At a local arcade…
Some people, after a fortnight of hard work to earn their pay, would use their money to give themselves a treat or reward for their efforts. Fuutarou Uesugi was not one of those people.
"Aaaaahhh! Onii-chan! The coins, the coins!"
It was Saturday, and after give days of tutoring for two weeks in a row, he'd earned a hundred thousand yen, of which he took half to take Raiha to the arcade so she could have fun at her leisure, both today and last week. The boy felt very satisfied to give his little sister that little treat with his own money.
And speaking of, the little girl was now throwing said money away in the slot machines, and she'd just hit the jackpot.
"Hahaha, that's the way!" he said, helping her put the coins in a case. That'd give them to play for quite a while, and maybe change the remaining ones for some prizes.
The arcade had all kinds of machines any kid, big or small, could wish for. The classic fighting and platform games for old-school lovers, racing simulators with cars and motorbikes, fighter planes, and other simpler ones like table mesa or the crane machine to fish dolls.
Fuutarou really wanted to take a few of these for Raiha, but after ten failed tries, the little girl got tired of waiting and dragged him to the next machine. They'd almost tried every single game in the arcade by now, so there were few left to be seen.
"Aw, dang it, I lost again!" a familiarly high-pitched voice screamed.
Instinctively, Fuutarou stopped walking and turned in the direction he heard the voice. And sure enough, a familiar green ribbon stuck out from behind one of the game machines on the other side of the hall.
'You gotta be kidding me, could it be her?'
"Huh? Ah, Uesugi-san!" she immediately stood up and waved. "Nice to see you here!"
"Onii-chan, what's the matter?" Raiha asked upon seeing her brother had stopped. "Ah, Yotsuba-san!"
And before he could stop her, Raiha ran around the machines to greet the Nakano girl, so he had to go after her. He soon realized Yotsuba wasn't alone; on the machine's other seat was another of her sisters, whom she quickly identified as Miku. She gave him an inexpressive look and raised a hand to greet him, which he returned in the same way out of courtesy.
"Hi, Raiha-chan!" Yotsuba hugged the little girl. "What a coincidence, never thought I'd find you two here!"
"Onii-chan brought me. He's a real boorish so I had to drag him to play with me."
"Haha, what a party-pooper," the ribbon girl mocked. "But he can't resist your puppy eyes, can he? There's no way he could say no to that."
Fuutarou rolled his eyes. Saying that was the same as saying water was wet; anybody who could resist Raiha's sweet puppy eyes would have no heart. Actually, it didn't bother him; he'd just had an image to keep so he pretended to resist. Any whim Raiha had, he'd gladly give in to it.
"I'm surprised to see you here, too," he said trying to deflect the topic. "You're not slacking off on our studies, are you?"
"Onii-chan, why do you bother her out of study hours?!"
"No worries, Raiha-chan. Your big brother has nothing to fear, I haven't stopped reviewing our sessions," Yotsuba assured them. "Oh, let me introduce you to Miku, one of my sisters."
"Nice to meet you," Raiha cheerily greeted her. "Oh, you really look alike! Onii-chan said you were quintuplets, is that true?"
"Yes… we are," Miku said, clearly trying to smile too. It seemed that even the quiet sister couldn't resist Raiha's adorableness.
"Now that I remember, another girl who went to our bakery two weeks back looked a lot like you guys. Could it be…?"
"Ah yes, that was Itsuki," said Yotsuba. "Sure, it'd have a bigger impact to see us all five together."
"Not so much, now we dye our hairs," Miku commented. "That makes easier to tell us apart."
Fuutarou was grateful for that; he didn't want to imagine the troubles he'd go through if all of them had the same hairstyle or color, or if they intentionally posed for one another to confuse him. The fact that each one used a different accessory of choice also helped quite a bit.
"Well, since we're here, you wanna play something together? Have you tried the crane machine yet?"
"Onii-chan couldn't even get one doll out for me, even after ten tries," Raiha said in a tone that Fuutarou knew was an act, as she coupled her tender eyes with crocodile tears.
"Eh, is that true? Then come on, I'll show you how it's done, I'm good at that one! I'll be right back, Miku, you don't mind, do you?"
And without sparing another word, the ribbon girl took Raiha back to the crane machines, leaving Fuutarou and Miku behind. The boy took a peek at the machine they were playing, and realized it was a port of the same game he'd seen her play back at the apartment on the first day.
"I see you like that game a lot, don't you?"
"It's not the game. The Sengoku Generals are amazing," she said, grabbing a matcha soda can and drinking it.
"Hmm… did you check if that had some snouts?" he asked, making the girl stop and look at him sideways.
"You finally got it?"
"Ishida Mitsunari drank a tea where Ohtani Yoshitsugu dropped a snout without him noticing," he said. "That's what you meant, didn't you? I was looking all over the history books for that anecdote."
"It's quite obscure, not many know it," Miku said, drinking a bit more of her soda.
"I know. Yotsuba found it searching the internet with her cellphone."
Miku looked at him, frowning slightly. "You haven't told her about my hobbies, have you?"
"Why would I?" he assured, shrugging.
The girl finished downing her soda before talking again, with a slight smile. "That trivia we did… was fun. Not many can keep up with me like you did. I see Yotsuba was right to say you were smart."
"I try," he said before looking at the crane machines where Yotsuba took Raiha. "Hey, is it okay for her to be playing with you here? I told her to use her free time to review everything we've studied."
"Don't underestimate her," Miku said. "She spent the whole morning finishing the homework you left for her."
"Really?"
"She almost skipped breakfast. We had to convince her to lay off just a bit to eat."
Fuutarou raised an eyebrow, looking at the quiet girl. She didn't seem like the kind of person to make that kind of comments as a joke, and then he looked at Yotsuba, who was still having a blast playing with Raiha.
His first impression of the ribbon girl was that she was too happy-go-lucky and not very smart, at least not academically. That said, he didn't deny she'd worked hard throughout the two weeks, and knowing she didn't disobey his orders to review even if he wasn't there definitely raised his respect for her.
"Yay, we got the rarest ones!" Yotsuba suddenly shouted, and almost immediately after, Raiha came over running.
"Onii-chan, look, look! Yotsuba-san won all of these for me!"
Fuutarou's eyes almost popped out: Raiha was carrying at least a dozen plush dolls of varied animals and even some of the little monsters from the TV animes, including that famous electric yellow mouse she loved so much.
"Oi, isn't that going overboard?" the boy asked. "Leave some for the other kids, no?"
"Hehe, well, couldn't resist," Yotsuba said. "At least until I got the one she wanted."
"Well, I'm glad for that," Fuutarou said, before he addressed Raiha. "You already thanked her, did you? Remember what Mom always says about gratitude."
"Ah, sure!" Raiha exclaimed, before dumping all the plushies on him and grab the ribbon girl into a hug. "Yotsuba-san, thank you! I love you!"
Anybody who saw that scene would melt at such cuteness. Raiha was so little she barely reached Yotsuba's waist and caught her off guard with the gesture. Meanwhile, Fuutarou could have sworn he saw the ribbon girl's eyes giving off sparkles before she kneeled down and began cuddling on Raiha, rubbing their faces against one another.
"Aaaaawww! You're so cute, Raiha-chan! I want to make you my little sister!" Suddenly, the Nakano girl stopped the cuddling for a moment and placing her hand on her chin, began talking in a low voice, like someone plotting an evil plan. "Hey, wait a minute. If I married Uesugi-san, we could become sisters legally…"
At that remark, Fuutarou and Miku exchanged glances. He was trying to wordlessly say to the quiet sister "Does she realize what she just said?", and she clearly got the message, as she shook her head as if saying "Don't ask me".
Then a cellphone rang, and it turned out to be Yotsuba's. The girl immediately pulled it out to answer.
"Hello? Yeah, here we are. For real? That's great, we're on our way!" She immediately hung up and addressed Miku. "It was Ichika, says her new yukatas are ready."
"Got it," Miku said. "We'd better go now."
"Eh? Leaving so soon?" Raiha pouted, clearly dismayed.
"Yeah, we have to go try them," Yotsuba said. "Though then again, since we're quintuplets, if it fits one of us, it fits the rest of us without trouble."
"Yukatas?" Fuutarou asked a bit confused.
"Don't you remember, Uesugi-san? There's the fireworks festival tomorrow, and we're all going! Ah, I know! How about you two come along with us?"
"Really? Onii-chan, let's go with them!" Raiha exclaimed, clearly excited at the idea.
"Er… well…" Fuutarou was tempted to say he was planning on spending tomorrow studying, but as soon as his sister gave him the puppy stare, he knew he'd be fighting a lost battle. Resigned, he stared at Yotsuba. "You sure about this?"
"Of course! Besides, this way Raiha-chan can see all five of us, and meet Nino and Ichika too. The more the merrier, right, Miku?"
"I guess…"
"Onii-chan, let's go! Please?"
Raiha's ultimate and infallible technique, the Puppy-Dog Stare/Crocodile Tears Combo, was impossible to resist. To hell with his pride: if she was asking for it, there was no way he could refuse.
Alas, he'd have to study during the morning so he could meet with Yotsuba and the others in the afternoon for the festival.
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The next day…
For most everyone, time passed fast when having fun, and too slow when studying. Well, except when exams were coming up, since that would always speed it up. For Fuutarou Uesugi, it was the opposite case. Maybe because he, unlike most everyone, enjoyed studying, he understood how important all this knowledge would be in the future, and never left his homework for the last minute, so he'd never feel pressured.
Not the same case for Raiha, who spent the whole day pacing around the house, waiting impatiently for the clock to hit five in the afternoon. They'd agree to meet the Nakano quintuplets at that time to go together to the festival, but the little girl was so full of energy, she couldn't stop running from end to end all over the house.
"Come on, come on! Why can't you go any faster?" she asked.
"Staring at the clock will only make the wait even longer," Fuutarou said dryly, while solving a few math problems to kill his time.
"Onii-chan, don't be such a party-pooper!"
"I'm just saying the truth," he replied without looking at her.
He understood Raiha's impatience. Even though for him a fireworks festival was no big deal, there was a lot for children like Raiha to enjoy there. Since their parents were busy with work and he was studying, they rarely had the chance to take her, so they couldn't waste this chance.
His cellphone went off right then, and Raiha ran off to see it hopeful. It broke his heart to say it wasn't what she expected, but he couldn't lie to her.
"Not yet, there's two hours left. Yotsuba just mailed me a question."
"Hmmm!" The little girl puffed her cheeks and once more started running laps around the living room.
Meanwhile, Fuutarou texted the answer to Yotsuba's question, and pressed the send button. Another reason why the wait was so short was because, after they exchanged phone numbers and emails, Yotsuba had sent him several times questions or doubts she had, and he was more than happy to reply. Indeed, she wasn't slacking off with her studies even when he wasn't there, and that pleased him.
"If you're so impatient, Raiha, I have something for you here," the voice of the siblings' mother spoke up.
As the bakery closed early on Sundays, Mrs. Uesugi was already home, even though her husband was doing extra hours. She was carrying a folded bag in her arms, and Raiha immediately guessed what it was.
"Mom, is that a yukata? Is it for me?"
"Who else, sweetie?" the woman said with a big smile. "Want to try it?"
"Yes, yes!" The girl began jumping in joy and excitement.
"Alright. Fuutarou, if you were so kind?"
The boy caught the message and leaving the pencils aside, walked out of the room, leaning himself against the wall as he listened to Raiha's cries of joy and their mother's complains about not staying put so she could help her get dressed.
A few minutes later they called him back, and he saw Raiha running around the room once more, twirling around as she laughed happily and showed off her new yukata.
"Onii-chan, check this out!" she exclaimed. "How do I look?"
He smiled. "Super adorable, couldn't be any other way."
The yukata was of a white color with light blue details, and the obi around her waist was red, making a perfect contrast with the rest of the outfit. Then again, with Raiha being such a cutie, the color itself didn't matter; he was certain she'd look adorable with any design.
And with that, maybe it'd help her keep busy in the two remaining hours they had before meeting the Nakanos. Mentally, Fuutarou doubted that even they could compete with his little sisters, in terms of looking adorable in a yukata.
----------------------------------------
Two hours later…
The Uesugi siblings were already heading for the meeting point to see the Nakano quintuplets. Raiha walked ahead of him skipping around, completely happy with her new yukata for the festival. Many people were already gathering to go in groups of family members or friends.
"Uesugi-san, Raiha-chan! This way, here!" Yotsuba's unmistakable voice called out.
"Ah, there they are! Come on, Onii-chan!" Raiha exclaimed, grabbing his hand and running towards the five, with Yotsuba waving her hand to greet them.
Seeing the five sisters dressed up in their respective yukatas, Fuutarou had to acknowledge they looked really beautiful. Each one had chosen a personal design, making them stand out even more from each other. Ichika's had a mosaic-like pattern, predominantly orange with some blue and yellow details, held by a dark pink obi. Nino wore a purple one with white rabbits held by a dark blue obi. Miku's was light blue with a swallow pattern, and a light green obi, though he felt like the headphones were a bit off-place with the rest of the outfit (did she ever take them off?). Yotsuba's was light green with four-petal flowers, matching rather well her ribbon. Lastly, Itsuki wore a red yukata with a simple design with vertical stripes, but it matched well her hair color, which that day was held in a bun behind her neck.
Yotsuba was the first to welcome them, and the rest of the sisters quickly surrounded them. Clearly all of them wanted to see Raiha, though it didn't escape Fuutarou that Nino and Itsuki intentionally kept their distance from him.
"I'm glad you could make it!" Yotsuba said, kneeling to hold Raiha's hands.
"Thanks for inviting us! Onii-chan will appreciate it too, even if he doesn't say it," Raiha said cheerily, making him turn around in embarrassment. Fortunately, she quickly focused her attention back to the other four sisters. "Wow, you really are almost identical!"
"Hehe, told you, didn't I?" Yotsuba stood up so the others could see her. "Well, you already know Itsuki and Miku. These are Ichika and Nino. Girls, meet Raiha-chan, didn't I tell you she's even cuter in person?"
"No, I think you forgot," Ichika approached with a big smile. "How are you, little one? It's a pleasure to meet Fuutarou-kun's cute little sister. Lovely yukata, by the way."
"Gee, thanks, yours look awesome too," Raiha said. "Onii-chan, what are you waiting for?! Greet them!"
"H… hi…" he said almost forcefully, but as expected, only Ichika, Yotsuba and Miku replied to the gesture. Nino and Itsuki just waved quickly before looking way.
"Aw come on, girls, can't we make a truce, if only for today?" Ichika said.
"Do we have a choice?" Nino crossed her arms. "The festival was supposed to be only for the five of us. Why did he have to come along?"
"Hey, for what's worth, I only came here for my sister," Fuutarou defended himself.
"What's the problem?" Ichika said. "It was fair, we submitted it to vote, remember?"
"Yeah, I know." Nino puffed her cheeks. "You beat me four to one. By the way, thanks very much, Itsuki."
"What did you want me to do, Nino?" the redhead protested. "I didn't want to invite Uesugi-kun, but Yotsuba invited Raiha-chan, how could I refuse?"
"Excuse me, you're Nino, the one who made the cookies?" Raiha approached the aforementioned. "They were really delicious; I'd love to learn how to bake them like you."
Fuutarou could see Nino's scowl softening at Raiha's words, with even a slight blush in her cheeks. She seemed to be fighting the impulse to smile.
"I-it was nothing." She twirled a hair strand around her finger. "Baking those cookies is easy for me. I can show you how to do it."
"Really? Thank you so much!" And without warning, the little girl grabbed her into a hug, getting a bunch of "awww"s from the others, while Fuutarou tried not to laugh upon seeing Nino's embarrassed face. He should have guessed: even a surly girl like her would find Raiha's sweetness irresistible.
"Well, well, time's a wasting, the festival waits!" Yotsuba declared raising a fist in the air. "Let's go!"
"YEAAAAAH!" the four remaining sisters exclaimed in unison along with Raiha. When they all gave him looks, Fuutarou reluctantly had to imitate them.
How did he let himself get convinced to be dragged to this festival? He hoped he wouldn't regret his decision later.
…
The group of seven headed towards the festival's site without hurry. Even though it'd already started, the fireworks wouldn't start until seven o'clock, and they'd last a full hour. Many people had come to watch them, and Nino explained she'd reserved the rooftop of a shop as the place to watch them easily.
"Where's that shop?" Fuutarou asked, which earned him a glare from Nino. "What? I'm just asking."
"What's the hurry, genius?" Nino said. "The show won't start for two hours."
"Maybe, but it won't hurt to know where we're going," he said. "Just in case someone gets lost, you know how messy the crowds can get when the time comes."
"He has a point there," Miku said quietly, though loud enough for Nino to hear.
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The second sister muttered something Fuutarou didn't quite catch, save for a word that sounded like "interloper", before grudgingly telling everyone where they were going, just in case they got lost, unlikely as that seemed for her.
"Ah, goldfish scooping game!" Raiha exclaimed, running towards the stand. "Onii-chan!"
"Okay, I'll catch one for you," he said as he pulled his wallet to pay. "One net, please."
Having already paid, the boy kneeled down over the tank. He looked carefully and after picking his target, submerged the net to catch it. But the net broke before he could scoop it into the bowl, and the fish fell back into the tank.
"Booo, you missed," Raiha pouted.
"It was just for trial," he said, handing a bit more money. "Another, please."
He tried again, but the result was the same, and the fish got away. Not giving up so easily he paid for a third, but missed again. Just like the fourth and fifth.
"Oh, genius can't catch a fish for his sister?" Nino mocked.
"Of course I can," he assured, fighting back the irritation from that remark. "Another, please."
"Should I show you how it's done?" Yotsuba asked, kneeling next to him, pulling out a couple of thousand-yen bills to pay the owner. "Half of these for him, please."
"Hey, you don't have to; I can afford mine," Fuutarou said.
"Who cares?" Yotsuba replied. "How about we compete on who catches more?"
Sounded like a challenge, and that being the case, he wouldn't run away. While he didn't mind paying from his own pocket, it would make no difference if he caught the fish for his sister, and if Yotsuba wanted to give hers, all the better for him. Besides, how good could she actually be at this game?
…
As it turned out, Yotsuba was actually pretty skilled at it. Unlike him, who'd always submerge the net and the fish got away before he could scoop it, she'd wait for the moment it came near the surface, and with a single move scooped it out before it got away. According to the girl, the secret was to wait and do a fast move with the wrist so the net wouldn't get drenched. She did it so well, she managed to pull two or three per net before it broke and had to replace it.
By contrast, he couldn't even get one, despite using ten nets in a row (not counting the first five he paid himself). By the Yotsuba had managed to scoop two dozen goldfish, she still had two more spare nets, and gave them to a kid who was waiting in the line, as she didn't need them anymore. Meanwhile, Raiha was skipping happily as she waved around the three bags full of goldfish. That made Fuutarou happy, but… he couldn't help but feel a bit of a complex.
"Haha, how does it feel losing to a girl, genius?" Nino said.
"You're one to talk, Miss Didn't-Catch-One-Either," he countered, making her scowl.
Even so, and to save some face, he offered to buy her something else from the nearby stands. He was surprised when Raiha picked a small Super Fireworks Set of all things, though the little girl argued she couldn't wait, so he agreed.
The next stop was a mask stand. The only who was interested was Miku, who stared at one that looked like the face of mustached, reminiscent of ancient portraits of Takeda Shingen. The third quintuplet decided to keep it, though she wore it by the side of her head for the rest of the walk.
"Don't you want one too?" she asked Fuutarou.
"Not my style," he replied.
"Too bad. It'd look good on you."
Fuutarou gave her an aside glance. That inexpressive face sometimes made it hard to read what she said, so he was unsure whether she was making fun of or complimenting him.
Not far from there, Miku saw a ningyoyaki stand, and at her request they all went to get in line to buy the sweet buns. Ichika was the first one, with Itsuki behind her, and when her turn came, she was in for a big surprise.
"Oh, what a beauty!" the owner exclaimed, filling up her bag up top, much more than she paid for. "A discount on the house, gorgeous!"
"Thanks, sir, I'm flattered!" Ichika said as she grabbed her bag and walked out of the line.
Immediately when Itsuki approached, Fuutarou noted how the fifth sister tried to give a flirty smile, but the owner didn't react to her.
"Excuse me… there's no discount?" she said, trying to deliver a cutesy voice.
"Discount? Girl, if you want more you have to pay like the others."
Fuutarou could almost swear he saw steam blowing out of her ears, angry at the comment. Indeed, when everyone bought their share, the fifth sister was muttering curses against the salesman.
"Stupid old man! Doesn't he see we have the same face? How come Ichika gets a discount?"
"Being quintuplets is complicated," Miku commented.
"Should I share some of mine with you?" Ichika offered.
"No thanks, I don't want other's leftovers," Itsuki said with indignation, before she began munching on hers.
Fuutarou wondered if Itsuki was angrier because only Ichika got the discount, or just because she couldn't get it for herself.
"Well, since you don't want them… Fuutarou-kun, how about you and I share some, hmm?" Ichika asked, catching him off-guard.
"Eh? Me?"
"These are too many for me alone," she said grabbing one and raising it suggestively. "Come on, say 'aaaahh'."
"Hey, don't start with that now," he stepped away from her, making her laugh.
"It was just a joke, how delicate," Ichika said. "But really, I don't mind giving you half of mine if you want. If you feel it's too much for you, you can always share them with Raiha-chan too."
Honestly, that move caught him by surprise, but using Raiha as leverage… that was a low blow. Still, he finally opened his bag and allowed Ichika to empty half her contents in it. Truthfully, as he wanted to save some money he couldn't buy too many for him, so he made a note to thank her later. Even if he had to bear with Yotsuba, Raiha and even Miku laughing at his embarrassment, while Itsuki and Nino continued to look at him annoyingly.
"Okay, if you lovebirds are already done playing, the festival's still on," Nino said. "Move it, time's a wasting!"
Thus, the group of seven continued visiting virtually every single stand in the festival. Despite having a lot of fun in the games, Fuutarou felt humiliated every time he competed against one of the quintuplets to win a prize for Raiha only to end up losing: first, when he tried the bell strength game, he almost fell backwards due to the hammer's weight without even hitting the lever, and then Yotsuba hit it so hard, she almost shot the bell up into the sky. Many onlookers laughed at being upstaged by a girl.
In a stand with a dart balloon-popping game, he competed against Nino and Itsuki, and while it wasn't that bad a defeat, they seemed to be quite happy to have hit more than he did. The only solace was that the one plush doll he won was Raiha's favorite. He'd take that as a personal victory.
Even Miku, as quiet as she looked, had the chance to show off shooting down targets with popguns. She was a better shot than him, no doubt about it. He was so used to be the first in what he did, that sensation was hard to swallow. Then again, all he did was to study.
Despite that, he admittedly was having fun, and stopping by every food stand (later including but not limited to yakisoba, choco-banana, shaved ice, and practically every other snack in the festival) was not a bad thing at all. And of course, Raiha didn't stop laughing heartily as she had fun with the quints, who were quickly growing fond of her. Seeing his little sister happy would make any of his suffered humiliations be gone with the wind later.
"Attention please," a female voice sounded on the place's speakers. "We're informing you that the fireworks will start in five minutes. Please head for your places to watch them."
"You heard, everyone!" Nino said with a bossy tone. "Let's go, to the rooftop!"
Itsuki and Miku quickly grabbed Nino's hands to avoid getting lost when the crowd immediately began hustling, as Fuutarou walked behind them holding Raiha's hand, with Yotsuba next to him and Ichika "watching the rear" (or so she said).
"Nino seems to be rather excited with this festival," the boy commented.
"We all are," Yotsuba said, attracting a look from him. "Since we remember, we always watched the fireworks every year with Mom. She loved them, and we came to love them as well."
"Is that so?"
"Yes," she nodded. "Even after she left us, we still do. It's a precious memory for all of us."
"I see." Fuutarou couldn't repress a smile after that. He now understood why they made so much of a big deal for these fireworks they could easily watch every year, and even felt moved that they invited him and Raiha to share that memory.
Right then, a cellphone went off behind him, and he realized it was Ichika's, who'd stopped to answer. They were just a few steps away from the store Nino had rented for them, so when everyone else had gone in, he figured Ichika would join them when she was done with that call. Raiha ran upstairs along with Yotsuba, while he took his sweet time to get there.
Soon enough, the night sky became filled with the multicolor sparks all over the place, and both Raiha and the Nakano sisters were left in awe as they watched the show. Strangely enough, he was unsure if it was the atmosphere or because he was surrounded by all of them, but something inside him made him appreciate it too. Normally, he wouldn't get excited over these things, but he could understand why others did. Maybe it was contagious.
Even so, everyone was so deep into the show, it took them a few minutes to realize someone was missing.
"Hey, where's Ichika-san?" Raiha asked. Immediately all sisters looked around the rooftop.
"Oi, you're right," Yotsuba said. "Uesugi-san, wasn't she behind us?"
"She was right before we entered the building," Fuutarou said. He then remembered something else. "Wait, before we walked in she…"
"What's going on?" Nino suddenly came up. "Speak now!"
"Calm down!" Fuutarou exclaimed. "I was about to say that her phone ringed and she stopped to answer it. We were close enough so I didn't think she…"
Nino looked like she wanted to say something, maybe blame him for not saying anything, but she ultimately held back. All four sisters exchanged glances, and Fuutarou was left wondering if that call had something to do with her sudden disappearance. What could it have been?
From the way they talked, this festival was very important for the sisters, and it'd obviously wouldn't be the same if one of them was absent.
Nino grabbed her phone and tried to call Ichika, but she had no signal there. Neither did the others, so there was only one choice.
"See if you can find her," said Nino, pointing to everyone to come closer to the rooftop's handrail. "You too," she added addressing Fuutarou.
The four remaining Nakanos and Fuutarou came over to watch. Raiha was riding piggyback on Yotsuba's shoulders to get a greater vision range, but it'd be hard to find her among so many people. Fuutarou almost wondered why he cared so much about helping them, if he barely knew them, but something within him told him he couldn't leave things like that.
"We could use a pair of binoculars right now," he commented, making Nino scowl at him. "Just saying."
However, when he looked a bit further near some buildings, he managed to spot what looked like an orange yukata with yellow and blue. The lighting could be playing tricks on him, but he pointed there, hoping he'd be right.
"Isn't that Ichika?" he asked.
Everyone came closer to watch, and they started shouting at her trying to get her attention, but at such height and with the crowd's murmurs it seemed she wouldn't hear them. Fuutarou wondered why she didn't come up with them. They all knew the address so she couldn't have gotten lost, let alone when they were in walking distance.
"I'll go down," the boy declared. "Something must be going on, and I'll find out."
"I'm coming too, Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba exclaimed.
"No, you stay here," he said with finality. "This is important for all of you, isn't it? To watch it all together. Yotsuba, take care of Raiha until I come back."
"Onii-chan, wait!"
And without further ado, ignoring his little sister's complaints, he ran downstairs. Mentally he prayed so Ichika wouldn't move from there until he caught her.
However, once he was down below Fuutarou realized how hard it'd be to get to Ichika, much more than it looked from above. Unlike them, a large amount of people had gathered in the middle of the street to watch the fireworks, and as he tried to fight his way through the crowd it was but impossible not to bump into someone at every turn. By the time he got to the place he'd seen the girl from the rooftop, she was no longer there.
"Damn it, where the hell did you go, Ichika?"
Checking he hour in his cellphone, he realized seventeen minutes had passed since the fireworks began, and time was still running. What was the eldest sister doing to sneak away on her own like that?
After a couple more turns, he spotted her leaning against a lamp post, watching her cellphone. It seemed she hadn't noticed him yet, so he tried to approach taking advantage of the crowd and the fireworks' noises to cover the sound of his steps.
However, as soon as she spotted him, without any apparent reason she turned on her heels and ran off in the opposite direction. He was left in a shock for a moment, before he too ran after her. She seemed to be trying to lose her in the sea of people.
'What the hell are you playing?'
The girl turned around behind a set of stairways and he briefly lost sight of her. He picked up the pace so she wouldn't get away from him again, but when he turned around too, she was gone.
"What the…?"
"Looking for someone?"
"Ack!" The boy jumped, and he finally saw Ichika there, with her habitual flirty smile. For reasons he couldn't explain, that felt worse than Yotsuba's silly smile, but at least he'd found her.
"Haha, sorry, did I scare you?"
"Not at all," he lied. "Anyway, why didn't you go to the rooftop with the others? They're waiting for you, to watch the fireworks all together."
"Ah, yes… about that... I can't go."
"Stop saying nonsense," he said as he grabbed her hand. "Let's go."
"Hey, Fuutarou-kun, it's still too soon for us to hold hands," she said, evidently trying to resist.
Maybe, if he were a little bit physically stronger he could have dragged her by force, but unfortunately he wasn't, and the girl remained where she was, resisting his attempts to make her walk, but strangely not making any efforts to let go of his hand.
"Ichika, I'm not in the mood for games. Come on, the others are waiting," he insisted.
"What's the hurry?" she replied. "Why don't we stay this way just a little bit more?"
He was about to reply that they couldn't waste time, but then a pair of women holding a notepad with a pen approached them.
"Excuse us, please. We're doing a survey to the festivalgoers. Could you please tell us your relationship?"
"Eh?" Fuutarou was left dumbfounded at the sudden question, but before he could reply, the other woman offered her own opinion.
"Well, I guess there's no need to ask that," she said with a smile. "Evidently you are a couple."
"That's right," the other added. "A cute couple, if I might say so."
"What?" His eyes then locked onto his hand, still intertwined with Ichika's. Obviously, anybody who saw them would assume that easily.
"Yes, actually we are," Ichika said, grabbing hold of his arms so tightly, he felt her breasts pressing against him. "Isn't he the cutest?"
He could imagine that his face either was burning up hot-red, or had lost its color completely. He actually didn't know; his mind had just blanked out too much to say anything. Half his brain shouted him he had to contradict Ichika and scold her for such a bold move, and the other was too busy telling him he'd get into trouble if he did.
"Oh, please forgive him. It's our first date and poor guy is too nervous, isn't he?" she said, in a clearly amused tone. "If you excuse us…"
He wasn't sure whether he should thank her or scold her for dragging him away from there, from the surveyors and that uncomfortable situation. By the time he was able to think clearly and speak again, she'd dragged him into an alley, and these were his first words:
"The hell were you thinking? Why did you tell them we were a couple?"
"Oh, come on, I was just having a bit of fun," she smirked. "You should have seen your reaction, it was priceless."
"Yeah, that must have been fun, for you," he replied angrily.
"What's wrong, Fuutarou-kun?" Ichika asked, making a face pretending to feel hurt. "Is it so bad to you that we could be a couple? Because I'd love it if we were."
This time, Fuutarou did feel the blush. Was she serious about it, or was she trying to get a reaction out of him? If it was the latter, he was obviously annoyed that she'd get a kick that way at his expense. But if it was the former…
If it was the former, what should he think? That is, why would a girl like Ichika take interest in a boy like him? After all, he'd hardly win prizes for attractiveness, either physically or personality-wise, and not many girls liked brainy grumps like him.
"The fireworks… they're amazing, don't you think," she said after a fair bit of silence.
"Everyone is excited to watch them together," he said. "Are you going to tell me…?"
"Shhhh," she shushed him placing a finger on his lips. "Listen, what I'm about to tell you right now, please don't tell the others. I won't be able to watch the fireworks with you guys tonight."
This time, Fuutarou didn't ask any questions, as the eldest quintuplet spoke with an unusually serious tone. Completely different to how he'd heard her talk until now.
"I got a call for an important job, that's why I can't go with you," Ichika explained. "Besides, we all look the same, who's gonna notice one of us is missing?"
"Very funny," he said. Of course they noticed, though they did take a while to do so. "What kind of job are you talking about?"
"I'll tell you later," she said. "My colleague is waiting for me, but I think I lost him when you found me."
"Was that why you ran away from me?" he asked, placing his hands on the hips. "Why don't you just drop the mystery and tell me what's going on?"
Ichika sighed. At first glance, all that mystery seemed to suggest she could be tangled into something dangerous or questionable. Why else would she keep the secret from her sisters? Even so, his glare seemed to have an effect on her, and made her talk.
"For a long time I've aspired to become a professional actress. Not long ago I got a contact thanks to a camera assistant, and he said he could get me a place in an audition soon. But…"
"He just happened to call you tonight, right?" he completed.
She giggled. "The irony, isn't it? Right on the night we were going to watch the fireworks. I hope Mom can forgive me, just this once."
"Why don't you tell the others?"
"I wanted it to be a surprise," she said. "I was planning on telling them after the audition, if I managed to land the role."
Okay, up until that point, there was a bit of logic in Ichika's attitude, Fuutarou thought. However, he'd been running laps around the place trying to find her, and he didn't think it was fair to return without her. At minimum, Nino and Itsuki would rub it in their faces.
Looking aside to a clock on the other side of the street he saw twenty-five minutes had passed since the fireworsk began, and time was still running.
"Look, this is important for me, so I'm asking you a little favor," the pink-haired girl continued. "Stay with them tonight and watch them over for me, okay?"
"What do you think I am, a babysitter?" he asked. "They don't need anyone to watch over them."
"I don't mean it that way. Since Mom died, the five of us made the promise that we'd always stick together, that we'd always share everything. But I can't do that tonight. I need to be sure someone else will fill in for me, just this once."
Fuutarou could understand what she said, but did he have to be the one to fill in for her? Then again, it wasn't like she had someone else she could ask that or anything. It seemed like the responsibility fell on him, and he'd have to carry it.
However, there was still another problem.
"What am I gonna tell them? I don't think they'll be pleased to know I found you, and then I let you go?"
"Oh, don't worry," she said as she regained her smirk, evidently realizing he'd accepted her request. "Just tell them you saw me getting in the car of an older man with a moustache, and you don't know where it took me."
"Won't that give her more worries?" he asked. It was a legitimate concern.
"Rest easy," she assured him, winking. "If everything goes well, I'll be back after nine."
Right then, Ichika's phone rang again. The pinkette once more answered it, and although Fuutarou only answered her side of the conversation, she evidently confirmed she was leaving and decided a meeting point to be found. There was nothing he could do to stop her.
"Will you stay with me a little longer?" she asked. Seeing no reason to refuse, he simply shrugged.
…
As they waited for the car to pick her up, Ichika explained that she'd been acting minor roles in low-budget movies for about half a year, and she hoped this audition could catapult her to make her debut. She wanted to surprise her sisters once she landed the role, and was confident that she would make it.
It seemed like dedication wasn't a Yotsuba-exclusive trait; Ichika also had it, and he respected her for it.
"Yotsuba has been doing her best to study the past two weeks, you know?" she said. "Says you're very determined and know your stuff."
"That's logical, I'm being paid for it," he said as he looked away.
"Don't be so modest," she said. "Even so… she also says you're way too serious. You should smile more; it'd make you look cuter. Not like you're ugly, of course."
Fuutarou rolled his eyes, but he felt the blush coming up to his cheeks again. Why did she have to be that way?
"Yotsuba has had it hard since she was suspended from our school," Ichika continued. "We're all counting on you to help her, so we can be together once more."
"I'll do my best to succeed on it," he assured her.
"I don't doubt it," the pinkette smiled once more, right when a dark blue car came approaching. "Well, here comes my ride. Wish me that I break a leg."
"Say what?"
"Oh, isn't that supposed to mean good luck?" she said as if it were obvious, causing Fuutarou to facepalm.
"That's for theater, lady," he pointed out, but she still laughed at her own mistake.
"Ichika-chan!" the man in the car, who had a slightly effeminate voice, called out to her as he lowered the driver's window. Indeed, he looked like a thirty-something guy with a thick moustache. "Hurry up, time is money!"
"Yeah, sure!" Ichika then turned back to Fuutarou. "Well, you already know. Take care of Yotsuba and the others for me, okay? I'm counting on you."
And with one last wink, he saw her walk around the car to get inside, and it quickly rode off. The girl stared at the vehicle until he lost sight of it in the street. He was unsure as to why he accepted the eldest sister's request, but now he'd done it, he couldn't step back.
The timer in his cellphone informed him that he still had twenty-five minutes for the show to end. He had nothing left to do but return with the others and enjoy the rest of the show, and keep Ichika's secret until the came back.
…
It went without saying that, by the time he returned to the rooftop, Nino wasn't pleased in the least to see him come back without Ichika. Fuutarou kept his word of not saying what she was doing, limiting himself to say that she ran away when she saw him (which was true) and then she rode a car with a mustached older man, just like she'd asked. Fortunately for him, Miku apparently had seen her coming out of a similar car when she came back home, so he didn't have to get into more details about it. And although for a moment Nino wanted to berate him for letting her get away, Yotsuba and Miku came to his defense, saying that he at least tried and it wasn't his fault if Ichika had run away from him.
They didn't need to know he let her get away because she convinced him.
"God, why did Ichika have to get away?" Itsuki complained. "What's she thinking anyway?"
"At least we can still watch the fireworks," Raiha said while munching some sweets from a little bag, making the fifth sister relax her expression.
"Tokugawa Ieyasu was the first in Japan's history to see fireworks. These first came from China, but upon arriving to Europe, these were brought along with firearms," Fuutarou commented.
"How boring, who cares about history lessons?" Nino exclaimed.
"I think it's fascinating," Miku said, getting some giggles out of Yotsuba and Raiha, at Nino's expense.
It was about one quarter to eight at night, which would mark the fireworks' end. Although he hadn't done much except snacking on sweets with the girls, watching the fireworks and hear the complaints about Ichika's absence, Fuutarou had to admit it hadn't been such a bad night. He'd lie if he said he'd gotten bored, and save for running laps before to find Ichika among the crowd, nothing had happened he had regrets over.
And there was the fact the eldest sister requested him to watch over the others, though he didn't think they actually needed. It seemed that as long as they were together, they'd be able to go through anything just fine.
"Well, I think there's only one thing left to do," Nino suddenly declared in a solemn tone. "Since Ichika isn't here, I'm the eldest sister, and thus I'm in charge."
"Hey, wait, Nino, what do you mean you're in charge?" Itsuki complained. "And in charge of what, anyway?"
"Let me finish," Nino said. "As I was saying, the tradition is that all five sisters watch the fireworks together, but this year without Ichika, made me reach a decision. I, Nino Nakano, as the second eldest of us five…"
She pointed in his direction, and he couldn't help but feel his chest pumping in pride. Did she have the same idea as Ichika, to have Fuutarou…?
"… name Raiha-chan as our honorary sister for tonight. Those in favor, raise your hands right now."
A chorus of "Ohhhhh!" went off among the remaining three quintuplets and Raiha herself, while Fuutarou felt his chest deflating once more, the pride all gone. Of course; she wouldn't think of him, but Raiha. However, the subsequent cries of joy and celebration from the others, as they took turns to carry Raiha on their shoulders and cuddle her to no end, were more than enough to make him forget it.
"Yay! Raiha-chan will be our little sister!" Yotsuba shouted.
"I won't be the baby of the family anymore!" Itsuki exclaimed. "I can be the big sister!"
"I'm not the middle child anymore," Miku added with a smile.
"Hey you," Nino said as she handed her phone to him. "Make yourself useful and take us a picture, will you?"
Fuutarou wanted to groan at Nino's bossy tone, but seeing Raiha doing her puppy eyes again made him relent. He asked the five of them to get in front of him as he readied the camera.
Yotsuba kneeled down in the middle, making a V-sign with each hand and showing off a toothy grin, with Raiha riding on her shoulders. Miku sat on the left side, a hand on her chest and giving a more relaxed smile. Itsuki stood on the right side, waving her hand. Lastly Nino, who stood behind Yotsuba and Raiha, pulled her eye and stuck out her tongue (a gesture Fuutarou suspected was aimed at him).
"Ready?" he said once he focused all of them, and upon receiving a nod from everyone, he pressed the button to catch the moment.
Surely Raiha would want a copy later. A shame she couldn't have all five of them, but for a girl who'd always wanted to have a big sister, four of them at once was something she wouldn't sneeze at.
That photo would make a nice reminder for that festival, both for him and for Raiha.
----------------------------------------
9:27 pm, at a nearby park…
Even after the show was over, the Nakano sisters refused to go home yet. After many tries, Nino finally got Ichika to answer the phone, and told her they'd be waiting for her in a little park near the festival's site.
Fuutarou was sitting on a bench, watching his little sister who'd fallen asleep. Yotsuba approached him, as the other three sisters continued to wait for Ichika's return. There was still a way for them to keep the tradition.
"You sure Raiha-chan won't mind?"
"It was her idea," Fuutarou assured her. "It was her way to thank you for the invite."
"Hehe, you're lucky to have such a cute sister," Yotsuba said with a big smile.
Shortly before falling asleep, Raiha suggested the quints could use the fireworks set he bought for her. Maybe they wouldn't be as impressive or spectacular as the ones from the festival, but looking on the bright side, they could have them only for themselves and enjoy them together. Raiha was not only a cheerful and sweet girl, but also very smart for her age.
"So, did you have fun?" Yotsuba asked, sitting closer to him.
"Hmm… I'd be lying if I said no," he admitted. "But remember we have to get back to study tomorrow. You still need to deliver today's homework."
"I know, I know," the ribbon girl said, pouting a little. "But let's forget about that tonight, okay?"
Fuutarou shrugged, but agreed to her request. Yotsuba had been working the whole week so she'd earned a day off. While he wasn't sure at first and he only came for Raiha's sake, in the end he did have fun, he couldn't deny it.
A few minutes later they heard a car approaching, and after it stopped Ichika came out of it. The eldest sister was no longer wearing her yukata; evidently she had to switch clothes for the audition, and they all ran to welcome her.
"You're late!" Nino exclaimed. "Care to tell us where you've been?"
"Sorry, really," Ichika apologized. "Something important came and I couldn't ignore it. I know we promised, but…"
"Well, that doesn't matter anymore," the second sister said. "You can explain us later; now hurry up. We'd been waiting for you to open them."
The sisters sat around a small candle, which they used to lit some sparklers. Yotsuba dragged Fuutarou so he could get one too and lit it along with them, and although he didn't want to separate from Raiha he reluctantly agreed. Of course, the rest of the rockets and everything else they kept were to be split in equal parts between them, something he had no issue with.
'Why do I feel so well inside?' he thought upon sitting back on the bench with Raiha.
He had known the quints for about two weeks, and while he didn't get along with all of them, seeing them all five together, sharing the fireworks that way, made him feel a strange warmth inside. It was clear they all cared for one another, and they shared everything amongst each other.
Was it because they'd lost their mother? Was it their way to keep her memory alive after she left them, so they could feel she was still with them? Maybe that was part of the reason, but Fuutarou felt there was something beyond that.
But that would be another story, for another time. The last thing he saw before losing his battle against sleepiness was Yotsuba and Ichika approaching his bench. If they wanted to say something to him, they'd have to wait until tomorrow.
To be continued…