"All set, you're bandaged up nicely," said Hoshinomiya-sensei, clapping her hands together with satisfaction.
"Now, let's head back to class. It's about to start."
"Thank you, teacher," Hikigaya responded, bowing slightly in gratitude. Just as he prepared to leave with Ishizaki and the others, Teacher Hoshinomiya called him back.
"Hikigaya-kun, it looks like you have a small injury on the back of your neck."
"Injury?"
Hikigaya instinctively reached up to touch his neck, although he hadn't noticed any discomfort. But he quickly caught on to what Teacher Hoshinomiya was getting at.
"Oh, it's probably nothing—just a minor scrape," he said nonchalantly.
"That won't do! Come here, I'll put a Band-Aid on it," she insisted.
Seeing no way out, Hikigaya gave Ishizaki and the others a nod, signaling them to go ahead without him. The three of them exchanged a glance before leaving him alone with Hoshinomiya-sensei in the infirmary.
"You're sharp, Hikigaya-kun," Teacher Hoshinomiya remarked with a playful smile.
"You caught on to my meaning right away. You're such a clever student. I wish you were in my class—"
"Sensei, could you issue a certificate for this treatment?"
Hikigaya interrupted, deciding to address the matter directly since she had already understood his intention. He felt slightly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking.
If he had been placed in Class B...
No, that line of thought was pointless. No matter which class he ended up in, his situation wouldn't be much different.
"Of course, I can do that," Hoshinomiya-sensei replied, her tone suddenly more businesslike.
"But without some... incentive, I might just let the students in Class C know about this little incident."
She tapped her chin thoughtfully, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.
Official documents like treatment certificates are typically meant to be submitted to the student council for decision-making purposes.
If the student doesn't request it, it might go unmentioned. The initial treatment itself had already proven to be sufficient, and the students in Class C didn't seem to care much about the details.
Hikigaya wasn't sure if Teacher Hoshinomiya was serious or just teasing, but he wasn't about to let her do the work without something in return.
"Alright, teacher, I'll give you what you want," he agreed.
"Oh? Hikigaya-kun knows what I want?"
Teacher Hoshinomiya blinked, feigning surprise.
"How did you figure it out? Could it be that you're..."
"That's impossible," Hikigaya cut her off, his tone firm and unwavering.
"Hmph! An answer like that would get you zero points with any girl!" Hoshinomiya-sensei snapped, her voice tinged with mock anger.
Hikigaya felt a wave of helplessness wash over him. Dealing with this teacher was always a challenge, especially when she talked like this... Wait, what was that feeling?
Suddenly, he felt a shiver run down his spine.
Was she reading his mind?
Hikigaya glanced at Hoshinomiya-sensei's ever-smiling face, and he quickly decided it was best not to think too deeply about it.
He cleared his throat twice before speaking again.
"Anyway, I'll figure out a way to repay Class B. Does that work?"
Unlike the cynical Chabashira-sensei, Hoshinomiya-sensei seemed to genuinely care about her students. Class B's tight-knit atmosphere was proof of that.
But to Hikigaya's surprise, Hoshinomiya shook her head.
"No, it seems to me that the one who needs help the most isn't Class B, but Ichinose-san."
"Well..."
"What's this? Hikigaya-kun doesn't look surprised at all," Hoshinomiya teased, her voice dripping with fake astonishment.
Hikigaya let out a long sigh in response. Indeed, Ichinose was undeniably exceptional if she were just an ordinary student. But as a class leader, she was woefully inadequate.
But what could he do about it?
"Alright. If I get the chance, I'll see what I can do," he conceded.
"Haha, Hikigaya-kun is so perceptive," Hoshinomiya remarked, her smile widening.
"I'm a little surprised you agreed so quickly. I thought you'd try to dodge the responsibility."
Hikigaya was tempted to throw out some reassuring platitudes like "Ichinose is amazing" or "She'll be fine" to brush her off, but he knew better. This crafty teacher wouldn't be swayed by empty words.
With that realization, he saw no point in dragging out the conversation any longer.
After saying his goodbyes, Hikigaya made his way back to the classroom, his mind already spinning with future strategies. Strengthening Class B was crucial, but unlike Class C, which could be easily dealt with through brute force, Class B required a more thoughtful approach.
Oh, wait... I forgot to ask about the certificate.
"Ahhh, there's no one to vouch for me! What am I supposed to do, Ayanokouji?" Yamauchi wailed.
"No idea," Ayanokouji replied, utterly uninterested as he watched Yamauchi cling to his arm. The sight of a grown man acting like a spoiled child was repulsive. Ayanokouji hoped this bizarre display would end soon.
"And Manabe-chan's still ignoring me," Ike groaned, slumping over his desk as he checked his phone for what must have been the fiftieth time.
"It's gotta be those Class C guys who scared her off... Poor Manabe-chan! Don't you think, Ayanokouji?"
"Maybe," Ayanokouji answered noncommittally. He wisely refrained from mentioning the times Ike had been duped before; otherwise, Ike would fly into a rage.
Better to let him remain lost in his fantasies.
"You two are hopeless," Horikita muttered, looking at them with disdain from the next table. The only reason she hadn't said anything to Sudo was because he was fast asleep on his desk.
Initially, Ayanokouji had managed to convince Horikita to join him and Kushida in searching for witnesses over the past few days, but they'd come up empty-handed. Even Horikita seemed to be losing patience.
The three involved in the incident weren't helping matters either. Sudo was predictably useless, and Ike and Yamauchi had become pariahs among the girls since their chat logs had been leaked online.
Though they'd started hanging around Ayanokouji during lunch again because of this, it was far from a welcome development. The stares from the girls were starting to get under his skin.
"By the way, we haven't asked Sakura-san yet," Kushida suddenly exclaimed, as if struck by an idea.
"Do you want me to go ask her? Maybe she knows something?"
"Sakura?"
The others exchanged puzzled looks; the name didn't ring any bells.
Sakura was the quiet type, someone who seemed content to sit silently at her desk, watching the clock until school was over so she could retreat to her dorm.
The only person who had probably ever spoken to her was Kushida.
"I doubt she knows anything," Horikita declared flatly.
"Well, I'll ask anyway," Kushida insisted.
Without waiting for a response, she headed towards Sakura's seat. Ayanokouji and the others watched intently, curious about how the conversation would unfold.
"Um, Sakura-san?"
Kushida's usual confidence seemed to waver slightly as she approached Sakura, who looked up, startled.
"W-What is it?" Sakura stammered, her shoulders hunched as she looked up at Kushida. She seemed flustered, as though she hadn't expected anyone to speak to her.
"I wanted to ask you something if that's okay," Kushida said, her voice gentle as ever.
"It's about Sudo-kun and the others. Do you happen to know anything?"
"I...I'm sorry, I don't know anything," Sakura mumbled, her voice barely audible.
She might have appeared clueless, but the brief hesitation before she answered caught Ayanokouji's attention.
It wasn't just nerves.
Kushida seemed to sense something too. "It's okay, even if it's something small," she pressed.
"I don't know," Sakura repeated, more firmly this time. She looked away, clearly uncomfortable, which only fueled their suspicions.
"Please, this is important. Even the smallest detail could help Sudo-kun and the others," Kushida pleaded.
"I don't know... Sorry, I need to go," Sakura said, quickly standing up as if to escape. She seemed desperate to get away from the conversation. Kushida looked momentarily disheartened but soon regained her usual sunny expression.
Kushida wouldn't give up so easily, Ayanokouji thought. With no other leads to help Sudo and the others, Sakura was the only possible lifeline, even if there was no guarantee she knew anything useful.
From Ayanokouji's perspective, Sakura was just nervous, not hiding anything. She was probably just socially awkward, nothing more.
Horikita seemed to agree, quickly returning her attention to her book.
Then, as Sakura picked up the digital camera from her desk and headed out of the classroom, she accidentally bumped into Hondou, who was too engrossed in his phone conversation to watch where he was going.
"Ah!"
The camera slipped from her grasp and began to fall—until a hand suddenly shot out from the side and grabbed the camera strap just in time.
It was Hikigaya.
"That was close," he muttered.
"Oh, thank you!" Sakura exclaimed, taking the camera from Hikigaya and checking it carefully. She sighed in relief when she found it was unharmed.
"Um, Hikigaya-kun, thank you!" Sakura said again, clearly gathering all her courage to express her gratitude.
"It's nothing," Hikigaya replied curtly, nodding before returning to his seat and pulling out his phone.
'Huh. That's unusual,' Ayanokouji thought.
Hikigaya usually preferred reading books.
Meanwhile, Kushida, apparently shifting her attention, began talking to Hikigaya instead.
"Hikigaya-kun, that was amazing! Your reflexes are really sharp," she said with a smile.
"It was just luck," Hikigaya responded, his tone flat. He clearly wasn't fond of Kushida, and the hostility from the other boys around them was palpable.
But Ayanokouji couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Hikigaya. After all, only he and Hikigaya knew Kushida's true nature. Well, Horikita too, if he counted her.
Ayanokouji's mind drifted back to the incident over a month ago.
After the midterm exam celebration, Kushida had dropped her phone, and Ayanokouji had chased after her to return it—only to stumble upon her and Hikigaya in a heated exchange.
Ayanokouji had known about Kushida's two-faced nature, but he hadn't expected her to go as far as to slander Hikigaya to protect her facade, forcing him into a compromising situation.
What surprised him even more was how Hikigaya had skillfully turned the tables, using the opportunity to blackmail Kushida instead.
However, the conditions Hikigaya set afterward still baffled Ayanokouji.