I Want to Fall in Love After Getting Reincarnated as the Heroine on the Verge of a Bad Ending, but My OP Older Brother Won’t Leave Me Alone!? - Chapter 127
Translated by: ShinigamiTori
Chapter 127 ? Purpose Behind the Confession
The Heartful School Festival, which had been enjoyable all through the preparation period, ended all too quickly.
Having just returned home with Julius, I collapsed into my bed in my room, hugging my pillow and currently tossing around.
“U-Unghhh…. Eh…. Heughhh….”
To be honest, this was the first time I had ever been confessed to by the opposite sex in both my previous and current lives.
And the one who confessed was my stepbrother, the high-spec, perfect individual Julius Wainwright. I couldn’t possibly stay calm. There was no way I could remain calm.
I can’t get the serious expression on Julius’ face from earlier out of my head, feeling embarrassed, uneasy, and jittery.
“I love you.”
“Yeah, saying it feels right. I really love you.”
“I love you, Rene.”
Above all, his straightforward words and the heat in his gaze made me realize that he genuinely liked me.
“Ehhh… eehhhhh…!?”
Even thinking back on it, I was still surprised. Sure, there were things that made sense in hindsight, but I had thought his possessiveness was simply due to being an overprotective brother.
In fact, I thought that if I ended up falling in love with Julius, he might avoid me. What a huge misconception that was.
My heart is still racing, and my face is flushed.
What should I do now? I had just learned that a confession isn’t simply a request to date, so I didn’t know how to respond to Julius.
And I wasn’t sure of my own feelings too.
After the confession, Julius chuckled and apologized, saying, “Sorry for catching you off guard,” to me, who was left dumbfounded, and afterward, we both stayed silent.
“Rene? Are you awake?”
“Eek!”
As I roll around on the bed, I hear a knock on the door and, at the same time, Julius’s voice, causing me to yelp.
“I-I am awake…”
“Great. Can I come in?”
“Y-Yes…”
As soon as I replied, the door opened, and Julius, in casual attire, entered the room.
His casual look was dazzling, different from his formal attire earlier. I squinted and sat up, still hugging the pillow.
“Rene-chan.”
Julius came over and settled himself beside me on the bed.
“You’re still in your uniform. If you don’t change, it’ll get wrinkled.”
“You’re right…”
“Were you too busy thinking about me to change?”
With a mischievous smile, Julius said such things.
His nonchalance annoyed me, and I nodded with a blaming expression, which seemed to surprise him as he widened his almond-shaped eyes and covered his mouth with his hand.
“… You’re too cute, it’s troubling.”
I, too, am very troubled by his unexpected reaction.
Unable to bear this sweet atmosphere, I let out a nonsensical, dry laugh. It was painful.
“S-S-So, w-what brings you here?”
“Aren’t you stuttering too much?”
Julius chuckles and takes the pillow from me.
“If you’re going to hug something, hug me instead.”
“How can you say that with a straight face?”
“Because it’s me?”
Julius had always been confident, assertive, and self-assured, carrying himself with dignity and a sense of superiority.
“… When your memories returned and I was rejected, everything went dark. It was then that I finally understood my own feelings.”
But at that moment, he seemed terribly insecure, just like a normal 17-year-old boy. That’s why I couldn’t possibly say “Stop joking,” in response to that confession.
“I was really overwhelmed earlier, so I couldn’t say everything I wanted to. That’s why I came to talk.”
“Wow, it’s amazing that someone who doesn’t suit the word ‘overwhelmed’ at all can be like this.”
“What do you think of me?”
Julius took my now empty hands, which had been left idle after he took the pillow, and squeezed them gently, smiling with complete confidence.
The person who said he was overwhelmed, where on earth did he go?
“First of all, my confession earlier was serious.”
“…”
His straightforward words made me internally scream.
Seeing me at a loss for words, Julius continued with a smile.
“It was my once-in-a-lifetime confession.”
“Y-You can’t be sure of that yet…”
“I can. I will never love anyone but you, Rene.”
Hearing his firm declaration, I feel a slight urge to cry.
??Having lost my family and feeling all alone, I think I was longing for someone who would always love me.
“I never had any intention of falling in love with anyone. Rene is the only one who’s special and precious to me.”
Who wouldn’t be moved by such sincere words of love? I gently squeezed Julius’s hand back.
“Huh, you’re not saying anything about how it’s weird since we’re siblings or about my sister complex like usual?”
“I already knew we weren’t blood-related…”
“Huh? Are you serious?”
There’s no need to hide it anymore. Julius must have told me he likes me with the intention of sharing that.
Maybe that’s the reason he came here now.
“When did you find out?”
“I heard from Cecil at Elepalis.”
“Ah, no wonder your behavior was odd around then.”
I wasn’t lying. Although I couldn’t say I heard it from Anna-san, it was true that Cecil told me, “We’re not blood-related.”
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“Well, I thought Julius liked the ‘little sister’ who admires him without any romantic feelings….”
“That’s quite a big misunderstanding.”
Julius laughed, finding it amusing, though I felt no joy in it whatsoever.
“Why did you keep quiet?”
“I thought you were attached to the idea of family, so I played along with the sibling act for you.”
“… Eh?”
“But I’ve had enough of playing the big brother role.”
Finally, I understood.
“It feels like we’re siblings, somehow.”
“…. I think I’ve always longed for a family like this.”
Everything was for me. Because I was thrilled by having a family, he couldn’t say it.
Julius, who had been playing the part of a kind older brother simultaneously, turned out to be much gentler than I had realized, and my heart tightened.
“Anyway, we’re not related by blood, and I’ve never once thought of you as my little sister.”
He had said something similar in the past. At the time I thought it was because I was too incompetent, but I guess it was because we weren’t really related by blood.
“Now, there are no more obstacles between us.”
“I-I guess that’s true…?”
As Julius continues to close the distance, I retreat as if trying to escape, only to find myself even more trapped.
While slowly retreating, I decided to ask the question that had been on my mind.
“So, what was your intention in confessing…?”
“Intention?”
“Like, what do you want to do with me… d-dating or something…”
Saying something like this out loud feels unexpectedly embarrassing, and my voice gradually lowers.
But Julius, as if understanding, murmured, “Ah,” and smiled brightly.
“How about we get married?”
I’m left speechless again by these unbelievable words.
“Eh? Marri… huh? Are you being serious?”
“Yeah. Originally, I was planning on just registering my marriage with Rene after graduation, and then having us live our lives the way we wanted after I kicked those guys out, but now I can’t let you go.”
“????”
“I want all of you, for life. So, make sure to be aware of me and fall for me.”
Julius looks at me affectionately and gently strokes my cheek as he confesses this.
“From now on, I’ll get serious.”
It wasn’t a cute offer of a relationship, but a heavy confession of a life-long commitment.
Everything had gone beyond my expectations and capacity, so all I could do was nod slightly.
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