Stealing Spree

“So, have you all decided how to punish me without it ending up as a reward?” I asked a few minutes later, after playing along with Akane’s silly act.

The girl dragged me inside and handed me the rolling pin to knead the dough. She was apparently making a pizza after watching a video tutorial on it from the internet.

It was perfect timing. The kneading part and shaping it were the ones she was struggling to get done, even with Miwa-nee’s instructions. And then, she read Satsuki and Ria’s messages, inquiring about how to punish me. So, she handed the task to me.

Of course, I was as clueless as she was in making it, but I was confident I could pick up the skill if I watched the same video. And I did.

Just that, after I was done, we realized that our oven wasn’t large enough to bake it.

As a result, we had to split it into quarters. Then, Miwa-nee took over the kitchen, sending us all to the living room.

“I don’t know, Dumb-senpai. I’ve thought about it. I don’t see any point in punishing you anymore. You’re gonna accept anything anyway. The fact that you reflect on what you did wrong is enough.”

Ria was the first to answer. She was sitting on my lap because Akane took her place on my right side. The two didn’t complain since Ria’s petite body didn’t take up too much space.

As expected, Ria would look at it from her own perspective. It’s not that she doesn’t want to punish me, it’s simply because I’ve reflected and am ready to accept anything from them.

She’s way too smart even in this kind of thing.

But then again, if punishing me would make them feel better, then they really should. After all, even though I reflected on my mistakes, I’d probably do something stupid that would make them jealous again in the future.

Ugh… Really, how should I work on being a bastard?

“Ria-chan, you’re too soft on husband,” Akane said as she pinched my cheek.

Meanwhile, Satsuki huffed unhappily before saying, “I get what you’re saying. But he does need some smacking.”

“Mhm. Don’t let me get away every time. Here, Satsuki. My head is yours.” I said before leaning to my left, offering it to the grumpy girl.

“You! It’s because you’re like this that we can’t fully commit to punishing you! Forget it…” Satsuki placed her hand on top of my head and pulled on my hair. But only for a moment before letting it go again.

I raised my head and kissed her, “Thank you, Satsuki.”

“Shut up. You still owe me for later.”

“Mhm. Of course, I do.”

“Then prepare the bath for me. I feel sticky from sweat.” Satsuki ordered. Ria and Akane listened on the side. They looked at each other without saying anything.

“Got it. Only prepare? You don’t want me to join you?” I playfully asked but I already knew exactly why she didn’t mention it.

“Psh. Idiot. If I get you to join me, we’ll be late for dinner. Besides, you should rest too. Stop being such a pervert.”

I laughingly shake my head before saluting. Then, Ria gently jumped off my lap and Akane let go of my other arm.

As I left the living room to prepare the bathroom for my girl, Satsuki went over to get clean clothes from her duffel bag. As for the other two, they joined Minoru, who was too focused on the TV.

Roughly an hour later, Miwa-nee called us for dinner. In the end, she didn’t cook any other dishes anymore. The dough I made was more than enough to create too many pizzas that we can hope to finish tonight.

Akane packed a few slices and sent them over to her parents.

Minoru loved it. He even wanted a third slice but Miwa-nee told him off. If he ate more, he’d probably feel constipated in the middle of the night. Instead, she gave her his chocolate milk.

Minoru pouted for half a second, those big round eyes of his turning toward me as if I might somehow override Mom’s decision, but I just ruffled his hair and slid another small slice of plain cheese onto his plate anyway.

“One more tiny piece won’t hurt, right? You earned it for being such a good boy today.”

Miwa-nee shot me a half-hearted glare across the table, but the corner of her mouth twitched upward. “You’re spoiling him, Ruki. What if he grew up like you?”

“Well, he probably won’t. Right, Minoru? You won’t become like me. You don’t want to be surrounded by girls, right?”

“Why not, Papa? Mama and Aka-nee are always happy to be with you. The other older sisters, too! I think I want to become like you!”

Uh… Looks like my question is gonna backfire on me.

“Is that so? Can you promise you’ll take care of them and not make any of them cry?”

“Hmm? Why will they cry?” The boy tilted his head innocently.

“Because–”

Before I could finish my words, Satsuki covered my mouth. Then, Ria answered in my place, “Because girls might cry if you treat them like toys instead of people who deserve to be loved properly, Minoru. Papa used to do that a lot before he changed, and even though he’s trying his best now, we still get a little jealous sometimes. But we know he cares, so we stay and make sure he remembers how lucky he is.”

Minoru blinked up at Ria with those wide, innocent eyes, fork paused halfway to his mouth. “Toys? Like my action figures? But Papa doesn’t play with girls like toys anymore… right, Papa?”

The table went quiet for half a second before Akane burst into giggles, nearly choking on her pizza slice.

Satsuki pinched the bridge of her nose, muttering “This kid… he’s already taking on him.”

Meanwhile, Ria just gave that calm, knowing smile of hers and gently ruffled Minoru’s hair.

“Exactly, little guy. Papa learned his lesson. That’s why we’re all here eating pizza together instead of crying in some corner. Now finish your slice before Mama really gets mad.”

Miwa-nee’s glare at me across the table switched to half-exasperation and half-amused affection. “See what you started, Ruki? Don’t fill his head with ideas. He’s already copying your shameless grin every time he gets away with something.”

I raised both hands in mock surrender, the rolling pin long forgotten on the counter. “Hey, you know me, Miwa-nee. The last thing I want for him is to follow my footsteps. But what can we do if he eventually walks the same path as me?”

Alright. That sounds terrifying. If the boy turned out exactly like me, I just hope he won’t have to start from the unfeeling bastard that I was back then.

Still, it’s our responsibility to guide him. Although I can set an example for him, there’s no way we could hide our complex relationship.

I’m just the reformed bastard trying to set a good example.

“Papa, I’m gonna make them happy too!”

I looked up and saw Miwa-nee facepalming. She’s already worrying about Minoru’s future. If he truly grows up like me, he will definitely make a lot of girls cry.

Soon, dinner wrapped up in a chaotic, noisy warmth that had become normal in this house. Minoru eventually dozed off against Miwa-nee’s side, chocolate milk mustache and all.

Akane and the other two girls took up the task of cleaning the table and washing dishes while I carried the boy upstairs with Miwa-nee following us to tuck him in.

Of course, I got scolded by her from that conversation but in the end, she also let me off and asked me to pamper her instead.

When I came down, Ria was ready to go home. She couldn’t stay the night after all.

“Dumb-senpai, my birthday isn’t over yet, remember? Let’s take a detour on the way home.”

“Where do you want to go?”

“Hmm… anywhere. As long as I’m with you.”

And like this, we left the house and ended up stopping by in another shopping district that was close to their school.

We didn’t stop by anywhere. If we extended it further until midnight, her parents might scold her. They didn’t know she spent the whole day with me, after all.

Instead, I brought her to different shops, looking for a fitting birthday gift to close the day. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any.

“Dumb-senpai… I’m looking forward to my next birthdays… Last year, you just called me home and cooked for me. But now, I got to spend the whole day with you like this. It feels… different. Special.”

“Mhm. I’m glad I made it special this time. It’ll be like this from now on. Besides, you also made it more special for me. You planned half of today yourself. The chocolates, the messages inside them, dragging everyone into the surprise… You turned my late birthday into something I won’t forget. That’s why… thank you. Thank you for loving this shameless bastard.”

Ria’s lips stretched thin as a pleasant smile blossomed on her face. Then, she tiptoed and whispered, “Don’t thank me, Dumb-senpai. You earned it. And I know you’ll keep your promise to all of us. That’s all I need to be certain that I want to grow up with you…”

Seconds later, her lips pressed on mine, sealing our night with a fulfilling kiss.