Hojou Mikiko couldn't help but smile at the sight of the two girls in front of her—identical hairstyles, but clearly not getting along.
One blushed furiously from a simple compliment, while the other, flustered from being offered a snack, had raised her hands awkwardly in a makeshift French salute.
But right now, they were standing off like natural enemies, each showing her fiercest expression.
'Girls really are the cutest when they're like this,' Mikiko thought fondly as she stepped forward and grabbed one by each hand before they could start an all-out war.
"Yukino-chan, since we've run into each other, why don't we shop together?" she asked affectionately.
"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Yukino answered sharply, like a soldier reporting in.
Then she immediately realized how odd that sounded and quickly repeated herself in a smaller voice, looking embarrassed.
Hojou Kyousuke's mother was the complete opposite of her own.
Yukino could usually hold her ground by reasoning or resisting against her strict mother but against someone this gentle, she had no idea what to do.
'It's just inexperience. Once I've dealt with this kind of person more, I won't be so flustered,' she told herself as a way of coping.
And so, their little group began wandering through the mall together.
"Yukino-chan, want to try pushing the stroller? Kasuko will totally smile at you—it's super cute!" Sakura offered, taking the stroller from Yotsuba and passing it to her.
Yukino instinctively turned her head—and locked eyes with baby Kasuko, who was sitting in the stroller.
Today, Kasuko wore a black knit beanie with cat ears, and with her bright eyes and chubby cheeks, she looked absolutely adorable.
'It looks so soft... The stitching is beautiful.'
'What kind of cat ears are those? Ragdoll? No, American Curl?'
'Hmm… I need to feel it myself to be sure!'
Yukino tried to look away—but failed three times.
She just stood there dumbly, staring at Kasuko like a lovestruck fool.
Her hands at her sides were twitching with the urge to touch those cat ears.
'What would it feel like? Cotton? Silk? Soft? Warm?'
"Go ahead and try. Kyousuke's little sister is super well-behaved," Mitsuha added with a chuckle.
Nervously, Yukino clutched the white strap of her bag with one hand, and carefully placed a finger on the stroller handle with the other.
She sighed with a hint of melancholy.
"I don't have any experience with children... I really am so immature."
Even little Miyamizu Yotsuba could push the stroller like it was nothing, while Yukino had zero confidence.
Why was that?
"Yukino-chan?! Where are you going?" Sakura suddenly called out.
Huh?
Yukino looked up in a daze, one hand on the stroller, the other reaching out to gently touch Kasuko's cheek.
Kasuko giggled at her touch, looking delighted.
"Aren't we heading to the shoe section? The map said this way."
Apparently, she hadn't just been spacing out earlier on the first floor—she'd memorized the entire mall directory.
"That's the direction of the kids' play area," Sakura said, hurrying over, surprised. "Wait, are you tired already and planning to take Kasuko to rest there?"
"I'm not tired!" Yukino shot back immediately.
'How could anyone be tired when they're with a child this cute—who's also wearing cat ears?!'
"I-I just…"
"Got lost?" Sakura offered, though even she found that hard to believe.
A genius who could memorize every classmate's name couldn't possibly be bad with directions... right?
"Lost? Well, based on the literal meaning I get the implication of the word, but before labeling someone—"
"Okay, okay, I get it," Sakura cut her off. "Let's catch up—Aunt Mikiko and the others are already ahead."
"I just have trouble telling which direction to go. Honestly, the mall layout is poorly designed! Too many intersections—it's no wonder there are so many lost kids!" Yukino muttered in protest.
Sakura gave her a sidelong glance.
'Wait, did you just compare yourself to a lost child...?'
"If you ever space out again and can't find us, just stand still and yell. I'll come running. That's Kyousuke's top tip for not getting lost—got it?"
"I have your contact info!" Yukino shot back, though her voice clearly lacked confidence.
"Hehe~ Yukino-chan didn't get lost!" Kasuko beamed up at her, clapping her little hands.
"You should call me 'Yukino-oneechan,'" Yukino said gently, bending down with a warm smile.
"Yukino-chan and Kasuko together!" the little girl cheered innocently.
Yukino's face turned red.
'Forget getting lost—I almost dragged Kasuko into being lost with me...'
"So, Yukinoshita-san, what are you shopping for today?" Katou Megumi asked casually.
"A gift. For Hojou," Yukino answered without thinking, too caught up in playing with Kasuko.
"Oh. I see."
Yukino froze.
Her eyes shot wide open as she turned to glare at Megumi, who'd smoothly coaxed that confession out of her.
"What is it?" Megumi blinked, looking genuinely puzzled.
"So that was a trick question. You caught me off guard on purpose," Yukino muttered. "I didn't expect Katou-senpai to be so... devious."
"Eh? Trick question? No way, I was just asking casually," Megumi replied in her usual relaxed tone. "By the way, you really like that hat, huh?"
"I-I don't like it that much! I just think it suits Kasuko!" Yukino panicked, waving her hands in denial.
Megumi looked at her, a little amused.
Yukino's eyes, her expression, her gestures—everything screamed that she loved that hat.
"Ohh. I was going to tell you the store earlier had the same one—with a moving cat tail attached."
Yukino didn't even respond.
She just immediately turned her head, scanning for the shop Megumi mentioned.
"Not on this floor," Megumi said helpfully.
"Oh…"
"Are you planning to buy it for Hojou?" Megumi asked.
"Of course not! That hat would never suit him!" Yukino exclaimed, abandoning all pretense as she clung tightly to the idea of getting one for herself.
As they talked, the rest of the group had already moved on to another store.
Yukino and Megumi pushed Kasuko along behind them.
"But if you're serious about buying Hojou a gift, tagging along with us girls probably isn't the best idea," Megumi gently reminded her. "We're just browsing women's boutiques."
"I know... but even if I go off on my own, I still have no idea what to get him," Yukino admitted, almost instinctively.
"Is that why you were zoning out in the lobby earlier?"
"I wasn't zoning out—I was thinking!" she retorted.
"Eh…. so what were you thinking about?"
"Well, I considered tackling something he's good at, but quickly realized I couldn't win.
In that case, the more effective strategy would be to counter with something unexpected—targeting his weaknesses instead," Yukino said with dead-serious determination.
"Uhh… okay… let me try to follow that," Megumi replied, a little dazed.
'What does that have to do with buying a gift...?'
"So attacking Hojou's areas of expertise… you mean starting from what he likes?"
"That's right." Yukino gave Megumi a slightly surprised glance.
"And targeting his weaknesses means figuring out what he needs but doesn't have?"
"Exactly." Yukino nodded with a bit of pride.
Getting another firm confirmation, Megumi was honestly impressed.
'What a shy girl. '
She clearly didn't want others to know how much thought she was putting into choosing a gift for Hojou, so she deliberately wrapped it all up in complicated phrasing.
How adorably roundabout.
"But if you're looking at it that way, wouldn't it be more accurate to say you're trying to complement his weaknesses rather than attack them?" Megumi said lightly, smiling as she made up her mind.
With such a perfect chance, she was going to get a gift for Hojou too.
"If you were this sharp during tutoring sessions, you might be at the top of our grade, Katou-senpai," Yukino said with genuine seriousness, not expecting her usually ditzy senpai to follow her line of thinking so well.
"Agh… give me a break. It's the weekend…"
Megumi's face instantly crumpled, and her despondent expression made Kasuko giggle from her stroller.
"She's going to grow up terrified of school," Megumi quickly said, using Kasuko as a human shield.
"I'm serious," Yukino insisted, not because she'd accidentally blurted everything out to Megumi earlier and now wanted revenge.
"So am I!" Megumi said, her anti-academia spirit flaring stronger than ever.
"Well, you're not my student, so I guess I can let that slide."
'Oh, right! Phew...'
After returning Kasuko to her mom, the two temporarily allied girls slipped away from the group.
"I want to check out that store," Megumi said, pointing to a shop that sold baseball gear.
Without hesitation, Yukino followed.
"Eh? Yukinoshita, are you planning to buy the same gift for Hojou as me?"
"Of course not! That would be a waste of resources."
"Then…?" Megumi turned to face the girl trailing right behind her, silently asking for an explanation.
"While I wouldn't exactly brag about it, I do have a rather unusual value system for a high school girl. I don't understand typical girly things or what boys like," Yukino said with pride.
"Yeah… I kinda figured," Megumi said, bewildered by how Yukino managed to make that sound like a badge of honor.
Only a girl who approached gift shopping like it was a tactical war briefing could think that way.
"So, um… if you could help me out a little, Katou-senpai, that would really mean a lot," Yukino added awkwardly, her gaze fixed firmly on her toes instead of delivering her usual intense eye contact.
"It's that so… got it. Let's shop together. I'll give you some pointers," Megumi replied immediately, still cheerful and relaxed.
"Eh? Are you sure? You're also shopping for Hojou, right?" Yukino was clearly flustered.
Megumi may not be as close to Hojou as Sakura or Shouko, but still… asking a girl who's also picking out a gift for the same guy to help you?
Even for Yukino, that felt awkward.
If she hadn't accidentally spilled everything earlier, she wouldn't have dared ask.
"No problem at all. You're working hard too, and I'm happy to help you out," Megumi said lightly, her peaceful smile putting Yukino at ease.
"Thank you, Katou-senpai." Yukino smiled back, her earlier reservations melting away.
She was starting to realize why she'd let so much slip in the first place.
It wasn't some kind of interrogation. Or at least, not deliberate.
Katou Megumi just had a way of making people feel like they could open up.
Even when Yukino felt cornered, listening to Megumi's gentle voice and looking at that calm, sincere smile made it strangely easy to accept her help.
Words that might sound like polite filler from someone else felt genuinely heartfelt coming from her.
"No need to thank me! I was planning to shop anyway," Megumi replied with her usual ease, and Yukino felt herself relax even more.
"Baseball gear, huh? That's a solid choice. Hojou never played baseball before high school, so even if the school provides some equipment, he's still missing a lot. That's impressive, Katou-senpai."
"I actually got the idea from your 'weakness exploitation' strategy~"
"Now that I think about it, there are other categories too besides baseball stuff."
"Yeah, high school life is way different from middle school."
"Yukinoshita, that section's for hardware—are you lost again?"
"This time I'm not! I just thought Hojou might like a multitool kit or maybe a smart hole-puncher."
"Uhh… I'm not totally sure about that…"
"I noticed he has a whole tool room at the dorm. It's pretty well stocked."
"Ohh~ So you're back to challenging Hojou in his area of expertise again?"
"On second thought, maybe not. I have no idea what tools he already owns, and I don't want to buy duplicates."
"Yukinoshita?! You're not thinking of buying him underwear, are you?"
"…Of course not! I did go the wrong way this time, okay? But come on—shouldn't there be a sign or something? It's super embarrassing to stumble into this kind of store by accident!"
"Next time, just tell me where you want to go."
"You memorized the mall layout too, Katou-senpai?"
"Memorized it? Who does that? The stores are laid out with a pattern. Like, a hardware store would never be next to a lingerie shop."
"This is complicated…"
"The only thing complicated here is you!"
…
And so, after plenty of chaos and laughter, the two girls each ended up with a gift they were satisfied with.
"Ah~ that was fun. Let's go shopping together again next weekend?" Sakura said with a big smile.
Everyone happily agreed—except Yukino, who looked thoroughly drained and overwhelmed.
But seeing Megumi and Shouko also nodding cheerfully, she gritted her teeth and agreed too, secretly vowing to memorize the layout of the entire mall once she got home.
Later that evening, ignoring her sister's antics and attention-seeking complaints about being bored and lonely, Yukino collapsed onto her bed.
She glanced at the shopping bag on her desk, closed her eyes, and let herself drift off to sleep.
And so, the flashback ends. Time returns to the present.
———————————————————————
[Back at the Service Club, after saying goodbye to the "crossdressing duo"]
Yukino glanced at Hojou Kyousuke's confused face and Sakura's sudden excitement, her cheeks heating up.
She brushed her hair behind her ear with a dramatic flick.
"It's nothing!" she said coolly.
…??
'Nothing? Then why did you make me stay behind?'
Kyousuke was mentally drowning in question marks.
Yukino took a deep breath and reached for her school bag, which was hanging on the side of the desk.
"I got you a gift… to thank you for the one you gave me."
Her words came out stiff and robotic, like an old machine struggling to get through a sentence.
Her pale face blushed furiously, like it had gone into emotional overdrive.