Hikigaya glanced at the clock: 9:35
"I hope it's not too late…"
He hurried out and ran downstairs. From afar, he saw the lights of the supermarket still on.
"Luckily, I made it in time!"
Hikigaya held the door and took a moment to catch his breath.
He walked into a clothing store and made his way to the swimwear section. There were men's swimsuits as well.
Not much to choose from, so he just bought a pair of ordinary black boxer trunks.
"It's all here…"
Afterward, he went to a snack bar and bought some fried chicken as a late-night snack.
He hadn't been in the habit of eating latenight snacks before.
Nowadays, whether during daytime club activities or evening tutoring sessions, the physical and mental energy expenditure was enormous, so his appetite naturally increased.
The beverage section in the supermarket was closed, but it didn't matter—there were still vending machines.
The location was a bit remote, and few people came by at night. Hikigaya remembered an artificial lake nearby, one of the rare places not covered by surveillance.
In this school, there was a camera every nine steps, so surveillance was dense. Yet they deliberately left some blind spots, making it hard to believe it was intentional on the school's part.
It was clearly a place for class confrontations—a ground for underhanded tactics!
In the past, Hikigaya would never have come to such a risky place. But since starting martial arts, he'd grown braver and no longer feared ambushes.
Still, he realized: it's better not to wander lonely night roads…
"Damn!"
The sound of someone kicking a railing rang out.
"I'm so annoyed! I…"
"Class D is a bunch of bastards!!"
"Buzzing around like flies every day!"
"All of you, go die!!!"
Under the dim light, a girl yelled and cursed wildly at the artificial lake.
Indeed, Hikigaya, passing by, fully understood. Being in Class D, surrounded by so many geniuses, any normal person would eventually be overwhelmed.
Her face couldn't be seen clearly due to backlighting and shadows. Hikigaya had no intention of prying into others' business.
But her presence was unmistakable… Without a doubt, she's in my class…
"And that Horikita, relying on her cute looks to act cool and aloof…"
"Disgusting! Disgusting! Disgusting!"
"Go to hell!"
"Smelly woman!"
"Horikita…!"
This explained why she constantly pestered Horikita and insisted on trying to make friends.
The real reason?
Hikigaya immediately took a tactical step back, narrowing his eyes. It was surprising, but not unexpected. This woman… was truly troublesome.
Hikigaya sensed something was off and prepared to leave quietly.
"Ding~"
Just then, his phone buzzed with a message. On a quiet night road, the sound seemed especially sharp.
"Who's there!"
The girl spun around suddenly, her cold eyes locking on his location.
Alas, what a pity!
Hikigaya took a deep breath to calm himself.
"It's me, Hikigaya Hachiman."
He stepped out of the shadows, raising the fried chicken bag in his hand.
"Just happened to be passing by to buy a midnight snack."
"Hey! It's you…"
The girl strode over. Under the light, Hikigaya could finally see her face clearly.
"Eh? Kushida? Good evening…"
Hikigaya feigned surprise in his greeting.
"Did you hear?"
Kushida Kikyo lowered her eyes; her voice sounded a little gloomy.
"What did you hear?"
"Sorry, I was just talking on the phone with someone."
Hikigaya looked bewildered.
"Do you think I'm a fool?"
Kushida Kikyo stepped forward, looked up, and glared at him fiercely.
At this moment, the gentle, lovely "Little Angel" transformed into the ferocious-looking "Little Devil"!
The contrast was so strong, it was hard to believe this was the same person.
Hikigaya remained calm—he had seen through Kushida Kikyo's disguise from the very beginning.
On the day of school enrollment, on the bus, she had shown her kind-hearted side, helping an elderly lady find a seat. She introduced herself and claimed she wanted to be friends with everyone.
She had approached Horikita multiple times but had been rejected repeatedly. When others lacked points, Kushida would lend them, never asking for repayment. During the midterms, she actively participated in study sessions and tutored others—a "little angel" praised by all.
Within Class D, she suppressed anger over lost points and endured Yamauchi and others' betrayals.
As a bystander, Hikigaya had been a little worried. Sooner or later, she would explode.
Tonight, seeing Kushida Kikyo kicking a pole and cursing in the street, Hikigaya relaxed. Better to vent than to explode on the spot, or in class.
"Aren't you… surprised?"
Kushida Kikyo seemed concerned by his calm demeanor. Wouldn't a normal person be frightened by her crazed appearance?
"Why should I be surprised?" Hikigaya asked.
"You…!"
"I know!"
Kushida Kikyo's expression changed; her voice sharpened.
"That bitch Horikita must have told you about me, right?"
"What does this have to do with Horikita?"
Hikigaya thought for a moment and quickly guessed: "You and Horikita… were you in the same junior high?"
Realizing she had misspoken, Kushida's face darkened even further.
"Kushida, you don't need to be nervous."
Hikigaya clarified his position: "I'm not interested in your past. As for Horikita, with her personality, apart from studying, she wouldn't pay attention to outside gossip."
But his explanation didn't ease Kushida Kikyo's worry. Hikigaya realized: what she did in junior high wasn't mere gossip; even someone devoted to studying, like Horikita, would passively receive related information. How much trouble had this woman gotten herself into?
Hikigaya felt a headache coming on.
"I can't believe you…"
Kushida Kikyo's cold eyes bore into him.
"Then what should I do to make you believe me?"
"Given your ambiguous relationship with Horikita, I can't believe you!"
Kushida gritted her teeth. Hikigaya shrugged helplessly.
"If I said Horikita and I are just ordinary deskmates, would you believe me?"
"Like hell! Unless you break up with Horikita right now!!"
Seeing Hikigaya remain silent, Kushida let out a sinister laugh.
"Heh-heh, there's still a solution." Her eyes sparkled as if she'd thought of a brilliant idea.
"I'll just have to snatch you away from Horikita!"
"What kind of strategy is that?" Hikigaya was speechless. Not to mention, he and Horikita were nothing more than friends.
"You don't have any feelings for me, right?"
"Heh~ Don't worry, I'll make you have feelings soon enough!"
Kushida confidently grabbed his hand.
Holding hands? That's it? Hikigaya remained calm. At this point, such physical contact was trivial—it was almost childish!
"Huh!?"
He suddenly felt his palm press against an extremely soft spot.
"Now your fingerprints are on my clothes."
"Well, do you have any ideas?"
"Oh! All men are pigs!"
Kushida grabbed his hand tightly.
Ironclad evidence!
"I'm serious!"
Before she could finish, her body jolted as if a strange switch had been pressed, and she staggered back, shocked.
"Sorry! I was careless…"
Hikigaya quickly removed his hand, his face full of embarrassment.
Damn it! Bringing dream habits into reality was too ridiculous.
"You… you you you!!"
Kushida covered her chest, face flushed, heart racing—shocked and angry.
He could accurately find her "switch" through her clothes.
How many girls had this damn dead fish-eye pinched?
"This… this can't be entirely my fault, right?"
Hikigaya looked around and began to argue: "You didn't tell me, so how could I know?"
"I just wanted your fingerprints, why did you pinch… ahhh! Ahhh!!"
Kushida's brain overloaded, and she let out a girlish war cry.
"Actually, it doesn't make much difference, does it?"
Hikigaya whistled guiltily and stepped back. "It's over. Why don't we just have a midnight snack first?"
"I'll show you!!"
Kushida pounced on Hikigaya, claws bared, scratching fiercely.
Though her moves were ferocious, the actual damage was just a few faint marks on his body. Her extreme action inadvertently gave Hikigaya a subtle sense of satisfaction.
"So, Kushida-san… can you calm down now?"
Hikigaya raised his hands to show his innocence.
Kushida hung on him like a koala, then silently slid down, squatting on the ground and hugging her knees.
Hikigaya moved slightly aside and slowly sat down on the ground.
Opening the fried chicken box, the aroma wafted into the air.
Kushida stared in disbelief.