Everyday Squabbles That Arise Without Warning

Uraraka Shige and Ochaco sat in chairs at the dining table, with their mother seated right between them...

Well... rather than saying it happened by chance, it would be more accurate to say that Ochaco was upset with Uraraka Shige. Though he had apologized repeatedly, he had always been a selfish fellow and had no idea how to show he was sincere, so it was only natural that Ochaco wouldn't accept his apology, wasn't it?

What was more, a little friction while they washed up together had made their earlier squabble even worse. Ochaco was throwing a childish tantrum now and had no desire to pay him any attention. She didn't even want to sit next to Uraraka Shige for breakfast and insisted that their mother sit between them to keep them apart.

After all, Ochaco was only seven, an age when children were at their most willful.

Even so, Uraraka Shige couldn't help feeling helpless.

Meanwhile, Uraraka Shige and Ochaco's mother sat between them, secretly chuckling. No matter how she tried to hide the affection and amusement in her eyes, she couldn't keep them from practically spilling out!

Ochaco had a tight grip on her utensils and was attacking the breakfast in front of her, so she didn't notice her mother sitting beside her and secretly laughing over the little squabble between her and her younger brother. On the other side, however, Uraraka Shige had just finished silently thanking heaven and earth, and he noticed it the moment he opened his eyes.

"Mm... Mother, you're so mean."

Uraraka Shige puffed out his cheeks and widened his eyes, squirming restlessly in his chair, acting just like a child his body's age.

His mother heard him muttering under his breath and turned her head, only to see Uraraka Shige wearing that childish expression.

She instinctively covered her mouth and couldn't help chuckling aloud, attracting the attention of Ochaco, who had been concentrating on her meal on the other side.

"Oh my... Shige, you shouldn't say that about your mother!"

Uraraka Shige responded quite naturally, putting on the act of a child talking to his mother.

"But you were just secretly laughing at me and big sis... You're so mean."

He repeated his assessment of her as mean, which naturally earned him a gentle chop from her hand. He had to clutch his head in both hands, looking every bit like a helpless victim.

Ah! That rotten Shige! He secretly stole Mom's affection... She doesn't even pay attention to me anymore QAQ...

Ochaco had already been a little upset, and now she saw the culprit behind those feelings—her younger brother, Uraraka Shige-forgetting all about her and laughing and talking with their mother. Both of them had even left her out.

For some reason, a feeling of grievance welled up in Uraraka Shige's heart, as though Mother's love for her had diminished, as though it had been stolen away. The feelings that had nearly faded completely suddenly grew stronger, and thoughts like that quietly appeared in her mind.

Little Ochaco, who had already looked like an "unhappy baby," instantly became a "very unhappy baby" and focused even more intently on attacking the breakfast in front of her.

The other two, busy with their parent-child interaction, didn't notice what was going through the quiet Ochaco's mind at all, until Mother suddenly stopped and said:

"Shige, hurry up and eat, or your food will get cold!"

Uraraka Shige obediently nodded and silently started eating his breakfast.

No talking while eating or sleeping.

It was only breakfast, so naturally it wasn't anything elaborate, and since this wasn't a food novel, the description of breakfast wouldn't be too detailed either. Thus, breakfast soon ended in a quiet atmosphere.

When Ochaco finished eating, she said, "I'm done," put down her bowl and chopsticks, and silently returned to her little room. Though Mother chewed slowly and carefully, she ate quickly too, so Uraraka Shige was soon left alone at the table.

As Uraraka Shige shoveled down his breakfast, he began to think.

As Ochaco's younger brother, he believed he knew her well, but her behavior after finishing her meal had struck him as very unusual.

In the past, even if she had been upset with him before a meal, the young Ochaco would usually have forgotten all about it afterward. Normally, after eating, she would sit on the sofa or wander around the room to help her food digest, quietly waiting for him so they could play together, rather than returning straight to her room.

But now, something that shouldn't have happened had happened, and Uraraka Shige couldn't help feeling worried.

"Ochaco... could she be feeling unwell?"

That was the first thought that came to Uraraka Shige.

While interacting with Mother earlier, he hadn't noticed Ochaco's thoughts or the change in her mood at all. Naturally, it didn't occur to him that her unusual behavior was because her upset feelings hadn't faded but had instead grown stronger, so it was only to be expected that he would worry, wasn't it?

Not to mention, he had only just returned from the hospital himself, so he was bound to be carrying some pathogens or the like...

Once the thought occurred to him, Uraraka Shige's worry spurred him to quickly finish his portion of breakfast. He told his mother, who was washing the dishes, that he was done eating, then hurried after Ochaco to the door of her little room.

Ochaco had already shut her bedroom door tightly.

"Knock, knock, knock..."

Uraraka Shige reached out and knocked rapidly on the door bearing Ochaco's name.

The quick, light knocking at her bedroom door startled Ochaco, who was lying on her bed, troubled by her feelings. Then Uraraka Shige's voice came from outside.

"Big sis, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

His young voice conveyed his concern to Ochaco, making her even more irritable than she already was because of her upset feelings.

"No!"

Ochaco buried her head in her pillow and gave a muffled reply, seemingly trying to show, "I don't want anything to do with my little brother right now."

But her voice hadn't been very loud to begin with, and muffled by the pillow, it came through the door so faintly that it was barely intelligible. It sounded as though she had a cold. To Uraraka Shige, this seemed to confirm his worry: his older sister Ochaco really was acting strangely because she felt unwell.