Tokyo: Oreimo

"Because she's your sister."

"Just because of that?"

"Yes, because I like you."

She opened her eyes, straightened up, and turned to look at Ryosuke.

The announcement that the tram had arrived at the station sounded.

Saori stood up, straightened her wrinkled coat, then rewound her scarf and handed the other end to Ryosuke.

"We're here, let's go."

Chapter 198 If you're so curious, I'll tell you.

In December, on the seashore of Makuhari, the sea breeze carries a salty, fishy smell and a chill unique to winter.

There was almost no one on the beach, except for a few seagulls that rose and fell on the distant rocks. Gray waves surged onto the beach in layers, leaving trails of white foam.

The sky was that typical light gray of winter, with thick clouds and sunlight filtering through the gaps.

Ryosuke and Saori walked side by side on the beach, their shoes quickly getting covered in sand, with Saori's high heels sinking into the soft sand from time to time.

She simply took off her shoes and walked barefoot on the beach.

"So icy."

She tucked her toes in, but instead of putting her shoes back on, she deliberately made footprints in the sand, as if she found it amusing.

Ryosuke couldn't help but chuckle as he watched her act like a child.

Aren't you cold?

"It's cold."

Saori turned her head, the sea breeze blowing through her long hair, a few strands clinging to her cheeks, highlighting her smiling black eyes.

"But I'm very happy."

After she finished speaking, she turned back and continued to leave footprints on the beach, the hem of her beige coat fluttering gently in the wind.

Ryosuke followed behind her, looking at the trail of footprints she left behind.

Since returning from Ureshino, he has been in a state of tension.

Ling Nai's affairs, the company's affairs, the serialization's affairs, the forum's affairs—everything weighed heavily on his shoulders, leaving him almost no room to breathe.

But at this moment, standing on this gray-blue beach, listening to the sound of the waves crashing on the sand, and watching the woman in front of me happily making footprints.

The things that were pressing down on him suddenly seemed to lose their weight.

"Shi Yuze".

Saori stopped and turned to look at him.

The sea breeze ruffled her hair, and a few strands clung to the corners of her mouth. She reached out and brushed them aside, then smiled at him.

"Thank you for coming with me to see the sea."

Ryosuke walked up to her, reached out and tucked her wind-blown hair behind her ear, his fingertips touching her cool earlobe.

Saori's eyelashes trembled slightly.

"...Your hands are so warm."

She said in a low voice.

Ryosuke looked down at her.

Sea breeze, gray sky, white waves, and the woman in front of me who wore a coat to the beach to brave the cold wind, all for the sake of "romance".

He reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Saori paused for a moment, then wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest.

The coat was made of thick fabric, but she could hear his heartbeat, steady and strong, each beat telling her that he was right there.

"...Saori".

"Ok?"

"What exactly did you say to Ling Nai at the coffee shop that day?"

Saori chuckled softly in his arms.

"You still want to know?"

"Ah."

"Because that guy changed from that day on."

Ryosuke recalled the changes in Ryouno during this period.

Although she still outwardly maintained her "I'm very unhappy" demeanor, she no longer avoided him, no longer looked away, and no longer built a high wall of silence.

"What exactly did you say to her?"

Saori lifted her face from his chest, looked up at him, and her dark eyes held a sly smile.

"I just can't do anything with you. If you're so curious, I'll tell you."

I told her...

"Come and take it!"

Ryosuke was stunned.

".....What?"

"I said, if you really like him, then come and take him away."

Saori tilted her head.

"I won't stop you, nor will I voluntarily withdraw."

"So, use all your skills to steal it."

Ryosuke opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

".....are you serious?"

"of course."

Saori tightened her arms around his waist and pressed her face back against his chest.

“I’ve always been like this since I was a child. If I want something, I’ll take it myself. I won’t wait for others to give it to me, nor will I give it to others.”

"So you are too."

She reached out and touched his chest with her index finger.

"I won't give you up to anyone else."

"but...."

Her voice paused for a moment, and her eyes, reflecting the moonlight on the sea, shone with an astonishing brightness.

"But I don't want to trap you either."

"Ryosuke."

For the first time, she called him by his name directly.

"You are gentle to everyone, and you can't let go of anyone. Even though you're already with me, you still feel heartbroken when you see your sister sad."

"This is you."

"That's exactly the kind of you I like."

The sea breeze ruffled her hair; she tucked a strand behind her ear and continued speaking.

"So I don't need you to become nice only to me."

"unnecessary."

"I only need you..."

She stood on tiptoe, her forehead touching his, their noses almost touching.

"No matter what happens, it will eventually come back to me."

"Can you do it, Ryosuke Takagi?"

Ryosuke looked into those eyes that were so close to his.

"...Saori".

"Ok?"

"You really are a very strange person."

Saori chuckled in his arms.

Is this a compliment?

"Forget it."

Ryosuke rested his chin on the top of her head, inhaling the faint citrus scent in her hair.

“No normal person would do something like dragging their love rival into the battlefield.”

"Because I don't want to win dishonorably."

Saori's voice came from his chest, muffled but clear.

"If Ling Nai keeps running away and keeps hiding herself, then I won't be winning against the best version of her."

"The one I want to beat is the one who fought so hard to get her."

"Only such a victory would be worthy of my more than a year of unrequited love."

Ryosuke looked down at her.

Saori also looked up at that moment, and their eyes met in the sea breeze.

Her cheeks were slightly red from the cold, and the tip of her nose was also red, but her eyes were bright, as if they had captured all the light of this gray winter into her pupils.