Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume10 Chapter8 1

===<noinclude>Sweets. </noinclude>Part 1===

Sunday, 7:50 am. A call from Sachiko-sama arrived at the Fukuzawa house.

She had something of a premonition when the phone rang out, so despite being the closest to the phone she didn't reach for the handset.

If she didn't answer the phone, she wouldn't know who was calling. She wanted to get out of the house not knowing. She wanted to wipe away the reality of the phone call, like wiping clean a blackboard.

However, while she was living with her family, she was unable to have everything her own way. Her mother clattered out of the kitchen and cheerfully picked up the receiver.

"Hello, Fukuzawa residence."

While listening to the person on the other end, Yumi's mother glanced at her. She had a bad feeling about this.

"Yumi-chan, it's Ogasawara-san."

Yumi's mother held out the handset to her. Obviously she'd completely forgotten that Ogasawara was Sachiko-sama's last name, because usually when she had an opportunity to talk to Sachiko-sama she'd go to great lengths to ensure she greeted her properly, but this time she simply passed the call along, as though it was from one of Yumi's classmates.

Yumi thought about getting the second handset, but last night Yuuki had taken it to his room and he hadn't woken up yet. Besides, she felt it would be somehow better if someone else was nearby, so she accepted the receiver.

"Hello, this is Yumi."

"It's Sachiko."

By the tone of her voice, without hearing any more, Yumi could predict how this conversation would go. "I'm sorry, Yumi," was probably going to be the follow up.

"I'm sorry, Yumi."

Yumi found herself wanting to laugh, since it was exactly like she'd predicted. But in truth it was no laughing matter. Even so, the shock hadn't fully hit her yet. It would come later, bit by bit. Which made it even worse.

"Today – "

"You can't make it?"

Yumi said, anticipating. As a way of saying, "That's what I thought." To show that it wasn't such a shock. She wanted to put on a show of courage.

"Yes, something came up suddenly."

It was strange that some urgent business would come up on the day of the event itself that made her ring and cancel.

"Even though I kept today open because I've been putting off our arrangement time and again."

Sachiko-sama's apologetic voice came through the receiver. But, not knowing how to reply, Yumi listened in silence.

"I was looking forward to it too."

That's so cruel, onee-sama. Do you know how many times it is now? What are you going to do now that you've called off our date? Who are you going to see? Who is this person you have to prioritize over me? – There were plenty of things Yumi wanted to say. Saying them might have brought her comfort. However, Yumi swallowed them all, and instead spat out the following:

"I understand."

– That's all.

"I'm sorry … Well then."

There was no lingering aftertaste. The telephone call was ended quite abruptly.

"Yumi-chan?"

Her mother asked, worried, as she took the receiver from Yumi.

"We're not going out today."

As she said this, she felt like she was going to cry, so she ran up the stairs. Halfway up she crashed into Yuuki, who'd woken up and was coming downstairs, but she didn't want him to see her tear-stained face so she silently fled into her bedroom.

"Yumi? Onee-chan? Hey, what's the matter?"

She answered the sound of the knocking with, "It's nothing." Even though, in truth, it probably wasn't nothing.

However, there was nothing that her brother could do for her.

Yumi cried, on her bed, muffling her voice.

She wasn't annoyed about not going to the amusement park. It was her onee-sama herself that was making Yumi sad.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

It was nothing. Nothing to do with her family.

Because the tears were aimed squarely at her onee-sama.

There was nothing that anyone other than her onee-sama could do for her.