I'm in Love with the Gorilla Sitting Next to Me - Volume 1 Chapter 3.4

Choose Carefully Whom You Consult Your Worries With 4

The living room and parents’ room are in the back, while the other three rooms are near the entrance, so I decided to drop my stuff off in my room first and then grab some barley tea from the fridge… but before that, I noticed the door to the room across was wide open, and the scene inside caught my eye.

“Huh? Mio, that’s unusual.”

“Hmm? Ah, welcome back, Nii-san. But what’s so unusual?”

My sister, who had been lounging on the bed playing with her smartphone, asks with only her face turned towards me.

However, to my eyes, all I can see is a capybara sprawled out on the bed. Not just her face, but she looks exactly like a capybara. I can’t tell her apart from the real thing. But I doubt there’s a zoo that puts pants on a real capybara.

In other words, my sister was lying on the bed in her underwear when I came in.

“You’re usually lounging in the living room, but now you’re in your room and you’re wearing pants. Did you graduate from being a nudist?”

Yes, my sister Mio tends to be naked when she’s in her room. She appears wearing only underwear, as if it’s the bare minimum courtesy during meals or family time, and often gets scolded by our mother for it.

The slovenly capybara-like sister looks at me with annoyance and says,

“I’m only wearing them because we have a guest. I don’t mind otherwise.”

“The guest would mind, though. So, who is it? Mom’s visitor?”

“Who knows? It’s Uncle Jo who’s here.”

“…!”

It was mentioned so nonchalantly, but for me, it was an opportunity I couldn’t miss. With such perfect timing, I couldn’t let it slip away.

I threw my bag into my room without bothering to change and headed straight for the living room.

There, I found my younger brother, still a child, playing with a puzzle and a blond man sitting on the sofa watching over him.

“Uncle Jo, you’re here?”

“Hm? Oh, Kouta’s back too. You’ve grown a bit more, haven’t you?”

I don’t think I’ve changed much since New Year’s, but Uncle Jo stands up and pats me on the shoulder anyway.

Uncle Joichiro, three years older than my father, looks much younger than his actual age, partly because of the aloha shirt he’s wearing. His bleached hair is also styled with wax, giving him a playful look. He could pass for someone in his thirties, although he’s actually in his mid-forties.

“Uncle, what brings you here all of a sudden?”

“I was just in Hawaii for a bit. Brought some souvenirs, and I had some business at a hotel they requested me for.”

Uncle Jo, who has a proud smile, works as a painter. He says he’s received some recognition both domestically and internationally. In fact, he’s known for exhibitions and design work overseas.

Interestingly, Uncle Jo became famous for his anthropomorphic frog paintings, and most of his work seems to be related to that. His beautified frog paintings are especially popular.

It’s precisely because of who Uncle Jo is that I have something I want to consult with him about.

“Uncle Jo, there’s something I really need to talk to you about!”

“Hmm? Not sure what it is, but sure. I’ve been graciously invited to dinner today, so I have time. Shall we talk in Kouta’s room?”

“That would be great, seriously! Masaharu, you go play in our sister’s room.”

“Ah, Mio-chan always ignores me after a while.”

My younger brother, not yet in school, gives a harsh critique of his older sister. Not good, this could affect sibling relations.

“That’s just her way. She wants attention but is too shy to ask for it. If you keep asking her, she’ll eventually give in with a ‘Can’t be helped’ attitude.”

“Mio-chan is shy? But she’s always naked.”

“That’s a different story. That’s more about her personality or maybe a preference, a different issue. You’ll understand when you’re a bit older.”

“Really? Then I’ll go ask Mio-chan to play!”

No sooner had he spoken than the cute little brother ran out of the living room. Well, that’s settled. Mio is lazy but has a strong sense of responsibility and is easily persuaded, so that should work out.

…And for some reason, Uncle Jo was looking at me with an awkward expression.

“Hey, has Mio-chan developed those kinds of hobbies? I didn’t want to know such facts about my cute niece.”

“Well, who knows. She’s definitely a nudist, but I don’t think she has any particularly unusual habits. She doesn’t go outside like that.”

“If she went that far, I might end up bedridden… Hmm, well, let’s get to your consultation. Shall we go to Kouta’s room?”

Prompted by Uncle Jo, I called out to my mother in the kitchen and, after receiving a message of ‘Dinner will be ready in a bit’, I gave a noncommittal reply and returned to my room.

Ignoring the lively noises from the room across, I offered Uncle Jo a chair and closed the door. I don’t usually care much, but given the nature of the conversation, I couldn’t let it leak outside.

Perhaps sensing something from my demeanor, Uncle Jo, seated on the chair, looked up at me with a solemn expression.

“So, what’s this private matter Kouta wants to discuss? You’re not secretly asking for pocket money, are you?”

“No, it’s not that. Though I wouldn’t mind if you gave me some, but that’s a separate issue. There’s something I want to ask you, Uncle.”

“Hmm? What’s that?”

“Ah… well, that’s the thing.”

I hesitate, even though Uncle Jo is ready to listen.

When it comes to actually talking about it, I feel strangely nervous or awkward. It’s not something you’d normally discuss with a relative.