On his way to school the next morning, Hikigaya ran into Mrs. Yuigahama.
They lived only a street apart, so it wasn't uncommon for them to run into each other in the mornings.
"Good morning, Aunt Yuigahama," Hikigaya greeted her first.
"Good morning, Hikigaya-kun," Mrs. Yuigahama replied with a gentle smile.
"Thank you for last night, by the way."
They stopped at a crosswalk, waiting for the light to change.
"It was nothing, Hikigaya-kun. No need to be so formal with me," she said with a warm look in her eyes, her voice soft and affectionate.
"I'll always be here to help you in the future."
"Thank you, Auntie."
Hikigaya had wanted to politely decline, but knowing how gentle and kind-hearted Mrs. Yuigahama was, he decided not to press the issue and instead thanked her earnestly.
"The light's green—let's go," she said with a smile as she took a step forward.
"Wait, Auntie—hold on a second, there's a car coming."
Hikigaya glanced to the left and quickly warned her.
Mrs. Yuigahama stopped in her tracks and followed his gaze.
A car sped by but thankfully stopped in time.
Still, the close call brought back memories of a previous incident. She'd nearly been hit once before, and if Hikigaya hadn't intervened that time, she might have ended up in the hospital.
"Thank you, Hikigaya-kun. I must've been a little out of it," she said, clearly a bit embarrassed.
"Are you feeling okay, Auntie? Your eyes look a bit tired… didn't sleep well last night?"
He looked at her face carefully. She did have noticeable dark circles under her eyes.
"Well… not really."
They crossed the street together as Mrs. Yuigahama averted her gaze.
"Was it… because of me?"
Hikigaya asked hesitantly.
"Eh? Uh…"
She looked away again, more flustered than before.
"I knew it… Auntie, you really don't need to worry about me so much. I'll figure something out eventually," he said with a sigh.
"No, that's not it. Actually…"
"It's not?"
"I mean… I was a little worried about you, Hikigaya-kun…"
She quickly backpedaled, her cheeks faintly flushed, turning her face away so he wouldn't see the telltale blush creeping up.
The truth was… she hadn't slept well the night before—and yes, it was because of Hikigaya.
But not because she was pondering how to help him escape from Sayuri.
No.
What had kept her awake all night was one shameless, indecent thought after another:
Why was it that the women who had been with Hikigaya weren't her?
That was it.
She'd crossed a line.
Again and again, she imagined herself and Hikigaya, basking in warm, intimate moments like a happy little family.
She even imagined…
Being pregnant with his child.
Utterly. Shameful.
So disgraceful she could cry.
She was, without a doubt, a woman with impure thoughts!
"Anyway—what I mean is—Mama's going to help you, Hikigaya-kun! I'll make sure to take you back from that Sayuri! You can count on me!"
Mrs. Yuigahama flailed a bit with her words, clearly panicking, and then quickly turned away.
"I need to get to the cake shop now! Be careful on your way to school, okay?"
"You too, Auntie."
Hikigaya waved as she left, feeling something… off.
He wasn't sure why, but the last thing Mrs. Yuigahama said had sounded oddly… strange?
Uh… cough, maybe he was just overthinking it. Auntie Yuigahama was a kind and gentle lady—not like Auntie Sayuri.
He didn't dwell on it, and continued toward Sobu High, completely unaware that the woman walking away from him had turned bright red, the flush spreading all the way down her neck like steam about to rise.
At Sobu High.
It was Friday, and the classroom was already filling up early. Many of the normie students were chatting and making weekend plans.
Senior year was intense, but overdoing studies was also unhealthy—students needed to unwind on weekends to reset their brains.
"Hikigaya-kun, how about getting a room this weekend?"
As soon as he reached his seat, Kasumigaoka leaned forward from behind with a smile.
"I've almost convinced Kawasaki. She's pretty much on board~"
"???"
Hikigaya blinked and glanced at Kawasaki, who was sitting not far away. Her face turned red and she quickly looked away.
"Kawasaki's not that kind of person."
"You don't believe me?"
Kasumigaoka smiled slyly. "Really, she's willing to come. So, how about it? We haven't even booked a single room together yet—such a pity, don't you think?"
"I already have plans this weekend."
"Ha? With who?"
"Tomorrow I'm going shopping with Yukinoshita."
"Well, your girlfriend does deserve some time. Then what about Sunday?"
Kasumigaoka wasn't giving up.
"Sunday… I have another appointment."
Hikigaya remembered the promise he'd made to Horikita yesterday.
"With who?"
"Ahem… It's about the joint retreat with Advanced Nurturing High. I'm meeting their student council president."
He said this with a straight face.
"…"
Kasumigaoka was at a loss for words. Her brows furrowed.
"Then what about tonight? You must be free tonight, right?"
"I promised my little sister I'd take her to an idol concert."
"Why are you so busy?!"
Kasumigaoka groaned.
Believe me, I'm asking myself the same thing!
Hikigaya sighed. His weekend schedule really was packed.
Even so, Kasumigaoka wasn't planning on giving up just yet. She was still looking for a chance to get Hikigaya alone.
Naturally, Hikigaya held his ground and flatly rejected all her attempts.
Eventually—
He made it through the torturous morning.
During lunch break—
He got called out by Yukinoshita.
She had brought another homemade bento for him today.
The two of them returned to the little grove from yesterday.
"You didn't sleep well last night?"
As soon as they sat down, Hikigaya noticed the same dark circles under her eyes—just like Mrs. Yuigahama.
"Mm… I stayed up too late…"
"Up late? Doing what?"
"Well…"
Yukinoshita hesitated, her cheeks flushed pink.
She had been up watching videos while completing some emotionally taxing system tasks. It left her mentally drained and unable to sleep.
Originally, she had planned to wait until the weekend to relax a bit.
But now… she couldn't wait any longer.
She needed Hikigaya to help her relax—now.
"H-Hikigaya-kun, my… period ended today. After lunch, I was wondering… if you had any thoughts about that?"
Her voice was barely above a whisper, heavy with embarrassment.
"Eh?"
Is today's Yukinoshita… being this forward?
Hikigaya kept his expression cool. "Didn't we say we'd wait until the weekend?"
With her head lowered and face beet red, Yukinoshita murmured, "I… I just want a little warm-up."
It had been a whole week since she'd touched her boyfriend!
She was going numb from the withdrawal!
Meanwhile—
What the two of them failed to notice was that, not far from their spot…
A petite figure had quietly appeared nearby.