I Can Distinguish the Twin Sister - Chapter 20

　Basically, I spend my after-school time with my friends like Yoshiki and Masashi or go shopping by myself, or just go home and relax… I feel like I’ve talked about something similar before.

　So, it was just an ordinary day.

　But …I didn’t expect it to be like this.

( …there are flowers )

　I stared at the front of my eyes.

　I was invited to go out after school by a certain twin who approached my seat right after the end of the homeroom.

“Shall we go to that coffee shop?

“That’s a good idea. Hey Akito-kun, let’s go to the coffee shop now, shall we? “

“Oh, yes”

　Yes, it’s not Rin’ne-san and Yomi-san… walking in front of me, but Rin’ne and Yomi.

　It’s not so bad to walk behind them like this… but it makes me a little nervous because it’s different from before.

( …reminds me of a lot of things )

　I close my eyes and think back to the past.

　I remember that when I met them, Yomi and I ran in front of the group, and Rin’ne chased us.

[ Aki-kun, I got you! ]

[ Oh, we’ve been caught! ]

[ Ahaha, I’ll get him too! ]

　There was a time like that… yes, I can still remember that.

　I was a kindergartener back then, so even though I recognized them as girls, I wasn’t conscious of them.

　That’s why I didn’t feel anything when they hugged me when we were kids.

( We got to see each other again, didn’t we? )

　I was laughing at how many times I muttered the same thing, but I guess I shouldn’t have closed my eyes while walking on the street like this.

　Then, with a thud, I bump into someone standing in front of me.

　I brought my attention back to the person in front of me, and I don’t know why, but I quickly moved my arm to support the person I hit.

“Akito-kun? Don’t space out too much, okay? “

“…My bad, Yomi.”

　The person I hit was Yomi.

　She was not just walking in front of me, but she was facing me, apparently waiting for me.

　I supported Yomi with my hand on her waist so that I was infinitely close to her and staring at her from a very close distance.

“Fufu. You’re thinking about something else when you’re walking, aren’t you? “

” …sorry.”

“It’s okay. Look, I got you. “

　Yomi smiled at me and leaned in closer, putting her arms around my back.

　The sweet smell and the incredible softness from the front make me feel a bit nervous, but I wonder if it’s because I can trust her completely… that I feel more relaxed than before.

　We are so close that it reminds me of the old days, and it really, really calms me down to be like this.

“I feel so much calmer.”

“Really? I’d do it for you anytime.”

　…but it still makes me nervous.

　I indeed get nervous when they do this to me, but my brain thinks of them as my friends whom I don’t feel uncomfortable with, as I have said many times.

　I wonder if that is why I feel more relieved than thrilled.

“It’s so nice to see you two together. It makes me smile.”

“It’s natural, isn’t it, since we’re reunited? Whatever the future holds, our connection will never be broken.”

“….right. It will never be broken. “

　With this exchange, I walk to the coffee shop with Yomi, who has stopped leaving me.

　Rin’ne walks along beside me, looking at us happily.

　Time passes quickly as we talk, and we soon arrive at the coffee shop.

“I heard you and Aneki came here before, didn’t you? That’s so unfair! “

“That’s fine. I am lucky because I was out of the house when you were asleep on the bed.”

“I don’t know what to say to you when you say it like that.”

　I smiled at their exchange.

　I then asked the waitress for a cup of tea and a cake, and we slowly passed the time, chatting as we did on the way.

　After a while, my order is delivered, and I start to eat the cake, but the two people sitting in front of me… are staring at me, which tickles me strangely.

“Uh… what’s wrong? “

“It’s nothing.”

“Nothing.”

　If it was nothing, I don’t think you’d be staring at someone at me.

　I take a bite of shortcake… and still stare.

　Another bite of shortcake…. still staring.

“That’s nice, Yomi.”

“Yes, it is Aneki.”

　Stop staring at me and eat it too!

　Perhaps my wish was heard because they started to eat their cake too.

“You know what? We used to spend all my time running around, but now that I’m a high schooler, I’m glad we also can spend my time like this.”

“Yes, I guess so. It’s hard to do it every day, but it’s nice to be able to share the same time with Akito-kun like this.”

“I see that this place where Aneki and I used to come together looks even brighter than usual.”

　It was a bit hard in the past, but now we were high school students with an allowance.

　So they can come to a coffee shop like this… and I’m sorry if I’m wrong, but coming to a coffee shop seems pretty chic, isn’t it?

“Ah, that’s right.”

“Hm? “

　With a thump, Rin’ne put down her cup.

　Yomi, who was eating the cake with a crunchy mouth, also looked at her, and I waited for her words, wondering what was going on.

　Rin’ne stayed one moment and then continued.

“I have one concern… or rather, one thing I’m worried about.”

“Hey, what it is? “

　Rin’ne’s expression suddenly darkened, and I was puzzled.

　What the heck is she trying to say? What is she scared of, or afraid of?

“We… were interacting with you today in a way that reminds me of the old days. We are feeling happy, and that’s why the limiter is off a little… and we held your hand in public.”

” …Ah,”

“Oh, I’m the same. “

　I understood what Rin’ne meant when she said that.

　In other words, a lot of close touching reminded her of the old days, and for that, she…. no, they had something to think about.

“I had told you in advance to make up for the time we’ve spent together, to get to know each other better, but… how about it? 　Is that stuff a little annoying? “

“Well, I don’t know… Akito-kun. If it’s bothering you, I’ll refrain from it a little bit.”

　No, I can’t say, “it’s okay,” casually in this atmosphere.

　But… that’s what it is, isn’t it? Looking at them like this, I can see that they genuinely see me as a friend, and I can see that they are trying to treat me accordingly.

　As I said before, I don’t often see friendships between men and women, and there’s obviously a strong connection between us.

“No, I think it’s fine the way it is. Actually, I was also trying to be a little bit reminiscent of the old days.”

　To tell you the truth, it was not impossible.

　There were more than a few moments when I tried to treat them as I remembered them from the past when they approached me on the rooftop as well as in the classroom.

　Although I thought that the proximity of distance was also an issue… that was it.

　I feel secure in knowing there is no chance of making a mistake because the two of them are genuinely friends.

“It’s nice to finally see each other again, isn’t it? I don’t have anything to complain about, and more than anything, I’m very happy to be with you two.”

“…Akito-kun”

“fufu”

　So it’s okay, I told them, and they nodded happily.

　But even so, some gestures still make me nervous…. and this time, the same opportunity presented itself.

“Akito-kun’s shortcake looks delicious. Do you mind if I have some? “

“I don’t mind at all.”

“Munch~.”

“Oh, Aneki, that’s not fair! I want some too.”

　It’s really lively, I thought to myself, wondering if we were making too much noise as I let them eat my cakes.

　Needless to say, the opposite was true, and my face got so hot that I couldn’t taste the cake anymore.