcastically: "It wouldn't happen if someone's personality wasn't so annoying."
"Same thing. Okay, I'll answer your question." Haruno's tone became slightly more serious: "It used to be the second, but after going through so much, my feelings have long become the first—the desire to be his real girlfriend hasn't changed at all."
"Used to…"
(Why does it sound like they've known each other for a long time and gone through a lot together?)
(This completely contradicts what Tenkuji-kun said at the front door.)
"I'm not lying." As if guessing her sister's confusion, Haruno laughed mischievously: "How you interpret it is up to you~"
"…I understand." Yukino decided to set aside this confusion for now. She made her first conclusion: "Though it's one-sided, your feelings for him are serious."
"Don't talk about one-sided." Haruno's tone was light but carried undeniable firmness.
But this time, Yukino didn't back down as usual. She stared straight ahead with a determined gaze. She countered with a harder tone: "Nee-san, please face reality. The person Tenkuji-kun likes is Yuigahama-san, not you who thinks of yourself as his girlfriend!"
"I don't think he's a jerk who'd be cold to you in front of us but secretly date you behind our backs!"
"Tch…" Haruno's voice suddenly lost emotion. She wasn't angry, just said in a bored tone: "That's it? If that's all you wanted to say, I'll hang up."
"I'm not done!"
Yukino unconsciously gripped her phone tightly. She immediately stated the second core issue. In her excitement, she unconsciously used an interrogative tone:
"Nee-san, since you really like him, why don't you pursue him properly instead of observing his school life through others? Even placing a spy beside him, trying to stop him from dating Yuigahama-san?! Can you only use petty tricks like this?"
This was the first time in her life she questioned someone so sharply.
The slightly unsteady voice still seemed to echo in the empty room. After speaking, Yukino took several deep breaths. She gently bit her lip, suppressing overflowing emotions.
"…"
The phone on the other end suddenly went silent. As if even breathing froze in the spreading cold air. Only the call timer ticked calmly.
Suddenly.
"Hah—aah—"
Haruno let out a heavy sigh, as if expelling all the air from her lungs. She did it with disgust and annoyance.
"You high school girls, really. Being childish isn't enough—why do you always trouble others?"
Yukino said heavily: "Don't change the subject."
"I'm talking about the same thing."
There was no longer any initial gentleness or cheerfulness. Haruno didn't hide her mocking, indifferent attitude: "Yukino-chan, Masuzu-chan said something to you today. And you, believing her words, couldn't wait to come confront your big sister that very night?"
"I can judge if she's making things up. Precisely because I don't blindly believe, I called to ask you."
Yukino answered calmly. She added: "If you're willing to explain, I'm willing to listen. As long as you deny—"
"No need to explain. It's exactly as you think."
Without waiting for Yukino to finish, Haruno admitted it frankly, in a casual tone, like a killer flaunting their crime method:
"I monitor Yuu-chan's school life in various ways. After learning she's involved with Danggo-chan, I decided to send Masuzu-chan—who's also interested in her—to mess things up, so the two wouldn't secretly taste forbidden fruit… I'm still a virgin—how could I let another girl steal Yuu-chan's first time."