It wasn't until Yukinoshita's voice reached his ears that Hikigaya finally snapped back to reality.
What was strange, though, was that he had thought once this assignment ended, the two of them would stop talking altogether, like they had never even met—just going their own separate ways.
Seeing Hikigaya still spacing out, Yukinoshita added:
"Are you pretending to be a zombie? Oh wait… you actually are one."
'Yep, still the same as ever.'
Yukinoshita was just Yukinoshita—she wouldn't change. And he, Hikigaya, was just Hikigaya. They were like two parallel lines that accidentally crossed once, only to separate again soon after.
Just as Hikigaya was about to leave, Takumi, now fully recovered, pointed at him and shouted:
"Hikigaya Hachiman! I will definitely beat you one day!"
"One day, I'll challenge you to a Shokugeki! You better not run away when that time comes. I'll defeat you so badly you won't have a shred of dignity left. Until then, you're not allowed to lose to anyone else."
Hikigaya could only sigh inside at Takumi's serious words.
Great, now he had another person dead set on him. Shouldn't Takumi be focused on challenging Yukinoshita? Why was he so fixated on him instead?
Yukinoshita commented from the side:
"Didn't expect you to be so popular."
"Idiot, how does this look like popularity at all?"
Ignoring his retort, Yukinoshita simply walked toward the bus, and Hachiman followed behind her. He didn't know what else might happen in the future, but their connection would probably end after today.
Still, Hachiman didn't feel sad. After all, every relationship has to end at some point. And this one—just a short-lived partnership—was no different.
Under Chef Inui's arrangements, the students who passed the assignment all boarded one bus, while those who failed were put on another.
But because students from other groups crowded in too, the bus felt especially packed. Naturally, Inui had arranged for partners from the same group to sit together, so Hachiman ended up beside Yukinoshita again.
She leaned lightly against the window, her long black hair falling past her cheeks and down to her chest. Her calm eyes stayed fixed on the scenery outside. Even though she noticed Hachiman's presence, she didn't say a word.
To Hachiman, that felt normal.
He didn't greet her either. Instead, he turned his eyes away from her flawless profile, pulled a small cookbook from his bag, and flipped it open.
Better to read than sit idle. Today had shown him just how brutal this training trip really was—just one slip-up and you could lose your place at this school for good.
"Rumble…"
As the bus started moving, Yukinoshita slowly turned her head. When she saw Hikigaya, she covered her mouth in mock surprise:
"Hikigaya the zombie, you haven't been expelled yet?"
"Hey, at least I was in the same group as you. If I'd failed, we'd both be on the other bus right now."
"Really? I actually ended up teaming with a zombie… even I can't believe it."
"Do you have some kind of random memory loss?"
"Maybe just seeing your face gave me that illness."
Hikigaya's eyebrow twitched. He really didn't want to keep this up, so he focused back on his book.
"Oh, right…" Noticing he wasn't responding anymore, Yukinoshita threw out another confusing line.
"If you just want to keep mocking me, then there's no need."
"No… I was actually going to compliment you. Even if no one else praises you, I will. After all, I never lie."
Completely puzzled by her words, Hachiman casually replied:
"Really? I don't think I did anything worth praising."
"Oh, so that's the kind of person you are, zombie-kun. I see. You just want to forget the things you've done, right?"
"That's not it…"
"Fine then, I'll be clear." She placed a hand over her chest—though flat to begin with, it disappeared completely behind her palm.
With a faint smile, she spoke with genuine thanks in her voice, enough to make Hachiman blank out for a moment.
"When we were getting the eggs earlier… thanks for stepping up. I really didn't want to be the one who broke up someone's happy family. Egg thief."
"…If you're going to thank me, at least don't ruin it with the last part."
"I was complimenting you, you know!"
"Could've fooled me..."
Yukinoshita pressed a hand to her lips, looking puzzled.
"Huh? Did I not make it clear enough? Or is it that Zombie-kun's brain just can't keep up? If that's the case, maybe you should get your head checked soon. Otherwise, one day you might just rest in peace forever."
"Can you not say things that sound like advice but are actually death threats... with such a straight face?"
Hikigaya really didn't want to deal with her anymore. If you didn't know her, you might be kept away by her icy aura, or feel jealous of her overwhelming talent. For most people, that's what Yukinoshita was.
But for Hachiman, who had crossed paths with her a bit, that so-called coldness wasn't what he saw. She was just like anyone else—she could get excited, surprised, sad, and happy. What really gave him headaches was her sharp tongue and scheming words.
Maybe sensing what he was thinking, Yukinoshita smiled faintly, her voice low.
"This is something special, just for Zombie-kun. After all, you're the only one who can make me want to be this aggressive the moment I get close."
Yeah... that was it.
In some ways, Hachiman really wished he wasn't in that kind of "special" category.
The only reason he still kept talking to her was just one thing...
It wasn't about her looks. It wasn't about her personality. It was simply because her words touched on the very thing he had always been chasing.
Yukinoshita Yukino didn't lie. That was the one thing he couldn't ignore.
If it was someone like her... maybe they really could become friends.
Was the "real thing" he had been searching for... right in front of him?
You can read 30 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu
Free member can read 2 chapters in advance