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[-Continuation-]
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[-Third Person View-]
"Thank me later."
Hachiman's voice drifted all the way up to the table on the first floor before he turned away.
"..." Ryota stared at the bike key in his palm, his mouth twitched in irritation.
"What do you mean, thank me later?" He muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. "I funking came here in a car."
Now he had two vehicles, one body. It was like a twisted math problem came to life.
His eyes shifted between the key and the retreating figures of Hachiman and Yukino, who were now stepping out of the café together.
Ryota's eyes swept across the table - Haruno, Orimoto, and her friend, all seated in an awkward silence.
The tension still hung thick in the air, as if everyone was waiting for someone else to break it, to offer an explanation or a distraction – anything to dispel the awkwardness left in Hachiman's sudden departure.
Ryota sighed, leaning back in his chair with a half-hearted attempt at nonchalance, though the amusement in his eyes betrayed him.
He wasn't going to let this moment slip away without taking a jab -
"So, uh..." His voice cut through the quiet, drawing everyone's attention.
He folded his arms across his chest, smirking at the corners of his mouth. "Hachiman got shot down in junior high, huh?"
His grin widened as if he had just discovered a golden nugget of ammo to use against his 'best friend' in the coming days.
"That's... such a pity."
The sympathy in his voice sounded so genuine that, for a split second, it was hard to tell who the comment was aimed at.
Was it aimed at Hachiman, the apparent victim of rejection?
Or perhaps at Orimoto, whose past actions had just been subtly called into question?
Haruno, ever perceptive, raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes.
She seemed to catch onto the ambiguity immediately, though she didn't say anything.
Instead, she glanced over at Orimoto and her friend, clearly enjoying the unfolding confusion.
The two high school girls looked baffled. Their expressions cycled through a range of emotions – embarrassment, uncertainty, confusion – as they tried to decipher Ryota's remark.
Orimoto's cheeks flushed a delicate pink, while her friend squirmed in her seat uncomfortably.
After a moment of palpable hesitation.
Then, perhaps unwilling to believe the comment was aimed at them, they seemed to settle on the assumption that felt safest – that Ryota's pity was meant for Hachiman.
It was easier, after all, to think that he was poking fun at his friend rather than addressing Orimoto's role in the mess.
After all, why would anyone choose to consider that they might be the ones worthy of pity.
The phrase ignorance is bliss never felt more apt.
Haruno, never one to let off someone she had deemed as an unnecessary character, decided to fan the flames.
"Oh, poor Hachiman." She drawled, her voice oozing with mock sympathy.
She rested her chin on her hand, fixing Orimoto with a lazy gaze that somehow managed to be both piercing and disinterested. "I am sure he has learned a lot since junior high, though. Don't you think, Ori-moto?"
The way she said Orimoto's name, stretching it out just a bit too long, made the girl flinch slightly.
Orimoto forced a tight smile, clearly uncomfortable but trying to maintain some composure.
"I mean, as Hikigaya's girlfrie-! Yukinoshita said, that was a long time ago." She stammered, her voice wavering slightly. "People change, right?"
Haruno's smile widened, almost predatory. "Oh, absolutely. Some people change for the better. Others... well, not so much."
Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, Ryota decided to press on. "Yeah, it's like a coming-of-age movie, right?"
He made a sweeping gesture with his hands, as if painting a picture in the air. "You know, where the awkward guy gets rejected and then later – bam! – totally turns things around. A real underdog story."
Haruno's soft chuckle was like velvet over steel. "Underdog stories are always so inspiring, aren't they?"
Orimoto glanced at Ryota, discomfort etched into every line of her face. "It wasn't like that..."
But her protest died in her throat, the weight of the conversation bearing down on her. She turned to her friend, a silent plea for support etched in her expression, but found only averted eyes and pursed lips.
Ryota's smirk didn't falter.
"Well, whatever it was." He mused, his tone deceptively light. "Looks like Hachiman's doing just fine now."
The jab was casual, but the meaning behind it wasn't lost on anyone.
Orimoto's gaze fell to the table. Her earlier bravado had evaporated, leaving behind a palpable regret that seemed to seep into the very air around her.
Haruno, satisfied with the discomfort she had created, leaned back in her chair with a lazy smile.
"Anyway." She said, her voice lilting. "This was fun. But I think it's time we call it a day, don't you?"
Ryota glanced at the door one last time, where Hachiman and Yukino had already disappeared.
A small grin tugged at his lips. "Yeah, I think we are done here."
With that, the group slowly began to gather their things, the awkward atmosphere lingering like a bad aftertaste.
As they exited the café, Orimoto kept her head bowed, her gaze fixed on the tips of her shoes.
Haruno, meanwhile, walked with her usual air of superiority, a smug satisfaction on her face as if she had orchestrated the whole scene.
….
.
Yukino was pouting.
A realization dawned on Hachiman like a slow-moving fog, gradually revealing a sight he'd never expected to witness.
Like a child who didn't get their way, whining quietly but refusing to admit it.
It was... adorable.
His heart skipped a beat at the sight.
Yukinoshita Yukino, the ever-composed ice queen, was... sulking
And not just that - it was because of him.
His mouth twitched, fighting the urge to grin.
"Yukino." He began, his voice hesitant, unsure of whether to poke fun at her or soothe her obvious irritation.
"..." The name hung in the air between them, awaiting a response that didn't come.
Yukino remained stubbornly silent and avoided his gaze, her arms still crossing tightly over her chest.
Hachiman decided to test the waters. "Could it be... you are upset because I didn't let you get a word in earlier?"
His tone was light, playful, like a cat batting at a dangling string.
A small huff escaped Yukino's lips, the sound barely audible. "Don't be ridiculous." She muttered, still refusing to meet his eyes. "I am not …upset."
But the way her voice wavered, how her eyes flicked away quickly, said otherwise.
A chuckle bubbled up from Hachiman's chest, soft and low. "Oh, you are definitely upset."
"I am not." Yukino finally faced him and insisted on her denial.
Now, face-to-face, Hachiman could see the full extent of her pout.
Her cheeks were ever so slightly puffed out, like a squirrel trying to hide the world's tiniest acorn.
The sight was so utterly endearing that Hachiman's self-control evaporated like morning dew.
He couldn't resist …anymore.
The result was instantaneous and unexpected.
His hands moved to her face with both hands index fingers pointed out while the rest balled in a fist.
~pupu
A soft, involuntary sound escaped Yukino's lips - a tiny pupu that hung in the air between them like a soap bubble, fragile and surreal.
For a moment, time seemed to stop.
?!Yukino's eyes widened, a mix of shock and disbelief etched across her features
Hachiman, still mere inches from her face, felt a nervous laugh building in his throat.
He hadn't intended to actually touch her, but the adorable sight of her puffed cheeks had short-circuited his common sense.
"..." - "..."
In the silence that followed, Hachiman watched as Yukino's expression cycled through a range of emotions - shock, indignation, and something else he couldn't quite name.
Then, as if someone had flipped a switch, color flooded Yukino's cheeks. Her pale skin was suddenly awash in a delicate pink hue, like cherry blossoms unfurling in fast-forward.
With a sharp movement that was more reflex than aggression, Yukino swatted his hands away.
"H-Hachiman!" She sputtered, her usual speech fluttering. "What do you think you're doing?!"
At that he couldn't help but smirk, feeling oddly victorious, though he knew better than to push his luck too far.
"You just looked so… puffed up." He said, his tone teasing, though he could feel the heat creeping up his own neck. "It was hard to resist."
Yukino's glare intensified, but the blush refused to fade from her cheeks. "I am not some balloon toy for your amusement." She retorted, trying to regain her usual sharp-tongued composure.
"Clearly not." Hachiman's smirk widened. "A balloon would have made a much louder noise when deflated."
Her eyes narrowed dangerously, a silent warning flashing in their depths. "You are not improving your situation."
"Sorry, sorry." He said, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender, though the grin remained firmly in place.
It wasn't often he got to see Yukino this flustered, and he was determined to commit every detail to memory.
"...Idiot." Yukino muttered, the word lacking its usual bite.
She turned away sharply, arms wrapping around herself like a protective cocoon.
But Hachiman didn't miss the way the corners of her mouth twitched ever so slightly upward, belying the fondness hidden beneath her exasperation.
He couldn't help but smile at that.
He had no idea how they ended up like this - Yukino, of all people, pouting and demanding compliments like it was some kind of game.
But here they were, and somehow, it felt right.
…and he observed, with a mix of fascination and relief, how the tension slowly escaped from her frame.
Her shoulders were less tense, and the initial sharpness in her voice had dulled.
For a moment, they walked in silence again.
However, it was back to their usual silence - comfortable, familiar, and a warmth that had settled between them despite the awkward teasing.
"Yukino." Hachiman called out, his voice barely above a murmur, tinged with hesitancy.
She offered no verbal response, but when his hand sought hers once more, she didn't pull away.
"I meant what I said." He added, his tone low and earnest. "You looked... cute. Just a bit."
He added the last one so that she wouldn't think her anger completely didn't work on him.
However, to his surprise -
"...Only a little?" She muttered under her breath, her tone low but unmistakably pointed.
Had Yukino always been this ….demanding?
"..." Hachiman blinked, momentarily thrown off balance by her subtle yet insistent pursuit of more praise.
….
.
[To be continued…]
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