I have a little to speak about at the end. I hope you enjoy the chapter! :) ----------------------------------------

As you awoke for the second day at the Inn, things seemed to have calmed down from last night. Before you'd gotten downstairs it looked like Fuutaro had gotten the same treatment as that guy from their Grandfather. Fuutaro was pretty shaky on the details but apparently that Itsuki who you presumed to be Miku before she ran off, told Fuutaro that they should "end this teacher-student relationship" which concerned you because you were half of their tutor!

In any case, it seemed that today was not going to be as laid back as you'd hoped. With Nino MIA all morning, you ate breakfast with Raiha and Isanari

"Say, Y/N. What are you thinking about to be screwing your face that hard when eating cereal?" Isanari asked you as he laughed, making you quickly correct your facial expression.

"It's nothing." you continued to shovel cereal into your mouth as did Raiha, the latter actually being quite the bottomless pit when it came to eating.

The plan was to hit the hot springs after eating as you never got the chance to go yesterday. It may not be under the night sky but still, a hot spring is a hot spring.

The Main Hall is where food was eaten, it was a very large room but you never saw more than 9 people in it at once. Regardless, what Miku said to Fuutaro was making you very curious. You wondered why she only said it to him even though you were talking with her earlier.

Your train of thought came to a halt as you realised your spoon wasn't picking up any more cereal as you stared off into the distance. "So. What are you guys gonna do today?" you asked Raiha and her dad.

Isanari pulled a map brochure out of her back pocket and laid it on the table. "We're gonna go and sightsee for today" he pointed out various spots on a map "Then probably come back and hit the hot springs in the evening" he ruffled Raiha's hair who just seemed happy to be eating a big bowl of cereal.

"I can't wait!" Raiha smiled. "I wish onii-chan would come but he said he's busy. He seemed to be in a hurry to talk to Itsuki" Her eyes stared at the milk in her cereal bowl before she resumed eating.

"He was trying to talk to her? Do you know why?"

Raiha shook her head. "He took my phone and crouched into a corner of the room, whispering on the phone so I have no idea" Her spoon made an audible clunk against the side of the bowl. "Dad! Can I get some more cereal please?" she asked.

Isanari laughed. "Go right ahead" he gestured as Raiha hopped out of her chair and went to go and get another bowl. You took that as an opportunity to stand up and finally start your day.

"Well. I hope you guys have a good time. I'm about to try these hot springs for myself" Letting your arms flex out in front of you and push your fingers together, creating a nice crack in your joints as you put your bowl on the counter and waved goodbye to the Uesugi's, you left the main hall and made your way over to the hot springs.

There was the male bath and the female bath but also the mixed bath in between. Judging by the possibility that you were more likely to bathe with Maruo in the men's bath, you chose to head towards the mixed bath instead.

Everyone had a head-start over you as most of the group seemed to have entered the batts yesterday, even though you'd been through this on the field trip a few months ago it felt different this time for whatever reason. There was no telling what kind of people there would be in the mixed bath.

Hesitantly, but with the will to actually enjoy the hot springs provided to you, you cautiously undressed and slid open the door into the mixed bath.

"Oh about that..." A woman's voice could be heard as you forcefully slid the door open, but to your surprise, the only person who was currently in the mixed bath was Fuutaro who instantly attempted to submerge himself in the bath as you appeared.

"Dude... I saw you"

A few bubbles popped on the surface before Fuutaro slowly raised his head out of the water.

"Are you hiding from Maruo?" you asked with a laugh, dropping yourself down into the hot spring. It felt like heaven in there. "Holy shit, this is amazing. I could die in here"

Fuutaro regained his composure. "Y/N, what are you doing here at this time?"

You raised an eyebrow. Swimming next to Fuutaro and sitting next to him.

"Hmmmmm?"

"W-What?" his tone slightly more agitated.

"So which one of you is it?" you leaned your head back and shouted towards the sky, knowing that whichever sister was on the other side of the wall would hear you.

"I-Itsuki..." she quickly admitted defeat.

"Don't just give up that easily..." you heard Fuutaro mutter under his breath.

Fuutaro leaned back in the water and let out a sigh. "Did I interrupt something out here?" you asked sarcastically.

He rolled his eyes. "One of the girls is rejecting me"

"That wouldn't be the first time" you snickered.

"Shut up. Anyway, one of the sisters told me that our student-teacher relationship should end"

Itsuki stayed quiet on the other side, but the faint noise of water swishing back and forth was audible, she was probably sitting beside the hot spring swinging her feet in the water. It made you wonder how the real Itsuki was involved in this problem anyhow as you knew that the girl in question was Miku in disguise.

"I think I know which one that was"

"You do?" Itsuki and Fuutaro both said in unison.

"Well, who is it?" Fuutaro jumped up.

Censoring what was on display with your hand, you encouraged him to sit back down. "I think. It's more fun if I don't tell you!" you laughed.

"Dude..."

"Y/N! This isn't the time for games!" Itsuki tried to reason with you.

"It shouldn't be too hard for you" You slap Fuutaro on the chest. "You've been their tutor for as long as I have, surely you can tell them apart by now"

He stared back at you blankly.

"Oh... you can't."

"How the hell can you even do it. I mean I understand Nino but the other 4?"

"Well... there's love!" you said loud and proud.

"H-He's right" Itsuki chimed in, you could hear her raise herself out of the water and stand on the ground. "If there's love, you can tell us apart"

Fuutaro rolled his eyes.

"Hey! Don't roll your eyes!" Itsuki shouted.

"How the hell did you-"

"I had a feeling. Speaking of, I feel like the others besides Nino, have been acting off somewhat for a little while. Do either of you have any idea why maybe?"

"Not a clue. I can barely understand you guys as is" Fuutaro waved off her suspicion. Meanwhile you on the other hand were blessed with the knowledge that both Miku and Ichika were gunning for Fuutaro and Yotsuba, who knows? Maybe she is too but it's too early to decide on that yet.

"No clue either. Maybe they're just maturing faster than you Stars" you laughed.

She sighed. "We don't have time for this!" Fuutaro interrupted. "This fake Itsuki issue takes priority" he slammed a fist into the water, splashing you in the process. "Unless I figure this whole faker situation out, my job could potentially be on the line"

"You and me both..." you said under your breath.

"You know..." Itsuki started. "I actually kind of agree with the fake me about certain points" She paused for a second. "We are no longer partners"

"Wha- you too?" Fuutaro stood up out of the bath.

"I'm not exactly sure of the fake Itsuki's intentions, but don't you agree that we're simply no longer just partners for the sake of a mutually beneficial goal? Y/N has already accepted that for some time but you on the other hand still keep a wall up"

Fuutaro looked totally confused by what she was saying but you had a feeling that you knew where she was going with this.

"Think about how much time we've all spent together these last few months, the field trip, the fireworks festival, all of those study sessions. Doesn't that already make us... friends?"

The defeated look on Fuutaro's face was enough evidence to see that his sometimes harsh words towards the girls were just putting on a face, if anything he looked relieved to finally hear one of them say it.

"I agree" you added. "Maybe it's different considering one of the girls is my girlfriend, but the reason I attended in the first place was to play an icebreaker. Truthfully as time went on I got to know all of the girls and they were all pretty cool. The barrier of friendship isn't that high and you just need to accept that you're over it already" You pat him on the back.

Fuutaro put his hands on his knees and leaned forward, he let out a clear sigh of defeat. "You two idiots... saying something so embarrassing with a straight face" he wiped his face, steeling his resolve "There goes my vacation time... Let's do it. We'll figure out what's really happening"

Both of you were expecting an answer from the other side of the fence but it remained silent. The two of you looked at each other clueless

"Did she just not hear me or..?" Fuutaro said.

A few suspenseful but confusing moments passed until the door to the mixed bath swung open at full force making the both of you flinch.

"Thank you very much!" Itsuki appeared in nothing but a towel. She excitedly started fast-walking towards us.

"H-Hey! Why'd you come in here!?" Fuutaro shouted as he began to walk away from her.

"It's a mixed bath so there's no problem!"

"But we're both here!" you stood in front of Itsuki and put your hands on her shoulders, stopping her in her tracks.

"What are you saying Y/N!? We're friends so this much is... No...thing..." her face started to freeze up as she spoke you let go of her and looked at her face twisting from confidence to embarrassment.

She took a step back and made a feeble attempt to cover herself up. "Or... maybe not..." Looks like she finally had her senses back at least.

Both you and Fuutaro went silent.



"I'd appreciate it if you forgot about this," she said to the both of you, simultaneously you both flashed a thumbs up and Itsuki quickly took off towards the door again.

"Fuutaro, there's something I'm going to need you to do. Later, I'll distract Father and I want you to use to opportunity to find out the truth"

"It'd be a lot less of a hassle if Y/N just decided to tell us" he looked at you with a sharp gaze, you could really feel his words on that one.

You put a hand on your hip. "Well that makes things boring though doesn't it"

Itsuki sighed "I'll see you both later" and with that, she left the Onsen.

"Guess I'm going too. Are you staying?"

"Yeah. I want some more time in here" you told him as you sat back into the water, letting the warmth brush over your skin. "Oh and, try not to get killed. By their grandpa again I mean"

Fuutaro rubbed his back, there was a small bruise on it from the incident last night. "I'll try..." he said solemnly as he too left the bath, leaving you on your lonesome.

Considering you hadn't actually had any time to soak in the hot springs yet, you stayed behind and laid back, resting your hands behind your head and looking up at a clear blue sky. There was no noise coming from either of the other baths.

It was quiet, and you could finally relax yourself entirely. Leaving the fake Itsuki situation to Fuutaro and the real Itsuki was your idea of not getting too involved with others' business. As easy as you could make the hunt for the Itsuki who cut ties with Fuutaro, it would make it too boring, and you were sure Miku had something up her sleeve regardless.

But thinking of that just reminded you. Why were all of the girls dressed as Itsuki anyway? Granted you hadn't bumped into Yotsuba or Ichika at the inn yet but if Miku and especially Nino were dressed up as Itsuki then there must be a legitimate reason behind it.

About 15 more minutes passed until a shuffle could be heard from inside the mixed bath changing area. Someone seemed to be about to come in and you were praying it wasn't Maruo.

You sat up in the bath, awaiting whoever was about to join you. It could be just some random guy buy you had hopes it would at least be someone you knew.

Slowly, the door slid open and an eye peeked through the crack. You stared back at the eye and then the door burst open, Poor door was getting roughed about today...

"Oh, you look more like yourself today" you laughed.



"Idiot" your girlfriend smiled.

"No disguise today? I actually get to talk to my girlfriend?" you joked, as you watched Nino nearly spill out of the towel she was wearing, she sauntered over in your direction as you let off sarcastic remarks.

"Okay! enough with the sarcasm" Nino snapped, kneeling beside you from above. "I'm glad you're still here"

"How'd you know I was here anyway?"

"I ran into Itsuki earlier and she told me you stayed behind. Were you talking to her earlier?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"She wasn't..." Nino looked around for a moment. "In here? Was she?" her face got more serious.

You stared back at her. "N-No... We were shouting over the fence. Don't you think Itsuki would turn into a complete mess if she was in the mixed bath with me and Fuutaro?"

Nino continued to stare into your eyes. "Hmm"

"Are you gonna get in? Or just play detective while sitting on the stones?"

Nino pouted and lowered herself into the hot spring, gently kicking you in the arm on the way down. She sat down beside you and exhaled. "What's wrong? Don't know where to look?" she brushed up right beside you.

"No. I definitely know where to look"

That comment earned you a flick on the cheek, Nino scooted away a little to give herself some breathing room.

"Ahhh~ It's nice here, right? I love it whenever we come here to visit Grandpa" Nino leaned back too.

"Speaking of, he doesn't know that we're a thing right? When you held onto me last night he looked like he might have wanted to kill me"

Nino laughed. "Ahaha, don't be silly. Grandpa's the nicest man there is, he's just very protective of us is all" Nino turned on her side and faced you, propping her arm up on the side of the Onsen and leaning her head on it. "I'm sure he'll love you if you spend some time with him"

"Maybe. But trying to win over your father and grandfather is probably going to kill me"

"You can handle it because it's you," she said sweetly. "Oh and... thanks for last night."

"It's no problem, I heard from one of the staff members on my way to breakfast that the guy had been swiftly kicked out of here this morning following what happened. So you don't have to worry about him lurking around anymore."

"That's something to be thankful for" she smiled, sitting back down fully.

"By the way. I haven't had the opportunity to get an explanation out of anyone. But why the hell are all of you dressed as Itsuki? I thought you were all striving for what makes you unique or whatever"

Nino adjusted her towel slightly and moved back next to you, leaning her head on your shoulder.

"It's kind of a long story, so I'll make it short" she began. The both of you stared up at the wide sky above as she began to explain.

"When we were younger, we all looked identical and we were super close which made Grandpa happy whenever we came to visit him. But on one visit, Yotsuba decided to try and dress differently than the rest of us. It was when she started to wear that bunny-shaped ribbon of hers."

Nino visibly tensed up a small amount. "When Grandpa saw we weren't all the same, he got worried and collapsed. It... scared all of us so from then on we decided to dress the same when around Grandpa and we settled on using Itsuki as the base"

"Ah. That makes sense then"

"I still get to act like Nino, but I don't feel like myself completely you know? But being here with you keeps me grounded" she smiled, nuzzling against you.

You both enjoyed each other's embrace as some clouds began to form in the sky. "I think if your dad saw us right now, I'd be executed"

"Maybe, but it'd be worth it right?"

"Don't get me wrong, I love you to death but I'd rather keep loving you with my head attached to my body."

"I guess you're right" Nino cutely laughed. "To think, we'll be in Year 3 soon back at school when this trip is over"

"Aren't you always the one who tells me not to bring up school?" you frowned at her double standards. "Imagine though if we all got put in the same class this year. That'd be cool"

Nino had a frown on her face and began lightly punching your side.

"What are you acting like a spoilt kid for, you want me all to yourself in class?"

"N-No..." Nino blushed and looked away. Tsundere no matter how much time passes "It's just that's how it's always been and I like it like that..." She made eye contact again. Maybe it was because you were in the hot springs with her but the beat of your heart began to steadily increase as you looked into her beautiful blue eyes.

"W-Why do you look so happy?" she attempted to snap back.

"No reason" You stood up and stretched. "I think it's about time I get out of here, coming?"

"Papa was upstairs last time I checked so we should be okay to spend some time together"

"Cool, let's do it"

The both of you made your way out of the hot spring, it took a while but you got dressed and waited out in the hallway.

You scrolled through your phone for about 10 minutes before Nino came out dressed back up as Itsuki.

"Despite being able to tell it's you. Seeing you and being romantic with you dressed up as your sisters feels super weird"

"That's a good thing" She adjusted one of the star pins in her hair. "How's it look?"

"As Itsuki-like as can be" you responded which made Nino smile. "Say, it's probably time for lunch by now right? Should we head to the hall?"

"Sure. If Papa's already there and he sees us come in together. I'll think of an excuse but he shouldn't be just yet." she assured you.

It was slightly more noisy now compared to earlier when you were entering the hot springs. Both you and Nino held hands as you carefully traversed the many corridors to get to the main hall.

Eventually, you both stumbled into the lobby and in clear view was the Quintuplets' grandfather. You made a move to remove your hand from Nino's but she kept a firm grip on your hand. "It's Grandpa. We can trust him if we tell him honestly."

He seemed to be dusting off a chair in the lobby. "Hey, Grandpa!" Nino called out, your heartbeat was going crazy, this old guy may legitimately kill you for being with her like this.

His eyes were covered by his long hair but it was as if you could feel them burning holes in the hand attached to Nino's. His pace picked up and he soon enough stood in front of you.

He began to mumble quietly so you leaned over and held a hand next to your ear "What do you think you are doing touching my granddaughter? you may have helped last night but that does not excuse you. I'll kill you." His cold-cutting tone sent shivers down your spine, but with Nino by your side and no Maruo interruption a surge of confidence hit you.

"H-Hello Grandpa Nakano" you bowed. Your eyes drifted over to Nino as the final confirmation you needed before proceeding, she squeezed your hand and gave you a nod as a signal.

"U-Um..." You attempted to utilise that confidence and push forward.

"I am dating your granddaughter Nino" you bowed. "I promise to" his hands grabbed your hair and raised your head to meet him at eye-level.

"Grandpa!" Nino cried out, trying to get his hand off of you"

"I love Nino," you said as he lifted your head up to properly look him in his eyes. "I want to take care of her for the rest of the time. I wanted to tell you as their grandfather."

He stayed paused for a few seconds before releasing you, you readjusted your hair and stood up straight, holding Nino's hand again.

"I know you don't know me too well. But I swear on everything I love in this world to treat Nino as she deserves. I never have hurt, betrayed or scarred her. As her grandfather, it felt right to tell you, I hope you can accept my feelings towards her"

"Grandpa... I love him. We're not little kids anymore. Y/N has been nothing but amazing to me, I trust him with everything. Papa may not be fully convinced but please Grandpa..." Nino's confession was heartfelt and definitely pulled a string in your heart too.

"Mmmm," Their grandpa said before he looked you up and down, he then looked at Nino who was smiling proudly at the man beside her. It took a good few awkward seconds but finally, she approached Nino and whispered in her ear. From the looks of things, it seemed to be something positive considering she smiled in response.

Then he waltzed over to you. "Ever upset my Nino, and you will pay. Do you understand boy?" this made you more scared than anything Maruo had ever thrown at you.

"I understand." You stood firm as Nino latched onto your arm. Her grandpa looked between the two of you and decided to turn on his heels and walk back the way he came, slowly he disappeared out of sight.

Nino pulled your face down to her level and planted a huge kiss on your lips. Seemed she was over the moon that her Grandpa didn't disapprove. "Y/N... that went better than I hoped it would," she said starry-eyed.

"My heart's beating out of my chest but besides that, I'd say it went pretty good" Upon hearing that Nino put her head against your chest.

"You're right! It is beating pretty fast" She sounded surprised for some reason, not as if you didn't just have your life threatened. "Now come on. It's time to get lunch!" she exclaimed, lightly hitting you in the chest and running off down the corridor.

"Hey! Wait!" you gave chase to her.

---------

A few minutes passed after you and Nino sat down with your lunch.

"Oh, there you guys are!" 3 more Itsuki's entered the main hall and caught the attention of a few other guests who were also eating there.

"So you really are ALL dressed as her"

"What, you didn't believe me?"

"No. It's just weird that there were enough hair extensions for You, Yotsuba AND Ichika."

Nino laughed. "We sisters have are ways you know" she winked.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

"Y/N! This is like the first time I've seen you since we got to the inn" The Itsuki who was clearly Yotsuba eagerly sat down opposite you. She hungrily eyed your food and looked back up at you expectantly.

You pointed towards the counter. "Don't even think about it. There's more over there" you told her as Yotsuba scanned the room to see where they were serving food.

"Oh!! You're right" She jumped out of her chair. "Be back in a minute!" she shouted as she ran off.

"Yotsu...ba..." Ichika's attempt at calling out to her was feeble, to say the least.

"Just let her go Ichika," Nino told her.

"I suppose we better go after her and get our own food anyway, we'll be back" Ichika and Miku stood up from the table. Miku was awkwardly shuffling away for some reason. Nino was watching her leave and it was as if she could tell something was up.

"That look in your eye" You began taking a bite of your sandwich. "That's the look when you think there's something going on right?"

Nino snapped back to reality. "W-What are you talking about!?" she stammered. "I don't do that!"

"Suuuuuure you don't babe" you laughed.

Shortly after the other 3 arrived back at the table with their food in hand.

"So how's the trip been so far Y/N?" Ichika asked. "I hope Dad hasn't been harassing you too much"

"Today I've not run into him... well so far anyway. Yesterday... well..." You looked in Nino's direction and she diverted her gaze and closed her eyes, insinuating she did not tell her sisters what happened the previous night. "He got onto my case once or twice but nothing too serious" you assured them.

"Don't push your luck Y/N" Ichika warned you, but she seemed to have trust in you that you wouldn't jeopardize your relationship while you were here.

"We're being careful, I promise"

"Totally" Nino backed you up. "Hey. Where's Itsuki?" she asked the other girls.

"We thought you'd know" Ichika responded. "We haven't seen her since we woke up"

That's right... she was probably still running a diversion to her father, but if they were all here then why was she still doing that and not filling her stomach down here like she usually would.

"Fuutaro's not here either..." you said. "I was with him in the hot springs earlier but I don't know where he went after he got out, any of you seen him?"

The three girls all looked away suspiciously, either averting their eyes or in Miku's case looking down.

You sighed loudly. "Go on, tell us what happened"

"W-Well..." Yotsuba began to attempt to speak.

"Fuutaro came to our room earlier" Miku finally said something that surprised you and Nino.

"WHAT!?" Nino slammed her hands on the table and stood up, garnering the attention of the other patrons around us. She timidly sat back down after noticing. "What was he in our room for!?"

"He seemed like he wanted to know why we were all dressed up as Itsuki... but we played the quintuplet game with him... well I guess in this case it would be the triplet game haha..." Ichika laughed weakly. "He tried to no real avail but eventually grandpa showed up... and we hid him under the table..." For a moment you could have sworn to see a shade of pink on Ichika's cheeks before she turned away.

"UNDER THE-" Nino caught herself about to shout again. "Under the table..?" she whispered to which the other girls all nodded their heads.

"So if you guys are here now, where is he?"

"I. Actually don't know" Ichika admitted.

"He followed Grandpa earlier... he called him master and ran after him" Miku informed everyone as she took a bite from her sandwich. "Mmm. Yummy"

"He's such a loose cannon sometimes it's hard to imagine him as the studious guy that he usually is" you laughed.

"He ran after him after he failed to recognize me" Miku's tone was a lot sadder, obviously his being unable to recognize her made her feel a certain type of way. It made sense, even when you look identical to 4 other people you still want to stand out to the one you love.

Nino rested her head on her hands, maybe it was her impatience with Miku in regards to how she was acting about Fuutaro's feelings considering she'd known about how Miku felt for a couple of months now and no progress seemed to have been made but she sighed. "Miku. Let's go into the hot springs later" she suggested. "We need to talk"

Ichika and Yotsuba both gave awkward looks to each other but decided not to pry.

"Y/N!" Ichika changed the subject, now looking straight at you. "I'm surprised you do so well in telling us apart considering, you know" She gestured her hands from her head downwards, emphasising the disguise.

"I've gotten used to you guys. There are subtle things but I don't have too much of a hard time telling you apart normal. Albeit it's a bit harder when you all are dressed exactly the same but as soon as you talk I can pretty much confirm whoever it is"

"I wonder how you can do it but Fuutaro can't yet" Ichika chuckled as she took a sip of her drink.

"Love" They all looked at you a bit taken aback. "What? Is that not what it takes?" you frowned. All of the sisters burst into laughter.

"Sorry.... hahaha it just sounded funny to hear you say it..." Miku covered her mouth as she laughed. Yotsuba seemed happy however as did Ichika.

"We love you too Y/N!" Yotsuba flat out said which earned her a questionable look from Nino.

"Loves me, not IN love with me" you assured Nino before she got any dumb ideas.

Nino scowled slightly. "So you love me too?"

"Of course. But the difference is I'm In love with only you"

Nino smiled cutely, feeling proud of you saying the correct answer and brushed up beside you.

Finishing the rest of your sandwich, you stood up from the table. "I guess I'll go and find Itsuki, you all keep here"

"I'll come with you!" Nino began to stand up as well but you held out a hand to stop her.

"There's a decent chance she's with your father if both are MIA, so if we go together it probably won't end too well. I've got this babe, you just fill your stomach" You kissed her gently on the forehead and waved goodbye to the sisters.

Of course, I knew Itsuki was probably with Maruo at this very moment so immediately I headed to the lobby to make my way upstairs.

In passing, you encountered their Grandpa again at the front desk. "H-Hello sir"

"..." he looked at you, he seemed to be looking you up and down.

"I heard Fuutaro was with you earlier, I assume he was trying to learn how to tell the girls apart" you leaned on the front desk.

"Mmm" he simply responded seemingly confirming your suspicion. He waved his hand for you to lean further over the desk. "I will give you credit for the fact you can recognise my granddaughters but still remember what I told you"

"O-Of course" Fuutaro wasn't anywhere to be seen despite what Miku told you. "Um... is it true that Fuutaro was following you earlier?"

Despite his bangs covering his face, you got the feeling he just rolled his eyes slightly in response.

"I'll take that as a yes... Good luck sir" You bowed and proceeded to head upstairs to find Itsuki.

The place that they would probably be in would be the guy's room so that was where you decided to go first. You knocked a couple times before Maruo's voice rang out from the other side.

"Enter."

Upon sliding the door, you saw both a tired-looking Maruo and a stressed-out Itsuki talking.

"Hey...guys... am I interrupting?"

"Y/N-!" Itsuki stood up quickly.

"No, you are not Y/N, is there something you need?" Maruo cut her off.

"It's lunchtime and I was eating with the other girls and they were wondering where you both were so I came to look for you" The atmosphere in this room screamed that both of them wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. Mr.Maruo even had an unintentionally comedic look on his face as you could tell he was tired of whatever Itsuki was talking about. Itsuki on the other hand looked drained and she was about to spring up and run out of the room like a cartoon character leaving behind a smoke trail.

"Alright, Itsuki let's make our way to the main hall" her father instructed. Itsuki looked relieved and so did he.

"O-Okay Father" Itsuki quickly stood up and began to fast-walk to the door. "See you later Y/N!" she very awkwardly pat you on the shoulder.

GRRRRRRRRRGH.

Itsuki stopped and her face went pale as she hesitantly turned around. "P-Please un-hear that... Goodbye!" she slammed the door shut behind her as you and Maruo exchanged awkward looks before heading to the main hall yourselves.

-----

"When the moon's reaching stars...If you hold me tight...Feeling the heartbeat so close...Will this last long?" you sang quietly to yourself as you sat outside the inn on a bench looking up at the stars. Already this trip was coming to an end. Tomorrow was the last full day here and we were leaving the day after, despite some hectic things going on already.

"Were you singing to yourself just now?" an Itsuki suddenly appeared around the corner holding a coffee.

"I don't know what you're talking about" you lied, she wasn't buying it clearly judging by the look on your face.

She sat down beside me. "It's a good song. Persona 3, right?"

"You know it Miku?"

Miku pouted, "How do you recognise me instantly but he doesn't..." she attempted to say under her breath but considering she sat right next to me I could clearly hear her words.

You sighed. "Haaaa, tell me what's going on Miku. It was you who said that to Fuutaro yesterday right?"

She didn't deny it and just took a sip of her coffee.

"Thought so. Why are you attempting to play games with him, you know how he is. Asking him to just hang out while we were here or when we got back probably would have been more effective"

Miku pouted again. Her pouts were as cute as they were funny because she knew you were making sense. "I thought it was time to put a foot forward..."

"He can't recognise you, let alone your foot." you deadpanned. "Look, I know I said I'd support and help you and Maaaaaybe I haven't been doing the most work towards that but I think you need to just not be so cryptic in your approach"

Miku leaned forward slightly and put her coffee down beside her. "I just want..." her voice quivered a little bit. "for him to be able to see me..."

You instinctively wrapped an arm around Miku and brought her against your shoulder. She sobbed quietly against your chest as you rubbed her shoulder reassuringly. Seeing Miku be so vulnerable was concerning, you never once doubted her feelings but to see they have her this wound up was something unexpected.

"Hey... Miku, take it easy alright" you said letting her have space to vent out her frustrations. "You said he was following your grandpa around, didn't you? I think he's honestly trying to learn how to tell you guys apart."

"B-But you did it so easily" her voice was muffled by your shirt.

"That's because as I told Itsuki earlier, I genuinely love you guys. Of course, I'm in love with Nino but the rest of you all feel like sisters to me in a weird way... I don't know if you guys think we're that close but It's just how I feel" you admitted for the second time today. Hopefully, this wasn't going to be a trend...

"Mmmm," Miku still didn't budge much despite the reassurance.

"Look at it this way, you still have an entire day here tomorrow and the morning after for him to decipher who it is."

"Y/N... when we get back home. Can I ask you to help tutor me privately?" her sobs stopped for a little bit as she asked this.

"I mean... sure? Seems like a random time to ask though"

"I want to get better at studying. Ichika beat me last time, I don't want to lose and I want him to notice my progress but If I study just with him he might not see the difference as clear" She clenched her fists with determination.

The eventual blowout between Ichika and Miku was something that had been in the back of your mind ever since you found out about Ichika's feelings for Fuutaro. Two girls competing for the same guy was already a tricky situation but both of them being your friends and each other's sisters just made the web even more tangled.

"I don't mind, we're in Year 3 soon so we're gonna have to up our studying intake regardless."

Miku stopped sniffling and looked up at you, sitting back upright. "You know... I see you as a brother too. Sometimes..." she smiled, her words playfully truthful.

"Good. I'm glad, now come on. Let's go to sleep. I'm tired as hell. I'll walk you back to your room" You stood up and pat Miku on the leg. She stood up too and began following you inside.

Miku picked up her coffee "You're pretty warm..." she said to you even though she stared down at her coffee. "It's no wonder why Nino clings to you so much" She smiled before taking a sip of her coffee.

"Thank you Y/N"

------

The next morning came and it dawned that the last day of the trip was finally here. Maruo and Ebata were still in the room when you woke up.

Your dreams were filled with the girls all working at the coffee shop serving you instead of the reverse. It ended terribly with all of them making a terrible blend or in Itsuki's case just straight up spilling it.

Regardless, you got out of your futon and cracked your back.

"Good morning" you waned loudly.

Ebata turned his attention to you and bowed. "Good Morning Y/N"

"Oh Y/N, you're awake" Maruo crossed his arms. "My daughters and their grandfather are all at the beach. They asked me to inform you"

"At the beach this early..?" you rubbed your eyes and checked your phone, squinting as you got flash-banged just from turning it on. "2PM!?" you shook your head to wake yourself up.

Quick as you could you grabbed a fresh set of clothes and jumped into the shower, 5 minutes of water later you exited the bathroom, fresh and clean.

"Say, are you guys not coming?" you asked as you slipped on a pair of shoes.

"No. We're staying here for now. I trust I do not need to repeat myself again Y/N, no funny business" Maruo stared down at you.

"Aye aye captain..." you waved as you left the room, closing the door behind you.

The beach huh? Immediately you realised you had absolutely no clue where that even was so it seemed like wandering around the island was going to be your first task of the day.

As if to interrupt your thoughts, your phone's ringtone blasted as you walked through the lobby of the inn, causing some looks from fellow residents. You awkwardly chuckled and speed-walked outside.

"Hello?"

"Babe! Where the hell are you!?" A very angry Nino was on the other end of the line.

"I just woke up... sorry"

"I told Papa to just wake you up if you took too long. Anyway, we're on the beach so hurry up!." Nino groaned.

"Wait, I don't even know where the hell the beach is!"

"West of the inn! And hurry up or else!"

"Or else what?"

"Or else, YOU are not getting more hot springs time with me"

"I can live with that"

"No towel."

You hung up and began to sprint at full speed towards the west side of the island.

-----------------------------------

Hey Guys!, hope you've all been well. Some personal news in regards to me. This coming Monday after this chapter uploads I will be employed!

Can you believe the entire time I've been making this story I've been a NEET? (and my release schedule is still so shit lmao)

This probably won't slow down release times at all as It's only part time work and I only really ever write at night so chapters won't come out any slower than usual so don't worry!

Besides that um, well there's not much else to be honest. 1 last chapter of Scrambled Eggs and then we're finally in Year 3!! I plan to actually do a full re-read of the series after next chapter as I need to start taking better notes in terms of what information certain characters know and stuff because I've somehow never done a full re-read which has probably left some holes in the story.

Anyway, that's all from me. As usual, take care of yourselves guys!