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Watching Yukino act like this, Kai just smiled and followed her.
He never thought the Ice Queen would be so easy to fluster. Even a few compliments were enough to throw her off.
But Yukino's happiness faded quickly.
"Yukino~" The window of the car parked downstairs rolled down, revealing Haruno Yukinoshita sitting in the driver's seat. She waved cheerfully at Kai and Yukino.
"..." The smile on Yukino's face melted the second she saw Haruno.
"Oh my! I saw that. I didn't know Yukino disliked her big sister this much. You stopped smiling as soon as I showed up." Haruno noticed Yukino's change in expression. She didn't look sad, just kept smirking playfully.
"If you know that, why are you even here?" Yukino never sugarcoated things and didn't bother being polite to Haruno. She shot back without hesitation.
"Tsk!"
It was the same old Yukino. Haruno wasn't offended.
She turned her attention to Kai, who was standing next to Yukino. Seeing him made memories from that night flash through her mind. Her breath caught for a moment. Luckily, she was sitting—otherwise, her shaky legs might have given her away.
"You must be Kai-kun. We just met not too long ago, didn't we?" On the surface, Haruno pretended they were barely acquainted.
"Haruno-san, our previous encounter certainly left a deep impression on me," Kai replied.
Seeing her play dumb, he was more than happy to play along. He kept his tone distant, but his words had a hidden meaning that made Haruno's smile freeze for a moment.
Yukino didn't notice the small change in her sister's face. Her own expression turned serious as she stepped between Kai and Haruno.
"What are you plotting?" she demanded, glaring at her sister.
Yukino's defensive attitude actually stung Haruno a little.
"Plotting? I haven't done a thing. It breaks my heart to see you guarding against your own sister like this, Yukino!" Haruno feigned a tearful sniffle.
"Drop the act!" Yukino's voice was flat.
When she was younger, she used to fall for those fake tears and always got pranked. Now, she was immune to Haruno's tricks and could see right through her.
"Damn! Yukino is getting less and less cute these days!"
"Hmph!"
Yukino scoffed. She wasn't about to argue about whether she was cute or not.
"Alright, It's getting late. If we're late for the family banquet, Mother is going to be furious!"
"..." Of everyone in the Yukinoshita family, Yukino was most afraid of her mother. With how strict she was, being late always meant getting scolded.
Not wanting to argue with Haruno anymore, Yukino took a deep breath and turned to Kai. "Let's get in the car!"
"Sure!" Kai naturally didn't object.
After getting in the car, Kai noticed that Haruno's evening gown was the identical style as Yukino's. The only difference was the color—Yukino wore white, and Haruno wore black.
It suited their personalities.
"Oh my! We really are sisters, aren't we? Great minds think alike. We even chose the same dress!" Haruno teased, smirking at Yukino.
"Did you install hidden cameras in my room?" Yukino's face stiffened as she glared at her sister.
"..." Haruno was ready to keep teasing, but Yukino's blunt accusation ended the joke right away.
Her sister's first thought was that she'd bugged her apartment. Where did Yukino get such a suspicious personality?
"I'd never do something that tasteless!" Sure, she was obsessed with her sister, but she wasn't about to put cameras in Yukino's room.
"..." Yukino stayed quiet, eyeing Haruno suspiciously as if trying to gauge her honesty.
Even though she couldn't find any flaws in Haruno's answer, Yukino decided she'd search her apartment for bugs as soon as she got home.
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"Speaking of which, how do you plan to introduce Kai-kun to Mother? Don't tell me you're going to say he's your boyfriend?"
The banquet venue wasn't far, so they arrived quickly. As they stepped out of the car, Haruno shot Yukino a teasing look.
"Mother said I could bring a friend."
Deep down, Yukino was as innocent as she seemed. To be a real couple, someone had to confess first. But so far, no one had. Thinking about it, Yukino shot Kai a slightly resentful look.
"???"
'Why am I getting pulled into this?' Kai had been watching the sisters argue from the sidelines and didn't know why he was suddenly the focus.
"A friend, huh? I wonder if you've considered whether Mother might be suspicious of a male friend?" Haruno kept up her playful tone.
"What are you implying?" Yukino wasn't stupid. Haruno kept circling back to this topic. There was no way she didn't have a hidden motive, so Yukino asked her directly.
"What I mean is..." Haruno suddenly smiled.
She walked up to Kai and casually linked her arm with his. After everything they'd done together lately, this felt like nothing.
"Why don't we just say he's my boyfriend? How does that sound?"
Haruno intentionally leaned in closer to Kai, and he caught the scent of her sweet perfume. As expected, anime girls always seemed to smell nice.
When Kai's arm moved restlessly, Haruno secretly tapped his back where Yukino couldn't see. She gave him a warning look: 'Yukino is right here. Don't do anything weird.'
"NO!"
Yukino didn't notice their secret exchange, but seeing them arm-in-arm was enough to make her snap. Before Haruno could say anything else, Yukino quickly swatted her sister's hand away.
"That's so mean!" Haruno shook her hand, wincing. Yukino hadn't held back, and her hand actually hurt.
"Hmph!"
'Who do you think is to blame for that?' Yukino scoffed, not feeling the slightest bit guilty as she glared at her sister.
"Fine!" Haruno shrugged, pretending to give up. "If you say so. But before we see Mother, don't you want to fix your hair and tidy up? You know how much she cares about appearances!"
The banquet wasn't just for the Yukinoshita family. Their business partners, top executives, and important employees would be there too.
As hosts, they had to look their best, it was about family pride.
"..." Yukino knew her mother's personality all too well.
Haruno wasn't exaggerating. If she looked messy, her mother would throw a fit. After a brief moment of hesitation, Yukino turned to Kai. "Wait for me here for a second!"
"Sure," Kai replied.
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