Yuu 54

Title: Skipping to Old Age

The girl stood tall, her black hair fluttering, as cold as snow untouched by the sun, like a scene on the street.

Yukinoshita Yukino, Haruno’s younger sister—seeing her in person now, the vague impression in Yuu’s mind became more vivid. He could also understand why she was so popular at school.

Truly cute beyond limits… Cute like a J-class idol.

Sorry, that joke was a bit lame.

Though separated by the car door, Yuu could still catch the faint scent of the girl carried by the breeze, a fragrance completely different from Haruno’s.

“Haaa…”

Hearing Haruno’s clearly sarcastic remark, Yukino only sighed softly, averting her gaze as if unwilling to engage.

“I have other things to do, so I won’t join.”

Haruno whined: “Eh~ Really? The weather’s perfect for a stroll~”

“No, really. And…” Completely unfazed by her topic-shifting tactic, Yukino’s eyes locked onto Yuu, asking bluntly:

“Why is Tenkuji Yuu, a second-year student from Class 2F at our school, in your car during summer vacation?”

That was what puzzled Yukino the most.

She had memorized the names and faces of every student at school but not their backgrounds—so, judging by appearance and aura alone, this unfamiliar male friend didn’t seem like the “type” her sister would approach.

It was hard to imagine how they’d gotten acquainted.

Even during summer vacation, Yuu was sitting in the front passenger seat of her sister’s car, looking very familiar, ready to go out together… The scene was too absurd, making Yukino furrow her brows, various speculations swirling in her mind.

Did Yuu have a business connection with their family? Or…

“Wanna know?” Seeing her frowning, thoughtful expression, Haruno smiled, a glint of mischief in her eyes. “Guess, and there’s a prize~”

Yuu understood—Haruno was using this to shift from defense to offense, pulling her opponent into her rhythm.

He glanced at Yukino, curious about how she’d react.

“Let me say this first.” Her voice clear and soft, Yukino spoke coldly, as if oblivious to the trap. “I haven’t said a single word to Tenkuji-kun, so there’s no way you’d know about me through him.”

She said it so naturally that Yuu didn’t know where to begin commenting.

“Is that so? What a pity.” Shaking her head with double meaning, Haruno’s smile remained bright, delivering sarcastic words in a friendly tone.

“But sadly, your guess is wrong~ Tsk tsk, your focus is still so narrow, Yukino-chan. How about broadening your perspective?”

Yukino’s brows twitched, but for some reason, she didn’t dare meet her gaze, unconsciously looking away, her voice softening slightly.

“I was just guessing the most likely scenario… Who told you to act so unpredictably every day, making it hard for me to trust you?”

“Ugh, isn’t that a bit harsh?”

“Just a coincidence.” Realizing she was at a disadvantage, Yukino quickly changed the subject. “If it has nothing to do with me, then why…”

“Yukino, if you can’t even observe and find the truth, what can you do if you move out?”

Haruno’s eyes were cold, her smile polite but her words merciless.

Yukino’s breath caught, her already pale cheeks losing a hint of color. But soon, she bit her lip to calm herself, clenching her fists at her sides, staring back defiantly.

“Describing a situation isn’t a skill. I moved out, not to instantly know about your relationship with a male schoolmate.”

“Yo, getting sharp-tongued.”

“You haven’t changed a bit, still…”

“After all, I left childish teenage years behind long ago~”

“Skipped straight to old age, huh?”

“Hm? Yukino-chan? What’d you say?”

“…Nothing.”

Caught in the middle of the sisters’ spat, Yuu, who’d been silent for a while, finally got a chance to speak:

“Sorry, the green light’s coming up soon.”

He pointed at the pedestrian signal, only a few seconds left, his face innocent: “If you want to keep arguing, want to continue in the car?”

“…”

Both fell silent simultaneously, staring at each other.

Yukino suddenly spoke: “Tenkuji-kun, you…”

“I’m a relative of Haruno-san’s college friend, just met her through them. Now she’s driving me to meet them. I’m personally very grateful for Haruno-san’s kindness.”

Delivering the line quickly and concisely, Yuu smiled at her, his tone gentle.

“Yukino-san, any other questions?”

“…No.”

Yukino nodded slowly, shifting her gaze from Yuu, then turned and walked away with a blank expression.

As Haruno released the brake, she deliberately shouted after Yukino: “Yukino-chan, really not getting in? Big sis is waiting for you~”

Yukino didn’t look back, her lonely, cold figure blending into the crowd.

The next second, the sedan sped off mercilessly, showing no intention of waiting for her.

Inside the car, Haruno still sighed regretfully: “Phew~ I thought running into Yukino-chan by chance, we could hang out as a trio~ Failed, failed.”

Yuu couldn’t help but comment: “Don’t say things that are obviously the opposite.”

“Oh, caught me?” Haruno winked at him, playfully sticking out her tongue.

“You weren’t even trying to hide it. At least, that’s what I think.”

Yuu glanced at the panda plushie on the dashboard, slightly surprised she still kept it in the car.

“Hm, I thought my acting was pretty good.” Haruno shrugged. As long as her sister didn’t notice anything wrong, that was enough.

Yuu thought for a moment, then suddenly said: “Either way, today’s a rare date for us. You probably don’t want anyone interrupting.”

Haruno looked at him with interest.

“Yukino-chan’s not just anyone. Does Yuu-chan think you’re more important than my super cute little sister?”

Yuu met her gaze.

“I just think you don’t want this rare time of lies to go to waste.”

“…Yeah, exactly.” Not denying it, Haruno smiled, turning her gaze back to the road ahead.

“If Yukino-chan were here, everything I do would feel weird.”

Yuu crossed his arms, leaning back in the soft car seat, speaking naturally:

“So today, let me be the one to keep you company. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you enjoy the fun of dating.”

“Pfft! Hahaha, where’d you get such cheesy lines~ So corny!”

As expected, Haruno’s cheerful laughter echoed again in the slightly cool July weather.

The sky was dark with clouds, but the rain hadn’t fallen yet.