Uneasy daily life

Kitahara Iori rubbed her temples: "Never mind, it'll be fine once I have a chance to explain..."

"Why do you need to explain?" Bai Ying asked curiously. "That's your cousin, not your girlfriend—hmm? Are you a siscon too?"

Kitahara Iori couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth: "Unfortunately, I do have a younger sister, so I'm not a siscon... huh? Oh?"

Are you a siscon, someone who has a girlfriend?

Bai Ying gestured towards the bar: "Look, isn't there a siscon over there?"

Kitahara Iori looked towards the bar and saw her older cousin, who had seemed to be listening to others without saying a word, now with her back to the store, looking around. She buried her face in her younger cousin's coat, slowly raised her shoulders, took a deep breath, and revealed a foolish smile that would make anyone want to call the police...

The image of her as gentle, generous, mature, and captivating was instantly captured in my mind.

Kitahara Iori couldn't help but pound the ground.

"What exactly happened in the last ten years?!"

The burly, black-haired man comforted him, "Don't overthink it. Most families don't have such a lively atmosphere."

The blond-haired man chimed in, "That's right, that's right, Iori's family members are all very individualistic."

Bai Ying clicked her tongue in amazement: "Why do I keep running into these siscon creatures wherever I go? Could it be that siscon creatures are destined to be with me?"

Someone remembered your conversation.

Seemingly hearing the whispers outside, Nanaka Kotegawa put away her sister's coat, coughed, turned around, and smiled as she changed the subject, her words tinged with sincerity: "Iori, I never imagined that ten years would pass, and you would already be... already... As for Chisa, you're both going to Izu University, you'll definitely get along well... but... however..."

Nanaka Kotegawa sighed, her expression tolerant as if she wanted to say something but then stopped herself.

I didn't! I'm still that boy who's never been in a relationship! I just made a mistake that every man makes!

No way! I have to explain myself clearly, even if it's embarrassing and damages my masculinity, it's better than being seen as a scumbag by my family! But if I say it directly, I'll easily go from being a scumbag to a liar, so I need to explain to Nana-chan in a tactful way that I'm not a scumbag, that I haven't dated one girlfriend after another, and that I didn't find a new girlfriend in college while still dating someone else...

"Nanaka-nee-san, listen to me—"

Kitahara Iori suddenly stood up, placed her hands on the bar counter, leaned closer, and, with a serious expression, loudly protested, "I went to an all-boys high school! Even the teachers and students were men!"

Nanaka Kotegawa paused for a moment, her bewildered eyes widening. She suddenly remembered something a good friend had occasionally explained to her, such as homosexuality... Her gaze instantly became blank as she stared at her cousin in disbelief. Under his reckless gaze, she confirmed the truth and immediately felt flustered, her face flushed with embarrassment.

"You, I... ah, uh, this, I need to ask my friends about this... ahahaha..."

She turned mechanically, moved her hands and feet stiffly, and left the bar in an awkward, flustered, and somewhat bewildered manner.

Kitahara Iori scratched his head, puzzled. Why was he reacting this way?

"Wow, that's really something. Was she that kind of girlfriend?" the burly, dark-haired man mused.

The blond-haired man shook his head slightly: "This is truly a sign of the world going to the dogs..."

Bai Ying muttered to herself, "For high school romances, being separated by distance in college is a very real test, full of youthful regrets and worldly conflicts. If we add same-sex elements to that... speaking of which, the mechanical engineering department does have a very high male ratio... same-sex infidelity is also an interesting plot to deconstruct love..."

"Hey! Wait! That's not what I meant—"

Kitahara Iori belatedly realized what was happening and tried to prove her innocence: "I've never had a girlfriend!"

“Oh, oh, oh, you haven’t paid it, you haven’t paid it…” Angelina casually blended into the conversation, and after giving a perfunctory answer, she probed indirectly, “It’s Kotegawa… I mean, Okotegawa. Her reaction just now was quite strange, almost like she had multiple faces.”

“That’s normal.” The burly man with black hair thought for a moment and said, “Nanaka is not good at things related to the opposite sex… same sex… uh, anyway, she’s not good at things related to love and has no experience. She’s especially shy and awkward.”

The blond-haired man laughed heartily: "Although she's the oldest among us—you probably didn't realize, did you? She's already a college graduate and an adult."

Already graduated from university? That looks really young... No, no! That's extremely dangerous!

Angelina glanced at the white figure and noticed that the figure was also looking at her. Startled, she hastily changed the subject: "Let's talk about Kitahara's boyfriend..."

"It's not that I didn't!"

Kitahara Iori was bewildered and tried to say something to prove her innocence, but was grabbed by the Black and Yellow Duo.

"That kind of thing isn't important!"

"Let's keep drinking!"

"Stop drinking! Tomorrow's the first day of school, I don't want to be late with a hangover!"

"It's okay, it's okay, I definitely won't let you be late!"

Angelina paid no attention to the noise of the boys; she had discovered something of utmost importance and was using her phone to inform the others.

[A group with absolutely no white shadows]

[Angelina: Something terrible has happened! Danger! Extreme danger!]

[Toyohama Kazuka: Are you guys going to set up tents at school to welcome the start of the school year?]

[Angelina: Not this one!]

[Angelina: Bai Ying is going to cheat on me!]

Ten seconds later, there was still no reply.

[Angelina: @All members, are you there? Say something if you are!]

[Yukinoshita: Squeak~]

[Angelina: Give me some ideas!]

A dozen seconds later, there was silence.

Silence is the greatest form of disbelief.

Angelina gritted her teeth, looked around, and found the white figure mixed in with the boys, telling a hastily made-up story of 'Kitahara Iori's romance in an all-boys school'... Poor Kitahara, who's already drunk, you can rest in peace now, your love life is the priority!

[Angelina: White Shadow, encountered a pair of sisters.]

[Yukinoshita: I need to sit up to listen.]

[Toyohama Kazuka: What's wrong? There are plenty of sisters in the world.]

[Sakurajima Mai: ...Angelina, is Shiroki planning to persuade your parents to have a second child?]

[Yukino Yukinoshita: Anshinin-kun, isn't your judgment standard a bit strange?]

[Angelina: What?! Although I don't have any sisters, don't you guys being in pairs prove anything? And the sisters Bai Ying and I met weren't just any ordinary sisters!]

[Yukino Yukinoshita: Could sisters be anything but ordinary?]

[Angelina: Is it normal for a sister to be obsessed with her younger sister?!]

[Yukinoshita: Pretty average.]

[Sakurajima Mai: I hereby declare you expelled from the sisterhood.]

[Toyohama Kazuka: Why not the younger sister who's obsessed with her older sister? In the pair of sisters you've encountered, is the younger sister obsessed with the older sister?]

[Yukino Yukinoshita: I hereby declare you expelled from the sisterhood.]

[Angelina: I'm not sure if she's a sister-complex or not, since all I saw was the older sister smearing her sister's coat on her face and taking deep breaths.]

[Angelina: Wait! Are you kidding me? This is really important! This is the White Shadow + Sisters combination!]

[Yukino Yukinoshita: I think you've been distracted by Haku's tricks, and besides, the older sister you mentioned sounds a bit like a pervert, doesn't she?]

[Yukino Yukinoshita: Taking deep breaths over your sister's clothes? Superficial, secretive, guilty conscience. I just suck Yukino-chan's breath directly.]

[Toyohama Kazuka: You bastard, you don't really have any obsession with sisters, do you? We just happen to be sisters and we just happen to be involved with you, that's all. Why are you thinking such nonsense?]

[Sakurajima Mai: Angelina didn't have any sisters either, so she's the same.]

Damn it! This is clearly extremely important intelligence, why doesn't anyone believe it?

Angelina looked around, then casually walked into the restaurant's kitchen. Under Nanaka Kotegawa's questioning gaze, she snapped a photo of her, then cut straight to the point: "That big Kotegawa..."

"Just call me Nanaka," Nanaka Kotegawa said with a gentle smile. "What can I do for you? Do you have any questions about diving?"

"We'll talk about that later, we'll talk about it later..." Angelina mentally pushed up her non-existent glasses. Damn everyone, let me show you my sharp eyes! "Nana Hana-nee, do you really like your little sister?"

Nanaka Kotegawa blinked: "Of course, how could an older sister not like her younger sister?"

“Indeed, the two older sisters I know both really like their younger sister…” Angelina tried her best to feign empathy, subtly suggesting, “It’s just that this kind of feeling is distorted by societal obstacles… The older sister I know, on the one hand, envied and was jealous of the treatment her younger sister received, and on the other hand, liked her personality and demeanor, which resulted in her both caring for her and bullying her…”

"How can an older sister bully her younger sister?!" Nanaka Kotegawa frowned. "Such an older sister is truly unfit!"

...Very well, Yang Nai has been expelled from the sisterhood.

Angelina suppressed the urge to complain and explained, "Because that older sister does everything so well, she bears the heavy burden of expectations from her family, which makes her jealous of her younger sister's more comfortable situation. And because she genuinely cares for her younger sister, that's why she acts so awkwardly..."

Nanaka Kotegawa tilted her head slightly as she listened: "This... sounds a bit complicated. I only have feelings of liking and caring for Chisa... well, but when it comes to family circumstances, it's not entirely incomprehensible."

Family situation?!

Angelina immediately asked, "Do your parents also prefer you... oh no, have higher expectations for you or something?"

“No, that’s not it. Dad is very open-minded. It’s just that Chisa and Mom have some disagreements.” Nanaka Kotekawa sighed as she thought of her younger sister’s chosen major. “Mom doesn’t quite approve of Chisa’s interests, so they had a bit of a falling out. When it came to choosing a major in college, Chisa followed Mom’s wishes. She’s actually not very interested in mechanical engineering…”

“Oh, that’s complicated. My friend is the same. Her interests and hobbies are different from her family’s wishes, but she has to do what her family wants…” Angelina tried to figure out the family dynamics and experiences of the Yukinoshita sisters. “They are parents and daughters who have feelings and care for each other, but it has become a relationship where the daughter pretends to be obedient to please her parents in order to avoid being criticized by her family.”

Nanaka Kotegawa was taken aback. Was she trying to ingratiate herself?

"No wonder Chisa chose mechanical engineering in the end; her science grades are indeed very good... However, I do hope they can talk more about their ideas, but Chisa is rather introverted, and her mother is very similar to her. The two of them can't talk much and often have a cold war because of conflicting opinions... It's a pity that her mother is often abroad and doesn't have many opportunities..."

Nanaka Kotegawa couldn't help but think about her family. When she came back to her senses, she suddenly noticed that Angelina's expression was frighteningly serious: "Uh... what's wrong?"

“No, no, no!” Angelina blinked and immediately said, “Since we’ll all be freshmen in the same major at Izu University… um, how about I help you find out what your sister thinks? Some people are reserved, but they’re only reserved with their family members with whom they spend a lot of time. In front of strangers, they can express a lot of their innermost thoughts without any reservations.”

Nanaka Kotegawa thought about it and realized it made a lot of sense... Hmm? Why did the conversation turn into mediating a family conflict?

"Leave it to me! I have plenty of experience in resolving family problems and adolescent conflicts!"

Although it's experience gained from following the white shadow on missions, it's still experience!

Angelina gave a few words of encouragement, and after thinking for a moment, Nanaka Kotegawa picked up the tray of prepared food: "Then please go upstairs and bring the food to Chisa. Her room is the first one upstairs, so please don't go to the wrong one."

"give it to me!"

Angelina, carrying the tray, quickly went upstairs before the other person could react, mentally trying to connect the dots, analyze motives and reasons, and dig deeper into the underlying relationships...

That's right! Like a white shadow, one can see into people's hearts with extraordinary insight, uncovering those subtle details, those things that the person may or may not have noticed, but have failed to express!

For example... For example...

"Hey Kotegawa, aren't you a little envious of your older sister?"

Chisa Kotegawa stood at the door, took the tray, and her usually indifferent and expressionless face revealed a look of confusion as to how to react... Hmm?

Why would you suddenly throw such a question at me?

Sorry! I only know how to copy the answer key!

Angelina mentally slapped herself a few times before quickly trying to cover it up: "It was Nana-chan who said that. She asked me to ask you what you think. It's just that you two have a little problem at home, right? Because you're family, it's hard to bring it up, so she asked me to ask!"

"And another thing, I actually know a pair of sisters. The younger sister envies the older sister because she's accepted by the family and can do everything well. She likes the older sister who is like her ideal self, but she's also jealous of the older sister who is like her ideal self... When I heard Nana-chan say this, I felt that it was quite similar to the sisters I've met..."

Ugh—what am I even talking about?! So embarrassing, I feel like Japan should just sink! How on earth does Bai Ying have the audacity to interfere in other people's affairs?! When people are looking at you with strange eyes, doesn't she feel like she wants to unleash Bites the Dust?!

Angelina frantically tried to back out, deciding to just run away...

"Hmm... I do envy you, sister, but I didn't expect you to notice..."

Chapter 140 This Moment Is Just Like That Moment

huh?

Angelina was a little confused and subconsciously raised her hand, saying, "Wait! Let me think about it for a second!"

Let me think about what I just babbled off!

"Ok?"

Chisa Kotegawa was also a little confused. "Huh? Didn't my sister send you to deliver a message? What are you thinking about?" She was thinking of closing the door to eat, but shutting the other person out seemed a bit impolite…

"call……"

Angelina slowly exhaled.

After thinking about it carefully, I still haven't figured anything out, but one thing seems to be certain...

"Furugawa-kun, it might seem a bit strange and abrupt, but could you answer a few questions for me?"

"...You should ask first."

Chisa Kotegawa was puzzled and confused, unable to understand what she could talk about with someone she had just met and didn't even know by name. Perhaps her older sister wanted to ask her but was too embarrassed to ask, so she asked the other person for help.

Angelina: "Do you... have a strained relationship with your mother?"

"That's right..."

"Don't you secretly crave your mother's approval and praise?"