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 28

Lunch break.

It’s a brief moment of rest for students—a time to relax and breathe freely.

But for background characters—no, for socially excluded introverts—it’s the exact opposite.

“…Sigh.”

In the classroom, now bustling with cheerful noise, no one notices my sigh.

Yes, this sense of isolation—this is the shadow that looms over lunch break.

For someone like me, who completely failed at forming social connections right after the class shuffle (mostly because of Saezuki Riko, let’s be honest), there’s no place in this cheerful, chatty atmosphere.

It feels like I’m at a funeral while everyone else is at a festival.

“And I’m not nearly strong enough to sit through that with a straight face…”

Besides, lunch also means mealtime.

Eating all alone while everyone else eats together—it’s just too much.

So naturally, there’s only one thing I can do.

—Clatter.

I stood from my seat and quietly left the classroom.

◇◇◇

“…This is so calming.”

I settled onto a bench behind the gymnasium.

In front of me were the trees lining the school grounds, and here and there, signs of spring beginning to bloom.

“The courtyard’s nice, but people walking down the hallway might see you from the windows. But here? No one’s going to find me.”

Relieved, I placed my lunchbox on my lap and was about to open it—

“Oh my, so this is where you were hiding?”

“Wah!?”

I’d let my guard down, assuming I was completely alone, so my body jolted in surprise.

I turned toward the voice—and there she was, a beautiful girl with chestnut hair fluttering behind her.

“H-Hiyori-san… You startled me…”

“Oh dear, I’m sorry for scaring you,”

she said with a round-eyed smile, bringing her hands together in an apologetic gesture.

Honestly, even that one motion was adorable.

“M-More importantly, what brings you here, Hiyori-san?”

For context: during lunch, the Tsukimori Sisters each spend their time differently.

Chiya heads to the student council room and eats while handling paperwork.

Hiyori usually eats with her classmates in the classroom, chatting cheerfully.

Karin finishes her lunch in a flash and heads straight to self-training.

Each of them has their own routine—but none of them ever come here.

So… why?

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking that?”

Hiyori answered with a smile, sitting down beside me on the bench.

Which, of course, meant we were now side by side.

“I came here to eat my lunch, of course.”

“Oh! Then that makes two of us.”

With a soft plop, she placed her lunchbox on her lap as well.

…?

My brain couldn’t quite process that.

“But… don’t you usually eat with your friends?”

“Oh dear… aren’t we friends too?”

Hiyori’s lips parted slightly as her expression dipped just enough to show a tinge of sadness.

T-This is bad!

I can’t believe I just made my favorite person look like that! Absolutely unacceptable!

“N-No! I didn’t mean it that way at all! Please forgive me—restore your good mood, I beg of you!”

“Oh my, of course. After all, you and I are so much closer than that, aren’t we?”

She smiled like a flower blooming in the sunlight.

Her emotional shifts were wild, and also—wait, what do you mean by closer than friends?

“Y-You mean… like sisters, right?”

“Hm~? Ufufu…”

That smile probably meant yes?

Though depending on how you interpret it, she might’ve just dodged the question entirely… But no, Hiyori-san wouldn’t mean it that way. Definitely not.

“…Unless Akari doesn’t want to eat with me?”

“Ugh…!”

Tilting her head just slightly, she placed a finger against her lips and gave me this pouty, sweet look.

T-Too cute…!

Even as a fellow girl, I couldn’t deny that was an incredibly calculated move.

And yet… for some reason…

When she does it, it just looks completely natural and genuinely cute!

It’s magic. Pretty girl magic, I tell you.

“Of course I want to eat with you! Let’s eat together!”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Honestly, I’m happier having someone to eat with, too.

And since we’re out here, no one else can see us.

“I always look forward to your lunches, Hiyori-san. They’re so delicious.”

“Thank you.”

Hiyori makes food for me every day—I’m really grateful for that.

“Well then, let’s eat.”

“Yes, please.”

Since I’d spent too long hesitating and being awkward, Hiyori had already started eating by the time I picked up my chopsticks.

Hmm, so that’s what today’s lunch looks like…

With a flutter of excitement in my heart, I popped open the lid of my lunchbox.

And what greeted my eyes was the lovingly prepared meal by Hiyori-san—

“H-Hearts!?”

“Ufufu~”

What unfolded before me was a full-blown Heart Festival.

First, the salmon flakes sprinkled over the rice were shaped like a heart. Even the umeboshi plum in the center was heart-shaped.

The contrast between the white rice and the pink accents was striking.

And it didn’t stop there—the side dishes were just as surprising.
The tamagoyaki? Heart-shaped.
The hamburger steak? I thought it was safe… but no. The ketchup on top was also shaped like a heart.

There were hearts everywhere, packed into every corner.

“H-Hiyori-san? What… is all this?”

“Ufufu. What do you think it means?”

I-I don’t know what to say to that…

Wh-What’s the correct way to interpret this!?

There’s no way it means what it looks like it means… right?

“Oh dear, you don’t want to eat it?”

“N-No! That’s not it at all—please don’t misunderstand!”

“In that case… here. Say ‘ahh~’.”

“Eeeeehh!?”

Hiyori-san, for some reason, picked up a heart-shaped tamagoyaki with her chopsticks… and offered it to me.

Do you realize what this means!?

Those are Hiyori-san’s chopsticks!!

W-We’re talking about… i-indirect…!

“…What exactly are you two doing?”

““!?””

A sudden voice cut in—and there stood Chiya, staring at us with a deadpan, half-lidded gaze.

“C-Chiya-san!? What are you doing here!?”

“I came to manage the supplies in the gym storage. And then I find the two of you… here?”

She walked over with graceful poise—until her eyes fell on Hiyori’s hand, holding the chopsticks.

At that moment, her expression changed.
Just slightly, her pace quickened as she approached us.

“…And what exactly is the meaning of this, Hiyori?”

“U-Um… what do you mean?”

“This lunch is different from mine. You always prepare the same thing for all of us sisters.”

“M-Maybe I… made a mistake~?”

Wh-What kind of high-level mistake is that, Hiyori-san…!?

“I see. Then I’ll be taking this.”

“Oh my.”

Pop. With a flick of her fingers, Chiya tucked her black hair behind her ear and took the tamagoyaki into her mouth.

“It would be unfortunate to feed someone a mistaken lunch. I’ll give her the one I haven’t touched yet.”

“…You’re being a little forceful, aren’t you, Chiya-chan?”

“Is there a problem with that?”

“You’re not even going to ask Akari-chan if she minds? Don’t you want to eat your lunch already, Akari-chan?”

P-Please don’t drag me into this…

“N-No, please—go ahead and continue just the way you are!”

Oh no no no no no…

They’re feeding each other heart-shaped food.

With Hiyori-san’s chopsticks…

Into Chiya-san’s mouth…

That’s a sisterly indirect kiss, with hearts and everything!?

“I could watch this scene forever!!”

“…That reaction doesn’t seem quite right.”

“Is giving it to Chiya-chan more satisfying than giving it to Akari-chan…? How complicated…”

Both of them smiled wryly as the moment passed—though for some reason, their expressions looked just a little bit bittersweet.