Akira, uncharacteristically, was late by five minutes. He was also pushing Hisana's stroller. Hikaru spotted their progress from a dozen metres away, but there was such a throng of holiday shoppers he couldn't manage a good look until they were directly before him. When he did he burst out laughing.
"...Sorry," he gasped eventually, wiping at his eyes with the end of his scarf. Akira looked decidedly unimpressed.
"I'm watching her for the day," he said. "It's called being a responsible older brother."
"Why are you laughing, Hikaru-niichan?" said Hisana. Hikaru grinned and picked her bodily up from the stroller. She squealed and giggled.
"Because I have psychic powers, Hisa-chan. For instance, I can tell your mom gave you a haircut not so long ago. Isn't that right?" He glanced at Akira. "Touya, do you ever get the impression sometimes that your mother's trying to tell you something?"
"I have no idea what you mean," said Akira. As Hikaru showed no sign of setting Hisana down he placed his packages in the stroller and resumed pushing. "I still need to get a couple more items on the list before we can leave for the go salon."
"It's fine," said Hikaru. "I don't have to be home early or anything."
They made their way down the street. Christmas pop songs blared from cafés like advertisement jingles; each store window display they passed outdid the last with festoons of velvet ribbons and glittering gold stars, mounds of cotton or styrofoam pellicules in lieu of snow. Hikaru bounced Hisana in his arms and measured Akira with his gaze.
"Okay, here's the thing," he said finally. "Your mom used to cut your hair too, right? When you were a little kid?"
"Yes." Akira gave him a suspicious look.
"But she doesn't cut it now."
"No. What's your point?"
"So basically you just tell the hairdresser, trim it a little, make it like usual?"
Akira stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, blocking pedestrian traffic. "As if you have a right to talk!"
"Yeah, but my hairstyle is unique. That counts for something."
"You—"
Hikaru lifted a strand of Hisana's bangs and waggled his eyebrows significantly.
"You've outgrown it, Touya. Sorry but that's the truth. It's not yours anymore, it's a hand-me-down. Give it up gracefully like the responsible older brother you are." He gave it a couple of seconds to sink in and added, "besides, it looks much cuter on her."
Akira clobbered him by two and a half stones later that afternoon, as the other go salon regulars fussed over Hisana and fed her overly sweet vanilla cream biscuits. Hikaru figured it was worth it nonetheless.