Komiya Sawakazu was in his room reading the latest volume of manga—the kind thick enough to use as a pillow when lying down, or as a blunt weapon in a fight, easily six to seven hundred pages.
In the manga, the main character had a gentle, well-behaved yet playful stepsister. She harbored romantic feelings for him and did little things nonstop to catch his attention.
But the protagonist, like every clichéd rom-com lead, was completely oblivious to her affection. He was stubbornly convinced this was just normal sisterly concern, and thanked her earnestly for it.
Once, for instance, the sister spent days and nights making Valentine's chocolate for him, even hurting her fingers for some reason along the way. On Valentine's Day, she braved intense competition from upperclassmen, underclassmen, childhood friends, classmates, and the class president, struggling through all kinds of hardships to finally hand him the chocolate. The main character, however, treated it as mere courtesy chocolate and ate it all right then and there without a care. The sister could only feel down for a moment before steeling herself to try again.
After finishing the last page of My Stepsister Can't Possibly Like Me and reading the author interview at the end, Sawakazu closed the book quietly.
He thought to himself: If this story wasn't actually funny, I would never read such a heart-wrenching manga. I seriously suspect the author has some deep grudge against stepsisters.
Still… a stepsister falling for her brother? That just wasn't possible.
The two came from completely different families, with different friends, hobbies, favorite things, tastes in food…
Forcing two people with such different lifestyles to live under the same roof could only bring discomfort and resistance.
After all, no one could adapt to a new environment that quickly. Strangers who became family were harder to deal with than random people you asked for directions on the street.
If they had anything in common, it was that both had gone through family misfortune. In theory, shared suffering might bond them, turning them into real siblings who relied on and protected each other. But different families, different tragedies, different experiences had blurred even that fragile connection.
From what his dad told him, Aunt Mika's ex-husband was the kind of man who left at dawn and came back late at night, never holding a proper job, always reeking of alcohol. Aunt Mika worked odd jobs everywhere, barely scraping by to support the household and pay for Chinatsu's schooling. Then her ex-husband ran up huge debts at nightclubs and vanished without a trace. After that, yakuza thugs showed up at their door every few days demanding money, leaving Aunt Mika living in constant fear.
Yeah, a totally clichéd story, with the usual ending.
Aunt Mika had once worked part-time at his dad's restaurant, and the two had grown close. Then came the classic hero saving the beauty—his dad used his financial power to drive off the bad guys, and the lovers finally got together.
To the busybodies back in their hometown, though, it just looked like Aunt Mika had latched onto a rich man.
At the wedding reception, his dad's older sister—Aunt Koharu—got drunk and sneered coldly at Aunt Mika, calling her damaged goods who just wanted to leech off a wealthy man. His dad yelled at her fiercely, nearly coming to blows. Aunt Mika held his hand the whole time, telling him not to get upset, saying she didn't care.
Later, Aunt Koharu was dragged away, and the party continued, but the lively atmosphere was gone.
Back then, he'd seen his stepsister standing alone in the corner. She was still wearing the same school uniform from when they first met—clean and neat, but totally out of place next to the other girls from relatives' families in fancy dresses. Her small figure looked even tinier and lonelier against the backdrop of chatting adults and brightly dressed girls.
It made his chest feel tight.
It sounded a bit old-fashioned coming from a high school student, but he really felt for her. She was only in middle school, yet she had to face such upheaval in her life.
Compared to her, he'd had it much easier.
His mother had passed away when he was too young to remember much. All he knew was that she had been beautiful, gentle, and weak, spending most of her time in a hospital bed. He could only recall bits and pieces of her face when looking at old photo albums. Her voice was completely gone from his memory.
Because of that, he'd never really felt uncomfortable about growing up without a mother.
Chinatsu's experience, though, was far harder.
He walked over to her. She seemed spaced out, not noticing him at all.
"Um… your name's Chinatsu, right?"
His stepsister jumped in surprise, quickly lowering her head, her cheeks flushing cutely.
"Chinatsu-chan, right? I'm Sawakazu. Komiya Sawakazu."
She lifted her head and nodded slowly in reply.
"Hey, want me to show you around? This place is pretty boring. I know a snack shop nearby that's really good—way better than anything my dad makes. Oh, and I can cook too. If you ever want to eat something, just tell me."
She stared at him, confused and cautious, unsure whether to shake or nod her head.
Seeing she couldn't make up her mind, he took her wrist. Before she could pull away flustered, he pulled her outside.
They ran for a long time, all the way from the old house to the Sainan River two kilometers away, both gasping for breath.
It was autumn, and red maple leaves drifted down gently. The riverbank was covered in gold and red, and leaf-boats floated downstream on the water.
One single maple leaf trembled on a branch, ready to fall.
He held her hand and guided her toward the sea of red.
"Chinatsu."
"Wh–what are you… o-onee–"
Chinatsu almost called him brother, but stopped short. She stared at this stranger in confusion, unsure what he was about to say, or why he'd pulled her away when she'd been all alone.
She knew what people thought of her: a burden, a tag-along, the kid of a mother chasing a rich man.
She hated those looks, hated those words. Truthfully, she hadn't wanted her mother to remarry at all. Her father had gotten worse and worse, but once, a long time ago, he'd lifted her high on his shoulders, taken her to the amusement park, and bought her special ice cream. She'd once dreamed he would change, that their warm family would return. But that dream shattered when her father disappeared and her mother remarried.
When she found out her mother was going to marry another man—one who already had a son two years older than her—she'd been completely against it. But their family situation, and how much her mother loved this man, kept her from speaking her mind.
She tried to pretend it was all just a fantasy, going to school and coming home as usual, until her mother brought her to meet the Komiya father and son, who would soon be her new family.
She found Komiya Daisuke always kind and caring, ordering desserts she liked. But deep down, she thought he'd just learned her preferences from her mother to win her over. Sly and calculating.
She didn't feel much of anything toward Komiya Sawakazu. Her new stepbrother was quiet, like he didn't really approve of the marriage either. Maybe he could be an ally she could use.
But when she saw how close Uncle Komiya and her mother were, and heard they would hold a wedding soon, she finally realized there was nothing she could do to stop it.
Probably the quiet stepbrother felt the same way. She wondered what had happened to his mother, though. Did he miss her?
She looked up at his face, waiting for him to speak.
"Um… if it's okay with you… can I call you my little sister? And you can call me your brother, too."
"Eh?!"
Chinatsu stared at him in slight shock. She'd imagined so many things, but never expected this.
He wasn't trying to distance himself from her.
He wasn't warning her not to touch his things.
He wasn't telling her not to talk to him normally, only to act nice in front of their parents.
None of that. Everything was different from what she'd imagined.
She'd had small hopes before, but the words and looks from others had made it hard to believe good things could happen. She didn't think she could escape her suffering so easily.
So when she heard Sawakazu's words, her tightly wound heart finally relaxed.
"I know it's a little late… but from now on, please take care of me, Chinatsu."
Sawakazu said it brightly, smiling and holding out his hand to her.
She looked at that large hand—marked with small scars from careless cooking, covered in thick calluses. It wasn't pretty.
She placed her small hand in his. It was rough, just as she'd expected.
But it was warm.
"Mm… please take care of me, brother."
With that, the girl burst into tears, leaving Sawakazu flustered and rushing to comfort her, promising to buy her snacks.
But his comforting only made her cry harder. These were not tears of sadness.
In that moment, Sawakazu made up his mind: he would protect his stepsister, Komiya Chinatsu, no matter what.
By the riverbank, a single maple leaf fell from its branch, melting into the red autumn scenery.