Stealing Spree

Chapter 2266: Tipsy

Upon arriving at Eimi's house, Anzu-nee immediately noticed the change in Eimi's mood which was a little more clingy than normal. The petite woman inquired me by her eyes and I had to carefully word it out in a whisper as we passed by her, "Sorry, Anzu-nee-san, we probably tried something we shouldn't."

Anzu-nee raised an eyebrow but she said nothing. She spied the box on top of the groceries and immediately knew what was happening. "Oh, I see. Whose idea was it to buy that?"

Eimi, still clinging onto my arm, answered with a cheeky smile, "Mine. But it's so good. It's like heaven melting in your mouth! You should try one too, Anzu-nee."

Anzu-nee looked at us and rolled her eyes, "I'll pass for now. Maybe after I make sure you two don't do anything stupid."

There goes her older sister trait. But well, she's also fine like this.

We stepped inside the house, Eimi's excitement bubbling over as she dragged me into the kitchen. We set the bag she bought for them on the table and I put down the grocery bag for our house on the side.

Eimi looked so eager to start cooking despite her cheeks still flushed from our little chocolate experiment.

Anzu-nee stood at the side, observing us. She grabbed a glass of water from the fridge and handed it to Eimi, who took it gratefully and downed half of it in one go.

"Hey, Onoda-kun, did she eat a whole piece?" she asked in a hushed voice, letting Eimi not hear her.

"Well, she had half of one while I took the half," I whispered back to Anzu-nee, who nodded. Her face was still riddled with concern.

"You too, huh? Let me see." She said as she turned to face me, inspecting if I also had a flush of alcohol on my cheeks. She reached for my cheek, her fingertips grazed it lightly, "Don't smile at me like an idiot, dumb little brother."

"Why not? Is my smiling face not good, Anzu-nee-san?" I teased, flashing her a cheeky grin. Despite her attempt to remain stern, a small smirk played at the corners of her mouth.

Eimi, seemingly oblivious to our exchange, had already started to unpack the groceries, her eyes lighting up at the ingredients she had chosen. "Ruki, I think we can make a killer dessert with these chocolates! Maybe something for your Literature Club's stall at the Cultural Festival?"

Upon hearing that, I hurriedly turned to her, my face was probably carrying a hint of panic because of that idea, "Wait. We can't do that. It'll be bad if everyone gets drunk from it!"

Eimi looked at me with a puzzled look, "But it's just a small amount of alcohol, Ruki." "It is. But look at you." I pointed out as Eimi giggled, her cheeks still flushed. "You're already tipsy from just half a piece. Imagine if we give that to everyone at the festival."

"Won't that be quite a sight?" She giggled again before picking up the box and taking another piece, continuing what I stopped her from doing earlier. She took half a bite before moving back to me, pressing her half-eaten chocolate to my mouth. "Come on, Ruki. Isn't this delicious?"

Her eyes had a sparkle to them that was both alluring and a little bit alarming. I would be blind if I couldn't see that the alcohol within the chocolate had gotten to her more than she admitted.

In any case, I couldn't just let her suffer alone, right? We're in this together. I okayed her picking it up so... I took the chocolate from her, popping the rest in my mouth, feeling the same sear from earlier.

Next to me, Anzu-nee facepalmed, "You kids... Learn to control yourselves." But as she said that, she grabbed a piece herself.

Eimi and I stared at her for a moment, both our eyes wide with surprise. Then, we couldn't help but burst out in laughter. Even Anzu-nee couldn't resist the absurdity of the situation or she was just trying it out to see if it was truly that intoxicating.

As she started opening it, she gave us a side eye and said, "What? I'm not going to be left out." With that, she put the whole piece in her mouth and started munching on it.

Somehow, I couldn't help but feel that this was a very bad idea.

Eimi was already tipsy just from half of it and she took another half. Then, what about Anzu- nee? Would she also be as affected? As we watched her, Anzu-nee closed her eyes, savoring the flavor. She took her time, really tasting it.

After a few moments, she opened her eyes. It was delicious. But you two should really learn to enjoy it slowly."

She sounded the same but just like Eimi, I could already see the hint of redness creeping up her cheeks. Maybe she had a higher tolerance or maybe she's just really good at hiding it. But she was definitely feeling it.

Eimi clapped once, pleased at the sight. "See, I told you it's delicious. Come on, Ruki. Let's prepare our lunch."

I nodded, taking a deep breath to regain my composure. "Alright, let's do it."

I followed her to the countertop but my eyes couldn't help but dart around these two cousins. One started to act more lovey-dovey because of the chocolates while the other one is trying to be the cool older sister. But she's obviously enjoying it too, which was kind of funny.

Nothing could go wrong, right?

Alright. Let's not jinx it, Ruki. Focus!

I nodded to myself, mentally preparing to cook with a tipsy Eimi. She was already pulling out pans and ingredients, her movements slightly exaggerated. Anzu-nee, on the other hand, was leaning against the counter like a hawk waiting for its prey to trip. She had a knowing smile on her face that made me feel like we were about to embark on a wild ride.

Hopefully, not that wild.

In any case, as someone who was still confident that the alcohol in the chocolates had yet to affect me, I adeptly helped Eimi prepare the ingredients. However, from time to time, I'd go over to Anzu-nee to check if she was okay. She'd just give me a thumbs up every time, so I guessed she was fine.

Or not. As I moved over to her again, Anzu-nee leaned on me, slipping her arms around my waist and hugging me tightly.

Eimi, who saw that, shook her head with a meaningful smile.

"Ruki. Do you know why we can be this carefree?" She asked, not really that bothered that Anzu-nee was clinging to me. She knew it was because of the chocolates.

I answered with a shake of my head.

"It's because you're here," Eimi said with a gentle smile, her eyes glazed over by the alcohol's warmth. "You won't let us go over the top."

Somehow, her words resonated with me. Well, that's just the truth, isn't it? Despite the chaos that the chocolate might bring today, I, who still had my reason intact, would make sure that these two girls wouldn't do anything they'd regret later.

I patted Anzu-nee's head before I went back to Eimi's side, continuing our preparation for lunch. While Anzu also got dragged in as the three of us worked together.

Around half an hour later, we were sitting around the dining table, the aroma of a mouthwatering lunch we had prepared together filling the room. Anzu-nee had moved from leaning against me to taking a seat next to Eimi. Both of them were staring at me with a mix of adoration and contentment. The alcohol in the chocolates definitely made them act more affectionate than intoxicated.

"Ruki... I love you." Rumi shyly whispered as I sat down to enjoy the fruits of our labor. The chocolate had definitely loosened her tongue but this was already normal for us, I guess.

I looked into her eyes and replied, "I love you too, Eimi." Anzu-nee, who was sitting on the other side, pouted but didn't say anything else.

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