Spring Vacation!
At the end of the academic year, somewhere between late March and early April, most schools in Japan have a short period of vacation that lasts one or two weeks, depending on the school's usual tradition.
Officially, the period has been recognized by the government of Tokyo, as well as by the Department of Education. Spring Vacation would be between March 25 to April 5th. Rationally, virtually all public schools would have to use the same measurement of vacation length.
Though Shuchiin Academy High School is not a public school, it also uses the same standard as a form of respect and solidarity!
But we're not going to talk about Spring Vacation just yet!
The students had finished their last term of the year recently, finished their end of term exams last week, and would be spending the next three days wrapping up all unfinished business before the School Closing Ceremony.
And just like that, the Shuchiin Academy Student Council was also spending quite a bit of time finishing their end of year reports.
And the one suffering the most would be Hikigaya Hachiman!
As the young man typed rapidly on the keyboard of his laptop, everyone looked at him weirdly. If he typed any harder the buttons might just pop out due to the damage they were taking.
"What's with the rush?" Miyuki asked.
"End of year asset evaluation and assessment report." Hachiman said, "I don't want to be bothered doing it later at home, I want to finish it during these last three days. Ignore me."
"Hiki-san's slacking too much." Fujiwara laughed.
"Shut up, you titty secretary. You have no room to talk."
Indeed, Fujiwara Chika, too, was finishing her end of year report, compiling the records of the student council activities. Piles of documents could be seen beside her.
"We need a student council historian!" Chika whined.
"Denied!" Miyuki replied with a deadpan.
Indeed, the plan to expand the student council members had been approved by the Principal, Director, as well as the School Committee (instantly at that). Another position was added, which would be the Public Relations Officer.
Starting next school year, in April, Hachiman would occupy that position, leaving both the General Affairs Manager along with the Auditing Officer position open for recruitment.
"Ishigami sent the end of year financial report today, so I can't help you guys at the moment," Miyuki said as he inspected the documents in front of him. "Our Auditing Officer sure quit at the most inconvenient time."
"Why isn't Kaguya-san here yet?!" Chika cried loudly.
Outside the room however, Kaguya stood by, frozen, her hand halfway stretched about to reach for the doorknob, but just unwilling to. She had been like this for the past five minutes straight.
"Aren't you going to enter, Miss?" Hayasaka asked as she leaned on the wall beside the door.
"I want to but..."
Kaguya quickly chickened out and hurriedly walked downstairs again.
"Didn't you apologized to President yesterday?"
"I did, I know." Kaguya mumbled, "But I wonder what kind of face I should make to President."
"A begging one?" Hayasaka flatly asked.
"AS IF! What kind of sneaky and desperate woman do you think I am?"
Hayasaka looked at her with utter disbelief, but she remained quiet. Kaguya needed to look at herself closely in the mirror sometime.
Shinomiya Kaguya was a sneaky and desperate young woman!
"And there was also the business with Hikigaya-san too." Kaguya made weird squeezing moves with her hands, "He'll just ruin my plan again as usual."
"Does he always do that?"
"Yes, he has."
"Why?"
"Because-"
Because Hikigaya Hachiman always protected Shirogane Miyuki. But Shinomiya Kaguya couldn't bear to say that. Because, at the end of the day, Hikigaya Hachiman shoved himself in like a third wheel in their war for a confession.
"Do you hate him that much, Miss?" Hayasaka asked.
"No." Kaguya looked away, hiding her embarrassment, "I... I guess I resent him a bit, and want to give him sufficient payback. But, he is President's most trusted friend for a good reason."
"So you still want revenge."
"That doesn't matter now. I just want things to go back to normal with the President." Kaguya sighed heavily, "Revenge can be done later."
"But to be honest, I don't like leaving loose ends either." Hayasaka blurted out.
Kaguya's ears perked up in response. It was very unusual for Hayasaka to say such a personal statement when she was on the job.
"We did get a piece of juicy information on him, but I guess it's too risky to bring the Ryuju family into this matter." Kaguya agreed, "Something more private and personal would be nicer."
"Should I try to approach him directly?" Hayasaka asked.
Kaguya wondered what was making Hayasaka so eager. It was almost as if she was taking this issue personally.
"...What exactly happened between you two then, Hayasaka?"
Though Hayasaka had indeed succeeded in tailing Hachiman and capturing quite a scene in both video and picture form, Kaguya never knew about what had happened afterward, since Hayasaka had come back home completely shell shocked and immediately fell asleep.
Hayasaka rolled her eyes aside, "We talked a bit and it seemed that he got quite an impression of me. I wonder if I can use it to get more juicy info-"
Kaguya's eyes shone brighter than before, as she grabbed Hayasaka's hands, "Mission approved. So what's the plan?"
Hayasaka knew this reckless, idiot Kaguya would understand! So she whispered the details of the plan to Kaguya, who nodded in approval, her smile growing wider and wider. Kaguya realized that Hayasaka certainly put a lot of thought into this plan. There were literally no loopholes left to be exploited!
However, Kaguya simply had no idea how dangerous Hayasaka's mission was.
Maybe it was for the best. After all, she was a 'Black Box', and Hayasaka fully intended to keep that fact to herself for the time being. Maybe, soon enough, Kaguya would understand.
Even so, Hayasaka took the initiative on her own, because she had a very good reason to do so.
In the end, it was all done to protect Kaguya.
Hayasaka heard someone walking downstairs and quietly left, she could't dare to be seen with Kaguya too often; the less the better.
Just as soon as Hayasaka's presence was erased from the area, Miyuki arrived.
"Shinomiya?"
"P-president." Kaguya almost jumped when she realized who it was. However, she managed to compose herself rather quickly. "I was held back because I was talking with a classmate. I apologize."
Technically, what Kaguya said wasn't a lie. Kaguya and Hayasaka were classmates after all.
"Nah, I don't mind, but Fujiwara is throwing a temper tantrum." Miyuki pointed up in the direction of the Student Council office, "Someone needs to help her with the end of year report, but Hachiman and I are both tied up with our own responsibilities."
"I see." She closed her eyes.
Kaguya felt a bit disappointed. She thought Miyuki had specifically come down to find her. But he came on Chika's behalf?
Well, that was absolutely in character for him. After all, he would be troubled seeing Chika like that. Besides, it wasn't as if Kaguya would refuse to help the person who she considered as her closest friend.
"And I was a little worried since you hadn't shown up yet," Miyuki said quietly.
"Huh?"
"No, nothing."
No, Kaguya absolutely had not misheard that. Miyuki was worried? Perhaps he really had come down here because he was thinking about Kaguya.
But what kind of worry?!
Kaguya turned pale as she once again remembered what had happened because she had switched Miyuki's coffee without informing him beforehand.
And unlike switching cups, switching jars of coffee simply couldn't be justified with absentmindedness. Kaguya had to come clean, if only so she could mitigate the damage.
But was Miyuki still worried about that?
Kaguya's heart just kept beating faster and faster, like she was about to faint.
"Why are you so nervous, Shinomiya?"
"Ahh, it's nothing. Please don't mind me."
Kaguya entered the council room and was greeted by a crying Chika, who immediately hugged her.
"Kaguya-saaaaan!" Chika cried, "Please help me! I don't want to lose to that idiot!"
Kaguya looked at Hachiman, who was typing furiously, a pair of earphones jammed over his ears to block any noise.
"That's not good Fujiwara-san, you shouldn't always rely on me like this."
Well, Kaguya would like to thank Chika. Because of her attitude, she could feel a little more relaxed than before. And with that, a single spark of courage came into Kaguya's heart.
She needed to patch things up with Miyuki. No matter what. So she sat beside Chika and began to work on the handwritten documents.
"Hmm, this isn't right." Miyuki wondered to himself from where he stood near the cupboard.
"?"
Kaguya looked at Miyuki, who was squinting his eyes as he inspected a cup of coffee, "No matter what I do, the taste won't come out right."
"What is it, President?"
Kaguya's eyes widened when she noticed that there were two jars of coffee now. But, one had a white label, on which was written in black marker, in English letters: 'DECAF'.
"I thought you were getting rid of it?"
"It just seemed like a waste of good coffee, you know. And, maybe, if I mix the two of them, it could still be somewhat effective." Miyuki blushed a bit, "I've been told by Hachiman in the past that eight cups of coffee a day is simply too unhealthy. I dismissed it early on, well until yesterday..."
So President was still thinking about it, huh?
"And I wondered if I could cut my caffeine intake by half or something." Miyuki said, "But the brews I'm trying just don't seem to be working."
Kaguya looked at the boiling pot and gasped, "Wha? Why did you let it boil?"
"Well, I usually do this at home, and it usually works just fine. I boil the water, then wait a minute before I pour it in."
"What kind of coffee bean do you normally use?"
"Hmmm." Miyuki wrinkled his eyebrows, "Nescafe instant powder?"
"Sigh."
No wonder it tasted so bad.
"Please let me do it," Kaguya said.
Would Miyuki trust her with the coffee machine, after what she had done yesterday?
"Hmm, yeah." Miyuki smirked as he made room, "I guess no one here can make a coffee blend better than you."
Kaguya almost cried right there. But she decided to steel herself and do something to make amends. As a Shinomiya, she had been taught not to trust anyone. But, at the end of the day, Shirogane Miyuki had earned her trust through his actions.
Kaguya should return the same sentiment. She would not let these battles of love end up on such a lackluster note. She would earn Miyuki's trust again.
She would make him confess no matter what.
"President, the brewing temperature between instant coffee and roasted coffee beans is different. With instant coffee, you can use near boiling water just fine. But the beans need to be a slightly lower temperature than that-"
And so, began another episode of Love is War.
But this is not that episode!
やはり, 彼らが望む告白は間違っている.
As expected, the Confession they want is wrong
Original Story by: Watari Wataru and Akasaka Aka
Written by: ZeroXSEED, Co-Writer/Editor: GoukaRyuu
Chapter 6 - Hayasaka wants to know... (Part 2)
"[We saw a Yamaha Dragstar with the correct license plate, Hayasaka-sama. He should be here in three minutes.]"
"I heard you." Hayasaka closed her eyes and then opened them again, adjusting herself and taking on her usual Gal persona in the process.
It was early in the spring season, the month of March. About the time flowers began to bloom, rains rarely came, and the weather was generally sunny.
However, today was different. Since last week, the weather was a bit cloudy. And, as the forecast had correctly guessed, that was a heavy rain today.
She would use it to her advantage today. She jumped away from the protection of an umbrella that one of Kaguya's men was holding.
Letting the rain soak her up, she waited in anticipation by the roadside.
Indeed, the sound of a lone motorbike roared in the rain. A cruiser bike was about to pass. Its rider was none other than Hikigaya Hachiman.
He was wearing a raincoat and a helmet, so it was difficult to identify him. But, the plate number did match, so Hayasaka wasn't too worried.
...only for the bike to pass her, splashing her with water that had accumulated on the road. Though she was already wet from the rain, she was now completely soaked.
Hayasaka almost immediately regretted her decision!
Hachiman braked as hard and safely as he could and then used his legs to move backwards.
"Why are you here?" He asked, flipping his visor up.
"I got lost and my phone's dead, so I can't use GPS," Hayasaka said with the most idiotic, thoughtless expression she could make. "Can you get me to the nearest station?"
"With this kind of rain? Forget it." Hachiman pulled something from a bag on the sides of his bike. It was an extra raincoat. "My house is close by."
Bingo.
It seemed that Kaguya's assessment of Hachiman's character was correct. Just like Shirogane Miyuki, Hikigaya Hachiman was a soft-hearted man who would help people in need, even if it wasn't really his business to do so.
No hard feelings, Hikigaya Hachiman. Hayasaka thought as she put on the raincoat.
"Is it really fine?"
"Don't make me rethink my stupid offer."
"Alright then~"
Hayasaka didn't really feel embarrassed as she hugged Hachiman from behind. This much skinship was no problem. She was a professional after all. Plus, both of them were wearing raincoats over their clothes.
She wondered if Hachiman was nervous. However, she noticed how smoothly he was handling the bike, as if he were accustomed to having a passenger on the backseat.
Normally, a bike rider would encounter issues the moment they started carrying a passenger. It must be thanks to Ryuju Momo then.
The apartment did not have an immediate parking space, so they had had to walk about 100 meters from the bike parking area. This wasn't entirely uncommon in Tokyo, as parking space, as much as any space really, was very precious.
But then again, the distance between his apartment and the school was still quite considerable. Reliance on the public transport might not be preferable, and cars were prone to traffic jams if you didn't know what you were doing, bicycle is handy but it can be quite tiring at long distance.
99% of Shuchiin students generally commuted from home by personal car. Very few actually used a bike. President Miyuki was one such example. One extreme example to boot, since he bikes about 15 kilometers from home to school, which translates to 30 kilometers per day.
A motorcycle really was a practical choice in this context.
"Motorcycle's are really cool." Hayasaka grinned, "Too bad you can't bring it to school."
"Yeah."
"I bet girls would love it if you did." Hayasaka winked.
"All the more reason not to do that." Hachiman rolled his eyes. Seriously, he was actually scared by the prospect.
Indeed!
Last summer, on August 8, 2019 Hikigaya Hachiman turned 16 years old. At that time he had two things in his possession: a huge sum of cash in his savings account, and a little bit of that general teenage feeling of rebellion.
So he did it. He got his license and bought a used motorcycle (read: a drowned bike sold for cheap). He knew of a parking spot located close to Shuchiin and decided it would be fine since the current apartment was also close to a public parking spot.
It wasn't as if he had bought a motorcycle so he could stick it to those arrogant, rich sissies with personal drivers or anything! Not at all!
Hachiman's apartment was a bit peculiar: It had cost about 90.000 Yen a month for this mansion of two bedrooms, which was incredibly cheap for an apartment in Tokyo. Near a train station even. The upfront cost would be around 400.000 yen. While not a small amount of money by any margin, it was still lower than any other comparable apartment, which could cost upwards of half a million or more to move into.
Smack dab between Kamiyacho Station and NHK Museum of Broadcasting, it could be said that it was a little too cheap for the location. It was a bit old but it was very well maintained.
Overall, the building's age and small size seemed to be the only detriment to its status. Plus, the apartment offered no living room, which meant raising a family would be a little difficult.
Hmm?
Indeed, as soon as Hachiman and Hayasaka entered, she was greeted immediately by the sight of a combined kitchen/dining room.
Though the apartment was in a Japanese style, there were also tables and chairs for people to eat on, probably because a traditional style table where you sit on the floor would be awkward looking. Otherwise, there were three sliding doors that clearly lead to the two bedrooms and bathroom.
Either way, this kind of environment was new to Hayasaka, who had been raised in Shinomiya's Western-style residence.
"Go get yourself washed. If you want I can dry-clean your clothes, but you probably wouldn't want me to. I'll get you a change of clothes." Hachiman said as he entered his bedroom and slid the door shut.
Well, well, looks like the first step of the plan had succeeded. Hayasaka had managed to infiltrate Hachiman's apartment without a hitch.
Still, Hayasaka was thinking, what kind of clothes would he bring out?
A normal shirt and pants? That would be rather normal. Maybe a bathrobe? Heh, not in this Japanese-styled, small apartment.
For some reason, Hayasaka imagined herself wearing a white uniform shirt and nothing else. This is not usually something happen in real life, only idiots or perverts would think this can happen outside ecchi manga, harem or otherwise.
Hachiman couldn't possibly be that dense or scummy, right?
Instead, Hachiman returned with a tracksuit in hand. "I hope you don't mind."
Well, THAT was new.
"Nah, thank you~" Hayasaka stuck her tongue out and winked
"You wanted to charge your phone in the meantime?" He also offered a universal smart charger that should fit any smartphone with USB-C port.
He sure was rather attentive, to the point of being bothersome. Still, that, too, was the reason why Hachiman always ruined Kaguya's plans, intentionally or otherwise. He paid attention to the smallest yet important detail.
"Ah sure." Hayasaka handed him her waterproofed phone, "You can just wipe it out."
"Alright." Hachiman put it in a nearby electrical socket in the kitchen area after he made sure the exterior of the waterproofed phone dried. The phone screen turned on, showing that the battery charge was completely zero. Then he pointed at his bedroom, which led to the balcony. "There's a washing machine out on the balcony, you can wash your clothes after you shower."
"Oh my, being so nice to me even though we've only met twice. Are you trying to score points, ne~?" Hayasaka teased.
Hachiman's reaction could only be described as a mixture of haughtiness and disgust. As if Hayasaka was completely beneath him.
"Hmm, or maybe you don't like someone adventurous like me. I understand." Hayasaka pouted.
"That's not it." Hachiman said, "Your cheerful facade is disgustingly obvious so please stop acting."
!
Hayasaka prided herself on her Gal-mode. Indeed, Hayasaka had spent an entire year doing it every day at school. Hayasaka Ai had always been known as pure and fashionable gal and Hayasaka was sure no one outside Kaguya knew that it was all act. Yet, Hachiman could see through her acting, even in spite of how little time it had been since they had first met.
Hayasaka had underestimated him. By a whole lot.
"Huh? What are you talking about, Hikigaya-san?"
"Whatever, as soon as you're done you better go." Hachiman left her.
Hayasaka felt she might as well look around for clues as she entered the bathroom. Hayasaka knew apartments had their limits, but hot damn, that bathtub was tiny!
Hayasaka inspected the assorted cleaning products, and noticed something odd. There was only men's hygiene products here. Hayasaka had an inkling that something was off.
Could it be he's...
Hayasaka did not spend too long showering and bathing and quickly got herself dressed in a (admittedly very comfortable) light blue tracksuit. However, as soon as she got out, she found Hachiman was cooking in the kitchen.
"Washing machine's out on the balcony." He reminded her.
Ah.
Hayasaka brought all of her wet clothes and underwear out in a small, plastic, laundry basket. As she passed Hachiman's room while heading towards the balcony, she noticed there was a couple of photos arranged on a table that Hachiman probably used to study.
One of which was Hachiman with a younger-looking girl. The other was him with the student council. To be precise, it was Hachiman, Miyuki, Kaguya, and Chika.
There were no photos of any parent-looking figures so to speak.
Hayasaka returned almost twenty minutes later to find Hachiman almost done with the cooking. Hachiman might not be a top class chef or anything, but he looked very accustomed to using the kitchen utensils.
From there, Hayasaka pretty much came to a conclusion.
"You're living alone here?" She asked.
"Yep." Hachiman said, "My home is in Chiba."
"Chiba."
Chiba could be considered one of the neighboring prefectures. In fact, it was one of the 'bedroom communities' for Tokyo, alongside Gunma. People who worked in Tokyo could easily have a residence in Chiba or Gunma for a much lower cost, even accounting for the daily commute.
"While my parents have worked in Tokyo, for me, going back and forth would be too much hassle."
"I see."
Hachiman put the dishes on the table. It was not actually a Japanese-style dinner. Hayasaka recognized them as a Russian dish, solyanka.
"Why solyanka?"
"It's way easier than a Japanese dinner," Hachiman replied.
While he may have said that, it wasn't like Hayasaka couldn't understand another reason why. Solyanka is a thick soup dish that's also spicy and sour. As such, it tastes way better served hot when you feel a little cold. Such as the chill from being drenched in rain.
Hachiman gave Hayasaka an empty bowl while putting a steaming pot of the dish on the table. "Take as much as you like," he said as he scooped up a hearty pile of potatoes, pickled cucumber, and chunks of meat to put into his own bowl.
"You don't have to be so nice."
"I said you should go when your laundry is finished, might as well eat while waiting." Hachiman paid no attention to her and then clapped his hands. "Itadakimasu."
Well, he wasn't nice, but he was kindhearted. In his own prickly way. Hayasaka was very well aware of how nervous Hachiman sounded. Though he hid it well.
That was also the reason why Hachiman insisted on chasing her out as soon as her clothes were dry.
"About the encounter back in front of the hotel." Hayasaka said coldly as she took a portion of the dish into her bowl, "You never brought it up with anyone." It wasn't a question
"There's really no point. I don't know you. You don't know me. We're not even classmates. So forgetting about it is easy."
"You could have run it by a teacher," Hayasaka said before eating the food on her spoon, sour and spicy tastes melting in her mouth.
"I have no proof that we even met. That would bring me trouble without me gaining anything."
"You hang around with a lot of the VIPs, so your perception is a bit twisted?"
"Exactly." Hachiman said, "So don't worry about it anymore. Just forget about it."
"You're not as scary as rumored. I was expecting someone more cold and calculating." Hayasaka blew onto her spoon as she scooped up a piece of potato from her bowl.
"Shuchiin students cannot accept someone as ordinary as me sitting in my current position. So, they make up lies and rumors to elevate my position and make themselves feel better." Hachiman scoffed, "Miyuki isn't that different than me, though he embraced it like a child and a stuffed animal."
"I can see that."
Hachiman's mind flashed back to his junior high days when he had confessed to that girl. The entire class belittled and alienated him. Because, in their eyes, Hachiman was not worthy and didn't know his place.
All because of one cursed sentence, "Please go out with me."
Hachiman had lost an entire year's worth of social interaction at school because of that incident. If not for meeting Shirogane Miyuki, Hachiman would have given up socializing at all.
There was no way Hachiman would inflict that much pain on a stranger like Hayasaka.
Hayasaka smiled, "I suppose the rumor about you going out with Ryuju Momo also isn't true?"
Hachiman blinked, "No, not even close. I'm more like a slave."
"I'm under the impression that the word slave is just a metaphor for an unbalanced romantic relationship in this context." Hayasaka snarked.
Whoa, that was a top grade deadpan there. Hachiman legit wanted to clap his hands.
Instead he grouched back, "You know what, since you're being this talkative, let me ask something in return. Am I under the wrong impression, or do you really do that kind of work?"
Hayasaka wondered if she should answer honestly. But maybe, it was a bit too soon? Maybe it was time to attack and find more juicy material?
So, after having emptied half of her bowl, she decided to stand up and approach him. Suggestively, she loomed over him and twisted her zipper, their lips almost touching. "You want to find out?"
Hachiman made a flawless poker face in response. He was legit impressed. Had it been any other girl, he would have an uncontrollable tent pitched in his pants. But Hayasaka was in full control of her emotions this whole time. Like a work of art that had been breathed to life. Hachiman was too amazed to feel any arousal.
But, when Hayasaka put her arms on his shoulders, straddling him, he screamed internally. Prostitute or no, this was well over the line. Because by God, Hachiman was not ready for this kind of close contact with a girl.
The closest he usually got would be when Chika or Momo hugged him from behind. And both of those were enough easy to rationalize away. But this? Hachiman's brain was about to explode from the stimulation.
However, it wasn't as if Hachiman was the only one overheating. Hayasaka had also turned red, because, without realizing, she had gone way too far with her 'seduction'.
In fact, it was far enough that she didn't know how to turn back without making an even bigger mess of the situation.
Both thought they were reaching maximum pressure and embarrassment, just in time for the door to slam open revealing the presence of a blue-haired woman wearing glasses, who only looked at the scene with complete disinterest.
"...Mom?" Hachiman's voice croaked, like a dying frog.
"I was thinking of spending the night, but did I interrupt you two?" She removed her shoes and loosened her collar, then opened the door to the bathroom. "I'll just leave after I wash my face and eat something."
Hayasaka, in the most impressive imitation of a terminator, backed away from Hachiman, slowly and carefully. She returned back to her seat and then continued eating as if nothing had happened.
"Thanks for the meal, I'll get changed and leave." Hayasaka stiffly stood up.
"The changing closet is to the left of the bedroom." Hachiman pointed, though his face was pale white from the shock.
Hayasaka picked up her dried laundry from the machine and then entered the closet to change. She put the borrowed tracksuit on the tatami, folded neatly, and then picked up her bag and phone.
"Why are you leaving? You can stay for the night if you want." The mother asked as she served herself a bowl of the soup Hachiman had made.
"Ah I'm sorry, but I haven't told my parents yet that I'd be spending the night elsewhere. I should go back."
"Ah? I see. I'm Hachiman's mother, nice to meet you."
"My name is Hayasaka Ai, we're from the same grade." Hayasaka bowed politely, "Hikigaya-san has helped me a lot. Even today he was giving me shelter from the rain and treating me to a delicious dinner. I suppose that's to be expected from someone raised by such an understanding and kind mother."
The mother wasn't actually sure if Hayasaka was being sarcastic or not. But both sides of that argument had merit so she let it slide. Instead, she turned to Hachiman, "Hachiman, you go with her. Make sure she gets home, safely."
The way the mother put a strong emphasis on that last part scared Hachiman.
"...OK."
He was at a complete loss for words. It hadn't even hit him fully when he and Hayasaka were finally out of the apartment.
"...I'm going to the train station," Hayasaka said.
"Alright."
"Also, I'm not a prostitute." She told him nervously.
"Okay."
It was only a three minute walk between his apartment and the station. The whole time both of them remained quiet, too embarrassed to say anything.
Hachiman didn't even get to say goodbye as they separated at the station entrance.
To calm himself down, Hachiman decided to make a short stop at the vending machine to buy a few cans of MAX coffee.
He immediately gulped a can in one go before he could even move his legs again and bring the rest with him home.
It was a surreal experience to say at the least. Hopefully, his mother would not tease him all night about it.
Hachiman returned to find his mother missing, but most of the dirty bowls had been washed. There was also a box on the table and a note nearby.
A box of condoms.
"Use them well. Oh, and good job landing such a high-level girl. I won't say anything to your father or Komachi, so don't worry about it."
- Mom
That night Hachiman curled up inside his futon and cried himself to sleep from the embarrassment.
The result of today's battle: Hachiman's loss (of dignity)