Days With My Step Sister Volume 5

our flat, I felt relieved, but also dejected that we’d have to
stop holding hands.

Since today was Halloween, Mom naturally had to work a
full shift during the bar’s busiest times. So she would be
back late at night. That being said, Step-dad should be
home. He didn’t have any work today, and he wouldn’t eat
dinner before we got home. That’s why we went back
without taking any detours. However, while we were fighting
our way through the crowd of people in Shibuya while
holding hands, he had gone off to meet Akiko-san. This
meant that it was just Asamura-kun and I at home. We
made dinner together, ate it together, and he even brewed
me some coffee. I was reminded of the candle I had bought
at work. It made me think about when I was a young child.
The faint light of the LED lamp flickered on and off, much
like a real flame. While gazing at this phenomenon, I
thought about the reason why I had bought that lamp in the
first place.

When I was growing up, a pumpkin candle was always a
symbol of solitude and isolation for me, the token of what it
meant to be alone, and I probably wanted to overwrite those
painful memories. This would be my first Halloween night
spent with my new family, after all. I thought that if I turned
on that lantern and fell asleep to it, I might just be freed
from the sad memories I’d been plagued with since I was a
child.

While Asamura-kun and I sat around the table with the
pumpkin lantern on it, he suddenly leaned forward. I was
completely baffled. After that, everything felt hazy. I didn’t
even understand what was happening. He suddenly
stretched out his arm, reaching for my cheek. His fingertips
gently caressed my hair. My cheek immediately burned up,
all the blood inside of me beginning to boil, and I suddenly

became worried that he might notice my heart racing just
because of that. His face slowly but steadily grew closer,
making me realize that I wasn’t imagining things.
Eventually, I could see myself in his eyes. I had a shocked
expression on my face, obvious enough for myself to see. It
was like anticipation and anxiety kept jumping between
each other like the flickering of the light. But in the end, I
had known that something like this might happen—so I
closed my eyes.

Happiness, bashfulness, hope, uncertainty about the future.
Many many feelings exploded at the same time. I myself
wasn’t sure what I was feeling anymore. I had feared that
our relationship would forever be at a standstill. But even
so, I chose to close my eyes. Our lips only touched for an
instant, and yet it felt like the crying child inside of me had
finally stopped. Even though the warm and passionate hug
from my mom all those years ago couldn’t dispel my
sadness, he had done it with just this. It must be the magic
of Halloween and its light.

Maybe the devil was weaving all of this magic. I was the one
who had said we should stay brother and sister, and yet it
suddenly felt like I had broken this promise myself. But if I
had looked away at that moment, I’m sure Asamura-kun
would have stopped me. By looking at his eyes until the
very end, I accepted him. Once we had reached the point of
no return, I simply closed my eyes and waited. As expected,
he pressed his lips onto mine. Compared to when we held
hands, I could feel his presence tenfold. And despite the fact
that my eyelids were closed, it felt like I could sense the
orange light of the pumpkin.

Will-o’-the-wisps. Sometimes they deceive travelers, other
times they provide guiding light. They are souls bound to
wander through the world, unable to go to either heaven or

hell. I just hope they provide light for the path of the step-
sister who fell in love with her brother.

A fresh thought came to mind. We talked about volunteer
work at school, namely cleaning up the trash after
Halloween. “Why would I have to clean up after the people
who caused the mess in the first place?” I had thought and
completely forgotten about it, but…

“I could get up early and help out…”

I don’t know if God and everybody else watching in the
heavens above would be willing to forgive me if I did that, I
just had this urge to do anything that would make me look
like a good girl. Maybe I should invite Asamura-kun. Just
giving in to the devil’s sweet whispers was fine and all, but
if I managed to build up more time and improve our
relationship with my own strength, I feel like I’d be able to
accept it more easily.

I indulged in these thoughts while snuggling up under my
blanket and finally drifted into a pleasant slumber.

Afterword

Afterword

Thank you very much for your purchase of “Gimai Seikatsu”
volume 5, the novelized version of the YouTube visual novel.
I am the original creator of the YouTube version, as well as
the author of the novel: Mikawa Ghost. A boy and a girl of
similar background start to learn more about each other on
a daily basis, achieving a connection deeper than the
superficial level—that is the “Gimai Seikatsu” series.

The people who have read and finished this 5th volume
might think that we’re nearing the end, but rest assured. I
have many more stories to tell, and I am very certain that,
for both the fans of the YouTube version and the novel
version, you will not be disappointed. “Gimai Seikatsu”
depicts the story of Asamura-kun and Ayase-san as they
experience their own ups and downs in life. Just as we go
through school, university, employment, marriage, and all
other steps in life, I will stay true to the idea of depicting
their events in life, as well as their mutual contact, so I hope
you look forward to it.

Finally, it is time for me to give my thanks. To my illustrator
Hiten-san, Nakashima Yuki-san, Amasaki Kouhei-san, Suzuki
Ayu-san, Hamano Daiki-san, Suzuki Minori-san, our video
director Ochiai Yuusuke and everybody else involved with
the YouTube channel, my editor O-san, the mangaka of the

comicalization Kanade Yumi-san, all personnel involved with
the release of this series, and of course to all my readers—
Thank you very much.

This has been Mikawa Ghost.