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Main Story 13 - Hiori is in my room

RAW

Together with Hiori, I head to the second floor where my room is. My sister is following behind us though. I wonder if she is planning to stay in my room too. But I'd rather be alone with Hiori. Though I wouldn't really mind it if Hiori says it's okay for her to be with us.

“This is my room.”

“I see. I'm looking forward to seeing what your room looks like.”

“My room is next door. If something happens, you can always run away. If you scream, I'll come flying right away. Well, I don't think Akito will do anything unpleasant to Hiori-chan though.”

That last sentence tells me that she trusts me to some degree. I guess she does. After all, she said earlier that I'm a good younger brother. That makes me happy.

Also, from the way she spoke just now, it seems like my sister is planning to stay in her room.

“I think the same. But, I accept your feelings, Akemi-san.”

“Yeah. Then, I'll be in my room. Enjoy your time, Hiori-chan.”

“Yes. Thank you very much.”

When Hiori gives her thanks, my sister smiles refreshingly. She gives Hiori a small wave and goes back to her room.

“Then, let's go into my room.”

“Yes. Please excuse me.”

I open the door and invite Hiori into my room.

Hiori enters my room and looks around. I cleaned and organized my room last night. Still, I'm worried about what Hiori will think when she sees my room.

After looking around, she looks at me with her usual expressionless face.

“It's a wonderful room.”

“Thank you.”

It may have been flattery, but I was relieved by her words just now.

“Can I look at the bookshelf now?”

“Yeah, sure. I have manga and light novels. I even have a collection of illustrations of my favorite works.”

I go to the bookshelf with Hiori.

Hiori looks at the bookshelf and lets out a “Wow...” Her eyes are shining as she said she wanted to look at my bookshelf.

“At first glance, I think I've read about half of the books. However, there are some that I only know by title, and some that I don't know even by the title.”

“I see. I love rom-coms and romance, so that's what I read the most. I also read slice-of-life, school life, and also mysteries. I also read fantasy, mainly works that have been adapted into anime.”

“I see. Also, I like that the works in a series are arranged properly in the order of volume. The books are the same size on each shelf. It's a beautiful bookshelf.”

Hiori's voice is lively, perhaps because she is pleased by my bookshelf. Also, this is the first time I've been told that my bookshelf is beautiful. People who belong to literature clubs and write novels sure have a different point of view.

“That makes me happy. Sometimes, I put the volumes in the wrong order. Actually, I sorted them out last night.”

“I see. I also end up putting them in the wrong order. Some series don't have volume numbers written on them, so sometimes I don't know which volume the book is.”

“I know right. I had to look at the sleeve of their cover or look it up on my smartphone. It's hard to line them up.”* (T/N: I don’t know what a ‘sleeve’ is, I don’t think it’s the ‘spine’. I googled it, and it turns out it’s the extension of the cover, the one folded into the book.)

“Isn’t it?”

I never thought I would be able to relate to Hiori on these topics. It’s surprising because the image I have of hers is, if I have to borrow her words, of a beautiful bookshelf. It makes me feel closer to her.

“Ah, you have the [Romcom Where The Childhood Friend Will Definitely Win]. They’re making an anime of it right now, aren't they?”

“They are. These are the original light novels the anime will be based on.”

The abbreviated name is [Osakatsu]. This series is one of my favorites among the works that were released in the past year or two.

* (T/N: parody of ‘OsaMake’. Google it if you’re interested.)

“There was a member of the literature club who once told me that it was interesting. I was interested in it because it was a rom-com, but I hadn't even bought the first volume yet. And I still have a pile of books I haven’t read at home...”

“I see. This series has a sweet atmosphere and romance strategy. The heroines are also really cute, since Hiori likes romance works, you might like this one. If you want to read it, I'll lend you the first volume.”

“Is it okay?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you very much. Then, I'll borrow Volume 1.”

Hiori takes out the first volume of Osakatsu from the bookshelf and puts it in her shoulder bag. I'd be happy if Hiori finds it interesting.

“That's right. I'll bring something to drink. What would you like, Hiori? We have coffee, black tea, barley tea, and things like that.”

“Then... could I have an iced tea, please?”

“All right. Then, I'll go get it ready. If there's a book on the bookshelf that interests you or one you want to read, you can go ahead and read it. You can place your things anywhere.”

“I understand.”

I leave my room for a short while.

I go down to the first floor and make iced tea for two in the kitchen. When she ordered iced coffee at the store, she put a syrup in it, so I thought I'd make tea with sugar.

Also, my mother bought some chocolate marshmallows, so I serve them in a wooden bowl.

I put the mug of iced tea and the bowl of marshmallows on a tray and head back to my room.

“Sorry for the wait, Hiori.”

“Welcome back, Akito-san.”

Ooh... Hiori’s “Welcome back” really strikes home. This situation where Hiori is in my room really makes me feel happy. Also, the air in the room is cleaner and smells better than before. Isn’t Hiori letting out negative ions?

In Hiori's hand is an open book. A quick glance only reveals that it is a manga. I put the tray on the table, wondering what manga she is reading.

“Hiori. What manga are you reading?”

“It’s the first volume of Miyabi-sama. There were some interesting works on the bookshelf. But, I just bought its latest volume and read it yesterday, and I talked about Miyabi-sama with Akito-san. That made me want to read the first volume since it has been a while.”

“I see. I said it in the message last night, but I read the latest volume too. It was interesting, wasn't it?”

“It was, wasn't it? I'd like to discuss my impressions with Akito-san later, while looking at the latest volume.”

“I left it on the table because I thought it would be a good topic of conversation. I brought the iced tea and some marshmallows. My mother bought the marshmallows. It's chocolate marshmallow though, does Hiori like it?”

“I like both marshmallows and chocolate. So I'm happy. I'll have some right away.”

Hiori put Miyabi-sama Volume 1 back to the bookshelf and comes over to the table. However,

“Kya-!”

Her foot slips on the cushion and Hiori is about to fall forward.

I quickly move towards Hiori and catch her in my arms as she falls. This causes her face to be buried in my chest.

“A-are you okay? Hiori.”

When I call out to Hiori, she slowly moves her face away from my chest and looks up at me.

“Yes. I'm okay. Thanks to Akito-san, I didn't fall. Thank you very much.”

“No, no.”

I'm glad Hioki isn’t injured.

Then, when I am completely relieved, I finally realize the current situation.

I... I'm hugging Hiori right now. I can feel Hiori's warmth and softness in a way that is incomparable to when I held her hand. I can also feel the sweet smell of shampoo coming from Hiori’s hair. Also, by hugging her, I realized how slender Hiori's body is.

As I continue hugging Hiori, my body gradually becomes hotter and hotter. Her heartbeat is also becoming faster. Is it just my imagination that I can feel the strong heat and heartbeat coming from Hiori's body?

“...Wait, how long am I going to hug you?! Sorry, Hiori!”

I quickly release my hug from Hiori and take a step back.

Hiori's cheeks turn slightly red and she keeps glancing at me. She looks cute like that too.

“P-please don't worry about it. It was because I almost fell down. Besides, hugging Akito-san is... it doesn’t feel bad.”

“...I'm glad you said that.”

I pat my chest in relief.

Those words just now might be a consideration for me. Still, Hiori's words that it doesn’t feel bad resonated sweetly throughout my body.

────

(T/N: Seems like daily release is too stressful for me, so I’ll decrease it to 6 releases per week. With Monday being the day with no release.)

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