A/N: Well, here we are. Next month we'll hit 1 year of this story, and seeing how far it's come, I really feel like crap. Well, at least the newcomers can enjoy it.
Here you are.
"Ah- Um… You're right. But I'll make up for it. In fact, I think I have a student in need of our help! That could be our next activity."
"Oh, really? Please do continue."
"Well, There's this girl, Kawasaki Saki…."
Story Start!
"Hm… So she's apparently known for being a bit scary, has a roguelike look on her face. She's often late to school in the mornings a lot and I don't know how true the last rumor is, but a friend of mine told me she saw her leaving a bar late at night. She looks like a real delinquent." finished Yuigahama, giving the other two some perspective on what could become their next focus student.
"And this would quite possibly explain why she's often late to school the next day." Said Hikigaya with a contemplative look on his face.
"Yes, that may be a correlation, but that's not the issue here, if she really is indulging in alcohol, then relating that to how often she's late means that she probably does this 2-3 times a week. That, in any situation can't be healthy." said Yukinoshita.
"Ok then, should we scout out this place she frequents… Hey what kind of shady place would your friend had to have been in to see an underage classmate leave a bar?" asks Hikigaya, as observant to every detail as ever.
"Actually Hikki, that's the strange thing. It was in quite a posh part of town. Do you know that new tall building on Togane Highway? Apparently it was the skybar at the top floor there. My friend was eating dinner with her family when she saw her."
"Oh… That makes things easier then. I happen to own the place." he said nonchalantly, closing his eyes but trying hard not to fall asleep from the previous night. There was silence in the whole room, and he could feel the looks he was getting. He opened his eyes to Yuigahama practically having question marks flying over her brain.
Yuigahama, being our beloved airhead that she is, obviously does not follow business and underestimates the level of society of who she oh so affectionately calls 'Hikki'. Her eyes widened.
"Your family owns the bar?" she asks, curiously, as if not believing it the first time.
"No, dummy, I own the building." It would be ridiculous to say that her eyes widened even more, if that was even physically possible.
"Ok then, It's decided, tomorrow evening the three of us will go to this skybar and figure out what's going on." he said, closing up the light novel that he wasn't reading.
"Tomorrow? Why not today?" And with that sentence out, Yuigahama let out a very, very nervous laugh as she received two piercing glares from both sleep deprived To-Be-Weds.
"Oh… Right… Tomorrow it is then." She said quickly following up with another laugh and sweat rolling down her face.
"Hm… Alright, wear something nice. Yukinoshita, no need to come by tonight, we're both way too tired. I'll order in." he said, getting up and packing his bags.
"Agreed." said Yukino in response.
The pain in his leg gets noticeably worse when he's tired, and you could definitely tell that he was leaning on his cane a bit harder. As expected, he pulled out his painkillers and downed a few before zoning back into the conversation.
"Eh, Yukinon, Are you sure it's okay if I borrow some of your clothes?"
"Yes of course, I have plenty fit for formal and casual occasions, what with my family being the way it is. We could go now if you want to, I don't plan to sleep until later, it will ruin my sleep schedule." she said. Hikigaya could see the slightest traits of amusement, engagement, and even happiness on Yukinoshita's features as she spoke to the bubble of a nice girl in the room. He bid his farewell with an absent-minded pleasantry from both of them. He limped out, his gait gotten noticeably worse. As he left the room he had only one thought.
'You really work fast, don't you Yuri-gahama-san? At this rate, I'll be forced to marry Haruno to keep the agreement because Yukino confesses her undying love for you!'
Whether he wanted to or not, he shivered. He may consider Haruno a friend and a person close to him, but being engaged to her would make him putty in her hands. He brushed his random thought process aside. Soon, he got into his car, opened his book, engaged in conversation with Sakuya a bit, and went home.
Hikigaya's apartment
He had just been dropped home and really wanted to sleep after the night that he had faced. He entered his apartment, dumped off the bag and went straight for the bedroom, with a short glance over his living room. He didn't even look before he plopped himself down and took off his shoes and shirt. He quickly changed into his boxers and t-shirt before lying down on the bed. He wanted to really just pass out, but he stared at the ceiling for a good 5 minutes before finally acting again.
"Hey, Mai-chan, how much longer do you wanna pretend to be asleep?" He said, and sure enough streaks of blue entered his peripheral vision as the person on the other side of the queen-sized bed sat up.
"Ishishishi… Hi-Hi Hachi-kun! You didn't notice me there for a second, didn't you?"
"I knew you were here since the moment I entered my apartment. The bathroom door was left open, the balcony wasn't locked, the tv remote wasn't where I left it with a glass filled with an overtly sweet drink even my standards lying on the far side of the kitchen, a brand I know only YOU drink." he said. He specifically bought it for that reason alone.
"That's the only reason you kept that around here, didn't you?" She said, pushing her majestically blue hair back, with green eyes boring into his own dead ones, a playful smile on her face.
"Of course. What do you want? Are you here for that holiday you were talking about?"
"Oh as of now… Nothing. I just had business to attend to here in Chiba, I'll head back to Tokyo tonight. I'll definitely take you up on that offer though, trust me!"
"Please don't tell me you're gonna marry Hayato or something now… God only knows why you're here with the week I had."
"Mou, Can't I check on my best friend every now and again?" she fake-pouted.
"Yes, but sleeping in an Ex's bed with whom you have gone to second base with is highly alarming on the other hand." neither of them went red faced that that, the two of them simply stared at each other with a deadpan look before breaking out in laughter. Arato Mai was everything to him. She stood by him in even his darkest moments, and he was eternally grateful to her. But both of them knew for a fact that they could not stand each other when they were in a relationship. They had evolved more like old siblings that love each other but can't stand each other for the life of them when they were actually together. Mai lost her smile slowly as she stared at the gaping scar that was pretty much a hole in his leg at this point. His short boxers revealed quite a bit of the scar, and she couldn't help but raise a hand to it and touching it briefly before being stopped by Hachiman.
"Don't do it… I'm fine." He said, losing all the humor in himself as well. It was a reminder to himself. It was a reminder that he couldn't always come out unscathed when he did stupid things for the sake of others. He'll never forget the look that little girl had as she cried in his lap when she visited him at the hospital and the happiness that he felt, nor will he forget what he went through to achieve it. He was done committing social suicide for the sake of others. He need to teach them how to get out of something themselves, or in his mind, they could go to hell.
"I need to go now Hachi-kun." She said, getting off the bed. Despite all he said about being alone, there was something that he didn't want to let go off as she left the room at that moment. She was his driving force for years, and his methods and habit of pushing people at an immeasurable length had almost destroyed them at one point.
"Mai-chan… Come back soon. I… I need you here." He said with an utter honestly that he felt almost ashamed to say out loud.
"No, You don't. You don't need me here at all." She said, with her back turned to him. His eyes moved to her.
"But… I'll be there anyway. Because you don't need me here, you WANT me here." she turned around, smiling to her oldest friend. He smiled back. She walked up to him and kissed him on his cheek before heading out, and the sounding bang of the front door was heard moments later. He leaned back to his bed to contemplate his dynamic in his relationship. Because he knew the reason Mai came to see him today. She was also a reminder.
She would never abandon him, and he would never abandon her. It was the underlying factor of their entire history, Hayato included. Leave no man behind. As much as Hachiman despised Hayato and vice versa, even they knew to abide by that golden rule. This is what Mai came to remind him of.
All the more reason why he was so worried that he was set to marry the woman his closest friend loved. She needed him to remember that.
If things played out the way he thought they were gonna go, then he really would need her here.
A/N: And there you have it! I am currently working on an Oregairu two/three shot piece that you guys can look out for, since I will be releasing the full piece at once. I personally think the story for it is very well made, so I hope you guys will enjoy it when I release it in the near future.
