Full title is "Let's teach the pitiful children, who just haven't a clue". A piece of lyrics from The Pitiful Children, from Be More Chill.

Giving up is one of the easiest things people can do. Stopping, letting things happen, is as simple as taking a step back and breathing. This is why most of the adults he knew lived in a constant rush to get to where they need to be, gain what they want, enjoy what they can. In this world, time is money. And by teaching people from a very early age that loss is always painful, a machine that keeps on producing successfully turned into a self-perpetuating one. Missing out, being left behind. These things always make people feel like shit, while they're taught against understanding why this even happens.

Hachiman knew all about that, but even he knew that giving up wasn't always painful.

Not always.

"I thought you'd be more sluggish." The blonde that approached wore her hair in a ponytail and wore sport uniform belonging to a team Hachiman didn't know anything about.

He might've practiced tennis more since meeting her and Saika, but he wasn't a fan. He might even be mistaken about the uniform, but the white shorts and red t-shirt screamed "I'm a pro" even to someone like Hachiman.

"I got off easy." Hachiman still looked way more tired than her, unused to the harsh training that she certainly went through while he'd been lazing around at home "I still might've made more effort than recommended."

The girl shook her head, scoffing at her.

"You always push yourself in weird situations, Hikio." She put her hands on her waist, racket still held on her right, and glared at him like she hadn't been the one putting him through the effort "If you needed to slow down, you should've told me."

"I tried." Hachiman sighed "You just didn't listen to me."

"I thought all that noise was because you were catching your breath." She shook her head "Not my fault, you should've stopped."

Hachiman rolled his eyes, not really wanting to continue with this line of conversation. He knew she was made, and knew it was his fault. Not everyone could be as angelic and understanding as Saika, and so some people were bound to stay mad at him for not telling them when he went to the hospital and went full no-contact with them.

"Eh. If I start bleeding, I'll let you know." Hachiman stretched his back, feeling his muscles burn in a way that was both pleasant and unpleasant at the same time. Like his body screamed at him not to do that again, but in a tsundere way. Like, maybe in moderation, okay? I-Idiot! "Besides, it feels great to do stuff again. I really needed to work some sweat after so much time doing nothing."

"Clown shit, I tell you."

"Well, Miura-san. If you didn't want to be reminded that I came out of the hospital recently, maybe you shouldn't have invited me to play." Hachiman clasped his hands and put them against his cheek, making his tone as annoying as he could muster.

"You're not a baby, and you could've just watched." She pointed the racket at him, but Hachiman didn't flinch. They were a little too far away for that to take him by surprise.

"I just told you I wanted to do it, woman. Get off my back about it."

"You're treating your health too lightly!" Miura insisted, now looking genuinely mad at him.

"Fine, I'll rest. Jeez." Hachiman made a face while leaving the court and handing the racket to the still angelic, albeit a little more masculine, presence still waiting for him on the bench "Here, she's done clearing the floor with my pride."

"You did great, Hachiman! I almost thought you hadn't stopped playing at all." The sentiment was appreciated, but Hachiman could feel the difference in his day-to-day life. The prospect of using the bike tired him more, even if he went slower than usual. And, although playing with people like Miura and Saika had always been challenging as they continued to pursue the sport, it had never been this bad.

Again, Miura might just be letting her frustration out here. But Hachiman doubted that was all there is.

"Thanks." Hachiman offered him an awkward smile while Saika handed him a bottle of water, giving some space to Hachiman as he let himself fall on the bench.

"Don't mention it. I'd hope you don't strain yourself too much, though." Saika's pure smile was tainted with a bit of concern, giving Hachiman a look like he'd seen every time Hachiman was caught doing something stupid "You didn't have to play."

"I wanted to. I've been lazing around too much." Hachiman sighed, not wanting to continue the same conversation as before.

"Ah, that's so weird coming from you! Haha…"

"Guess everything has a limit." Hachiman stretched his back "I'm just gonna cool off now."

"Yeah! It'll be quick, so don't get too bored!" Ah, as always. Saika just couldn't help worry about Hachiman's well-being.

He did give them a pretty awful scare, especially since he'd been obtuse about it for most of the recovery time.

Not answering was one thing, making up excuses to not see each other was another. He told himself he'd tell them eventually, when they couldn't bombard them with questions and worry about a healed wound. But as time passed, keeping up the lie became harder. "I had an accident" went only so far when Hachiman wouldn't even let them visit him at home. And then, the time had come and he couldn't bring himself to do it. Couldn't bring himself to tell them the version that Komachi had known before the weird messages from the mysterious third party at Hoshino's home.

She had reminded him the importance of communication, however. Not wanting to make them worry was one thing, but Hachiman had been lying to them. And he couldn't have that. The thing he'd tell them was partially a lie anyway, a necessary one, but a lie all the same. He couldn't just avoid giving them anything. They deserved to know, they wanted to be there for him. Could he even consider himself a friend when he didn't let them even do that?

And so… This. He got dragged out of home, fitting somewhat awkwardly in Saika's schedule, and being bombarded with the same questions he wanted to avoid at the beginning. Only this time, he took it to the chin and told him what he could. His own hangups about the situation were no reason to let one of the people Hachiman actually care about stay in the dark.

That he couldn't avoid Miura… Well, those are quirks of knowing people. He wouldn't have believed she'd remain one of the people he kept in contact with before, but they weren't exactly close. More of acquittances that had a friend in common. Or a couple, given how Zaimokuza and Ebina remained doing weird stuff with their shared hobbies even now.

Actually, what a bunch of weirdos. From an outside perspective, the list didn't make sense. The sweet angel Saika, the moody tennis pro Miura, and the two weirdos that aspired to make it big with trashy novels on opposite sides of the spectrum. No wonder they rarely hanged out together as one group. But rather sort of met up with the ones available, and more interested on their side of things.

And inserted in the middle of all that… Hachiman.

…

Maybe his talent is picking up misfits off the streets.

Saika scored rather quickly after his serve. Probably because Miura had already used up some of her powers to crush Hachiman completely, but it still counted on the latter's book when Saika cheered.

"Did you see that?!"

"Amazing, awe-spiring, breathtaking, iconic." Hachiman babbled while Miura got the ball, still glaring at him but very much unable to do anything to stop him. If he had a sign going "Saika #1!" he'd have gotten it up already. The fact that it'd piss Miura off even more was just a bonus.

Hmmm. Speaking of annoying fans…

Shuffling stuff in his bag, Hachiman brought up his phone. Zaimokuza still managed to fill his chat with questions, but Hachiman ignored them for now. That he accepted to come clean with everyone doesn't mean that he wanted to deal with everyone at the same time. And he did tell the guy he'd go out, so there's no harm in stalling a bit more.

There was a number he hadn't registered, but recognized part of it because of the time with Saitou-san. Hachiman deleted the conversation without reading it and moved on.

Hmmm… Hoshino had asked if he was free almost 2 hours ago. He'd been busy playing… Or perhaps he'd still been dealing with Saika's questions and Miura's outrage before they could get to play… Who knows? Also, the question felt a bit strange. They hadn't talked a lot, so he didn't know if this was her getting comfortable with calling him or if there was something else going on. Too little information, and too much he couldn't pry on.

His mind came up with information, falling into the habit of filling in with the hints he'd gotten. But he quickly shut himself down. It wasn't his place, he didn't need to worry about it. All of this was just an experiment to see them both better off after… Well, what happened. And he was probably getting really worked up for a simple question.

Well, he still wasn't free. So he didn't answer either. It'd be better if he just messaged her back when he went home, just because he didn't really want one of those random immediate responses when he was with Saika. It'd get awkward really quickly when Hachiman found himself with more things he couldn't tell him and…

"…?" Hachiman saw the flap of a couple of small wings, distracting him from what he was doing as he saw a bird land somewhere between the limits of the court and the bench Hachiman sat on. It turned around, tilting its head in the way birds do, taking in the two people smacking the ball loudly before turning to face Hachiman.

It was black, probably some kind of raven. And it turned to give Hachiman its left eye before staying perfectly put, like they had started a staring context in spite of the loud bangs the rackets made when Saika or Miura returned the ball to the other side.

Why wasn't it spooked by it?

Furthermore, the way it had stared at Hachiman without blinking… Somehow, it felt as though as the little creature was judging him.

No wonder some people on the internet birds are government spy drones. Some of them could be really weird like that. Dogs are often goofy, cats moody, but birds are complete weirdos. Sometimes it felt like they didn't like Hachiman very much.

Its hops were strange. Again, it felt as though it should've been scared off by the rackets. But it sort of did its thing while mostly ignoring the noise. It did perk up its head from time to time, but Hachiman still felt like it was a pretty weird creature.

Many things had become weird since the "accident", so maybe this was just par of the course. Or maybe Hachiman had simply strained himself more than he thought and…

"AGH?!" Hachiman cried out as the little creature jumped at him. Pecking his fingers and taking the phone while flying off. Hachiman reeled from the attack, clutching his hands, but quickly changing mental gears as the bastard left the court while his friends stopped playing to see what had happened.

"Hachiman…? Are you…?"

"That little shit stole my phone!" He was pretty angry about it. A bit of blood came out from between his fingers, and he'd probably have to go to the doctor to avoid infections because of course that bird could've been carrying something. The annoyance, plus the adrenaline of being attacked by such a bastard, made him forget about his stomach and had him run after the creature.

He didn't know what he'd do to catch up, nor how he'd get the phone back. He only knew he really wanted to hit that thing and get his device back.

The black bird made a couple of circles in the air while Hachiman left the tennis courts, basically mocking the human's inability to soar the skies before moving a bit farther. Forcing Hachiman to run faster if he didn't want to lose it. He had nothing to throw, and he doubted that'd work. But Hachiman still didn't give up. If anything, the lack of ways to get the thing scared off made him want to catch up even more. Something in his brain had activated, and the caveman inside his head only had two thoughts: Throw rock, and if no rock, then pursue until it gets tired.

And, as someone who respects his elders, Hachiman couldn't help agreeing with his made-up ancestors.

The bird flew lazily, and opened its beak. The device fell, making Hachiman yell and making people freeze up due to the commotion. But it did give someone the time to stop and look up, putting his hands on the air before he could get his face smacked by Hachiman's phone.

The little bastard made a sound that felt like laughter, and just flew up and beyond Hachiman's sight.

"That…! That little shit…!" Hachiman put his hands on his knees, wheezing and feeling an acute pain in his stomach. Unlike before, this little run had indeed pushed his limit a bit too far. And he didn't know whether the pain or the lack of air hurt more under these circumstances.

"I… Umm…" The voice in front of him belonged to a boy. Wearing a jacket and plain clothes. His nervousness made Hachiman stop himself from cursing once more.

He noticed people staring, and couldn't help the embarrassment. How could he explain himself? He'd only make things worse.

"Thanks… Thanks for catching it." Hachiman took a lungful of air and stretched back to his full height, trying very hard not to look like he was about to pass out.

"Y-Yeah. It's… Ummm… I wasn't counting on getting smacked by a phone today." The boy chuckled awkwardly, handing it back and shaking his hands once they were free. A red spot becoming evident as to what part of them he'd stopped the fall with.

"I wasn't counting on getting it stolen." Hachiman hissed and checked his fingers. They hurt like a bitch and were still bleeding. He'd have to get them look at soon.

"Yeah. Looking out for bad people is one thing, but animals?" The chuckle that followed gave Hachiman pause. He gave the guy a better look, even though he avoided Hachiman's gaze with some discomfort.

Dark blue eyes, blond hair under the cap. He reminded Hachiman a bit of Hayama, if more androgynous. But he doubted this guy had bleached his hair. It looked more natural than Hachiman's former classmate's hair.

The gaze that he returned, however, made Hachiman stop for a moment. Something in there made him uncomfortable, like he'd forgotten something important.

He just sighed, because his fingers still stung.

"Thanks again." He wasn't the best at communicating, but he at least knew how to cut an awkward conversation short. Release them both from the leash of social obligation they'd both unwittingly walked into "I should probably go."

"Oh, yeah. That looks awful." The guy made a face, but Hachiman had the distinctive feeling that the boy wasn't actually irked by the wounds "I think I…"

"It's really rude to ignore a girl trying to talk to you, Hikigaya-kun." Oh, c'mon! Why…? "Oh? Who is this, I wonder?"

Haruno announced herself with the same coldness that Hachiman had grown to know her for. Although, this time, her gaze didn't register him first. But instead, the boy that had almost been bricked by his phone moments before.

The blond looked like a deer caught by the flashlight of a speeding car. His nervousness doubled, and Haruno kept the eye contact for long enough that it even became awkward for Hachiman to stand there and see them keep at it.

"I… I'm just passing by." The boy broke the eye contact first, looking at the floor and trying to escape "Check your wounds, dude."

"Ah…" Haruno finally looked back at Hachiman, giving the boy a side glance as he left "A bird? Little things are way too rowdy nowadays."

She held Hachiman's hands with hers, giving them a good look while Hachiman tried not to hiss at the contact.

"What are you doing here?" Hachiman couldn't help asking, needing to distract himself with something.

"I saw your friends running after you, promised to see that everything went well." In other words, she told them to piss off because she wanted something. But why? "Didn't you see my message?"

"I don't have anything to talk to you about." Hachiman replied, knowing full well that Haruno could mess with him by pressing the wounds. She didn't.

"Hmm, are you sure?" She smiled at him like she knew something that he didn't. That gave his irritation a reason to pause.

"The fact that you went out of your way to look for me tells me everything I need to know."

"It's a coincidence, a coincidence I tell you."

"Right."

Haruno released him.

"You'll be fine. Just disinfect it." She shook her head "You gotta be more careful, Hikigaya-kun. You never know when you'll get injured."

"That stupid thing attacked me." He groaned.

"I wasn't talking about the bird." Haruno again looked back to the place where the boy had left. Her expression became less cold "Although yeah, birds are little menaces. I carry a rubber band with me now. Just so I can hit them with something if they try anything funny."

Eh?

"Oh, right. You were attacked by one too."

"Not outright, but it also threw my phone." Haruno shook her head "What's up with that anyway?"

"Beats me."

"Weird, weird. Almost as weird as you hanging out with someone of the entertainment industry." Ah, there it is.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really? Because last time I checked, that woman from before…"

"You still have an awful lot of free time, huh." Hachiman interrupted her.

"That's what happens when you're good at what you do." Haruno shrugged easily.

"Good for you." Hachiman growled "Where are "my friends"? I need to get patched up."

He showed Haruno his hands again, and that made her laugh.

"I could hear those air quotes, Hikigaya-kun! There's no need to be so wary of me." Again, her smile didn't show as much coldness from before "Reserve that for people that actually want to hurt you."

Now, her words made him look back. Did Haruno see something in that boy that he hadn't?

"Right. Like you wouldn't like to take a bit of me." Hachiman scoffed, pushing the idea off because that might be part of Haruno's game.

"Boy, if I wanted to hurt you… You wouldn't even see it coming." She patted his shoulder like they were life-long friends "Go. I'll keep having "a lot of free time", so we can always talk at another time."

Hachiman pressed his lips tightly.

"Get a hobby that doesn't involve stalking people."

Haruno laughed at that.

"No. That's not me, Hikigaya-kun." She patted him again "That's not me at all."