「I can’t see. Gimme my cup.」

     「Sure. …Be careful not to burn yourself.」

     I picked up the cup and handed it to Mizuki.

     「I let it cool down, so it should be fine. Ah, but would you have preferred it hot, Mizuki?」

     「Nah. I don’t like things too hot.」

     「I see. Then we’re the same.」

     It was my first time seeing Sorahashi-san speak to anyone other than me inside this house.

     I thought back to this past Christmas. Seeing the remainders of the party she held had made me uneasy. I still didn’t know why that sight made me feel that way, though. I realized that right now, I held the same sort of feeling in my heart.

     The sounds of conversation. A smile from Sorahashi-san that I’d never seen. A touch from Mizuki I’d never felt.

     Suddenly, a sense of loneliness washed over me, as if I were all alone in the world. Just like when I was at home, I felt a weight in my stomach.

     Mom. Dad. Mizuki.

     Sometimes I’d spot the three of them sitting in the living room and enjoying a conversation. The smile she’d once directed only at me, she was now turning toward our parents. I was pleased to see her smiling after having been lonely for so long. It was only natural that she’d be happy that our parents finally had time to be at home.

     But then…

     Perhaps I, who was unhappy at that, was no human at all.

     I wanted her to always smile only at me. I wanted her to eat only my food. I hadn’t even realized I wanted that until now.

     Ever since meeting Sorahashi-san, she had dug countless desires out of my heart.

     Things I didn’t know, things I didn’t want to know, and things that came to be for the first time. Those were all things I truly desired.

     How unsightly.

     「Mizuki-chan and Kurumi, I’m curious what the dynamic between you two is like.」

     Sorahashi-san’s voice.

     My consciousness partially returned to reality.

     「I’d like to think we’re just ordinary sisters. You know as much already, but our parents used to come home quite late, so we spent a lot of time together…」

     Did Mizuki know I’d been telling her about our family situation?

     The hands around my stomach tightened a bit, just enough for it to hurt a little.

     「Indeed. What was Kurumi like as a child?」

     「Like she is now. She’s very responsible, caring, and…」

     「Hmm…」

     I wondered what to call this odd feeling that arose whenever a family member talked about you within earshot.

     I let out a small sigh.

     I didn’t think I’d be able to appreciate the tea today.

     「’Scuse me. I’m gonna go to the bathroom.」

     「Okay. Take care.」

     「Be right back.」

     I tried to stand up, but I couldn’t. That was because Mizuki wasn’t letting go of me. She wasn’t this strong back when we held hands while walking to school together, but now, she had become much stronger than me.

     「…Mizuki?」

     「…Don’t take too long.」

     Her words seemed to have a pleading tone to them. Without understanding why she sounded like that now, I stood up. It became silent as soon as I left. I’d come to hang out here many times, but I wasn’t particularly familiar with the layout because I was usually shown straight to the living room.

     I did say I was going to the bathroom, but…

     I walked past, further down the hallway. It was obvious from how big the house looked, but it was truly spacious. There were so many doors, and I couldn’t tell which one led to Sorahashi-san’s room.

     I knew that it was improper to be wandering around someone’s house without their permission.

     So why was I aimlessly walking around like this? I instinctively picked a door to open.

     It smelled refreshing, like the summer ocean.

     It seemed that somehow, I had found Sorahashi-san’s room. It was decorated with white furniture and the bed was neatly made. It looked like it belonged to a real princess.

     I turned on the light and looked around the room, noticing a collar on her desk.

     It was the black collar that I had gifted to her.

     On a closer look, I could tell that it gave off a well-maintained shine.

     Come to think of it, Sorahashi-san’s loafers were always so clean. It was a good habit to take care of your surroundings, but it was a bit amusing that she even cleaned her collar. I wondered if I should clean the one she gave me as well.

     I picked the collar up.

     For some reason, I put it around my neck, sending a shiver down my spine. To wear a collar was already weird enough, but putting her collar on myself was plain crazy.

     Just as I couldn’t help but sigh, I heard a click from somewhere.

     Startled, I tried to turn around, but before I could, I felt a tightness around my neck and it became hard to breathe. As my head moved along with the pull, what entered my sight was Sorahashi-san holding a leash.

     「You’ve been caught.」

     Saying this, she smiled.

     When had she gotten here? Maybe I hadn’t heard her entering because of how loud my heart was beating.

     It seemed that click was the sound of the leash being attached.

     Perhaps because of how forcefully she had pulled, I had lost my balance and fallen to the floor. 

     Now, I was positioned just like a dog.

     「That’s no good, Kurumi. You shouldn’t be intruding into others’ rooms like this.」

     「S-sorr…」

     「I won’t be accepting verbal apologies. In times like this, do you know how you should be apologizing?」

     As she continued to pull on the leash, Sorahashi-san went to sit down on the bed. Her golden hair sparkled brilliantly. The smile she was wearing right now was the same as the one I saw her wearing so often in class, but hidden deep behind her eyes was a sense of sadism.

     She was usually so happy to be a dog, but today, something was different.

     I suddenly noticed that the door was still open. It would be terrible if Mizuki were to come in right now.

     「Wait, Sorahashi-san. The door…」

     「Say, Kurumi?」

     She tugged on the leash.

     My breath hitched, making a strange noise come from the back of my throat. Sorahashi-san brought her face closer to mine and smiled.

     「Kurumi, what you should be doing right now is apologizing. You’re not in a position to be telling me what to do. Understood?」

     「Ngh…」

     「Come on, Kurumi, you doggie. Can’t a puppy behave like one?」

     「…W-woof.」

     My heart was beating so hard I thought it might shatter. Seeming satisfied, she loosened her grip on the leash a little and then laid down on the bed.

     「You’re a puppy, so you need to apologize with your actions, not your words. Go on — lick.」

     She smiled enticingly.

     Our positions were completely reversed from the usual. But somehow, I found my body naturally moving closer to her. The bed began to creak from our combined weights. I moved to be on top of Sorahashi-san and then gently pressed my lips to her cheek.

     Already knowing how to behave like a puppy from what she usually did, I continued to lick at her cheek.

     It might have been because of her makeup, but there was a strange taste. It was probably bad for my health, but for some reason I couldn’t stop myself, licking at her from her cheek to the tip of her nose, from the tip of her nose to her lips. I licked at her whole face, as if I was tracing it with my tongue.

     This was ridiculous. It was just too much.

     My sense of reason was telling me that this wasn’t normal. It was strange that it was working now when our roles were reversed, when I had been enjoying being her master and disciplining her so much.

     My stomach felt tight.

     As I felt both happiness and sadness circle around my heart, she grinned.

     「Hey, Kurumi. …You’re a puppy. So why are you wearing clothes?」

     Her voice was much sharper than usual.

     She brought her slender fingertips to my neck. Then, little by little, they slid further and further down until they finally reached my chest.

     「Puppies don’t need these, do they? Why don’t you strip?」

     I recalled having said the same thing to her before.

     I felt like my heart was going to burst.

     「…Woof.」

     I knew her well enough to know that she probably wouldn’t let me go until she was satisfied.

     I reached for my uniform.

     I normally had no problems taking it off, but I couldn’t properly do so because I was worried about Mizuki. Perhaps getting impatient, Sorahashi-san sat up and pushed me down onto the bed.

     「If you aren’t going to strip, then I’ll do it for you.」

     She was so quick that I didn’t have time to stop her. She wore the same uniform as I did, though, so it wasn’t like it was all too difficult for her to take it off. In no time at all, I was left in nothing but my underwear.

     I felt insecure, even though I usually took them off on my own accord.

     「…Aha. Your underwear’s so cute. You’re so aimless with your clothing, but so careful with your underwear.」

     That was certainly the case. I did properly go shopping to pick out my underwear. That was mainly because I wanted to buy ones that were the right size. But then, why did I always wear my uniform?

     『You shouldn’t wear stuff that’s too revealing or too cute. You’re already cute the way you are, Onee-chan, so weirdos would start going after you.』

     I suddenly remembered something that Mizuki had told me long ago.

     Right. Come to think of it, Mizuki had always told me not to dress too cutely. I’d completely forgotten about that, but maybe that was why I’d stopped caring so much about what I wore.

     In the past, Mizuki believed that I was, without a doubt, the most beautiful girl in the world. I didn’t believe myself to be particularly cute or ugly, but it was certainly the case that family would hold a sort of favoritism towards you. But regardless of what I thought, Mizuki herself was an incredibly cute girl. That wasn’t just my favoritism speaking — I was sure that others thought the same.

     But I supposed that the reason why I still picked out cute underwear might have been because deep down, I did want to be fashionable.

     Who knows, though.

     「Woof.」

     「Hey, aren’t you going to take this off?」

     「…Woof.」

     Saying this, she brought her hand to my underwear. Once before, I had tried to take her underwear off, but stopped myself. I was sure that she wouldn’t. Sorahashi Sera was the sort of person that would go absolutely through with something once she had decided to do it.

     It should have been easy to shake my head in protest, but the pressure of the moment made it impossible.

     Well, that probably wasn’t the only reason, but in any case, I found myself nodding. Sorahashi-san smiled as she moved the shoulder straps aside. Although the room was heated, I felt chilly because of the cold air coming through the open door.

     Just as my underwear was about to come off completely, I suddenly heard the sound of footsteps. My body jumped in surprise. They were gradually coming closer. Mizuki must have noticed the light on in the room and come over to investigate. I hurriedly made an attempt to get dressed, but it was too late.

     What should I do? It would be a massive problem if she found out.

     So many thoughts circulated through my head, but I couldn’t come up with any solutions.

     Sorahashi-san stood up and flashed me a wink. I blinked, feeling as if she was telling me to leave it all to her.

     With that, she left the room and closed the door.

     「Sorahashi-san, have you seen Onee-chan? She wasn’t in the bathroom…」

     「She just went out for some fresh air. She seemed to be sensitive to the heat and was feeling sick.」

     「…But her shoes were at the entrance.」

     「Maybe she borrowed one of my pairs?」

     「Don’t you two have different sizes? Would they even fit?」

     「A small size difference isn’t anything much, is it? If you’re worried, why don’t we go look for her together?」

     「Yeah, let’s go. …But first, shouldn’t we turn off the lights in that room? I’ll go do that.」

     This was bad. I gathered up my clothes and hid under the covers.

     Just a second later, Mizuki entered the room. I didn’t know whether she noticed my presence, but she approached the bed.

     Thump. Thump. Thump.

     My heart was beating so fast, faster than when we’d almost been caught by a teacher at school. If she lifted the covers, it would all be over. I felt a slight chill at my back. Mizuki slowly brought the covers up.

     The light that had been shining in through the gaps in the covers suddenly disappeared.

     It seemed that Sorahashi-san had turned off the lights.

     「It’s a bit embarrassing to have others see my bed. I’ve left it quite unkempt.」

     「I see. Sorry. …Shall we?」

     「Mhm. A walk with Mizuki-chan… How fun!」

     「You’re coming to look for Onee-chan, right…?」        

     I could hear their voices moving further away. When I heard the sound of the door closing, I got out from under the covers. There was no sign of either of them anymore. I took off the collar and put my clothes back on.

     I really thought I was going to be caught.

     If Mizuki saw me like this, she’d surely be disappointed and disgusted. Even I felt disgusted at myself. But why was it, I wonder? Why was it that when I thought about what would happen if she saw me, even though I ought to feel terrified, I felt a sense of excitement?         

     Maybe I was far more hopeless than I’d come to believe.

     Standing in the darkness, I stared at my reflection in the mirror. It felt like my neck was a little red. When I saw it, my stomach tightened and I thought of Sorahashi-san. Truly, there was something wrong with me.

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