Non Animadverto

When I was leaving the market, I stopped upon recognizing the silhouette of an elderly woman.

"Ah, Hikaru!"

"Mrs. Nakamura!"

Sakura's mother was undoubtedly the most influential source of her daughter's features. Looking at her was like seeing an older version of Sakura.

"How are you, Hikaru?"

"I'm doing well, and you?"

"Haha, I'm doing well too. How's your mother?"

"She's doing well too."

"Send her my thanks for the oranges from the other day."

"I will! Are you heading home?"

"Yes, I'm just waiting for the supermarket drone to organize my groceries."

"Do you need help unloading them?"

"Oh, that's so kind of you. Normally, Sakura helps me, but she's a bit busy today. Your help would be most welcome."

"No problem at all!"

Our family had always had a good relationship with Sakura's family. Mrs. Nakamura and my mother were best friends and the neighborhood's go-to gossip duo, while our fathers were even drinking buddies.

I suppose I'm like a second son to the Nakamuras, just as Sakura is a second daughter to my parents. I also suspect our families secretly try to pair us up as a couple, considering the occasional comments like, "Don't you think Sakura would make a great girlfriend?" from my dad and mom.

Unfortunately for them, I don’t have any romantic feelings for Sakura, and I'm certain she doesn’t see me that way either. The girl I have feelings for is Kaede, and it’s thanks to Sakura that I’ve been able to get closer to her.

The Nakamura household was just as modest as ours, and I already had a good idea of where every room was from the countless times I played here with Sakura when we were younger.

As soon as we entered, Mrs. Nakamura warned me:

"Remember I said Sakura was busy?"

"Yes."

"Well, she’s either in the living room or her room with her school friends. They’re having a sleepover today."

Heh?! A sleepover?! With school friends?! Doesn’t that mean…?!

Sure, Sakura has lots of friends in our class, but as Kobayashi pointed out, the one she’s been closest with recently is Kaede!

Does that mean there’s a chance I could see Kaede in pajamas?! Does she wear one of those kigurumis? Girls our age don’t usually wear things like that, but a panda or dinosaur kigurumi suits Kaede’s style perfectly!

Stay calm, Hikaru. Stay cool and rational. You can’t jump to conclusions like this! And you definitely shouldn’t objectify Kaede like that. Just because I have a chance to see her in more “intimate” clothing doesn’t mean I should exploit the situation.

That’s definitely not the path I want to take in my romantic journey with her!

Now that I’ve recovered my senses and my temporary euphoria has passed, I can finally respond to Mrs. Nakamura appropriately.

"A sleepover?... That sounds fun."

"Oh, you compose yourself so well, Hikaru!"

Yeah, no matter how hard I try, I can’t fool someone who’s known me for so long.

"Shouldn’t you go say hi to them? They’re your classmates too."

"It’s not like I talk to the other girls in our class… The only ones I talk to are Sakura and Kaede."

"Kaede? If I’m not mistaken, that’s one of the names Sakura mentioned."

So they really are here! Wait, maybe she’s just mistaken or trying to convince me to go.

"A-Are you sure?"

"Kaede is the Brazilian girl, right? I was so curious when Sakura mentioned having an international guest."

"N-No, that’s Nana…"

Now I was completely sure—the sleepover guests were Kaede, Nana, and probably Tsuchiya.

"So, are you going, or should I call Sakura here?"

"Maybe later. Let me help you unload the groceries first."

"Oh, such a helpful young man!"

I helped Mrs. Nakamura unload her groceries like a ninja on a covert mission, trying my best to be as quick and quiet as possible.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to see them; I just wasn’t mentally prepared for the situation. The sooner I could leave, the better for me—and besides, I still had my own groceries to unload at home.

But the mistake I made was being too helpful to Mrs. Nakamura, because just as I was about to leave, she insisted:

"Are you sure you don’t want to go say hi to them?"

Mrs. Nakamura, you’re starting to sound like the serpent tempting Eve with an apple. It’s not like I’d see anything inappropriate, but the possibility is what terrifies me.

But on second thought, this might be a good chance to reconnect with Kaede. I have a legitimate reason to be here; I’m not doing anything wrong—Sakura’s mom is the one insisting.

"Alright, but just a quick 'hi.' I need to unload my groceries at home, and I don’t want to interrupt their sleepover."

Before stepping into the living room, I tried to compose myself and mentally prepare for the encounter, but when I entered, there was no one there—just traces of their presence.

This is bad. This means they’re in the bedroom, which increases the odds in my favor.

Is it wrong if I go up to greet them? Nothing weird will happen if I just knock on the door, right? If Kaede doesn’t want to see me, she can simply not come out of the room.

Once again, my mind started spinning unnecessarily, and before I knew it, I was almost at Kaede’s door.

The door was slightly open.

Anxiety was making my heart leap into my throat.

I leaned closer to the door, pressing my ear to it, hoping to catch what was going on inside. My intention was simply to avoid any embarrassing situations, but I ended up overhearing a critical moment in the conversation.

"So, Kaede, who do you like?" Nana asked.

"Huh? How do you not know, Nana? She told us last week." Tsuchiya replied.

"She did? Ahhh… You’re leaving me out!"

"It’s okay, Nana, I don’t mind saying it again.
The guy I like is Hikaru…"

I WIN! The victory is mine! I knew fate would bring us together! Kaede, I won’t let you down! I’ll be the best boyfriend on Earth!

"…and Minato."

Huh?

"Huh?"

"Eh…"

"She really said it."

Inside the room, Kaede was flustered, shaking her head in embarrassment.

"Nana, listen! I know it’s strange, but, but that’s just how I feel. I don’t know what to say—I like them both."

Did I lose? No, it’s a tie?

Wait, is that even possible? Can girls do that?

In mere seconds, I went from the highest happiness of my life to utter confusion.

Kaede likes me AND Minato? Is it because we didn’t settle the winner in that fight? No, Kaede wouldn’t choose someone over something so dumb.

Still, what am I supposed to do? How can I face Kaede knowing this? What should I say to her? "Choose me"? Honestly, the thing I’d most like to say right now is…

"That’s unacceptable, Kaede!"

"Calm down, Nana. There’s no need to yell at her."

"It’s fine, Hinata.
I don’t think it’s normal to like two people at the same time either."

"That’s not the point!"

A collective "Huh?" followed from the others.

"The problem isn’t that you like two people!
The problem is that one of the names you said is the same as Sakura's!"

…

What? One of the names Kaede mentioned is the same as Sakura’s crush?

Logically speaking, that would be me, right? We’re closer, and I’ve never seen her interact much with Okada. 

But that can’t be! That’s impossible, right?

Wait, let’s think rationally—hasn’t Sakura been getting closer to Kaede recently? Maybe she’s just trying to take advantage of Kaede to finally approach Okada?

Yes, that has to be it! There’s no way Sakura likes me. She must like Okada—that’s the only explanation!

But seriously, Sakura, why would you pick that loser? I’m a little disappointed in you.

I decided to retreat quietly before being caught eavesdropping on their conversation—it would definitely cause me a lot of trouble.

When I reached the front door, I ran into Mrs. Nakamura again.

"So, how did it go?"

"Ah, sorry, I didn’t have the courage to go into Sakura’s room. They must be doing, uh, ‘girl stuff,’ right?"

"Hohoho, you can be so shy sometimes, Hikaru.
Sakura!!"

"Huh?!
No, no need to call them!"

"I’m coming," came a voice from the stairs.

Soon, Sakura appeared, descending along with Kaede. Both were dressed in animal kigurumis, as if fate was punishing me for overhearing what I shouldn’t have.

"How was the market, Mom? —
Hikaru?!"

Sakura’s eyes practically bulged out of her head when she saw me.

"Hikaru?"

Kaede peeked at me from behind Sakura.

"Hikaru helped me unload the groceries. I thought it’d be nice for him to say hi to you girls."

"H-Hello…"

I didn’t know where to hide my face, but I felt happy when Kaede responded.

"Hi… Hikaru."

"Hi, Hikaru.
Satisfied, Mom? I’m sure this was your idea."

"Hohoho! I won’t deny it!"

"I’m sorry about that, Hikaru."

"It’s no problem. I’m glad to see you girls."

"Well, as you can see, we’re in the middle of something right now…"

"Sorry for the interruption…"

"It’s fine. I know who’s at fault here."

"Sakura, I think I’ll go grab the cups…"

Kaede seemed to be trying to escape the situation.

"Kaede! I…
I’m sorry about what happened."

Kaede tried to maintain a cool demeanor but ended up letting a smile slip.

"It’s okay."

I smiled back. I felt like I was finally being forgiven for messing up earlier.

"Well, I’m heading out…"

The three of them said goodbye and I finally went back home.

While I unloaded the groceries, my mom couldn’t help but notice the smile plastered across my face.

"Hikaru, did something good happen?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that…"

"Is romance finally blooming in your youth?"

"M-Mom!… But you’re not entirely wrong."

"Is it Sakura? Are you two finally together?"

"No! Mom, stop saying nonsense.
Sakura would never be interested in me. You’re all just imagining things."

(…)

Meanwhile, Kaede and Sakura were having a private conversation.

"Sakura, are you sure it’s okay?"

"Yes, there’s no point telling him when I know the one he likes is you."

"But I won’t be here for long. After all, I’m already dead. Sooner or later, you’ll have to face him. I’m sorry for being a burden to you both."

"Kaede, even if you weren’t dead, I still think he would never believe me…
That the one I like is him—Hikaru."