Chapter 44. A Date? (8/13)
“Go away, sis. Please leave me alone.” To no one’s surprise, it was no doubt her little brother’s voice.
Seeing how uncooperative he was, I took a more underhanded approach to get him to open the door. I spoke out the following lie in a solemn tone filled with authority, “This is an emergency. Your sister was hit by a car out front on her way home. Her condition is unstable, reaching critical levels, and an ambulance is currently on route to bring her to the hospital.”
I heard frantic steps from behind the door. A boy with short blond hair, who I could only imagine was in his first year of middle school with his height a foot shorter than me, suddenly flung the door open wide with insuppressible panic in his steel-blue eyes.
Seeing his extreme reaction, it immediately became clear with a single glance that he truly loved his elder sister dearly.
“What do you mean she’s in critical condition! She’s not going to die, is she?” He cried out desperately while grabbing onto my arms tightly.
Not willing to let the lie continue any further after I’d successfully confirmed his affection for his sister, I immediately revealed the truth to him, “Sorry, that was all a big lie.” I narrowed my eyes and let out an evil grin.
He blinked once and asked, “Really? She’s really… fine?”
“Yes. I apologize for telling you such a terrible lie, but I had to confirm something.”
“Then… it was really... just a lie after all?”
“Listen carefully. Do you not hear the TV coming from the living room down below?”
Listening closely, there was a rather catchy song that had just started playing from the TV downstairs. If I recalled correctly, the name of the song was Bad Habits by Ed Sheeran.
And as if that song marked the start of my little charade, I continued, “Now why would a stranger like me enter the house and turn on the TV before coming up here to tell you your sister was hit by a car? You should naturally be aware your mother is still out at work, so if you think about it from a logical perspective like that, you could only really conclude once seeing me up here that your sister must have turned it on to entertain a visitor, right?”
“Ah! Now that you mention it…”
“So, yes, as you can see, I’m a terribly evil man who takes pleasure in deceiving young children.”
“Who even are you? Are you one of big sister’s stalkers or something?” He suddenly put up his guard on high alert when he heard my description of myself.
“Not at all, quite the contrary actually. If anyone is being stalked by someone here, that would no doubt be the pitiful me.”
“Huh? What do you mean? Why would big sis stalk a guy? Aren’t you really just one of her friends who she sent to talk to me or something?”
“No. In fact, we’re quite a far distance away from being friends. If I were to describe our relationship… it would be one of... mortal enemies.” A wide nefarious smile formed on my face as I stared at the clueless child before me.
“Mortal… enemies? My big sister doesn’t have any enemies. You must just be one of those creepy guys trying to get close to her after all. Were you thinking of using me to get closer to her or something?”
“Child, getting closer to her is the exact opposite of what I want.” I waved my index finger in the air from side to side then continued, “I’d like to stay as far away from her as possible. If I could move to the other side of the world, that would be much preferable, but my finances do not allow for such an ideal solution.”
The boy looked at me strangely.
“Why would you want to go so far as to move to the other side of the world just because of my sister?”
“Well, you see… your sister actually has a hold of a weakness of mine and has been trying to blackmail me into becoming her friend which I’m completely against. It’s probably impossible for you to believe a reason like that with how nice she is though.”
“It’s definitely impossible.”
“Haaaah. She really is pushy and doesn’t take no for an answer. No matter how many times I refuse to be her friend, it just doesn’t get through that thick friend-happy skull of hers. I simply want to be left alone to my own devices. I am a loner, a man who takes great pleasure in living a solitary life of isolation removed from societal pressures. I’d like nothing more than peace and quiet in my life, but sadly, I was unfortunate enough to get involved with your troublesome big sister. Being friends with her would make living the way I most enjoy impossible.”
“You’re really… being serious?” He was still doubtful of my words.
“Yes, and I have a feeling that you are a bit similar to me, in a sense that you want your own space and independence from her.”
“How… could you tell that?” Surprised, the child questioned back.
“A single glance is all I need to figure out quite a bit of your situation. You have an amazing elder sister who everyone looks up to and adores. She’s pretty, has the best grades in her class, has countless friends, and has a bright future ahead of her. Your existence is completely overshadowed by hers. You’re likely always being compared to her if my analysis isn’t wrong. However… you do not hate your elder sister for being who she is. You love her quite a bit, but you just want to remove the stigma that is being known as ‘just Alicia’s little brother.’”
His eyes opened wide in shock as he asked, fully convinced, “A single glance is all it took for you to figure all that out?”
“Yes. It’s rather easy to understand. The brighter the sun, the more it overshadows the things closest to it. You, child, are the unfortunate one closest to that blazing sun, and are the one who has things the hardest as a result.”
His steel-blue eyes, proof of his status as his big sister’s little brother, rippled with emotion when he heard my words. It was like he’d just found a comrade of sorts who shared a somewhat similar objective to one of his own.
“It may seem like we’re fellows with a few similar troubles, perhaps even comrades to a certain degree. But you should not blindly trust someone fully whom you‘ve only just met. I am nothing more than a suspicious person you should be wary of. And… it would do you well to remember that I consider myself your beloved big sister’s mortal enemy.”
“Now, that being the case, I’d like to make a proposition to you, child. You can think of me as the devil if you like and ignore my words. But my objective in coming here to meet you is quite simple. It is to drag you out of whatever darkness you are sinking in. Don’t misunderstand though, I’m not doing it for you, or your sister, or anyone else for that matter.”
“It is all for myself. You see, I only do things that benefit me. I am not a selfless man by any means. I simply wish for my life to return to peace and quiet. If I want to ensure your sister will leave me alone, the most effective way is to make her owe me through a debt of great gratitude. With her nature, she will have no other choice but to accept my request to keep from blabbing my secret and leave me alone in the future.”
“But... there is one more thing you should know as well, child. The price for refusing the offer I’m extending to you is steep. Should you not accept my offer, the easiest means to achieving my objective will disappear. If that should turn out to be the case… well… let’s just say I’ll have to implement more… drastic measures. Put in simple terms… I will have to completely crush that beloved sister of yours into the dirt.” I closed my hand into a fist, looked deep into his eyes while instilling a sense of fear and dread deep in his still young and immature feeble heart.
With this, I was really only giving him one option. He didn’t actually have the choice to refuse at all. Why? Because he actually truly cared for his big sister. I told her from the very beginning that I’d manipulate him and turn him into a tool I could use at my disposal. I had been dead serious.
The boy in front of me gulped nervously as he looked back at me understanding just how serious I was.
“You’ll help me… and what you want is for my sister to keep your secret and leave you alone?”
“Yes. That is all my heart desires.”
“Uh… can I… have some time to think about it?”
I took out a card I’d prepared in advance after considering the possibility he might be unable to immediately resolve himself to sell his soul to the devil. It had my phone number written on it.
“Take this card with my number. You can have some time, but only until midnight tonight.”
“So little ti-“
I cut him off, “I am a busy man with many things to do. If I do not receive a text by then, I will consider your answer to be a no and that you’ve rejected the olive branch I’ve so gracefully extended to you. From that point on, I will make arrangements to completely crush your elder sister. Your sister’s fate is in your hands. Only you can save her, boy.” I snapped my finger, turned my back to him, and descended the stairs leaving him standing there staring at my back as it disappeared beyond the edge of the stairs.
w-what the hell, his speech is weird! it's like a demon and a kid negotiating on a contract lmao
You'd think they're planning a revolution when instead they're taking a burden off a troublesome kind girl
I'm hooked to this story, buying at least Vol. 1 and Vol 2.
Thanks for reading, it’s great to know you’re enjoying it so much!
That doesn’t make much sense, just enduring her bothering him for a month should be better... also this will very obviously backfire, considering how she reacted to him so far, and he should very well know this.
Having her indebted to him is another way he considers as a viable means to get her to leave him alone. Also, a month isn't going to be all it takes for this type of girl. She'll keep persistently trying for years if that's what it takes to become friends. She knows where he works after all. That is this girl's greatest strength and flaw, persistence and her strong desire to befriend everyone.
@KiraMinoru No dude, a month is the time the blackmail material is still effective she might pester him later but he's jobs is not on the line so he doesnt have to obey her. Also, I say that because helping her out and being nice is what got him in this situation in the first place, you know, if that was the case that time should be enough for her to leave him alone.
@Briddey At minimum he has to wait about four months from this point before he's of the legal age to work, not a month. Also, the blackmail isn't what bothers him the most. She's not the type to blackmail, it's more of a bluff and he can tell that. But the possibility that she might slip up and accidentally reveal it to other people absentmindedly when around him in a public setting is the more concerning aspect of it, which is why he needs to get her off his back ASAP.
She's like a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment. You think someone already under a lot of stress wants to have to keep being cautious and on edge at all times when someone like her is around? He already saw what happened when he tried to just ignore it with Rosa. He's not going to simply sit around ignoring it and hope the problem disappears this time when this girl seems just as, if not more, persistent than Rosa. Her continuing to pester him to be her friend troubles him the most.
@KiraMinoru I swear that his birthday was mentioned to be a month after the start of the arc, I also know that she likely not the type to actually use it. Now, if that's your premise I dunno what to say, ignoring her would be best comparing to helping her out with a big issue and obviously making her even more interested in him, her slipping up might happen regardless anyway, and I mean ignoring her since the start.
Sure, with Rosa that didn't work and maybe the might influence his judgement, and yet he did just that before she had blackmail on him and it worked just fine. I want to be clear tho, what I don't understand is how his mind operates, I don't understand how he got to "got make her own me twice to make her go away", is he being a tsundere? Because it appears he is resigned to his fate.
@Briddey The first time I remember his birthday being mentioned hasn't happened in the story yet. It's also not mentioned by him, but revealed by someone else. Whenever he's asked what his birthday is, he's the type that would lie and give a random date. I checked and the only time he mentions it is when thinking internally "a few more months and I'll be 16". So no, it wasn't a month.
Ignoring a problem is only putting the problem off and running away from it. And even if he is 99.9999% sure she won't seriously go through with her blackmail threat, that small possibility of it happening still exists. The best way to ensure it doesn't get exposed is to have her indebted to him and use her forthright honest personality to his advantage. If she owes him a big favour and his request for her is to leave him alone and forget about being friends, he believes based on her personality she will listen to his request.
@KiraMinoru yes, so the birthday I dunno really you might be right. Here’s the thing she already owns him one, it’s whole reason she knows where he works. I might nor mean as much as helping her lil bro but it was a big enough deal, so he could use that but he doesn’t or can’t, both of them lead me to believe that it’s a terrible idea make her own him another favor.
Now, if she slips up it could be for any reason, it would be god’s will and nothing can be done about it. As I bet it would not happened if he wasn’t around because I nobody likely talks about him since he’s a loner. it would never come up in on of her normal conversations, maybe with Rosa since she doesn’t even know they get along but there’s the would childhood friend and stuff but it’s with Rosa...
@Briddey She doesn't owe him anything for that time where he got rid of the guy pestering her in the store. That was just him doing his job, there's a distinction there which makes it a very minor thing. Even if he did swoop in outside of his job and do the same thing, which he would never do, she still wouldn't owe him anything for that.
She's popular and deals with that sort of thing a lot. Sure, she wasn't able to get rid of that guy while at the store because no she knew one was around, but she would have eventually found a way to make contact with someone she knows to get out of the situation.
@KiraMinoru Yes, that's clearly a matter of can't use it, he did help her even if it's because of his job, he won't use that considering how lazy he is. He could have used it and failed and hardened it further the idea of not helping her, it's also how he got "caught", because you don't go around blackmailing a firefighter that saved your life, it's his job but he did it so making her guilty is also easier.
Look, I dunno much about it but she didn't behave like she gets harassed constantly, she behaved like there were no alternatives. If she got that attention a lot she should have a pepper spray or something right in hand an be fast about it, she would survive that long if it happened so much with her.
@Briddey It's such a common occurrence to her that she really has nothing to feel guilty about if a guy steps in and tries to play hero. She's numb to it and it isn't something he can exploit to make her feel guilt. Also, it's not something major like saving her life. It's just shooing away someone annoying. She'd just tilt her head to one side and say, "So? Your point?"
@Briddey if I were to write that scenario, it'd probably turn out like this.
"I helped you get rid of that guy."
"So? Your point?"
"Shouldn't you feel guilty for trying to blackmail me into being your friend?"
"Why would I feel guilty about trying to become your friend?"
"The blackmailing part is what you should feel guilty about!"
"Oh. I guess."
"You guess? Please take this more seriously!"
It'd just turn into playful light hearted banter with this girl. It'd have the opposite affect and make them seem more friendly.
@KiraMinoru So, now we are going to la-la-land. The premise of your defense is that she super veteran of real sexual harassment, and the previous try's failed because all the harassers that every came to her are stupid like the on that showed up and didn't even wait for her to leave the store and do it when even less people are watching, but that also happened to every other attemp and someone showed up just in time to save he every single time?
Well, it's kinda unbelievable, and if it really happened someone else might as well show up and save her at the store since she has that sort of power. Beyond all that, her superpower is not written anywhere of the story so far, I thought her whole thing was that she got along with everyone and the bubble the Mc keeps talking about has yet to burst, and maybe she never got harassed like that before, and maybe that the whole reason she was walking around at night ( and endangering herself) was to look for him somehow? Because she just started showing up after they met, and that she had no time to react to what happened because she figured out who he was.
I might be completely wrong on this one but I going by what's written the best I can remember it.
@Briddey Getting approached by guys a lot and them hitting on you isn't sexual harassment. Also, I never said someone coincidentally shows up. Being popular she knows a lot of people and a lot of people know her so she can contact friends to meet up with her if she find herself in a situation where a guy won't leave her alone. Contacting people with a phone via text isn't a bloody super power or plot armour, it's common sense. Entering the store, somewhere with people around, she could have very well been buying time for someone she contacted to meet up with her after that guy had approached her. The guy approached her a good amount of time before she entered while she was on her way to the store.
Also, her going to that convenience store the first time was complete chance, not because she was searching for him. She was searching for that stupid drink she always goes there for now. It's something that only gets revealed later on.
@KiraMinoru Now, now. The dude hitting on her without stop is harassment ( it's a conduct that is repeated constantly), when he grabbed her it's gets worse he was dragging her outside?( dunno if that's the sexual one legally but it was at least attempted) I think. If she called someone I dunno, she has a bodyguard now? Where's that person? Where's the message? And how come this would work with a harasser like that when he shows up and has a brain, by the time they show up she would be having a real bad time.
Her rejecting boys from school is very different than this, at least it should be, because school is the place of learning and what not. the school is shown to be very ok.
And I very much give you that it's not explained why she went to the store, it's either the hand of god or she went around looking for him, I would like to leave the hand of god out as much as possible thus I picked the other and giving more credit. But some chapters back she has shown to know his name without him saying it so maybe she should have found him long ago? Ain't she the president? Don't they have access to students info? Maybe she could have he's address already, if she isn't never mind.
@Briddey a popular girl isn’t going to just get hit on in school. They also do get hit on when they go out.
What you’re describing is what happened after she entered the store, not before. And even then, it’s not sexual harassment, it’s still harassment at that stage still. You specifically stated sexual harassment originally, not harassment. People these days are willing to call just about any degree of contact with women sexual harassment, it’s honestly ridiculous.
@Briddey She only knows his name because she literally narrowed it down to Rosa's class, the one student she couldn't find who suspiciously disappeared after the first day she was there. It's not hard to put two and two together. Simply asking one of his classmates who sits in that seat would be enough to find out his name.
As for the drink she gets. It's a local drink that's really popular but hardly any stores sell it because of pretty limited supply. That's as much as I'll say for that since anymore is a spoiler to a joke.
@KiraMinoru I agree with that, it's just harassment till at least he grabs her ( you see, sexual harassment is dictated by whatever the intentions of the active part has "lewd" designs to shorten it), it's very broad definition at lest here, but you gotta prove the intent of the "lewd" part, when people get too forcibly touchy it's gets easier to tell and prove.
I'll admit I don't like it either, but in my laws its like that. if it's by definition at least here, even approaching a woman at a bar and ask her out more then some 2 or 3 times would be because you really want to bang her at the end... that being said though it cant be proven.
@Briddey No, she doesn’t have a body guard, she has lots of friends. She goes out of her way for them, so it’s only natural they’ll at least return the favour. One of them is bound to be able to help her if she asks around.
@KiraMinoru I said body guard as joke more or less, besides the joke it would have to be someone akin to one, someone that’s there or very close by guarding her because people don’t teleport and she would be betting on the harasser being dumb. If it’s school I would give it to you.
@Briddey With how many friends she has both in and outside of her school(other schools as well, through sports teams in her current school where she plays against other schools and even former classmates from elementary and middle school, or even stores she shops at), statistically, throughout the city there is bound too be one among the many at any given time she can get a helping hand from. She doesn't need one particular person to constantly rely on when there are so many options available because of how social she is. Even if that person she contacts can't help directly, they can get someone they know to help in their place. That's the big advantage of having a wide social network.