"...Still, Komachi is really grateful to you, big brother."
She wrapped both arms around my waist, pressed her face against my back, and hugged me tightly.
"You're doing this to earn points for yourself too, right?"
"Tch, you found me out?"
Still, she didn't let go. The early morning breeze carried a slight chill, slowly taking away our shared warmth. In that comfortable feeling, my drowsiness grew stronger and stronger. Looks like I'd probably be late again today. At this rate, the moment I got home, I'd definitely collapse into bed. Well, being late together once in a while wasn't so bad for siblings.
"But~ I'm really glad you got to meet her."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
Hearing Komachi say that from the back seat, I frowned in confusion. Without looking at my face, Komachi continued.
"The girl who brought you sweets. Since you met her, you should've told Komachi. Geez~ It's a good thing you broke your leg, otherwise you wouldn't have met such a cute Yui-sister. That's wonderful~"
"Yeah... I guess..."
I mechanically lifted my foot and pressed down on the pedal. That motion required almost no thought, so naturally, it carried no emotion. The instant emotion entered the equation, though, my movements completely fell apart.
My body jolted sharply, and a burst of pain shot through my shin.
"Ah!"
"Wha-wha-what... What happened all of a sudden? It's Komachi's first time seeing someone miss the pedal!"
Komachi launched into a string of complaints, but that wasn't the issue right now.
What had she just said? Yuihama was the girl who brought me sweets?
The "girl who brought sweets" didn't mean someone who showed up during the Bon season, and she definitely wasn't Mr. Purple Rose. It referred to someone with whom I shared a certain connection.
On my first day of high school, I'd gotten into a traffic accident.
Back then, a girl had been walking her dog when it suddenly broke free and ran into the road. Unfortunately, a luxury sedan happened to be approaching. I tried to save the dog, got hit by the car, and ended up with a broken leg. I was hospitalized for three whole weeks. That incident also sealed my fate of having no friends when school began.
The "girl who brought sweets" Komachi mentioned was the dog's owner.
"Big brother, what's wrong?"
Komachi looked at me with concern. All I could do was force out an ambiguous smile... So many memories had suddenly resurfaced that I couldn't help laughing bitterly at myself.
"It's nothing. Let's buy some bread before we go home."
I pressed down on the pedal again, but somehow, it spun uselessly around and struck my shin once more.
FROM Shizuka Hiratsuka 21:09 TITLE Hikigaya-kun, how is your exam preparation going? Modern Japanese won't only appear on regular exams. Looking ahead to university entrance exams, using it to improve your comprehension skills is also a good idea. Please do your best. FROM Hachiman 21:12 TITLE Re ...Excuse me, but who are you? FROM Shizuka Hiratsuka 21:15 TITLE Sorry, this is Shizuka Hiratsuka. Calling me "sensei" might make more sense to you. FROM Hachiman 21:20 TITLE Re (／-＼).oO(My personality is completely different when I write emails...)
Hachiman Hikigaya Returned to His Original Path Once Again
The week-long regular exams finally ended, and after a weekend break, Monday arrived again. The exam results would all be announced today, and every class consisted of handing back papers and reviewing them.
After every lesson, Yuihama would come running over excitedly to report her scores.
"Loser! My Japanese history score went up! That study session really worked after all!"
She sounded incredibly excited, while I remained comparatively calm.
"That's great."
"Yeah! It's all thanks to Yukino... and you too, loser."
Even though she said that, I hadn't actually done anything.
Besides, if studying that little had immediate results, wouldn't that be amazing? The study session had basically been meaningless, so getting that score was entirely the result of her own effort.
My scores were the same as always. I successfully held onto third place in the grade for Japanese, while I got only nine points in math. What the hell was a recursive sequence? That name was so chuuni.
Besides returning the regular exam papers, there was another long-prepared event today: the Workplace Internship.
Once lunch break began, the students headed off to the workplaces they wanted to visit.
Our destination was Mihama Ward Station. This area was packed with office buildings, and quite a few unexpectedly major corporations had their headquarters here. Also, from what had happened a few days ago, we knew this was a shopping district too.
The name "Makuhari New City" clearly wasn't just for show. You could even call Chiba the capital in reverse and no one could object.
The members of my group included Totsuka and Hayama.
Officially, anyway...
In reality, the moment I arrived, I saw Hayama surrounded by a huge crowd. Were you all his feudal retainers or something?
That was fine. I hadn't planned on moving around with him from the beginning. I searched everywhere for Totsuka, hoping to take a leisurely stroll with just the two of us, with the mindset of going on a date. Unfortunately, he was no pushover either, with several girls clinging to him as well. With that timid look on his face, anyone who didn't know better might have thought he was being bullied.
Those three people from different groups, along with Miura, were all gathered beside Hayama. I even spotted Yuihama among them.
Counting roughly, about five groups had come here for the visit.
I didn't like squeezing in with everyone else. Even when I occasionally went out during holidays, I often felt like going home because there were too many people outside.
So naturally, I fell to the very back of the group. Impressive. If I were a Sengoku warlord, volunteering to guard the rear would probably earn me a generous reward.
The place we had chosen—or rather, the place Hayama had chosen—was an electronics and machinery manufacturer whose name I'd heard before. It wasn't just an office building or research facility; there was also an exhibition hall open to the public beside it. The exhibit even had a 360-degree theater, so it could be considered entertainment as well.
If Hayama had picked the place without thinking much about it, then he was simply too good at choosing, blessed with sharp instincts. On the other hand, if he'd chosen it because he anticipated a huge crowd gathering here, then his thoughtfulness was equally admirable.
Most importantly, even visiting this kind of mechanical exhibition alone was fun.
Like some boy in an advertisement desperately wanting a tiny horn, I pressed myself against the glass and watched the machines operate with a Bzzzz. Just watching them made me excited.
The phrase "We are not machines" was a protest against being controlled and enslaved. There was nothing wrong with that statement. We weren't machines, which was why there were always gears like me—ones unrelated to any mechanism and with no idea what purpose they served. If you find something like that in a Mini 4WD, please contact Tamiya Models yourself.
Strictly speaking, machines had superfluous parts too—the so-called "play," such as extra chain length or spare gears. Because of that extra room, machines didn't strain themselves as much while running, and their lifespan could be extended. The researchers here told us that both machines and humans needed some room to spare.
But nobody invited me to play...
I kept a suitable distance from that group and wandered around on my own.
The boys and girls up ahead chatted and laughed happily, while there wasn't a single person behind me. It was so quiet my ears began to hurt.
But that silence was immediately shattered by loud footsteps.
"Hachiman, you came here too?"
Hiratsuka-sensei had unusually taken off her white coat. Probably because wearing white here would make it easy to mistake her for one of the company employees.
"Sensei, are you making the rounds?"
"Yeah, something like that."
But rather than looking toward the students, sensei was intently observing the machines before her.
"Mm, Japan's technology really is first-rate... I should be able to see a Gundam appear in my lifetime, right?"
At heart, sensei really was still a boy. The way she gazed at that steel body was like she had fallen in love. Wait a second, sensei. Could you please have a normal romance? I mean it.
I decided to leave her there alone to look at the machines... but when I stepped forward, Hiratsuka-sensei seemed to hear my footsteps and walked alongside me at the same pace.
"Oh, right, Hachiman. About your competition..."
Sensei meant the contest between Yukino and me: whoever could guide more people through the Service Club's activities would win, and the winner could order the loser to do anything.
Sensei started the topic, but the rest of her words remained in her mouth. I urged her to continue with my eyes.
Only then did sensei finally make up her mind and speak again.
"Too many uncertain factors have become involved, so the current rules are no longer adequate. Therefore, I intend to adjust part of the arrangement."
That sounded exactly like something a game company would say. In short, sensei's mental capacity had exceeded its limits and she couldn't think straight anymore.
"I don't object."
Hiratsuka-sensei herself was the rule, after all. No matter what I said, whatever she wanted to change would be changed. Besides, the winner and loser would be decided by sensei's own arbitrary judgment and prejudice anyway. Resisting would only be a waste of effort.
"Have you decided on the details?"
"Not yet... There's one person I still don't know how to handle."
Hiratsuka-sensei scratched her head.
Didn't know how to handle? The moment I heard that, Yuihama came to mind. The Service Club had originally consisted of just Yukino and me, but that girl had joined halfway through.
You could say she existed outside the rules. If there was an uncertain factor, it was definitely her. She hadn't been part of sensei's original plan, yet now she stood at the center of our club.
So the participants would become Yukino, Yuihama, and me?
"Yeah, looks like the mechanical path ends here."
What did you mean, mechanical path?!
"I'll notify you once I've decided on the new format. Don't worry, I won't hurt you."
Hiratsuka-sensei smiled as she said that. But sensei, that was always the villain's line...
Then sensei turned around and returned down her original mechanical path.
After watching her leave, I headed toward the exit.
Apparently, I'd been talking with sensei for quite some time. Hayama and the others had long since disappeared, leaving only a silent bamboo grove swaying in the early summer breeze with a rustling sound.
The western sky was stained with color as I stood at the empty entrance and looked around.
That was when I saw a familiar bun hairstyle. Well, well. So there you were.
The girl sat by the sidewalk with her knees drawn up, tapping away at her phone alone. For a moment, I didn't know whether I should call out to her. Just as I hesitated, she noticed me first.
"Ah, loser, you're so slow! Everyone already left!"
"Really? Sorry, the robot soul inside me got too excited... By the way, where did they go?"
"Saizeriya."
Chiba Prefecture high school students really loved Saizeriya. Even if it was a family restaurant that had started in Chiba Prefecture, people were way too attached to it. Still, given how cheap and good it was, that was only natural.
"...Aren't you going?"
"Huh? Ah... Well, how should I put it~ I guess I was waiting for you. Yeah... It seemed kind of pitiful to leave you here alone..."
For some reason, Yuihama fiddled with her fingers in front of her chest, then glanced at me briefly.
I couldn't help smiling at her.
"You're really kind."
"Huh! Ah, wha... I-I'm not!"
Yuihama desperately waved both hands around, her cheeks especially red beneath the setting sun.
I had no idea why she was denying it. I still thought she was really kind, and gentle too. That was why I had to tell her this properly.
"Actually, you don't need to worry about me so much. I only saved your dog by chance. Besides, even if I hadn't gotten into that accident, I probably would've still been alone after starting high school, so you don't need to feel guilty. Yeah... It feels kind of strange for me to say that."
It really was strange for me to say something like that about myself. But because it was my own situation, I understood it very clearly. Even if I had entered school safely that day, I probably—no, definitely—would still have failed to make any friends.
Before you continue