My Twin Stepsisters Are Way Too Yandere!

Chapter 199: Chapter 198 - The Date That Wasn’t

The following Saturday...

Kuro had one simple plan.

To buy a new notebook.

Go home.

And finish his psychology assignment.

Easy.

Sensible.

Possible.

"...At least, that was the initial idea."

His phone buzzed with a new message.

Akari: Meet me at Central Station at 10!

Kuro: Why?

Three dots flashed almost instantly.

Akari: We’re having fun!

Kuro sighed.

"...It doesn’t work this way."

---

Exactly at ten o’clock, Akari waved both her hands as soon as she spotted him.

"Kuro!"

Running towards him in a light summer dress and a little shoulder bag.

Her smile has remained unchanged since their high school days.

"You actually showed up!"

"I would have kept sending texts."

"I definitely would."

"I know."

She laughed with pride.

"So!"

"Where are we going?"

Akari froze.

"...I haven’t thought about it so far."

Kuro blinked.

"You invited me."

"You invited me to have fun."

"The destination is the last part."

He silently admitted that it was pointless to argue with her.

---

Their first stop was a shopping street near the station.

Akari ran from shop to shop with a boundless curiosity.

Checking key rings hand-made.

Sampling snacks from a local bakery.

Marveling at flower displays.

While Kuro silently followed her.

Reminding from time to time...

"You’re going to forget your bag."

"You’ve left your drink."

"That’s not our umbrella."

"Oh!"

"Thank you!"

---

When they entered a local bookstore, the old cashier greeted them with a friendly smile.

"What a beautiful young couple."

They froze.

Akari pointed at Kuro with excitement.

"No!"

"We’re not dating!"

The cashier laughed in knowing manner.

"I used to tell the same story to my husband."

Kuro simply bought his notebook.

"...Thank you."

Outside...

Akari buried her face in her palms.

"Why everyone says that?"

"You were standing close to each other."

"I was?"

"You held my sleeve."

She immediately let it go.

"I didn’t even notice."

---

At lunchtime, they found a small coffee shop.

There was only one free table left.

A window seat.

The waitress approached them with menus.

"Would you like the couple’s lunch special?"

Akari almost dropped the menu.

"We’re not—"

"It’s alright."

Kuro interrupted her politely.

"We don’t need the lunch special."

The waitress smiled.

"My mistake."

After she left...

Akari leaned on the table with her forehead.

"I think the universe is laughing at me."

Kuro sipped some water.

"According to statistics, it’s just a coincidence."

She lifted her head dramatically.

"Stop using statistics in this situation."

---

After lunch, Akari said that they should visit an arcade.

"I challenge you."

"To what?"

"To a claw game battle."

"I’ve never won in it."

"Great!"

"You’re going to appreciate this victory."

After five hundred yen...

Neither of them won anything.

Akari crossed her arms.

"These machines are evil."

"They are profitable."

"That’s not helping."

A little schoolboy walked over to them.

Put a coin in the machine.

Won a huge teddy bear immediately.

Akari stared at him in complete amazement.

"...I’ve been defeated by a kid."

Kuro quietly clapped.

---

When they left the arcade, dark clouds covered the sky.

Several moments later...

Heavy rain started pouring down.

Akari gasped.

"I forgot my umbrella!"

Kuro silently opened his own.

"I didn’t."

She smiled in embarrassment.

"I knew there was a reason why I invited you."

"There wasn’t."

"There is now."

They held the umbrella while walking in the rainy streets.

Because the umbrella was small...

They occasionally touched each other’s shoulders.

Neither of them mentioned that.

The only sound was the raindrops falling rhythmically.

Several quiet minutes later, Akari smiled.

"This is wonderful."

Kuro nodded.

"It is."

She turned to him.

"You know..."

"I’m actually glad everyone else was wrong today."

"Hm?"

"I was saying this was not a date."

"It isn’t."

"I know."

She laughed softly.

"But..."

She looked ahead as small drops splashed around on the pavements.

"...I realized something."

"What?"

"I really enjoy being with you."

Kuro smiled.

"I like spending time with you too."

Her heart skipped a beat.

She quickly looked away before he could notice the blush rising on her cheeks.

Perhaps...

Maybe...

Everyone else’s misunderstanding was not so absurd as she thought.

Not because this day was a date.

But because somewhere between books, coffees, arcade games and sharing one umbrella...

Being alone with Kuro became somehow natural for her.

And for the first time...

This realization brought a smile to her face until she got home.

When the rain stopped, the streets sparkled under the sunny afternoon.

Small puddles reflected the blue sky and people started walking along sidewalks again.

Akari stretched her arms with a smile.

"The weather changes so quickly."

Kuro folded the umbrella.

"It does."

Walking to the station, they passed by a small park where kids were running after the pigeons.

One little girl stumbled and dropped the ice cream she just bought.

She was ready to cry.

Before Kuro could intervene, Akari ran over to her.

"Oh no..."

She sat beside the child.

"That’s terrible, isn’t it?"

The little girl nodded, trying to hold back her tears.

Akari smiled kindly.

"Just wait a little bit."

She ran to a nearby ice cream stall and returned a minute later with a completely new ice cream cone.

"There you are!"

The little girl’s face instantly lit up.

"Thank you!"

Her mother bowed.

"I’m terribly sorry you had to do that."

Akari simply waved her hand.

"It’s alright!"

"Seeing her happy is enough."

As they started walking, Kuro looked at her.

"You didn’t hesitate."

Akari shrugged.

"I remembered how I used to cry over dropped ice cream when I was little."

"So..."

"I didn’t want her day to end like this."

Kuro smiled.

"You’re kind."

Akari awkwardly laughed.

"I usually get called noisy before kind."

"They aren’t mutually exclusive."

She looked at him for a while before smiling softer than usual.

"...Thank you."

A comfortable silence settled between them.

When they finally reached the station entrance, Akari stopped.

"I enjoyed this day."

"So did I."

"You have no regrets about not finishing your psychology homework?"

"I still have them."

She laughed.

"Sorry."

"It’s alright."

He adjusted the strap of his bag.

"We should do this again."

The words escaped his lips easily.

For a moment, Akari silently stared at him.

Then a smile slowly spread over her face.

"You mean..."

"Hang out."

"Again?"

Kuro nodded.

"If you’re free."

She smiled brightly, revealing all of her teeth.

"I will definitely be free."

When Kuro was leaving the station on his train, he looked at her through the closing doors.

Akari was still standing on the platform, waving both her hands with as much energy as she used to greet him in the morning.

He waved one hand.

The train moved.

Akari watched it disappear around the corner.

Only then, she put her hand to her chest.

Her heart beat slightly faster than usual.

"...Maybe..."

She whispered to herself with a shy smile.

"The next one could be a date."

That night, Akari lay stretched out on her bed, gazing at the ceiling.

Her shopping bag was lying in the corner of the room.

The keychain she had bought that afternoon sat on her desk.

It was a tiny black cat wearing round glasses.

When she had laid eyes on it, she had laughed.

"It looks a bit like Kuro."

Without hesitation, she had bought it.

Now she held it up and smiled.

"...Just a bit, perhaps."

Her phone began to ring.

On the display was written:

Mina

Immediately, Akari answered the call.

"Hi!"

"So?"

"So what?"

"How was your date?"

Akari almost dropped the phone.

"It wasn’t a date!"

"Oh?"

"You were alone with Kuro the whole day!"

"That’s..."

"You guys had lunch."

"..."

"You guys walked around the city."

"..."

"You guys used an umbrella."

"..."

"You guys watched it raining."

Akari buried her head into a pillow.

"When you put it like that, it makes me seem suspicious."

Mina giggled.

"I’m only joking."

After a few moments of silence, Mina then asked softly,

"Did you enjoy yourself?"

Looking at the little keychain she held, a warm smile came upon Akari’s face unknowingly.

"...Yeah."

"I enjoyed myself today."

"I’m happy."

"I forgot how relaxing it was spending time with him."

Mina laughed quietly.

"Every time, you always smiled widest whenever Kuro was there."

Akari blinked.

"I did?"

"You didn’t notice?"

"...I didn’t."

"You better consider it."

Before Akari had the chance to ask her what she was implying, Mina then cheerfully wished her goodnight and hung up the call.

The room became silent once again.

Sitting at the edge of her bed, Akari recalled the happenings from the day one after another.

The bookstore.

The café.

The claw machine.

The umbrella.

Lastly...

Kuro’s soft voice.

"We should do this again sometime."

Akari’s cheeks became increasingly pinkish.

She hugged the little cat keychain close to her heart.

"...Why am I this happy?"

And at that precise moment, her phone began to buzz from an incoming message.

It was from Kuro.

Kuro: I just noticed you left your scarf inside my bag.

Akari stared blankly at the screen.

Then laughed.

Akari: Looks like we will be meeting up again.

After just a few seconds, his reply reached her.

Kuro: I suppose we will.

Setting her phone next to her pillow, Akari then lay down with a relaxed sigh.

Looking out through her window, she saw the starry night sky beyond.

For the first time in ages, Akari found herself excited for the coming weekend more than anything else.

Not for another outing.

But just for seeing Kuro again.