As Expected He Was More Warped Than Most

Mornings were where most people started their days. Emphasis on 'most'. Not because mornings were bad. Oh no. But because a lot of people simply tended to stay up till three in the morning for some god forsaken reason. Fortunately for Hikigaya Komachi, she was not one of those people. In fact she likes to wake up early. Usually around Seven AM to do a multitude of things. Things such as brushing her teeth, taking a bath were obvious. Things such as making breakfast for her and her parents? Not so much. You see, when you have two workaholic parents that rarely say no to overworking or covering for others at work(despite how much they whine about it to her afterwards), you tend to get stuck pretty much most of the housework. Including cooking. Nevertheless, it was life. Albeit a little lonely during meals. She didn't mind that much anymore. Not that she had much of a choice to begin with. But at least their trying to spend more time at home than at work unlike when she was but a toddler. The effort alone was enough for her to keep doing the things she did best with a smile. Funnily enough. Smiling was also one of the things she did best.

She turns off the stove. Half of Breakfast was complete. The aroma floated to her nostrils and she couldn't help but be proud of the finished product. A beeping sound reached her ears. Her left hand instantly reaches out to the rice cooker on her left to turn off the device and flipped open the lid to let out the steam. She looked at the clock on the wall, Seven fifteen AM. Plenty of time left. Minutes later she was sitting on one of the four chairs of the dining table, fully dressed in. Eating the dish she prepared at a leisure pace she began thinking of what was to come today. The amount of work she needed to do at school would take at least thirty minutes. As a member of the Student Council, she had much work to do even at school. She had to, there was no other way to make her report card look impressive. Unfortunately, because of all the work she has to do at home. There was little time to study. There was a way to fix this issue of course. If SOMEBODY (she would have glared at her parents if they were here but they were still asleep from another night of overtime) were to help her study then maybe, just maybe. She would be able to pass the entrance exam of a decent enough high school. But since there was no one to help her study it was harder to grasp the concepts of certain things by herself. A sigh escapes from her. Sometimes she worried about her own future. With breakfast consumed. She took the dishes to wash them in the kitchen sink. Not to stroke her own ego but the curry she made today was definitely better than the one she made last time. With breakfast consumed and the plate now cleaned up. She went to do her final morning routine.

Standing in front of a short desk with a single object laid out on it she silently prayed with both eyes close. Seconds pass but not a single word was uttered. The sound of a door opening from upstairs rung throughout the Hikigaya household. Signalling the awakening of one of her parents. Her eyes opened and a smile bigger than before graced her lips.

"Ah Komachi. Off to school?" she heard the tired voice of her mother ask from the staircase. She turned to the woman and nods with a resounding 'yes'. "Alright then. I'll be back early today so leave dinner to me alright?" She beamed at her mother. It had been almost a month since she got to taste her mother's cooking. Looking back at the desk she spoke again.

"I'm off Onii-chan! Wish me luck!" with all the work that needed to be done before classes started. She would surely need it.

The picture of the fish eyed boy with an strained smile does not respond. If it did then she'd be freaked out actually. She missed him as much as her parents did, if not more. But seeing him come back as a ghost would definitely give her a heart attack. Actually it would be kinda sad if he ended up possessing a picture frame after coming back from the dead. Like, a picture frame? Really? At least go for something like vacuum cleaner. She suppressed a giggle. Imagining him whining about doing housework even though he was literally a machine used for that exact thing. She set out. Closing the door behind her went for the nearest bus stop to get to school.

"Hmm?" she looks around a little confused but doesn't stop walking. There was an old fashioned candy store on the corner of this street. It's been here fore years now. At the moment it was open. But it's not usually open this early. "... Should I?" Despite how she looked right now. She was actually really tired. Maybe a sugary snack would help? Get her brain jump started and stuff. "Aah. Why not." with that she entered the store. "Oba-san! Are you awake?" A short old lady, around Komachis' own height greeted her with a smile. She bought a pack of Pocky and munched on one of the sticks of chocolaty goodness. "How come you opened up so early today?" She couldn't help it. Her curiosity gained the better of her.

"What? But I opened when I always do?" the woman looked lost by Komachis' question.

"You open around Eight AM. Right now it's Seven... thirty..." Komachi pointed at the clock mounted on the wall that read exactly Eight AM.

The woman saw Komachis' expression and began to worry a little. "Are you ok-" before she was able to finish her question Komachi dashed out of the store and started running at top speed. "-ay?... Children these days. Always in such a rush."

"Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap." Her little legs were beginning to hurt. But it was nothing compared to how much her head would if she didn't make it on time. In the distance she was able to see the buss that had its engine running. "Nonono! Wait for meeee!" But of course it didn't. The vehicle sped to its next destination. Leaving a panting Komachi in the bus stop. "Dang it." She would be lucky if she managed to not get scolded by the teacher on guard duty today. She bit back a flinch. This was not a great way to start the day. At all.

"Hikigaya Komachi?"

"?" there was only one person she knew that greeted her like that. Also with that exact bland tone. Her body turns to see the one person she wasn't expecting to see. At least not this early.

"Onii-chan?" Not Onii-chan. "What're you doing here?"

"I moved to a new apartment a few days back." he replied. "This is the fastest route to Sobu for me now. You?"

He was from Sobu High and co-incidentally her school was also on the way to Sobu from here. Had this been some sort of children's anime then Komachi would have had a light bulb pop up above her head. "Actually..."

Convincing him to drop her off at her school was far easier than she thought. But she still explained the urgency of the situation. She sat on the backseat. "Ooh. Comfy."

"Hmm." Hachiman nodded without looking at her. "I spent a little extra on this one." A foot landed on the pedal. "Hold on tight." He did not hold back at all.

She ended up grabbing onto him for protection. If he minded her action he didn't show it. 'Huh...' something about this felt different. It didn't feel wrong... In fact... 'Would Onii-chan have given me rides if he was still alive?' he would have, right? She was his precious Komachi after all...

Right?

Neither spoke a word during the entire ride and before she knew it they were already there. She got off and thanked him for the ride before heading towards the entrance. There was no way she would get to the student council room and finish everything on time even with help from the other members. So there was no need to rush.

"Good Luck."

She froze. She turned around with a stunned expression to see the retreating form of Hachiman. "...Onii-chan?..." He was already too far gone to hear her. Her lips thinned for a second before smiling once more.

"Maybe I'll do that Student Council work before class after all."

Hachiman locked his bike on and made sure it was locked correctly. After all, wouldn't want this one stolen too. He yawned. It was gonna take some time for his body to get used to waking up this early again. Summer Vacation was amazing for his sleep but getting used to waking up at ten AM was a habit hard to get out of. The hallways were emptier than usual but that was to be expected. He couldn't be the only one that had a hard time waking up today. There were a few students gathering up in front of the notice board but he paid them no mind. All he wanted to do right now was get to 2-F and maybe take a small catnap.

"Over here, partner!"

Or not.

Despite the boisterous attitude of Zaimokuza Yoshiteru, someone whom one would find to be the opposite of the usual stoic Kotomine Hachiman in almost every way. The two 'hung out' more often than not. In fact, some would even say they were friends. Zaimokuza considered them to be friends. He however, to this day, did not.

"Zaimokuza-san."

The white haired boy stood tall as he greeted Hachiman with a smirk. Oddly enough, his trench coat and finger less gloves were missing for some reason. Maybe he forgot to bring them with him today? He was intending to stay quite about it. Keyword being 'intending'.

"... There is something different about you today." ... Intentional sarcasm really wasn't his forte, was it? Wait. Was that sarcasm even? "New look?" Curiosity killed the cat. Or something like that.

"... Hahaue burned all of my trench coats last night." Zaimokuzas' shoulders slumped in depression. A dark aura loomed over his 'large' form. "And wearing my gloves without it makes doesn't feel right."

Hachiman had to blink a couple of times to actually make sure he was actually seeing that 'dark aura' or not... The answer is yes. There actually was a 'dark and depressing aura' of sorts around his usual gym partner. He considered this to be one of those things he shouldn't question lest he begin to question his already questionable sanity even more, much like the universe's attempts to make Yukinoshita Yukino seem 'otherwordly' in certain situations. Long story short, just ignore it. A few seconds had gone by yet Zaimokuza was still depressed. Hachiman was beginning to wonder if that trench coat became a part of Zaimokuzas' soul or something. Why else would he be this depressed? With each passing second Hachiman was beginning to think his ludicrous thought was actually real. It seemed that the other students nearby were taking notice of the 'aura' as well. Hachimans' first instinct was to simply ignore the 'despair' emitted by Zaimokuza and get to class. However...

'Geh...' normally, despair would elevate him. The quality of this one was just disgusting. No... It wasn't even the 'quality'. It was the reasoning behind it. This needed to be stopped right now.

And so it did. The 'dark aura' instantly vanished as Zaimokuza looked at Hachiman with nothing short of shock and awe. It reminded Hachiman of the day he first met Zaimokuza in this very hallway. "You can buy more of those later. Let's get to class before the bell rings."

"Partner..." Zaimokuza was at a loss for words as the 'comforting' hand Kotomine Hachiman placed on Zaimokuzas' shoulder retreats to Hachiman. Actual tears began to well up on Zaimokuzas' eyes. He tossed himself on Hachiman, much to Hachimans' surprise. "I knew you'd warm upto me one day."

Hachimans' mind instantly shut itself down to avoid a self destruct sequence. There was only so much sudden physical contact he could take. These sort of things need mental preparations. Fortunately rebooting his brain didn't take too long. "Let go before I break your hands."

The sudden aggression. Well, not quite aggression but from someone like Kotomine Hachiman that was pretty close to a death threat, causing Zaimokuza to let go. "Wow Hachiman. I never expected such malicious words from you. Bad summer?" They finally set out for their classrooms.

"A friend told me to be more aggressive to get my point across." he explained his choice of words. "And... somewhat." It may not show. But he was having a hard time, processing everything that happened over the course of summer vacation.

"Ah. Would it have something to do with that rumor I've been hearing about? Something about-?" Zaimokuza asks before stopping completely. He even stopped walking as his eyes widening slightly. "Waitwaitwait. A friend?" Hachiman ignored it and continued walking. "You made a 'friend'? Partnet? Hachiman?!"

Quiet. Very quiet. Truthfully Hachiman was unsure if this level of silence was even possible from the likes of class 2-F. But that was to be expected since the loudest student in 2-F was absent for obvious reasons. He didn't mind it though. Quiet was good. It meant no unnecessary heada-

His eyes closed shut for a few seconds. Lately his headaches have been getting more and more frequent and he had no idea why. Lack of proper sleep maybe? No he had been getting a full eight hours of that these past few days. And aside form installing the new ceiling fan yesterday in the living room he didn't even do anything that could strain his body more than usual. He knew he had't eaten anything he shouldn't have nor did he do anything out of the norm after being discharged from the hospital either.

He thought back to that day. The day he made his first and so far only 'friend'. But that wasn't what he was thinking about. He was thinking about something else happened that day.

-Flashback-

Hachiman accepted the crutch offered by the nurse without thinking twice. It wasn't necessary but the doctor insisted him to use one for a couple of days. The blow he took to the head left him with a mild concussion. It was amazing he even woke up today apparently, let alone walk and talk. Either he was really lucky or had a really thick skull... For some reason he doubted both. Using the crutch to stand he leaned on it for support. Haruno helped him however she could of course.

"It's okay. I'll be fine." he nodded at her. Haruno gave him one last look before telling him she needed to do something real quick and to wait for her outside the hospital building. He watched her leave then looked at the floor, thinking of the events that took place less than two hours ago in this very same room.

"Yo."

He was brought out of his musings when the distinct voice of Hiratsuka Shizuka calling out to him reached his ears. He looked at the older woman who seemed to... look different for some reason. He raised an eyebrow at her questioningly.

"We need to talk."

-Flashback End-

Wait no. Not that one. The other one.

-Flashback Again-

Enlightening was not the word he would use to describe the conversation he had with the woman walking in front of him. Neither said a word. It wasn't required. From the look she had on her face one could easily tell she was in deep thought. Hachiman on the other hand wasn't thinking about anything at all. It was one of those moments. Just nothingness in his head. Not even a stray thought.

"N-er A-in."

'Isn't that...' he blinked a couple of times as his eyes move about to locate where it came from. He spotted his target. It was Haruno, inside the room in his left. A nurse came out of the room in a hurry. Opening and closing the door quickly so that the people inside couldn't be seen. But it was too late. He had seen who was inside. Actually... 'Wait. Weren't they the ones' from-'

"Something wrong?" Hiratsuka asked from in front of him since he stopped walking. He could still smell the nicotine in her breath. It wasn't hard to guess she smoked a cigarette or two before coming to see him.

Hachiman shook his head, "No." That wasn't a lie. Nothing was wrong at the moment, but what he saw definitely intrigued him a little. What was Haruno doing in that room? With those guys of all people?

-Flashback End-

It took him a little time to piece it all together. And even now it was a speculation on his part at best. Speculations being one of the few things he would rather avoid at all costs. Much like how older women(... most older women) were superior to their teenage counterparts, hard facts were superior to speculations and near baseless assumptions. It was rather unfortunate that speculations and assumptions were actually a requirement to survive through life. He would have asked her himself but she had been busy with something ever since that day apparently. And asking in front of Hiratsuka wouldn't end well.

But if he was wrong in his speculation then what happened back there? Why was Haruno talking to those men? They were the ones that had beaten him up to unconsciousness that day at the beach. And why were they so terrified? Did the bruises and bandages on them have anything to do with it? Either ways. It intrigued him to no end.

"That will be all for today. Remember to-"

They stood up and bowed as the teacher left. Hachiman sat back and searched his bag for his bento. Yes bento. He brought a bento for lunch. The contents inside were what one would expect should they know of his particular taste buds. After all it was cooked by him... He wondered how Hiratsuka would react this time after taking a bite out of it. Maybe the same as last time? No that shouldn't happen. He did add some rice to her lunch this time.

"Brought your own lunch today?" A surprised voice asks. Hachiman looks up at Kawasaki and nods. When she asked what he brought he was about to show her what he brought but another person entered the conversation.

"Kotomine-san, you brought his own lunch today?" Yuigahama, who was about to head to the service club to have lunch with Yukinoshita, asked. She suddenly looked excited. "Ooh, I know! Why don't you come have lunch with Yukinon and me?"

That was... a odd. It was rare for him to get invited to anything. Be it birthday parties or even lunch with classmates. "Does it matter? It's still lunch whether I eat it here or there." On hindsight, he should have bailed for the vending machine when the bell rang. A MAX would go so well with his lunch. Eating two of his 'favorite' things in the whole world in one sitting on a quiet setting was rather heavenly. Lets him focus on the taste so much more.

"It's more fun that way you know. Besides, doesn't eating by yourself feel lonely?"

He wouldn't know the answer to that one. However, he had gotten used to eating with company lately. He turns to Saki who was about to leave with a minor scowl on her face. "Do you want to come as well Kawasaki-san?"

Kawasaki flinched. She really didn't want to. She was about to head to the rooftop to have her own bento and maybe quick smoke. Yuigahama was surprised as well. Not expecting Hachiman to say that. She had nothing against Kawasaki but she didn't really want their white haired classmate to join them. But it was already too late.

-Service Club-

The air was tense and even Hachiman could sense it. Why it was like this he had no clue. Even though he didn't know that it would turn out like this, did he regret his decision to invite Kawasaki here? Eh, not really no. If they couldn't get along then that was on them. And if they really didn't want to be in each other's presence then the door was right there. Waiting to be used.

"Yuigahama-san. Why is Kawasaki-san here? And... Him too." Yukinoshita motions towards Hachiman who was unwrapping his bento. The can on MAX on the table sat quietly. A droplet of water rolling down it's steel surface as its temperature slowly rose to room.

"A-ah. Kotomine-san brought his own bento for once so I thought it would be nice if he could... join... us..." Yuigahama trailed under Yukinoshitas' stern gaze, nervously laughing while at it.

An annoyed sigh could be heard from Yukinoshita who felt she could do without the two 'loners' of 2-F right now. "A prior warning would be preferred next ti- What in the world is that?" What she was referring to was obvious to everyone in the room. Even the ever oblivious Yuigahama. They all leaned away from it, as if being too close to it alone would curse them to eternal damnation.

"Is that... Is that what I think it is?" Kawasaki mutters, her face contorting into an unease expression. By the looks of it, she understood what it was. The thing he said that night at Angel Ladder still fresh in her mind.

"It's my lunch." Hachiman opens the can of MAX.

"Is-Is that so?..." Yukinoshita really wanted him to leave right now. The smell was intoxicating in the worst way imaginable.

Hachiman pauses for a second. Something came to mind. 'Of all the people I could have become friends with. It was the one that is a bad influence on me...' A devilishly amusing thought. Who knows, maybe it would be worth a laugh. He nods. "Indeed. Want to try it?"

Yukinoshita heard his offer loud and clear then flinched as she looked back at the... the... abomination that was laid on the table along with the rest of their bentos like a wolf in sheep's clothing. She swallowed the lump in her throat and shook her head. "N-No, thank you. I have made my own lunch."

"Come now. Just a bite? It is but a tinge of extra pepper." A tinge wasn't really the term anyone would use for it. But this was Yukinoshita, the one that wouldn't back down from a challenge should one arise. "Unless you're scared of course. Most children can't stand-"

"I'll do it." Yukinoshita instantly replies. Yuigahama looked like she really didn't want Yukinoshita to try it and Kawasaki started eating from her own bento while attempting to ignore the culinary monstrosity that was only a couple feet away from her.

'Too easy.' Hachiman bit back the smirk that tried oh so hard to force its way through his stoic demeanor. Leave it to Yukinoshita to fall for such a childish taunt. There was probably a term for people like this. If only he could remember it right now. Nevertheless. He used one hand to push the bento towards her and the other to hand her the spoon on the other.

Yukinoshita took the spoon from him and scooped up the contents from his bento onto it. "... What is this called again?" She looked back at him for an answer and could have swore she saw the edges of his lips turn up a little. Whatever doubts she had were washed away at that moment and were replaced by determination. She would not show weakness to anyone. Be it friend or foe or even the man in front of her.

"Mapo Tofu. It's a Chinese dish."

The spoon went into her mouth and came out, lacking the portion of the mapo it had seconds ago. Hachiman leaned forward a bit, waiting for her reaction. Kawasaki held her breath and Yuigahama couldn't help but worry for her friend. Yukinoshitas' body visibly relaxed. The next instant was a blur to both Yuigahama and Kawasaki. But not to Hachiman whom had expertly retrieved his bento from next to Yukinoshitas'. Yukinoshitas' head fell down like dead weight and went straight into her lunch. No noise came from her but her back was moving. Meaning she was still alive.

"Yukinon?!" Yuigahama jumps in shock and tries to wake her up.

Hachiman wasn't sure which was more amusing, that she had instantly fainted or that her face fell right into her bento, smearing whatever she brought for lunch onto her face. He couldn't help but wonder if the edges of the bento had harmed her 'pretty' face. Haruno would tear his hide should something permanent happen to her 'precious younger sister'. His eyes turn a bit to his right to see Kawasaki gawking with both eyes wide like she saw the scariest thing in the world. "Want some?"

"LIKE HELL!"

-After School-

Yukinoshita eventually awoke... one period before classes ended. However, that didn't change the fact that she had missed a few classes. Apparently that set her in a mood since she did not utter another word to him the entire day. If fact, she had ignored him the entire time club was active! "Ah, miracles do exist." Fortunately there were no 'important' requests for the service club today aside from some more grunt work for the student council meeting, but he basically did grunt work for a living so as long as it didn't take too long he wouldn't complain. He exits the school premises on his bicycle with the intention of going to work.

"Kotomine-san!"

"Huh?" that was odd, didn't Tobe Kakeru miss school today? "Tobe-san? What is it?"

"I need your advice."

-Chapter End-

Yikes, another super late update. This one being far smaller being the previous one. Now that things are a little bearable now irl updates should be getting back to normal soon enough. Cross your fingers so that I can update again by this Friday. This chapter is far tamer than the last one(obviously) and there is a simple reason for it. I'm trying to get the feel of writing again. Not being able to write for over a month really wore down on whatever little 'skills' I have as a writer. It's pretty late right now so this chapter has a lot more spelling errors than the usual chapters. Very sorry about that.