"M-Good morning kiss?!"
"Well… this is indeed what couples do."
"But… we just got engaged. Isn't it too early?"
The short-haired beauty's eyes wavered for a moment, and she lightly bit her pearly teeth.
Is the setting this time… a newly engaged couple?
Hikigaya felt a strange flutter in his chest.
By the way, most things in dreams were always fantastic.
For example, he once dreamed his cat could talk, three suns appeared in the sky, and a male junior high classmate suddenly turned into a girl… In short, all surreal, outrageous things.
Dreams with a strong sense of reality—like those about a wife or fiancée—were rare. At least for Hikigaya, these were all firsts.
"Since it's Hachiman's wish, I'll consider it carefully…"
The short-haired beauty spoke seriously, but the blush on her cheeks betrayed her.
Cold outside, warm inside?
Alas!
This girl is super cute too!
Hikigaya's heart began to beat faster. Yet the more he looked at her, the more familiar she seemed. He felt… a vague overlap with the image of a cold female classmate in his memory.
"You… you are Horikita?!"
Hikigaya's eyes widened.
Though her hairstyle had changed and her mind matured, her eyes and temperament were almost 100% identical.
"What did you call me?"
The short-haired beauty frowned, her eyes cold.
"Um… you're not Horikita?"
Hikigaya asked, uncertain.
"What kind of riddle are you talking about?"
Her eyes shifted as if contemplating something seriously.
"Hachiman, are you worried about the changing of my surname after marriage?"
"Don't worry about that. My brother is there for the Horikita family."
"I won't let you marry into my family."
She took Hikigaya's hand, intertwining their fingers tightly, an unprecedented tenderness on her face:
"From now on, I will be called Hikigaya Suzune."
Buzz!!!
Hikigaya's brain short-circuited.
The next morning, the alarm woke Hikigaya from his sweet dream.
"…."
He curled up in bed, twisting like a maggot.
Wow… idiot… fool… Hachiman!
It was one thing to fantasize about marrying a "popular idol" in a dream—that was harmless, as that girl didn't exist in real life.
But imagining meeting a female classmate on the very first day of class? That was simply… perverse behavior!
From now on… called Hikigaya Suzune…
Help! How dare you think this, Hikigaya Hachiman!
Overwhelmed with shame, he rolled off the bed, hitting his head on the corner of the table. Pain shot through him.
If one day all of my dark history were revealed…
I'd rather hand over the "Diary of the Divine Realm," the "World Government Report," even my junior-high love letters…
Only "Hikigaya Suzune" must remain sealed forever!
Going to school with a Band-Aid on his forehead might have drawn attention—but miraculously, no one noticed.
This is amazing…
"Good morning, Yukimura-kun~"
"Good morning, Kinoshita-san~"
"Good morning, Himeno-san~"
"Good morning, Hashimoto-san~"
Kikyo Kushida greeted familiar classmates along the way.
Not only Class D, but students from other classes interacted freely.
Socially, she was among the first grade's best.
Yet Hikigaya stared at her intently, trying to see the side she hid behind her words and actions.
"Good morning, Hikigaya-san~"
Kikyo turned and waved with a smile.
"Good morning, Kushida-san."
Hikigaya nodded.
This woman was surprisingly sharp… and he vaguely felt she was observing him secretly, trying to see something.
They looked at each other for a few seconds before a figure passed through their sight.
"Horikita-san, what a coincidence~"
Kikyo's attention shifted.
Horikita Suzune walked by, reading The Hunchback of Notre Dame, ignoring Kikyo completely.
Feeling guilty, Hikigaya quickly looked away, avoiding her face.
"What? Did you do something wrong?"
Horikita Suzune glanced at him strangely.
"…."
Kikyo's smile froze. Ignored, her greeting dismissed, while he focused on Horikita's delicate calves wrapped in her skirt…
He admitted he had done something wrong.
"That's right… you and I have nothing in common."
Horikita Suzune didn't care. Closing her book, she walked up the stairs to the teaching building.
Yes, they were two people with clearly no intersection.
Why did I have such strange dreams?
"Hikigaya-kun."
"Are you close to Horikita-san?"
Kikyo took a step forward, her eyes sharp.
"Not familiar."
Hikigaya immediately denied it.
"Yeah? But you're the only one in the class who can talk to her."
Kikyo narrowed her eyes.
"We happened to sit at the same table. According to her, it was just a minimal courtesy exchange."
Hikigaya insisted he was telling the truth.
"But Horikita-san didn't even acknowledge me…"
"Oh, I'm not saying she's rude."
Kikyo quickly amended herself, secretly observing his reaction.
"What do you want to do?"
Hikigaya pursed his lips, too lazy to argue.
"I want you to… eh!"
"That's annoying! It's like I'm taking advantage of you, Hikigaya-san."
Kikyo lightly punched his chest with her small fist, smiling.
Apart from "taking advantage," Hikigaya didn't understand why she approached him.
"I want to make friends with everyone… and of course, I won't let Horikita-san go." Hikigaya used her own words to provoke a reaction.
"Well… I really won't let Horikita go… oh, I meant making friends!!"
Kikyo emphasized, serious.
Why the emphasis?
Hikigaya continued:
"I can help you. But let me make it clear—you'd better not have too high expectations. Horikita and I are just ordinary classmates."
"Really?"
"Thank you so much, Hikigaya-kun!"
A gleam flashed in her eyes as she stepped forward, shaking his hand. A pleasant girl's scent wafted over him.
If it had been the old Hikigaya, his IQ would have plummeted. But after contact with the two "wives" in his dream, his resistance to the opposite sex had increased several times.
"You're welcome, in exchange."
"I'd like you to do me a favor as well."
Hikigaya calmly withdrew his hand.