My Stepsister is My Ex-Girlfriend - Volume 7 - Chapter 3.18

The Way You See Me

Yume continued dragging me towards the school courtyard. I’d asked her what prompt she’d drawn, and she’d paused before answering.

“Something only you could fit, in my opinion,” she’d said.

What did she mean by that? Something that doesn’t apply to anyone but me? Family? That would make sense since parents and guardians don’t come to the sports festival. Siblings? That also makes sense since I’m her only sibling. But maybe... I began thinking about something that’d be a little too convenient for me. I couldn’t just sit around waiting for what I wanted to fall into my lap, could I?

Was interpreting things to suit my narrative okay, though? Sure, it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. There’d been plenty of signs—so many that it was getting difficult to write them off as misunderstandings. But still, my mind didn’t want to take its foot off the brakes. Was it really okay for me to make that simple of a guess?

I was realizing now how annoyingly complicated our relationship was. The prompt couldn’t have been “the person you like.” No, that phrase was way too simplistic to describe how either of us felt. Hey, Yume. What am I to you?

“Oh?! Irido from Class 1-7 has returned with...a boy! She’s brought a boy with her!”

As she pulled me through the school courtyard, towards the goal, we were met with stares and cheers. I felt so out of place, but Yume firmly gripped my hand as if to reassure me.

“And she’s reached the finish line! As long as the judges approve her answer, she’ll get first place! What prompt did she have?!”

I saw a familiar face at the finish line. It was a small-framed girl who had a very distinct presence—the student council president, Suzuri Kurenai. She began practically beaming when she saw Yume, out of breath from running, dragging me with her.

“Your prompt, please.”

Yume silently placed the piece of paper in her outstretched hand. Kurenai-senpai opened it and ran her eyes over the text before letting out a cryptic chuckle.

“Felt like being straightforward, did you?”

Yume sheepishly smiled. “Yes, at least for today.”

After hearing her response, Kurenai-senpai faced the broadcaster and formed a circle over her head with both arms.

“It seems that she’s been given the okay! She passed!” the announcer yelled.

Yume turned to me after getting the piece of paper with the prompt on it back from Kurenai-senpai.

“Let’s go.”

I was dragged to the announcer, still not knowing what my role was. Is this how it usually goes? Yume handed the piece of paper to the announcer. They held the microphone in one hand and the paper in the other.

“Oh! I see...” they said, looking at my face and grinning. “Irido from class 1-7 had the prompt...” I suddenly felt incredibly nervous. In just a few seconds, my identity would be revealed by the microphone. “‘The person I want to cross the finish line with!’”

The crowd of students roared with commotion. Huh? The person she wants to cross the finish line with? And that’s me? Why?

“Could you share your thought process here? If I’m right... It seems that you’ve brought Mizuto Irido-kun—a classmate of yours as well as your sibling, right?”

Why are you so aware of our circumstances? It almost felt like they were paparazzi. I guess students really have their interest focused on Yume. The interpretation of the prompt was incredibly broad. If the person who’d received it chose someone of the same sex, most people would assume they’re just close friends. But if they chose someone of the opposite sex...all kinds of unfounded rumors might start. She knew that, and yet—

“Yes, that’s right...” Yume said boldly—not a shred of fear in her voice—straight into the microphone. “After all, I am a brother lover.”

It was such a simple response. She didn’t try to make it vague, nor did she hesitate. She answered honestly. In response, I could hear scattered laughter from the crowd.

“Pfft! Ha ha ha!” the announcer laughed into the microphone. “I see! That makes sense! Give it up for our clear winner, Yume Irido!”

Amidst the applause, Yume led me back to the participant area. For everyone unaware, what she’d said sounded like nothing more than a joke. But to me...she was being too straightforward, making me immediately jump to convenient conclusions that fit my...

“Hey—”

“It may not be often, but...” Yume said, interrupting me. “I can be honest every now and then, y’know?” She gripped my wrist firmly as if to say she wasn’t letting me go. She looked right into my eyes as if she were pleading with me before saying, “That’s why...it makes me a little sad when you run away.”

Me? Run away? But then I suddenly remembered something. I’d panicked and run away from her when I was hiding Isana’s bra.

“Oh...” Had she been worrying about that this entire time? Was I interpreting this right? “Fine...” I decided to honor her honesty and return it with a mostly honest response myself. “I’d rather not get dragged off again, anyway.”

In the end, I couldn’t stop myself from going back to my usual pointed retorts. Urgh. No! This is hard for me... I thought she would’ve been angry, but instead, she seemed...happy? Her lips were curling into a smile.

“Next time, I’ll just try even harder to catch you before you can get away.”

“To annoy me?”

“Otherwise, you’ll probably start doing naughty things to Higashira-san.”

“You’ve got that totally backwards!”

Yume giggled. I get it now. I really do. I know how you see me now. The cheering from the treasure hunt sounded so far away under this seemingly endless autumn sky. The two of us had no clue where the finish line for the two of us really was, though.