Chapter 2: Ch-2 Actually, I'm a virgin..
"Kei-chan, do you have a girlfriend yet?"
I was having lunch with my sister at a family restaurant near Ikebukuro Station.
My sister got married a few years ago and now lives near Ikebukuro. Since I pass through Ikebukuro Station on my way to university, I often text her when I feel like meeting up.
She always calls me 'Kei-chan.' Her name is Waka, by the way. We're siblings with a close bond. While I was eating my fried chicken meal, she stopped twirling her noodles and stared at me.
"Why are you asking all of a sudden?"
I swallowed the bite of fried chicken I was chewing before answering.
"Kei-chan, you didn't have a girlfriend in high school, did you? Now that you're a university student, you must have someone by now, right?"
My sister has always had an uncanny ability to know about my personal life. She's very social and has a large network of friends back home, so I guess she picks up tidbits of information from there.
I ignored her and concentrated on my food, but then she leaned forward and lowered her voice.
"Kei-chan... are you still a virgin?"
I almost spat out my chicken. Somehow I managed to hold it in, swallowed some water and coughed a few times to steady my breath.
"Sister, what kind of question is that during lunch?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she said, laughing.
The truth is... she's right. I am still a virgin. It's not that I haven't had the chance-I've had younger women confess to me before, and I could have been with any of them if I wanted. But I couldn't bring myself to do it.
I want my first time to be with an older woman. No, it has to be with an older woman. This desire has always been a part of me.
"Shall I help you?"
Suddenly my sister said this with a straight face.
What?
I stared at her in shock, trying to make sense of her words.
"Just kidding! That could never happen between siblings," she said, laughing again.
For a moment, I thought she meant it.
Deep down, I couldn't help but think how wonderful it would be if she had meant it. I know we're siblings, and such a thought is completely taboo, but ever since that one moment years ago, I've seen her in a different light.
It all started when I accidentally saw her naked. I was in middle school and she was in college. She had leaned over the bathtub to check the water, and her curvy, full figure-especially her butt-was burned into my memory.
I've felt conflicted ever since. Seeing her as a woman and not just my sister made me feel like something was wrong with me.
Friends who heard me talk about sibling relationships would casually say, "It's impossible to feel this way about your sister." Their words only made my own feelings more troubling.
When she got married two years ago, I went through a whirlwind of emotions. On the one hand, I was happy for her, but on the other hand, I couldn't help but feel jealous.
I fantasized about her with my brother-in-law, imagining scenarios I'd never admit to out loud. The thought made me both excited and devastated.
As I sat there and watched her eat her pasta, those old feelings began to resurface. I quickly tried to push them aside and focus on something else.
Out of nowhere, she said, "Now that I think about it, Ayaka-senpai was asking about you."
I tried to keep my expression calm. "Ayaka-senpai? Who's that?"
"She was two years older than me in high school and a senior in the choir club. Kei-chan, didn't you know her? She said she recognized you right away because you look so much like me."
"I don't think I know her. Where did she see me?"
"Apparently she saw you near the crosswalk on the national highway early in the morning..."