Chapter 35: A Brother Already?
As the two were talking, Kushida Kikyō suddenly called out to Horikita Suzune with her overwhelming presence.
"Hey, Horikita-san, want to swim together?"
"No thanks."
Horikita seemed highly resistant to the girl. She slowly turned her gaze aside, pretending not to see her.
"Is Horikita-san a landlubber?"
"Not particularly good, but not bad either."
"I was a total landlubber in junior high, but I worked hard and learned to swim."
"Is that so? Congrats."
Saying this, Horikita stood up expressionlessly and turned to leave.
Her demeanor made it clear she didn't want to say another word to Kushida.
'Why is that? Sure, this girl's pretty fake, but to be this resistant…'
Since he didn't know Horikita well, Hikigaya wasn't sure if she was like this with everyone. If not…
'Then it can only mean there's some history between them.'
Watching Horikita walk away, Hikigaya didn't say a word. From a certain perspective, he was being used by her too.
Even if he tried to get those guys to join the study group, given his current situation, they probably wouldn't agree.
He had to come up with something…
"I still want to get along better with her."
Kushida Kikyō's words reached Hikigaya's ears like a lifeline.
"Of course, I also want to get along better with you."
Kushida Kikyō suddenly leaned close to Hikigaya's ear, catching him off guard and making his face flush red.
He turned his head away, forcing himself not to look at her overwhelming presence.
"I think I've come up with a way to help you get closer to Horikita."
"Really?"
The girl excitedly grabbed Hikigaya's hand, her chest pressing even closer to him. In that moment, a rush of warmth and a soft, cotton candy-like sensation flooded his heart.
'Something's wrong. Very wrong…'
"Let go of me first…"
"Oh, oh… sorry, I got too excited…"
Kushida scratched her head, feigning a shy expression, her body twisting slightly. Her flawless act left even Hikigaya impressed by the girl in front of him.
"Though I don't know why she's so hostile toward you, she's holding a study group soon, right? If you can get those low-scoring students to join, I'm sure she'll change her opinion of you."
Hikigaya's words seemed to ignite a spark in the girl, her fists clenching as determination surged.
'Perfect. With Kushida's strong influence, I'll probably overcomplete this task. It's almost too easy.'
As Hikigaya was lost in thought, Kushida slowly pressed her index finger to her lips.
"I remember your grades aren't that great either, Hikigaya. Why don't you join the study group too?"
"…I'll go."
"Yay!"
The girl beamed with joy, then said what she'd been wanting to say all along.
"Becoming friends with Horikita-san has always been my dream, but now I have another goal—to become friends with you."
Hearing her words, Hikigaya showed little reaction, responding calmly: "I told you, I don't have friends, and I'm not looking to make any. All I want is to get through these three years peacefully."
"Then I'll be your first friend!"
'She's not listening at all.'
Seeing he couldn't dissuade her, Hikigaya stopped responding. After all, one day he'd end up alone in his corner again. He'd lived that kind of life too many times.
With class dismissal approaching, Hikigaya stood up, preparing to head back to the classroom.
"So, I'm counting on you for that."
"Mm-hmm!"
With Kushida's confirmation, Hikigaya quietly left the pool area alone.
As for what happened at the pool afterward, Hikigaya had no idea.
As the first to return to the classroom, he had the privilege of enjoying some rest. This quiet time, completely undisturbed, was truly wonderful.
Thud thud thud…
Loud footsteps echoed from the corridor.
'Who walks that loudly? Don't they know to keep quiet in the school building? Wait, isn't this that gorilla?'
Hikigaya helplessly put on his earphones and turned toward the window.
Bang!
"Hey, Hikigaya, let me tell you…"
A loud slam startled Hikigaya, who had been resting his head on the desk. Looking up, he saw Sudo incessantly complaining.
"Wait… you nearly shattered my brain just now…"
Hearing this, Sudo placed his large hand on Hikigaya's head, ruffling his hair.
"Stop exaggerating, you."
Hikigaya shook his body, using both hands to push Sudo's hand away. It took a lot of effort to finally break free.
'This is why I hate brute-strength guys.'
"So, what do you want to say?"
"I'm saying, Hirata invited me to a study group, and I turned him down."
"That's fine, isn't it?"
"Huh? Hikigaya, I thought we were brothers. And no, it's not fine at all. It's a total waste of my basketball time. I'm going to be a pro athlete, playing on the international stage."
'Since when did I become this guy's brother…?'
"But turning that down doesn't matter."
"Exactly, that's my brother! Wait, what do you mean 'that'?"
"You don't want to live off these measly points for the rest of your time here, right? So, I signed you up for Horikita's study group."
"What the hell?! What kind of brother screws over his own like that? Wait, you're saying the same thing as Hirata. Don't tell me you've been bought off."
He placed both hands on Hikigaya's shoulders, shaking him vigorously.
Hikigaya struggled to raise a "stop" gesture, and only then did Sudo relent.
"You're gonna shake me to pieces."
"I'm the one who's screwed! I have to join that heartless robot's study group. If it was someone cute like Kushida, fine, but Horikita? That expressionless, serious type? Just thinking about it is terrifying."
Hikigaya looked at the red-haired hedgehog's resistant expression, unsure of what to say.
To be fair, Horikita Suzune was pretty attractive, wasn't she? But Sudo wasn't wrong—her constant deadpan face did leave a bad impression, much like his own dead-fish eyes.
( End of this chapter)