Compared to Valentine's Day, Hikigaya actually liked White Day.
He only had to worry about picking out a gift for Komachi. As long as he saw his little sister's smiling face, no amount of money was too much. At most, he'd need to prepare two extra boxes of cookies for Haruno and Iroha as a return gift.
But… was it just him, or were there way too many people he needed to give return gifts to today? Not to mention anything else—he hadn't even finished eating all the chocolates he'd received. It was the first time he'd experienced feeling sick from eating too many sweets .
Seriously though… how many were there in total?
Unable to resist, Hikigaya reached out to count them on his fingers—Kushida, Kamuro, Horikita, Matsushita, Shiina, Sakayanagi, plus seniors Tachibana and Asahina.
Although technically, what Asahina-senpai gave him was chocolate cookies.
Does that still count as a return gift situation…?
And then there was Manabe, who gave him chocolate bread.
Would that count too?
And let's not forget Komachi and her friends. It felt a little awkward asking Matsushita for help again, but since Komachi had gone out of her way to deliver chocolates full of love, how could he, as her big brother, not show some appreciation? Even if it meant sneaking over the wall, he had to deliver something!
As for the other three… well, since he was already going to be asking Matsushita and handing things off to Miss Haruno, he might as well throw their gifts in too.
As he continued counting, Hikigaya suddenly realized that even both his hands weren't enough. There were… more than ten people to return gifts to!?
Just then, a small, pale, delicate hand appeared beside him.
Turning his head, he saw Sakayanagi looking at him with a sweet smile—A smile so chilling it felt like a winter breeze, as if it could freeze someone on the spot.
"Hikigaya-kun, you look troubled," she said cheerfully.
"N-No, not really…"
"No need to be polite." Her tone carried a distinct sharpness. "Here, I'll lend you a hand. So make sure you count carefully—exactly how many girls are we talking about?"
"Uh…"
Hikigaya fell silent.
After a moment, scratching the back of his head awkwardly, he said, "Actually, Sakayanagi… if you don't mind, I'd like to borrow your other hand too."
"..."
Sakayanagi said nothing—just stared at him with a look colder than garbage.
"Ahaha, just kidding!" Hikigaya laughed nervously, cold sweat forming on his brow. His gaze darted away. "I mean, come on, think about it. There's no way it's that many… I was joking!"
…Even if it had reached double digits, it hadn't passed the three-hands mark!
In any case, when it came to dealing with girls, it was probably best to steer clear of this topic entirely.
So Hikigaya gave a couple of fake coughs and changed the subject.
"Right. I wanted to ask you something. For White Day… do you have to hand over return gifts in person?"
"According to common sense, yes."
"Unfortunate. I'm not very well-acquainted with common sense."
If he could, Hikigaya would've loved to just drop them all in the recipients' mailboxes. Doing it face to face with every single one of them would be way too awkward.
Especially when it came to Ichinose…
Back then, to stop her, he'd practically snatched the chocolate out of her hands. Now that he thought about it, the regret was eating him alive. He should've just refused to take it in the first place… sigh, sigh, sigh.
Of course, he could play dumb and pretend nothing ever happened—But that would be the same as ignoring her feelings entirely.
On the other hand, even if he did return the favor, Ichinose probably wouldn't be happy about it.
After all, he had rejected her.
So should he give her a return gift or not…?
"Hikigaya-kun, you look even more conflicted than before," Sakayanagi said, as if reading his mind. She smiled, clearly amused. "Don't tell me… you're struggling with how to face Ichinose-san? Did you accept her chocolate that day?"
"…Kind of," Hikigaya muttered, sounding deflated.
The truth was a little more complicated. He hadn't wanted her chocolate—it just sort of happened. But explaining that would sound dumb no matter how he put it.
Let her misunderstand if she wants.
"My, my… What a terrible man you are," Sakayanagi said, giggling behind her hand. "Rejecting a girl's confession, and still shamelessly accepting her gift? I don't recall raising you to be this thick-skinned."
"I wasn't raised by you…" Hikigaya groaned.
Even if he found her nonsense incredibly irritating, at this point, sighing was all he had energy for.
Not like he could do anything about it.
"In any case, I suggest you think it over carefully," Sakayanagi said with a composed look.
"You've already turned her down, so ignoring her from here on wouldn't be wrong. But the fact that she mustered the courage to express her feelings remains unchanged. So if you don't want to become strangers, the least you can do is show her you acknowledged her sincerity."
"…Didn't expect you to say something like that," Hikigaya said in surprise.
This girl had suddenly gone all sincere and thoughtful—so much so, it was disorienting.
"In any case, to thank me for my wisdom, you'd better put some serious thought into your White Day return gift," she said with a dazzling smile.
"You're still holding me to that, huh." Hikigaya sighed, thoroughly unmotivated. "And the way you're saying it just makes me less eager to do it."
He'd originally planned to just buy some expensive cookies and call it a day…Wait, no, that's not "cutting corners"—it's efficient.
Why is it that girls don't have to think twice about handing over some chocolate, but guys have to rack their brains to come up with unique and meaningful return gifts? It made no sense!
And anyway, what's wrong with cookies? They're sweet too, just like chocolate!
"But still, why did you reject Ichinose-san?" Sakayanagi seemed genuinely intrigued.
"Normally, no guy would turn down such a beautiful and well-endowed girl. Most would pounce on her like starving wolves."
"Don't say stuff that makes you sound like a creepy old man," Hikigaya shot back.
"I'm just stating the truth." Sakayanagi watched him with interest. "Or… do you not like her body type? Do you prefer slimmer girls?"
"Can you not ask me things like that with such a straight face?"
"Hehe, embarrassed?"
"No. Not even a little."
At this rate, Hikigaya was watching himself get toyed with in real time. The two of them continued their aimless banter as they strolled into the library.
Probably because everyone was busy preparing for the upcoming special exam, the place was much quieter than usual. The only person inside was the librarian sitting at the front desk.
"It's nice and quiet today," Sakayanagi said.
"Yeah."
Hikigaya replied half-heartedly, and as usual, drifted over toward the light novel section. But Sakayanagi tugged on his sleeve.
"Hikigaya-kun, are you planning to browse those books full of scantily-clad women again?"
"Hey, don't make it sound so indecent."
Even if it was hard to argue, there were still some things that shouldn't be said out loud!
Facing his look of dismay, Sakayanagi smiled and said, "I just wish you'd develop a bit more refined taste."
"Idiot, that's none of your business."
Hikigaya had pretty broad reading interests—philosophy, literature, history, even mystery novels. But lately, with so much on his mind, he just wanted something easy and mindless.
The two of them picked out the books they liked, then found a spot to sit and read quietly.
Ah… finally, a moment of peace.
Staring at Sakayanagi quietly reading on the sofa, Hikigaya suddenly felt a strange sense of dissonance.
As long as she kept her mouth shut, she did look like a pure and innocent beauty.
And she chose "Alice in Wonderland" of all things… Who would've thought a scheming little devil like her would be into fairy tales?
That said, even in the eyes of adults, this book is undeniably a classic.
Unfortunately, the peace between the two didn't last long.
A loud clatter of footsteps echoed from the entrance, deliberately heavy as if the person was trying to announce their presence to the entire library.
Naturally, this drew a look of displeasure from the librarian. But the guy causing the commotion just glanced up, saw who it was, and immediately ducked his head like an ostrich trying to hide.
It wasn't hard to guess—they were bad news.
Most student librarians were the quiet, non-confrontational type. When it came to troublemakers, they usually had to call a teacher for help.
Too bad there wasn't one around.
"Heh, looks like we have company, "Sakayanagi murmured as she gently closed her book, having noticed the disturbance too.
And just like she said, three uninvited guests strode confidently toward them.
"Well, if it isn't Dead Eyes and Sakayanagi. You two look like you're having a good time—mind if we join?" Ryuen sneered.
"Good day, Ryuen-kun. And... the two people behind you—I don't believe we've been introduced," Sakayanagi replied, unfazed, greeting them with her usual polite smile.
"Didn't expect the three of you to be here together. I always figured Ryuen-kun's only hobby was beating people up."
"If you're interested, I can give you a first-hand experience sometime, "Ryuen shot back with a smirk as he glanced around.
"Sakayanagi, where's your usual entourage? Or did Dead Eyes here agree to be your manservant?"
"Leave me out of this. This is a library, you know? Maybe keep it down a little?"
Hikigaya couldn't help but interject, hoping they'd take the hint and back off. But Ryuen didn't even acknowledge him. He just kept smiling that same smug grin.
"Oh, I'd love to see that," Sakayanagi replied with an equally pleasant smile. "But sadly, I've already fallen from grace as class leader. These days, the only one who talks to me is Hikigaya-kun—out of sympathy."
…Sympathy, huh? That was a load of crap. If she hadn't stubbornly clung to him, Hikigaya wouldn't even have bothered to acknowledge her.
And Ryuen didn't buy it either.
"Wow, that's pathetic," he scoffed. "But if you think anyone's dumb enough to believe that nonsense, you must be looking down on us."
"Sorry, I'm not quite sure what you're implying."
"I just want to see how long you can keep up the act."
Ryuen took a step forward, closing the distance between him and Sakayanagi.
"The way you're acting now… It's like you've already admitted defeat."
"Well, it can't be helped, can it?" Even after being provoked like that, Sakayanagi just shook her head calmly.
"Oh? Since when did you get so humble?" Ryuen taunted, laying it on thick. "Your only redeeming quality was that oversized ego. Now that you've thrown even that away, you're just some clown who talks big and can't back it up."
"Hard to deny it after being publicly forced to the brink of expulsion."
"I find that hard to believe."
Ryuen wasn't just here to mess around. He wanted to confirm whether Sakayanagi had truly stepped down. After all, the outcome of the special exam could drastically shift class points.
"But that's really how it is." Sakayanagi had likely guessed what Ryuen was thinking and replied in a flat tone. "Hikigaya-kun has already shown me what it means to lose. So I've decided to withdraw from all this class warfare nonsense. Spending my days playing chess and reading books doesn't sound so bad while I wait to graduate."
"W-What…? Are you serious?"
Hearing that, Ishizaki and Komiya behind Ryuen started to waver.
There was no denying it—without Sakayanagi in the game, exams would be way easier.
But Ryuen wasn't buying it. He kept his eyes coldly locked on her.
"You're acting like a completely different person. You think I'm dumb enough to fall for it?"
"There's no need to doubt me. Whether it's Class A or Class D, it makes no difference to me."
That much was true. For someone like Sakayanagi, graduating from Class A didn't particularly matter. With her academic record, getting into any school she wanted was no issue.
"If we're talking about changes, Ryuen-kun, you seem quite different too."
She looked at him with a gentle gaze.
But Ryuen likely took that look as nothing short of a provocation.
"Back when we first entered school, you radiated hostility everywhere you went. I didn't even see you as a threat. But now it's different—you've realized that raw violence alone won't cut it anymore, haven't you?"
"Sakayanagi, do you even understand your position? You're only still here because—hmph."
He stopped himself.
He'd been about to mock her, saying she only avoided expulsion because someone showed her mercy. But the same could be said for him. Realizing that, he bit his tongue.
"Don't get upset now. I wasn't denying the usefulness of brute force." Sakayanagi smiled sweetly. "I was just trying to compliment your growth. That fight with Ayanokoji-kun must've taught you a lot. Winning a brawl doesn't always mean you've truly won, right?"
"Tch. Don't act like you're some kind of wise sage."
Ryuen wasn't enjoying the lecture from above.
"You think Dead Eyes will protect you, and that's why you're so confident, huh? Want me to prove otherwise? I won't go easy just because you start begging."
"Hey, this is a library. If you're gonna fight, take it outside."
Hikigaya frowned, once again reminding them to leave him out of it. Not that anyone listened.
Sakayanagi continued, "There's no need to put on a show, Ryuen-kun. You know it as well as I do—Hikigaya-kun isn't stopping you because he understands you're no longer some brainless thug who throws punches on a whim. So maybe don't give him a reason to start laughing at you again?"
"Heh… you don't know when to shut up."
That seemed to push Ryuen over the edge.
He stormed up to Sakayanagi, fists clenched with a threatening air.
But Sakayanagi showed no fear. She met him with a calm, unshaken smile.
"…Tch. Just looking at you pisses me off."
They stared each other down for a while. Then Ryuen let out a breath and relaxed his fists, as if deciding it wasn't worth it.
Ishizaki and Komiya behind him visibly exhaled in relief.
If he threw a punch in here, it wouldn't just end with expulsion.
Sakayanagi's disability was both her weakness and her shield.
But then Ryuen did something no one expected.
He grabbed Sakayanagi's cane from beside the sofa—and flung it hard out the window.
Then, under everyone's shocked gaze, he barked arrogantly:
"What now, Sakayanagi!? Sure, I won't hit a cripple, but if I decide to bully you until you can't even come to school anymore, what're you gonna do without your little lapdogs!?"
"..."
Beside him, Hikigaya stared blankly at the ridiculous scene.
Ryuen… sure, maybe he had stopped solving everything with violence.
But had his mental maturity gone backwards?
What was this, anyway?
Some elementary schooler picking on the girl he secretly likes?