Part 3 — Dinner, Baths & Ayame's Rest
Kaito pointed toward the hallway.
"You heard her."
Haruto rolled his eyes.
"Bossy."
Without waiting for a reply, he grabbed a towel and headed toward the bathroom.
A moment later, the sound of the door closing echoed through the house.
Kaito immediately picked up his chopsticks.
"Now can I eat?"
Ayame looked at him.
"You were going to eat anyway."
"Correct."
"Then why ask?"
"Good manners."
Ayame snorted.
Kaito proudly began eating.
Several minutes later, the bathroom door opened.
Haruto stepped out, drying his damp hair with a towel.
At almost the same time, Ayame stood from her seat with a fresh set of clothes folded in her arms.
"Told you five minutes," she said.
"That's not five minutes."
"It is."
"It isn't."
"It is."
Haruto sighed.
"Fine."
Ayame walked past him toward the bathroom.
"Don't eat everything."
Kaito immediately pointed at himself.
"Why are you looking at me?"
"Because you're the most likely suspect."
"I am innocent."
"That's what guilty people say."
Before Kaito could defend himself, Ayame disappeared into the bathroom and shut the door.
Haruto returned to the table and sat down.
Then he looked at Kaito.
Then at Kaito's plate.
Then back at Kaito.
"...You're still eating?"
Kaito blinked.
"What?"
"I went to bathe."
"So?"
"Ayame waited."
"So?"
"I came back."
"So?"
"Ayame went to bathe."
"So?"
Haruto pointed at the plate.
"You're still eating."
Kaito frowned.
"I like enjoying my food."
"No."
Haruto picked up his chopsticks.
"You're just slow."
"I am not."
"You absolutely are."
"I chew properly."
"You chew each bite for half an hour."
"That's called being healthy."
"That's called hibernating."
Kaito gasped.
"You insult my eating technique and my lifestyle in the same sentence?"
Haruto smirked.
"If the shoe fits."
"It doesn't."
"It does."
"It doesn't."
The two glared at each other for several seconds.
Neither willing to back down.
Eventually, both looked away at the exact same time.
The argument ended as abruptly as it had started.
A completely normal day in the Inazuma household.
A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened.
Ayame stepped out, towel wrapped around her damp hair. The headache hadn't fully gone away, but it had dulled enough for her to move normally again.
Haruto glanced up from the table.
"Took longer than five minutes."
Ayame didn't even look at him.
"I washed my hair."
Haruto leaned slightly forward.
"So you admit it wasn't five minutes."
"It was five minutes in spirit."
Kaito immediately laughed.
"What does that even mean?"
Haruto nodded seriously.
"She's making up time now."
Ayame finally looked at both of them.
"Do you want me to make both of you wash the dishes in real time?"
Haruto sat back instantly.
"I respect your version of time."
Kaito raised his hands.
"I support time diversity."
Ayame sighed and walked past them.
"Idiots."
She sat down and finished her meal without much conversation this time. The usual back-and-forth between the brothers continued around her, but she stayed quieter than normal, only responding when necessary.
By the time she finished, the tiredness had fully settled in again.
She pushed her chair back and stood.
"I'm going to take a nap."
Haruto looked up.
"A nap?"
Ayame nodded slightly.
"My head still hurts."
Kaito frowned a little.
"It's still bad?"
"It's fine. I just need sleep."
She gathered her towel and looked toward the table.
"When you two finish, pack everything properly."
No reply came immediately.
Ayame narrowed her eyes slightly.
"I said—when you two finish."
Haruto quickly raised a hand.
"Yes, commander."
Kaito followed immediately.
"Understood, captain of household operations."
Ayame blinked.
"…I'm not either of those things."
Haruto nodded.
"Noted, commander."
"Stop it."
Kaito grinned.
"Yes, general Ayame."
Ayame exhaled.
"I'm leaving."
She paused near the hallway.
"Wake me up around sunset."
Haruto nodded.
"Okay."
"And don't be late."
"We won't."
Ayame gave them one last tired look.
"If I wake up and this place is a mess, I'm blaming both of you equally."
Kaito pointed at Haruto immediately.
"He started it."
Haruto pointed back.
"He always starts it."
"I end it."
"You never end anything."
Ayame shook her head slightly.
"…I regret being born between you two."
Haruto gasped.
"That's harsh."
Kaito nodded seriously.
"Very hurtful."
Without waiting for more nonsense, Ayame turned and walked down the hallway.
A soft click came from her room door closing a moment later.
The house felt quieter almost instantly.
Haruto exhaled lightly and leaned back in his chair.
"…She's definitely sleeping now."
Kaito continued eating like nothing had changed.
"Good. More food for us."
Haruto glanced at him.
"That's not how it works."
"It is if you believe hard enough."
Haruto shook his head.
"…Idiot."
Kaito smiled.
"Still hungry."
And just like that, the normal evening continued—while Ayame rested alone, finally giving in to the ache behind her eyes.