Our Strange Duet (Yandere Modern Princes x Reader)

Chapter 34: Brotherly Bonds

Ichiro paused at the question that (Y/n) posed to him. Well, it was obvious that he cared about his brother deeply, but why was the question so strange to him? Was it because he thought of that conversation she and Kazuki had at the zoo when they thought he wasn't looking? Yes, it must have been that. The way that the blonde had continued to praise him and put him on a pedestal, it was a dead giveaway of their closeness to one another. Still, the bluenette's face became flushed and he refused to answer the younger girl's question.

"Does it embarrass you?" she giggled, pinching at the older male's cheek playfully, "You're all pink."

The boy squealed when she began to tease him, making his way out of his brother's room calmly and into the bar lounge. He then proceeded to pour himself a drink, sitting down on one of the stools and turning his head away from the (h/c) haired girl. His posture was slouched and confined, his shoulders hunching forward and his gaze darting from one place to another. That being said, when she sat down next to him, he all but choked on his drink.

"Well?" she chuckled, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him from behind.

"I-I," the bluenette stuttered, "Can you blame me?! I love Zuki. I always have. He's my brother."

"And he's always there for you," the girl finished.

It didn't take a genius to see that the two were like two peas in a pod. The blonde was always highlighting the things he loved about his younger brother and talked about it with far more enthusiasm than if he talked about a different person or even himself. Likewise, Ichiro always praised his older brother for watching out for him and showering him with affection. (Y/n) was a little jealous of their close bond. She didn't have anything like that any longer.

That being said, she knew that Rei had loved his elder brother just about as much as Ichiro did. The blonde had always praised Kazuki's efforts, constantly claiming him as his role model. He was hesitant about speaking of his brother in front of the (h/c) haired girl, wanting her attention on him instead of the older blonde. Then again, that didn't seem to matter whenever someone brought up the young man as Rei proceeded to start off on tangents, holding his head high while he spoke as if he was more than sufficiently proud Kazuki was his brother.

On the other side of the spectrum, the younger girl hadn't heard the older male speak about Rei. While the only conversation he had with (Y/n) that wasn't about what she needed was about Ichiro, the same couldn't have been said of the youngest of them. Kazuki had only ever shown concern for Rei, puzzling over his relationship with his lover. And although he didn't seem it at first, the (h/c) haired girl had come to see him as an overprotective sibling.

"Zuki is more of a parent than ours have ever been," Ichiro commented, taking another sip of his drink before spinning around in his stool, "He takes care of us when we get sick, sings to us if we have a nightmare, and is always always supporting us even if we don't know it. He loves us very much, you know. Sometimes, I think he'd burn down the world with a smile if we just asked him. I just don't like the idea that someone like Moriko can have his love. She really didn't deserve it."

The younger girl remained quiet as Ichiro took a few sips of his drink. His gaze was largely on the cup he held, but it was distant and somehow lonely despite the fact he was with (Y/n). However, a smile crossed his face when he turned over to look at her as if he'd forgotten she was there. It felt more like he was rambling on in a drunk haze about this or that, thinking of his brother and neglecting to keep a seal on his mouth.

"Well, what's done is done," he chuckled, "and I'll never see that witch again."

. . .