The teacher strode into the classroom, and as the students regained their composure from the earlier commotion, they settled back into their seats, including Konro, who cast a glance in Yuuto's direction.
"Good morning, class...!" the homeroom teacher greeted.
"Good morning, teacher!" came the unified response from the class, with Yuuto's greeting barely audible amidst the chorus of voices.
"Alright, before we dive into today's lesson: Shun-kun... Sakurai," the teacher called out, his tone carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible edge as he addressed Yuuto, "Both of you need to head to your club room to prepare for the upcoming trip during lunch break. The bus leaves at 13:25, so ensure you meet up with Shizume-kun and gather with the rest of your club to avoid missing it."
Shun & Yuuto: "Yes, teacher."
"Ehhh? The Club Room's going on a trip...? Lucky," murmured the students among themselves.
"Yeah, Shizume-kun always likes to be well-prepared. He arranges these preview trips in advance to familiarize everyone with the destination so that nobody feels out of place during the actual school trip," chimed in another student.
"Hehe, wish I had his foresight and asked for that job. Two trips at the price of one!"
"Dumbass. Even if you did, you wouldn't be granted permission. You're not as responsible as Shizume-kun. He actually takes the initiative to plan and coordinate with people and places while he's there. Even during breaks, he's on top of things," remarked another classmate.
"Now, NOW, CLASS! Quiet down... You're all familiar with Shizume-kun and his club's diligence. There's no need for a recurring discussion every time we have a school trip," the teacher interjected with a sigh.
'A teacher's pet and respected by his peers. That's a rare combination,' Yuuto pondered silently as the teacher launched into the day's lesson.
As lunch break arrived, Yuuto opened his neatly-packed lunch, revealing an array of salads and generous portions of meat, which he eagerly dug into. Shun and Riko followed suit, unpacking their own meals.
Glancing at Yuuto's lunch, Shun remarked, "I never realized, but your mom sure knows how to pack a lunch, Sakurai."
Riko nodded in agreement, adding, "Yeah, I half-expected it to be... more eclectic."
"...I make my own bento boxes," Yuuto replied casually, continuing to indulge in his meal.
Shun & Riko: "What? Really?"
"As much as my mom's a culinary angel, and an angel in everything and every way, as befitting of the woman who birthed me, if I let her make my bento, it'd be loaded with rice, tofu, drowned in oil for flavor. Not exactly ideal for muscle-building," Yuuto explained nonchalantly, paying little attention to their reactions.
"Oh? I didn't know you were into working out, Sakurai," Shun remarked, tilting his head in curiosity.
'Fuck, I said something I shouldn't have,' Yuuto grimaced internally, feeling a pang of regret.
"I-... I mean, I'm not exactly hitting the gym," he stammered, "It's just not the healthiest option. I'm aiming for longevity here. Want to make it past 60. Wouldn't want to be a fatas..."
------
Sakura: "Be Nicer!"
------
"...I mean, I wouldn't want all that fat clogging up my arteries," Yuuto corrected himself, trying to ease the tension.
Riko remained silent, her expression unreadable.
"...Uh, I guess that makes sense... But still, it's a bit extreme, don't you think? You should enjoy food while you're young, Sakurai," Shun remarked, displaying his own bento filled with greasy rice and meat portions.
"...Yuck," Yuuto couldn't help but comment openly.
"What? It's delicious. Right, Riko—" Shun turned to Riko, only to find her burying her face in her hands.
"I've almost forgotten how your mom makes your bentos... But while I'm not as strict as Sakurai, you really should eat healthier, Shun. Especially now that you've started working out. It's important. Tell your mom I'm gonna take over making bentos for you," Riko declared, her voice firm with determination.
"Ehh? No, I wouldn't want to trouble you—" Shun began to protest.
"You are already troubling me." Riko started, completing his sentence, "Imagine how I feel, being seen with you eating that grease trap. You a foreigner or something? It's embarrassing. Soon, we'll have to buy you a scooter just so that you could get to the bathroom." She said, Shun feeling his heart being punctured by her words.
"Hehe," Yuuto giggled lightly.
"...Glad to see you're enjoying yourself, Sakurai," Shun said with a slight pout.
"It was funny, so I laughed. Problem, cuc-..."
-----
Sakura: "BE NICER!!!"
-----
"....Shun?" Yuuto corrected himself as he looked at him blankly.
Shun & Riko: "....What?!"
They looked at Yuuto as if they've seen a ghost.
"..."
"I sneezed. By the way, you two haven't gone out to eat together today. No cuck chair nearby?" Yuuto remarked casually.
Shun and Riko both shook their heads.
'Must've been my imagination,' They thought in sync.
"Well, the teacher asked me to go with you," Shun began, shaking his head.
"And it's not like there's a problem with us eating here anym..." His trailed off, stopping himself mid-sentence as he swiftly glanced at Riko. His gaze then dropped to the table, memories of Male1 and Male2 flashing through his mind.
Yuuto remained silent as he stared at him blankly.
Riko glanced at Shun with concern, as he appeared visibly unsettled.
Yuuto sighed, taking a moment to inhale deeply upon seeing Shun's troubled expression.
"There was never a problem with you eating here," Yuuto began, his tone suddenly serious. Riko and Shun turned to Yuuto, sensing the gravity in his words.
"...You just didn't want it enough. You're different now. Let's not make this complicated, stupid cuck," Yuuto concluded, returning his focus to his meal.
As the atmosphere shifted, Shun and Riko felt the tension dissipate like a weight lifting off their shoulders. Shun, in particular, recalled the personal growth he had experienced since that incident with Male1 and 2, and he felt a sense of relief wash over him.
"Hah... You can do good when you want to, don't ya', Sakurai?" Riko remarked with a half smirk.
"I'm doing good simply by existing, you cucko-..." Yuuto started, but then the memories of Sakura's advice flooded his mind.
-------
SAKURA: N-I-C-E-R
-------
"What!?" Riko exclaimed.
"...." Yuuto merely nodded in acknowledgment of her statement.
"Are you... Okay today, Sakurai?" Shun asked, exchanging a look of concern with Riko.
".... I'm fine." He replied with a small pause.
Before they had time to think, the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch break.
"Oh, damn! We need to get to the club room, Sakurai!" Shun exclaimed, his words rushed with urgency.
Yuuto nodded in agreement, quickly folding up his lunch and joining Shun as they hurried out of the classroom.
"Goodbye, you two! Send me photos, Shun!" Riko called after them as they departed.
And with that, they were off.
As Yuuto and Shun exited the classroom, they made their way swiftly towards the Club Room to meet Sato and the rest. The hallway was mostly deserted, save for a few stragglers making their way to their next class.
Just before they reached the Club Room, they encountered Sakura descending from the rooftop stairwell with her friends. Her eyes widened briefly as she spotted Yuuto, with Yuuto blankly staring at her back.
Swiftly, Sakura turned to her friends. "Hey, go to class without me. I gotta go to the toilet... You know, that," she said, her tone urgent.
"Oh, sure. We'll cover for ya', Takagi," one of them replied casually, before continuing down the stairs.
Once her friends had left, Sakura approached Shun and Yuuto with determination in her eyes.
"Oh? What does Takagi-san want with us?" Shun said, scratching his head in confusion.
"Shun-senpai, can you give us a minute?" Sakura asked Shun, her voice firm and unwavering.
Yuuto remained silent, his mind racing with thoughts. 'I've been keeping my promise. What's got this girl so worked up now?' he pondered.
"Oh? You two know each other?" Shun asked, looking between Sakura and Yuuto with curiosity.
"Sakurai was giving me some notes. I just want to talk about it," Sakura replied smoothly, her gaze fixed on Yuuto.
"Oh, it's just notes? You can talk as we go—"
"Shun-senpai," Sakura cut him off, her tone more assertive as she almost glared at Shun.
Shun faltered for a moment before nodding. "O-oh... Uh... I'll meet ya there, Sakurai," he said, scratching his head awkwardly before quickly walking away.
'Now that I think about it... She called his name without honorifics... Hmm.' Shun thought.
Yuuto watched Shun go, a sense of unease creeping over him. 'Don't get any funny ideas now, cuck... This ain't it,' he warned internally.
Turning his attention back to Sakura, Yuuto found himself face-to-face with her intense gaze.
"Sakurai," she said, her voice firm.
"What? I've been doing what you wanted, if that's what this is about," Yuuto replied, his tone guarded.
"Why did you do that?" Sakura asked, her tone betraying a hint of frustration as she recalled the incident where Yuuto greeted her in front of her and her friends.
Yuuto began to walk away toward the Club Room with a sigh. "I don't know what you're talking about, Sakura. I don't have time to talk. I need to get to the Club Room," he stated, his voice clipped.
As Yuuto walked away, Sakura swiftly put herself in Yuuto's way. They looked at each other in the empty hallway, a tense silence hung between them. Sakura's gaze bore into Yuuto's.
"You try to give off the aura like you don't care what people think about you," Sakura began, her voice soft but firm. "But the truth is, I see right through this stupid facade."
Yuuto's expression remained impassive, but a flicker of surprise danced in his eyes at Sakura's blunt honesty. "Do you, now?" he replied, his voice cool and guarded.
Sakura's words cut through the tension, her gaze fixed on Yuuto with a mixture of confusion and concern.
"Yes. You openly make people hate you. Why do you do that?" she questioned, her voice edged with sincerity.
Yuuto met her gaze evenly, his expression guarded. "...You seem to be mistaken, Sakura," he replied, his tone controlled. "I DO care what people think. I want them to stay away, because I don't want them to find out my secret," he admitted, his voice laced with reluctance.
'Imagine if some NTR bastard found out I'm Anti-NTR Man!? Use your head, girl!' Yuuto's thoughts raced internally, his heart pounding with the weight of his hidden truth.
Sakura's brow furrowed in frustration as she continued, her words filled with disbelief. "I still.... I don't understand why you don't want people to know that!! Everyone's opinion will change about you, Sakurai! The fact that you—"
'Saved me and Kiriko—' Sakura's thoughts echoed,
"STOP. Stop," Yuuto interrupted, his voice strained with emotion. He sighed heavily, looking away for a moment before meeting Sakura's gaze once more.
"You wouldn't understand. It isn't that simple," Yuuto murmured, his words heavy with the weight of his hidden truths and the fear of what revealing them could mean. He rubbed his temples, a gesture of frustration and inner turmoil.
Sakura watched him closely, a mix of concern and determination swirling in her eyes.
'He... Really is fixed on pushing people away so they wouldn't think he's such a good person? All this just so they wouldn't know he saved me and Kiriko?' she pondered, her thoughts racing.
'I wonder... What did he go through to distrust people so much?' Sakura's mind searched for answers, but found only more questions.
'Alright... You know what..?'
'Fuck it.' She sighed internally, a sudden resolve settling within her.
"....I'm adding a new term," Sakura blurted out, her voice breaking the silence.
"Hey," Yuuto snapped, his expression serious yet casual. "You can't do that. We had a deal."
"Watch me. From now on, saying and doing weird stuff is considered being rude," Sakura insisted firmly.
"No, it isn't. You're being nonsensical," Yuuto replied casually, his tone dismissive.
"Yes, it is. You can clearly read social cues, and 100% what you said this morning was just to be rude without being rude. That's like... Murdering someone by dropping a piano on them instead of stabbing them," Sakura said enthusiastically, her determination unwavering.
Yuuto raised an eyebrow at her comparison, his expression incredulous.
"Just... You know what I mean, Sakurai. I know you do. Please..." Sakura pleaded, her tone softening, "...I want us to be friendly even with my friends around."
Yuuto clicked his tongue in distaste, his frown deepening. "So, in the end, you wish for me to change entirely to fit your fantasy? Is that what this is?" he retorted with a sigh.
"What?!" Sakura called out in confusion, taken aback by his accusation.
"I'll admit I was purposefully acting out, yeah. But what about times when I won't? Will I still have to bend over simply because you don't like that part of me?" Yuuto blurted out, his words blunt and unapologetic.
Sakura inhaled deeply, annoyance visible on her face as her eyebrow raised upwards in agitation. She looked intensely into his eyes, her irritation palpable.
"Huuuh!?" she hummed loudly, causing Yuuto to slightly pull his face backward in surprise.
"Sakurai," she said, her voice suddenly edged with an unmistakable seriousness.
"...What?" Yuuto responded, bracing himself for her next words.
"....You were talking about cuckold horses bestiality in front of a group of high-school girls, most of which are minors." She began, Yuuto twitching internally in realization,
"Take things into perspective. What I'm asking isn't a bad thing nor unreasonable. Not on your end, nor on mine - or anyone else's for that matter," Sakura said, her voice tinged with frustration and disappointment. Her face twitched in silent anger as she continued, "Whether or not you push people away for whatever good reason you think you have."
"Have fun on your trip," she concluded abruptly, her tone final. With that, she turned around and walked away hastily, leaving Yuuto speechless and stunned in her wake.
'I actually wasted time on this...! I don't care anymore,' Sakura thought bitterly as she angrily stomped away, leaving Anti-NTR Man...
Speechless.
"...."
"T-...This.... I-..." Yuuto gasped silently, his face flushed with embarrassment.
"B-... S.. I... I.."
Yuuto struggled to find the words to express his thoughts, his mind a whirlwind of emotions.
'How dare she...!'
'How... DARE SHE!!!'
He seethed with anger, his usual quips and retorts rendered useless by Sakura's logic. With a heavy heart, he turned around and walked away toward the club room, his mind consumed by frustration.
Unbeknownst to them, a third party was watching from the shadows.
"You saw that, Gon?" Konro whispered, his voice tense with anticipation.
"Yeah... I didn't hear what they said, but that fucking anime pillow dared to talk to our Takagi-chan..." Gon seethed, his anger palpable.
"I don't know... From what it looked like, she came to talk to him first..." Konro exclaimed, a hint of uncertainty in his voice.
"This fucking guy... He pisses me the fuck off. He's the literal joke of the school, and that bitc-... Takagi-chan talks to HIM but rejected ME?! Something's fucked up!" Gon's voice trembled with rage, his fists clenched tightly.
"Could it be she knows about his true stren—"
"DON'T BE FUCKING RIDICULOUS, KON. That'd be stupid. That pillow fucker fought Aniki to make sure no one knows about that...." Gon dismissed Konro's opinion with a wave of his hand.
"I know..." Gon started, his voice lowering to a menacing whisper.
"I'll make her my girlfriend. I guess she's the type that's playing hard to get, but she must've been lonely without Yahiko... She's probably beggin' for some dick and wants someone to try really hard. And I ain't gonna let... Fuckin' PILLOW get that pussy." Gon's leer sent shivers down Konro's spine.
"S-seriously...? Man, don't go overboard over something like that. What if rumors spread about you?" Konro's voice wavered with concern.
"Dumbass! It ain't going overboard... It's about time I show her my charming self... And so what if rumors spread? Who's gonna do something about it? Fuckin' Yahiko?"
"...I don't know. If she and Sa-... Pillow are together, I'm not sure it would be a good idea. And maybe it was just to exchange notes or—"
"Dumbass!!! He makes a fool outta himself every chance he gets!"
"Stealing her from him..."
"...Would be easy as taking candy from a toddler..." Gon whispered, a sly grin stretching across his face as he plotted his next move.