Chapter 74: Sakura Airi Wants to Take the First Step

  "Shii... Shii-naa?"

  Hikigaya started to speak, but immediately saw the displeased expression of the girl across from him, so he quickly changed his words. "Uh, I mean, Hiyori, I have a question for you."

  "Hmm?"

  The girl tilted her head and looked at him in confusion as the boy hesitated to speak.

  "Uh... you weren't... like some really tough delinquent girl before, were you?"

  Hikigaya had this question in his mind ever since seeing Ishizaki and the others behave so obediently earlier. After all, the only way to defeat magic is with magic, and the only way to beat a stand is with another stand. People like Ishizaki and Ibuki, who could mix with Ryuen, didn't seem like the type to be model students.

  Unless it was something like the retionship between Kushida and the idiotic trio. But it seemed like Ishizaki, Yamawaki, and the others had no romantic interest in Hiyori at all. It looked more like a genuine respect and admiration instead.

  Hiyori seemed to recall the earlier events, and her face flushed red at a visible speed. She avoided his gaze. "W-What are you talking about! How could I have been a delinquent girl before?"

  "Yeah, I guess so."

  Hikigaya couldn’t help but feel amused at himself for asking such a ridiculous question.

  How could this gentle literary girl possibly have been a delinquent? It seemed too magical. Or rather, Hikigaya couldn’t even imagine what a delinquent Hiyori would look like—one with dyed blonde hair, a tan, earrings, and wearing special attack gear. Wait… why am I imagining this?

  Seeing that Hikigaya didn't continue asking, Hiyori let out a sigh of relief.

  "By the way, Hiyori, how did you end up here?"

  Only then did Hikigaya realize the question. It was already te, and this small alley near the dormitory was secluded and sparsely poputed. Normally, no one would pass through here, let alone notice what was happening inside.

  "I was just coming back from the convenience store when I ran into a girl from your css, and she said you were taken by someone from our css."

  Hiyori expined.

  Hikigaya then noticed that Hiyori was holding a pstic bag from the convenience store.

  "Our css? A girl?"

  He understood the words, but they confused him. After all, not only did he not have any friends in css, but he didn’t have any female friends either.

  "Ah! She’s right there!"

  As they emerged from the dark alley, Hiyori saw a girl hiding in the dim corner not far away. She quickly went forward and grabbed the girl’s hand.

  "Sakura?"

  Hikigaya looked at the girl in shock. He never expected the "girl from our css" Hiyori mentioned to be Sakura!

  When Sakura was called by Hikigaya, she immediately hid behind Hiyori like a frightened cat, too afraid to look him in the eye.

  Although Hiyori was a bit confused by Sakura's behavior, she gently patted her back to comfort her.

  "Sakura, thank you."

  Hikigaya stepped forward and bowed deeply to Sakura, who was hiding behind Hiyori, to show his gratitude. For someone with severe social anxiety like Sakura, being able to summon the courage to do this much was enough for Hikigaya to express his sincere thanks, and he could feel the weight of her kindness.

  "It’s... it’s fine."

  Sakura carefully peeked her head out from behind Hiyori, her face slightly red as she spoke softly, lowering her head. "B-B Hikigaya-kun, I’m just gd... you’re okay."

  Just those few words seemed to drain all the energy from her, but it was precisely because of that that Hikigaya could feel how much courage and determination Sakura had gathered, making him admire her even more.

  Sakura took a few deep breaths, as if gathering her final bit of courage. She looked up at Hikigaya's eyes, her voice still trembling, but there was an indescribable firmness in it. "A-And, about the st time... th-thank you."

  As soon as she finished speaking, her face turned as red as if she were in a sauna, and she quickly hid behind Hiyori again, retreating back into her ostrich-like behavior.

  Uh... why is this girl so easily embarrassed? Is it some kind of genetic disorder? Should I remind her to get a check-up?

  "The st time?"

  Hikigaya was a bit surprised and began recalling his interactions with Sakura. It seemed like it had to be about two weeks ago, the day when the teacher, Chabashira, revealed the true nature of the school to everyone.

  The things reted to Sakura that day...

  "So it was that thing!"

  Looking at Sakura, who seemed like a little hamster, Hikigaya suddenly understood, and then waved his hand. "You misunderstood. The girls in the group with Karuizawa have always disliked someone like me, someone who is solitary and disgusting. You've probably heard them talk about 'all sorts of bad things' about me, right?"

  "So that day, I was just taking the opportunity to vent my frustration with them. It had nothing to do with you, Sakura."

  Upon hearing Hikigaya's expnation, the timid Sakura unexpectedly shook her head, looking as if she didn't quite agree with that. Hikigaya could only sigh helplessly in response.

  "Last month, I... I bought a digital camera, so... I didn’t have any extra points to lend out. Fortunately, Hikigaya-kun helped me out."

  The girl hesitantly completed her sentence, broken up in pieces.

  Last month, many students in Css D spent the 100,000 points allocated by the school, and Sakura was no different. The main difference was that she spent most of it on a digital camera, which was definitely expensive. Then, with the living expenses and the points she reserved for this month, she was already financially tight and had no extra points to lend.

  But as a marginal student in the css, at the very bottom of the social food chain, Sakura didn’t have the courage to refuse Karuizawa, the leader of the girl group. If she were to refuse, the consequences were easily imaginable.

  Hikigaya understood and gave a bitter smile. At that time, he hadn't thought much about it and had no idea about Sakura’s situation. He just simply disliked the hypocritical behavior of Karuizawa’s group, acting as if they were "good friends," but their actions were like that of bandits!

  In response to Sakura's thanks, Hikigaya could only awkwardly ugh and say not to worry. Sakura, seeing this, slowly sighed in relief and nervously asked, "H-Hikigaya-kun, you’re okay, right?"

  "I'm fine... I guess?"

  Hikigaya wasn't sure how to respond, so he gave a vague, helpless smile. After all, Sakura was genuinely concerned, and he couldn't say anything hurtful.

  "Guess?"

  Both Sakura and Hiyori looked confused, and they noticed the coffee stain on Hikigaya's clothes. After Hiyori's persistent concern and questioning, Hikigaya finally gave in and briefly expined the conflict that happened at the café with Ryuen and the others.

  "That's too much!"

  Hiyori puffed up her cheeks in anger.

  "Yes... it is really too much!"

  Sakura, standing behind Hiyori, nodded repeatedly, looking unusually upset.

  "Uh... Ryuen was indeed a bit too much, but you don't have to..."

  Hikigaya gave a wry smile, feeling that Hiyori’s reaction might have been a bit too intense.

  "I’m talking about how Hikigaya-kun actually went on a date with a girl, that’s too much!"

  Hiyori frowned, her expression turning unfriendly.

  "???"

  Sakura, who was standing behind Hiyori, looked confused, wondering if she had missed some important detail.

  "I-I didn’t mean that."

  Hiyori seemed to realize the ambiguity in her words, her face turning slightly red as she waved her hands in a hurry to expin. "What I meant was, didn’t Hikigaya-kun say that he didn’t have any friends? How come he was at the café with Yukinoshita-san?!"

  "So that’s it!"

  Hikigaya suddenly understood, then his expression turned a little awkward. "Friends? Probably not. If I had to say, maybe more like colleagues? Or maybe toys? Anyway, until now, the only one I can really call a friend is you, Hiyori."

  Hikigaya was being brutally honest. His retionship with Yukinoshita was indeed complicated. It wasn’t quite friendship, but it was close enough to feel like they understood each other like real friends.

  Sometimes they seemed close, but other times, there was a sense of distance. It was like when you try to get close, but the other person moves away, creating a feeling of estrangement. The retionship between Hikigaya and Yukinoshita always felt unstable, and even Hikigaya himself didn’t know how to describe it.

  A Schrodinger’s retionship?

  Anyway, it was all abstract, like abstract Go.

  Hiyori nodded dumbly, seeming to understand, muttering softly, "What do you mean, ‘only Hiyori is your friend’? Geez!"

  "Hm? Did Hiyori say something? I didn’t quite catch that."

  "Ah, nothing! You must’ve heard it wrong."

  What was up with Hiyori today? Hikigaya felt like something was different about her, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint what was off. Was it just his imagination?

  "Uh... um."

  Sakura, who had been mostly unnoticed, suddenly raised her hand carefully, looking towards Hikigaya. This made Hikigaya feel a strong sense of frustration, as if he were truly a terrifying person.

  "I... I..."

  Sakura opened her mouth, but every time the words came to her lips, she couldn’t speak, feeling as though she could hardly breathe.

  "Uh, is my face really that scary?"

  Hikigaya bitterly joked, "I still..."

  "No, that’s not it."

  Sakura suddenly gathered up her courage and shouted, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her voice was quiet but surprisingly firm. "H-Hikigaya-kun is... is not scary. Can I... can I also become a... a friend?"

  Sakura was like a defted balloon, almost completely limp, and then she hid behind Hiyori again, like an ostrich, her face as red as a ripe apple, too afraid to lift her head.

  By the end, the girl was so dizzy that she didn’t even know what she was saying, but she still managed to gather the courage to express her feelings... for the first time.