Disclaimer: I do not own Oregairu or any brands mentioned.
Previously on Match Point: The two assassins begin their escape from the destroyed mall, Hiratsuka is visited by a detective and Hachiman drinks some coffee. Crazy stuff right? Even more crazy: Shizuka sends 8man a text asking him to meet her at a café right away. What will happen next? Find out!
Tuesday - Crashdown Café - 20:57
Hachiman opens the glass door and walks into the restaurant. There is a cardboard alien holding a sign with a list of coffees, and another alien holding a sign stating that the café is open twenty-four hours a day.
He looks around and sees his teacher sitting at one of the booths wearing a brown jacket and holding a mug. It's a fairly busy night, so finding her so easily was pretty much luck of the draw. After making his way through the crowds, Hikigaya sits down across from her.
Hiratsuka looks up from her coffee, seeing her student in front of her. She hesitates before saying anything, simply staring. Despite the restaurant being packed with loud customers and a few children, they both feel the silence.
"Hi…" She says, attempting to break the awkwardness.
"Hello." Hachiman responds emotionlessly.
A small smile appears on Shizukas lips, and the awkwardness wanes a bit. His bored tone of voice makes the situation feel a bit more normal for her.
"So, you're probably wondering why I called you here…"
He stays quiet.
"Well like I said, we have something very important to speak about… You know how a few weeks ago, some kids tried to rob me when they thought I wasn't home? Well recently the police found them…"
This time, he responds.
"That's a good thing right?"
"Well yes, but when I gave the police my statement - after I was robbed - I omitted a few details regarding what happened that night. For example, I didn't tell them how you fought off those high schoolers and helped me when I was unconscious. Obviously what you did was heroic and all, but you had just enrolled in Sobu High and I didn't want to put the stress of speaking with police officers on you and before you left my apartment you had asked me not to mention your involvement. So I didn't..."
The teacher sighs and looks around, trying to relax her mind. Hachiman watches as she collects her thoughts.
"Well clearly lying to the police wasn't the smartest idea. I had told them I was the one who fought the intruders off and didn't think about what the boys would actually say once they were caught."
She sips her coffee.
"Earlier today a detective visited me and said that I could have some legal troubles because the case is far bigger than they thought… Whatever that means. Apparently they received an 'anonymous tip' and that's all they could tell me."
This seriously peaks Hachimans interest. All the things his target told him up to this point was stuff he already knew or picked up, however the so-called "anonymous tip" means something is very wrong.
'The only people involved in that mess were Hiratsuka, myself and the three boys that tried to rob her. My target has no idea what the tip was and it's unlikely the intruders had anything to do with it. Meaning someone else has become involved.'
He clenches his fist, though it goes unseen as his hands are on his lap.
'The person on that cell phone, who hired those men to capture me, has to be the one orchestrating this.'
Hiratsuka begins to speak again.
"God, I shouldn't even be telling you this stuff… It's just, I don't know what to do and this affects you and you should know what's going on." Her worlds trail off and there is a long silence.
"Thank you for telling me."
There is a bit more silence, as the teacher finishes her coffee, and lets her student process what she's told him.
"Uhhh…I'm going to go to the bathroom, I'll be right back."
With that Shizuka gets up and walks off from the booth they're sitting in. Hikigaya watches as she walks away before shifting his focus to a man sitting alone at a table, sipping a coffee and reading a magazine. He is dressed in an inconspicuous golf shirt and jeans.
The assassin takes his cellphone out his pocket and dials a number. It rings for a few seconds, before the man sitting alone takes out his phone and answers.
"Hello, Rorona." Hachiman says as he waves to the man.
3 Months Earlier
Hikigaya walks up to the exit door and knocks twice. A few moments later, it opens and a soldier walks into the parking garage.
"What do you guys wan-"
Before he can finish his sentence, he is overpowered and subdued. Hearing a noise, the other soldier guarding the door turns around only to be greeted by the same fate.
The two assassins walk over the bodies as a pool of blood begins to form.
"I was being kept in the parking garage, and you were being held right in the middle of this mall right?"
Black Tiger nods at her partner as they stealthily trek through the building.
"Then I'd say they probably took Ryuzaki up to the roof. We don't have time to interrogate any of the soldiers, so we'll just have to hope for the best."
Another nod from the female assassin. They begin to follow the signs around the mall, looking for an employees only area that could take them right to the top.
"Thanks for coming back for me, I wouldn't have been surprised if you'd just left."
"That would be a tactical mistake."
"Perhaps, but I appreciate it nonetheless. I was unsure just how long I could last in there."
CRRR
They open a door, and begin climbing a stairway that leads to the roof.
"So you'd just resigned yourself to death?" Her question is blunt and almost critical.
Hikigaya chuckles softly, as she walks slightly ahead of him.
"No, but when it happens, then it happens."
"That's a bleak outlook to have on life, even for a killer. Don't you think?"
"It's not something I think about often."
They walk in silence for a bit, making their way up.
"Maybe you just a need a more fulfilling purpose in life."
"Do you have one?" He asks, unsure whether or not she'd be comfortable answering.
More silence.
"Privacy and secrecy are among the most important things in the work we do…"
"I understand, sorry for prying."
Black Tiger stops walking as they complete the final set of stairs, and turns to face Hikigaya, looking down at him from the higher step.
"Privacy and secrecy are among the most important things in the work we do, but the most important thing is why we do it. I made a promise to a friend many years ago, I'm here right now to fulfil that promise, and every mission I've taken has also been to fulfil that promise. If we survive today, then I'll live tomorrow with her in mind. Having someone to live for is as important as living, and without someone like that I wouldn't have had the will power to complete some of the missions I have.""
Choosing to say silent, Hachiman simply nods at the assassin. Black Tiger turns around and places her hand on a door handle.
"This leads to the roof. We don't know what's on the other side and there are only two things that we can be sure of: Whether we'll open this door, and why we'll open this door. You've already decided to go through the door, and I hope in the future, you'll figure out why you're going through it as well. I didn't save your life twice today, just for you to throw it away."
She pulls down the handle, and slowly opens the door. They both raise their guns, greeting what's on the other side.
Present Day – Crashdown Café – 21:14
"Hello, Rorona."
The man looks at Hikigaya from across the café with an annoyed expression, before speaking through his cellphone.
"I didn't know scandalous dinner dates with high school teachers were part of your mission."
The assassin smiles.
"Don't get cocky, you know nothing about my mission, and I'm here on business."
"Yeah I know."
The two speak with levity despite their tense relationship.
"Good, that means you've been doing your job. Anything to report?"
"A detective visited your target today but that's all… Should we be worried about that?"
"The only thing you should be worried about is me, Rorona. Forget that for now though, there's more important things to be discussed."
"Oh really, like what?"
"Well for one, your former employers have decided to make an enemy of me, which is very bad."
"Very bad for you, or very bad for them?"
Roronas sarcastic tone isn't subtle.
"You're a funny man. Right now, I need you to get back in contact with whoever hired you, then tell them that you're working for me and that I want to arrange a meetup. They'll most likely accept."
"And what if they don't?"
"Well then they'll probably just track you down and kill you, and then find me another way."
"Pfff, Sounds great."
"But that won't happen. They've made efforts to disrupt my life and lure me out. I have no doubt they'll accept an offer to meet."
Hachiman looks away from the man and towards Hiratsuka who is now walking back to their table.
"We'll be in contact soon." He says as he ends the call and puts his phone away.
The teacher sits down on her side of the booth and offers a smile at her student.
"So… Would you like a MAX Coffee, or something?"
He groans at the thought.
"Actually, I'm trying to cut down."
3 Months Earlier
A soldier turns around, and sees the door to the roof opening. Before he can react a bullet is sent flying through the air and into his head. The sound of the shot causes all the soldiers on the roof to look at the door and raise their guns.
More shots are fired, and some bodies drop. The man who was torturing Hikigaya earlier, pulls out his sidearm, and aims it at the two assassins who are standing in the door way.
BANG
BANG
He screams and looks at his hand, which is covered in blood, and missing some fingers. The gun drops to the ground and so does he.
Shots keep coming from the doorway, and bodies continue to pile up. Soon there is silence. Hikigaya and Black Tiger walk out onto the roof, dropping their empty rifles.
Some soldiers roll around on the ground clutching their wounds. The man giving them orders is in a condition no better, as he holds onto his hand for dear life.
"Take the weapons off the ones that are still alive, I'll go get Ryuzaki."
Black Tiger does as her partner says, and disarms the soldiers.
"You bastards! I'll kill you!" The commanding officer yells out, however no attention is paid to him.
At the very end of the roof, Ryuzaki sits on a chair, naked, just like Hikigaya. There are some fresh wounds on his body, and bruising around his face, regardless he smiles when he sees Hachiman.
After getting untied, he takes some clothes off of a soldier, and dresses himself.
"Are you good?"
"Yeah, they did the usual stuff then hung me over the roof. I must say, I'm quite disappointed in their lack of creativity."
The assassin smiles.
"Found a satellite phone on one of the men." Black Tiger says, interrupting the reunion.
"Call your handler, we need to get out this mall right now, soldiers will be heading to the roof."
"A Helicopter arrived on one of the landing pads down that way." Ryuzaki points to the east end of building.
"Excellent."
The three of them run across the large mall roof, towards the chopper. Before getting even halfway there, all the soldiers inside the mall arrive at the roof and begin shooting. Most of the shots miss, however one grazes Black Tigers arm.
The soldiers who were wounded by the assassins are dragged away, most likely to get medical attention, while the remaining men start a chase.
Large chunks of the ceiling have broken off, so a misstep could mean a potentially fatal fall.
Hachiman turns around while running and fires off some shots from his pistol. Not even he can hit a shot while at such a distance from the soldiers that are on pursuit. The bullets are mainly just to slow them down and throw them off.
Eventually they arrive at the end of the roof, where the helicopter is located. Ryuzaki opens the unlocked door and pulls a man out the pilots seat.
"Woah woah woah, calm down man! I'm just a pilot chill!"
Ryuzaki pays no attention to him as he climbs in. The two assassins get into the helicopters cabin.
"Don't we need keys… Or something?" Hachiman asks his handler, as he examines Black Tigers wound.
"Not on these models. When I was a younger man I'd fly them all the time." He responds as he starts turning dials and pulling levers.
The soldiers close in on them, but it's pointless as the helicopter begins to push itself off the roof below and into the air.
They aim there guns at it, firing a few shots, however it's futile as the helicopter has been specifically designed for situations like this. The men simply watch as it flies away.
Present Day – Crashdown Café - 21:22
Hiratsuka laughs out loud. Something she hasn't done all evening.
"What do you mean you're not drinking MAX Coffee anymore, you love that stuff?!"
Hachiman takes a sip of the water he brought from home, before speaking.
"I suppose it's okay, but too much of a good thing can be unhealthy."
Their tones are very different, hers is loud and loose, where as his words come out very stiff and calm.
"Don't be ridiculous, you've been chugging that stuff down for like two weeks now! Why are you not drinking it anymore?!"
The younger of the two ignores her and takes a look at the clock hanging on one of the walls.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, it's a bit late to be out right now, perhaps I should go home."
She leans back into her side of the booth, with a big smile on her face. The teacher raises her arm and points directly to her student.
"You're just trying to get of answering aren't you? I can't be fooled, especially by the likes of you."
The assassin raises an eyebrow.
'She's acting differently than she was earlier. Louder and more disruptive.' He thinks to himself. He ponders it for a bit before speaking candidly.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, are you drunk?"
Her eyes widen and her mouth opens, as if he just told her she won the lottery.
"Hachiman Hikigaya how dare you ask me such an inappropriate question?! I would never hide in a bathroom stall, drinking vodka!"
"I didn't say you would." He retorts, not breaking eye contact.
She blushes hard, realizing where she messed up.
"Well… Well…"
Hikigaya interrupts her ramblings.
"Did you drive here?"
"No…" She answers attempting to suppress a smile.
"You're a bad liar!"
The teacher pouts for a bit, then giggles, then looks as if she is in deep thought before standing up and grabbing Hachimans hand. She pulls him out the booth and begins to walk him to the café door.
"You have to pay for the coffee!" He yells whilst they make their way through the customers.
"I payed for it at the counter, just follow me already."
He stops struggling and lets her lead him out the door. Now standing outside, Hiratsuka simply stares at the passing cars, breathing in the smell of cold air and petrol. This goes on a for a bit before she turns to her student.
"My mother was stressed out a lot when I was young. Sometimes to the point of just breaking down into tears."
The assassin says nothing.
"But the next day I'd see her and it'd be like she was as good as new, like all the problems in her life just vanished. One day I asked her how she does it. She said to me 'Shizuka, it's simple really, I drink a lot of alcohol and go on an adventure!' and then she laughed, and I laughed too."
The wind blows her hair around, and the street lights illuminate Hiratsukas face.
"Let's go on an adventure, Hikigaya!"
Authors Notes: An adventure? What could she mean by that? You'll have to wait for chapter 15 to find out! But don't worry, it'll be out next week :)
