“Long time no see, Taiga-san. So you came back. …Did something happen? I was under the impression you wouldn’t be returning this summer.”
Arisa asked Taiga in a calm, even tone.
The Amagi family had a son who lived alone in the Kansai area while attending university.
Yuzuru had already heard that much, so he guessed this must be that son.
“Yeah… that was the plan. But, well, I heard Arisa got engaged. I wanted to know what that was about, so I came back.”
Taiga then shifted his gaze to Yuzuru, who stood beside Arisa.
It wasn’t a particularly friendly look.
“…And you are?”
Taiga asked.
In situations like this, Yuzuru thought, characters in manga or anime would probably say, ‘You should introduce yourself before asking someone else’s name.’ But he simply answered.
“Nice to meet you, Arisa-san’s onii-san. My name is Takasegawa Yuzuru. I’m… Arisa-san’s fiancé.”
“I see. So you’re the one… Right. I’m Arisa’s ani, Amagi Taiga.”
After a moment of silence, Taiga asked Yuzuru:
“…Are you really Arisa’s fiancé, Yuzuru-kun?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“…How old are you?”
“Fifteen. Arisa-san and I are in the same grade.”
Like Arisa, Yuzuru wore a polite social smile and responded calmly.
He had been educated as the future head of his family, so handling something like this was easy enough.
“Yuzuru-kun… don’t you think it’s too early?”
Of course he did.
But there was no way Yuzuru—the person directly involved—could deny the engagement.
That said, pretending to feel absolutely no discomfort about it would also stray pretty far from common sense.
“That’s true. Which is why the actual marriage will probably happen after we graduate from university.”
“…You intend to marry her?”
(What an odd thing to say,) Yuzuru thought inwardly, though he didn’t voice it.
“Who in the world gets engaged without intending to marry?”
He answered with a hint of sarcasm and wordplay.
Though if you asked who in the world… the answer would be right here.
After all, neither Yuzuru nor Arisa had any intention of actually marrying.
Yuzuru lightly tugged on the sleeve of Arisa’s clothes and glanced at her.
“Right, Arisa-san?”
Should they tell him the truth or not?
At least, he decided to confirm with her.
Arisa leaned in and whispered quietly into his ear.
(“Keep it hidden.”)
In other words, she wanted to conceal it.
Yuzuru didn’t know whether Taiga was trustworthy or not…
But since Arisa—who had lived with him for years—had decided he wasn’t, Yuzuru figured it was best to follow her judgment.
“After we graduate from university, I plan to marry Yuzuru-san. I’m sorry for not mentioning it earlier. I assumed Naoki-san had already told you.”
Naoki meant Amagi Naoki.
In other words, Arisa’s adoptive father.
The fact that Taiga hadn’t heard about it directly from Arisa suggested he wasn’t someone she trusted very much.
“…Are you two really okay with this?”
Taiga looked somewhat shocked at how matter-of-fact both Yuzuru and Arisa sounded.
If anything, though, his words seemed directed more at Arisa than at Yuzuru.
(I see…)
By this point, Yuzuru could more or less guess what kind of feelings Taiga had towards Arisa.
He probably liked his cousin.
Whether he was aware of it or not, Yuzuru couldn’t say.
That would explain why he opposed Arisa’s marriage.
“Of course. Arisa-san is a very charming woman. Spending my life with her would be my greatest wish.”
“I also believe I could spend my life with Yuzuru-san.”
Yuzuru and Arisa answered in unison…
But Taiga still didn’t look convinced.
However, perhaps he couldn’t direct his frustration towards Arisa—the girl he loved—so he focused on Yuzuru instead.
“Yuzuru-kun… do you know?”
“Know what?”
“About Arisa. About the Amagi family’s situation. …This marriage is a political one, arranged for the engagement money.”
Yuzuru already knew that.
Marriage between prominent families had always involved elements like that, both in the past and in the present.
“What are you trying to say?”
“…Given her position, Arisa can’t say no. You understand, right? She’s only saying those things because she’s being forced to.”
At that moment, Yuzuru heard a small sound.
It was…
Arisa making a very quiet click of her tongue.
He glanced sideways at her expression.
(Whoa… she’s mad.)
Her eyes, already cold and lifeless to begin with, seemed even icier now.
She still wore the same smile as before, but her lips twitched from time to time.
She was clearly in a foul mood.
Taiga, however, seemed completely unaware.
“Arisa-san. Your onii-san says that, but…”
“Taiga-san, you’re overthinking it. …Thank you for worrying about me. But please don’t. From the bottom of my heart, I truly want to marry Yuzuru-san.”
At least for now, that was the story they should stick with.
Personally, Yuzuru couldn’t help thinking, (If he’s also against the marriage, wouldn’t it be fine to explain the situation and ask for his help?)
But since Arisa had judged Taiga to be untrustworthy, it was better to keep up the act.
“Well, that’s what she says.”
“…Right. Given Arisa’s position, she has no choice but to say that. You understand that too, Yuzuru-kun.”
“Well… I suppose so.”
Apparently Taiga didn’t trust Arisa either—or at least he didn’t believe her words.
Of course, that wasn’t entirely wrong.
Arisa was lying to him.
Still, no matter what Arisa said, Taiga seemed determined to dismiss it as something she was “being forced to say.”
In other words, regardless of what Arisa expressed, if it didn’t suit Taiga, then to him it must be false.
Under those circumstances, it was no wonder Arisa didn’t trust him either.
Though…
Was it because Arisa didn’t trust Taiga that Taiga couldn’t trust Arisa?
Or because Taiga didn’t trust Arisa that Arisa couldn’t trust Taiga?
Which came first was a question like the chicken and the egg—impossible to answer.
But one thing was certain—
There was mutual distrust between them.
“But even if that’s the case… Amagi Taiga-san. What exactly do you want from me?”
“If you truly love Arisa, Yuzuru-kun, then I want you to stop forcing this marriage on her. …You wouldn’t want Arisa to be unhappy, would you?”
“Well… you’re not wrong.”
Arisa was starting to look like she couldn’t keep up her fake smile much longer.
And it felt a bit unfair to keep the taxi driver waiting too long.
So Yuzuru decided to wrap things up with a slightly underhanded remark.
“Even if I were to cancel the marriage with Arisa-san, wouldn’t the Amagi family just try to marry her off to some wealthy man as long as their financial situation doesn’t improve?”
“Well, that’s… I mean, but…”
“Unless you have the power to protect Arisa-san yourself, it might be better not to interfere.”
Yuzuru’s guess seemed correct.
Taiga was nothing more than a university student—and apparently on bad terms with Naoki, the head of the family—so he likely had neither authority nor power.
Taiga fell silent.
Seeing that, Yuzuru bowed his head.
“I’m sorry. I spoke out of turn… That was rude of me. This is an Amagi family matter. I should refrain from interfering further. Well then… Amagi Taiga-san, Arisa-san. Please excuse me.”
With that, Yuzuru promptly left the scene.
