My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 479

"Ah—I've reached this age."

I can understand Dazhi's feelings. This isn't necessarily a rebellious phase. Sometimes, it can indeed ignite a nameless anger if family members—or rather, precisely because they are family—ask about his most private and sensitive issues.

For example, negative things like owing money or having a low salary are things you might use to lighten the mood when chatting with friends, but you can't bring yourself to tell your family. Then, when your family asks with a very serious expression, "Are you really okay?", it's incredibly painful. The combination of not wanting to worry your family and not having their trust leads to a "better not to ask me" attitude.

Boys can be like that sometimes. I responded with the heart of a mother everywhere, and Kawasaki nodded with a mother's expression as well, then said something that made everyone pay attention.

"However, he himself would probably give himself about 80% of the marks for the answer."

"How did you know...?"

My goodness, mothers definitely have the edge. Why are they always able to find where their sons hide their secret books so quickly?

Besides, didn't your brother tell you? It's so strange that he would know the score. I looked at Kawasaki with suspicion, but she secretly looked away.

"No, no. It's Jingjing, she..."

"Yes, he said 396 points."

Jinghua seemed to understand what we were talking about, and proudly puffed out his chest in response.

"Oh... Jingjing heard it."

Things that are difficult for the older sister to say, she might accidentally blurt out in front of her younger sister. But children remember these things especially quickly. Wow, amazing, right? I looked at Kawasaki, but for some reason she looked away again.

"...Besides, my house isn't big, so you might accidentally see it."

"Oh, I see."

She must have seen it herself; there's no doubt about it. She didn't need to ask, like Mr. Sugishita, "May I ask you one last question?" [Note 23: Refers to Sugishita Ukyo, the protagonist of the long-running Japanese detective drama "Aibou."]

In short, we now know Dazhi's score. He usually shrugs off when checking his answers, so let's estimate his actual score a little lower, maybe ten points less. That way, he'll probably get around 70%.

"It's a bit of a 'neither fish nor fowl' situation..."

I'm sharing a somewhat negative opinion based on my own experience. Judging from Komachi's demeanor this morning, she probably did about the same on her test. We can estimate the approximate standard based on past data.

Kawasaki, who had also taken the entrance exam for Sobu High School, nodded solemnly, agreeing with me.

"Hmm. So, we'll have to see how the competition rate and the school's entrance exam scores go next..."

Kawasaki's sigh was heavy. The competition rate for Sobu High School is around 2.5 times every year. Getting an 80% score is basically a close call. This means Taishi is on the verge of being accepted.

"It doesn't matter if he attends a private school, but it still depends on him."

Kawasaki looked distressed, probably thinking about his younger brother's dangerously low grades. Although I don't know their family's financial situation, considering his feelings, it must be very painful. More than financial issues, he felt rejected and stigmatized. This reality won't disappear; it will continue to torment him. As he grows up, he might be able to laugh it off, but for a fifteen-year-old, family and school are practically everything. Being rejected by the school and pitied by his family is incredibly heartbreaking.

Especially since Dazhi was also burdened with another kind of pressure. Thinking of this, I knew I shouldn't speak up, but I still said:

"Yes. Considering next year, it's definitely best to go to a public school."

"Huh? Next year?"

Kawasaki looked at me with a "Are you even listening to me?" expression. I was listening, of course. How rude… I nodded, responding to her suspicious gaze.

"Hmm. Didn't you want to apply to a national or public university? It must be a lot of pressure, although I'm not entirely sure myself."

"Me?"

She tilted her head in puzzlement, and Jinghua imitated her. Their movements were so similar that it brought a hint of amusement to my tone.

"No, no. Well, it's not entirely wrong, but it's still not quite right."

"...What exactly happened?"

Kawasaki glared at me with obvious impatience. Wow, that's terrifying.

"Think about it. If Dazhi gets into a public school, you'll have more options, right? Although I'm not sure. That's why he's so determined to get in, even though I'm not sure."

I rattled off an explanation, interspersed with attempts to deflect blame. Kawasaki blinked a few times, then suddenly laughed, before turning his head away again.

"...The tuition difference between high school and university is so huge."

Huh, really? This guy really knows his stuff. I have no intention of paying for the tuition myself, so I've never looked it up... If I did, I'd probably calculate that a single class is worth tens of thousands of dollars, and then, being frugal, I wouldn't skip a single class.

"...However, it's possible that he might think that way."

Kawasaki twirled the straw of her iced coffee with her finger and spoke softly and gently. Her tone was no longer serious, and I started to open up a bit.

"Right? I understand the feelings of a sister-complex better than anyone else."

"What?! That's disgusting!"

She spoke bluntly, but in a light tone. Jinghua followed suit, saying I was disgusting.

Yes, that's right, it really is disgusting. Seeing the man reflected in the glass window, his lips slightly upturned, I wholeheartedly agree.

╳ ╳ ╳

More and more junior high school students in uniforms are passing by the store.

While I was playing with Jinghua, I would occasionally chat idly with Kawasaki.

After a while, my phone suddenly vibrated. I took it out and saw it was a text message from Komachi. I briefly replied with my current location and quickly received a reply. Moreover, this reply wasn't from the phone vibrating, but a light tapping sound. I looked towards the source of the sound—the glass window in front of me—and there Komachi was tapping on the window and waving at me.

I waved for Komachi to come in quickly, and she walked into the store with light steps, raising her hands as soon as she entered.

"Exams are over! Yay!"

"Yeah—"

I raised my hands to greet Komachi and we high-fived. Before the echo had even faded, Komachi jumped in front of Kawasaki and Kyoka.

"Good afternoon, Sister Saki and Jinghua! Yay!"

"yeah!"

Komachi and Kyoka greeted each other smoothly and gave each other a high five. She wanted to give Kawasaki a high five as well, but Kawasaki looked confused... However, she knew how to read the room and raised her hand slightly to match Komachi's gesture.

"Yay, yay..."

Kawasaki seemed shy, his cheeks flushed red to his ears, and his voice was barely audible. Seeing this, Komachi leaned back forcefully and took three steps back.

"No, no, Saki-neechan's voice is too soft! One more time—!"

"Hey, hey—what happened to your sister?"

Komachi demanded a retake, which emboldened Kawasaki, who cheered loudly before glaring at her fiercely. *Your glare won't change anything...* Despite this thought, the older brother had to take responsibility for the trouble his sister had caused.

"I'm sorry, she seems very excited. Komachi, drink this water and calm down."

I handed her the cup, intending to ask, "Is the water good?" [Note 24: Occasionally, audience members will deliberately ask, "Is the water good?" when a performer is drinking water.] Komachi smiled and said:

"Thank you. But the water my brother drank was a bit disgusting, so Komachi will go buy some herself."

She completely and gracefully ignored me, turning around and walking straight towards the counter. Seeing how she treated me, Kawasaki chuckled.

"K-Komachi..."

My wails didn't reach Komachi, who skipped away, humming a song as she went. My brother was so hurt… especially that "a little" made the words seem even more real; he was heartbroken… Knowing she had some reservations about me, I couldn't help but start reflecting on my daily life…

While I was groaning on the table, Komachi quickly ordered her food, grabbed an iced latte, and sat down next to me.

"……Thanks for your hard work."

"Ugh, I'm exhausted!"

I offered my words of comfort to Komachi, and she nodded gently, then sipped her drink and let out a long breath. Not just the interview, but the entire exam period had kept Komachi tense; she seemed to be expressing her relief through her body as she slumped weakly onto the table.

Jinghua stared in surprise at my brother and me, who were striking the same pose, and murmured:

"like."

“…Huh?”

Komachi instantly showed an expression of utter disgust. Upon seeing this, Kyoka sighed and made an "Oh wow!" sound.

"Hachihachi and Komachi look alike, which of you is violating copyright?"

"Where did you learn that from...?"

Jinghua tilted her head in confusion, while Kawasaki sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Yeah, kids really do learn new words really fast..."

Speaking of which, why did Komachi look so disgusted just now? Okay, actually I know the reason, so I won't ask. I'm even glad she's not like me… If I had to say, I'm more like my dad, and Komachi is more like my mom; the only thing we siblings probably inherited is our hair. But when she relaxes or shows disgust, she suddenly becomes very much like me…

As I pondered this, I carefully observed Komachi's face. She cleared her throat a few times, sat up straight again, and gave Kyoto a faint, bitter smile.

"Hmm—because they're siblings..."

The murmur seemed to contain a hint of helplessness or embarrassment. However, she quickly put these thoughts aside and moved the bar stool next to Jinghua.

"Jinghua looks just like Saki-neechan! Exactly the same! She'll definitely grow up to be a great beauty!"

"Hehe, Komachi is cute too."

Perhaps she was used to being praised, Jinghua thanked her shyly and returned the compliment to Komachi. Komachi jokingly said, "Oh~ you're quite the talker~" and poked her cheek.

Hmm... this kind of conversation sounds so girly.

The give-and-take relationship between girls who compliment each other is amazing. It's like retaliating if you get slapped on the right cheek; I think it's really good.

If someone compliments you on your cuteness, reciprocate by saying they're cute too; if someone says, "I'm so ugly~", comfort them with "No way~ Look at me, I'm really ugly and fat (death emoji)"; when you run into a classmate from junior high, widen your eyes and mouth, grab their arm, and say, "Huh? Is that you? Really! Long time no see~ Let's hang out sometime!" making a promise that will never come true; if you encounter someone who looks like a girl, just say a few "I know, I know" and that's it. That's how I see it.

Is Jingjing like that too? Really? I glanced at Kawasaki, who looks exactly like Jinghua and was recently praised by Komachi. She stammered for a long time, extremely shy. Hmm—she'll be ostracized by women in society like that, so it's not anyone else's fault. It's not good for a beautiful girl to react so cutely. The Kawasaki family is really adorable.

I looked at Kawasaki's profile, and she seemed to be not to be outdone, so she coughed lightly in response to me and Komachi.

"Your relationship is still as good as ever."

This retort seemed like an attempt to cover up her shyness. The next second, Komachi immediately shook her head rapidly, adopting a serious expression as she replied:

"No, that's not true, it's impossible."

"Komachi, could you please not be so forceful in your denial?"

As a result, this time she put her hand on her cheek to act cute and showed a bright smile.

"To be honest, he can be super annoying sometimes ❤"

“Ugh…”

That seemingly joking remark pierced my heart. Could she be serious? I was speechless, managing only a weak, intermittent breath. Kawasaki chuckled softly as he watched us.

"We should go now. We need to go home and cook."

Kawasaki looked out the window. The sun was rising higher, and it was almost noon. Daishi should have finished his exams by now. Jinghua lowered his brows again and sighed in dissatisfaction.

"Huh—"

"Our boss is waiting for us."

"Hmm—"

Kawasaki gently patted her back and said this, and Jinghua reluctantly nodded with her hands clasped together.

"Then there's nothing we can do."

Kawasaki gave a wry smile at Kyoka's reaction, and helped her put on her coat, scarf, and gloves. After she was ready, he nodded to me and Komachi.

"goodbye."

I nodded in response to this very brief farewell.

"Well, bye."

See you next time! Goodbye, Beijing!

"Bye-bye--"

Kyoka waved to us with boundless enthusiasm and followed Kawasaki to the station. After watching them leave, I turned to look at Komachi.

"Let's go eat. Have you decided what you want to eat?"

"Hmm, Komachi thought about it for a bit during her free time..."

Komachi nodded, paused for a moment, then let out a smug laugh and said:

"I think of eating eel and rice three times [Note 25: Leisure time (ひまつぶし) and eating eel three times (ひつまぶし) have similar sounds]."

It was just a lame joke... Oh well, I'll pass this time because she's so cute!

"But eel, huh? It looks pretty good... It might be going extinct soon, and we'll never be able to eat it again. Now is the perfect time to eat it in a sophisticated way. It feels so cool to make it go extinct with your own hands..."

"Wow, that's terrible... Eels that are eaten for this reason must die with regrets... Ah, but, but, isn't it possible to farm them in Japan now? I saw it on the news."

Komachi has been reading a lot of noteworthy news lately to prepare for her job interview. Unfortunately, you're still too naive!

"I don't think it's possible."