Half-asleep, Yukino felt someone shaking her body, so she groggily opened her eyes.
Hachiman was standing in front of her. "Stop sleeping. It's time to go home."
"Mm~ ah." Yukino yawned, rubbed her bleary eyes, and stretched luxuriously.
"Has Yuihama already left?" Yukino lazily asked Hachiman, looking around but finding no sign of Yui.
"She left half an hour ago. You were sleeping so soundly that I didn't disturb you."
Hachiman suddenly reached out and wiped something off Yukino's face.
"Mm, what are you doing? Why are you suddenly doing that again?"
Blushing, Yukino lightly punched Hachiman.
"You drooled in your sleep."
Hachiman smiled as he looked at the coquettish Yukino.
"Tch, none of your business."
"Couldn't I wipe it off myself?"
Hachiman shrugged. "We should go back. It's getting late."
Hearing that, Yukino gathered her things and straightened the wrinkles in her skirt from sitting for so long.
"Then let's hurry. I slept for too long, and now my skirt is a little damp." Yukino frowned at her smooth forehead and spoke with some helplessness.
They walked side by side to the school gate. When Hachiman suddenly turned, Yukino froze for a moment. "Where are you going?"
"Home. It's not like I can go back to your place and sleep again."
"Oh..." Yukino came to her senses and coughed awkwardly.
Watching Hachiman turn and head toward his own home, Yukino called out, "Hikigaya-kun."
When Hachiman turned around and looked at her in confusion, she nervously clasped her hands against her chest.
"Tomorrow's the weekend. Would you like to go out with me?"
Hachiman looked at Yukino's evasive gaze and smiled. "Just call me tomorrow. Then, see you tomorrow, Hikigaya-kun."
Yukino lightly waved her delicate, pale hand at Hachiman.
"See you tomorrow."
Hachiman returned home, took a can of MAX Coffee from the refrigerator, and pulled the tab. Feeling the cold coffee flow down his esophagus and into his stomach, he let out a satisfied breath.
Suddenly, his eyes were covered, while an all-too-familiar fragrance lingered beside his nose. "Komachi, quit fooling around."
"Hehehe, Onii-chan, I can't believe you're this amazing. You actually had a girl ask you to stay the night at her house~~" Komachi wore a mischievous smile.
"I was startled when I got Sister Yukino's call yesterday. I thought Onii-chan had been kidnapped."
"No... First, someone would have to kidnap me. Your big brother still has confidence in that regard. To kidnappers, kidnapping someone like me would be a complete loss."
Hachiman removed the small hands covering his face, then picked Komachi up from behind and placed her on the sofa opposite him.
"Hehehe, Onii-chan, hurry up and tell me the truth. What exactly happened yesterday? Could it be~~ that after Onii-chan graduates from high school, I'll have a sister-in-law?" Komachi rubbed her bare foot against Hachiman's calf, her eyes glowing with curiosity.
"You're overthinking it. She and I are just ordinary classmates." Hachiman calmly sipped his coffee.
"Eh~ really? But when Sister Yukino called yesterday, her tone sounded so close to you. She said things like, 'Hikigaya-kun suddenly isn't feeling well, so it would be convenient for him to stay at my house tonight so I can look after him.'" Komachi stared suspiciously at Hachiman.
"It's fine if Onii-chan doesn't want to say~ Is Sister Yukino pretty? She sounded super gentle."
"So Onii-chan likes that type~" Komachi narrowed her eyes. Her smile revealed the slightest hint of a canine tooth, making her look even cuter.
"No. I told you, you're overthinking it."
Hachiman still wore an expressionless face.
Just then, Hachiman's phone suddenly rang.
Hachiman had just reached for the phone on the table when Komachi snatched it away.
She showed Hachiman the name displayed on the screen—Yukino—then answered with a giggle. "Hello~ This is Komachi~"
"Ah, hello, Sister Yukino. Onii-chan just went to take a bath. You can tell me what you need, and I'll pass it on to him later~"
"Oh~~ I see. We're going shopping tomorrow? Mm~ okay. I've memorized the mall's location. I'll tell Onii-chan when he comes out after his bath~"
"Right~ Sister Yukino, can I come too? I happen to have a few things I want to buy... Eh, I can? Great~ Thank you, Sister Yukino."
Komachi hung up, then tossed the phone back to Hachiman. Without paying any attention to her Onii-chan's face, which had turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, she bounced off toward her room.
Date, Part One
As Hachiman's lips gradually touched Yukino's, the first thing he felt was the coolness caused by her lower-than-average body temperature.
When their lips fully met, Hachiman savored Yukino's delicate lips. Whether it was the moist, smooth sensation of her lips or the fragrance lingering at the tip of his nose, everything stimulated him to demand more.
Hachiman slowly extended his tongue, wanting to pry open Yukino's teeth and explore more deeply.
His tongue was blocked by Yukino's tightly clenched teeth. Sensing her nervousness, Hachiman reached out and gently stroked her cheek.
Perhaps because of her lover's caress, Yukino slowly relaxed from the tension of her first kiss and loosened her clenched teeth.
The moment Yukino relaxed, she suddenly felt Hachiman's tongue, which had been scraping against her teeth, slip inside like a nimble snake. Feeling the foreign object, Yukino instinctively tried to close her mouth, but ended up biting Hachiman's tongue.
With a muffled groan, Hachiman raised his head and covered his mouth.
"Eh, are you all right?" Yukino looked at Hachiman in alarm. Her fair, delicate cheeks were flushed from having just struggled to breathe.
Hachiman ignored her question, held her head in place with both hands, and kissed her again.
Caught off guard, Yukino had not prepared to defend the inside of her mouth this time, allowing Hachiman to break through easily.
Hachiman stimulated the front of Yukino's palate with his tongue. The gentle scraping made Yukino push her own tongue forward, trying to drive his away.
Instead, Hachiman seized the opportunity. After wrapping his tongue around Yukino's, he gently sucked on it, and wet smacking sounds came from where their lips met.
Because Hachiman had been drawing out Yukino's saliva, the wound on his tongue began to seep blood, filling both their mouths with a metallic taste.
Only when they were both close to suffocating did they finally part. With a soft pop, a pale pink strand stretched between their mouths.
The bored waiter standing nearby stared at them in shock as Yukino gently spat out a mouthful of blood.
The waiter's eyes seemed to say, You kissed until you bled? Could you two stop tormenting this single man?
Yukino panted heavily beside him, stroking her petite chest to steady her breathing.
Once her breathing had settled, she looked at Hachiman with concern. "Um... is your tongue all right? I really didn't do it on purpose. This was my first time, so I was a little nervous."
"It's fine. A small wound like this will heal in a few hours. Besides, it doesn't hurt anymore."
Hachiman waved his hand, reassuring the guilt-ridden Yukino.
"Can you walk now?" Hachiman stood and looked at Yukino, who was still sitting there.
Yukino wiped the fragrant sweat from her forehead, stood, walked over beside Hachiman, and linked her arm through his.
"Where are we going now?" Yukino tilted her head and asked in confusion.
"Weren't you the one who asked me out? I thought you had plans."
Hachiman shrugged, indicating that he had no itinerary. "Besides, I'm not familiar with this area. You should decide."
"Hmm, let me think."
Yukino lightly tapped her lips with a finger.
Hachiman reached out and smoothed the stray hair beside Yukino's ear.
"Come on. I'll take you to buy some clothes first. That outfit is hideous."
Yukino gave Hachiman's shirt, which was printed with "I ♥ Chiba," a look of disdain, then dragged him outside without giving him a chance to refuse.
"And where are the glasses I gave you? Why aren't you wearing them?" Yukino glared at Hachiman with her beautiful dark-blue eyes.
"They're uncomfortable. I'm not used to wearing them, so I took them off. Besides, I'm not nearsighted. Why should I wear glasses?" Hachiman guiltily rubbed his nose and protested in a low voice.
Hearing that, Yukino sighed. "Those glasses don't have a prescription. They're just meant to hide your excessively dead fish eyes. You're not bad-looking, but those eyes ruin your whole face."
The corner of Hachiman's eye twitched, but he did not argue.
Yukino dragged Hachiman through the streets, her gaze constantly sweeping over the men's clothing stores beside them.
After spending the entire morning picking through clothes, Yukino walked ahead with a satisfied expression. "Hurry up~ Let's find somewhere to eat. I'm exhausted after walking all morning."
Yukino turned around and urged Hachiman, who was behind her.
Hachiman trudged along at the back, carrying a mountain of shopping bags. His already lifeless eyes now radiated a sense of utter despair.
Everyone has probably experienced this. Women were physically weaker, yet once they went shopping, they seemed to gain a buff called infinite stamina.
While the men were suffering from aching backs and numb legs, sometimes unable even to feel their own feet, the women continued striding around in high heels several centimeters tall, bustling back and forth among cosmetics counters, clothing stores, lingerie shops, shoe stores, bag shops, and jewelry stores.
They also made their male companions try on all kinds of clothes, only to reject every single one. Thus, several hours of shopping became an agonizing experience for the men.
Hachiman was in exactly that situation. Not only did he have to act as a model, endlessly putting clothes on and taking them off.
He also had to gentlemanly carry all the shopping bags.
That was why Yukino was full of energy while Hachiman moved like a zombie. Combined with his naturally dead fish eyes, he could have walked onto the set of a Hollywood zombie movie without needing any makeup.
Hachiman was walking along when he collided with Yukino, who had suddenly stopped. Not understanding why she had halted, he looked in the direction she was facing.
He saw a claw machine filled with Mr. Pan plushies. "Do you want to play?" Hachiman asked Yukino quietly.
"Eh... I'm not very good at this." Yukino reluctantly looked away.
"It's fine. It's a good thing to try at least once."
Hachiman lowered his head and spoke to Yukino in a gentle tone.
Yukino took some coins from her wallet and inserted them into the claw machine. She gripped the joystick and operated it carefully, pressing the confirm button only after lining it up.
The claw slowly descended and caught the corner of a Mr. Pan plushie. Yukino's expression immediately brightened as she gazed expectantly at the Mr. Pan rising with the claw.
However, claw machines were designed to make money for their owners, so the grip had been deliberately loosened.
When Mr. Pan had risen halfway, it suddenly dropped back into the pile with a clatter. Unwilling to give up, Yukino inserted more than ten coins in succession, but every attempt ended in failure.
Yukino turned around and pleaded pitifully with Hachiman. "Hikigaya-kun QAQ, help me. I want that Mr. Pan."
Without a word, Hachiman walked over, inserted a coin, waited for the right moment, and pressed the button. Mr. Pan obediently rose with the claw and finally dropped into the chute.
Hachiman crouched down, retrieved the plushie, and stuffed it into Yukino's arms.
Unexpectedly, after accepting the plushie, Yukino rose onto her tiptoes and gave Hachiman's cheek a light peck, as fleeting as a dragonfly touching water.
Seeing Hachiman freeze, Yukino smiled, took his hand, and led him toward the restaurant beside them.
Date, Part Two
Hachiman stared unabashedly at Yukino, who was holding a knife and fork and eating her steak in tiny bites with enthusiastic little "ahm, ahm" sounds.
"What are you doing? Why are you looking at me instead of eating?" Yukino noticed Hachiman's gaze while chewing and asked unclearly.
"It's nothing."
Hachiman reached out and wiped the meat juices from the corner of Yukino's mouth with his finger. He searched the table with his eyes but found no napkin, so he simply licked his finger clean.
"Komachi just sent me a message saying she bought the movie tickets. The showing's a little after two."
Hachiman replied to Komachi, then spoke to Yukino.
"Mm, so that means we can still walk around?" Yukino tapped her cheek with one finger and blinked her beautiful eyes.
"What!? More walking? Can't we just find somewhere to sit properly until the movie starts?" Hachiman's face went pale when he heard that Yukino intended to shop for another hour.
"Hikigaya-kun, what's with that expression? Do you think going shopping with me is troublesome?" Yukino puffed out her cheeks like a hamster and turned her face away awkwardly, refusing to let Hachiman look at her.
"No, that's not it." Faced with this girlish side of Yukino, Hachiman had no resistance whatsoever and promptly raised his hands in surrender.
"Don't worry. You only need to sit there and give me your opinions. I want to buy a few things for myself."
"Mm, and maybe pick up something for Yui."
At the mention of Yui, Yukino seemed to suddenly remember something.
"By the way, how are we supposed to get along with Yui from now on?"
Before you continue