07: The Gamer and The Princess – High School

"Fine." He said. "Five minutes."

What a jerk, Orimoto mused. And even after she said please. Well, she could do nothing about it now. He seemed adamant and stubborn, firm about his stupid decision and not ready to change his mind any time soon. Arms crossed over his chest, leaning against the wall which was right next to the entrance of the classroom, but keeping his feet firmly planted on the corridor outside, he even closed his eyes and lowered his head while keeping his face at an angle which was away from her immediate direction. Not for the first time it looked like he wanted to be left the hell alone. Maybe he needed some time to himself, some time to think, some time to reflect, some time to come to grips with what he had learned by talking to her after all these years. Yeah, it was a bit too much, especially for a guy like him.

She decided to give him all the time he needs. "I will be back in a second."

Of course back in a second was just a turn of phrase. You can't really do anything in a second. But you can't have an important discussion with the student council president of another school, someone you haven't met before and have no established rapport with in around five minutes either. He was just saying that to show his impatience. He didn't mean it. Well, at least that's what she hoped. Maybe he had too much of her shit and just wanted a lame excuse to run off. If she remembered correctly, he was extremely good at that back in middle school. No doubt he had gotten better over time. Anyway, she would fine out soon enough. In five minutes to be exact.

As she entered the classroom, she was once more reminded of the fact that she had no idea who the student council president was. Sure, she had a name. Isshiki Iroha. But that's just it. Not much to go on. She didn't know what she looked like. Granted, when she came to Soubu, Tamanawa hadn't given her anything else except a name either. She came here looking for Shiro-san, whom she assumed was a man, judging by his name. But Hikigaya told her it was in fact a woman and her full name was Shiromeguri. He also informed her that she wasn't the student council president anymore. That title now belonged to a first year student named, Isshiki Iroha.

Really, Tamanawa and the guys back at the planning committee had goofed up big time. When she gets back to Kaihin Sogo, she was going to give those idiots a piece of her mind. And she might be a bit more angry and annoyed at them then they would expect because she had to deal with Hikigaya Hachiman, meet him after all these years, deal with his brusque manners and cold attitude and revisit certain incidents from their past, talk about things which were better left unsaid and reflect on these feelings and emotions which were forgotten when she graduated middle school, because she knew nothing good would come out of them.

But she had opened that can of worms and now she was left dealing with the aftermath. Oh, she was gonna tear someone's head off. Metaphorically speaking of course. Because otherwise it would be plain murder. And she wasn't going to jail over someone else's stupidity. But if she could get away with it, oh boy, let's just say that Tamanawa's bloated body would be found washed up on the beach in a couple of weeks. Yeah, it was his fault. And Hikigaya's too. But for some reason she wasn't thinking about killing him. Huh. Strange. Maybe, it's because he looked a bit dead already. Especially those eyes. She didn't remember them being so empty.

Was it because of her? Because of what she did back then or because of what she is doing right now. She couldn't tell. But it isn't exactly important right now. She could deal with it later. Or better else, she didn't need to deal with it at all. She was pretty sure he wouldn't like to talk about it. What's there to talk about, he would probably snark. Guys didn't like to talk about their feelings and though she knew, Hikigaya Hachiman wasn't like your average guy, she was pretty sure, in this aspect, he would have no trouble following such a clichéd stereotype.

However he did break the mould when he decided to bring her all the way to Isshiki Iroha's classroom and then stubbornly refused to help her - a woman in need - by properly introducing her to the student council president of his school. He just used a clever ploy based on some technicality in his speech, like how he said he would take her to meet Isshiki Iroha but didn't say anything about introducing her to the woman in question, to stop himself from helping her any further. And here she was hoping he might just become her knight in shining armour.

So much for that idea.

She wasn't asking for much. Okay, fine. If he didn't want to introduce her to Isshiki – wait - could there be a reason behind his reluctance. There just might. Must ask him later. No, must annoy him to spill his secrets right now. Wait, is she doing a robot voice in her mind? Why? Is she bored? Is she delaying the inevitable because she is scared about talking to a first year student who happens to be the student council president of one of the best high schools in the entire prefecture? And she is from Kaihin Sogo. No, that can't be right. It's probably because mom was watching Robocop last night. Yeah, that must be it. Personally, she liked Terminator 2. But then again, who doesn't. Maybe she should use that as an icebreaker. Hello Isshiki-san, what is your favourite Terminator movie? Terminator Genisys. Oh. Okay. Yeah, no. I'm afraid our school isn't willing to host a joint Christmas Collaboration event with you in charge. Because you know, you have such poor tastes.

Wait, why is she being so rude to this woman? She hasn't even met her yet. She doesn't even know what she looks like. Yeah, thanks a lot, Hikigaya. You could have just taken a small peek inside and told her where she is, but no, you had to wait outside, deep in thought, while posing like a character from some anime she probably hasn't ever heard about. What was it called again? JoJo? No, that sounds stupid. Maybe she remembers it wrong.

She had to focus. Where is Isshiki Iroha? Well, Hikigaya brought her to this class, so she must be here right? But as she took a look around the nearly vacant classroom and walked down a couple of rows of empty tables and chairs, she realized that apart from a few students who were just hanging around in small clusters, talking or gossiping with the members of their friend's circle, the rest of the students she expected to find in the classroom were nowhere to be found.

Of course!

She had come here after school hours when the majority of the students were busy with club activities. With a famous and prestigious school like this which had a reputation to uphold and excel in pretty much every area of academics and sports, she was surprised that the students were offered a choice in regards to whether they wanted to join a club or not. She would have thought club activities would be compulsory over here. But she had spotted Hikigaya outside, minding his own business and then there were these guys in Isshiki-san's class who were just chilling and maybe she had drawn the wrong conclusion. Besides, Hikigaya Hachiman in a club? Now that would be hilarious.

But enough about that. She had to make a decision. There were a group of three to four girls to the left of the classroom, right next to the wall, in the second row, a couple of desks down. They seemed to be chatting among themselves, having joined their desks together with each other in a small square-ish formation, which Orimoto remembers doing herself sometimes, so that they could talk without turning their heads a lot in every different direction. Good thinking. But she would have thought the girls at Soubu were more proper, glued to their respective tables, discussing more important topics like global warming and politics and trapped in the imaginary boxes which are crafted by their families, imprisoned by their own values and small minds.

But these were just normal girls, talking about normal, everyday stuff. What's new in fashion, the latest brand of lip gloss, when should they start wearing their winter uniform, who might like who, who definitely hates who, how their older brother is annoying, whether they should check out the new café which opened near the – and she is totally being creepy by listening in on their conversation. Now that is something Hikigaya would do. Not cool.

She thought about approaching these girls because there was a chance Isshiki Iroha might be one of them. But wasn't she the student council president? Shouldn't she be in the student council room handling her business? Now, why hadn't she thought of this before? It's because Hikigaya just brought her here instead of taking her to the student council room. Why? Did he need a time out from the small nugget of truth she dropped, the reason why she rejected him? Is that it? She didn't know. And she wasn't about to ask.

But who knows. Maybe Isshiki Iroha was one of these four girls. She could ask. But one of the girls was giving her a weird look, because she might have caught on to the fact that not a moment ago she might have been accidentally eavesdropping on the conversation she was having with her friend. Maybe she didn't like it and who could blame her.

Okay, the other alternative. The nerdy guy in the glasses who was playing a videogame. He was in the middle row and from the looks of it, lost in his own world, muttering curses and exclamations and talking about the latest event and how he was the best at this game and everyone else sucked. "You can't beat me, Hatano! Neither can you Zaimokuza-senpai! The treasure is mine. Eat my sword."

The four girls from earlier in the other side of the class were giving him a couple of odd looks and shaking their respective heads, like he was hopeless, an embarrassment and from what she could tell from their reaction or lack thereof, this was normal behaviour. Orimoto didn't mind that much. Guys and their videogames. She remembered Hikigaya told her once that he owned a Nintendo GameCube. He never said it out loud but she suspected, much later, that he might have wanted to invite her to his home for a game night. He never found the courage to ask her and she never told him that she sucked at videogames. Honestly, with the history they shared and the stuff that happened, it wasn't a huge deal. Besides she preferred the real thing, the genuine article. Why play FIFA 18, when you can play soccer outdoors.

But a lot of gamers and otakus and Hikigaya Hachiman and she had a feeling this guy in particular wouldn't agree with her statement and just call her a sore loser for never winning or finishing an entire video game in her life. It was just a waste of money. And creepy, what with those role-playing games where a guy could pretend to be a girl online and vice versa. Really, what was up with that? Thank god she was not here to discuss such terrifying issues. This guy, who still didn't manage to see her or more likely was trying to ignore her and focusing all his attention on his game, even though she was standing right next to his desk and hunching a little to read out his name from the pile of notebooks scattered across his desk, wouldn't probably like to be interrupted. But he was playing a stupid videogame. So it was kinda okay.

"Sagami-kun, is it?" Orimoto began uncertainly. She couldn't quite make out his first name, because the notebook at the top was covered by a rather heavy looking book which was taken out from the library no doubt, because no sane person would own a heavy book like this. But then she had to assume this guy was sane, so the jury was still out. "Sorry to interrupt. I can see you're extremely busy." She hoped she wasn't coming off sounding a bit sarcastic. Maybe she shouldn't have waved her hand towards his handheld console quite like that. But at least she got his undivided attention. "But can you tell me where I can find Isshiki Iroha?"

Sagami-kun didn't pause his game and he wasn't even surprised that she figured out his name. Anyone else would be a bit creeped out or a little wary if a complete stranger knew your name without having been properly introduced. She knew she was when Hikigaya did something similar, saying her name out loud rather abruptly, before she had a chance to do the same, because it was the first time they talked in middle school and they were about to become neighbours due to the new sitting arrangement. She hadn't let it known that she was creeped out back then, because she wanted to start of things in the right footing and gradually be on friendly terms. But this guy didn't share the same incentive. From what she could tell, all that mattered to him was his game, which he still hadn't paused. How rude, she thought. And then he had to open his mouth. "Can't you see, I'm busy. This is the problem with you normies!" With righteous fury he glared at her from behind his glasses while clicking away at his game. "And how would I know where that vicious, nasty, hellion is!? She probably doesn't even know that I exist. Then why should I care about her now? Because she became the student council president. Tsk, tsk." He shook his head. "I think not."

Okay. This guy was clearly not a fan of Isshiki Iroha. Did he ask her out on a date and got rejected? It could be possible. Because from what she had seen so far, he was the kind of guy who paid more attention to his videogame than a somewhat beautiful girl, who was slightly older than him, who was also asking him in a really polite manner to help her find the student council president of his school. But no, he was being a jerk and calling her a normie. Since, when did being normal become an insult? Wasn't it usually the other way around? She knew Hikigaya got embarrassed whenever he was called an otaku. He would always argue that he wasn't one because he kept things in moderation. But this guy was cursing and shouting and talking to his videogame like it was a living, breathing organism. Maybe he was playing with other people, his friends probably and talking to them online. Now that she noticed he did have small ear pods on. Okay, so he wasn't that much of a weirdo as to talk to a piece of machine. At least she could breathe easy.

But now she had a choice. She could annoy him further or try her luck with the group of girls. She had seen them giving her a couple of weird looks, probably because she was talking to videogame boy over here. They probably figured out she wasn't from around here, that she wasn't a fellow student from their school, because her uniform was a bit different. Maybe one of them even figured out she went to Kaihin Sogo. It was a possibility. They were smart. They went to Soubu, after all.

But this guy couldn't care less. When was the last time he talked to a girl, she wondered. Now that would be an embarrassing question to ask, something he might not even respond to, because he couldn't answer it without lying or blushing. But she wasn't as heartless as he might think. Unlike Hikigaya, she knew how to be social, how to act friendly and make small conversations which went absolutely nowhere.

"Sooo," she stretched out while having a smile in place. "What are you playing?"

Sagami-kun ignored her for a moment, perhaps waiting to see whether she would just go away if he continued to not respond, but he was a first year high school student, a nerd who was more into games then real life and probably didn't have much interaction with girls in his life. Based on the looks he got from the four girls in the classroom right now, she could tell he wasn't exactly popular. Maybe he was picked on or bullied, something which made him choose the virtual world over real life. But she was a new face, someone not from his school. Also, she looked a bit older, definitely acted more mature then the rest of the girls in his class, who didn't know a thing, didn't care to understand him and made fun of his hobbies. She was also kind and considerate and interested in what he was doing. He could multitask, play his game while being polite. "Do you play CoC?" At the slight look of bewilderment, he further elaborated. "Call of Cthulhu. It's a TRPG."

Orimoto had no idea what he was talking about. She knew RPG meant role playing games but what the hell was the 'T' for? Teen Role Playing Game? Did they now come with a specific age demographic in mind? She could have asked, but she wasn't really interested. So instead she tried talking to him with some level of honesty. "Look, I'm not a gamer." Still not telling him that I suck at videogames, she thought. If Hikigaya didn't know, nobody else should know. But watching the mild tones of curiosity and excitement and hope leave from his expression in the blink of an eye as he lowered his face and started to lift his walls, returning back to a world which didn't shun him, returning back to his game, Orimoto realized how she might have sounded just now, that maybe she had been a bit rude and upset him somehow. It was the same thing with Hikigaya all over again. But this time it would be different. She had to think of something quick. Now, she might not play videogames, but she was still friends with people who played them and she did pick up on the odd phrase or two, to make polite conversation and give the impression that she knew what she was talking about and that she was an essential part of their circle of friends. Perhaps she could remember something from those mindless talks and use some information she learnt from them to cheer this guy up. Something came to mind and she decided to run with it. "But, I know League of Legends is crap."

Sagami-kun straightened up. Oh no. He stopped clicking away at his console and met her eyes. For the first time since they had been talking, he wasn't playing close attention to his game. Now that she looked at it, he had actually hit pause. He was also looking at her in a rather strange way. It was not creepy or perverted, more like he was trying to figure her out. She knew what he was thinking? Who was this girl and how does she know about video games? She doesn't look the type. Or maybe she had pissed him off because he actually liked the game she mentioned. Who knows, maybe it was the best game in the entire world. Really, she wouldn't be surprised if the gamers from her school were trying to make fun of her by landing her in some serious trouble with a really passionate gamer, who took things really seriously and didn't like others bad mouthing their precious pastime. Oh, she should definitely not call it a pastime. They don't like it when you say that. Now, the most important question is will this guy become violent? She never believed the theory that videogames were a leading cause of violence among the youth, but now she was a bit worried. Hikigaya was still standing outside right? He would come to save her. Right?

"Indeed." Sagami-kun replied while adjusting his glasses, pushing them up rather importantly on his nose. "The matchmaking algorithms are a total mess. When a player is trying to evolve and play harder, he faces a ton of criticism and abuse. There isn't a sandbox mode to train. And did I mention the toxic environment. It's the absolute worst!" He looked at her and his face fell a bit. "You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?"

"No clue." Orimoto shrugged with a small smile. "I just knew the reference."

"Well at least you are being honest. That's a welcome change." Sagami-kun replied, unable to hide some of the hurt he was feeling as he returned back to the game. Orimoto thought this had been a huge waste of time, when he added. "Talk to the girls over there. They might know where she is." She watched him tap away on the console, but he had more to say and she listened to his words carefully. "My guess is she is playing hooky. Probably with Hayama-senpai from the soccer team."

"Thanks Sagami-kun." Orimoto replied before turning her back on him. "You have been a big help."

Hayama. Hmm. Why does this name sound so familiar? She would have to think about it later. But first she had to figure out where to find Isshiki Iroha. She was definitely not in this class. Hikigaya had lied to her. Okay, that sounded a bit accusatory. Hikigaya made a mistake. Good. That sounds better. Now she could head back to the soccer field and have a look, but she was having a hard time believing Sagami-kun's words. Firstly, she didn't know him all that well. This is the first time they met and he had talked to her more about a game which was hated in the gaming community then the student council president of his school. She also got the distinct impression that he didn't exactly like Isshiki Iroha. The reason wasn't exactly clear. Maybe he didn't vote for her or preferred the other candidate. At least Tamanawa didn't have to worry on that front. He was universally popular in their school and though sometimes the guys made fun of him for his weird hand gestures and the odd English word he threw in to a conversation without pretty much any thought or consideration, he was still a stand up guy. Okay, he was a bit pretentious, a little obnoxious and kinda stupid with having no idea how to lead, let alone be in charge of a huge joint collaboration event, between two schools which had to be organized on Christmas Eve. But from what she could tell, this Isshiki Iroha wasn't doing any better. Apparently, she was playing hooky, skipping out on her duties, by being with some guy from the soccer team. Or were there multiple guys. It was Soubu after all.

She would have to ask Hikigaya about this, but maybe he won't give her a straight answer. She was still unclear about his own relationship with Isshiki Iroha. Back in middle school he didn't care about who the president was. He didn't even know the guy. But in high school things were a bit different. From what she could tell he knew both presidents, the former and the current one. Shiromeguri-san, he had called her senpai. There was nothing going on there. But Isshiki Iroha was in her first year. That would make her a kohai. Was that the nature of their relationship? A senpai and a kohai.

Back in middle school, he had talked about it, how he would have liked to help out and guide and protect some of the first years when he became a senpai in their school. He would make sure they didn't face the same problems he faced, share the same bad experiences he had and make their life much better than the one he led, this much he had promised. But she didn't know if he really went through with it, if he kept his word. By then they were not on speaking terms. Maybe he was doing it now that he was in high school. Another chance, another attempt, to make things right, help himself by helping others.

She liked to believe that was the case, but she didn't have the confidence to ask. Instead she went up to the group of four girls, waited until one of them noticed her and stopped talking amidst themselves and paid her some attention. The same smile from before found its way back to her face. "Sorry for bothering you. But I'm looking for Isshiki Iroha." She said to all four of them. "Do you know where I can find her?"

Three of the girls looked at each other with different levels of uncertainty, whispering among themselves, trying to talk in hushed voices which were still very much audible because of how close she was too them. She didn't mind. They were just curious. They just wanted to know why she needed to talk to one of their classmates, especially someone like Isshiki Iroha. But they were still not directly talking to her, so she didn't say anything. They didn't need to know the nature of her business. These girls were gossiping not a second ago. If she told them why she was here, they would ask her a bunch of different questions and it would get her nowhere close to finding out where she could possibly meet with the student council president of their school.

"Have you tried the student council room?"

"Kei-chan, you think she is there?"

Orimoto Kaori had stopped listening. Kei-chan. What a beautiful name for a beautiful girl. This Kei-chan had her back to her at first, that's why she wasn't able to get a good look at her face. But as she turned around and asked her the obvious question, Orimoto Kaori got a good look at her face and she was left speechless. It was like this girl had come out of the pages of a fantasy novel with knights and dragons and princesses. And there was no doubt in her mind, Kei-chan was a princess. She was young with waist-length white hair that had bangs swept to the left side, blue eyes and an ashen complexion. She also wore a frilly hairband with a pearly accessory. She was absolutely stunning, the cutest girl she had ever seen and if she was into girls, she would have confessed to her right now and got rejected on the spot, because clearly this girl was out of her league. Wait, did she accidentally call herself ugly.

"Hey, are you okay?" Kei-chan sounded worried.

Orimoto tried not to sound too gloomy. It wouldn't do well to get wrinkles while she was still in high school. She was not Hikigaya. She could be cheerful and full of life. "Yeah, I'm fine." She said in a brighter tone, a bit too loud. "Just thinking why I hadn't thought about it before. The student council president is in the student council room. Of course!" She lightly smacked the side of her head and stuck her tongue out in a cute manner. She barely stopped herself from going 'tehee' because she had to remind herself that she wasn't in middle school anymore and didn't have the extra cuteness, which someone like Kei-chan might possess to pull it off successfully.

But wait a second. No, this couldn't be happening again. Kei-chan was cute and really feminine. She wore accessories on her head. More importantly there was the skirt to consider and her gorgeous legs. They were clad in stockings. Besides, she was indoors, talking to a bunch of girls, gossiping about stuff like fashion and how her brother was so damn annoying. She had to be a girl. She just had to be a girl. There should be no room for question. There should be no doubt. Then why was she letting her thoughts run off into a very different direction. And was she staring a little too much at her –

Kei-chan shifted a little, crossing her legs. "Is there something else I could help you with?" she asked in a rather terse voice. Who wouldn't be a little wary, if you were staring at a girl's body like that? And no, it didn't matter if you were another girl. They were in Soubu. Anything was possible over here.

For a brief moment, another pretty feminine face with short silver and a green track suit, holding a tennis racquet, flashed across her mind. He is a dude, someone who sounded awfully like Hikigaya whispered into her mind and she really couldn't help it. She tried. She really did. But in the end it just slipped out of her mouth.

"You are a girl, right?"

Blue eyes narrowed into a glare and a small blush rose to her ashen face as Kei-chan frowned at the strange woman she had caught checking her out just a few second ago. "E-excuse me?" she blurted out, almost stuttering in embarrassment.

"Orimoto, your five minutes are up!"

And just when she thought all hope was lost, an unlikely hero came to her rescue. Orimoto was so happy she could have kissed him. Metaphorically speaking of course. Because the alternative would be a big no-no. He could barely stand her. And if she kissed him out of the blue she was pretty sure he would get a heart attack.

"Coming!" She shouted back and then turned to look at the group of four girls, Kei-chan in particular who was left fuming and embarrassed. Orimoto opened her mouth, thinking she should say something, maybe explain the situation. But like the man who was standing outside told her, she didn't have enough time. And going through the entire Totsuka Saika thing, what Hikigaya explained to her would take another five to ten minutes. So, it was a good thing she didn't have the time. "Thanks for your help." She called out to them as she almost ran out of the class in a jumpy pace. But she had to undo some of the damage, so at the very last moment, she called out to Kei-chan, saying rather quickly. "Don't worry. You will have boobs. You will be a girl."

As she exited the classroom, Orimoto Kaori was pretty sure she heard Sagami-kun burst out laughing. And the princess simply known as Kei-chan let out a stream of curses which wouldn't feature in any fairy tales for children. If she had an older brother, he would be surprised or a bit disappointed.

Wait, if she was a princess and she had an older brother, wouldn't he be a prince. Wait, did she finally figure out what to say to Isshiki Iroha to break the ice. Of course! They could talk about boys. Screw the Christmas Event. It could wait until later when they had established a good rapport or become good friends.

Yeah, that's exactly what she should do.

A/N: I knew Sagami had a younger brother, but I almost forgot that he was in the same class as Isshiki Iroha. I needed someone from her class to feature in this chapter and make Orimoto learn something about Isshiki which Hikigaya might not be willing to tell her. But I also promised readers that Kei Shirogane will feature in this story and this is the small cameo I had in mind. If some of you don't like it, just remember that I didn't mention her last name, so she could be someone else too. Whatever makes you happy.

Now onto the polls. Now, I know this is an Orimoto x Hikigaya fic but who's to say there can't be a healthy dose of competition, other popular girls vying for his attention.

Poll#1: Who will be the main love rival/second female lead in this fic?

Option 1: Isshiki Iroha.

Option 2: Yukinoshita Yukino.

Option 3: Yuigahama Yui.

Option 4: An Oregairu Girl of Your Choice.

Please, pick accordingly.

Now, there can't be a story without an antagonist. Though they won't be a real villain but they will create problems in Hikigaya's life.

Poll#2: Who will be the villain of this fic?

Option 1: Hayama Hayato.

Option 2: Sagami Minami.

Option 3: Tamanawa.

Please, pick accordingly.

Finally, this is about the chapter I will upload on 25th December, because this is a Christmas themed fic and I really have to write something for Christmas. So, this is kinda important.

Poll#3: What kinda chapter do you want for Christmas?

Option 1: Flashback to Middle School – (Christmas Eve.)

Option 2: A Dream - (Probably Romantic)

Option 3: A Flash Forward to the end of the Christmas Event (Not – Canon.)

Option 4: Just a normal update.

Option 5: A Lemon scene.

Please pick accordingly.

Hope everyone enjoyed reading this chapter.

Leave lots and lots of reviews, follow and fave.

Won't betray your dreams.