Just something that I came up with while writing the new chapter of one of my other stories. I'll get this out of my head, then return to writing what I was writing before.
They had always tried to believe that they were complete as a trio.
They tried to believe it so earnestly, so desperately. Yet, each of them had failed to do so.
They tried to believe it because they wanted it. They tried to believe it because it was the best possible outcome.
But it simply wasn't true.
In reality, they were not one set of three.
They were three sets of two.
Hachiman and Yui were the polar opposites who, despite all odds, found themselves drawn to each other.
Hachiman and Yukino were the troubled, lonely youths who sought to change each other, and perhaps find something else along the way.
Yukino and Yui were the two who became the best of friends, inseparable regardless of what may lie ahead.
Three stories, each beautiful in their own right.
Yet none of them were true.
The truth is, two's company, three's a crowd. And this crowd was doomed from the start, despite the best of intentions.
It might have been simpler for everyone involved if one of them were to simply exit stage left, but unfortunately that was impossible too.
After all, each relationship had become invaluable to every one of them.
How could they ever choose one over the other?
Friendship over love.
Love over friendship.
One love over another.
It was impossible to make that sort of ultimatum.
Problems always arose when the three of them were together. Awkward tension, countless personal compromises, white lies and hidden feelings.
At some point, it had become unbearable.
They had fallen apart. Their relationships had become strained and painful.
So, the service club was disbanded.
Hachiman had returned to the life he always knew. The life of a loner. Even when he was swayed by the mirage of something genuine, he never completely gave up on his old ideals. That's why it was so easy for him to return to who he used to be. Perhaps if he had thrown away these ideals, he might have found what he was looking for. But if he did throw away his ideals and still failed, he would have been truly lost.
Yui, much like Hachiman, had returned to life before the service club. Following her clique like a dog, pretending to laugh at every lame joke she heard. Unlike Hachiman, however, it was significantly harder for her to just forget all the events of the past few months. Her clique had all noticed her depression, yet none of them could reach out to her.
Yukino took it the hardest. Unable to bear the sting of what she felt was betrayal, she had ended up changing schools during the break between her second and third year. At her new high school, she was every bit as cold and merciless as she was once known to be.
Hachiman and Yui's interactions had quickly become scarce, and before long they had stopped talking to each other completely.
Yui and Yukino never once messaged each other after Yukino had coldly announced she would be transferring to a private high school in Tokyo.
Hachiman and Yukino...well, their bond was apparently paper thin in the first place. She never even said goodbye. The last time they spoke was when they had their devastating fallout on the final day of the service club's active duty.
Time passed, and they had all become adults with their own goals and ambitions.
Hachiman and Yukino were the first to meet again, purely by chance. They had bumped into each other in a restaurant in Tokyo. Yukino made a remark about Hachiman's stalker tendencies, and that was all it took for them to reconnect. Taking what could have been her last chance, Yukino had asked to keep in touch. Hachiman agreed.
It was only weeks later that Yui had sent Yukino a heartfelt message saying she wanted to patch things up between them. It was lucky that Yukino had kept the same number her entire life.
When they had met, Yukino smiled warmly, and Yui had burst into tears.
They had talked about everything in their lives in the past few years. Starting with their school lives, and wading through all sorts of topics ranging from funny TV shows to the boyfriends they had.
At that point, Yukino admitted she had recently reconnected with their final member.
Yui's reaction was, at first, a little scary. It seemed as if they were going to fall apart again.
But then Yui just smiled and suggested they all meet up.
Yukino had discussed the idea with Hachiman. He was reluctant at first, but he was quick to cave to the idea of having the bubbly girl in his life once again.
The meeting was, at first, pretty awkward. After all, they had spent an entire year at the same school ignoring each other. So many missed opportunities to salvage their tattered relationship had all come rushing back at the sight of each other.
If it weren't for Yukino, that could have been the end of it. Their first reunion was rocky. In fact, it had ended in an argument. Something Hachiman and Yui had never done before.
It was the very next day that Hachiman came to Yukino, begging to let him see Yui again and apologize.
The second time went much better. After bearing his heart out and laying his deepest desires and insecurities for Yui to dissect, she had tearfully accepted his apology and returned with one of her own. Yukino couldn't help crying too.
The three became inseparable after that. For the first time ever, they had formed a relationship of three.
With time, that relationship became genuine. They'd never been happier.
One day, after much deliberation, Hachiman decided to put that genuine relationship on the line.
He had to. The way he felt had changed, and with it, their relationship would have to change too.
More specifically, his relationship with one would have to change.
He sincerely hoped, with all his heart, that his relationship with the other one wouldn't change.
Or even worse, he could lose it all. A concept that terrified him.
Unfortunately, it was too late to turn back. Denying his feelings now would invalidate the 'genuine' status of their relationship. Perhaps if he had simply found some other girl to fall in love with, things would have been simpler.
But you don't get to choose who you love.
A fact Hachiman has known since the first time he fell.
And so, he risks it all.
"Yui, can I take you to dinner some time?"
...
IDK, OKAY? I WAS WORKING ON APPRECIATION WHEN I GOT ONE LITTLE IDEA AND IT MUTATED INTO THIS I'M SORRY.
P.S: When's the last time you saw the HachiYui ending? We all need to get back on that IMO.