An Unexpected Tryst at the Rooftop
An Average Day for Hachiman
I like it when I am the only one here in the StuCo room. I love the silence and the peace of mind it brings. Here I can work properly and study more efficiently than anywhere else, aside from the library perhaps. Coming here is like escaping from the real world, I place where I can laze around and finally drop my guard. I don't mind if Shiromeguri-senpai or my other Senpai can see me. They're in the same boat as I am and we can all sympathize with each other. It's great that Shiromeguri-senpai is very cool and relaxed about this sort of stuff, I think I'd lose my sanity if I had to keep up a façade her as well.
It's silent except for the sounds of faraway students from the open windows and the muffled and barely audible footsteps coming from the hallway outside.
"…"
Well, I'm not exactly alone…
*Staaaaaaaare~….
I can feel her eyes bore holes into my skull as she rested her chin on the table, pouting with narrow eyes.
*Staaaaaaaare~….
I sigh and finally look up from the paperwork that I was reviewing. "Yuuko, why are you here again?"
She narrows her eyes even further until they look like that of a snake's. "Stop playing dumb, Hachi-kun. You know exactly what I'm here for..." She stands to her full height and puts a hand on her hip and points at me accusingly. She's only slightly taller than Yumiko who's the fourth tallest girl in our class for reference. Saki being the first, followed by Ehime-san, Yuuko and Yumiko.
"You're skipping lunch again! I won't let you starve yourself just for some lousy paperwork!"
"This 'lousy paperwork' is pretty important you know? I'm assessing the accounting stuff that the clubs submitted and sending it to the school for our monthly report…" I say and pat the tall stack of papers to my right. "This includes the volleyball club that Ehime-san is part of." For the next few minutes, I try explaining things to her from my perspective but she just crosses her arms around her chest while shaking her head.
I momentarily pause, and then the unmistakable sound of a rumbling groan is heard from my stomach. Her straight lips get crooked and her shoulders shake, but she miraculously manages not to laugh out loud. A small squeak escapes from her lips and she looks down to hide her stifled laughter. I sigh and go back to what I was doing.
"Yuuko, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I'll see you at class…" From the corner of my eye, she straightens u again and I see her lightly chew on the insides of her mouth, a habit of hers that means that she's thinking about something. She also starts fidgeting with the ends of her blazer which she hasn't taken off yet since it's school hours.
"Hmm… I should have brought some food for you huh..." She says lowly to herself.
I stay quiet. The sooner I can finish this, the sooner I can finally take my lunch and calm my rumbling stomach down.
My other Senpai has been busy lately, which causes a lot of paperwork to pile up here in the StuCo room. So, it's up to me as their dependable Kouhai to help them out however I can. I've explained this to her, she finds it very admirable but not when I start skipping lunch to do it. If Shiromeguri-senpai or any other Senpai of mine told me to take a break, I'd do in a heartbeat. Hmm, it feels like I've slowly conditioned myself to be very subservient to authority…
"Do you want me to get something from the cafeteria for you?" She asks hopefully and in an upbeat tone.
"Once you go out and go back in, some onlookers might ask why a non-member of the StuCo came here." The cold logic in my words instantly broke her spirits and she slumped back onto her seat with a small thud.
I feel bad for the low blow, but I had already anticipated her to ask such a question. Uwaaah, look at her. There's white smoke coming out from her mouth and her eyes have comically become two "X's". She suddenly springs back to life when she catches me staring dully at her, amused by her dramatic reactions. We make eye contact for a moment before she gives me a cutesy look with wide and wet eyes, tears threatening to fall from corners.
I chuckle at the sight and rest my chin on my hands. "Heh. Are you interested in the Drama Club? I think you have what it takes to be an actress." Amused grin forms on her lips as her eyes shine mischievously.
"An Actress? I dunno about that. You're the only person that I show this side of me to." She gets up, her fingers lightly touching the table as she slowly walks around it. "Being in the Drama Club sounds like a hassle. And you have to do a lot of faking too. I'm not good at that stuff."
She arrives at my side, our eyes never leaving each other. Yuuko pushes the paperwork to my left away and unceremoniously sits in its place. She grins cheekily after seeing me arch my brow when she crosses her legs. I narrow my eyes at her and poke her tummy with my finger, telling her to get off since it's dangerous. She ignores me and starts lightly swinging her legs without care.
Both of her hands go to my cheeks and she presses them together until I must look like a fish. I let her do what she wants since she starts giggling when I make 'blooping' sounds with my lips. She lets go, and I was about to pick up the pen and paper but she slaps my hand away.
"Oi, what's the big idea…"
She pouts and pulls on my cheek. "Stop working and come with me to the cafeteria. You need to eat!" She starts chastising and nagging at me like an annoying wife.
"Think about it this way!" She says and puts an arm under her chest while she raised her other hand and pointer finger to emphasise her point. "You're skipping meals just to finish some stuff that can be done later after school! Since we only have one lunch period, isn't it impractical and will cause you to lose focus in class?"
I was about to make a retort but I stopped. Her logic is rather sound and I haven't thought of it that way. I put a hand under my chin and thought about it more deeply.
"Hmm… I've never really thought about it that way. I just wanted to finish things as quickly as possible…" I say.
"Fufufufufu! See? Aren't you also supposed to eat a lot because of your Anemia?"
"Yeah…"
Yuuko raises both of her hands to the air, celebrating her victory in the battle of wits against me. "See? See? I'm right! So come on!"
I take one last wistful look at the stack of papers before sighing in defeat. "Okay okay, you win." But before she can stand up, I move my chair forward and rest my face on her thighs. She giggles and I feel her soft feminine hands start patting and rubbing my head.
Hmm… Giving head pats is nice, I always like patting Komachi, Kei-chan and Isshiki's heads. They make cute noises like a small animals. But I don't mind it when it happens to me. I turn into a blob with all of my senses and logical reasoning taken from me when Shiromeguri-senpai, Komachi or my Mother does it. Now that I have Yuuko, she also does it to me too.
"Give me a minute or two…" I mumble against her skirt and lightly tickle her sides.
She giggles, the sound so sweet it could give be diyabeetus. If I wanted to be even cornier and reach beyond the threshold of what is called "cringe", I would record her giggles and use them as my ringtone. But that's just plain sociopath or psychopath behaviour. Not to mention being creepy and entering into Yandere waters. I wonder what's the male equivalent of Yandere…
"Okaay~… Take as much time as you need. Just don't fall asleep though." She says, but the side effects of my current medication make me hungry and sleepy. I'm sure that if I get too comfortable, my brain will quickly shut off on its own to recover and get some much-needed rest. Yuuko hums a tune as several minutes pass by, accompanied with her hand on my head. For a moment, I let the comfortable atmosphere get to my head and my mind wanders to the realm of dreams. I was instantly jolted awake with a start mere seconds after, scaring Yuuko and myself as well.
"Ahahahaha~. What the heck was that? Ehehehe, I knew you fell asleep when I felt you relax." She laughs and pokes my cheek, positioning right in front of me before spreading her legs and making herself comfortable on my lap. Even with the sleepiness still in my eyes, I can't help but look at her Zettai Ryōiki, the area of exposed skin between her skirt and stockings. She's wearing thigh-high stockings today, she usually alternates between it and over knee socks but prefers the former since they're cooler on the skin. Her arms go around my waist and she buries and rubs her face on my neck like a cat.
I always thought that the dress code for girl's skirts is ridiculous. It looks too short. Perhaps I can pass a resolution or something from the StuCo to amend that...
"Hey what do you think you're doing? You're gonna put creases on our uniforms." She just hums a reply as I yawn to try and get my wits back. It's a good thing that the chair I'm sitting on is just the average four-legged chair that you'd see anywhere. If this was the one with wheels, then having her sitting on me might cause it to break and hurt us.
"You know…" I say while playing with her hair. "It would be bad if we get caught like this."
"I locked the door."
"Hmph, that's very smart of you."
"Uh huh…" She mumbles and I feel her nose tickle the skin on my neck. "Hmm, you smell nice Hachi-kun…"
I make a small frown and tilt my head from her words. "But I'm not even wearing any perfume… I get a headache and feel faint when it's too strong."
"What about mine?"
I shake my head. "No. It's light and smells nice." I put my arms around her waist and try to get up, but she makes a tiny whimper when I attempted it. I sigh and call her attention by pinching her side. She slowly pulls away as our eyes meet. Despite being fastened in place by a hairpin, some of her light brown bangs fall and cover her left eye. She tries blowing it away but fails, so I had to let go of her waist and put them behind her ear.
"You're rather clingy today…"
"Haaah? I'm not clingy. You're clingy!"
[Sumiya Yuuko lied as naturally as she breathed.]
I look to the side, making a small sound out from my nose as I stifled a chuckle. "Eeeeh… Well, whatever you say then." I say and ruffle her hair before giving her a quick kiss on the lips. Just as I pull away, she leans forwards again, unsatisfied from our quick exchange of intimacy. I try my best to match her fire, but it was starting to get clear to her that I was doing my part halfheartedly.
She separates first and tits her head in wonder. "Hachi-kun? What's wrong?"
I deadpan. "I just remembered that…the StuCo Office has a CCTV camera installed."
Her rosy lips become a thin line and all colour and life from her face disappear in an instant.
"What?"
"Hikki! Hurry up and try my cookies!"
Yui chirps beside me enthusiastically and pulls on my apron to get my attention. I see stars in her eyes and she can barely contain her excitement. On the other hand, Tobe groans and turns toward the newcomer.
"Hey, come on I need help here. I asked for Hachiman's help first. Go to Yumiko or Hina or something." He says and goes back to stirring the cookie mix that I helped him make. I was also currently in the process of kneading my dough so I can make some doughnuts. Tobe might not look like it but he's a bit stubborn during Home Economics. He rarely asks for help and when he does, it's usually after several failed or ruined dishes. Tobe and I were in our little corner in the Home Economics Room. There were all sorts of sounds around us from the chatter of our classmates, to the sounds of the different kitchen equipment being used. Today, our objective was to bake some bread and pastries. Something that I only have a little knowledge of.
"Well, if it's just a taste, then okay," I say and open my mouth. Yui fist pumps the air in victory and takes one from the tray that she was holding. Her fingers briefly touch my lips as I receive the cookie and Tobe asks one from her too. I start chewing, looking to the side and nodding to myself.
"These are pretty good," Tobe admits.
"Yeah, well done Yui," I add and wash my hands, drying them on my apron. Yui giggles smugly to herself as I start rubbing and patting her head.
"Fufufufufufufu! That's right! Praise me more!" She says proudly and puffs out her chest.
"Yes yes, you've improved yourself these past few weeks." I let go of her and moved towards my unattended dough. "Keep up the good work. Go on now, Tobe and I still have some stuff to work on." Yui bids us goodbye and skips to Yumiko, Hina and Saki where she was welcomed back with small cheers and giggles. I go back to kneading the dough but I notice Tobe had been giving me a small smirk this whole time.
"Oi, what's with that stupid look…" My eyes go half-lidded as I give him my trademark deadpan stare.
He chuckles and shakes his head. "I'm amazed that you taught her so much in only a short time Hachiman. It wasn't that long ago when she accidentally burned a few of her dishes."
"All the credit goes to her. I only pointed out a few things." I shrug and punch and beat the shit out of my dough with my fists as if I was a member of the Yakuza and it owed me a large sum of money. "Her tenacity makes up for her clumsiness and forgetfulness."
"Eeeeh… You make it sound so easy. I think you'd make a great chef Hachiman. Ever thought about it?"
"I'm already the head chef in my home because I mostly cook all of my family's meals."
Tobe stops for a moment, looking up in thought. "Well, if you look at it that way I guess. But I mean professionally."
I highly doubt my Father would allow me that. There would be no one but Komachi to succeed him.
"No, not really. I think I'd sooner join the JSDF before I become a chef. No offence to the former though. It's just that certain circumstances might prevent me from going with that route, so to speak."
A comfortable silence comes over us as we choose to focus on our tasks. A few minutes go by and Tobe had already put his soon-to-be cookies inside the oven and I have just finished poking holes in my doughnut and giving it its signature shape. As I was waiting my turn to use the oven, Tobe decides to strike up a conversation once more.
"Hey, Hikitani." He looks around to make sure no one can hear us. "Hayato got forced into a mixer this weekend. He wants me to come along but my family and I are going to visit my grandparents. What do you say?"
I arch my brow at him. This is the first time that I've been invited to one. "Haaaaaaaaah? A mixer? Those shady meetups with strangers? They'd sprint away in terror when they see my face. Sorry but you know that I'm busy on the weekends."
Tobe rolls his eyes and sighs in exasperation before putting his arm around my neck in a friendly gesture. "Come on, stop it with the self-hating jokes. You should go, meet up with some new people and make friends! Who knows, your future girlfriend might even be there!"
"As I said, thank you for the invite but I'm not interested. Perhaps if it's rescheduled to a later date then yes." I say dismissively and look to the side where I see Hina grinning at us from ear to ear. Something red drips from her nose, and even from this distance I can see that she was breathing heavily.
Uwaah… This Fujoshi is at it again… She better not be writing a shitty BL novel based on me or something…
A narrow my eyes and stick out my tongue at the green-eyed Megane, but that only seemed to make her grin even wider.
"You sure that you don't want to go? I'm sure that It'll be fun!" Tobe nags at me again, like a certain someone I know. "You're not making excuses are you?" He says, but then he also gives me a creepy grin and his brows make wave-like motions cheekily.
"Hey hey… You're acting kinda SUS…" He says in a low voice.
"Sus? What the hell is that?"
Tobe lets go of me and stifled a laugh. Then, he puts his hands on his hips and gives me an expression akin to distrust and disappointment.
"Hachiman…"
"What?"
"I dunno man…"
"You 'dunno' what, exactly?"
"You're seeming kinda SUS lately…"
I raise my hands in a confused manner, trying to understand the riddles that he's been dropping. "What? What the hell is 'sus'? Tobe, I don't get you."
He narrows his eyes at me and shakes his head dramatically. "Looks like there's an impostor AMOGUS…" Tobe starts making "dun dun dun dun dun dun dun, dun dun dun" sounds but his voice cracks halfway and makes him sound like a broken instrument.
"Amogus…?" I say and blink several times, trying to understand the code or riddle that he was spouting. "Did you just mispronounce the word "among us"?
"That's exactly what a SUSSY BAKA would say…" He snickers behind his hand. I sigh and shake my head at him, before waving and turning around.
"A sussy…? Ugh, whatever. Just put my batch in the oven when you're done." I hear him still snickering even as I walk away from him.
Even though I find myself in Tobe and the other's clique more and more these days, I am still rather independent. During Home Economics, I usually float from group to group to help them out and they welcome me with open arms. It's become a habit and sort of like an unspoken role that I do. Last year, I did this too and I became acquainted with many of my classmates while I was assisting them. I could have called them friends if I weren't so afraid of people at that time. Though I only recall cooking with a certain Ice Queen once or twice during the whole school year. Back then, the only person that I trusted in the whole school was Hiratsuka-sensei, Shiromeguri-senpai and my other Senpai in the StuCo.
I was about to check on Yumiko, but the hairs on the back of my head stand at attention. I look to my right and see my girlfriend pouting and giving me a dirty look before looking away haughtily. I can hear a "Hmph!" from her. I sigh and go to where she is.
Her two friends, Sagami-san and Ehime-san see me coming. The former grins and winks at me, while the latter just gives me a very casual and chill upward nod.
"Hey, girls, what are you up to?" I greet them with a knowing smirk.
The volleyball player immediately makes a slightly grossed out expression. "Uwaaah, Hikigaya word yourself properly. You sound like creepy Ojii-san stalking schoolgirls out in the streets."
I grasp my chest from the sudden verbal attack. "Ouch. You're not pulling your punches today, aren't you Ehime-san…?" We share a look before laughing together and having a high five. She pats my shoulder in a friendly manner and grins cheekily.
"Ahahaha, I'm kidding. I see that you're helping everyone out as usual." Ehime-san says and nods towards what Yuuko was currently doing. "We're trying to make buns steamed buns with sweet bean and curry inside!"
"What about you? What're you making?" Sagami-san asks and briefly turns to us.
"Tobe and I decided to make doughnuts. His batch is currently in the oven and I'm waiting for my turn." I go beside Yuuko, deliberately getting close to her while leaning forward to see her face.
"Excuse me, Sumiya-san. May ask something?" I say with a small smirk. "What made you choose steamed buns?" Ehime-san and Sagami-san imitate me in trying to see my girlfriend's expression.
Unfortunately, all we got from her was a cute "Hmph!" Her two friends start teasing her while I chuckled at the amusing sight. Since I was already here, I decided to help them out by doing the dough kneading and putting the sweet bean and meat inside after we waited for some time for the dough to proof. We decided to go back to class in the meantime while waiting and had small talk, except for Yuuko who remained as if I didn't exist. Every time I call her name, she just "Hmphs!" at me. Once time was up, Ehime-san and Sagami-san went on ahead so Yuuko and I can have a private moment.
Aside from the two of us, there are only a few of our classmates in the room and all of them were busy talking with each other, secretly watching stuff on their phones. I also wasn't seated too close to her just in case to not arouse any suspicion.
"Heh. Are you still mad?" I grin with my back at my other classmates.
Yuuko huffs out again and turns away from me. "Hmph! That joke back at the StuCo room wasn't funny!"
"The part about there being a CCTV camera installed? Come on, the idea itself is ridiculous! I didn't expect you to be gullible enough to actually believe me."
"Of course I'd believe you, idiot. You practically gave me a heart attack!"
"Okay okay," I say and raise both of my hands. "I admit that was rather…improper, given the circumstance. Tell you what, to make it up to you, I'll grant you one request."
"A request?" She asks with a single raised brow.
"Yes. I'll grant you any request as long as it's within the realm of reason." Yuuko shakes her head and rolls her eyes at my proposition.
"Whatever. You make everything sound so complicated." She stops and frowns, her eyes focusing on something on my cheek. "Ah, Hachi-kun, you have something on your face…"
"Hmm?" As I was about to reach up and touch my cheek, she quickly lurches forward and plants a kiss on my lips. I was startled and instinctively jerked backwards, nearly knocking myself off from my chair.
"O-Oi!" I hiss at her and look behind us. Thankfully, our other classmates weren't looking our way. "Idiot! What the heck was that?! Doing that kind of stuff here is way too risky!" I whisper hotly at her. She just giggles at my flustered expression and pokes the tip of my nose with her pointer finger.
"Apology accepted, Hach-kun~."
I narrow my eyes at her but it quickly goes away when she giggles cheekily. A thought comes to my mind, the perfect comeback to her cheekiness.
"Hey, Yuuko."
"Hmm?"
"While I was kneading the dough, it kind of reminded me of something…" My eyes go from her eyes and stop at her chest. She looks at me confused and looks down as well.
"What? My uniform…? My…blazer?" She asks in an innocently cute manner and I can already see the imaginary question mark forming beside her head as she thought of an answer.
I grin and resist the urge to pull and pinch her cheeks at how adorable she looked. "No, think of something soft… Like a pillow."
"Huh? Soft…?" After a few seconds, I hear a tick from her. She covers her chest with her arms and looks at me with a blush.
"…You perv."
I shrug smugly at my revenge tease. "Yes yes. I am aware of that, thank you. Your breasts are so soft, I feel like I'll immediately fall asleep if I were to rest my face on them."
Her blush deepens, and although she was pouting, the corners of her supple lips slowly turned into a shy smile.
"Oooh, the steamed buns look good…!"
"I have to say that you did pretty well Hikigaya-kun."
"Hachi-kun is such a good cook… I'm honestly a bit intimidated."
The three girls say as Sagami-san takes out the steamed buns from the steamer. I put the four buns on a plate while using a tong and present them to them. "I just kneaded the dough and put the meat and sweet beans inside, I didn't do anything much."
They all sigh at how I downplayed my efforts and added in their praises to counter me. I hand them each a bun while we sat down together on the small table in the Home Economics room. Ehime-san decided that on the count of four, we'd take a bite together just for the fun of it.
"Okay! Let's do it together! One, two, three!"
The four of us bite into our steamed buns at the same time and take chunks from it. We slowly chewed, analyzing the taste and texture of the food that we worked together to make.
Ehime-san puts her unfinished bun down after one bite while having a strange look on her face. Sagami-san takes a tissue to her lips, and YEETS it to the nearest garbage bin beyond Mach speed. Yuuko is the same as Ehime-san, but my girlfriend's face is blank and pale. Seeing that they were waiting for me, I put myself down as well.
"…"
"…"
"…"
"Well…" I say as they were expecting me to say something first. "I think that was edible at least."
Ehime-san looks at me as if I had lost my mind. "What?! You call that edible?!"
"Disgusting…" Sagami-san says and lightly pushes her plate away with her fingertips.
"I thought it'd taste good lol. My bad~! Tehee~!" Yuuko says gleefully, making a peace sign with her finger, sticking out her tongue while one eye was closed.
I swear that every time I see that cringe cutesy move, I feel my IQ decrease!
"Hey, it wasn't THAT bad. Just a little bit different from what we're used to." I say. Though as the one who did the finishing touches to the steamed buns, I had enough pride in myself to at least defend it in a dignified way.
"Heeeeh. Well, if it's not, then I dare you to eat all of our unfinished steamed buns then." Ehime-san says cheekily.
"Hmm, I think it'll be funny in watching you stuff yourself with these." Sagami-san grins and chuckles with Ehime-san. Yuuko was about to say something but I hush her by placing a hand on her thigh under the table.
"Hooh, interesting…" I return them with a devilish grin. "A bet, you say? And what would you two be betting on?" The two girls start whispering to each other for a few moments before nodding together in agreement.
"If you finish all of these…" Sagami-san grins and pauses for dramatic effect, gesturing towards the large unfinished buns. "We'll do anything you say for an indefinite amount of time. Like, treat you to some snacks every other day or lunch. Or something. I dunno."
"Hmph. That sounds too good to be true." I arch a brow sceptically and lean back on my chair. "And if I lose, the same applies to you?" The two girls nod in unison, containing their laughter. I think for a bit, weighing the pros and cons and if they're being serious. Knowing these two, they're probably just joking around. And the steamed buns are big because I decided to use all the dough on each so they won't go to waste. They're slightly larger than my fist and weigh a bit heavy too.
I shake my head and wave them off dismissively. "Sorry, I don't think I can finish all of these."
The two girls make disappointed sounds and Yuuko sighs out with relief.
"What's wrong Hikigaya-kun? Too much of a pussy to have a little bet? Hahaha~!"
"Eeeeh… So Hikigaya Hachiman is the type of guy who's afraid of having a little gamble…? How cowardly… Ehehehehe~…" Ehime-san and Sagami-san laugh from behind their palm like a stereotypical Ojou-sama. Their haughty laughter fills my ears even as Yuuko calls their attention.
"G-Guys! Come on stop goading to him. I'm sure that Hikigaya-kun would get sick if-" She turns around but is surprised when she sees my face.
A part of my bangs has covered my eyes, leaving only my right one for me to see. I breathe with heavy yet controlled breaths as I struggled to keep my power sealed deep within me. (cringe)
"Sagami-san, Ehime-san… You said 'for an indefinite amount of time' right? I understand that you know what that means?" I say with a calm voice.
The two girls stop laughing and blink together as if they didn't hear me. "Uuuhhh… Yeah?" Ehime-san says unsurely and is followed by Sagami-san.
"Wait...what does 'indefinite' mean again? I forgot."
"Hachi- I mean, Hikigaya-kun…!" Yuuko touches my hand dramatically from under the table, tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes. The scene is something straight from a Drama TV series. "Do not do it! You will die! Your inner Chunni is showing-!" She vehemently shakes her head and her voice cracks with intense emotion.
I take a deep breath as I raise both of my hands from my lap. "Well then, by the grace of the Chrysanthemum Throne, and by my namesake, Hachiman-no-Kami, Ōjin Tennō, Yahata-no-Kami, Divine protector of Japan, the Japanese People and Imperial House, I accept your challenge!"
It was as if time had stopped as I reached for my steamed bun, and I saw each of the girl's eyes go wide from my declaration.
I could have easily ignored their taunts, but my pride would never allow it. I might get called petty for being so vexed for such a tiny thing, and I have to agree. This is petty.
But if there's one thing that I'll never back down from…
It's teaching cheeky girls like these two that messing with me is a bad idea!
Hmm, this came out surprisingly fast. Finished this in less than a week. I can really update my Fics faster when I'm feeling motivated!
Next update, my clusterfuck of an Isekai with random Vtubers and characters from other anime! xDD
Reviews, bad or good, are welcome as always!
Have a nice day and I'll see you next time!