A guide to survival in a heavy girl's world

"Is this... the design for the short skirt?"

Looking at the wrinkled blueprint in her hand, Chihaya Aine couldn't help but reveal an expression of great surprise:

"Isn't it quite intact? And it looks cute too... Why did you crumple it into this shape?"

It was a very gorgeous and cute sketch of a short skirt. Whether it was the star pattern that Chihaya Tetsuya liked the most, or the gorgeous design with a lot of hollow lace and embroidery, it was very much in line with Chihaya Aine's taste!

Although my brother always says that most of the clothes that suit her taste are not very presentable...

"But these sketches all look like women's clothing. What kind of job did brother get?"

With full of doubts and curiosity, Chihaya Aine began to explore this messy rental apartment.

Perhaps they anticipated the situation beforehand, but this house, which was supposed to be occupied by Chihaya Tetsuya alone, actually had two bedrooms. Not only that, it also had a living room, kitchen, and bathroom...

"So you've already arranged everything for me... You truly are worthy of being my great mother!"

While secretly worshipping her mother's wisdom, Chihaya Aine also decided which room belonged to her.

And her basis is very clear at a glance -

"...Did you forget to lock the door because you live alone?"

Chihaya Aine lay at the door, looking at the slightly rising and falling quilt and muttered softly:

"It seems like he's really been working hard... He should have gotten up by now before."

Not only that, even in the bedroom, there are several abandoned design drawings scattered on the floor. What's even more exaggerated is that there is even a book about fabric knowledge next to Chihaya Tetsuya's pillow.

Although Chihaya Tetsuya has always been extremely serious about learning fashion design, he has never made his room so messy.

What kind of work would push him to this extent...

Just as Chihaya Aine was still secretly smacking her lips in amazement at her brother's hard work, the figure on the bed suddenly shook unnaturally a few times -

"Ugh...my head hurts."

A black-haired boy with pale skin and a slightly thin figure slowly sat up.

His facial features were more delicate than handsome, and with his short, slightly messy hair from just getting out of bed, he even looked vaguely neutral...

“…Aine?”

Then, when Chihaya Tetsuya saw the figure lying at the door and secretly watching him, he was stunned for a while, then he quickly rubbed his numb facial muscles with his hands and forced a very forced smile.

"I'm sorry I couldn't pick you up at the airport yesterday—Puwaaa!"

"elder brother!!!"

But before Chihaya Tetsuya could finish his words, Chihaya Aine pounced on him and threw him onto the bed again.

"Half a year since we last met, I really miss you!!!"

"Ahem, I, I miss you too..."

Chihaya Tetsu, who was completely pinned down by his sister, replied with great difficulty:

"But before that, can you please let me get out of bed..."

"Yes!"

Although she was reluctant to leave this familiar and warm embrace, after hearing her brother's hoarse voice, Chihaya Aine obediently left her brother.

"Let me get you a glass of water first...are the cup and kettle in the kitchen?"

"kindness."

"Wait for me a moment, I'll be right back!"

After saying that, Chihaya Aine left Chihaya Tetsuya's room with extremely brisk steps. Not long after, she returned to Chihaya Tetsuya with a cup full of warm water.

"Same old style, warm water."

“…Thank you, Aine.”

Chihaya Tetsu took the cup of water and drank it all in one gulp.

With the nourishment of warm water, Chihaya Tetsuya's throat finally gradually returned to its normal state.

At the same time, Chihaya Aine lowered her head and picked up the discarded design drawings scattered around the bed one by one.

“Ah, Aine, just leave those scraps there!”

Chihaya Tetsuya hurriedly said:

"I'll clean up the room soon, you can put your luggage first... Your room is just across the street, you should have seen it -"

"I heard from mom that you seem to have received a job that is very important to you."

Chihaya Aine suddenly interrupted Chihaya Tetsuya.

"I know you've always taken fashion design very seriously, and you want to see results as quickly as possible... but you can't push yourself like that!"

"…………"

Chihaya Tetsuya subconsciously looked up at his room.

There were manuscript papers and pencils on the table that had not been put away, scrap designs scattered all over the floor, and reference books that he had placed directly on the bedside before going to bed.

Rather than traces of effort, it is more like the wreckage of a battlefield.

Considering his terrible mental state just now, it was natural for him to be lectured by his sister.

But...he also had reasons why he couldn't give in.

"Because this work is of great significance to me."

Chihaya Tetsuya said:

"This is my first time designing costumes for an idol... Not only that, but he's also someone very important to me..."

"Idol? Important person?"

Upon hearing these two words, Chihaya Aine couldn't help but reveal an extremely bewildered expression.

"I've never heard of my brother promoting any idol before."

"It's not a push, but the other party is really an acquaintance of mine."

Then, under Chihaya Aine's stunned gaze, Chihaya Tetsuya said:

"This time, the client is the recently formed idol group [Summer Zodiac]."

"And in this group... there's an idol named [Hoshino Ai], who used to be my friend from the same orphanage."

Chapter 2: You should actively check your psychological test results (two chapters in one)

【Summer Zodiac】 is a new idol group belonging to the well-known idol agency 【Watanabe Agency】.

Although they are a new group that debuted less than a month ago and has only released one single, they have already attracted the attention of the entire industry.

Chu Hua, a talented idol with a mature demeanor that belies her high school freshman status, mastery of guitar theory, and top-notch professional skills. And Hoshino Ai, whose looks and personality perfectly embody the meaning of idol, possessing a captivating charm that captivates everyone. This industry-defining miracle duo forms an unprecedented idol group, and they are about to release their first music video since their debut.

The costumes that Chihaya Tetsuya's studio, KaZoKu, is currently designing are exactly what will be used in this MV.

"This music video requires a total of five sets of clothing, three of which are daily wear and two are performance costumes. I am responsible for the 'pajamas' that are Hoshino Ai's daily wear and the performance costumes with the theme of 'constellations'."

Chihaya Tetsuya rubbed his temples and explained:

"There's still a week until the first review... If I don't produce a decent sample before then, I'll be kicked out of the project."

Having said that, Chihaya Tetsuya shook his head slightly.

"Whether it's for myself or for her...I have to finish these two dresses by myself no matter what."

(Hoshino Ai, Hoshino Ai, Hoshino Ai…Ah! I remember this name!)

As siblings who have lived together day and night for seven years, Chihaya Aine has heard this name from her brother more than once.

In the first few years after being adopted by the Chihaya family, Chihaya Tetsu had returned to the old site of the orphanage countless times and tried to find the whereabouts of Hoshino Ai, but the results made him feel extremely disappointed. Until the end, Chihaya Tetsu was completely unable to find out any news about Hoshino Ai.

For Chihaya Tetsuya, this girl named Hoshino Ai can be said to be his first person who can be called "family".

If this is the case, then this work is indeed of great significance to him.

……

So, since her brother is facing such an important task, if she continues to pester him and act coquettishly like she did in the past, it will only disturb him.

She is already a high school student, and she absolutely cannot be as willful as she was in junior high school!

While thinking this, Chihaya Aine took the empty cup of water from Chihaya Tetsuya and turned to walk out of the room.

However, before she left the room, Chihaya Tetsuya suddenly spoke:

“By the way, Aine probably has a lot to say to me now that she’s back. Wait for me for a moment, I’m going to go wash my face first… As for lunch, let’s just order takeout later—”

"Eh?! Wait, wait, you can't just leave it alone! Your work here is more important, right?!"

Chihaya Aine shook her head repeatedly and said:

"In that case, you don't have to worry about me. I can study for the entrance exam by myself..."

"There's no need to be so polite with me, right?"

In response to Chihaya Aine's sensible remarks, Chihaya Tetsuya frowned slightly.

Just the flying pounce that almost broke his body apart was enough to make him feel his sister's longing. If he left her aside at this point, he would be too incompetent as a brother.

"Besides, design is a job that requires a lot of inspiration and state of mind. I won't be in the mood to work until I hear what you have to say, Aine."

"Brother, brother..."

Chihaya Aine covered her mouth, her eyes sparkling with tears of emotion.

She first put the empty water cup aside, and then walked slowly towards Chihaya Tetsuya again.

Seeing this, Chihaya Tetsuya quickly raised his arms back, ready to face the next wave of attack.

"I like you the most!"

"Pfft-!"

After letting out a short cry of pain, Chihaya Tetsuya was once again knocked to the bed by his sister's close-range pounce.

…………Twenty minutes later…………

"To put it simply, it means you're completely unable to establish a conversation with others, and you can't even read their minds, right?"

"Well, that's it..."

Chihaya Aine sat on the sofa that had just been cleaned and sighed slightly.

"Although I can sense that everyone has no ill will towards me, for some reason, I just can't communicate properly with them. The moment our eyes meet, my mind goes blank, even after I've rehearsed my thoughts several times..."

Having said this, she suddenly said to herself with a depressed look:

"Could it be that... I'm actually someone with very poor communication skills?"

"? Isn't your situation just due to simple nervousness?"

Chihaya Tetsuya tilted his head.

"You're the type who cares deeply about what others think and will base your actions on how they react. It's normal to feel overwhelmed when you're in a completely unfamiliar cultural environment and lose your judgment."

"But I stayed there for a full six months, and I couldn't adapt to the new environment for that entire six months... I'm really not cut out for studying abroad, am I?"

Chihaya Aine slumped her shoulders and said:

"Ah, I really want to go back six months and stop the me who blindly pursued fashion and was so vain..."

Facing Chihaya Aine's face full of regret, Chihaya Tetsuya thought for a moment before saying:

"Let's not talk about whether or not you're suitable for going abroad. Even if you were to go back to that time, you probably wouldn't be able to talk yourself out of it, right? After all, you've always been the type to act on an idea immediately. Giving up without even trying is totally out of character for you."

"Hmm... in other words, you're the type who easily acts on impulse, right?"

"I didn't mean it that harshly... But it's true that I was overactive. My arm still hurts."

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

Chihaya Aine said with a sad face:

"Anyway, I'm just a blindly impulsive, vain fool... I actually went abroad just for the incredibly vain reason of 'studying abroad' because it sounded so prestigious... Ahhh, what on earth have I been doing for the past six months..."

The more I realize my own naiveté, the stronger the regret I feel.