The following morning.
Yukino finally caught wind of the news that her sister had descended upon the school. Without wasting a second, she marched straight to Hiratsuka's quarters and leveled a sharp demand:
"What are you doing here?!"
Haruno, who had crashed at Hiratsuka's place the night before, was still wearing the previous night's indiscretions. A pungent aroma of alcohol clung to her. Her appearance was a disaster—eyes bleary with sleep, hair a tangled mess, and one strap of her nightgown slipping precariously off her shoulder.
She let out a wide yawn, lazily hooking the strap back into place, and offered an indifferent shrug.
"Don't be so grumpy, Yukino-chan~ I'm just here to visit you."
"Come on, let Big Sis give you a little hug."
Reeking of booze, Haruno tried to lunge at her sister for a warm embrace, but Yukino recoiled with a look of pure disgust.
"Don't bother. Were you drinking again?"
Yukino shielded her nose and mouth, making no effort to hide her loathing for her sister's habit. Haruno merely waved a dismissive hand.
"Haha, this is just 'practice' for the business world, you know. Once you've been thrown into society, you'll understand."
"I have no desire to understand such things!" Yukino interjected, her brow furrowed in a deep scowl.
Haruno's expression shifted, becoming a fraction more serious. "And that is exactly why Mother won't let you inherit the family business—you're far too straight-laced."
Haruno massaged her throbbing temples, a casualty of her hangover. "Make some sober-up soup for me, Yukino-chan. My head is absolutely splitting~"
Powerless to refuse, Yukino dropped her crossed arms and disappeared into the kitchen to start the soup. Haruno propped her face up with both hands, a blissful smile spreading across her lips.
"I knew it. Yukino-chan is the only one who truly cares about her big sister~"
"Be quiet!" Yukino snapped, her tongue as sharp as ever. The rhythmic clinking of pots and the scrape of a spatula in the kitchen provided a domestic contrast to her harsh words.
Hiratsuka, also clutching her forehead in pain, emerged from the bedroom. "Make a bowl for me too while you're at it, Yukinoshita."
Yukino didn't give a verbal reply, but she set to it regardless—it was simple enough to double the portion. Hiratsuka and Haruno collapsed onto the sofa like twin piles of laundry, possessing none of the dignity expected of adults. To be fair, they were both battling a monumental migraine.
Since this was Hiratsuka's faculty dorm, Yukino checked if any ingredients were missing, and Hiratsuka answered honestly:
"The soup base is on the top shelf. Just make a simple mung bean soup, then boil a bit of brown sugar and ginger to chase away the chill."
Yukino let out a long-suffering sigh as she stirred the pot. "Can someone like you really be called a teacher?"
"Who says a teacher can't enjoy a drink, you brat?!" Hiratsuka suddenly barked. Drinking was one of her few escapes and a sovereign remedy for stress. Anyone suggesting she quit was asking for a fight!
Before long, Yukino presented two steaming bowls of sober-up soup.
"Drink up, you pair of hopeless drunks."
"Thank you~" they chimed in unison, beginning to slurp the soup immediately.
Once finished, Hiratsuka wiped her mouth. "Yukinoshita's cooking is as good as ever. I wonder which lucky guy is going to end up with her?"
At the mention of marriage, Haruno immediately protested. "What's the point of getting married? Isn't it better to stay single forever? My Yukino-chan belongs to me—no man will ever be good enough for her. And if one tries, I'll personally tear them apart..."
Yukino rolled her eyes, ignoring her sister's theatrics, and voiced the doubt lingering in her mind.
"Why did Mother send you here? Is this her instruction?"
At the mention of their mother, Yukino's mood darkened. Since childhood, her sister had always been one step ahead. Her mother constantly praised Haruno's brilliance while never offering Yukino so much as a nod of approval. It was why Yukino studied until she was numb—to prove her worth—and yet, she still felt like she was chasing a ghost.
The reality, however, was different. Yukino was too honest, too rigid. In a society built on white lies and strategic intrigue, someone like her would be eaten alive. That was why their mother chose Haruno as the heir; Haruno could dance circles around the "old foxes" of the corporate world.
Sensing her sister's melancholy, Haruno was momentarily at a loss for words. Yukino was so obsessed with surpassing her that she couldn't see the real disconnect. But Haruno had no intention of "fixing" her. To Haruno, Yukino's rigidity was her charm. She wanted Yukino to stay exactly as she was; Haruno would handle the rest.
Faced with the growing awkwardness, Hiratsuka ruffled her hair in irritation.
"Listen, Haruno, didn't you come here to 'scout' talent? It's a day off, so why haven't you left yet? Stop wasting time here."
Haruno clapped her hands together. "Oh, right! I'm here to recruit someone. I almost forgot the main event."
Yukino's eyebrow arched. "Who are you trying to recruit?"
Haruno answered with a beaming, cheerful face. "A young man named Akasaka Ryunosuke. Mother ordered it; that's the primary goal."
"But..." Haruno touched a finger to her lips, flashing a smile that was both charming and mischievous. "Compared to Mother's orders, I'm much happier just being able to see my Yukino-chan~"
With that, Haruno lunged forward and pulled Yukino into a crushing hug. Pressed against her sister's significantly more "developed" chest, Yukino's expression grew even gloomier.
(We came from the same womb... why is it that her harvest is so bountiful, while mine is a total drought...)
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