After a long while, Miura finally came back to her senses from the taste of the food. She stood up again, twisting her body a little, but compared to before, her pride was gone. The only thing left was the blush on her face that she couldn't hide.
Hachiman handed her a glass of cold lemon tea. Facing this old classmate, he didn't really dislike her. After all, she was always honest and never hid her feelings, and Hachiman actually respected that.
Miura had never imagined Hikigaya had such a skill. Back then, she only stood up for her friend Yui, but now… she really had to take another look at this classmate of hers.
Hachiman: "As promised, you won't be driving our diner out of business, right?"
Miura's face looked a bit unnatural as she crossed her arms, like she was a little angry:
"In your eyes, do I look like the kind of person who doesn't keep her word? No, wait… it's Hikigaya, right."
"No… I was just checking. As long as you don't dislike our food, you can come to the [Hikigaya Diner] more often in the future."
Hearing Hikigaya's invitation, a faint blush rushed across Miura's face again, fast enough to be seen clearly.
"Idiot, jerk, Hikigaya!"
Was this supposed to be a new way of cursing? It wasn't fresh at all.
"But, I didn't think that after a year we'd actually meet like this again. Back in school we hardly ever talked. If you want to blame someone, blame those dead-fish eyes of yours."
"Yeah, yeah..."
As he said that, Miura seemed to recall something from the past and spoke with a serious tone:
"It's been more than half a year already, and I wasn't directly involved, so I won't say too much about what happened between you two. But... from what I know, after graduation Yui went to Tokyo's shopping district to sell cookies. Did you know about that?"
Hachiman really didn't know anything about it, so he just shook his head helplessly.
"I don't know why you suddenly disappeared without saying a word back then, but Yui must still be waiting to meet you again. If you ever get the chance... go see her. She really needs your help too. I heard that quite a few of our classmates wanted to get into that school called 'Totsuki,' and it seems Yui has been working hard for it as well."
Hearing Miura's words, Hachiman once again felt the weight of the past. But could those ordinary days really come back? Maybe from that moment on, their relationship was already fated to fall apart. So... unable to accept that bond, Hachiman chose to run away.
Polishing up the past is a sign of weakness inside. Talking about old glory is proof of an aging heart. Stepping on others to feel safe is proof of being fragile.
Confidence, pride—everything had been lost, and that's why he ran here. Maybe it wasn't his real intention. Maybe he just came once on a whim, and found unexpected comfort, so he decided to stay.
But you can't just stay somewhere because it feels comfortable. To people down in the human world, a god who comes down is nothing but a burden.
No one in this world has time to look after someone who ran away and came crawling back, so they drive them out, cast them away. Just like you said, the world really is cruel.
So there's no reason to go back there anymore. As for those people from before, they can only be quietly left in the past.
When Miura was actually sitting face-to-face with Hachiman, she finally realized that this guy was even more troublesome than she thought.
If it were her, she would definitely bring everything out in the open and then make up right away. But Hikigaya wasn't like that. His prideful loneliness made him step away from it all.
Miura: "Hey, do you not really believe that a relationship can keep going?"
Hachiman: "Maybe..."
Miura: "If you think that just by changing a little, that bond you had could vanish into thin air, then you're totally wrong! You know her so well, yet you don't trust yourself at all. That's why even now, she's still waiting to hear from you!"
Hachiman couldn't help but smile bitterly, though there was also a trace of helplessness.
"Looks like the saying's true—outsiders always see things more clearly."
Miura slowly stood up and spoke to Hachiman again:
"Anyway, you'd better take care of things with Yui, or else I'll have a reason to come bother you again!"
"Yes..."
"And also, about this... sorry, all your ingredients are still in my car. I'll have my assistant put them back properly later."
Doing something like this for her friend... if Miura could be a friend too, maybe that wouldn't be so bad. The thought suddenly crossed Hachiman's mind.
After saying that, Miura turned and left. Just as she had promised herself, after losing that bet earlier, she no longer had any intention of driving Hikigaya away.
"What a kind guy."
Even though more than half a year had already passed, even though the old classmates had all graduated, when meeting again, there was still a special kind of magic. Maybe that's just the power of time.
So in the end, it might have only been his own wishful thinking. For others, it was probably something long left behind.
Miura was an outsider, so maybe she could see things clearly, but the real bond inside could only be understood by the ones involved.
Letting out a helpless sigh, Hachiman slowly started cleaning up the mess in [Hikigaya Diner] under the fading light of dusk. Not long after... Komachi finally came back. When she saw the restaurant in such a mess, her first thought was that her brother had messed things up again. But...
After Hachiman explained, she more or less understood what had happened.
Since they weren't planning to open today, Komachi quickly went back to her room to keep studying, while Hachiman stayed behind to continue cleaning up the ruined dining area and kitchen.
...
Late at night, just as Hachiman was about to rest, he happened to run into Komachi coming out of her room after finishing her studies.
No matter when, Komachi's face always carried a bright, easygoing smile. While other third-year students were overwhelmed and stressed, maybe she was the only one who could keep such a calm heart.
"Take it easy, you've worked hard."
"You too, Onii-chan... Komachi, who still worries about her brother, also scored really high, you know!"
The two of them sat together in the dining hall, drinking warm milk that reached the heart, sharing this rare quiet moment.
"Onii-chan, have you ever thought about what you want to do in the future?"
"Who knows... if I could just find a rich lady willing to take care of me, that'd be perfect..."
"Onii-chan, your dream is just as rotten as your dead-fish eyes!"
"..."