Chapter 5: Doki Doki literary club

I looked up at the vast blue sky, the sun high above, shining so brightly it hurt to look directly at it.

It was noon, a time for even the busiest people to pause and collect themselves.

Since it was the first day of school, classes ended just before lunchtime.

Thinking how relaxed it was for a prestigious school, I strolled down the quiet street.

I had just visited the main stage of the game, the school where almost all the events took place, for the first time in the protagonist’s body.

As expected, nothing special happened until I left school.

And contrary to my worries about being alone again, I even made a friend.

The surprising part was that my friend was one of the rival characters from the game.

I hadn’t recognized her just by looking at her, but I knew as soon as she told me her name.

Kang Seon-a. In the game, she was the rival character for the first capture target.

To think I’d meet her on the first day of school and become friends… In the game, she hid her face behind long bangs and thick glasses, but the girl I saw today looked nothing like that. She was actually quite striking.

She still had her characteristically timid personality, but as we talked, her brighter side became more apparent.

In the game, Seon-a wasn’t a particularly noticeable character.

Coupled with her timid nature, she always hid herself.

It was safe to say she had almost no interaction with others.

Simply put, she was the lonely type, neither approaching others nor being approached.

But there was one boy who approached her without hesitation.

Having experienced affection and kindness for the first time in her life, she fell for him.

Unfortunately, that boy was one of the protagonist’s capture targets.

Due to her extremely timid personality, the route she was a rival in was the easiest of all.

Her presence was so insignificant that it wouldn’t have affected the story much even if she had been removed entirely.

Even when the boy she loved was being seduced right in front of her, she couldn’t bring herself to do anything, ultimately losing him without so much as a whimper.

She was jealous of the protagonist, but she was also too afraid of her, or rather, of other people in general, to even approach her.

She was that closed off.

The Seon-a I met today was also timid.

But not to an unhealthy extent.

She smiled and responded when I first spoke to her, and she didn’t shy away when other students talked to her later.

Reality and games were clearly different.

This was to be expected. Girls her age often wanted to change themselves.

It was as if Seon-a, the chrysalis, had broken free from her confining shell and emerged as a butterfly, ready to face the world.

I didn’t know what triggered this change unless I asked her directly, but I wanted to celebrate it. After all, Seon-a was my first friend here.

“I’m home.”

Lost in thoughts about Seon-a, my future school life, and other things, I arrived at my familiar front door.

I took out my key and opened the door.

A familiar pair of shoes by the entrance indicated someone was already home.

I took off my shoes and neatly arranged them.

It was a bit of a hassle, but if I didn’t do this, my sister or mom would scold me.

“Welcome back.”

“I’m home.”

As soon as I stepped inside, I heard footsteps hurrying towards me.

My sister greeted me with a bright smile, and I smiled back.

It was unusual for her, the student council president, to be home before me.

She was wearing red rubber gloves, probably doing the dishes.

The pink apron that reached her knees looked adorable on her.

“How was school?”

“It was pretty good.”

Despite my reserved words, I was feeling quite upbeat.

I’d been intimidated by the idea of attending a rich school, but there weren’t any unpleasant students, and I even made a cute friend.

…Just one, though.

“That’s good to hear. I made lunch, so go change and come eat.”

“I’m hungry. I’ll eat first and change later.”

I followed my sister to the kitchen.

A simple but delicious-looking home-cooked meal was set on the table.

The enticing aroma made my mouth water.

It must have been difficult for her to prepare all this right after coming home from school.

Despite being a student like me, my sister took care of almost all the housework, from cooking and cleaning to laundry.

We had a mom, but she worked long hours and rarely came home. I had only been able to see her this morning because yesterday was the weekend.

My sister rarely complained, but it would make me a terrible person to let her shoulder all the housework.

I helped her out whenever I could, even if it wasn’t much.

“Where are you going?”

“I’ll eat after I finish the dishes. So you go ahead…”

“Ah, no, you can’t do that.”

“Kyaa! W-wait, Sia…!”

Ignoring the food on the table, my sister headed back to the sink.

I stopped her and lifted her into my arms, princess-style.

Her cheeks flushed crimson, but I ignored her protests and gently placed her on a chair before sitting across from her.

Even though she was petite, she still weighed at least 40 kilograms.

I could only do this thanks to my unnecessarily strong body.

I’d actually received quite a few invitations to join the track and field team.

“I’ll do the rest of the dishes. You cooked.”

“You don’t have to…”

“I want to. Okay?”

She finally fell silent and picked up her chopsticks.

She took a small bite, like a hamster nibbling on seeds.

It would be incredibly sad if such a cute person thought of herself as disposable.

The mere thought made my chest ache.

Perhaps it was because I had just visited the setting of the game, but I felt strangely uneasy.

I put down my chopsticks mid-meal and stared at my sister, who looked puzzled. Her cheeks flushed slightly.

Had she changed too, like Seon-a?

If she hadn’t… what would I do?

“…Hey, Sister, do you love me?”

I blurted out the question.

A moment of silence followed.

It was probably a bit out of the blue, asking such a question in the middle of a meal.

Just as I was about to dismiss it as nothing,

Her down-turned eyes, which resembled our mother’s, curved into gentle crescents.

“Yes, I love you. Even if everyone else in the world died, as long as I had Sia, I’d be happy.”

“…Really?”

It was a slightly chilling response, but I assumed it was just an exaggeration.

In truth, I didn’t need any long-winded explanations or flowery words.

Her single, gentle smile conveyed her feelings more than enough, melting away my anxiety.

Just as I loved her, she loved me. That was enough.

That was all I needed. Smiling brightly back at her, I picked up my chopsticks again.