Chapter 4: Operation Fake Lovers

Saturday. Evening, after club practice had ended.

I met up with Tsukimi-senpai and we headed to her house. It was a detached house about a thirty-minute bike ride from school. While not quite a mansion, it was a fair bit larger than a typical home.

Apart from the parking area, there was a spacious yard. In one corner stood an old basketball hoop. It was set to a mini-basketball height. It probably wasn’t used anymore.

“When I was little, I used to practice with my sister on that hoop,” Tsukimi-senpai explained, noticing my gaze. “We were on the same mini-basketball team. My sister was the ace and the captain. She was amazing. She always taught me, you know? Back then, I was always on the bench.”

Even though I knew nothing about Sakura-san, for some reason, I could vaguely picture the scene. My brain was recreating it based on the perfect sister personality that Tsukimi-senpai acted out.

“Is your mother home?”

“Yeah. There’s one car parked, so she must be.”

Indeed, of the two parking spots, only one was filled. The other car was probably used by her father for his commute. Gunma is a car-centric prefecture, after all. Most adults get around by car.

“Let me just confirm one more time. The person we’re talking to today is your mother, right?”

Before we went in, I wanted to review the plan. I was only here to provide support, but I wanted to do a final check.

“Yeah. My dad barely interacts with me.”

Tsukimi-senpai’s family consisted of a stay-at-home mother and a father who worked as a company employee. It seemed they had two daughters, the deceased sister Sakura and Tsukimi-senpai. And it was mostly her mother who interfered in her life.

So, Tsukimi-senpai was about to have a talk with her mother. I was here now to accompany her.

“O-Okay… I’m going in.”

Tsukimi-senpai looked at me anxiously.

“Aren’t you a little too nervous?”

“How are you so calm, Minase-kun?!”

I was just as tense. It just didn’t show on my face.

More importantly, Tsukimi-senpai was forgetting something important.

“My name.”

“Sorry… um, well…”

When I pointed it out, Tsukimi-senpai’s cheeks flushed as her eyes darted around.

“Shuuto-kun?”

Then, she shyly called my name.

The impact was so devastating that my thoughts came to a screeching halt. I knew this was a serious situation, but my heart couldn’t help but pound.

“Sh-Shuuto-kun… my name, too.”

“Ah, right… Um, Kaede-san?”

Whoosh. Tsukimi-senpai’s cheeks turned a noticeable shade of red. It was obvious I was in a similar state.

“…”

What is this?

“Th-They’ll get suspicious if we’re like this!”

“Yeah, we are a little awkward…”

“If they find out it’s a lie, it’s all over, you know?!” Tsukimi-senpai managed the impressive feat of shouting in a whisper.

“You’re the one who needs to stop blushing every time, Kaede-san.”

“I-I’m not blushing! Sh-Shuuto-kun…”

“See?”

“Sh-Shut up! It makes us look more like a new couple, doesn’t it?!”

“Then that logic applies to me, too, right?”

When I retorted, Tsukimi-senpai glared at me with teary eyes.

“Anyway, is this plan really going to work?” I muttered, as if it were someone else’s problem, trying to escape reality.

“How can you say that?!”

Tsukimi-senpai grabbed my shirt and shook me.

“This whole Operation Fake Lovers was your idea!”

“I-I know. I just wanted to escape reality for a second.”

“The mastermind behind the plan can’t get cold feet now!”

That’s right. Right now, I was Tsukimi-senpai’s boyfriend—or so the story went.

Because we had thought about it. How could I accompany Tsukimi-senpai to her talk with her mother? The conclusion we came to was that the only way was to visit her house as her boyfriend!

…Honestly, we might have been running on late-night fumes.

But I couldn’t just leave a teary-eyed Tsukimi-senpai and go home now. I had to steel my resolve. I took her hand and pulled her along. We arrived in front of the entrance.

“Ugh… this is even heavier than usual…”

Tsukimi-senpai took several deep breaths in front of the door.

“O-Okay… I’m opening it.”

She unlocked the lock and opened the door.

“…Kaede?”

A woman holding a laundry basket in the hallway stopped dead in her tracks. Of course, she was looking at me, standing behind Tsukimi-senpai.

“I-I’m home!”

“…And who might you be?”

Tsukimi-senpai’s mother—Tsukimi-mother—couldn’t hide her confusion. Well, of course. She was beautiful, and looked a lot like Tsukimi-senpai.

“M-My boyfriend! I brought my boyfriend home!”

Tsukimi-senpai was acting blatantly suspicious, but her mother seemed to have bigger things to worry about.

“…Y-Your boyfriend…?”

“Yeah! So, I thought we’d hang out in my room!”

“…When did you get a boyfriend? I’ve never heard anything about this…”

“Love is sudden!”

She started spouting lines that sounded like a shoujo manga tagline.

As Tsukimi's mother looked at me suspiciously, I gave her a bright smile and a slight bow.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Minase Shuuto. I go to the same high school as Kaede-san.”

“…”

Tsukimi's mother was speechless. She seemed at a loss for what to say.

“W-Well then… come on!”

“…Excuse me.”

Tsukimi-senpai pulled my hand and we went inside. We passed by her mother and went up the stairs to the second floor.

“My room is here.”

She then invited me into her room on the second floor. The interior was surprisingly cute. There were lots of stuffed animals on the bed. The room was filled with pink and colorful things, giving it a very girly feel.

“…This is kind of unexpected.”

“This was originally my sister’s and my room.”

Her answer was brief, but I understood what she meant. The cute stuffed animals and the colorful feel were probably her sister Sakura’s taste.

…For Tsukimi-senpai, this probably didn’t feel like her own room.

“I’m home, Sis.”

At the back of the room was a butsudan, a family altar, with a memorial photo displayed. I didn’t have to ask to know it was her sister, Sakura. Tsukimi-senpai spoke to the altar.

“…Pardon the intrusion.”

I also placed the offering I had brought on the altar and lit a stick of incense. Then I put my hands together and greeted her.

—I’m your sister’s friend. It’s nice to meet you.

“It’s been a while since I brought a friend to my room, so I’m sure my sister is happy, too.”

While I was paying my respects, Tsukimi-senpai had laid out two cushions.

“Sit there.”

I did as she said and sat on the cushion. Tsukimi-senpai sat down next to me and let out a big sigh.

“…Well, at least we made it into the room.”

First hurdle cleared. It would have been a disaster if we’d been turned away at the door.

But Tsukimi-senpai looked pale. This must be taking a huge mental toll on her.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been home this early…”

“Usually it’s after Alliance activities, so around eleven, right?”

“Yeah. By that time, my mom’s already asleep. So I don’t have to talk to her.”

In that case, her mother must have been doubly surprised. Her daughter, who usually didn’t come home until late at night, had come home in the evening, even if it was a Saturday. And then she had suddenly brought a boyfriend home. Of course she would be speechless.

“So that’s your mother.”

“…Does she seem more normal than you expected?”

“Well… she didn’t say much, but yeah.”

This was the Tsukimi-senpai who had said she didn’t want to go home. I had thought it wouldn’t be strange if a parent who was physically abusive appeared. But maybe she was just putting on a good face since I, an outsider, was here.

“The last time we talked was over a week ago,” she murmured. “We barely talk anymore. Just administrative stuff, at most.”

I could tell that wasn’t how a normal family operated.

“…Lately, it’s become normal for me to imitate my sister. I think they’re just not interested in me anymore. My dad, who’s barely home because of work, and my mom, who won’t talk to me. That’s what I thought, so I was really happy when my mom came to see my tournament game.”

But Tsukimi-senpai lost. And her mother, instead of comforting her, had said, “If it were Sakura.”

That statement, which denied Tsukimi-senpai’s very existence, was the final blow that made her decide to abandon her precious sanctuary.

“…I must have been really shocked.”

Tsukimi-senpai spoke with her eyes downcast. I realized I had clenched my fists. I couldn’t forgive the person who made her look like that.

“…I’m happy that you’re angry for me,” she said, looking at me and giving a small smile. “But it would be a problem if this turned into a violent incident. So keep your anger in check, okay?”

“…I know.”

If it would help Tsukimi-senpai, I wouldn’t mind getting arrested. But that didn’t mean punching her mother would solve the problem. This was ultimately a family issue. I was just here as support.

But as long as I was here, there must be something I could say.

“So… how do you want to start?”

“I have to say I want to talk, but… oh, wait.”

Tsukimi-senpai looked towards the door. Thump, thump, thump. The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs.

Her mother opened the door without knocking and glared at us.

“Kaede, can I have a word?”

Her tone was hard. She was clearly angry.

Tsukimi-senpai followed her out of the room. Before closing the door, she looked at me and nodded.

I heard the sound of them going down the stairs. I knew she wanted to talk to her daughter alone, but if I just waited here, there would have been no point in coming.

I left the room and, muffling my footsteps, crept down the stairs.

I peeked into the living room. It was a spacious, beautiful room with stylish interior design.

Tsukimi-senpai and her mother were sitting on opposite sofas with a table between them.

“What do you think you’re doing?” her mother’s question was blunt. Her gaze was as cold as ice.

“…What do you mean, what am I doing?”

“Is this any time to be fooling around with boys?”

Tsukimi-senpai’s shoulders flinched. She looked terrified by her mother’s harsh words.

“I’ve heard about your reputation, so I didn’t say anything, but… you just lost the autumn tournament. I thought you would be more frustrated, more fired up.”

Tsukimi-senpai kept her head down and said nothing. She was cowering like that because she wasn’t wearing her mask. If she wore her mask, she could put on a brave face. But this battle would be meaningless if she wasn’t her true self.

So Tsukimi-senpai was desperately trying to face her mother as her true self.

“…Is it bad? To lose a club game?” she eventually mumbled.

“…So you really are just Kaede, after all,” her mother said, her eyes narrowing as if she had realized something. “Sakura was aiming for the Inter-High.”

Her gaze was filled with disappointment.

“—And I’m always telling you to be like Sakura.”

Before I knew it, I had opened the door.

Tsukimi's mother looked at me in surprise.

“May I have a word?”

“…You were listening?”

“I’m sorry.”

“We’re having a family discussion right now. Could you please wait in the room?”

She was right, but if I followed her logic, the whole operation would be pointless. I had become Tsukimi-senpai’s boyfriend to earn the right to be here.

“Could I just say one thing?”

“…What is it?”

“Kaede-san is not Sakura-san.”

The moment I said Tsukimi Sakura’s name, the temperature of her mother’s gaze dropped.

“What do you think you know?”

“I’ve heard a lot about your family from Kaede-san.”

“I see, so this child… trusts you that much.”

“We’re a couple. In fact, I came here today because I had something to discuss with you.”

“…With me?” she asked, her brow furrowed in suspicion.

“Please stop forcing Kaede-san to imitate Sakura-san.”

“Wh-…”

Her mother’s expression changed dramatically. I had now clearly crossed a line. I was aware of that.

“—Don’t be ridiculous! Stay out of our family’s problems, you’re an outsider!” she reprimanded me, her voice harsh. The force of her anger was enough to make even me, who had prepared for it, flinch.

But I couldn’t back down here.

“Do you know why Kaede-san has been coming home so late recently?”

“…I don’t know. She was probably with you, wasn’t she?”

“It’s true she was with me a lot. But it wasn’t because she wanted to be with me.”

“…Then what was it?”

“—It was because she didn’t want to come home.”

When I told her the answer, Tsukimi's mother’s mouth fell open. She clearly hadn’t expected those words. It was proof that she wasn’t watching her own daughter. A feeling of anger welled up inside me.

“‘Be like Sakura.’ Have you ever thought about how Kaede-san feels, being told that over and over again?”

I suppressed the urge to shout and spoke as calmly as possible.

Tsukimi's mother averted her gaze from me and looked at Tsukimi-senpai, who had been silent the whole time.

I sat down next to her and gently took her trembling hand.

“…Tsukimi-senpai.”

“Yeah… thank you, Minase-kun.”

I wanted to be of some help to her, even a little.

Eventually, Tsukimi-senpai took a slow, deep breath and faced her mother.

“Mom, I have something to say.”

It must have taken an incredible amount of courage to say that one line. Squeeze. My hand was being held tightly. So I squeezed back, even tighter.

“K-Kaede…?” her mother said, looking at her daughter in confusion. “Are you trying to say my parenting was wrong? That can’t be, can it? Because it worked for Sakura. If you just do the same as Sakura, there won’t be any problems—”

I was about to lunge forward, but Tsukimi-senpai stopped me with her hand. I’ll fight from here on, so it’s okay, the feeling from her hand seemed to say.

“—Sorry, but it looks like I can’t be ‘my sister.’”

It probably took her three years to say that one line.

Her mother was speechless, staring at her daughter.

“I always thought that being like ‘my sister’ was the right answer.”

Tsukimi-senpai was looking at a photo hanging on the wall. It must have been from a trip. The family of four was smiling in the photo.

“I thought I had to fill the hole my sister left when she disappeared. But I couldn’t. No matter how hard I tried, it was just an act. I was still me. I could never change.”

Her mother stared at her, dumbfounded, as she haltingly told her story. Everything she was saying must have been a shock. After all, they had barely spoken.

“No, the truth is… I think I was scared of changing. Because that would mean I wouldn’t be me anymore. There was no place where I was wanted for being me, so it was painful.”

Tsukimi's mother’s voice was hoarse as she mumbled, “That’s not… what I meant…”

“But… even someone like me, there’s someone who loves me for who I am.”

Tsukimi-senpai met my gaze and smiled. Then she turned back to her mother and declared:

“So I… will live as myself! I’ve decided! And I won’t take any complaints from anyone!”

After her impassioned declaration, Tsukimi-senpai stood panting, her shoulders rising and falling.

The only sound was the ticking of the clock. Outside the window, the world was dyed in the colors of twilight.

“…I see. So I was hurting you.”

Tsukimi's mother lowered her eyes. For a while, she didn’t move. The icy atmosphere melted, and a drop of water fell from her face, hidden by her hair.

“…I’m sorry.”

Eventually, a quiet apology was offered.

“…I wanted Sakura to be alive.”

Losing her precious daughter must have been agonizing.

“I suppose I was searching for her ghost.”

I understood her feelings. But I had no intention of defending her. Not when she had failed to notice her other daughter’s suffering.

“Hey, Mom.”

But Tsukimi-senpai extended a hand to her mother.

“We can be a family again, can’t we?”

“…But I’ve done terrible things to you.”

“It’s okay now. It’s true that I wanted to be like my sister, too.”

Tsukimi-senpai looked at the family photo.

“We just went about it the wrong way. My sister isn’t in this world anymore. Trying to recreate her won’t bring her back. But I think we can keep from forgetting her.”

With the hand she had extended, she took the photo and placed it on the table.

“—So let’s talk about her. As a family.”

After that, the two of them talked for a long time, as if to fill the void of the time they had spent not facing each other.

Most of the conversation was about Tsukimi Sakura, a person I didn’t know. I listened from Tsukimi-senpai’s side the whole time. I was completely on the outside, but that was fine. I had come here to support her, after all.

Eventually, it got late, so I decided to take my leave.

“Minase-kun.”

“…Yes?”

As I was putting on my shoes at the entrance, Tsukimi's mother, whose atmosphere had softened considerably, called out to me.

“Please take care of Kaede.”

…Right, I came here as her fake boyfriend.

“I will.”

“It seems she needs you.”

Their relationship was still awkward. All the resentment wouldn’t just disappear in an instant. But they were facing each other now. Time would surely solve the rest.

“Understood.”

When I stepped outside, Tsukimi-senpai was already waiting for me. I unlocked my bike, which was parked in the yard, and we talked.

“Did you talk to my mom about something?”

“…She asked me to take care of you, Kaede.”

“Hmph…”

Tsukimi-senpai fiddled with her hair as she asked, “What did you say?”

“Who knows… I forgot.”

“…Minase-kun?”

She glared at me with a deadpan look. I hopped on my bike as if to escape her gaze. For some reason, she sat down on the back rack.

“…What are you doing?”

“Just wanted to feel the wind a little~”

“In this cold?”

“…Can’t I?”

When she looked up at me like that, I had no way of refusing.

I reluctantly started pedaling.

Tsukimi-senpai wrapped one arm around my waist. I could feel her body heat against my back.

The cold wind brushed against my cheeks. I breathed out white puffs of air as we rode aimlessly.

“…You’re heavy.”

“Wha-?! What did you just say to a maiden?!”

When I let my true thoughts slip, she started lightly punching my back.

“…Idiot.”

Then, as if to hide her embarrassment, she wrapped both arms around me.

“…It’s dangerous if I don’t hold on like this,” she mumbled, like an excuse. Her forehead was pressed against my back, so I couldn’t see her expression.

“Where are we even going?”

With her on the back, we’d have to come back eventually anyway.

“That’s obvious, isn’t it?” she said, her voice bouncing with excitement. “To our secret base!”

“…You want me to pedal for thirty minutes with you on the back?”

“It’s perfect for training, right?”

“You’ll take responsibility if we get caught by the police, right?”

“…”

“Don’t go silent on me now!”

Panting heavily, I somehow made it to the school.

It was already past eight. The school lights were off, and there was no one around.

We parked the bike in the designated area and walked together towards the secret base.

“…It’s the weekend, so I don’t think anyone will be here.”

“I know. But I still want to go.”

She must have been really looking forward to it, because she was skipping. She must have been holding back, even though she wanted to go so badly.

“…Huh?”

But a sliver of light was leaking from the door of the old gym storage.

“Is someone… here?”

Tsukimi-senpai and I exchanged glances.

“I’m telling you, you can’t use that card.”

“…This is hard. I want to play a simpler board game.”

“This is one of the simpler ones—here, use this to attack Ogino.”

As we got closer, we could hear voices coming from inside.

—Everyone’s here.

Realizing this, Tsukimi-senpai’s face broke into a smile.

She pushed open the door with the force of a battering ram.

Akazawa, Kazemiya, and Ogino looked up at us in surprise.

Eventually, Kazemiya gave a gentle smile and said, “Welcome home.”

While I was carrying out Operation Double Confession, Kazemiya had been busy, too. To protect the place Tsukimi-senpai would return to. She had held together the Don’t Want To Go Home Alliance when it was on the verge of collapse.

“Want to play a board game with us?” Akazawa asked Tsukimi-senpai.

“…Yeah!”

Tears started to stream down her face. She hadn’t cried even when she was talking to her mother. She must have been so relieved to know that her precious sanctuary was still here.

“Kaede, we were worried,” Ogino said, hugging her.

“…I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. More importantly, there’s something you should say.”

Ogino shook her head, still hugging Tsukimi-senpai.

“Um… I’m very sorry for the trouble I’ve caused.”

“That’s not it.”

“I’m sorry for disappearing so suddenly.”

“That’s true, but that’s not the first thing you should say.”

“Th-Then… what should I say?”

Tsukimi-senpai looked at the still-shaking Ogino, confused.

“Welcome home,” Ogino repeated the line Kazemiya had said.

She must have finally understood what she was supposed to say.