My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

"……Um."

Mizuto turned his face away and walked away. It seemed he wanted to adopt a strategy of completely out of sight, out of mind.

I walked up to him with a persistent, giggling laugh.

Last time, this guy was dressed up just like me, which made me lose my composure for a moment, but this time it looks like I'll be the one to win big. I'm in an incredibly good mood.

"Where are you going? To Kawaramachi? Or Kyoto Station? I usually go by bicycle, whichever way..."

"How can I ride a bicycle in a skirt? Are you an idiot?"

"That's why I'm asking you how you're going to get there; can't you just infer from the context?"

"Just take the tram, are you an idiot?"

"What an innovative ending! Can I punch you?"

I kept a slight distance from him in case he became violent, and headed to the nearest station.

My destination is Kyoto Station. There's a gift shop inside the station building that I visit every year.

You can get there by bicycle from my house, but taking the subway is the fastest. It costs over 200 yuan in fare, but it only takes less than ten minutes.

I waited for Shuidou to finish buying his ticket, and then I used my IC card to pass through the ticket gate.

"Why don't you have a card?"

"If I store money but don't use it, wouldn't that be a waste of money?"

It seems they don't go out with others, so they never get a chance to use their prepaid IC cards. How pitiful.

The platform was packed with people; even taking a few steps required squeezing through a human wall. Faced with this human maze, Shuidou groaned.

"There are so many people..."

"You probably don't realize how incredibly crowded it is on weekends because you always stay home."

"I know that's why I like staying at home, okay...?"

"I hate crowds," Mizuto said in a tired tone. He still hated being in a crowd. "But I guess nobody likes it either."

I grabbed my stepson's arm, who was badly injured, and pulled him hard.

"Okay, hurry up and keep up. Don't get separated!"

"If I get separated from you, I'll go home."

I pulled the water bucket across the platform, waiting in line for the train. I feel like I'm increasingly taking care of a younger brother. If only I could have a smaller, cuter, and more obedient younger brother.

Soon the tram arrived, and Mizuto made a sound as if he was about to vomit.

"Do you want to take that one...? Can we wait for the next one?"

"It doesn't matter which class you take, it's pointless."

There were many people holding onto the handrails on the tram. If we were crammed in, it would be a perfect sardine can.

That being said, I think it's much better than the rumored crowded trains in Tokyo. At least here we don't have to be packed in with people, just unable to move an inch. Even so, it still seems enough to make this guy feel like he'd rather be dead. This guy would probably die if he took the train in Tokyo.

After the passengers disembarked, everyone lined up to board the bus in order. We were last in line, so the doors closed after the water tanker boarded.

The tram slowly accelerated, making me a little unsteady on my feet.

at this time……

"……Hello."

"Huh?"

The reason I made that stupid yell was because he forcefully pulled my arm from behind.

My back was pushed against the car door.

What is he doing!

I looked up, a little annoyed, and for a moment, I forgot to breathe.

The water bucket switched places with me, using one hand to support itself against the car door for balance while looking down at me closely.

His neck, relatively slender for a man, and his prominent Adam's apple, a stark contrast to the neck's thinness, were right before my eyes. His steady breathing felt so close, almost like a whisper in my ear.

The eyes that had just been annoyed and impatient with the crowds now stared at me with a slightly angry gleam.

From an objective perspective...

My current posture is like being pinned against a wall by a water bucket.

"...You should be standing by the door, generally speaking."

When I heard him say those rude things, I realized why he did that.

...Could it be that you're worried I'll run into a pervert?

Oh...I see~?

I curled the corners of my mouth and slightly raised my eyes to look back into my stepson's eyes.

"You're willing to protect me?"

"Of course."

As if challenging me, Mizuto twisted his lips with a sarcastic tone.

"Isn't this the younger brother's duty, older sister?"

...I almost forgot, he's my brother now.

I couldn't help but pout.

"...How dare my little brother be so arrogant."

"I'm not the only arrogant bro in the world—oh dear!"

"ah……!"

The tram turned a corner, and all the passengers swayed to the side.

The water bucket lost its balance and stumbled—only when I came to my senses did I realize that he had pressed me against the car door, my face buried in his shoulder.

"...I'm sorry..."

The sound tickled my right ear.

Although I've grown quite a bit taller since junior high, I'm still not as tall as this big boy who's finished puberty. Given our height difference, his lips are exactly at my forehead level, so when we're in this position, he practically covers me completely, making me realize just how small I am, sob sob sob…

"Anyway, I'll move aside now."

"Ah, wait... pause...!"

Seeing that Shuidou was about to leave in front of me, I quickly grabbed his shirt.

Of course, it's not that I'm reluctant to end this position.

...because if he moves aside now, he will see my face.

(Illustration 006)

Then, I'll be the younger sister.

"Anyway, you always do this whenever the tram shakes, right? Who told you to be such a skinny monkey?"

Of course, I couldn't tell the truth, so I just made up a reason that was somewhat plausible.

"Just stand in whatever position you feel safe in... you'll be getting off the bus soon anyway."

"……All right."

The sound and breath landed on my ears, and then we fell silent.

After that, the tram never shook again.

After finally getting off the tram, we entered the underground shopping arcade that led directly to the station.

We squeezed into the crowd and walked in a straight line down the aisle lined with women's clothing stores. The gift shop where I usually pick out presents was just ahead of us.

Perhaps it was the crowded conditions, or perhaps it was the glittering atmosphere of the women's boutique clothing, but Mizuto seemed to feel quite awkward. Seriously, that's how useless a shut-in is.

"...You only said you wanted to buy a gift..."

For some unknown reason, Mizuta suddenly spoke up:

"But you should already know what to buy, right?"

"A bouquet of flowers, or a picture frame... or maybe a frying pan? Because Mom loves to cook."

"But you never want to learn from your aunt."

"...Mind your own business. The idea that it's terrible for a girl not to cook is so outdated."

"Ha! But I vaguely remember a woman making me a bento box without my permission—ouch!"

In a fit of anger, I kicked him in the shin... I'll definitely get my revenge someday.

As we talked, we arrived at the gift shop at our destination. There was a flower shop just across the aisle, and I planned to buy a small bouquet, but choosing a gift was more important first.

My stepson seemed intimidated by the girly atmosphere and hesitated to go in, so I dragged him inside.

Shuidou looked around among the displayed goods.

"...Oh, I thought they'd mostly be random little things, but it turns out there are a lot of practical items too, like journals."

"I doubt many people would buy random things as gifts, it's not like it's you."

"When have I ever given anyone anything out of the blue?"

"I don't have anything specific to recommend, but you remember recommending weird movies to others, right?"

"Memory Puzzle is clearly a classic."

"That's true, but I really admire you for recommending movies with such a fast-paced timeline to junior high school girls."

That was before we started dating. The film *Memory Puzzle* tells the story of a man whose memory only lasts ten minutes as he tries to find his wife's killer. It's indeed a good film, and it suits my taste, but for a middle school student to recommend a movie to a girl in the same grade seems a bit too intense. One can imagine how pathetic this man must have been during his middle school years.

"I don't look at age or status, but at the people who recommend movies. You clearly like 'The Butterfly Effect' and '12 Angry Men'."

"I remember those movies, but I've forgotten which guy recommended them..."

"Tsk. If I'd known this would happen, I would have recommended some overly bright romance movies, so you'd be forced to smile until your face cramped up..."

"If you had done that, things probably wouldn't have turned out so badly later."

Because I would never confess to someone like that. This is exactly what's known as the butterfly effect.

As I examined the mug with English letters written on it, I asked my stepson:

"So? My buddy, who doesn't care about age or status but only looks at recommendations, have you decided what gift to buy for Mom yet?"

"How would I know what Aunt Yu-ren likes? At least I don't think it's the kind of mug that couples buy together and then worry about what to do with after they break up."

"Yes, when giving gifts, you must consider the consequences."

If there's anything commendable about us during junior high, it's probably that we never bought items in pairs. It feels like it would be just as difficult to manage as couples sharing accounts on social media.

"I don't know what she likes, but..."

Shuidou looked at the space above the merchandise shelf and said:

"I've thought about what Aunt Yu-ren—or rather, what Aunt Yu-ren and the others might need."

"Mom and the others?...Do you include Uncle Fengqiu too?"

"Um."

Shuidou nodded and said:

"We can pick out a gift later. Shall we walk around here first? I need to think about something."

We took the escalator to the ground floor of the Kyoto Station building.

"Ah, there's a bookstore."

"Don't go! Going to the bookstore now will use up all our time and budget!"

I stopped Shuidou, who was almost sucked into the bookstore like an ant finding food, and walked with him in the aisle lined with souvenir shops.

"Hey, what are we doing now? It feels like we're just wandering around aimlessly?"

"Because we're just wandering around aimlessly."