For most of my high school life, I've always eaten my lunch outside and away from my classmates. I don't like the idea of eating in a classroom when there were better alternatives available, the first being the library, but the next being this particular spot I found outside. It was near the tennis courts, but if anyone wanted to play tennis or walk around the track, then they would take the quickest route there, which isn't the entrance I would be at, so I would all be alone just how I like it. Unfortunately, today was stormy and windy, so I had to force myself to eat in the classroom because I don't want to get drenched.
I've only been here for 10 minutes, and I already want to kill myself. Usually, there was gossip that I would try to listen to, but the classroom is only filled with empty conversations that are just meant to fill the awkward silence. It's not even halfway interesting conversation either, it's just girls talking about random crap, and someone adding in an "I know right!" or a "What are you eating for lunch?" to keep the conversation going.
Finishing that thought, it's been two weeks since Yuigahama's request, and nothing significant occurred over that timeframe. She never came back to the club, and we didn't receive any new requests, so club activities were filled with occasional banter, but mostly just dead silence for hours.
I've also been carefully watching Yuigahama during these two weeks to see if she would make a move, and today seems like she'll present Miura with her bento, just based on her abnormal behavior today. If I give her a good glance without making it seem that I was staring at her, then I can see how she's anxious to open her bag, which has her bento in it.
"Y-Yumiko." Yuigahama nervously called out to Miura after pulling a blue bento from her bag.
Yuigahama dove headfirst into unknown territory by presenting Miura with her bento. I wanted to get a good look at the situation, so I took out my book and pretended to read, with my left peripheral vision getting a decent view of them.
"Hmm? Huh, a bento?"
"It's yours, I made it for you." Miura was slightly taken aback by Yuigahama's sudden act of kindness. But Miura doesn't know that Yuigahama didn't make this out of the goodness of her heart.
"You, you made me a bento? Yui, you, and I both know that you can't cook. Even my little brother can cook, aren't you embarrassed that you can't even make a rice omelet?" She laughed, which began to attract the attention of her other clique members.
Even though Miura was laughing at her, Yuigahama maintained her composure by doing some controlled breathing.
"Just open it."
After wiping her tears from laughing too much, Miura took Yuigahama's bento. "If you say so, Yui."
After she opened it, she was surprised at what she saw. I was able to see chicken skewers and rice balls in there, but there might've been more.
I see, she learned how to cook rice as well, something that is extremely easy once you get the hang of it.
Miura went for the rice ball first. After she took a bite, she was in slight awe, unable to mask her opinion of Yuigahama's food.
"What the hell, you made this?" She ate a bit of chicken, and she couldn't believe her eyes. "You learned to cook, huh…" Her words trailed off, but they were directed at Yuigahama.
"I learned to cook because I was tired of you bullying me all the time, Yumiko." Yuigahama declared with confidence.
Everyone who was watching was surprised by Yuigahama's sudden burst of confidence and authority, Miura especially. At this point, their clique and several classmates were watching how things would go down between them, so I shifted my full attention to them as a result.
"I want to be your friend, but you never gave me a chance to, just because…" The confidence Yuigahama displayed was halved as she struggled to find the right words to say. Miura stood up in response and slowly approached Yuigahama.
"Hey, listen I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know that I was like, hurting you or anything." She paused. "Can you forgive me?" She said in a tone that no one has ever heard her speak in before. From the bottom of her heart, it felt like Miura was genuinely asking for Yuigahama's forgiveness.
"Only if we can be friends."
"I can live with that," she said jokily. "Do you wanna go to the mall with me after school? We, like, never hung out together before, just the two of us."
"Yeah, sure!"
At this point, some of the students withdrew their attention from them as the climax of the situation passed. Besides me, their clique was the only people watching.
This is how the situation ends, with a new friendship forged in the midst of the flames of youth.
It takes balls to stand up to Miura from all people, but she stood her ground by releasing an unexpected display of authority and utmost confidence.
Imagine seeing the quiet kid having an outburst against his bullies, right? Seeing him have an outburst is one thing but seeing him have the confidence and ability to take down his bullies is another thing. They don't expect the ones they antagonize to stand up to them with the ability to take them down in the process. The same applies to Yuigahama in a way.
"A happy ending indeed!"
"Mane isn't that just sweet. Don't you think, Hayato?"
"Yeah, it's nice seeing everyone getting along now." As he said that, he directed his attention toward me as I was still watching their group from my seat. He gave me a smile, but I didn't want to talk to him.
The last thing I want to do is get involved with Hayama from all people. He's universally liked by everyone, always bringing light and love to any atmosphere he's in, it's impossible to dislike him, but someone like me wouldn't get along with someone like him.
After I finished that thought, I decided to use the last five minutes of lunch to finish the rest of my food.
After an entertaining day, I opened the door to the clubroom and made my way to my seat. After I made myself comfortable, Yukinoshita walked over to me with a coffee in her hand.
"Here." She handed me the max coffee I asked her to get, and I accepted it gracefully.
I didn't want to receive the coffee until today since I still had bottles left in my stash, so I figured I would ask her for it today so I can save my remaining bottles for a little longer.
As soon as she went back to her seat, she called out to me. "So, did anything happen today?"
"Yeah, she went through with it."
"Is that so? Well, I'm all ears."
After thoroughly explaining to her what happened today during lunch, which I only happened to find out about because of the weather, Yukinoshita looked pleased with the outcome.
"I see, so you're saying there's more to her than meets the eye?"
"I'm not sure. But she looked like she was a completely different person when she confronted Miura."
It looked like as soon as Yuigahama realized that she cooked her food to perfection, she was able to speak her mind freely without any fear which resulted in that surge of confidence she showed.
"You can see people's true colors in the face of adversity. You'll see how weak people are, but in this case, you saw how strong Yuigahama-san was."
"Are you speaking from past experience?" I was curious, so I posed her a question.
"I believe it's general knowledge to know that adversity can bring out the best and the worst in a person." Based on the tone of her voice, she didn't seem keen on continuing the conversation, so I left it at that, with a familiar silence filling the clubroom.
Well, the good thing is that Yuigahama's request has been fulfilled, and besides seeing her and her clique on the trip, I don't think I'll ever have to interact with her ever again. I don't mind her, but if I had to choose to not interact with her again, I'll do it.
As soon as I finished that thought, Hiratsuka-sensei opened the door and walked inside the clubroom.
"Sensei," I said just to acknowledge her presence in the room.
"Yo, I came with some information about the trip. It'll be easier if I take your numbers and send you the details over text."
We had no problems with her request, so after we exchanged contact information with each other, Hiratsuka-sensei sent us the details regarding the trip.
It says we'll be leaving on the 20th, which is about a week from today, and we will return on the 23rd. The student volunteers will leave the school at 6am and will arrive at the destination around 8am. The seniors will leave the school at 9am and will arrive at the destination somewhere around 11:00am. Breakfast will be available from 6-7am, lunch starts at 11:00, and dinner starts at 5:30, Full marks will be given to missing homework assignments for the volunteers and they will be allowed to retake quizzes or tests they might miss during the trip.
"Don't worry, you won't have any tests or quizzes during this time. But I do recommend you bring your study materials while you're over there."
"Won't we be too busy working to have time to study?" I posed a question to her.
"After gathering six volunteers' you might have free time to yourselves. You can get a lot of work done with six extra bodies, you know?"
I see and seeing how it's a spring, I might take this opportunity to bring extra clothes just in case I wanted to enjoy myself there.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, if I may, was this trip expensive, or was it paid for by the school? A cabin spring being able to lounge the entire third year of students here doesn't sound cheap to me."
"Each student had to cough up 15000 yen in order to come. Quite expensive if you ask me, but this is what they voted on, so we granted them this trip."
"We can vote on what trip we can go on when we become third years?" I added.
"You guys are going on two trips next year, and for one of them you vote where you want to go."
"Really? I didn't know we did that."
"We just started doing it last year after the school received a boatload of complaints regarding the selection of the school field trips. Right now, the seniors seem pleased about the cabin trip they selected, as over 90% voted in favor."
Whatever cabin they selected must've been around a beach of some sort because spending three nights at a spring can get tiresome after a while. So having a beach, a shopping center, and other attractions will allow them to enjoy everything to the fullest.
"I see," I said.
"This is going to be fun, don't you guys think!? The thought of relaxing in a hot spring is putting me in a state of euphoria."
"You're coming as well, Hiratsuka-sensei?"
"The school allowed me to supervise you guys as a merit for gathering volunteers. Isn't this great?! Youth, am I right, Hikigaya?"
Please don't look at me like you're young again.
"Anyways, make sure you show up at the school at 6 am sharp. Our driver will be willing to wait 5 minutes just in case anyone is running late, but after that we'll be on the road." She continued.
I'm going to have to wake up around 5am to get myself an adequate amount of time to get ready, then.
"That's enough of me, resume your club activities, I'll see you guys later."
What club activities?
"The trip should be an interesting experience, to say the least," Yukinoshita said after sensei left the room.
"At least it's free, I can't imagine paying that much for a three-night trip."
"Are you serious? If it's a luxury inn, then we're going to eat 5-star restaurant quality food at least twice a day for three nights, assuming that, 15,000 yen is extremely generous."
"I guess. This week is seriously going to drag."
"For once, I agree with you. I'm looking forward to this trip more than I thought I would."
"Field trips are a loner's worst nightmare, especially if you have to form groups with each other."
The other students were usually disgusted by your mere presence, but even more at the fact that they were forced to be in your vicinity for at least two hours. Field trips can either be a loner's worst nightmare, or an enjoyable experience, which is why I hated those educational field trips in middle school. The groups I was in answered the assigned questions amongst themselves, while I had to do everything on my own. Even worst, they would exclude me from eating with them, so I was forced to eat against the wall. I hated those people with a passion.
"Maybe for you, but people always invited me to their groups."
"As I said before, you're a disgrace to loners everywhere."
"And you're a disgrace to my eyes, so please look away from me before I vomit."
"Tch," Damn bitch never holds back, and it's not even her words, it's the tone of her voice, it just makes me want to put her asleep forever.
She gave me a small grin and then went back to reading.
On this dark foggy morning, I kicked off the stand from my bike and began riding my way to the school. I wasn't used to waking up at 5 in the morning, so riding my bike through the neighborhood at this time felt mystical, especially with the eerie fog that left the air feeling heavy and dewy.
After 15 minutes of nonstop riding, I arrived at the school at 5:40. Because of how early it is, traffic was nonexistent, so I was able to get here in record-breaking time. But I wasn't the first one here, Yukinoshita was here before me.
"You're early, Hikigaya-kun." She addressed me. Since I only see her during the club, this is the first time I'm seeing her rock this look; she was wearing casual wear with her hair in a messy bun. Her being tired gave her voice a subtle softness, a tone that you don't hear often from her.
I kicked my bike up and answered her. "Well, it's better to be late than sorry, like they say."
"Close, the saying is 'It's better to be safe than sorry,' and here I thought you were smart."
"Please woman, I'm not caught up with the latest slang and phrases the kids nowadays are using. You need friends to know things like that."
"You don't need friends to know that it's one of the most common sayings in existence. And why were you talking like an adult? You are far from an adult, Hikigaya-kun."
"I'm totally an adult! I bitch, complain, tell lies, and make things unfair for those beneath me."
Besides paying bills and having a career, I'm practically an adult.
"It's sad that you're not completely wrong in your assessment of adults in modern society." She yawned after she said that.
"Did you not sleep enough or something?"
"No, I'm just not used to being up so early in the morning."
Same, but I was currently off a Maxx coffee, so I feel fine. "Do you want some coffee? I brought a can that I planned on drinking, but it looks like you need it more than me." I said with the coffee in my hand.
"Is it that dangerously sugary drink that I brought you not too long ago?"
"Yeah. This one is a new flavor that was released a few months ago, and I really find the distinct taste of French vanilla to be quite—"
"I think I'll pass; I prefer tea over coffee anyway."
"Ah, suit yourself, then."
They were dangerously sweet stuff, so I don't blame her for not taking me up on the offer. But you know what they say, life is bitter, so coffee might as well be sweet. I don't think I heard anyone say that before besides me, perhaps I should trademark it and run a business? Maybe that'll save me from slaving away decades of my life as a corporate slave under a company that doesn't give a damn about its employees. Sorry mom and dad, I'm grateful for you guys!
After about five minutes, a black limousine pulled up, and four people exited the vehicle as the driver pulled away. This lot, huh? four days, it's only four days and I won't have to deal with them anymore.
"Ah man, it's soo foggy outside. Like we're in a movie or something."
Miura, who was clearly irritated with Tobe, barked at him. "Are you gonna say anything else, or are you gonna keep talking about the fog?"
Tobe ignored Miura as he was mesmerized by the fog. She sighed, Yuigahama awkwardly laughed, while Hayama approached us.
"It's been a while, Yukinoshita-san."
"Hayama-kun,"
"How've you been? I haven't talked to you in a very long time."
Not irritated or happy, Yukinoshita kept a neutral mood as she conversed with Hayama.
"I'm fine, thank you. Yourself?"
Were these two friends? Hayama made it seem like it, but Yukinoshita is acting indifferent toward him.
"Ah, well I'm fortunate enough to partake in this trip with everyone today, so I'm pretty excited if I had to say."
"Is that so?" He smiled in response to her words, then he directed his attention toward me.
"Hikitani-kun, right? I don't think we ever spoke before, I'm Hayama Hayato, I hope we can get along with each other."
There's no way this blond bastard just called me, 'Hikitani.' It's not even a nickname like Hikki either, he thinks my name is Hikitani, how the hell does someone make a mistake like that?
I smiled reflectively, admitting that I was beneath him. "Y-Yeah, same." As I said that, Miura called out to Hayama, and he went back to his group.
"Shall I call you Hikitani-kun now?" She said, as the two of us watched their group from afar. Tobe was talking to Yuigahama, and Miura was confronting Hayama about something, but I wasn't sure what.
"If you refer to me as that then I'm going to leave the club."
"Oh, my? Will you ever do such a thing? But knowing you, you wouldn't."
"What do you mean, knowing me? You're underestimating the powers of the ultimate loner."
"I seriously don't know how you can say some of these things while keeping a straight face."
As I was about to answer her a single white van pulled up to the school, and the person who was in the driver's seat was Hiratsuka-sensei.
"Yo, I see you guys made it on time, get in."
"You're our driver, sensei?" Tobe said.
I didn't think Hiratsuka-sensei would be the designated driver taking us to the inn, so it surprised me as well.
"Yes, I am, now get inside."
We didn't waste any time and got our bags in the truck and then quickly began to fill the van, but as I was about to get inside, Hiratsuka-sensei called out to me.
"Hikigaya, I want you in the front with me."
"Do I have a say in this?"
"Nope, just hop in."
I sighed and took the passenger seat. Miura, Hayama, and Tobe were in the back row, and Yukinoshita and Yuigahama took their seats behind us. After everyone got situated, we started our long road trip at 5:52
I'm in the passenger seat, huh? If we happen to get into an accident, then Hiratsuka-sensei and I will be the first to perish. I wonder if she purposely planted me in the front so she can kill me, but at the same time, I guess it's better than being next to anyone else in the van.
"Talk to me Hikigaya, I'm bored."
As I was entertaining my stream of thoughts, Hiratsuka-sensei was the first to talk between us.
"You're asking me, huh?"
What do you even talk to your teacher about, anyway?
"I guess your last Japanese test was pretty hard."
Before she can even say anything, Yuigahama blurted out from behind us. "Right?! I got a 60%, Hiratsuka-sensei!"
That sounds like a you problem more than anything, Yuigahama, but I guess that got the conversation going in this tiresome van.
"You always do poorly on my Japanese tests, Yuigahama." Yuigahama didn't know how to respond to Hiratsuka-sensei's sudden roast against her. "Aren't you third in Japanese? How much did you score on it?"
"I think I got a 95 or something, but I was kind of hoping to score a little higher."
Seeing how Japanese is my only strong point in school, I always wanted to score one hundred on a tough test or exam. But something like that may require studying, which is the last thing I want to do.
"I wonder how you're so smart but so rotten at the same time."
"Is that something you should be saying to one of your students?"
"No, but since it's you, it's no biggie." She hummed as she bounced her head back and forth.
But since it's you? What do you mean by that?
"Umm, sensei. You seem close with Hikki." She said softly, almost cutely.
Damn it woman, why are you still calling me Hikki, but at least it's better than Hiki-froggaya, or Hikitani.
"Oh, me and Hikigaya go way back."
Huh, since when?
"That's news to me." Yukinoshita, who was quietly observing our conversation, chimed in.
"We go back to, like, what was it? The start of the school year, I think?"
"That was seriously not funny, Sensei."
"Oh, come on! I deserve some points on that one, right? It was pretty good!"
I guess I can't blame her. Someone as old as her might not know what's considered funny in today's day's age. Don't tell her I said that, though, or she'll kill me.
We kept conversing with each other, and it seems like it was going to be like this for the remaining duration of the trip.
After a long restless drive, we finally arrived at our destination at 8:47. As I got out of the van, I was greeted with strong humidity, along with the sound of the cicadas that were somewhere deep within the Earth. Even though it technically wasn't summer yet, it was still humid and sticky. Summer is quite frankly the worst season of the four. Not because my birthday is during the summer and I never had friends to celebrate with or anything, it's because I hate the hot, that's it!
"Wow…"
In front of us, was this large building that emitted an ancient Japanese aura around it. The exterior didn't exactly look modern by any means, but that's probably because it was built generations ago. Whoever built it must've done a good job because the building still looks like it's intact.
"Welcome." The staff who were waiting for us in front of the entrance greeted us with a bow.
There were two waitresses and a boy that all looked around our age and four adults who looked like the management team.
"Shizuka-san, thank you again for gathering volunteers for today." An older woman who looked like she was in her sixties called out to Hiratsuka-sensei.
"Oh, yeah don't sweat it. You can do a lot when you offer your students extra credit." She had her eyes closed and smiled gently in response to her words.
"This is Subaru, he is the lead waitress here. If you have any questions, you can ask him or the other waitresses."
He wore a green bandana with basic work clothing. Just based on his appearance alone, he looked confident and friendly, like Hayama.
"Let's show you inside now."
As we were following them inside, Miura whispered to Yuigahama. "Hey, aren't those girls like, super pretty?"
"Right? I was thinking the same thing." Faint laughter was heard from the waitresses after they overheard Miura and Yuigahama.
Before we got in, I took a glance at the engraved wording that was hung over the automatic doors.
"Kissuiso, huh? [1]" Must've been the name of the inn.
As I walked in, I was greeted with a fresh smell of what it seems to be cedar or some other kind of wood. Most of the lounge was made from dark chiseled logs, which felt smooth to the touch, I can describe the stairway in a similar way as well. The two fireplaces in the lounge seemed cozy and warm, and I'm sure the people enjoying them there right now would agree as well.
"Subaru, can I rely on you to take over from here? I would like to show Shizuka-san to her room."
"I can take over from here, manager-san." She gave him the same smile she showed Hiratsuka-sensei earlier, and as he said that the management team dispersed, and only the children remained in the lobby.
"As you heard, I'm Subaru, but if you're not comfortable with using my first name then you can call me Furuya. Before I start, I'm going to give you your keycards to your rooms." He gave Yuigahama their cards, and he gave Hayama our cards.
"Our waitresses here are the best of the best, you guys will have no problems getting along with them. From left to right, meet Saejima-san and Hasebe-san." Only one of them bowed respectively after being addressed. "Oh, you don't have to be so formal, you know? It's just us here."
"Y-You sure?" The one from the left spoke, which was Saejima-san. She looked like a timid girl, but she had her hair up high, which brought all her facial features to life.
"Whatever happens, I'll take responsibility." As he said that, he noticed one of his waitresses start to walk over to Miura. "Hasebe, I still have to show them around. You can talk to them later."
"Fine," This one had medium-length purple dyed hair, and she seemed eager to talk with Miura.
"I'm going to show you guys to the kitchen, and on the way there I'll show you guys to the springs."
Everyone was following his lead, but Miura and Hasebe tailed behind so they can talk. I guess she's not a good listener, or maybe she's just stubborn, so maybe that's why she's drawn to Miura.
"Can I say something, Subaru-san?"
"Hayato, right? Yes, go ahead."
He smiled after he remembered his name somehow. "Are these all the workers you have? With an inn this big, I figured you'll have more people helping you."
I was also wondering the same thing, but I didn't want to be the one to ask him.
"One of our workers quit recently, and another had time off during this week. We didn't know how to tackle so many people coming with two people out. Manager-san figured it was a good idea to ask the school that was staying here for volunteers, and I guess it paid off. But if worse came to worse, they would've given us a hand."
As those two were conversing, I slowed my walking speed so I can match my pace with Yukinoshita. "What do you think of the place so far?"
"I did some research before I got here, and this inn originated from the Taisho period. It's impressive that a building dating back decades ago is still in good shape today."
Wasn't exactly the answer I was looking for, but this place was from the Taisho period, huh? No wonder why this building felt old because it's old as hell.
"Ah, Manager-san invested a lot of money into this inn over the years. You should see the pictures of how it looked like back then, the differences are astounding."
Well, that explains why this place has a modern touch to it. But it's good that it still has that ancient feel, feels quite authentic to me.
"I see."
"Alright, so this is the kitchen."
He stopped in front of a door that wasn't near any of the rooms. From the outside, I can see that there were three cooks, as well as noticing the spaciousness inside.
"The chefs are busy at the moment, but you'll be coming in here to retrieve food and dishes over the course of the trip."
Pretty straightforward if you ask me. After a few minutes of walking, Subaru had the waitresses lead the girls to the female entrance of the springs, while he introduced us to the male entrance.
"And as you can see, here's the springs."
As soon as you walk in, you're greeted with the smell of fresh spring water and steam. The ground was covered with chiseled beige marble, and there were masterfully crafted orange lanterns that hung over the four springs that were present in the room.
"So, this is the male side of the springs, and the showers are in the room directly to your left. You will most likely clean the area after everyone is done with the evening shower."
"Hey man, are we allowed to use this place?"
"Of course, but it'll probably be near the nighttime after everyone is done using them, though."
"Really? Sweet!" He smiled at Tobe and then addressed us.
"You guys have an hour before we have to make the preparations for tonight, so find your way to the lobby before then." After he said that, he let us go for now as we had an hour to ourselves before we had to start working.
"I guess we should find our room first."
"Oh, yeah totally."
Huh, our room? I should've known I had to share a room with these two fools for three nights. Where's Hiratsuka-sensei at? I'll rather share a room with her!
I quietly tailed Hayama and Tobe as they were walking to the room. Not once have they addressed me, it was almost like I was invisible or something. After five minutes or so, we arrived at our room, and Tobe immediately made himself comfortable while Hayama was the first one to speak.
"The rooms here are quite nice, don't you think, Hikitani-kun?"
You finally acknowledged my presence, huh? And stop calling me Hikitani, I'll kill you.
But he wasn't wrong, even though the rooms aren't as nice looking as the lobby, they were nice enough and had enough room for at least four people.
"I guess,"
I noticed that the waitresses left three pieces of bedding next to each other on the floor. Yeah, like hell I'm going to sleep side to side with these fools. As I was moving one of the sleeping bags away from the other two, Tobe called out to me.
"You don't wanna sleep with us or something, Hikitani-kun?"
You noticed me too, huh, and when you say it like that, yes. Also, why the hell are you calling me Hikitani too?
"Yes, exactly."
"Whaa, cmon man? This could be like, a chance for us to be good friends or something. Right, Hayato?"
I don't want to be friends with either of them, and there's no way they'll want to be friends with me.
"We might as well try to get along with each other since we'll be sharing the same room for three nights. What do you think?" He looked at me.
I guess I see where he's coming from. Nothing more than simple exchanges will do, because if I pick a fight with them then these three nights are going to feel like 30 nights, so I'll do my best to get along with them on a surface level, just to make this trip bearable.
"I guess that's fine." Hayama smiled while Tobe rushed toward me.
"We don't bite, so don't stress and let loose a little, yeah?"
Ugh, if I was any other person, I would've totally mistaken you as a friend by now.
"Yeah, I get it, just get off me."
"Haha, my bad. Anyway, what do you guys think we'll be doing first?"
Seeing how this is an inn, we'll most likely have to set up the mess hall for the seniors and bring the food. We might not do semi-complicated things such as cleaning the rooms and setting up the rooms, but it's a possibility.
"I guess we'll have to see for the time being. We should probably get our things laid out before we start working."
Agreeing with him, Tobe and I emptied our bags and got ourselves comfortable in the room.
After 55 minutes has passed since the initial tour of the building, everyone was present in the lobby at 10:15
"Everyone should be here in about 45 minutes so, which should be more than enough time for us to get our duties done. The waitresses are preparing the rooms and they'll meet us in the mess hall if they finish their work." He paused then continued. "Alright follow me, we're on the clock."
After a few minutes of walking, we arrived at the mess hall. "Boys, you'll be in charge of setting up the eating trays. There should be four rows of twenty-five, and after you finish setting a row, there should be another row directly in front of it, so each student has someone in front of them."
"Hayato, your sensei told me you're quite capable, so can I rely on you to lead your classmates?" He continued.
"I'll make sure it gets done."
"Girls, you'll be bringing trays of food to this room and setting them on the trays. I'll help you guys so if you need any help, let me know."
"Alright, let's get this done!"
"The trays are in the kitchen, but we'll use the carts to transport all the food and trays over here. As soon as the chefs give us the okay, we'll carefully bring the food over." As he said that, we all went to the kitchen.
After the three of us finished our run from the kitchen, Tobe was pushing the bulky cart full of food trays while Hayama and I were carrying as much as we can back to the mess hall.
Even though we just started, I felt a subtle hatred growing inside me. I hated working with a passion, to work is to lose. But unpaid work was the absolute worst, and all because we don't have a third club member. Seriously, if we have to consistently do volunteer work for the school just to keep the club active, I might consider quitting. Yukinoshita and I don't have any friends to ask to join either. The most popular girl in the school has no friends at all, go figure.
When we arrived at the mess hall, we immediately got to work setting everything up.
"So, we make a row of twenty-five and another 25 in front of it, huh? Seems easy."
This was the easy part but bringing the food over here in time for lunch was arguably the toughest part. Not only did you need enough hands, but if you weren't efficient enough then lunchtime will be delayed by who knows how long. 15 minutes, an hour, who knows. With the waitresses getting all the rooms ready for the seniors and being out two people, it wasn't a surprise they needed a few extra hands to finish these tasks. But six people should be more than enough to complete whatever they had in store for us.
As we were finishing setting the trays down, Yukinoshita and Furuya came in with a cart full of food ready to be served.
"Miura-san and Yuigahama-san will come with the second cart shortly." I decided to leave the rest of the work to Tobe and Hayama as it wasn't a difficult task, then I went over to help Yukinoshita and Furuya.
Immediately after closing the distance between us, the smell of the food overwhelmed my nose. I saw salmon and some sort of ramen.
"So, six items per tray, huh?" I said as I noticed an already prepared tray of food on the cart, must've been for reference.
"Yes, let's prepare everything as quickly and efficiently as possible."
Everything was self-explanatory. The only somewhat challenging part of this task was the fact that we had to move quickly and efficiently as Yukinoshita said. But this was so simple, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary, but if we start spilling things and wasting food, then we might not finish in time which is going to make us look bad.
"Oi Tobe, you should help us instead of standing around."
The second cart of food arrived, and it seems Miura isn't pleased with how Tobe is working. Well, he's not really doing much, he's just trying to make it seem like he's doing something.
"Eh, why me?"
"I said you're just standing around! At least make yourself useful and help push this damn thing with us."
"I guess I can help you guys."
As Tobe said that Hayama finished setting the trays and went to help us with the food. Since everyone was here, we blew by the first cart of food quickly, so Miura, Furuya, and Tobe went back to the kitchen to retrieve more food, and the four of us were finishing the remaining cart on our own until they came back.
"You know, Hikigaya-kun, I noticed you might be a good fit for an underpaid salaryman. I suppose I'll take back what I said about you being a threat to society, maybe you'll be useful to someone after all."
As we were setting the remaining food on the trays, Yukinoshita broke the silence by throwing a jab at me, which caught everyone's attention.
"For a woman that has never worked a day in her life, I guess you're not doing too bad yourself."
"So, you worked before? I highly doubt that any mentally stable person would hire you, Hikigaya-kun."
"This might come as a shock to you, but coming from a middle-class family, I made extra money by providing services to my neighbors. A wealthy girl like you wouldn't know what it's like to earn your money."
That was a lie, but a believable one. Shoveling snow off your neighbor's lawn, mowing their lawn, and doing other things in that nature is an easy way for someone to rack up money. And seeing how I come from a middle-class family, she should believe it.
"I suppose you're right. For once, you win."
I was about to answer her when I heard a chuckle from one of the people in the room, but it wasn't Yuigahama.
"Is our conversation amusing to you, Hayama-kun?"
"My bad, but I have never seen Hikitani-kun talk this much with someone before. He doesn't talk to anyone in the classroom, so it was refreshing to see you guys talk like that, like two good friends."
"They seem close, don't they?" Yuigahama added.
"So, you didn't call yourself the ultimate loner for nothing, then."
"Of course not, I've earned this title."
"And you're proud of that? If you're like this now, I wonder what you were like in middle school."
As I was about to answer her, the last cart came in. Miura and the other two took the empty one and rushed back to the kitchen, with Furuya lending us a hand with the food.
"Sorry, I can't hear you, I'm working." Saying that left a sour taste in my mouth.
Yukinoshita didn't want to go any further than that, so she went back to work.
40 minutes passed, and we managed to finish setting everything for lunch. There were one hundred trays full of food ready to be consumed, but the question is when do we get to eat?
"Nice job everyone, we finished on time with five minutes until lunchtime."
"Hey, we get to eat now, right?" Miura asked Furuya.
"Yes, of course, this way." He smiled.
It would've been cruel of them to not feed us after we helped them, imagine they did that? Who would you even report something like that to?
Within a few minutes, Furuya led us to the room where we were supposed to eat, but he was surprised to see that there was food placed on the table already.
"Yo," Hasebe called out to us, and the other waitress glanced at us briefly, as she patiently waited for everyone to come.
"I thought we agreed we were going to bring everything here together."
"Yeah, but after we finished with our duties, we went to the mess hall but yall was almost done, so I figured I would save yall the time by bringing the food over here. It's still hot, so hurry up and eat."
Furuya smiled at her. "Thank you, guys, for helping us today. I guess we should eat now, huh?" He addressed us as everyone got comfortable around the round table.
"Itadakimasu."
Within seconds, Miura, Tobe, and Yuigahama were blown away by the flavor of the food.
"It's good, ain't it?"
"If only I could eat like this every day…" Miura began chatting away with Hasebe as if they were two good friends.
"Hey man, do you do delivery or something? I'll totally buy food from you guys." Tobe called out to Furuya after he drank some of the ramen broth.
I'm used to eating ramen, anytime I go out I tend to get ramen for myself. And over my ramen-tasting journey, I've had some divine-tasting ramen, it was enough to put me in a state of bliss. But this right here, this was something beyond divine.
He smiled at Tobe. "I'm glad you enjoy the food." Furuya and the waitresses looked used to the food here, while I was used to eating convenience store food, so this food was practically heaven to me.
"Saejima-san, right?" Hayama called out to the other waitress who was silently eating amongst a group of talkative people.
"Y-Yes, that's right." She was soft spoken, with brown eyes that sparkled against the reflection of the sun.
He smiled at her. "How do you like the food?"
Hayama had the ability to make small talk with the best attitude possible. He wasn't nervous, and it felt like he was genuinely asking her about the food, which made it super easy to talk to people. I couldn't do it, something like that takes too much energy and I'm not a sociable person like Hayama.
"I-It's good, especially the ramen."
As Hayama was about to respond, Hasebe intervened, "Don't worry about Yuki, she's only quiet when she's around new people and when she's sober."
"H-Hey, don't tell them that!"
Upon first glance of them, I thought they would be around our age, but if they could drink, then would mean that they were older than the age of 20.
"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you two?" Yukinoshita asked Hasebe.
"We're both 22. I started working here at 16, and I managed to get Yuki to work here when she was 17."
So, that meant they were either friends in high school, or they were related.
"I see," Hasebe finished taking a drink from the ramen broth then continued.
"That guy over there has been here since he was like, 8 years old."
After she said that, everyone here besides the waitresses was surprised to hear that Furuya has been working here for at least a decade.
"The manager is my mother, so I've lived here practically my whole life."
"Wow, really? You guys don't act related at all." Yuigahama added.
He smiled. "I'm her worker on the clock and her son off the clock. I guess it's effective that way because I plan to run the inn at some point during the future."
Suddenly, I found myself listening more to their conversation after hearing some interesting information.
"Really? Won't that be like, super hard?"
"It'll be hard to manage the inn if I were to inherit it right now, but I think I'll be fine in the future, especially since she'll be helping me run it."
"Huh, really?" Miura called out to Hasebe.
"I mean, I don't have anything I want to be, you know? My parents kicked me out when I was 18, so the plans I had for university were crushed. So, I figured I could make a decent living working here if Subaru doesn't fuck the inn over, that is." She lightened up the mood by making fun of Subaru.
"We'll be fine," he said with a positive attitude.
"Right," She paused, then addressed us. "You know, when I heard we were getting volunteers to help us out for a few days, I thought we would get a bunch of lame people, but you guys are pretty chill."
Little did they know that they were talking to the popular kids, while the loners were watching them in silence.
While everyone was actively engaged in conversations, Yukinoshita, who was on my right side, turned to me. "At least one person doesn't think you're a loner, Hikigaya-kun." She said, but only for us to hear.
"You're not any different than me in that regard, you know?"
Even though Yukinoshita was popular and had boys confessing to her left and right, she was still a loner, mostly because her ice-cold personality pushes everyone away, and there aren't many people out there willing to take verbal abuse from someone hoping that they might be a decent person to befriend.
"Yes, I suppose you're right. We're both loners, but you're the ultimate loner, Hikigaya-kun."
"Does that put you beneath me, then?"
"Yes, but you're below me in everything else."
"Is that so…" I didn't necessarily disagree with her. We didn't continue talking so we ate the rest of our food while listening to everyone else talk.
It was 7:45 pm and I was cleaning the men's side of the spring with Hayama and Tobe. I was barefoot, and the soapy marble floor felt oddly satisfying after every step I took.
Overall, it was a solid day today. Other than having to listen to Yuigahama, Tobe, and Miura while we were working, everything was completed without any problems. It was one of those situations where the work would've been better if you had friends to talk to. I had Yukinoshita, but we didn't force ourselves to talk to each other like everyone else.
After lunch ended, the seniors were at the beach which was about a 15-minute walk from the inn. Instead of joining them at the beach, we were allowed to hang around the inn until it was time to help for dinner, which was at 5:30. I passed the time by sleeping and reading in the lobby, I'm not sure about everyone else, though. 6:30 was the designated time for the springs, and everyone left around 7:30 back to their rooms to enjoy the rest of their night.
We were given permission to use the springs after we were done cleaning them, which was a bonus to us, as we get to enjoy them without having to worry about the other students coming.
"Ah man, today was super long," Tobe complained.
"At least we get to relax later."
"True…"
I remained silent as I didn't have anything to contribute to the conversation at all. These two were friends, anyone with eyes can tell that much. As for me, I was just the person who happened to get jumped in a group with two friends, so I was stuck cleaning and listening in on their conversation.
"What do you think about the waitresses here? I think they're kind of cute, right, Hayato?"
He really chose to talk about this from all things. I wonder if he likes talking about this sort of thing when the girls aren't around.
"Yeah, they're cute." Hayama didn't seem to care but he still answered Tobe with a positive attitude.
"Right! Where do you think they're at? We should go see them."
"They're probably working somewhere, don't you think?" I broke my silence which surprised both Tobe and Hayama.
"Yeah, you right man. Which waitress would you pick, Hikitani-kun? I wanna know your type."
What the hell? I never thought about my 'type' before. Ugh, if I didn't say anything I wouldn't have found myself in this mess.
"Uh, is neither an option?"
"Cmon, don't be like that.
Be like what? I don't care about this type of shit that the normies nowadays seem to talk about all the time. "Hey, have you heard about…" "Bro, what do you think about…" I can't be too careless, or I might find myself the topic of conversation in their clique.
"Nah, it's just that I didn't look at them like that today." I paused. "What about you, Hayama?"
"Me?"
I gave Tobe a barely acceptable answer then I passed the baton over to Hayama. As a result, Tobe forgot about me and was anxious to hear what Hayama had to say.
"W-Well, I guess the one with the purple highlights is kind of cute."
"Right! Knowing you Hayato, you can get her number without even trying."
"Haha, I don't know about that."
As they were talking, I smacked my lips together as my mouth was considerably dry. Damn it, I should've brought some water or something.
"Hmm, you thirsty or something, Hikitani-kun?"
He heard me?
"Ah, a little, yeah."
"I'll get you some to drink, yeah? Milk tea like always, right, Hayato?" He didn't wait for his answer, so he quickly dried his feet before dashing out the door. Hayama sighed as he watched Tobe abandon his responsibilities.
"You know, he's always like that. When he sees a chance to stop working, he'll take it immediately."
Did I ask?
"Right," I continued to mop the floor in silence with Hayama, as I had no interest in talking about Tobe.
"Hey, can I ask you something, Hikigaya?"
After 30 seconds of strained silence, he called out to me with a serious tone.
He got my name right, huh? I knew this bastard was getting it wrong on purpose.
"What is it?"
"… What's your relationship like with Yukinoshita? You guys seemed close, so I was curious."
"We're just club-mates, that's all."
"Is that so?" He didn't seem exactly pleased with my answer, but he accepted it anyway. "Listen, about Yukin—"
As he was about to continue, Tobe barged through the door with the drinks in his hand.
"I got you water since you're thirsty, Hikitani-kun." Wow, that's awfully considerate of him. I thanked him, then he handed Hayama his milk tea, but he noticed that the atmosphere was strained. "Wow, did something happen? It feels kinda weird in here."
"No, nothing. Let's just finish cleaning so we can go back to our room."
We all picked up the pace after agreeing with Hayama.
As we were cleaning, I thought to myself. What was he going to say? I can only speculate so much about what was given to me, and from what I observed. But thinking about what relationship those two had left a sour taste in my head, so I shook it off and continued to work.
After 10 minutes, the three of us agreed that the place looked good enough for us to leave. As soon as we dried up, we wasted no time and began walking back to our room. It took no more than a few minutes to get there since Tobe was speed walking, which forced Hayama and me to match his pace.
When we arrived, we made ourselves comfortable for the remainder of the night. It was only 8:20, which means I'm going to be here with these guys for a while. I want to go to the springs, but I want to wait first because if they find out I'm going, then they'll want to tag along with me, which is what I don't want to happen.
"What ya watching, Hayato, porn?" Tobe said as he was lying next to Hayama. I still had my sheets away from them, but not across the room like I originally wanted, but close enough to them where it doesn't seem like I'm avoiding them.
"Nah, it's just a book that I picked up not too long ago, it's in a PDF format, though."
"You're always on your a game, Hayato; I could never study while I'm on a trip." He didn't wait for Hayama's response, he instead brought me into the conversation. "Wow, Hikitani-kun you're reading, too? Are you secretly smart like Hayato?"
I can deal with Hayama, he's not a problem. But I wasn't used to dealing with people like Tobe who had this unusual energy around them.
"No, I just like to read."
"Really? Isn't reading like, super boring?"
"It's only boring when you're reading a book that doesn't interest you."
I feel like most people don't like to read because they were forced to read at one point in their lives, most likely at school. But after you find a book that interests you, all it takes is a little imagination and you'll start to lose yourself in it.
"Ah, is that so? Maybe I should start reading or something, what do you think, Hayato?"
"Do whatever you want, Tobe." Hayama didn't show any signs of annoyance, but I can tell he didn't like interrupting his reading to talk to Tobe.
"Aren't you in the service club, Hikitani-kun? Maybe yall can help me find a book or something."
Hayama suddenly showed interest in the conversation after hearing the words, 'service club.'
"You knew that I was in the service club?" I turned to him.
"Sensei was talking about it with us before the trip, ain't you and Yukinoshita-san in the same club together? What's she like? She looks scary, like Yumiko."
Scary was an understatement. She can say some of the harshest things in the world without thinking about how the other person would feel, in that way she's incredibly cold, she's not the ice queen for nothing. Not only that, but she'll also treat you with contempt which makes her incredibly difficult to get along with. If you look past these things, then she's not that bad, but she's still a jerk.
"She's alright, I guess."
"That's it? Cmon, I need more than that."
"Leave him alone, Tobe."
Hayama came to my rescue for some reason, but I wasn't complaining, I was getting a bit uncomfortable having to answer Tobe's questions.
"M'bad, Hikitani-kun. I just wanna have some girl talk, you know?"
And that's my cue to get the hell out of here.
"I'll be back, I'm just going to go on a walk." I took the extra keycard and walked out of the room and stood in the hallway for a second before deciding to make my way to the lobby.
I didn't want to be a part of any girl or boy talk with people I didn't know, it just seemed like a recipe for disaster. If I had guy friends then I wouldn't mind too much, but I didn't have any friends.
I checked the time, and it was 8:30. What can I do at this time? Maybe the fireplaces are empty, so I guess I'll go check that out.
When I made my way to the lobby, I saw that the seats by both fireplaces were occupied by people. Well, that's unfortunate. I didn't feel like walking around the inn or going in the spring, so I needed an alternative.
"You lost or something?"
To my left, a female figure walked out from the receptionist's desk and called out to me.
"Not really, I was thinking of somewhere to take a walk or relax."
"That so? If you find the balcony, there are a ton of people up there enjoying the stars. It's on the third floor, you'll find it."
That didn't sound too bad.
"I see, thanks."
"Hmm, well if you need me, I'll be in the receptionist office with the manager doing paperwork." She left after that, and I began walking to the third-floor balcony.
Hasebe seemed like an interesting person that I'll never see again.
After five minutes, I found the balcony. Even though I was still indoors, I was still able to hear faint noises coming from outside, so there must be a lot of people out there
I opened the door to the balcony, and I was greeted with a gentle breeze. There were a lot of other students outside currently enjoying the weather and viewing the orchestra of stars. As I was walking toward the balcony, I noticed a familiar lone girl who was against the rail. Even though it was just the back of her, her hair and the shape of her figure had me admiring her for a second before I snapped out of it and called out to her.
"Yo,"
She turned around and faced me. "Hikigaya-kun?"
She was rocking a similar style from this morning, but with different clothes of course, and her hair was down as well.
She continued. "Got so uncomfortable in your room that you decided to come out here?"
"Actually, yeah." As I said that, I joined her on the balcony. "What about you?"
"… I'm out here for similar reasons."
Projection much?
Jokes aside, this was a side of her I have never seen before. She looked conflicted like something was bothering her. But she didn't look like she wanted to share, but I was curious, so I decided to ask her.
"Is it anything you want to share?"
She sighed heavily, as if letting go of a huge burden that's been weighing her down. "… Miura-san and I had an argument. It took me 20 minutes to destroy her, but I ended up making her cry. I got carried away and I didn't realize that I was in the wrong until she started crying, it was immature of me."
"I guess the great Yukinoshita can't handle tears, huh?"
I should wail the next time I get the chance…
"I didn't expect her to start crying, it's just she saw Hayama-kun and I talking this morning, and she asked me a lot of questions regarding him."
I see so that was what Miura was talking to Hayama about this morning. But Hayama probably didn't tell Miura much, so she asked Yukinoshita, but she got destroyed in the process, so badly that she ended up crying.
"… What's up with you and Hayama? He talked to me about you earlier today, it seems like you guys are close."
"Did he now? We went to the same elementary school, that's all. His father is the legal advisor for my family's business, and his mother's a doctor."
What the hell? That's a childhood friend right there.
"It sucks dealing with people you don't want to deal with, especially when your family forces you to."
"I suppose so."
"You make it sound like it's not your problem."
"Because it's not. I have an older sister, and it's her job to attend to these social obligations, acting as a representative of the Yukinoshita family. I have no place in them, I'm just a stand-in."
I'm just a stand in… those words echoed in my head.
"I didn't know you have a sister."
"It's because I don't go around telling people about my personal matters, but yet I told you so much about myself for some reason." The light breeze I felt earlier filled the silence between us.
She had a sister to act as a representative of her family during social events. If Yukinoshita wasn't representing her family then she was just a stand-in like she said, just there, a lone presence that was barely acknowledged by anyone.
She turned to face me after some silence. "I think I feel better about myself now after I got these things off my chest. So, thank you."
"Don't sweat it, I was the one that asked anyway."
She looked at the stars one more time before she spoke again. "I'm going to head back to my room. Goodnight."
Good luck.
"Yeah, night." I watched her leave then I focused my attention to the array of stars.
You can't escape your past without facing it head on. It'll creep on you at times you don't expect, and it'll keep reminding you of your past failures. The guilt, the shame, the regret— everything comes pilling on you and you're forced to deal with it. It's the same for me, but not just me, it's probably the same for her as well. She told me things I never thought she would tell me. But what do I make of it, is it trust, friendship— or is it me overthinking something so simple as someone opening up to me?
As she left, the unknown feeling that I felt before crept up on me. I called it peace, but now I know that it's similar to what I felt back in middle school. But if it's going to end how it did back then, then I should save myself the pain and drop it altogether. But even if I wanted to do that, I wouldn't be able to, because it keeps gnawing at me, as if there's an invisible force that keeps me drawn in her direction, that keeps me drawn in her life.
I sighed, then made my way to the exit because I didn't want to stay out there anymore.
AN:
there are 10,825 words on the site, but 10,332 words on Word, so not sure what's that about.
Fun chapter I liked the character interactions.
[1] Name of the inn in Hanasaku Iroha. (Love this show)