Step-up

Shinomiya's PoV

I have a new friend.

Her name is Misaki Tomoe.

She.... I think she is a unique person.

Regarding her appearance, she looks very beautiful. It was an honest thing that no one could dispute, even if we were in our early teens. Her long silky brown hair, clear brown eyes, and small pink lips add to her attractiveness as a woman. In fact, She is very charming when She displays a sincere smile that makes the people in the cafeteria surprised. But she doesn't seem to understand how she attracts attention.

Many people want to be close to her, but the way she talks and interacts seems to want them to stay away from her. So, slowly the people who talk to her become few to none.

But my close friend, Sakura. Keep trying to talk to her along with her cheerful nature until she finally becomes her friend. Then Sakura asked me to make a friendship relation with Misaki too, so I just went along.

And the fact that I discovered while befriending her is, that she has trouble communicating with strangers or new people. That's why I always see her looking nervous when she talks.

With her permission, we explained to everyone in the class so that the misunderstanding ended and many started talking to her again. But she looks really shy and that expression is really cute, which makes her even more likable. She also seems to look very happy, and grateful from the bottom of her heart.

Another amazing thing I found about Misaki is that she also has great cooking skills. Even though the food looks simple, the taste is really delicious. It was like she had been cooking on the kitchen table for years. Honestly, my mother's cooking was even lost to her as Sakura said.

Her intelligence is also beyond my expectations. She was able to teach Sakura, who was difficult to learn in one go which made her understand. There was also an incident where Sensei saw Misaki not paying attention to his lessons, which made him angry and asked him to answer questions. However, Misaki casually answered it and it was correct. It didn't stop there, Sensei kept asking him difficult questions that even I didn't understand to corner Misaki, but Misaki herself still answered them casually until Sensei gave up on bothering her, and this incident continued during class hours until the class ended. Everyone in the class was amazed at Misaki's intelligence.

I wondered how she could be that smart, but she said she only learned it from reading books. I wouldn't believe such a simple explanation, but judging by her innocent eyes, it was clear that she wasn't lying.

I became more and more attracted to this person. But time can't stop and now we have to go home from school, and I want to talk to her more.

I can't wait to see her again tomorrow.

--

The next morning, at school. As usual, I found Misaki sitting and reading a book in her chair. Her figure calmly turning each page of the book gave off the impression of being highly intellectual.

"Good morning, Saki-chan."

My regards to her.

She immediately noticed my presence and closed her book before returning my greeting with a smile.

"Good morning too, Shino-chan."

The smile she showed was not like yesterday which was forced or awkward. This time she smiled so naturally and make me impressed with her beauty.

That smile stunned me for a moment.

"Diligent as usual, eh."

I said when I see her book.

Almost every morning I found her reading a different book. It made me think, did she finish reading that book in just one day? I mean, the book she's carrying isn't like just a few thousand pages.

"It's just a hobby."

She replied with a bitter smile.

I just noticed that she was wearing gloves when I see her, this is weird because it's only spring. In the morning it's also not so cold that it doesn't require you to use it. But it's a personal taste when it comes to dressing, so let's not care about why she wears it.

"Your gloves are so cute."

I said pointing to it. That's my honest opinion, with the basic wool and pink base color on the bottom, and the combination of rainbow colors on the top to the fingers making it look very cute, plus accessories in the form of a cat doll add a cute impression.

"Really? This was my previous birthday present from Onii-chan, but I've never used it, so it's better to use it instead of lying around."

So that's the reason, huh. But I feel there is another reason for her to wear it too.

After that conversation, Misaki looked behind me like she was looking for someone before looking at me and saying.

"By the way, I haven't seen Sakura—"

"Good morning!!!"

Just as Misaki was about to ask where Sakura is, the person in question had come and immediately greeted us with good morning in a loud voice that took us by surprise. It's her nature to always be cheerful. But at least don't surprise us with your sudden existence.

"Sakura, don't take us by surprise like that, got it. It almost broke our hearts."

I said while pulling her cheek as punishment.

"Ouch, ouch ouch! S-Sorry for doing that. Now stop pinching my cheeks, it hurts!"

Sakura had a half-crying face as I continued to tug at her cheeks. I stopped immediately after she apologized and then looked at me with teary eyes while he stroked his cheek which had red marks.

"Never mind Shino-chan, don't overdo it."

Misaki said to interrupt us.

Sakura immediately run to Misaki and complained with teary eyes.

"Uuu, help me Saki-chan. Shino-chan is bullying me."

She said with tears in her eyes.

Wait, since when did this become my fault?

"Yosh, yosh, calm down. Shino-chan only did it because she didn't want Sakura to be naughty. So stop doing things like that, understand?"

Said Misaki while stroking her head.

"Mmm, fine."

Sakura replied. She kept asking her head to keep Misaki eluted because she was comfortable with it, so Misaki did it for a while.

"Ehehe."

Sakura looked really comfortable when her head was constantly stroked while laughing weirdly, while Misaki looked like a mother comforting her child while doing that.

It seemed Misaki had gotten quite used to our presence around her. That is a good development.

Sakura looked at me with eyes that wanted something when she said "Shino-chan has to treat me to a drink to make me forgive you."

"Don't take advantage of your own mistakes!"

With that, I pinched Sakura's cheeks again, which made the previous incident repeat itself.

"Uwaaa, Shino-chan did it again."

"Yosh, yosh, don't cry anymore."

"By the way Misaki..."

"Yes?"

Misaki tilted her head when she saw Sakura's words cut off.

"Your gloves are so cute! Can I see?!"

"!!"

And Sakura returned to her previous mood when she noticed Misaki's glove and held her right hand. She can indeed regulate her emotions quickly, sometimes I admire how she can do it so fast. However, when I saw Misaki's expression frown as her right hand was held, I knew that she was hiding something.

"S-Sure, before that can you stop holding my right hand."

Said Misaki while biting her lip. There's something strange about Misaki's behavior when her hand is touched like she's in pain and Sakura doesn't pay attention, until I tell her to stop.

We talked about a few things after that, and slowly the students started entering the school as class was about to start.

"Good morning, Tomoe-san."

"Good morning, Tomoe-san."

"......Good morning."

"Nice gloves."

"...Thank you."

.......

Everyone started greeting us including Misaki. It seems after yesterday's incident, people have started to accept her situation and are trying to get close to her slowly to not annoy her.

They all speak lightly to her before leaving her alone with us.

Not long after, class started.

We immediately took our seats, and the lesson started when sensei come. From the other side, I noticed Misaki who quite rarely used her right arm when writing or do other things and prefers the left one instead of her dominant arm. Now that makes me curious, let's ask later what happened.

"Shino-chan, Sakura-chan, want to come with me for lunch on the balcony? I made something for you."

After class, Misaki took Sakura and me to eat on the school roof. Aren't we forbidden to go there?

But Misaki's eyes looked enthusiastic when she invited us, so we couldn't refuse.

"Nee, Misaki. Are we allowed to go there?"

Sakura and I had doubtful faces as we reached the door leading to the balcony.

"Don't worry, our friend has special permission here, so we won't be punished."

Misaki said casually to calm us down.

I'm getting a little worried about her friend's origins, could it be that her friends are a thug kid who troubles the teacher?

But my imagination was too much, because when Misaki opened the door, what we saw was very different from what we expected.

"Wow..."

I was involuntarily amazed.

There is a minimalist garden and a greenhouse in the middle. Many ornamental plants are planted and hung around and in the greenhouse, featuring a beautiful minimalist garden design.

Wait, how can there be such a thing at school!!? I didn't imagine there would be a greenhouse and mini garden here!

"Woah! Misaki, this place is so cool!"

Sakura, without thinking about the strangeness, screamed in admiration as she looked around with sparkling eyes.

"Yo, Misaki. You're so late, I'm already very hungry, you know."

From inside the greenhouse, came out a man with a slightly thin hairstyle. Is he Misaki's brother? I don't think so, I heard that Misaki's older brother has black and rather long hair, while the person in front of me has blonde hair and is a bit short.

"Endou, if you want lunch at least get your maid to make it for you."

Misaki replied with her eyes half-closed. It seems that their relationship is quite close from how they call each other and talk.

The person called Endou immediately noticed our presence with a bit of surprise before calming down again and smiling.

"Hello ladies, my name is Endou Hikaru. Sorry for not paying attention to you before, but before that, what was your relationship with Misaki?"

His mouth formed a smile, but his eyes were not at all.

I suddenly feel nervous at being looked at like that, it seems he wants to know if we are friends with Misaki with ulterior motives or not.

"Hmm? What's this?"

While Misaki wasn't paying attention to Endou's expression and looked confused by how we had become silent, on other hand Sakura was still looking around in amazement and didn't notice the change in mood at all. Really, am I the only one aware of this?

The atmosphere became tense when Endou continued to stare at us like that.

"If you dare make Misaki—"

Bonk

-Kuhakk!!

But that soon changed when someone hit him hard on the head from behind, sending him directly onto the floor. And really, that punch looked like it could split rock. Is that person's head okay after being hit like that?

"Don't bully our juniors with that look of yours, after all, they are Misaki's friends so leave them here."

Standing next to the sprawling Endou, a man with slightly long black hair formed slightly bangs. Her bright black eyes followed by a refreshing smile made him look even cuter, he also looked taller than normal middle school students which made him seem more reliable.

From how he looked, I seemed to be able to guess who this was.

"Ugh... At least let me look cool in front of them."

Endou stood back up as if nothing had happened before. Is he human?

"All you do is intimidate them. Look cool? With your comedian-like face, you want to look cool?"

"So disrespectful!"

By how they talked it could be seen that they were close friends. But is this normal? Misaki just sighed like that had happened many times.

"Sorry for the rudeness my friend, but he is like this. By the way, I haven't introduced myself yet, my name is Kazuto Tomoe, Misaki's older brother. Nice to meet you."

He made the introduction with a warm smile that could melt any girl who saw him.

And as I expected, he is Misaki's older brother. Rumors that he was a handsome man were true.

"Ohh! So you're Misaki's older brother that I hear about a lot! Is it true that you can get three points continuously when playing basketball?"

Sakura, with her personality that can be close to anyone, asked about the truth of the previous rumors we discussed yesterday.

"Haha, it's just an exaggerated rumor. I could only score a few but people are overreacting."

"Ehh, I see. I thought it happened. Ohh, and I forgot to introduce myself.

My name is Sakura Hideyoshi, I'm Misaki's classmate. And your sister is really cute! Can I take her home?"

Sakura hugged Misaki tightly like she was a teddy bear she got from a gift. Misaki felt uncomfortable about it, but she just let her do it.

"And my name is Shinomiya Sasami. Maybe we're just friends, but I hope it lasts forever."

Said I to introduce myself.

"Somehow this feels embarrassing...."

From side, I heard Misaki's incoherent muttering with an embarrassed face.

Meanwhile, her older brother Misaki curled a smile on her mouth. His expression stated that he was feeling happy.

"Misaki hasn't had any friends besides us, and this is the first time she's brought her own. As her older brother, I feel happy about that, so I hope you guys can take good care of her."

There was a subtle atmosphere between us after that conversation.

"I don't know why, but I feel like I'm being like a side character here..."

Ignoring the complaints of Endou who was in the corner with a gloomy face, we immediately entered the greenhouse and sat on the chairs that

had been provided.

"The atmosphere here is really good."

Sakura was still looking around with amazed eyes.

"It's hard to believe that there's a greenhouse here."

I replied with a bitter smile.

“Hehe, thank me for creating this place.”

Endou snorted proudly when he puffed out his chest.

"Yeah, Endou is a madman who can do anything with his money, so squeeze his money out of him as you want in the future."

"Yes, that's right. Apart from his money, there's nothing else useful in his life."

"Ugh...."

But the response from Misaki and Kazuto made his pride shatter into smithereens.

"Don't worry senpai, we will make good use of you!"

Sakura on the other hand tried to encourage Endou with her spirit

.

"...I don't know why I feel like I'm being toyed with, but thanks for the words."

After that, without further ado, we started lunch. Each of us brought out a bento and ate in a pleasant atmosphere.

"May I exchange your sushi for my tempura?"

"Sure!"

We share and exchange food with others.

But strangely Misaki never touched her food.

"Onii-chan, eat your peppers properly!"

"...But I don't like it."

"Don't be picky and eat! And Endou, don't steal food from me, you have your own!"

"But you haven't eaten it yourself..."

"It is because-

.... no, forget it."

On the other hand, Misaki was scolding her sister for not wanting to eat the food she didn't like and was yelling at Endou who was on her own. I'm a little confused as to who is actually the big brother here. In here, she looks more alive than when we were in class. It was as if the shackles that bound her nature were released. It showed how familiar she was here.

"I want to be treated like that by Saki-chan..."

And Sakura seems envious of how they were treated by Misaki. She wants to be close to her, huh.

"Come to think of it, indeed, Saki-chan has never touched her bento, are you not feeling well?"

Misaki and Kazuto immediately looked at me who asked.

"You didn't say anything to them?"

Kazuto looked straight into Misaki's eyes when he asked.

"Uhh... Should I say it?"

But his question was answered with a question that made Kazuto sigh.

"Hah, this stupid little sister."

After that, Kazuto looked at me and asked.

"Shinomiya-chan... May I call you that? If I may ask, is it when you see Misaki that she acts strangely?"

Hearing that question, I tried to remember the times when I spoke or looked at Misaki.

"Umm, she uses his left hand more often than his right hand which is more dominant these days. What is it?"

Hearing that, Misaki had a surprised look and wondered why I knew that. Wasn't it obvious since Sakura held his right hand?

"Ehh, did I miss something?"

Beside me, Sakura had a stupid face for not knowing anything.

"So, did Saki-chan's right arm get injured or something?"

That's all I can deduce from her movements.

Kazuto nodded in response and looked to Misaki to explain further.

Seeing that, Misaki sighed and looked like she didn't want to explain, but did it anyway.

"..Well, I accidentally scratch my fingers last night because I was quite exhausted while making dinner."

Misaki said with a light laugh and took off her gloves.

On her fingers were some plaster which indicated that there were places where she had been injured.

"And it seems that one of my wounds swelled up a little because it was too late to treat it until today it hurts more than last night."

Misaki pointed at the part that looked a little purple and a bit large between her fingers.

"That must be very painful, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Endou who saw that had a worried face.

"Haha, at least there's a plus side where Onii-chan helps me cook. Even if it's just cutting but it's already good."

Misaki replied while showing the results of some of her brother's cuts. There are many uneven parts in the vegetable pieces. It was clear that the person who did it was a beginner.

"Hmm, this explains why today's slice of Misaki's cooking is uneven and looks untidy. This must be Kazuto's job."

Said Endou when he looked at the food he took from Misaki's lunchbox.

"Hooh, do you want to try how I use a knife?"

Kazuto asked with a cold smile when he took out the kitchen knife he had taken out of nowhere.

"I'm going to the toilet first!"

Endou immediately fled towards the door.

"Wait for your groceries!"

And was followed by Kazuto who was holding a knife.

"..."

Now this place became silent after they disappeared.

"Are they always like that?"

I asked Misaki.

"Hahaha, those two are comedians together and sorry if your expectations of my Onii-chan are crushed. Ohh, by the way, what Onii-chan was holding was a toy knife so don't worry too much about Endou's safety."

Misaki spoke casually to me while laughing at her brother's behavior with Endou.

"Not really. Your brother and Endou's nature can make people familiar with their antics."

I answered. Then Misaki replied with her trademark laugh.

"Hahaha, that's true."

"By the way, why has Sakura-chan been keeping quiet and looking down. Are you sick?"

Misaki looked at Sakura who had been silent since hearing about the traces of the wound on Misaki's hand.

But instead of speaking, Sakura immediately stood up from her seat and jumped at Misaki, and hugged her.

"U-Uwoohh! Calm down Sakura-chan, I could fall off my seat if you suddenly do it."

Of course, that made Misaki slightly startled and almost lost her balance from her seat. She was about to flick her forehead in punishment but canceled it when he saw Sakura's teary eyes.

"Uwahhh, Saki-chan I'm sorry for not paying attention. Y-Your hand hurt a-and I held it quite tightly in class earlier. Please don't hate me for that!"

Sakura crying. It seemed that she felt guilty for the previous incident. Sakura is indeed the type of person who wants to be close friends. For example, she often invites her to talk to her friends or attracts her attention in her own way. And she wanted to be friends with Misaki from the first time she saw her.

"Gosh, that's the only problem huh."

Misaki replied with a smile.

"If I hate Sakura-chan just because of that, do I deserve to be called a friend? Besides, it's my fault for hiding my wound from you guys, so you don't have to apologize."

Misaki patted Sakura's head to comfort her. Hearing that she wasn't hated also calmed Sakura down before Misaki finally said something that made her tense up.

"But there will be punishment for that."

Misaki said while grinning widely as she let go of her hug. Even though she smiled like a bad person, the charm she displayed could make people's hearts fall when anyone saw her.

"P-Punishment?"

Sakura asked tensely.

"Yes, the punishment is you have to..."

Sakura waited with cold sweat on her forehead.

"...You have to feed me."

"Eh?"

Sakura had a confused look.

"Because my right-hand hurts when I hold something, I have a little difficulty holding the chopsticks, so the punishment is that you have to feed me."

Misaki said with a sigh. Ahh, come to think of it, it's only natural that she didn't touch her food.

"Or maybe you want another punishment?"

Misaki asked sharply when she saw Sakura who kept silent.

"N-No Ojou-sama, for today your maid will properly feed you!"

And Sakura turned into a servant.

By the way, when Sakura fed Misaki, she one-sidedly fed her which left Misaki having a full meal in her mouth.

"S-Sakura-chan, stop for a second—Hmph! My mouth is already stuffed—Hmph! Please—Hmph!"

That scene made me laugh because it was so funny when I saw Misaki have a squirrel face. Luckily she didn't choke.

"Ahh! I almost forgot about it."

Misaki seemed to remember something before taking another box out of her bag and placing it on the table.

And when she opened it, it was cake.

"Woah! The cake looks delicious. Where did Saki-chan buy it?"

Sakura asked curiously.

"And it smells so tempting, it's the first time I've smelled it."

I was also a little tempted by the smell that the cakes gave off.

Misaki smiled shyly at our compliment before saying, "Actually, I made the cake."

Hearing her answer we become stunned for a moment.

Not only can she cook, but can also bake cakes? How outstanding do you think her household skills are?

"Ehh!! Saki-chan made it? That's great!"

And Sakura expressed what was on my mind.

"Can we taste it?"

"Of course, I made it for you guys."

Misaki replied as she poked her cake at us.

With that, we tasted the cake. I took the cake roll while Sakura took the chocolate and cheese muffin in her hands. Such a glutton.

"Umm! The chocolate flavor of this cake isn't too thick and it feels good on the tongue, and for the cheese one too..... So delicious! These cakes are better than anything I've ever bought from a shop!"

Sakura ate it while judging the quality of the cake like she was the judge of a cooking show.

"Honestly, the taste of the cake you made is like someone who has made it for a long time. It's beyond my mind that Saki-chan is very good at making cakes."

I'm so impressed with her cake.

Hearing our evaluation, Misaki laughed with an embarrassed face.

"Hihi, I'm glad you guys like it. I'm quite worried that you guys don't like my cake."

No, your cake taste is great, you know?

"May I know at what age Saki-chan made cakes?"

Misaki thinks for a moment before saying

"Since I was 7 years old if I'm not mistaken. I've always been interested in TV shows featuring delicious-looking foods and cakes that I wanted to learn to make my own."

It was clear she was with an innocent face.

She even taught himself at the age of 7!? How talented she is!?

Haha, it makes my head spin thinking about how she lived her childhood standing in the kitchen room with her short body holding a knife. Come to think of it, Misaki said that she was always shunned by other children since childhood, does it have something to do with her talent that makes her like that?

But putting aside the things that were in my head, we continued to chat with Misaki while eating cake comfortably, plus the plants planted around the greenhouse made us even more relaxed.

"Ahh, my hands feel fresh after stretching."

Then Misaki's brother came back here with a fresh face with a bright smile.

"Hahh... Hahh....ahhh... Hahh..hah.. Even after running hundreds of meters, this guy didn't have a single drop of sweat dripping, you monster."

He was followed by Endou with a languid face that looked like undead and directly lying on the floor with a breathless face.

I'm not sure what they're doing outside, but it seems that Endou is having a bad time.

"Onii-chan, I told you not to overdo it with Endou, didn't I? He doesn't look okay here."

Misaki came to Endou and checked his condition.

"Relax, he's fine."

Kazuto replied with a relaxed face.

"Ahh... I saw an angel, now I can die in peace."

His eyes immediately closed with a smile the moment he saw Misaki's face.

Misaki had her eyes blink for a moment.

"Okay, he's fine...."

"...Let's go back to class."

Said Misaki with a smiling face like that thing has never happened.

"Does no one really care about me!!?"

And Endou woke up again with a frustrated face.

"Look, he's fine."

Said Kazuto.

Then he go with his bag, and followed by us.

"Excuse me.. "

"Thanks for the comedy show..."

With that, we left the exhausted Endou on top with a frustrated face and returned to class.

--

The bell signaling that it was time to finish for today's study had rung, and all the students were getting ready to go home or start their club activities. On the other hand, Sakura and I intend to go home because we don't join any club here.

"See you tomorrow Saki-chan, Kazuto-senpai, and Endou-Senpai!"

"See you tomorrow."

We bid farewell to Misaki and the others.

"See you tomorrow."

On the other hand, Misaki's older sister drink a can before throwing it back without looking, and it turned out that the can go on the trash can.

Instantly it took me by surprise.

I mean, the distance between him and the trash can was roughly 12 meters, and he threw it without even looking at it. The legend that he was able to score points didn't seem like a mere legend.

"Oh, I almost forgot."

Misaki, not knowing what her brother had done, searched for something in her bag before she finally handed the cake box to me and Sakura.

"Since I bake too many cakes at home and am not sure I can finish them all, it would be best if you guys had some of these too."

"Ohh! My mom will like it! Thank you!"

Sakura happily accepted it. And I also can't resist because the taste of the cake is very delicious, and I'm addicted enough to eat it.

"That's all right, see you tomorrow."

Misaki waved her hand when she walked away with her brother. Meanwhile, Endou had been picked up by a car and although he looked reluctant, he still got into the car and left.

"Let's go home too."

"Sure!"

She seemed happy to get another cake. With that we walked home, waiting for tomorrow where we would meet Misaki again.

--

Misaki's PoV

"How did you know that I have new friends?"

I asked Kazuto in curiously.

I couldn't contain my curiosity and ended up asking on my way home.

I didn't say anything about this to surprise him and let him know that I could have friends too. But the opposite happened, he knew I would have a friend and greeted them when we were upstairs.

He displayed a mysterious-looking smile before speaking.

"You can't hide anything from your brother, got it. Since yesterday you've been looking excited with a beaming smile, you know. I'm guessing from your actions that you bake a lot of cakes, and attribute it to actions you might have done at school."

"And the only guess I have is that you've got a friend."

Once again you are using your analytical skills in the wrong place.

"Finally, you have a reliable friend, with this you won't be alone in class. I'm very happy."

He stroked my head with a face I couldn't explain, but it looked worried and happy at the same time.

"Even if I don't have a friend, I still have Onii-chan and Endou by my side, right?"

Kazuto just laughed bitterly when I said that.

"What's so funny about that? I'm serious!"

I said in an annoyed tone.

Speaking of Endou, he seems to be under house arrest for a while for has been left unattended by his family. It seems that nothing will be a laughing stock in our homes today.

"I love you, Misaki."

Kazuto said it suddenly before embracing me with his left hand. I could feel the warmth of his body being transmitted as our bodies were close together. My annoyance involuntarily dissipated slowly.

"...Me too."