[Translation] Brothers Conflict Short Stories #1: Ryoute Ni Ani, Sore Wa Hana No You Ni

Brothers Conflict
Side Tsubaki and Azusa: Brothers in Both Hands, Just Like Flowers

(TN: The title is a play on the proverb Ryoute ni Hana or "Flowers in both hands", which means having 2 lovers at once.)

Note: I arranged the text into sections so it's easier to locate them if you happen to have a copy of the book.

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p.10

Christmas draws near and the city transforms completely into a refreshing ambiance.

However, the me right now has no time to stop and gaze at the scenery.

"Ah! Look at that!"

"Kyaa...!! A girl with two lovers?"

"Eh? Which one is the real one?"

I hear different voices, not just those of women but also those of a group of men.

I couldn't bear it, so my gaze fell on the ground.

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"Is something wrong?"

Azusa, who was holding my left hand, said.

"If you don't watch where you're going, you'll stumble, you know!"

I heard the voice of Tsubaki, who continued to hold my right hand.

It's only four days before Christmas eve.

Tsubaki-san, Azusa-san, and I were at Omotesandou (T/N: An avenue in Shibuya and Minato) together.

With both of them holding my hands...

Why did this sort of thing happen?

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"Azusa-san, what's wrong?!"

About an hour ago, after finishing some shopping, I saw Azusa at the mansion's entrance.

His movements were kinda weird.

His steps were shaky. He was somehow walking while holding on to the wall.

(... Don't tell me he caught a cold?!)

I ran to him in panic. Azusa-san slowly looked at my direction while moving as if he was looking for something.

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p.11

"Umm... Ah! It's you. What's wrong?"

"I should be asking you that. Are you alright?"

"Eh?"

"I mean... you were shivering that much."

"Ah"

Azusa-san gave an anxious smile.

"Don't worry. I'm not sick. It's just that... my glasses broke."

"Your glasses?"

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Now that you mention it, Azusa isn't wearing any glasses.

"My eyesight is bad. Without my glasses, I can't see my surroundings properly."

"So that's what it was about..."

"Yeah. My spare one also broke. I have a recording session tomorrow so I thought of buying a new one today."

Having said that, Azusa walked away.

However, no matter how you look at it, his manner of walking was dangerous.

"Umm... Will you be ok on your own?"

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"Yeah."

With a distorted look from spending a short while thinking, Azusa said:

"You're right. It looks like it's impossible. I'm sorry, but do you think you can accompany me?"

"I understand."

I nodded and Azusa-san held out his hand.

"Sorry. Please take care of me."

I unconsciously gripped his hand.

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p. 12

At that moment, the temperature of Azusa-san’s hand was transmitted to mine.

(… ah)

Now that I think about it, I’ve never held hands with Azusa this tightly before.

Suddenly, my heart starts beating fast.

At that moment—-

"Ah! It looks like they’re holding hands!"

We heard a loud voice from inside the elevator. Tsubaki stood up.

———————————————————————————————

"What’s this? What are the two of you up to?"

Azusa: “We’re not up to anything. We’re just off to buy a new pair of glasses.”

Azusa-san answered calmly.

"Glasses?"

"Yes.

"Huh? But Azusa, don’t you have a spare?"

"About that… right now, someone is holding on to it at his own convenience."

"Ah—!"

———————————————————————————————

Suddenly, Tsubaki-san said in a loud voice.

"Alright! I’ll also accompany you. Let’s go there together <3"

And then he suddenly took my hand.

"U-Um.. Tsubaki-san?!"

Tsubaki: “I know a good store in Omotesandou.”

Azusa: “No, I’d prefer somewhere nearer…”

"What are you saying, Azusa? It will be shameful if you show up at the studio with cheap looking glasses."

Tsubaki-san said. And so Azusa and I started walking to Omotesandou against our wills.

———————————————————————————————

p.13

"Ah! W-Wait, Tsubaki-san!"

I was pulled by Tsubaki-san. Azusa-san was also pulled along in that state.

And so, the three of us walked through Omotesandou while holding hands.

Tsubaki: “Ah, over here! See? This place gives you a nice feel, doesn’t it?”

After constantly looking at the scenery while walking, I looked up upon hearing Tsubaki’s voice.

———————————————————————————————-

I could see an expensive-looking shop right in front of my fashion-conscious eyes.

"Tsubaki, an ordinary shop is fine."

Although Azusa-san said that, Tsubaki-san shook his head sideways.

"No can do. That’s because it’s my present."

"Present? Tsubaki… Aren’t you just saying that to compensate for borrowing my spare glasses?"

"Like I said… I also feel regretful."

Tsubaki said slowly in a clear and admirable way.

However, Azusa-san answered in a final tone.

————————————————————————————————

Azusa: “As I though, it’s fine. I’ll buy what I need on my own.”

Tsubaki: “Oi, Azusa…”

Azusa: “Wait. Instead, buy her a present since it’s almost Christmas.”

Azusa-san turned to look at me.

Azusa: “Well? Won’t you get one for her?”

"Um.. but my eyes aren’t really…"

Azusa: “It’s fine. It’s alright if you just wear them for style.”

Tsubaki: “Uwaa! That one is cool! Not bad!”

Tsubaki shouted happily.

————————————————————————————————-
p. 14

"Then… since I’ll pay for them, you pick one too, Azusa."

"Me too? Why?"

"Both of us will pick out a good pair for her to choose from. That will be our present. The one who loses will have to buy Christmas cake."

"Tsubaki, you’re making things more complicated."

"Then how about some sweets? Aren’t there a lot of good stores in this area?" Tsubaki smiled as he said.

Azusa-san looked at his face and let out a long sigh.

————————————————————————————————-

"… I got it. Then, let’s do that."

And then we entered the store.

Not even five minutes passed and Azusa already decided on a pair of glasses for himself.

"Huh? You already decided? Wait… Isn’t that exactly the same one as your last pair?"

"Eh. How boring. There are a lot of glasses here. Think about your choice more carefully."

"Well, well. I was thinking Tsubaki-san wanted to hurry up and choose glasses for her."

—————————————————————————————————

After hearing that, Tsubaki-san laughed.

"Well, if you say so. Then, shall we start?"

"Alright."

At that signal, they both split up inside the store.

…. 30 minutes later…

Tsubaki-san and Azusa-san brought back cases to me.

Tsubaki: “Then this one… and this one…”

—————————————————————————————————

p. 15

"It’s fine."

The two cases were handed to me in front of my eyes.

"One.. two… three!"

They were both opened.

"H-Huh?"

Inside the two cases were the same pair of glasses.

Tsubaki-san and Azusa-san were both in blank amazement and exchanged glances with each other.
I was also at a loss for words.

(Amazing… As expected of identical twin brothers.)

——————————————————————————————————

After a blink, Tsubaki-san started to smile happily.

Also, Azusa-san, who seemed troubled gave a bitter smile.

"What do we do? We won’t know whose present won."

"Then… how about this?"

And so, I received two pairs of glasses, and two boxes of donuts from a famous shop as Christmas presents.

END.