"Ah, hey… if you're okay with it, Shigebe-kun…"
During lunch, Fuuma was being a little fidgety. After he swallowed, he hesitantly spoke up.
"Yeah. What's up?" I prompted him while chewing my bento. With a determined look on his face, he opened his mouth.
"Next time we have a break, do you want to have a sleepover at my place…?"
Gulp. I swallowed my food and repeated the words in my head. A sleepover. A sleepover at Fuuma's house. After I processed what that meant, my carefree side and my super-cautious side started a fierce argument in my head.
A sleepover at a friend's house? That's the best! We could play games and watch movies until dawn! Messing around and then crashing on the floor would be a blast, and eating a ton of ice cream would be so hype!
No, you idiot. Have you forgotten who's in Fuuma's house? The scariest brocon brothers will be under the same roof. They might get even more wary of me. No, that's the best-case scenario. The worst-case is that I get killed on the spot.
That worst-case scenario was probably an exaggeration, but still, being targeted by those brothers was painful. Looking at Fuuma's hopeful eyes, I tried to come up with a plausible excuse to decline.
"Ah, that sounds fun, but… you know, wouldn't your family mind? We might be loud."
"No, no! My dad and mom are going to be out that day, so it's okay if we're loud!"
Oh. I see. But aren't there people other than your parents who might mind?
I couldn't say that, so I just mumbled "ah" and "um" with my mouth closed. Fuuma looked down and said, "Sorry," in a small voice.
"Did I… make you uncomfortable?"
"No way!! If it's not a bother, I want to go!! When should we do it!?"
I was fully aware of my weakness when it came to my best friend, but only after I felt relieved seeing his face bloom into a smile.
***
The day finally arrived. It had come, and it was upon me.
"Somehow, this is my first time coming to your place…"
Fuuma had come to my house many times after school, but this was my first time going to his. He offered to pick me up, but I refused, figuring the brothers would get mad at me for making them go out of their way. So I was walking along the route he gave me, but…
"…Huh, this is it?"
My eyes went wide at the sheer size of the house.
Decorated with little ornaments, the lawn was covered in grass and vibrant flowers. Whoever's hobby it was, the lively blooms made it clear they were well-cared for. The exterior was a stylish design. But more than anything, it was a massive house. It looked like it belonged in some other country, standing out from the surrounding neighborhood.
"...No, it doesn't... look out of place, does it? Wait, but it takes courage to go in there..."
As I hesitated to step foot on the lawn, the door clicked open. I instinctively looked over, and there, just a little way off, was the person who opened the door—my best friend, Fuuma—smiling at me.
"Over here!"
I felt a wave of relief as his voice rang out, but as I raised my hand to wave back, it froze.
"Welcome."
"...Hello."
The two guardians had come out of the house, following right behind him. There was no need to think about who they were—it was the older brother, Yuuma-san, and the younger brother, Haruma-kun. They greeted me, at least. The older brother had a smile, and the younger brother had a strained look on his face.
"Hello, thanks for having me."
My words came out in a stiff, robotic tone. I had a hard time stopping my legs from shaking, wondering what this long, two-day stay was going to be like.
"Alright, let's just get the homework out of the way like we talked about!"
We were sitting on the rug in his room. Fuuma was in a great mood, happily spreading out his notebook and textbook on the desk. I answered in a stiff, stilted voice.
"Y-yeah, you're right… let's get it done quickly…"
Even though I was in Fuuma's room, a cold tension ran down my spine. It wasn't just my usual wariness. It was because his younger brother, Haruma-kun, was in the room, sitting in a chair and reading a difficult-looking book.
Why? Why is he here? Shouldn't he have retreated to his room because he dislikes me? Oh. I see. This is the perfect chance to keep watch. He must have been on high alert, thinking about what unseemly ideas I might have about his precious brother.
I don't have any ideas like that. Please believe me. Please.
With that desperate thought, I glanced over at him. At that exact moment, he must have been looking at me too, because our eyes met with a snap. In a panic, he blurted out:
"I'm always in Fuuma-niisan's room!"
"Oh, uh, yes! I'm sorry!!"
What?! Why did he say that out of nowhere?!
My brain short-circuited, and I reflexively apologized. Haruma-kun looked even more flustered.
"I didn't come here to see you!!"
"I KNOW THAT!!"
Right, right, he thought I was making a weird assumption. Please forgive me, I wasn't. I was pretty sure I just yelled at the top of my lungs. I'm so average in every way, but I guess my shouting could rival a sports team's. Maybe I should join the soccer team. No, I'd better not. My athletic ability is even below average.
"Haha, you guys are so lively!" Fuuma laughed innocently.
I guess I was lively today. It was only because I was so desperate.
"Okay, let's do our best!"
"O-okay…"
The voice I managed to squeeze out was pathetically weak.
***
"Uuuuuuugh… I don't get it…"
"…Me neither…"
"It's impossible. Seriously impossible. As always, I can't understand the steps to solve this math problem even with the answer key in front of me. I can feel my soul rejecting it. I'm a liberal arts student at heart."
Still, if I didn't solve this textbook before next week's class, the teacher would get mad at me. The test was coming up, and I knew I had to solve and understand these problems now.
"...I hate this. It's never going to end..."
"...This is hopeless. I guess I'll just copy the answers..."
We both groaned in unison. We were slumped over the desk, and our goofy posture made me laugh a little. I had already given up, so I grabbed a red pen and reached for the answer key.
"—That part is wrong."
A slender finger extended from my side, pointing at a formula in my notebook. It was my hated Math II trigonometry. The equation I wrote from my vague memory was wrong from the very first step. I guess he had been watching from the side. As I stared, dumbfounded by this sudden help, he looked at Fuuma and spoke again.
"Fuuma-niisan, this part. It's a careless mistake, so you'll be fine if you just review it."
"Oh, you're right! Thanks, Haruma!"
Fuuma's expression brightened, and he eagerly went back to solving the problem. Haruma-kun turned back to me, put a hand on his chin in thought, and pointed at my notebook again.
"Shigebe-san's is... hmm, it's easier to understand if you draw a diagram. The range of theta is from 0 to pi over 2, right? So... ah, the textbook—"
While flipping to the correct page in the textbook, he started explaining smoothly. He didn't go too fast for me to catch up. I could feel the knowledge going into my head, like a sponge soaking up water. He's so easy to understand. He didn't give up on me, even though I have a lack of understanding that would make most teachers throw in the towel. Haruma-kun would look up at me and say, "Right?" just to check if I was following along.
"...I actually solved the problem...!"
It was with the help of the brilliant Haruma-kun, but still. It was a major milestone. I even felt like I understood the logic behind it. This was an amazing feeling. As I was shaking with emotion, Fuuma laughed.
"Haha, you're so dramatic. But it's true, you're not good at math, Shigebe-kun."
"I'm not being dramatic! Wow, Haruma-kun, you're amazing!"
"Hehe. If you need help with other parts—"
His lowered eyelashes slowly moved as he blinked. His large, upturned, cat-like eyes looked up at me. That's when I realized how close we had gotten. He jerked back at a tremendous speed, his eyes wide. He started speaking rapidly.
"It's not like! I was just studying that part!"
"YES!!"
I answered with a shout out of pure reflex. It seemed I had gotten a little carried away. But still. To be able to explain a topic that's not even in his curriculum, and to do it so well... I couldn't even do that with my favorite subjects. I had to thank him. For his effort and for the time he spent helping me. Otherwise, I wouldn't feel right.
"But seriously, you're amazing. This is a topic way ahead of what you guys are studying, isn't it? You must be working so hard. I have to work harder too."
I looked into his eyes and gave my thanks. He's amazing. Really. I can't believe he's younger than me. He was so smart and so calm, I felt like he was the older one. The reason I always sit up straight in front of him isn't just because of the tension with Fuuma. It's because of Haruma-kun's dignified aura, the feeling that he's a more put-together person than I am. Then...
"...Y-you're welcome. It was nothing, but... if it's something I can do, I'll teach you... anytime."
Eh.
I could see a faint blush on his cheeks. I didn't think the room was hot. But more importantly, he had just said he'd teach me. Anytime? My heart fluttered at his unusual demeanor.
"That's right, Haruma. Teach me a little more, I have other assignments too."
"Of course, Brother ...Shigebe-san, if you have anything you don't understand, please ask me."
The corners of his mouth seemed to be pulled into a faint smile.
"Y-yeah...!"
I felt as if the distance between us had closed just a little.
After that, motivated by the opportunity to be taught by the brilliant Haruma-kun, I ended up spending a significant amount of time on my studies, even covering the material for my upcoming test.