It started with a juice box.
Hinata slammed it down on Shinbou's desk like it was a declaration of war.
He blinked.
"…Is this supposed to bribe me?"
"No," she said. "That's my silence tax. Which you've officially run out of."
He blinked again.
"Okay," he said flatly. "I'm confused."
"Oh, you're more than confused. You're confusing. You're confused-looking. You're the entire genre of confusion."
"I don't follow—"
"You like her."
Shinbou froze.
"Don't lie," Hinata added, leaning on the desk. "Don't do that mysterious 'Who, me?' act. I'm not Kuroyuki. I don't fall for tragic background music and vague glances."
He exhaled, looked out the window, and said, "It's not that simple."
"It never is. But you're not even trying to make it clear."
He stayed silent.
Hinata narrowed her eyes. "You keep watching her like you're trying to solve a puzzle that's been bothering you since birth. And then when Rei shows up, you suddenly forget how to act like a human."
"She likes him."
"Maybe. Maybe not. But guess what? If you keep being a wall, she's going to stop knocking."
That one hit.
He looked down at his hands. "It's not just that I'm confused about her. I'm confused about… everything."
Hinata sat down beside him, quieter now. "You mean the memory stuff?"
He nodded once.
"I get headaches," he said. "Flashes of things I don't remember. It's like standing in front of a door you don't know how to open and sometimes I think she has the key."
Hinata stared for a second, then very softly said:
> "Then maybe stop pushing her away before she locks it for good."
---
They sat in silence for a moment, the buzz of the classroom fading into the background.
Then Hinata stood.
"Oh, and for the record," she added casually, "if you break her heart, I will step on your foot with cleats."
"…Noted."
"And one more thing."
"What?"
"She does look at you, too. Maybe not the same way as Rei. But it's there. So don't screw this up by trying to be mysterious."
---
After she left, Shinbou sat alone at the desk.
Staring at the juice box.
Then at the window.
Then unintentionally at Kuroyuki, who had just entered the classroom laughing with Rei.
And this time, when she looked his way, he didn't look away.