With Fuyu offering up the space that she opened up, I had no other choice anymore but to cave in. It would be more unnatural if I rejected it, right? Besides, whichever the case, the mischievous little girl would have something to say about it.

“Fufu~ I get it. Onee-chan can’t bear seeing Ruki-nii-san. And Ruki-nii-san cannot reject Onee-chan’s kindness.” Snickering like she found the situation very amusing, Fubuki leered at both of us, uncharacteristic of someone her age.

Those who heard her and possibly watched the development on our side also couldn’t help but giggle at her comment.

Really, she had a knack for teasing her elders, huh? I wonder where she took that trait from. Their mother? Possibly. And Fuyu failed to inherit the same trait.

“Are you comfortable, Yuuki-san? Tell me if I’m squeezing on your side too much.”

Ignoring the little girl’s comment, I addressed her sister next to me. Partly to help her wave off Fubuki’s teasing and also to make sure that everything’s fine. Because even though she opened up a space for me, it was small enough that I couldn’t help but push against her.

Successful at my attempt, I saw the girl quickly shake her head, indicating that there was no need for me to worry. A second later, her mellow voice that’s probably intended to be a whisper reached my ears.

“N-no. This is fine... I apologize for leaning on you like this though...”

Right. Because we had to make do with what little space we had, Fuyu eventually slid forward, allowing me to lean on the backrest. In this way, Fuyu either had to keep sitting upright or lean back on my shoulder or at least a fourth of my body. Naturally, with how shaky the train is, it would be tiring for her to continue sitting upright.

There’s another problem though. Given the situation, I either had to let my arm be crushed by her, awkwardly put it in front of me, or stretch it across her back. While the second option was the most viable, Fubuki who was really enjoying this grabbed my wrist again to stop me from pulling it out behind her sister.

It’s possible to forcibly retract it but when I saw the girl winking at me as though she’s encouraging me to make a move on her sister, I somehow got possessed by my old ways... Making use of this chance.

Much to Fuyu’s surprise, my hand eventually hooked around her waist albeit softly and without proper grip. That’s the least I could do to save her from falling back into shame again. But well, no matter how we wind this up, it’s still me taking advantage of our situation.

At this point, Fubuki already let go of my wrist but as though she found another path to attack, her lips curved up into a grim smile before acting like she was cringing at what she saw and heard.

“Che! Ruki-nii-san, Onee-chan, you sounded like a shy couple who had just started going out. It sounds stale and boring.”

“Fubuki? Where did you learn those words from? Stop causing mischief!”

“Onee-chan, I’m your cupid today. Go on. I won’t tell mom.”

“This little...”

As Fuyu watched her little sister continue with her tirades, the girl could only exercise restraint by clenching her fist. In the end, she opted to stop there, ignoring her sister’s words from then on.

When our gazes met, she shyly lowered her head before saying, “D-don’t mind Fubuki, Onoda-kun.”

“I know. It must be hard for you, huh?”

“Un. You said it. She seems to believe that I... like you and no amount of explaining can change that belief. Look, she even has you do this.”

There’s a weird pause in the middle but I guess I could understand why she found it difficult to say. In any case, perhaps to support her claim, she also pointed at my hand lingering on her waist. No matter how much she tried to control herself, her exposed ear still took on a crimson color, indicating what she was feeling at the moment.

There’s no doubt, with Akane and her sister’s unrelenting push for her to act upon her interest in me, her defenses had already begun to crumble. The other day when she unconsciously blurted out ‘I love this’ when I was patting her head was also a sign of it.

It’s actually already up to me whether to join in their cause to siege that weakened wall or continue like this, act like I was on her side but in truth, I’m also slowly hammering against her defense.

For now, I decided to do the latter...

“Uh. I’m partly responsible for this. I didn’t stop her when she grabbed my wrist. If you’re uncomfortable with this, I can pull my hand back.”

“No. It’s fine. Look at her acting like she’s not listening to us. If you do pull that back, she’s just going to come up with another way to annoy us.”

“Hey. I’m not annoying you, Onee-chan. I’m your cute little cupid. Fufu~” Along with an act of pulling an imaginary bow and arrow, Fubuki interjected, proving that she’s really listening to us.

Shaking our heads at her little sister’s display, Fuyu and I could only force a smile as we watched her act like an innocent girl, hugging her sister’s arm.

“Yeah. You’re right. I guess you have to bear with me like this...”

A while later, I shrugged and continued our conversation. At the same time as that, my fingers curled a little, pressing them on her sensitive waist.

Fuyu’s body squirmed a little as she glanced down at it. She then looked up at me, her eyes narrowing a little forming a questioning gaze.

My response? I pursed my lips together before stretching them a little to look like I was showing a guilty smile.

That made her raise an eyebrow.

I thought she was going to ask me to remove my hand or, at least, ease up by pressing on her waist. However, that didn’t arrive.

Instead, Fuyu inched closer to me, enough for her to push her lips close to my ears. And while giggling softly, she whispered, “I see that you’re also mischievous, Onoda-kun. Mind if I do the same?”

Or so she asked. However, she didn’t wait for my response. A second after that, Fuyu already returned to just leaning on my shoulder before expertly changing our topic. Whether it was an escape attempt or just her way to put an end to it, I had no idea.

In any case, given that she already created a way out for us, I also stepped into it.

“By the way, you’re out at night. Was it that part-time job?”

“Mhm. Did Akane tell you?”

“She mentioned it once to me. That you’re trying out a lot of things because you cannot choose which path to take. I wonder... Is tennis going to be another possible path for you?”

Ah. It’s not a secret anyway but obviously, it’s better for fewer people to know about it. If I had to guess... telling Fuyu about my part-time job was another way for Akane to cultivate her best friend’s interest in me.

“Tennis, huh? We’ll see after I try, I guess? I’m a complete newbie.”

“Yet, you challenged me. I admire that guts, Onoda-kun but please don’t look down on it as a sport or as a path you can take. Even if it looks easy on the outside since even middle schoolers can play it in their PE classes, it’s a tall mountain to climb if you want to reach the level of a professional.”

Yeah. I could sense the passion from those words. I could only imagine the effort she’s putting into every practice and every match. It’s truly not something to belittle.

“I know. That’s why when the day for our game arrives, I’ll do my best to put up a fight against you. Please don’t hold back against me.”

“You bet... But Onoda-kun, if you’re interested, don’t hesitate to ask me... I might not be good at coaching someone but I can give you tips.”

“I’ll remember that. Also, Yuuki-san, good luck with your match this Monday. I’ll be cheering for you.”

Fuyu nodded followed by her lips curving up into a satisfied smile. Then, she leaned in once again to whisper something, “Thank you for the encouragement, Onoda-kun. I won’t let you down.”

Ending our conversation at that, Fubuki who was silent throughout our conversation was happily clapping her hands.

Unfortunately, the train soon stopped at their destination. Although I could offer to walk them home, Fuyu beat me by bidding me farewell as she walked out of the train car along with her little sister.

Fubuki could only glance back to wave at me, which I answered with a smile. As for Fuyu, only when the doors closed again did she turn around to see me off.

As the train departed from that station, my eyes followed the two until they disappeared from my vision.

It’s a short encounter yet very fruitful.