BROTHERS CONFLICT Vol. 2

Moving on to volume 2. Quite a lot of events are happening in this book, but the main focus are Subaru, Masaomi and Natsume. There’s also a not-so-subtle hint of the shadow in Iori’s heart.

After living together with the Asahina brothers for several months, Ema finally knows how it feels to have a warm and loving family. However, some of them are starting to grow romantic feelings towards her. The second volume covers an unexpected happening during Subaru’s birthday, watching movies with Fuuto, a parent-teacher meeting with Yusuke and Kaname, a culture festival date with Iori, and also Natsume’s first appearance in Miwa’s wedding party.

Chapter 5: 重なる身体、重なる唇、けれどすれ違う心は
[ Touching bodies, touching lips, missing hearts ]

Towards the end September, Ukyou asks Ema to bake a cake for Subaru’s upcoming birthday party. Subaru is turning 20 on September 21, but since it falls on a weekday, they’re going to celebrate it on Sunday instead. After buying the ingredients on Sunday morning, Ema returns home to find someone lying on the 5th floor hallway. Σ(Д｀|||ノ)ノ It turns out to be a very tired Rui, and he was too sleepy to walk to the sofa.. so he just slept on the floor. (○´ﾟωﾟ｀):;*.’:;ﾌﾞｯ Rui can’t attend the birthday party because of his job, but he went back home just to arrange Ema’s hairstyle for the event. (*´∀`*) Fuuto also comes home looking for Rui when the latter is away searching for a curling iron, and upon seeing Ema with her new hairstyle, he suddenly says she’s really beautiful. Then he laughs and mockingly asks if she feels like a princess just by changing her hairstyle LOL. Congratulations Ema, you just got trolled. ＼(^o^)／ Despite his insults, Fuuto actually calls Ema “beautiful big sister” before leaving.

During the birthday party, Iori stops Kaname from hitting on Ema and asks why she changed her hairstyle. When she answers it’s because Rui arranged it for her, Iori seems relieved that she’s not dressing up on purpose — though she doesn’t understand why. Subaru is blushing nonstop by the edge of the table, but when Ema gives him a slice of his birthday cake, Subaru quietly thanks her for for making a cake for him.. and Ema is happy thinking that everyone has accepted her as a member of the Asahina family. Those who are over 20 — the legal age for alcohol in Japan — have a drinking party after that, while Masaomi brings the underage ones out of the living room.

However, Ema soon realizes that she left her phone in the kitchen. When she goes to retrieve it, she overhears Tsubaki teasing Subaru about how he feels towards Ema. Tsubaki notices that Subaru is falling in love with Ema, and he also mentions how Subaru is thinking that Ema changed her hairstyle for him today. When Tsubaki says he can help creating an opportunity for the shy Subaru to confess, Subaru snaps and says Ema’s presence is troubling him. After she came to live with them, they have to be careful when using the bathroom, he can’t walk around in underwear anymore, and he ultimately calls her a nuisance. Subaru then walks out of the living room to wash his hands and notices Ema standing in the hallway, but she quickly runs away and cries alone in her room.

Late at night, Ema returns to the living room and finds Subaru sleeping on the floor. He’s drunk, but upon seeing her, he immediately apologizes for what he said and asks her not to hate him. Subaru then starts feeling dizzy, and Ema tries to catch him when he falls down.. but it results in him falling on top of her instead. (*ﾉ∀ﾉ)ｲﾔﾝ He falls asleep right before he can confess to her, but he kisses her a second before floating off to the dreamland. Tsubaki and Azusa have to drag him away from Ema since she’s trapped underneath, and even though she cries from the shock, she explains that it was only an accident. The next morning, Ema goes to the living room and finds an unknown man who’s wearing a thick black, white and red make-up — just like a heavy metal band member. There are “demon”, “the worst” and also “women’s enemy” written all over his face, and when the man asks her not to look at him, Ema realizes that it’s actually Subaru. Tsubaki and Azusa gave him a extreme makeover as a punishment for what he did to Ema. ﾌﾟｯ(※థэథ)∵.*.∵

Several days after #005 – Side Subaru: ここより下はなく、上は果てしなく
[ Nothing below, endless above ]

Now do you think the kiss was an accident? No, it’s not. For the last few days, Subaru keeps thinking about Ema and how soft her lips were. He’s really distracted during a practice match in university, and after doing several mistakes in a row, eventually he faints after getting hit by the ball — right in the face. On the way home, Subaru goes to think alone by the riverside. He actually has been thinking about Ema ever since Yusuke brought her to watch his match one day, and her presence really brought out the best in him. Moreover, Subaru can never forget Ema’s smile when she praises his performance. He knows he’ll get removed from the regular team because of what happened today, and a harsh mail from a certain someone only makes his mood even worse. The mail calls his performance “the worst”, but Subaru then decides to think from a different perspective. He can’t fall any lower if he’s “the worst”, so all that’s left is only for him to climb back up.

Chapter 6-1: 夢はまだ遠くに
[ Still a far-off dream ]

At the end of October, Ukyou mentions about Miwa and Rintarou’s wedding party next month. Tsubaki and Azusa are going to sing at the party, and Tsubaki asks Ema to choose some nice wedding songs for them to sing. Ema then goes to rent some wedding song CDs after school, and she runs into Fuuto-in-disguise in the DVD corner. He quickly tells her not to call his name since it’ll blow his disguise, but she completely forgets this warning in only a minute and loudly asks “Fuuto-kun, are you going to appear in a drama?” (´・ω・`；) Obviously people start staring and whispering around them, so Fuuto thrusts the DVDs into Ema’s hands and runs off after telling her to rent those DVDs for him.

When Ema returns home, Fuuto asks her to let him watch the DVDs in her room. His room is incredibly filthy at the moment, and he sadly says that he really wants to watch them today.. because he rarely has any free time thanks to his busy schedule. Fuuto refuses to sit on the floor, and so the two of them end up sitting on Ema’s bed as they watch a movie about mafia gangs together. When the ending credits roll by, Fuuto tells Ema that he wants to become an actor. He doesn’t have much chance to practice acting because of his job, so he’s using his free time to watch DVDs and observe his favorite actor’s acting skills. Fuuto also wonders if it’s too late for him to start acting, and Ema cries for him because he looks really sad. Fuuto is surprised for a moment, but then he hugs Ema’s shoulder and apologizes for not realizing how beautiful she is. ||萌||ョ´∀`。)萌えぇ～↑

Before they can do anything, Yusuke suddenly comes knocking on Ema’s door. He only wants to inform her that Masaomi will come for their parent-teacher meeting, but he’s shocked to see Fuuto in her room. It doesn’t help that Fuuto tells him they’re just “staying on the bed together”, and Ema explains it’s because Fuuto doesn’t want to “do it” (read: sit) on the floor. Obviously this causes Yusuke to get the wrong idea, so he instantly drags Fuuto out of Ema’s room LOL. Fuuto says goodbye and asks Ema to “enjoy” their time together again later, and Yusuke gags him before he can say anything more seductive. ﾌﾟｯ(※థэథ)∵.*.∵

Chapter 6-2: 気持ちの届く距離に
[ The distance which delivers feelings ]

Despite what Yusuke said before, the one who comes for Yusuke and Ema’s parent-teacher meeting is actually Kaname since Masaomi is sick. In her future career form, Ema stated that she wants to go to Meiji University.. and so Yusuke decides to do the same even though his grades are rather poor. The reason is because Meiji University has a faculty that she likes and it’s close from Sunrise Residence, but Kaname asks if she wants to follow Subaru — who’s attending Meiji university too. The question reminds Ema of the kiss again, but she brushes off the thought thinking it was only an accident. Ema’s grades are much better than Yusuke, who needs to take supplementary lessons everyday, but Kaname thinks she might need a private tutor because the entrance exams might be more difficult this year. He’s willing to become her tutor, but since she coldly refuses, he apologizes for kissing her back in summer. However, Kaname wants Ema to know that he truly loves her and cares about her. If she doesn’t want him to teach her, then he’s going to introduce her to a reliable tutor.

Chapter 6-3: 触れたらいけないものならば
[ If it’s something that shouldn’t be touched ]

The “reliable tutor” Kaname was talking about turns out to be Ukyou, and Ema goes to study in his room. Ukyou is smart and good at explaining, so it doesn’t take long until Ema understands everything he explains. Just then Ukyou receives a call from his client, and Ema tries solving the problems alone until she eventually gets stuck on a difficult question. Since Ukyou hasn’t returned yet, Ema decides to take a look around his room until he comes back. Among all the bookshelves in the room, somehow the small shelf in the corner pique her curiosity the most.. and there she finds an old notebook from Ukyou’s school days. An old picture falls out of the book when she flips through the pages, and it shows a younger Ukyou standing side by side with a beautiful woman. Just when Ema wonders if it’s his ex-girlfriend, Ukyou comes back and says she’s really rude for rummaging through his stuff without permission. Then he tells her to get out, saying he has nothing to teach her.

When Kaname finds Ema later, she’s wandering near the elevator and looks like she’s about to cry. He then takes her for a walk outside, and she tells him what happened with Ukyou. They both know that it was completely Ema’s fault, but Kaname tells her not to worry. Ukyou won’t be angry for a long time, and one day Ukyou himself will surely tell Ema the reason why he got angry. Kaname wonders whether Ukyou is keeping the old picture on purpose or not, but he doesn’t tell Ema anything. He tries to hit on her again after that, saying that he can be her tutor instead.. and he can teach her stuff she doesn’t learn in school. (*ﾉ∀ﾉ)ｲﾔﾝ As the answer, Ema runs back to their mansion and leaves Kaname alone.

Chapter 6-4: 風が吹いて
[ The wind is blowing ]

The next morning, Ukyou asks Ema to help him prepare breakfast before she can apologize to him. Noticing that Ema seems sad, Iori gives her an invitation ticket for Bright Centrair’s school festival. He picks her up when she comes to his school gate, and he also guides her around the school area — though she feels terribly intimidated because his fangirls keep whispering whenever they see her standing beside Iori. Ema then says she’ll just go home because she feels bad for Iori’s girlfriend, but Iori answers that he doesn’t have one — in a surprisingly low voice. The wind suddenly blows Ema’s hair to cover her sight, and when she finally gets them out of her face, she realizes that Iori is staring straight at her without even blinking.

Not knowing how to react, Ema then decides to stay for a little longer and visit Iori’s class cafe next. The visitors can take pictures wearing Bright Centrair’s uniform, and one of Iori’s female classmates guides Ema to the changing room. As Ema is changing inside, she suddenly asks about Ema’s relationship with Iori.. and when Ema says she’s Iori’s new sister, she mentions about how Iori still hasn’t moved on from what happened back in junior high. Of course Ema doesn’t know what Iori’s classmate is referring to, but she doesn’t think it’s something she can ask him so lightly. After taking a two-shot picture with Iori, Ema goes home because Iori has to help out in his class cafe. The moment she takes a look at the picture, a shocking realization suddenly hits Ema. She looks exactly the same as the woman in Ukyou’s old picture.

Chapter 6-5: 僕とキミともう１人と
[ Me and you and the other one ]

After receiving the song list from Ema, Tsubaki and Azusa are discussing about which song to sing in the wedding. Soon both of them receive a mail saying a certain someone will come to the wedding, and Azusa mentions that it’ll be the first time that certain someone meets Ema. Tsubaki is more interested about what would happen if that someone meets Subaru though.

Chapter 7: そばにいると誓い
[ The vow to stay by her side ]

On November 23, everyone’s getting ready for Miwa and Rintarou’s wedding party. Rui’s busy since he needs to do Miwa’s hairstyle and make-up, but he still takes some of his spare time to arrange Ema’s hair. (*´∀`*) By this point Ema is extremely confused why Rui keeps calling her “Chii-chan” instead of her name, since the only one who calls her “Chii” is Juli. Upon arriving at the hotel, Ema runs into Kaname — who tells her that he went to talk his father’s grave earlier. His father really loved Miwa until he died 10 years ago, so Kaname was asking him to watch over Miwa without feeling jealous. Kaname believes his father will be happy to get a beautiful daughter though, and he thanks Ema in his father’s place. Inspired by Kaname, Ema also asks her mother in heaven to give Rintarou her blessing.

Before the ceremony begins, Ema goes to the chapel and meets an unknown man who looks strangely familiar. The man chases her out thinking she’s an outsider, but soon Tsubaki and Azusa comes to explain that they’re all siblings. The man is actually their triplet, Natsume (7th son, salaryman), and he looks familiar because he has the same eyes as Tsubaki and Azusa. Natsume came from a different egg cell, and that’s why he doesn’t look identical to the twins. Despite his rough attitude from earlier, Natsume shyly introduces himself to Ema when Azusa asks him to. He also reveals that he came so early to the chapel because.. he got lost. 8D

When Ema goes to see Rintarou, she also finds Miwa in his dressing room. Miwa gets excited and says they will be making Ema’s wedding dress next, and she asks if Ema likes any of her sons after living together for six months. As for preferences, Miwa personally recommends Masaomi. (。-∀-)ﾆﾋｯ♪ Unable to answer the question, Ema flees from the living room and sits in a random sofa in the lobby — where she hears Natsume talking to Subaru behind her. The one who mailed Subaru after the practice match was actually none other than Natsume, and Subaru gets pissed when Natsume keeps criticizing his performance. Subaru wants Natsume to leave him alone, because the current Natsume is only a salaryman and nothing more. Upon seeing Ema behind them, Subaru asks Natsume to leave them alone. He apologizes for kissing her, but when she says it was only an accident, he clearly tells her that it was definitely NOT an accident. Subaru is about to confess to Ema again, but he gets interrupted when Yusuke comes to inform them that the wedding ceremony is about to begin. Yusuke isn’t pleased that Ema won’t tell him what they were talking about, but he decides to let it slide for now.

During the party, Miwa gives her wedding bouquet to Ema and wishes for her happiness — preferably with one of her sons. Ema keeps thinking about Subaru’s words though, and soon Natsume comes asking if she has any ideas why Subaru made so many mistakes in his last practice match. Of course she knows it must be because of the kiss, but she decides to keep quiet because it’s not something she can tell other people. Before leaving the hotel, Natsume gives Ema his business card and asks her to call him if she knows anything. Ema is surprised to see that Natsume is actually working in her favorite game company, and Natsume promises to give her free game samples next time. ヽ(。・ω・。)ﾉ

Since Ema is noticeably tired, Masaomi eventually decides to drive her back home along with Wataru — who’s fast asleep in the back seat. When Ema asks if he doesn’t have any plans to get married, Masaomi tells her that Wataru doesn’t remember their father’s face. He died when Wataru was really small, but Miwa said that Masaomi resembles their father the most.. and so Masaomi decided to become a father figure in Wataru’s life — making sure that Wataru won’t be lonely as he grows up. This reminds Ema about how she doesn’t have any memories with her mother either, and she starts crying.. because she feels glad that Wataru doesn’t have to suffer from the same loneliness. Masaomi hugs Ema as he apologizes for making her cry, and he promises to always stay by her side so she won’t be lonely anymore. |壁|ｮ･_･*)ｷｭﾝｯ+｡* They’re both blushing upon realizing how close they are, and Masaomi panics since the traffic light already turned green. When Wataru eventually wakes up, he gets jealous that Masaomi is getting along really well with Ema — which only adds to the latter’s panic. xD

Several days after #007 – Side Masaomi: 秘密はないから
[ Because there are no secrets ]

With Kaname’s help, Masaomi awkwardly informs Ema that he’s going to attend a matchmaking soon. He’s afraid she would get angry because he already promised to stay with her, but he suddenly feels complicated when she congratulates him instead. The woman he’s meeting up with is the daughter of the hospital director, and she has taken a liking on him ever since he saved her friend from an emergency situation. Her friend got something stuck on her throat, but she begged the doctor not to do an operation because her friend is a singer — her throat is really important. Masaomi managed to solve this issue without performing an operation, and the hospital director’s daughter was really impressed.. even though the reason why Masaomi knows alternative solutions is because he can’t stand blood and operations. (○´ﾟωﾟ｀):;*.’:;ﾌﾞｯ Masaomi couldn’t refuse the matchmaking offer since it came directly from the director, though his answer has been decided right from the start.

After the matchmaking is over, Kaname calls Masaomi and goes to see him in a bar. Kaname then asks about Masaomi’s future plans for his upcoming engagement and marriage, but he’s shocked when Masaomi reveals that he actually refused. When he said his answer has been decided, he actually meant he was planning to refuse right from the beginning. The reason is simple: because he already promised to stay with Ema. He only told her because he doesn’t want to hide anything from her. (* ´艸`)ｸｽｯ♪ When Masaomi calls Ema and informs her about this, she’s really surprised because she already made a cake to celebrate.. though he doesn’t mind and says they can eat the cake together. As Masaomi walks home, he feels extremely relieved. All of those complicated feelings have disappeared from his heart.

So after Kaname, the next ones to fall in love are Subaru and Masaomi. (๑´ლ`๑)♡ Masaomi is really laid-back and the hints of his feelings are really subtle, but I guess his side story pretty much confirms this? (。-∀-)ﾆﾋｯ♪ Since Subaru has no resistance (and previously also zero interest) in girls, it’s so adorable how he always blushes around Ema. Yusuke admires him a lot though, so I’m curious about what would happen if he ever finds out that Subaru is in love with Ema as well. Oh, and I absolutely love Natsume. He has a deadpan expression most of the time, but when he smiles everything suddenly turns into shoujo sparkles. (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

I have to finish reading volume 3 first before posting anything, but be prepared for Iori. (`・ω・´)