CHAPTER 16

He was dead to me.

Literally.

"Kyo-nii, I'm freakin' killing you! Where the hell did you put my game system?!"

"Miyuki, I took it away for your own good! Your teacher called and—"

"That hag did? I swear whatever she told you were lies! Now give it or else I'll shove a knife down your—"

"What do I always tell you about your violent threats?"

"Then give me my life source! I have to play my otome games or else I'll self destruct for school tomorrow!"

It was almost like a cat and mouse chase around the entire house. Pillows were flung, tables flipped, threats tossed left and right. A typical weekend here in the Hoshino household if I was being honest. Whether it be eating or sleeping, my older brother was always intruding in my life on the basis that I needed to start taking better care of myself. He always complained over how he only ever saw me on school mornings and about my incessant habit of going into hiding in my room.

         Sure my younger siblings constantly reasoned he was trying to be the missing entity to our family since our parents worked overseas but if it were my cellphone I would've been fine with it. Hell, if he took my laptop I'd tell him to kiss my ass if he thought that would change me.

        But no.

        He stole my means of otome games. My potential husbands!

        This meant war.

       "Kyo-nii, prepare yourself!"

        I swung my fist towards his stomach. Almost effortlessly, my brother summersaulted over the scattered cushions and ducked behind the couch. I leaped forward to cut off his escape but with him on the other end, whatever direction he'd round towards I would mimic him, leaving the both of us to remain with a fixed distance between us. While this all was happening, I glared daggers at him, waiting for my opportunity to strike.

         I didn't receive said chance because he outsmarted me. Picking up one of the scattered cushions, he smacked me square in the face. I yanked it down with a strangled groan, but he was already long gone, clambering up the stairs.

         I was on his heels in only a few seconds, nails outstretched to scratch his eyeballs out. "Just give it!"

         "Yui! Yuki!" he shouted for our other siblings, maneuvering left and right and into rooms to dodge me. "Your older brother is requesting for backup! Miyuzilla has emerged!"

        "Oh stuff it!" I snapped as he scurried downstairs yet again. "Kyo-nii!"

         I was literally on the verge of running into the kitchen to grab a knife and chop off his head the way Sekai did to Makoto in School Days if it weren't for the force of my younger brother grabbing me by the waist and holding me back.

         "Miyu-nee, don't hurt him!" Yuki cried, barely managing to restrain me. Noodle arms as proof, he was a weakling, so seeing as it was him instead of his twin sister that was attempting to calm me down said a lot.

         "He only took your PS Vita, right?"

        Both Kyo and I snapped our necks in the direction of the voice only to find my younger sister bouncing down the stairs, my precious device in her hands. Kyo gaped once she reached the bottom step, face as impassive as could be.

        "Yui! You betrayed me? Why!"

        "You're being too extreme, Kyo-nii," reasoned my sister as she plopped the device into my hands. "Everyone knows Miyu-nee is as dangerous as Shizuo chasing Izaya when you steal her things."

         Yuki's hands loosened from around me as I hugged my dear game system to my body. Then I went and inched behind my younger sister, baring my teeth to Kyo. He only sighed in disappointment and ruffled the hair of a teary-eyed Yuki.

         "Thanks," I whispered to Yui. "And nice reference."

          She shrugged. "I pick things up."

        As Kyo's hand left my younger brother's head, he brushed aside strands of his own blond hair with a groan. "Miyuki, I need to speak with you alone."

         I sucked in a breath, halting at the entrance of the staircase leading upstairs. I moved my foot forward once more but before it could dare land, his voice boomed.

          "Now."

        Yui and Yuki blanched, already sensing the intent of Kyo from a heartbeat. And sadly, I did as well. Kyo's 'talks' never meant anything good. Really, anything concerning you and Hoshino Kyo alone in a room together was never the result of something wonderful. And considering he was using his substitute strict-father voice on me to summon me to such a thing, I could easily deem this would not end well for me.

         Again.

        "I say her latest grades were D's," Yui said as Yuki and her ascended towards their rooms, readjusting her messy ponytail of blond hair.

         "No, it's probably on how she failed all her tests again," Yuki murmured, suppressing a yawn. We'd definitely woken them up from their much needed Sunday rest.

          I chewed on the inside of my cheek as their respective doors slammed shut, leaving Kyo and I in a tarnished household and an unbearable tension.

          "Get over here," he ordered.

          Avoiding his eyes, I relented and trudged my feet forward. As soon as I was in reach, his fists connected with the temples of my forehead and he was rotating his wrists up and down in a painful manner.

           "Miyuki! Are you kidding me? I tell you to study every single day and yet you're still not doing so well!"

           "Ow! Ow, ow! That hurts!"

           I pushed his arms to release me and he soon complied. I patted down my tornado of hair to the best of my ability, not being able to ignore the scowl on my brother's face.

           "The only plus side is that you finally came out of your hermit behaviour a bit by entering a club, but..."

            "What was that, my love?" I whispered, tapping around at the buttons on my PS Vita. "You want to get married? Oh of course I'd discard my long eleven hard years of schooling and expensive university funds to elope—"

           "This is what I'm talking about!" he shouted, pinching my nose and raising it so I could meet his blue eyes. It wasn't a new thing for me to lose my focus after each and every one of his lectures, but this time his exasperation was enough to chill me to the bone. "You're too much of a weirdo! Whispering words of love to a damn screen all the time—you don't have a life even though you're sixteen today and I'm worried!"

          "And can I ask what exactly you would know about having a life?" I countered, my voice nasally.

           "I know that this was not how I wanted to spend my own sixteenth birthday!" he snapped, snatching my device from my fingers and waving it at a height I couldn't reach from my shorter stature.

           "Stop acting like such a preachy old man. You're only eighteen." I jumped up and down but to no avail. I frowned as I stared longingly at my husband's face on the tilted screen. The guy could be as tall as Murasakibara I tell you. "Birthday's aren't even that special. What's so great about getting older?"

           "Everything!" he said. "My sister is sixteen and she doesn't have friends to celebrate with! Your future—"

          "—is mine!" I gritted my teeth and folded my arms over my chest. "What I do with my life is none of your business, Kyo-nii."

          We once again had a mini glaring contest where neither of us were going to cave first. That all changed, though, when his expression shifted to a look I knew anywhere.

          I clenched my fists immediately and scowled at him. "Don't even."

         "You need to visit her eventually," he said, letting go of my nose and dropping his arms by his sides. "C'mon, it's been how long."

         My heart sunk to my gut. Why was he bringing this up on me? "There's no point. She wouldn't want me there anyway."

          Melancholy reached Kyo's features. "Miyuki, you know that's not true—"

          "I'm spending my day alone in my room," I snapped, swiping my device and spinning on my heels. "Leave me alone alright?"

           I was already halfway into my room when he screeched.

          "Wait, wait, do I have to clean this entire mess myself—"

           The door slammed behind me, silencing my noisy brother. I threw on my headphones as I collapsed onto my bed and upon piles of strewn clothes (I was not a tidy person), and stared up at my bland ceiling.

           The buzz of my phone on my bed stirred me from my daze and I patted around until it was hovering over my eyes, the time 10:45 AM displayed.

          My eyes ended upon on the group chat Wannabe had made for the club a while back—the focus being on welcoming me, the newest member to the club.

         'Happy birthday, Miyuki! Sixteen, huh? Welcome to old age, you'll definitely like it here ;) - Sato Yuji 🃏'

         'So your birthday's on the 14th of November? I guess you still classify as a human being, huh? No offence, it's just 'cause you change that standpoint everyday. Well whatever. Happy birthday 🎉 - Ikeda Hiro 🎲'

         'OMG, OMG MI-CHAN'S BIRTHDAY? Ahh, I wish I could celebrate with you but I'm busy shopping with my sister! I'll definitely give you the best present tomorrow though! Should I make another best friend charm bracelet for us? Hehe. HAPPY SWEET SIXTEEN MI-CHAN, ILY! ❤️ - Yamamoto Saki 🎭'

         'Ooh, happy birthday, Hoshino! You should've told me ahead of time, I would've gotten you a present too! How about I work on a painting and give it to you tomorrow? Sorry I can't offer you any better, I'm kind of broke atm ^^; So let's say... that Ikuto character you were raving about the other day? With... Kukai and the other Guardians? - Sotarou Hinata 🎨'

          ...They even remembered my birthday. I frowned as the messages replayed over and over in my head. I didn't even wish them happy birthdays on theirs, nor offer them any presents. The weight on my chest increased as I curled myself up into a ball.

         Damn people trying to pry into my life all the time. If I wanted to be a loner they should just leave me be like everyone else, too...

          My cellphone went off again, but this time it wasn't a text message. It was a phone call—from him. My lips flattened as I contemplated answering. Did I really want to bother with that clown?

          "Hello?" I said anyway, pressing my cell against my ear.

         "Hey, hey, Hoshino!" his cheerful voice rang out. "It's me, your beloved prince and saviour—"

         I hung up at that, instantly removing my device from my ear.

        Seconds later, it rang yet again and I frowned.

        "What?" I demanded.

        "I'm sorry! It's Kazuya!" he cried out, dripping with his typically whiny voice on the verge of tears. "Did you really have to hang up on me?"

         "The conversation was heading in a weird direction," I reasoned.

        "No way! But it hasn't even taken the weirdest turn yet!"

        The line went dead by my fingers with haste. I tossed my cell onto my bed and resumed my PS Vita game. When it buzzed for the first time again I managed to push past my ringtone but by the third I was growing frustrated.

"Stop calling me!" I yelled into the receiver.

"Hoshino! You didn't even let me speak!" he complained. "I wanted to say happy birthday to you!"

"You could've messaged me that. No need to go the extra mile and strain your voice."

Wannabe didn't take that. "I called to say happy birthday so I'm saying happy birthday." He paused to ready his voice, and after clearing his throat he produced the most cheerful voice he could. "Happy birthday, Hoshino!"

I rolled my eyes. So extra. "Thank you," I gave him what he wanted. "So now can I hang up on you, Wannabe?"

"You didn't even sound genuine!" He pouted. "Jeez. Someone clearly woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning..."

.

.

.

"Hoshino!" he shouted into my ear, loud enough to rid me of my hearing.

I winced and retreated it, clenching my teeth.

"That was the third time you've hung! Up! On! Me!" he hissed. "Stop it!"

"Then you stop petting my peeves," I countered. "You called and said happy birthday so what else do you want from me?"

"For your information, I was trying to be kind and invite you out today to celebrate!"

This time, I was successfully stunned into silence. Wait, he was?

"I made that deal with you in August remember? When we went camping, we had that scavenger hunt and I lost to you."

A gasp of eureka escaped my mouth at the memory. "My merchandise! I totally forgot about that!"

"It's been eating away at me and you've never brought it up," he said. "I made a deal that if I collected less than you I'd treat you to whatever you wanted, so I must keep my side of the deal or else it'll eat at me further. How about that be your birthday present today?"

Him correlating it to my birthday honestly made me reluctant to agree, but I wasn't one to shoot down free anime merchandise, much less one he already owed me. I couldn't believe I was agreeing to this, but... "Let's meet up then," I said. "By central square at one o'clock?"

"Sounds like a plan," he eagerly agreed. "Oh, but—"

I accidentally pressed end just as he started to say something else. My lips met and I stifled an awkward laugh, silencing my phone in case he tried to call again.

Four times in ten minutes. Must be a new record.

Hopefully whatever he was going to say wasn't too important.

——————————————————

"Hoshino!"

I peered through the crowd around me to locate the shout. When I finally found the male amidst the most populated area of the plaza, vigorously waving and beaming from ear to ear, I picked up my pace. At least, I did until I took notice of the swarm of girls surrounding him.

Girls who were outright flirting with him.

I deadpanned and reduced my strides to smaller, tentative steps. Of course. What else did I expect from the guy? And fragile girls to good-looking 3D males? He still didn't stand a chance against the 2D version of himself, but I guess even he still classified as 'charming.'

Seeming to notice how much slower I was approaching him—as the last thing I wanted was to face the wrath of those girls who'd assume we were on a date or something—Wannabe brushed them aside with a quick farewell and came barrelling towards me instead.

When he came to a halt, he was still grinning broadly as he raised his arms into the air.

"Happy birthday, Hoshino!"

Passersby, as well as the girls he was accompanying moments earlier, promptly gave us startled stares and I blushed as a result. The idiot!

Snagging the sleeve of his jacket, I ducked and my head and tugged him off down the pavement. "What the heck. Don't yell so loudly in public."

"Sorry," he chuckled without a care in the world. He then bobbed his face towards mine with curious blinks. "Even though it's your birthday you don't look very happy. Why is that?"

"I should be asking why even though it's not yours you're too happy for your own good," I said with a sigh. He was always so optimistic it was blinding. Was it fall or summer all over again?

"I'm just so excited to be alone with you like this, Hoshino!" he confessed, holding up his hands. "It's the first time! Almost like we're on a—"

"Finish that sentence and I'm leaving."

Wannabe teetered the slightest, as if shot by an invisible arrow through the heart. He sheepishly laughed. "I was going to say a 'typical outing of acquaintances', Hoshino."

"That's what I was hoping, too." I fiddled with my bangs from underneath the beanie I'd decided to put on, brushing the strands away from my eyes. "But get off your high horse. 'Acquaintances' is still an exaggeration, Wannabe."

"You always have the need to bring down my mood don't you?"

"It's become a second nature of mine."

He exhaled and shook his head. "You know what? Say whatever you want, it won't get to me. Not today. I'm going to make you enjoy your birthday even if it's at my own expense."

"You'd probably have a better shot if I was at home then," I truthfully said.

"Not. Giving. Up."

I couldn't help but snort, "Have fun with that pipe goal then, Wannabe. I already have a place we can go in mind."

——————————————————

Maybe it wasn't such a pipe goal after all. Purposely dragging Wannabe into multiple stores and draining him physically and emotionally by all my excited chatter and buzz was an honest blast. Plus, regardless of the degrading comments I threw his way, he'd never once snapped back to anything. And no matter what outfits or Tamaki catchphrases I'd made him wear or say he relented.

He still didn't understand a lot, but considering his background he was fairly curious to find out. This rich boy heir was rather innocent when it came to plenty of average things like claw machines and simple establishment rules. It was pretty funny watching him get so elated then pouty—he literally changed between emotions so quick—but despite how superior I felt to him even though I was the younger one, it was always the unexpected situations I'd be upstaged by him.

Like when we found a lost wallet and he stopped us to he could take it to the police station. Also when an old lady could barely push her shopping cart; he went and volunteered to steer it to her car for her. Even when we encountered a lost child crying at the mall; all of the other passing adults had went and ignored her but Wannabe didn't. He easily cheered her up with silly faces before promising to stay with her until she found her mom.

I'd seen this goodwill tons of times in animes but never in real life (grown-ups literally ignored these things too) and honestly, the Good Samaritan in him suited the whole aspect of the Humanity Club.

Wannabe just hated gloomy things or abandoning people who needed assistance. And if it meant ridding this very dejection from somebody's life by something like his help, he would gladly intervene.

It was a fact I happened to overlook until now—that Mr Popular of Seisein Academy possessed a heart of gold.

"I met a girl in April," Wannabe said out of nowhere when we'd entered a cafe and just finished buying similar keychains. "I thought long and hard about it after our encounter in the clubroom the day you joined, but I did see you before, Hoshino."

"You did? Where?" And why did that first sentence remind me so much of Your Lie in April? My heart ached in remembrance to the very anime. Ugh, don't think about it. You'll end up crying again.

"I remember once coming across a girl that never seemed to look in my direction," Wannabe went on. "I'd occasionally see her around campus and she would always be alone, so I guess you could say I got curious. I always wondered what her name was, but because she was always talking to herself I refrained from asking since I was assured she was a weirdo."

My countenance fell as he went on to laugh boisterously. Seeing my dissatisfaction to the point, he quickly settled down and continued.

"What I'm trying to say is—you're way different than I imagined." He swirled around his glass of water. "I wish I did speak up to you back then."

I digested his words. "Even if you did I would've shunned you."

"You already do that now," he pointed out.

"No, it would've been way worse," I replied. "I would've avoided you all like the plague. I sadly can't now, but back then I would've, trust me."

Wannabe set his drink onto the tabletop. "You're still on about that?"

My shoulders stiffened in defence. "I—"

"You helped us out a lot since you joined the club, Hoshino. You didn't join by will, sure, but you've still participated nonetheless. Especially by meddling in matters that should've least concerned you." He chuckled—most likely hinting towards Hinata. "And for that, I couldn't be more thankful."

His praise caused my skin to crawl. "Are you saying all this because you're gonna give me a promotion to Hinata's previous position?"

His smile faltered. "Well, no. Hinata was the 'Compassionate,' and I can't really see you as the such. In fact, I think 'Strength' suits you very well. Ever since you joined you've been the central pillar of this club."

"I see..." I see, really? I berated myself. Then again, what else could I say? This wannabe complimenting me like this was a first so absorbing it was a little odd.

"By the way, I really like this keychain."

I peeked over at our Ouran keychains—a Tamaki one for him and then my Hikaru—and nodded my head with pursed lips.

"Yeah, it's not too bad," I admitted.

He scrunched up his brows, flipping it over and back. "I still don't get how this character looks like me though. Aren't I better looking?"

I spared him a long glance and my lips upturned. He seriously accomplished what he set out to do. Even though slight, I went and enjoyed myself today. And they all were underlying causes for that. "Trust me," I told him, snorting at his obnoxious comment that was one and the same with the very blond, "you both look and act a lot alike, Wannabe."