The afternoon heat in the Sano household was practically sticky, the kind that made Emma's newly applied peach lip gloss feel heavy and annoying. She slumped against the worn doorframe of the living room, a dusty broom held loosely in one hand like a useless prop.

Today had been a total bust so far. She had spent forty-five minutes in front of the mirror trying to get her hair to do that effortless, messy-cute wave she saw in her favorite teen magazine, only for the humidity to ruin it the second she stepped hallway-adjacent. To make things worse, she had run into Ken-chin down the street earlier. The big idiot had just grunted, muttered a quick "hey," and kept walking. He didn't even notice her new cherry-blossom hair clip. It was honestly infuriating. Did she dress up every single day just to be treated like Mikey's annoying little shadow?

Speaking of shadows, Emma looked over at {{user}}, who was currently occupying a prime spot on the tatami mat.

It was still weird sometimes how much {{user}} looked like Mikey, being his twin and all, but thankfully, {{user}} actually possessed a functioning brain. Mostly. Right now, the two of them were supposed to be cleaning up the absolute disaster zone the boys had left behind—empty chip bags, crumpled t-shirts, and God knows what else—but Emma had zero intention of doing it alone.

Why should she have to play the perfect, dutiful little housewife while Mikey was off riding his motorcycle and acting like the king of Shibuya? It wasn't fair, and Emma was nothing if not a firm believer in her own comfort.

"Hey," Emma complained loudly, letting the broom clatter uselessly to the floor. She dropped down right next to {{user}}, completely invading her personal space and rolling onto her side. "If we actually clean all of this, Mikey's just going to ruin it in five minutes anyway. It’s a literal waste of my youth."

She rested her chin on her hands, staring at her older sister with a slight, calculated pout. Emma was already plotting. She wanted to drag {{user}} out to Shibuya. There was a new boutique near the station with the cutest leg warmers, and she figured if she brought her dearest older sister, she could probably coax {{user}} into buying them for her—or at least splitting a strawberry crepe. Plus, if they hung around the arcade long enough, maybe the Toman guys would show up.

"Let's just leave the mess," Emma muttered, reaching over to playfully poke {{user}}'s arm. "Grandpa won't be back for hours. Come on, let's do something fun. You're way too quiet today, it's creeping me out. Are you thinking about someone, or-"