"Hello, my name is Miura Kotomi. In case you forget, I am Yumiko nee's little sister. You may have been wondering why it's been a long time since I last talked to you guys. Well let's just say that a lot of things have happened recently, and I got carried away with all the things happened with Onii-chan. But don't worry, I am back now, and hopefully with greater and better fan-service~!"

"What are you doing?" I ask, don't bother to lift my gaze off the novel I'm reading.

The beach trip ended, and once again I'm back safe and sound in my room. Currently, I'm sitting on my bed leaning against the wall, partly because Kotomi stole my chair again. Oh, Komachi is also in my room too, playing with my Swit-chan. What the hell, since when did my room become your hangout base?

"Sometimes I like to imagine that I'm a character in a manga or light novel or something. So right now I'm breaking the 4th wall obviously."

That's a whole different level of eight-grader syndrome. How severe are you right now? Most definitely stage 4.

"Anyway, don't worry and about me. You should worry about you instead."

I gulp and try to throw at her one of my annoyed faces, but the twin-tail little sister nonchalantly jumps on my bed and crawls towards me.

"Looks like you got yourself in quite a bind this time." Her mischievous smile was so close that I can feel her breath grazing on my face.

"As usual for my pathetic onii-chan," Komachi joins in.

I sigh and hug my head. Everything went wildly out of control at the end. I was so ready to give up on Miyu, but at that last minute, I decided to give up everything but her instead. I knew that I have to face Yukinoshita someday, but not even for a million years I thought would ever receive such a reaction from her.

"Yukinon-senpai definitely threw you a curve ball there," Kotomi says. "I bet you were thinking of something cliche like, 'I can't believe you did to me, you jerk! After all these times, has nothing between us ever meant anything to you? What about your promise to me?!' Then Yukino-senpai ran away with tears flying behind her."

"Well, not that cliche, but yes, something along that line."

"Tch, tch, onii-chan. You underestimated her."

"Whatever." Why are you so smug about it anyway? This is not even your doing.

But the memories of the night starts flowing back.

Even now, I still can't believe that I did all that.

Even though, I already knew the price I had to pay.

Even so, I made a decision that I wouldn't regret.

Even if, I failed to become who I wanted to be.

…

Night.

The sky was twinkling with stars, the waves were bellowing at a calming rhythm, the wind was howling, bringing the salty taste of the sea. But salty was the also taste inside my lips, for it was filled with tears, tears of joy, tears of sadness, tears of regrets, tears of fears. Miura and I were kissing for how many minutes I had lost count, the torrents of emotions inside our chests whirled like a storm of pain and pleasure.

But then it was stopped.

It was stopped by silent shadow creeping up the sliding door, standing frozen and cold as ice. Her night-coloured hair waved gently, glimmered under the silver moon, beautiful as she was, yet an ominous silence fell upon all of us. Light escaped her eyes, and the only thing she could manage to mutter after a long deafening hush...

"Why?" There was no anger in her voice, which terrified me even more.

Miyu and I stood up, but Miyu got close to me and grab my shirts.

"It is how it is. You are not the only with hidden history. My relationship with Hikio goes way back longer than you or Yuigahama," she said with a sharp tone.

"Silent you harlot," Yukinoshita said quickly.

"What did-!"

I waved my hand at Miyu, which prompted her to stop. It's ok, Miyu. This was not your battle, and this was not your problem. The problem was mine and all mine alone, and I would face it, as I was ready for it.

Don't hold your punches, Yukinoshita, figuratively, or literally.

"Hikigaya-kun, do you remember the first day we meet?"

There's no way I could forget that.

"You were so pessimistic, so nihilistic that I was so crept out. You were so adamant about not changing yourself, saying that doing such a thing was no different than running away. I thought it was a ridiculous argument, a mental gymnastics for a rotten individual. I thought, if I could change, I could fix the things that I have wronged in the past."

She took a step closer to me.

"And I was right in the end," she said.

"And yet, despite all that. Despite all the things that you said, despite all the things that I said..."

Yukinoshita took another step closer to me. Her eyelids fluttered, and her tears glistened like soft diamonds, warm but hauntingly cold.

"In the end, you are the one who changed, that makes you a hypocrite. But above all that, I still remain unchanged, which makes me a bigger hypocrite. And because of that, the same thing happened to me again!"

Yukioshita cried with her trembling voice. Her body shook uncontrollably at the forcing of her tears. I would rather be stabbed in the heart right now than having to witness this. A part of me just wanted to lunge forward and embrace that shaking figure in front of me, but I knew full well that I did not deserve such luxury.

"I should have realised it sooner, that day when you told us your request. I should have realised what length you were willing to go for your ideal. Tell me, Hikigaya-kun. Is this 'genuine' you were seeking for?

I did not say anything. I was not capable of speech right now. I could only deliver my thought through my expression right now. In my heart, I know that Yukinoshita would be able to see it.

"I see. I was the one who was weak. I was the one who retreated back to my shell when things went awry. I kept on playing it safe, I was the one desperately tried to retain my image. But Hikigaya-kun, now I know who you really are now."

Yukinoshita grabbed my collars. She pushed me back a few steps, and my back slammed against the balcony railings. I did not falter, but I didn't try to fight back.

"You are just as rotten as I once thought, no, even more. You're a selfish, despicable individual who can only think for himself. You hate people for acting, but you are the biggest actor of them all."

Her grip tightened, but shaken by her still flowing tears.

"I hate it so much. I hate being bound by others' expectations, but even worse than that, by my own. I put my trust in him. I thought he would be to throw it away for me, I thought that he would be able to protect me from the prejudices of others. But he couldn't do that, like me, he was crushed by his own expectations."

Yukinoshita stared at me, she showed me a pitiful smile.

"That's who I really am. I am a perfect girl who was cursed by talents, a flower in a mirror, beautiful but untouchable. That's what I feel about myself deep down. I want someone to protect me, I want people to sacrifice for me so that I can lay comfortably on my throne. I made Hayama do it once, and I have made you do it many times, and even Yuigahama."

Tears were flowing down her palely lit face in two thin streams like silver. Her face was as beautiful as it had ever been, but never before had it looked so withered and faded.

"I'm a terrible girl, aren't I? This is what's coming for me, for sleeping, for idling, for waiting to be spoonfed everything to me. But..."

Her head drooped down.

"I finally figured it out. That is why..."

With force, she pulled my collar closer, and then I felt it, her soft lips pressing against mine, thin and wet and salty, like the string tying our fates, like the lust seeping out of our bodies, like the bitterness of our circumstances. What in the world?! Her arms wrapped around my neck, slender as they were, but she held on so tightly.

I broke away and met her gaze, she stared at me with eyes of pure love.

"I don't care anymore. I'm tired of waiting, I'm tired of playing the good girl. You're a terrible man, Hikigaya-kun, but I'm terrible too, so we are the perfect match. I'm selfish just like you, I'm self-absorbed just like you, and I am stubborn just like you."

"Yukinoshita," I utter, I didn't know why I wanted to say her name. I must have known, but I didn't want to think about it.

Yukinoshita moved even closer to me. I tried to back off, not realising that I already hit the railings. I tripped, and fell, and I landed on my ass. She climbed onto me, her smooth flowing hair grazed on my chest, almost felt like it was coiling and tightening around my body like snakes.

"Must I say it for you to realise it, Hikigaya-kun?" Yukinoshita smiled at me with those darkened irises sparkled with tears, a smile that was unlike anything I have seen before. It was not a joyous smile, nor it was a sorrowful one, it was almost broken, dreaded, dark, and yet deep beneath all that, it was free. "But l love you, Hikigaya-kun. Hikigaya-kun, I love you. I love love you, I love you so much, I'll love you until the end of the earth. And you will love me too, and you will give your love to me, and we will run away if we have to, and we will live together in harmony, and our children will be the most gifted ones that will ever grace the earth. Isn't that right, Hikigaya-kun?"

But before I have a chance to say anything, another figure pushed Yukinoshita aside. Her golden locks shone under the moonlight, as if for a short instant, I caught a warm glimpse of the far set sun.

"Hey! Stop that! Hikio kissed me first! He declared his love to me. You're too late."

"A crude girl like you can never understand my Hikigaya-kun's feeling. I am the one who could give the love he wanted. Isn't that right, Hikigaya-kun?"

"Huh? You just gonna drag him down with your moodiness, and he's already moody enough as he is. Look what happened when he was with you, and look what happened when he was with me. He became better, he made more friends. Hikio needs someone who can take of him, not some damaged princess. Right, Hikio?"

"Wait-" Wait wait wait! This was not the scenario I had in mind. What in the world was going on right now?

On my left, there was Yukinoshita. On my right, there was Miyu. They both crawled toward me, their claws clasped tightly onto my body.

"I am your obvious choice, Hikigaya-kun," Yukinoshita said, smiling deadlily.

"I'm not gonna let your forget our kiss, Hikio!" Miyu said, pouting determinedly.

And so my summer vacation ended on a completely unexpected note. Needless to say, my life from now on will never be the same again.

...

"So that's what happened," Kotomi said.

"Uuuuhh..." I groaned.

"What'cha gonna do now?" said Kotomi.

"I'm still thinking about it."

"Tch tch, Onii-chan, I'm sure you're already thinking about it. You just don't want to say it, do you? Well then, let me say it for you."

Kotomi stands on the bed and throws her arms up high. She yells up at the ceiling:

"Harem of course!"

Don't stand on the bed!

"Are you a moron? This is not a manga. Actually, it doesn't even work in manga. Harem series always end up with a mess and a disappointing ending."

"Tch tch, Onii-chan." Can you stop that, it's starting to get annoying. "Most series, but not all. Do you know what the downfall of most harem series is?"

"Unrealistic situations, unrealistic characters-"

"I mean not that. Who reads mangas for realism anyway? What I'm saying is, it's true that most harem series kind of slowly becoming a mess of relationships and conflicts, but only because they lack one thing."

"Huh?"

"There are many heroines in a harem, and they fall in many archetypes. Tsundere, Yandere, Kuudere, Genki, etc., but for a harem to succeed, there is a brand new archetype of heroine that needs to be included."

"And that is..."

"Harem Manager!"

"The hell is that?"

"A heroine who is ok with a harem, who is willing to assist building a harem for the protagonist, kinda like M*mo from To-L***-Ru. A harem will be better received if a Harem Manager archetype exists," Kotomi rubs her shoulder against mine while smiling smugly.

"And who might that be?" I ask.

"Mo... Onii-chan, if you so insist, well I guess I can be your Harem Manager."

Don't say like it's an actual job.

I smile. As idiotic her idea may sound, I know she just wants to help me. Despite all the things that I have done, despite knowing terrible I really am, you are still there for me, you and Komachi. I feel sorry for Komachi because she has to stick with a brother like me, but you don't have anything attached, so why? Why would you still help after all this time?

"That's easy," Kotomi says, then turns at the screen, "It's so that I can be best-girl of course!" she winks and gives a thumbs-up.

"Who are you talking to?" I face the same direction she's looking at. There is nothing but a wall there.

"I told you, didn't I? I like to imagine myself as a character in a manga or anime. And every manga or anime always has poll about who is the best girl, right? so I'm aiming for that."

I facepalm myself. There's no saving her now, or perhaps she doesn't need saving after all.

"So what say you, Onii-chan. All you need is to give the ok, and we will devise the Harem Masterplan."

Utterly absurd, absolutely stupid. No self-respecting, law-abiding, upstanding citizen of the great Earth would ever agree to such a plan. But here is the thing. Hikigaya Hachiman is...

...no longer a good person.