Miura hadn't slept well all night.
It wasn't just the argument with Kawasaki the night before that left her irritated.
Even in her sleep, she had another terrible nightmare!
The dream picked up where the last one left off.
In it, a 25-year-old Miura, after a certain improper encounter with Hikigaya, found herself unable to resist him.
Driven by her own desires, she initiated a long-term illicit relationship with him, one they both indulged in wholeheartedly.
Sure, she was single at the time in the dream, but Hikigaya had a wife—just like in real life, his wife was Yukinoshita.
The more she thought about it, the more irritated Miura became, her chest tightening in frustration.
Even if she was lonely, she'd never stoop to being a mistress, right?
With these thoughts weighing on her mind, she stumbled into Class 3-B.
Her gaze instinctively drifted to the leftmost window-side seat.
Seeing Hikigaya laughing and chatting with Kasumigaoka made her inexplicably annoyed.
"Keep your eyes off other people's men," a cold voice cut in.
Startled, Miura looked up to see Kawasaki passing by her seat.
"?!"
Their eyes met.
Great, she thought. Speak of the devil.
Miura's annoyance flared instantly.
"You want to pick a fight again? If Hikigaya hadn't stopped me last night, you think I'd have let you off so easily?"
"Oh? Feel free to try. Others might be afraid of you, but I'm not."
"You..."
Miura trailed off, knowing better than to start a scene at school.
Besides, she wasn't the type to actually resort to violence—her strong front was just for show.
Still, the pent-up frustration was almost too much to bear.
After a moment of awkward silence, Miura took a deep breath and said, "Kawasaki, are you really only looking out for Yukinoshita? Or do you have... other reasons?"
"What?" Kawasaki raised an eyebrow. "What are you implying?"
"Oh, nothing." Miura chuckled lightly. "I just think it's interesting how closely you keep an eye on Hikigaya. Could it be... you have feelings for him?"
"???"
Kawasaki's face darkened.
"Don't be ridiculous! I have no—"
Her gaze flicked to the boy across the room before she bit her lip.
"I have no interest in him!"
Without another word, Kawasaki turned and strode back to her seat, ignoring Miura.
"..."
Miura sat in silence.
As a girl, she could easily pick up on Kawasaki's hesitation.
Her casual remark had clearly struck a nerve.
Could it be... Kawasaki actually liked Hikigaya?
No way!
What on earth was so appealing about that loser?
She glanced back at the boy by the window.
When their eyes met, Miura quickly looked away, pressing a hand against her racing heart.
Calm down, she told herself.
Kawasaki's feelings didn't matter. What mattered was... Yui's happiness.
Miura genuinely cared for her clueless friend.
No matter what, she had to figure out a way to bring Yui and Hikigaya together.
---
"Staring at me, Air-kun?"
"N-no, nothing..."
Hikigaya quickly averted his gaze, shaking his head.
Kasumigaoka shot Miura a strange look before leaning in close to Hikigaya.
"Air-kun~ How about we sneak off for something exciting today?"
"Excuse me?"
---
Noon, Rooftop
"Miura-san, glad you could make it."
Miura stepped onto the rooftop to find Yukinoshita calmly setting aside a book, greeting her with a faint smile.
Narrowing her eyes, Miura asked coldly, "It's rare for you to seek me out. What do you want?"
"First, take a seat," Yukinoshita said, gesturing gracefully to the bench beside her.
"..."
After a moment's hesitation, Miura sighed, sitting down next to the composed girl who seemed to radiate an unshakable aura of confidence.
Yukinoshita smiled. "I heard from a classmate that you were with my Hikigaya-kun last night. Is that true?"
"!!!"
Miura stiffened, her eyes widening in shock.
Quickly regaining her composure, she replied, "So Kawasaki ratted me out, huh? Yes, I was with him last night."
She huffed, crossing her arms.
"Your boyfriend's jogging rhythm was awful. Out of pity, I gave him a bit of guidance. But don't get the wrong idea—it wasn't for you. If Yui didn't care about him, I wouldn't have bothered."
Miura rattled off her defense all at once.
"Oh?"
Yukinoshita tilted her head.
"So you were only helping my Hikigaya-kun exercise? You're saying you have no interest in him?"
Miura's face turned scarlet. "Who—who would be interested in your boyfriend?!"
"Fufu." Yukinoshita chuckled.
"You don't need to be so tense. Honestly, even if you tried to seduce him, I wouldn't mind."
"Huh?!"
Miura was stunned. "What... what do you mean by that?"
Completely composed, Yukinoshita continued, "Because I have absolute confidence in my Hikigaya-kun. Even if a beautiful girl like you were lying in his bed, he wouldn't have a single improper thought."
"???"
"So," Yukinoshita said with a serene smile, "seduce him or don't—it makes no difference to me. It's futile, after all. Just like before, I'll always win."
"!!!"
Miura's hands trembled, and her head drooped in frustration.
---
Alone on the rooftop after Yukinoshita's departure, Miura clenched her fists.
Always.
Always, Yukinoshita had that same smug, victorious attitude.
And today, she had openly looked down on her.
"She's basically saying, 'Even if you strip and climb into bed with him, my man wouldn't care,'" Miura muttered through gritted teeth.
"Snow Woman, I'll make you regret those words!"
If she could steal Yukinoshita's boyfriend, wouldn't that mean she had finally defeated her?
The thought was strangely exhilarating.
She recalled her dream, where she and Hikigaya had secretly betrayed Yukinoshita, leaving her utterly oblivious.
Her heart raced.
"Maybe... I should take him away from her."
**********************************************
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