Chapter 11: Best Friends
Days after the diary event...
"Ne, Hayate-kun."
"Yes, Hinagiku-san?"
"Ahem... I mean, H**senberg-san... can you pass me some of that bluestuff?"
"Eh...? Oh! That blue stuff! Haha, okay! Ahem, now be careful, J*sse-san. That stuff is not good for us."
Nagi and Ayumu watched in confusion as they watched Hayate happily pass Hinagiku the bowl of blueberries as she giggled. Watching those two then laughing together, they immediately turned to each other and began whispering.
"What's going on between them?!" Nagi whispered. "Mornings usually starts with Hinagiku hitting Hayate after seeing her changing!"
"I don't know!" Ayumu whispered back. "But seeing them in friendly terms kind of makes me suspicious!"
"My my, you two have been getting along very well since last night," Maria said, walking to the table with a tray of tea. This raised even more confusion to the two curious girls, causing them to spit out blueberries to each other's faces.
"Hayate-kun!" Nagi yelled at him. "What is the meaning of this?!"
"Hinagiku-san watches my favorite show, Br**king Bad, so we caught up by a few episodes together," the butler said.
She and Ayumu both blinked. "Oh," was said in unison. Nagi shrugged. "Meh, it isn't even as good as The W*lking Dead," Nagi said.
"No way, Br**king Bad is way better," Hinagiku said. "You probably haven't even gotten to season three!"
"I haven't; doesn't have zombies." Nagi replied. Hinagiku sighed at the little girl. As they continued to argue, Ayumu watched Hayate smile, noticeably towards the pink-haired girl, feeling envy once more. She had to say something to bring his attention to her instead.
"I-I I watch Br**king Bad too!" she said, lying terribly through her teeth. "I love season three!"
Hayate turned to her. "Really?" he asked her, as her eyes suddenly glimmered to his response.
"That's good."
He turned and cleaned the dishes, She loss hope to his blunt response.
The days for Hayate continued like this; regularly with school, work, then walking home with an unusually gloomy Ayumu. When he arrived every night, after finishing his butler duties and putting his mistress to sleep by midnight, he always felt a bit more excited to finally spend the rest of his day with someone he could connect with.
"Hinagiku-saaan!" he whispered loudly to the living room from the kitchen.
She already knew what he wanted, instantly standing up from the living room couch and ran to his room.
"Let's goooo! Oh, goodnight everyone!" she shouted excitedly. Chiharu, Ayumu, and Kayura in the living room watched in confusion as the two ran into and shut his room. Kayura raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, I need to take a quick bath," Hayate said. He grabbed some clothes before leaving the room. "You can pre-load the next episode and make yourself comfortable."
Hinagiku frowned at the thought of him leaving her alone. She nodded nonetheless. "Sure," she said. Upon turning her head, she noticed a small shelf filled with CD's in his partly open closet.
"Hm? What's this?"
She walked over to his closet and pulled out an usually looking album from his collection. Its artwork simply had a big white "X" on a black background. Hayate turned to see what she held. He laughed.
"That happens to be one of my most favorite bands, The x*," he said.
She stared the minimal artwork and wondered about the odd named band. "Can I listen to them while you're showering?"
"Sure."
Hayate handed her his pair of headphones before leaving to the bathroom. She sat on his desk and listened through his laptop, beginning with the first track to the next. She closed her eyes and leaned against his chair, having already fallen for the mellow guitar strums and sampled drums, and understanding the lyrics clearly without actively listening. At one of the songs that she later came across, through every lyric directed towards somebody, as if every lyric was made to be relevant for the two of them, she thought of him.
You mean that much to me, and it is
Hard to show
Gets hectic inside of me
When you go oh ohhh...
Hayate walked back from his shower after she finished the song. "So, how are they?" he asked.
"They're amazing!" she said to him. "It sounded mellow at first but then it got really fun for my ears!"
"I'm glad you like them," he said. "I wouldn't think anyone would like my taste in music, aha..."
"Are you kidding me? It's great! Onee-san used to play stuff like this when I was little!"
'Hinagiku-san liking the music I listen to... she's even more amazing than I thought...' he thought. He felt an odd sensation. 'No no, I can't like her like this. She's just an open-minded person who dresses really nice when she tutors me... wait ,what am I thinking?'
"Hayate! We need to see them live!"
He snapped back from his long thoughts about her. "They are on tour right now and are coming to Japan next week, but they're sold out already..." he said in a disappointed manner.
"Aw, man..." she said. "Oh well."
"Maybe we could go next year!" he suggested. He grabbed another album from his collection, with a similar artwork, and put it in her hands. "Feel free to listen to them."
He watched her smile fade into a frown. She looked more upset than usual.
"Hinagiku-san, what's wrong?"
Can I confess these things to you
Well, I don't know oh oh
Embedded in my chest
And it hurts to hold oh oh ohh...
"Next year won't work for me..."
He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean...?" he asked.
She immediately shook her head. "It's a long story." She grabbed his arm and dragged him to his bed. "C'mon, let's catch up on this show."
I couldn't spill my heart
My eyes gleam looking in from the dark
I walk out in the stormy weather
They sat down on his bed once more and played another episode of their show. She leaned against his arm to make herself comfortable. Hayate looked at her casually watching from this position, with her head resting against his shoulder. He couldn't recall when they started sitting together like this, but heck, he wasn't complaining.
Hold my words, keep us together
Steady walking but bound to trip
Should release but just tighten my grip
It was a hot evening in spring, ninety-one degrees to be exact. So hot that a cold snack would be well its worth. One of the stores happen to specialize in frozen foods, and it was very well busy inside. A long line awaited to purchase their frozen yogurts.
"Okay, two Fr*yos for the total weight on this scale would cost... 1187 yen."
Hayate opened his wallet to see twelve hundred yen left. He gave the money to the cashier with tears of a poor man dripping on his last money.
"Wait," the girl behind him said. "Let me help you." She pulled out six hundred yen and handed it to him.
"But I'm treating you, remember?" Hayate insisted on paying himself, putting the money back in her hand.
"You don't really have to..."
He really didn't want to. However, he refused to let her pay. "Don't worry, Hinagiku-san," he said to her with a smile. "For what you've done for me, this is the least I can do."
And he meant it. Hayate felt like he could owe her a lifetime of service after finally understanding his weakest subject in school.
Hinagiku and turned her head away from him, hiding her slight blush. "Fine..." she muttered. The crowd in line behind them noticed the scene and began whispering to each other. The couple both sweatdropped at what they could hear on their way to a table outside.
"Did you see that? Now 'that's' how you treat a woman..."
"His girlfriend must be so lucky to have such a wonderful gentleman like him..."
"Yutaka-kun, why won't you treat me so kindly for once like that poor-looking boy over there? You selfish bastard!"
They sat down on a small table, both feeling nervous and awkward, as most small tables in the area seemed occupied by actual couples holding hands or having a deep conversation. They soon relaxed as the outdoor speakers played some music. Hinagiku spoke first.
"Thanks for the treat."
"You're welcome," he replied uncomfortably as well. "So.. what flavor did you get? I got tiramisu with pretzels along with some almonds and chocolate syrup on top."
"I got strawberry and vanilla frozen yogurt," she replied. "Topped with *reo bits, gummy worm, and strawberries."
Hayate gave out a small laugh. Her tastes would always surprise him.
"What?!" she asked.
"It sounds surprisingly girly!"
"S-shut up! Strawberry is an awesome flavor! You should give it a try, you know."
Hayate smiled. He didn't mean to tease her about her tastes, they just happen to make him question her about it. He watched her blush as she continued to eat, looking slightly annoyed by him.
"Hmm, I think I'll stick to my tiramisu and chocolate for now."
His eyes focused on her, starting with her sunglasses resting on top of her head. He could tell that she was either angry at him or rather embarrassed from the way she was eating. His eyes trailed down, down to her mouth licking the bits of *reo crumbs around on her lips, down to her tan and sleeveless dress, fashioned with a big brown leather belt around her slim waist, matched with a pair of long brown boots.
'Hinagiku-san looks pretty cute when she...' his thought trailed off to confusion. 'Wait, what am I thinking?'
Hinagiku's sense of fashion has always made him admire her, especially when comparing to his simple casual jeans and a grey v-neck shirt. Lately however, it's been quite different. She's been more appealing, more... dare he say in his mind, cute?
Was the great student council president trying to impress the below average grade student? Hayate could not begin to think of such an idea. He always knew her as a gorgeous and incredibly clever girl from the moment he met her, and as time passed by, he's gotten used to seeing her that way, to the point that he was able to hide his urges from admiring her. He sighed. Last night wasn't easy. He remembered holding his breath right when he saw her in that dress when he arrived home. He had to act quick, greet everybody, then go to his room before gasping for air.
'If I turned around that night...' Hayate thought. 'My nose would have bled...' A true butler should never lust after anyone, especially those who trust him in his care, which was the reason why Hayate had a hard time talking to her. Hayate felt like he was betraying himself as he felt urges to suddenly approach her. He knew that there was nothing but physical attraction, not love. He shook his head and mentally slapped himself.
'Why am I getting so nervous?' he asked himself. 'This isn't even a date.'
Hinagiku noticed his face turn red as he was staring at her the whole time. She was licking her spoon up to the tip when they met eyes.
She got up and walked away, right after throwing her frozen yogurt to his face. The couple sitting at a table behind them saw what just happened.
"See Kin-chan? If I treated you that kindly, I'd still get treated poorly."
"Selfish bastard."
"Okay, I'm getting real tired of your crap! It's over! Give me back what I paid for!"
She stomped all the way to the local park as the sun set, feeling the stares of other men looking at the young girl who was nicely dressed and also alone.
'Bunch of pervs,' she thought. 'That Hayate-kun is no different...'
Was she not worth anymore than a piece of meat to him? She slowly sighed. She felt hurt by that thought and sat down on a nearby bench. She watched a couple sitting across on another bench, smiling together and feeding each other with frozen yogurt. She sweatdropped at the conveniently placed couple in front her.
'Why can't we be like this together...?'
She continued to watch the couple in envy with a sad look, resting her head on her arms placed on her knees, until she suddenly felt an extremely cold sensation on her left cheek. Hinagiku jumped and shrieked.
It was Hayate himself, holding a can of soda to her face. She immediately looked away from him, feeling too tired to walk away again.
"Hey! That's my move!" she said. "Copying is not cool." She slightly turned her head, peeking at the butler who now sat next to her.
"What's with you?" he asked bluntly, much to his and her surprise. "I treated you as part of the deal and you threw it to my face. You act like this is some kind of a bad date..."
'That's because you don't see it as a date...' she thought to herself. "Figure it out," she said instead.
"Eeehhh?!" Hayate became a little irritated.
"Idiot!" she yelled. "You're so lewd, Hayate-kun. Just from the way you were looking at me earlier. I thought you were better than that!"
He looked away from her with a blushed face. "Then stop dressing up so nicely."
She froze, forgetting what else she was about to say to him. She gazed at the sun behind Hayate set further down, turning their surroundings darker and more purple.
Night time
Sympathize
I've been working on
White lies
"You don't have to dress so nicely when you're around me," he said. He gulped at his next words. "We're just friends, right?"
So I'll tell the truth
I'll give it up to you
Her heart jumped at those words. "Yeah, right. Friends..." she said calmly, before hiding her hurt feelings with a smile. "Sorry, Hayate-kun. I just haven't been out for a while..." She fought the tears about to come out and succeeded once more. "I like to dress nice when I do, so that way it feels special..."
Hayate couldn't tell whether she liked him or not. Some parts still didn't make sense to him, but he gave up. He sighed as he pulled out two tickets in his hand. Hinagiku's eyes widened as she saw its content description. She gasped.
"No way! You got tickets for The *x?!" she asked him in an excited manner, holding and shaking the arm holding the tickets. "These are sold out front row seats! How did you get these?!"
Earlier when Hinagiku left him, Hayate began to clean himself up when a couple behind him we're arguing.
"No! Don't take away these tickets, Yutaka-kun! I love youuu!"
"Too late!" Yutaka walked over to the butler covered in frozen yogurt and slammed the tickets to his hand. "Here, take it."
Hayate looked the ticket description. "Ehhh?! But these are- these are-!"
"The difference between your woman and mine is that yours seem worth fighting for. Now go after her."
Hayate laughed. "Well, it's a rather long story and it'd be complicated to explain..." he said.
He rubbed the back of his head feeling a little silly from earlier."Our fight is stupid, Hinagiku-san. Let's just go see The x* tonight."
Hinagiku made a big smile in return. "Hai!" What was she so hurt about in the beginning anyway?
And when the day come
It will have all been fun
We'll talk about it soon
It was a sold out night at the local musical theater. Night lights flashed dependently on the drum beats as fans cheered for the band playing right in front of the crowd. The pink haired girl who stood right up in front row stood still, overwhelmed by how much energy is surrounding her. The strums played loud and beautifully in her ears, the sub-woofers from the stage kept on blowing her hair. But what made her really feeling overwhelmed, was the boy standing by her side, holding her hand so they don't get separated by the huge crowd.
And I couldn't spill my heart
My eyes gleam
Looking in from the dark
I walk out in stormy weather
Hope my words keep us together
Steady walking but bound to trip
Should release but just tighten my grip
Hayate glanced at Hinagiku, who also began to happily cheer for the band. He didn't understand why he had to hold her hand when she requested it. The crowd surrounding them were just fine. He smiled nonetheless.
Night time
Sympathize
I've been working on
White lies
So I'll tell the truth
I'll give it up to you
And when the day come
It will have all been fun
We'll talk about it soon
A/N - Song: The xx - Night Time
In reply to a guest review, asking about what Kayura said to Hinagiku meant in the previous chapter - can't explain here to keep the fiction within its rating, but let's just say that if you respect the law, this would be something you should never say to anyone... lol. Anyways, sorry for the late update, and if you spotted anymore grammar error. Just got a second job. Didn't want to rush for my patient readers. Thank you guys.