I Confessed to the Three Beautiful Sisters at School and Got Rejected, but After I Became their Stepsister, They Started Doting On Me (GL) - Chapter 24

Something’s wrong.

Something is definitely wrong.

I worked so hard to help mend the relationship between the three Tsukimori sisters.

And modest as my efforts may have been, I take pride in the fact that I was able to help dissolve the tension between them.

The mood among them had noticeably softened.
It had.

And yet—

“Like, seriously. Chiya-nee and Hiyori-nee were totally distant with Akari at first—but lately something’s off, right?”

Karin-san, who had begun speaking up more boldly as the youngest, let out a growl of protest.

“Oh my, I was trying to be friendly from the beginning, you know? Karin-chan, I think you’re the one being unfair to Akari-chan right now~”

Hiyori, who once played the peacekeeper role from the sidelines, now wasn’t afraid to express her personal feelings—even if it disrupted the balance.

“Besides, I find terms like ‘distance’ or ‘friendly’ rather unbecoming when referring to one’s own family. Even among loved ones, proper decorum is important.”

Chiya, once so intent on being the perfect eldest daughter, now willingly joined her sisters in open dialogue.

Yes—those were the very walls that had once separated them.

And yet, here we were. Those barriers had come down.
I was sure of it.

So the “coldness” should have given way to “closeness.”

That’s what I believed…

“Hang on a second! Out of everyone, Chiya-nee was the one most against treating Akari like family in the first place!”

“That’s true, isn’t it? Actually, I overheard her myself—Chiya-chan clearly said she had no intention of accepting Akari-chan as her sister right after she moved in.”

“…Did I say that?”

Oh my…
So Chiya-san has come to see me as family after all?

My heart… it’s fluttering…

“Exactly! So now suddenly doing a 180 and acting all close? That’s so not okay!”

“Perhaps you ought to be the one showing a little restraint around Akari-chan~?”

“…Oh? That’s how you want to play it?”

N-No no no—hold on, brain. Calm down.

This is not the time to be getting lovestruck.

How is any of this a heartwarming family reunion?!

“Let me just point something out,” Chiya said coolly. “If you’re insisting that ‘Chiya Tsukimori was the one most distant from Hanano Akari and refused to see her as family,’ then doesn’t that precisely make the two of us the ones who should be strengthening our bond the most right now?”

“Wha—Huh?! What kind of twisted logic is that?!”

“T-That’s way too convenient a spin on things!”

They’re… actually fighting?!

Yes, it’s different from the past, where they kept each other at a polite distance while bottling everything up…

But this back-and-forth tension still isn’t exactly friendly!

How…
How did it come to this?!

“Akari, are you just going to stay quiet forever?!”

“Hyii!”

Karin smacked my back, making me jump.

“We’re arguing about you, so say something already! How are we supposed to settle this if you don’t?!”

“S-Sorry…!”

But—what do I even say?

This is what I wanted to happen… and yet… the result is not what I wanted at all…

My brain is melting into panic.

“You saw that, didn’t you, Hiyori?”

“Oh yes. I saw it, Chiya-chan.”

And then suddenly, the two older sisters started whispering to each other—loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Wh-What?!”

Karin, clearly flustered, couldn’t hide her nervous twitch.

Despite her usual fiery attitude, she still got rattled when her older sisters teamed up.
It’s kind of adorable, honestly.

“I can’t believe it,” Chiya murmured. “The one who kept harping on about ‘distance’ now resorts to violence?”

“Perhaps she misunderstands the meaning of closeness. Equating ‘physical contact’ with ‘emotional closeness,’ perhaps?”

“That’s a fundamental error. Uninvited contact only worsens emotional distance.”

“We may need to educate her on the difference between physical and emotional proximity~”

A full-on combo attack from the elder sisters…

“I-I wasn’t being violent! I just touched her a little, okay?!”

“The offender always claims it was nothing.”

“Indeed, indeed. If we’re striving for equality, such one-sided actions are unacceptable, you know?”

“Ugh… You’re both so annoying!”

Karin’s eyes were starting to brim with tears.

A flustered little sister, overwhelmed by her older siblings…

I know it’s inappropriate, but… it’s so precious.

“Anyway!!”

But Karin’s a true athlete.

Even if frustration brings her to tears, she’s not the type to crumble and give up.

“Hiyori-nee! You’re always going on about fairness and equality—then what’s this?!”

She jabbed her finger toward my plate.

“E-Eh? W-What do you mean…?”

“I noticed, you know! Akari’s portion has way more toppings on her pasta than anyone else’s!”

Oh… Hiyori-san, you noticed I was still a little hungry?

Th-That’s so kind of you…

“I noticed it too… I just thought it was a coincidence.”

“A-Ahaha! W-Well, what’s the big deal, really~?”

Hiyori’s voice clearly wavered.

But Karin’s eyes now burned with fiery conviction.

“I know how careful Hiyori-nee is when it comes to portioning! You always make sure not to give anyone a reason to start a fight!”

“That is odd. So why would one plate be different?”

“Ah… oh my, you’re so right! Isn’t that just the strangest thing~?”

“You totally did it on purpose! You’re not being fair at all!”

But—wait.

What are the Tsukimori sisters even fighting about…?

It’s always about me, somehow, but that’s not the point.

What matters is why they keep arguing whenever I’m involved.

“Akari, come on. Say something already.”

“That’s right, Akari-chan. Please, just speak up.”

“Yes. You saying one thing would settle this.”

…Ah!

It all makes sense now!

Chiya-san tried to protect the sisterly bond by refusing to accept me as family.

Karin-san, unwilling to disrespect her older sisters, showed her defiance by doing things like smacking me—but only me.

And Hiyori-san, by subtly favoring me with a larger portion, was trying to maintain the illusion of fairness among the sisters.

In other words…!!

“You’re all such a close-knit, wonderful family!”

They’re fighting because they care.
Because now, they can express their feelings to each other without fear.

This is a manifestation of emotional growth—a sign of deeper trust.

At the root of it all… is sisterly love.

That’s right—it’s love.

“I’m just so happy to see you all getting along. I’ll keep cheering for you from the sidelines!”

Granted, it’s a bit unfortunate that confirming that love had to involve an outsider like me…

But if my presence helped bring out their bond, even just a little, then I regret nothing.

“……”
“……”
“……”

“Um… did I say something wrong? Why’s everyone so quiet…?”

They were all just talking nonstop… and now they’re dead silent after I spoke up.

Wait… am I really that much of a bother to them!?

“Akari, you know…”

“What should we even call this…? Blissful obliviousness?”

“Or perhaps just… irresponsibility.”

Haaaaaah…
All three of them let out synchronized sighs.

S-Stop! You don’t all have to hate me at once!!