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Chapter 38: A Lost War
🕑 Added 2024-09-13 13:30:02 +0000 UTCBoth of my father figures were dead cold on the dining room table.
Mom had killed them.
Well, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but if you entered a room and the first thing you see is this scene, I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that.
In reality, though, Mom simply drank them under the table. I finally understood why Dad had looked so grim when Father asked for a drink earlier. The poor man knew what was coming. And now, the aftermath was staring me in the face.
Father was knocked out cold, something I thought I would never see, and Dad? Well, I could actually remember a few times seeing him in this state, almost always accompanied by Mom drinking by his side. I could only imagine the throbbing headaches that awaited them when they woke up.
Mom, on the other hand? She was still going strong. She leaned back in her chair, feet kicked up on the table, swirling another bottle of booze as if it were water.
“More for me, I guess,” she said with a contented sigh before taking another swig. Her face was flushed, her eyes bright, but the way she was downing that drink made me wonder if she was okay.
The bottles were starting to pile up on the table. One small slip, and my ears would be in a world of hurt.
Now that I thought about it, it didn’t make sense. If we had this much booze lying around at home, why did Mom always go to Aunt Diane’s place to drink?
I was tempted to ask, but quickly thought better of it. Some mysteries in life are better left unsolved. Mom’s drinking habits? Definitely one of them.
No, what really scared me wasn't the fact that Mom might outdrink the entire neighborhood—it was that all the responsible adults in the house were now completely out of commission.
Unfortunately, that meant…
Both of my bodies’ shoulders were grabbed from behind in a firm, all-too-familiar grip. I could practically feel the smirk forming as her head leaned in close to mine.
“So, mind telling your sis your love story~?”
I was stuck with the worst person possible in the world.
…
We were both forcefully dragged to Fray’s room. I expected the worst, knowing her, but it was a lot cleaner than I thought. The bed sheets weren’t crumpled. The pillows were neatly placed. Her clothes weren’t all over the place.
If I had to be honest, I was astonished. In awe even.
“Hey, I know that look.” She shot a glare at her little brother. “You can’t believe I actually cleaned up my room, didn’t you?”
This gorilla had some sense of civilization. Amazing. I silently thanked the Gods for this unexpected miracle. I would’ve never guessed her room could look so… presentable.
“I’ll have you know, even I can clean… sometimes.”
At least she was honest. I took another look at the room once more, my eyes not believing what I was seeing.
The walls and ceiling were mostly clean, I assumed it was Mom who cleaned them whenever Fray was out on her errands. There was a small wooden drawer next to her bed, it too was surprisingly clean. And then I looked at her bed…
At first glance, it was as spotless as the rest of the room. The sheets were neatly tucked in, smooth and wrinkle-free, like they’d never been slept in. But as I took a closer look, something felt… off. My gaze was drawn specifically to the underside of the bed, between the mattress and the bed frame.
The way the sheets were tucked in—it was almost too perfect. Suspiciously perfect. Like someone was trying to hide something.
Curiosity got the better of me, and before I knew it, I instinctively reached out as Carine, my fingers hovering just above the edge of the mattress. What could be underneath there?
But just as my hand began to lift the corner of the mattress, a strong grip latched onto my arm, freezing me in place. Fray’s hold was firm, almost alarmingly so.
“Hey, hey! I know you’re eager to call me Sis, but no snooping around my stuff!”
Her voice was teasing, but her grip tightened just enough to make it clear she wasn’t joking about the "no snooping" part.
“W-What?” Her comment caught me off guard. “N-No, I don’t have any intention to call you Sis…”
Fray’s grip loosened, but she didn’t let go entirely. Instead, she leaned in closer, her eyes narrowing playfully as a devilish grin spread across her face. “Hmm~? That so~?” Her tone was dripping with amusement, like a cat toying with a mouse.
I didn’t know if she was playing this out because she genuinely believed it, or just to mess with her little brother, but either way, I decided enough was enough. If I wanted to live both of my lives peacefully, I needed to dispel this whole misunderstanding, right then and there!
I cleared my throat as Feyt and spoke up. “Sis, I already told you this, but I have no feelings whatsoever for Carine.”
“Hm? But you two—”
“No,” I interrupted her as Carine. I wasn’t about to let her speak, who knows what crazy stuff she would spout out next. “I also don’t have any feelings towards Feyt. We’re both… friends, at best.”
Why did I feel a little too defensive just now?
Fray’s grin widened like a predator sensing weakness. She leaned closer. Her eyes gleamed. “Friends, huh? That’s what they all say~.”
I groaned. Here we go.
“Seriously, it’s not like that,” I said as Feyt, trying to keep my voice calm and composed, but Fray was having none of it.
“Oh, come on! You brought her home the first day out of the clinic, practically hand in hand! There’s no way you’re just ‘friends’!”
“No!” I shouted back, still as Feyt. “We were just—”
“Just getting cozy?” Fray cut in smoothly. “I saw how you two looked at each other, you know?”
“What look?” I switched to Carine. “We barely look at each other, just so you know.”
Mostly because I couldn’t stand looking at myself. It gave me weird sensations, like I was looking at a mirror, yet not.
Fray ignored my comment though as she smirked. “I bet you two have some sort of thing going on already~.”
“Listen, we’re not a couple—!” I snapped back as Feyt. Fray wasn’t backing down at all. This was turning into a nightmare.
ray just shrugged, unfazed. "Oh, but you two would make such a cute pair! Think about it! Feyt and Carine sitting in a tree~ K-I-S-S—”
““Stop it!”” I shouted with both bodies out of panic. To think, out of all the rhymes that could exist in this world, why does it have to be that one?!
Fray leaned back, folding her arms smugly. "Face it, Feyt, you’re totally smitten with her. And Carine, well…" She shot me a knowing look. "I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve already thought about calling me—"
“Seriously, stop it, Sis,” I blurted out as Carine.
…
Silence.
Fray’s eyes went wide, frozen for a second as she processed what just happened. Then, like a switch being flipped, her expression morphed into pure, unadulterated triumph.
“Sis?” she repeated slowly, as if savoring every syllable. Her grin grew impossibly larger. “Did you just call me ‘Sis,’ Carine?”
My heart sank into my stomach. “No, wait, I didn’t—” I tried to backpedal, tried to grasp at any excuse to undo the massive slip-up, but it was too late. The damage was done, and I could practically feel the impending gloat.
Fray’s grin spread from ear to ear. "So you do want to call me Sis! Oh, this is perfect! I knew it! I knew something was going on!"
I was frozen, still trying to process the catastrophic slip-up, but Fray was already celebrating her victory, practically bouncing with joy. “Aww, this is so cute! You already see me as family, huh, Carine? Well, guess what? I’ll be the best sister-in-law ever! You can count on me!”
Both of my selves were too stunned to even deny it. Fray had won. Completely and utterly.
She danced around the room, her voice full of glee. "This is going to be so fun! Wait till Mom and Dad hear about this! 'Sis'… I can't believe it!"
I buried my faces in my hands. This wasn’t just a defeat—it was a full-on nightmare. All I could do was wait for her to eventually run out of steam… if she ever did.
Oh Gods, why don’t other isekai protagonists deal with this kind of shit?
Comments
crazybot
I'm mean, of someone keeps saying I want to say a certain word, it would certainly be very easy to slip up and accidentally say it.
