It's been a week since the New Year passed. The classes have resumed and problems started to arise. The cold, writing the new year on paper, and the likes. But the biggest problem, is the most annoying one.
Miura.
When I comforted the girl, the fiery attitude that was commonly used towards me, was non-existent. I thought that after that, her fierce personality would come back, but I was wrong. I was very, very wrong. The blonde haired fire queen of Sobu, was being uncharacteristically clingy.
That's right, clingy.
This woman, have been intruding my life for the past week, and I am not happy. I understand why she's acting that way, because she sees me as someone she can depend and share on, but I am not liking her excessive clinging.
"Hikio." Like today. "Let's have lunch together at the rooftop." The blonde demanded my undivided attention. Woman, I am not your boyfriend, stop that! "I'll drag you there if you plan to escape."
"Is it fine if I bring Saki?" I asked. At the mention of the name, Miura's brows furrowed.
"Why?" She asked.
"Why not?" Another female voice spoke. Miura and I looked at the source, it was an unimpressed Saki, with her arms crossed, and looking annoyed at Miura. "Is there a problem if I eat with you guys?" Saki then sends Miura a challenging look.
"Fine." Miura backs down, and walks towards her seat. Saki then starts talking. "Did Miura say something earlier?" She starts interrogating me. Miura didn't say anything, other than demand me to eat lunch with her.
"She didn't say anything that you might've not heard." I explained to Saki. The silverette then pouted, as if not believing my words. "Besides, if she was saying something, you would've heard it a mile away. That woman is loud as hell." I added. This seemed to calm her down. Saki then walked back to her seat, as the classes started.
"Okay, time for self-study, I have something important to do." I heard Hiratsuka-sensei speak. "Hikigaya, you're coming with me." Damn, why am I coming? I wanted to laze around. I stood up and walked towards Sensei, noticing looks from three different sources. Yuigahama looked with curiosity, Miura looked expectantly, and Saki looked with… worry? Their curious stares made me compose a haiku.
Saki is worried,
Miura now looks annoyed.
I want to leave now.
Proud of my quick composition, Hiratsuka-sensei and I walked towards her office. When we reached the said place, she pulled a cigarette, lit it up, and smoked. "So, why am I here?" I asked. Sensei then spoke, to answer my question. "What, you wanted to study? I know you would just laze around." She sets down the cancer stick on her ashtray, and began shuffling some papers, as if looking for something. I heard her mumble a "here it is" when she found what she was looking for. Sensei then hands me the said paper and begins to explain.
"Isshiki came up to me to set up a prom for the graduating students." Hiratsuka-sensei huffs on her cigarette.
"But graduation is not yet near, why bring this up now?" I asked another question.
"I don't know myself honestly, you better ask her about it." Sensei finished smoking, and left the cigarette on the ashtray.
"Anything else I should know before I leave?" Sensei takes off her lab coat, and starts to massage her shoulders. "I'm leaving this place."
"What?" Was the smartest thing I could muster at her statement.
"You heard it right, I'm leaving Sobu after the graduation." She sighs as she stretched, then speaks again. "I feel like I've done all I could here, and I can't pass up on an opportunity." People say that when opportunity knocks, you should always answer it. "What's with the silence?" Sensei asked.
"It's hard to imagine this place without you Sensei." I answered. When I observed her face, I saw her face redden with embarrassment. I find it very uncharacteristic of her and cute.
"Whatever, I'm sure you won't miss me anyway."
I might not show it, but I am thankful for her efforts. I will miss Hiratsuka-sensei. "I really can't understand you at all Sensei. Sometimes you act tough and scary, sometimes you act like a need woman. Tell me, are you that much in a hurry to get married?"
"Be thankful that I don't hurt cripples, or I might've broken your arm again." Sensei rebuts. "How's your arm by the way?"
My arm is fine, thank you for asking Sensei. The cast was removed last Saturday, I only need to take painkillers when it hurts and I need to not exhaust it. "Well, it's been good, no more cast which means I can play with my Vita-chan more comfortably now." I answered. Sensei, then smiled in a crazy manner that makes me feel that I triggered a flag.
"Does that mean you're cleared now?" I don't like that smirk, she looks like a yandere girlfriend ready to make my life hard.
I quickly raised my defenses to ensure I will avoid physical harm. "No. Doctors said I shouldn't strain my arm so it will heal entirely." This seemed to work, Sensei's face faltered and she became worried. This woman can go from crazed to worried that fast, that I heard non-existent roof slapping from a car salesman.
"Well, back to your question. Girls are always like that, able to exert wide range of emotions in such short time span." Hiratsuka-sensei spoke. "You need to understand their intentions for you to understand them. Sometimes they're angry about what you did, because the intention make you realize that what you did was wrong." Sensei stretches for the nth time of the day. "As long as you know that, you can avoid misunderstanding some things."
I digested her words, it has some truth to it. To avoid misunderstandings, you need to know the intention behind every word, every action. But sometimes, women act so different from their intentions, which makes it harder for men to understand them. Will society be more advanced if women were like men? As I don't want to tread that question, I stopped thinking about it.
Hiratsuka-sensei and I continued to discuss about things like the current shows we're watching, who's the better character, why a show is trash. You know, typical otaku discussions. I lost track of time and when I heard the bell ring, I was surprised.
"Whew, look at that, it's already lunch time!" Sensei stands up, then stretches her arms which emphasized her bust. "Time sure flies when you're not paying attention at it. So Hikigaya, you have somewhere else to be?" She asked. I honestly won't mind eating here, but the agreement Miura and I had suddenly popped back into my mind.
"Yeah, see you later, Hiratsuka-sensei." I bid farewell as she went back to looking on her papers. I walked back towards 2F to grab the lunch Komachi prepared for me.
Little sisters make the best lunches, people say.
'But Hachiman, only a siscon would say something like that.' Shut up, just because I love my sister, doesn't mean I'm a siscon. It is normal for siblings to love each other! Enough of defending myself, when I reached our classroom, I stumbled against an intense staring match between silver and gold.
Miura and Saki's going at it, and shooting imaginary lasers against the one they're staring at. When I reached my seat, the two girls stopped their intense staring contest and shifted their focus to me. "Hikio! Where were you?! You missed the morning classes." The goldette starts clinging into me. The silverette looked at her with annoyance. When Miura noticed Saki's look, she stuck her tongue out, annoying the silverette more. I heard Saki growl before she spoke. "Yeah, did you get in trouble Hachiman?" Yeah, just because I look like a delinquent, doesn't mean I get in trouble Saki.
"No, Hiratsuka-sensei talked about some things." I answered. The two doesn't seem to be convinced, but they let me be for now.
"Fine, let's go and eat!" Miura dragged me towards the school rooftop, with Saki behind us. Luckily, I had already grabbed the bento my wonderful little sister prepared. The walk towards the rooftop was filled with one-sided inquiries of Miura, with me saying my two cents about whatever she was talking about. Saki was quiet the whole time. We reached the rooftop after a few minutes. Miura then sat on the nearest bench as she unpacked her lunch. Saki and I followed suit.
Let's see what Komachi prepared for me. I sat down and unpacked my bento, and saw shrimp tempura and a mix of vegetables. Saki's lunch was also shrimp tempura, and a side of tomatoes. "That looks nice Hikio, can I have some?" Miura asked. Being the generous person I was, I nodded to acknowledge her request. The blonde then smiled, thanking me before grabbing 2 shrimps from my bento.
Damn, what a greedy woman.
When I looked at Saki, she was looking at Miura with annoyance. Perhaps she also wanted to taste Komachi's wonderful cooking? But that doesn't make sense, we almost have the same food. Maybe she wanted to compare Komachi's shrimp to hers? With me reaching a conclusion, I handed Saki a piece of shrimp. She looked at me with a surprised face then spoke. "Are you sure?"
I nodded and replied "It's fine, you look like you wanted to have a taste. Can I taste yours?" Saki then hurriedly grabbed a piece from hers then placed it on my bento.
Trade successful.
"So Hikio, I'm thinking of asking you about something." Miura started to speak. She is fidgeting as her left hand twirling her blonde locks, while her right hand was tapping the bench. "I wanted to ask for your help."
"About what?" Is it something serious? She might want to ask the service club then.
"I wanted to know Hayato's career plan." I guess she still cares about Hayama even after she was rejected. "So I can pursue him."
"I thought you're asking for something serious." I replied. The blonde got a bit angry then started speaking.
"What?! How is it not serious?!"
"I'm with Hachiman on this one." Saki chimed in. Miura, hearing the Silverette's words, spoke back. "It's serious because I like Hayato! What do you know about love anyway, you tomboy?" Poor Saki got shut down by Miura's remark. "Besides, am I not your friend Hikio? Don't I get special requests or something?" She asked.
Extra Services for Miura Yumiko? It sounds kinda lame to be honest, so no.
"You better ask Yukinoshita about it. She will be angry at me again when she learns that I took your request." I say to Miura. I noticed that the said blonde was a bit annoyed as she pouted at me.
"Mou, I'm a friend right? Please?" Miura started pleading, making a sad puppy face that for the life of me I cannot refuse.
Saki shook her head in disappointment. I'm sorry for disappointing you Saki, but I just cannot refuse helping people in need. "Fine. I'll try to find out what Hayama's career plan is." When I uttered it, the saddened face Miura Yumiko brightened, and showed Saki and I a thousand-watt smile.
That smile is too bright woman, too bright.
"Thanks Hikio! You're a lifesaver!" Miura proceeded to glomp me. We continued to eat our lunch, with Miura talking loudly, and Saki either shaking her head or look at me in annoyance.
To be honest, I really don't like this day. I'm not a fan of school events, much more this one.
I'm talking about Valentine's Day.
Isshiki had the great idea to facilitate a tutorial on how to bake chocolates, and invited even students from our sister school, Kaihin-Sougu. Which brings us to now.
Yukinoshita, Yuigahama, Miura, Isshiki, Saki even managed to bring Keika. Oh, Yukinoshita's sister is also here.
Even Orimoto is here.
What's great with this event? The idea of giving someone a proof of your love? Isn't that a bit materialistic? The concept of "proof of love" is a ploy by companies to earn money. Even diamonds were not able to escape this fate.
"Hikki! Look at this!" Yuigahama proudly presented her batter, which is shaped like her dog, Sable. "How is it huh Hikki? Am I a good cook now?" She asked smugly. Yukinoshita then shook her head like a disappointed parent. "Yuigahama-san, all you did was mix it, you haven't done anything tedious." She said as she removed the sweat off her forehead by wiping it with her forearm. Yuigahama turned to her and pouted. "Mou Yukinon, don't belittle my hard work like that!"
"Make sure she doesn't burn the whole school, Yukinoshita." I added fuel to the fire. Yuigaham then faced me to protest. "Hikki! Not you too!" Sorry Yuigahama, but most of people in attendance to this event can attest to my statement. I glanced at Saki, who was for some reason looking at me too. When our eyes met, her face turned red then did her best to avoid my sight.
What was that?
I turned my attention towards Miura, who was a counter away from Saki. She was wearing a white apron provided by the school, which she manages to look fashionable. Miura was mixing hers with determination, sometimes looking at Hayama, who was beside Yukinoshita's sister. Speaking of Yukinoshita's sister…
"Come to think of it, you used to give me chocolates back when we were kids. Right Hayato?" She spoke. Miura and Isshiki vocally reacted to what she said. Hayama, being the mediator he was, just scratched his head, laughed then replied to her. "That was a long time ago, Haruno-san."
"Ah, Hikigaya, you used to give me chocolates too right?" This time, it was Orimoto who spoke. "Wait, have I given you a chocolate before?" She asked.
"You did, but it was just a mandatory one so I guess that doesn't count." I answered. The brunette then went back to baking, but not before dropping a bomb.
"So, after I'm done, would you like one?" To this, most girls were looking not only at Orimoto, but also at me. Yukinoshita, Yuigahama, Saki, Miura, Isshiki, even Keika. Elder Yukinoshita was laughing at my misfortune.
Also, why is Miura and Isshiki looking at me?! They like Hayama right?
"Suit yourself." I finally said, to which Orimoto laughed and said that she'll take it as a yes. "I'm going out for a bit." I said to Isshiki, who didn't hear what I said. She's very focused on her task that she was zoning out.
Guess she really wanted to woo Hayama this time huh?
As I walked towards the exit, I felt the atmosphere get tense as the girls were more focused now. No one uttered a word as I left the room. After taking a much awaited piss, I bumped into Hiratsuka-sensei.
"Ohh, Hikigaya!" She enthusiastically said. "How's your valentine's so far?" Her enthusiasm dropped down as she asked that. I think I know why she is acting this way.
"Nothing much, it's just a normal day." I answered. "What got you into that mood Sensei?" I questioned. But I think I shouldn't have because she started rambling. "What was that Sensei? I couldn't hear you."
"I said I haven't received anything!" She exclaimed. "I've been waiting for even a giri, but no one even gave me that! Is this how they treat me, knowing that I'm leaving soon?" She continued.
"I think most students don't know you're leaving, Sensei." I said to her.
"Whatever, I am still sad." Then, I think a bright idea entered her mind as her face suddenly lit up. "Aha! I know what'll make me happy." She then grabbed my left arm before speaking again. "How about we go and eat ramen right now?" Sensei's getting excited.
"As in right now? Isn't it school hours?" I asked her.
"Don't worry about it, you're already excused, remember?" She has a point, I'm already excused because of Isshiki's event. "Besides, it's my treat."
You son of a… I'm in.
Sensei then dragged me towards her Aston Martin as she hurriedly drove off to find a ramen stand that is not fully occupied. Needless to say, it was one of the best ramen I had in my life.
"And with that, we're done!" Isshiki-san joyfully spoke. "Make sure you give the chocolates you've made to the one you truly love!" Teased the student council president. Keika pulled my arm, which got my attention.
"Saa-chan, should we give it to Ha-" I managed to block her next words with my hand, wouldn't want to spill the secret now. "Shhh, not here Keika." Nodding in agreement, Keika happily spoke to me. "Let's give the chocolates to Onii-chan!"
Now that Keika and I made the chocolate, it was time to give it to someone. Who am I kidding, I already know who I am giving it to.
Said person wasn't present here, nor he didn't even show up.
Everyone was wondering where did Hachiman go. Yukinoshita-san said he might've went and got caught molesting a minor, therefore being jailed. Miura even chimed in and said that he was probably fighting someone somewhere, all because of his eyes.
"Mou, where did Senpai go? I wanted to make him do my-*cough* I wanted to ask for his help." That sounded different Isshiki-san, what are you trying to make my Hachiman do?
Wait, my Hachiman? What am I thinking?! I'm not even sure if he's going to accept this!
Calm down Saki, don't count the chickens when they haven't hatched yet.
"Kawasaki." I heard a voice call out to me. It was Miura. She walked towards me and noticed my little sister. "Is she your little sister?" To which I nodded. She then turned to Keika, who was looking curiously at her. "Hello, I'm Miura Yumiko, what's your name?"
"My name is Keika, nice to meet you, Yuu-chan." Keika! You shouldn't give nicknames to people you just met!
"Keika, don't give people nicknames, especially those you just met." I scolded my little sister. Miura just shrugged it and spoke to me. "It's fine, I kinda like nickname. Besides, your sister's so cute!" Miura then doted on my Keika, pinching her cheeks and hugging her. "I wish I had a little sister this cute, or even a little brother would be fine." So she doesn't have any siblings? Maybe that's why she is a bitch.
Having siblings are the best, especially little brothers.
And no, I'm not a brocon, don't call me that.
"So… why did you call out my name, do you have something to talk about?" I questioned her. It was rare for us to talk about something, and we only ever interact when Hachiman is around. So to have her approach me is a bit odd.
"Well, I wanted to ask you about something…" Miura starts to speak. "Do you like Hikio?" Woah, what's with that question? Why would she even ask that? Don't tell me… "Judging the look of your face, I think you like him." What did I look like for her to say that? I quickly pulled up a mirror that I keep on my purse, and saw that I am blushing.
Quickly calming myself, I replied to her statement. "Why do you even ask?"
"I think… I like him too."
Huh?
"Did you say what I think you said?" I asked. I simply couldn't believe what she just said. Miura's head over heels for Hayama right? "Did you say that you like Hachiman?" Miura nodded. Why? What changed? I looked at her and she was blushing, like I am earlier. "But why?"
"I don't know myself, but when I started hanging out with you two, I started to feel that I like him." Miura spoke softly. She was looking around the room where we are. "I just asked you because I feel that you like Hikio too." She spoke. I won't deny what she said.
"Don't you like Hayama?" I uttered. Miura's face then saddened. "So I really don't understand how in the world you would like Hachiman." The blonde was silent. I sat Keika down on a counter because I feel this is going to be a long conversation.
"You know the reason why I was crying on the park after we went to DestinyLand?" She asked. I shook my head because I don't remember it. "Well, when Hikio and you were separated from us, we rode the Ferris Wheel. The mood was so perfect, that I decided that it was now or never." Miura breathes. "I confessed to Hayato and got rejected." So that's what happened. It was the reason why the group was more tense and awkward when Hachiman and I returned. "That night you found me crying, Hikio was kind enough to listen about what happened." Miura was trying to recall more information, I guess. "Well, I like the time we spent together, eating lunch, and sometimes even going out to the mall."
"You and Hachiman went out?" I asked. When did this happen?
"Well we meet on Saturdays."
They.
Meet.
On Saturdays.
That information made my brain hurt even more, with my brain pleading to have a break or else it will explode. Miura noticed my face and quickly spoke again. "No, it's like you think! I meet him when I go out for grocery shopping. We shop on the same store on the same day." She waved her hands in dismissal of my thoughts. What a coincidence, to meet on the same store on the same day every week?
"You can't help but like him! Hikio might look like a creep, but interacting with him is always fun. He doesn't sugarcoat his words and would rather be honest with you, which I like." I know, I like that about him too. "I like that he's fun to hang around."
"So what are you doing? Are you going to try your shot and ask him out today?" I asked the blonde.
"No, that's your plan." Miura sends me a cheeky grin. "I'm going to bide my time and do it when the time is right. I hope he is still single by the time I do." Wow, what a levelheaded thinking from an impatient person. Didn't think Miura would do something like that, I guess love can and will make you do things you otherwise won't. She taps my shoulder. "Good luck, you'll need it, Kawasaki-san." She turns to her side to pat my little sister. "Let's play next time, Keika-chan!" She smiled.
It was the first time I heard Miura call me properly.
"Didn't think I'd find you here." I heard someone speak. Judging the voice, I am fairly certain it was Hachiman. And it was, Hachiman turned his attention to Keika as he rubbed her hair. "How's it going Keika?" My little sister smiled as she enjoyed the headpat.
"I'm doing great Ha-chan! I made chocolate for you!" Keika then hands him a pink pouch, where crudely designed hearts are present. "I hope you like it Ha-chan!" She giggles for a bit before speaking again. "I wanted to give it to you after I have done it, but Ha-chan didn't come back! Where did you go Ha-chan?" Keika pouts as she asked. I bet even Hachiman can't resist the natural cuteness of my little sister's pout. He'll be compelled to answer for sure.
I decided to throw more fuel to the fire. "Yeah Hachiman, why didn't you come back?"
He scratched the back of his head then awkwardly grinned, which I find a bit cute. "W-well, I was supposed to come back, but on my way back I bumped to Hiratsuka-sensei. She started ranting to me when I asked how's her day going."
"Did Hiratsuka-sensei drag you to her office?"
"Even worse…" What did he mean by even worse? Did Sensei drag him somewhere just to physically abuse him? Or worse, maybe Sensei's thirst for men have broken its threshold and she vent all pent up sexual tension towards Hachiman? I felt like I raised a flag there, so I'm not going to think about it. "Hiratsuka-sensei decided to bring me to a Ramen Bar." Ah, I guess I doubted her too much. "All under the excuse that it will make her happy." He sighed like my dad who just came home after a tiring day. "Honestly, if it wasn't here treat, I wouldn't even think of eating at that place."
It went silent after he spoke. I don't know what to say, to be honest. The silence continued until Hachiman spoke again. "So, how was the event after I left?" He asked.
I coughed a bit before I started speaking to him. "Well nothing changed, everyone looked for you, but after some harsh remarks from Yukinoshita-san, we continued." I grabbed the purple pouch from the bench. "Here, I made this for you." He was surprised as he uttered a thank you shyly.
"Let's have a taste." Hachiman then grabbed a piece. It was a nicely shaped heart compared to Keika's. Will he like it? "Hmm…" He uttered as he chews. "That's good. How did you make it crunchy but not brittle?"
It's actually easy to do that, you just need to be sure to watch the temperature of the oven and pull it out on the perfect time. "Well, I can't tell ya my secrets now can I?" I replied then he starts to chuckle. I joined his laughing and we laughed for almost a minute. After our laughter died down, it's time for me to ask him.
"Hey Hachiman, do you like me?" He looked at me with surprise. Is it too forward?
"Uhh…" Hachiman speaks. "W-well yeah, I like you, you're a great friend."
I'm a great friend.
Great friend.
A friend.
Damn it, I was just friendzoned, by Hachiman of all people. I kinda expected him to answer this way, but I ignored it because I misunderstood his intentions. Right, that's probably it. How silly of me to think that just because a guy that I like started to act friendly towards me, I would go ahead and think he feels the same. "Y-yeah, I appreciate it, T-thanks for telling me that." My voice cracked, and tears were welling on my eyes.
It's hard for me to get rejected, even if indirectly. I'm a girl too you know?
I tried my hardest to suppress the tears from falling on my face. I turned away to observe the darkening skyline of Chiba, sympathizing with me. Hachiman might've noticed how I looked, because he immediately asked if something was wrong.
"N-no, it's nothing!" I waved my hands to dismiss him. "It's just too windy that some dirt got in my eye." I want to get away from here, to just disappear entirely! I want to go home real fast. So I stood up, then I spoke to him. "I gotta go Hachiman, I'll see you tomorrow." I hurriedly say as I dragged Keika with me, who was asking me what happened.
I wanted to run and get home as soon as possible.
I noticed it started raining before we reached our home, but I didn't feel it.
I felt hollow, like I lost something.
Only when I lied down the bed, then I let it out.
"It sucks." I uttered as I cried myself to sleep that night.
A/N: Hello! Jasserru here with the latest chapter!
Let us all smile with tears, as we watch the final episode of season 3. Man, it was worth the wait.
There's a circulating rumor in the Shizuka/Hachiman farewell scene that Shizuka is Yukino's future. A future where she and Hachiman didn't end up, so she travelled through time to help him. She bid farewell because she knew that she will ge going soon. I personally think it's farfetched but hey, someone can make that into reality through fanfics!
I took a long time writing this as I am trying to envision what transpired in this chapter. It's hard you know? Especially when I have classes to deal with 6 days a week. Still, I hope you guys enjoyed this one!
Follow and Fave if you liked it! Leave a review if you have something to say!
-Jasserru uses escape rope!
