Yukino naturally couldn't hear the groundhog screams inside Miura's heart. She figured Classmate Miura still hated her quite a bit.
When Hayama had asked her to bring over some water just now, Miura's expression had been so awful. She must have been burning with jealousy.
Fortunately, Yukino had pulled off a series of moves fierce as a tiger and managed to tamp down Miura's anger.
Ah, men. The source of all evil.
Yukino had heard the rumors about Miura liking Hayama countless times over the past few weeks. The two of them were an adorable queen and a prince beloved by everyone...
Wait, why did that description sound like a mother and son?
Scratch that, scratch that.
The two of them were an adorable princess and a prince beloved by everyone. They'd known each other since middle school, making them childhood friends of sorts. They were both blond, looked like a married couple, and made such a perfect match whenever they stood together.
Yukino was about to whip Blonde Yukino's corpse again. How could she break up such a perfect couple?
Looking at her now, Yukino felt a little sorry for Classmate Miura, her ruthless score-farming machine.
At the very least, she couldn't keep treating her like a ruthless score-farming machine.
And Miura realized that although she'd been thinking about becoming friends with Yukino, being nice to her, and setting her on the right path, she didn't actually know Yukino very well at all.
All she knew was that Yukino was beautiful, came from a privileged family, and had so much charm that she could confess to just about anyone and never get rejected.
For a short while, Yukino had lost her way. But lately, after turning over a new leaf, it was as if she constantly radiated a dazzling light that drew everyone's attention.
She seemed so cold that she might as well have been keeping everyone at arm's length. But if someone showed her even a little genuine kindness, she immediately felt compelled to repay them tenfold so she wouldn't owe them anything.
How much malice had this person suffered to treasure even the smallest kindness so dearly?
Lately, not only had the rumors about her at school been changing rapidly, but plenty of classmates had also started sneaking glances at her from time to time. Yumiko Miura was one of them.
Who am I?
Where am I?
Who's Hayama?
No, I can't. I'm supposed to be friends with her...
Miura blushed and pulled her hand back, grumbling stubbornly to herself:
Why? Yukino's obviously in love with me, so why was she so calm when she touched my hand? I'm the one acting like I've been caught doing something wrong!
Why?
Miura cleared her throat and awkwardly turned to look elsewhere. "Will you take part in the next class activity or school competition, Yukino?"
Yukino took the bottled water from her hand, unscrewed the cap, and raised it to her lips. "If it's another activity organized by Classmate Miura."
As she tipped her head back to drink, the slender, pale curve of her neck showed.
Miura thought that even something as ordinary as drinking water looked beautiful when Yukino did it.
Then she thought about how Yukino was always like a lone wolf at school and in class. She'd even turned down water from Hayama, the prince beloved by everyone, but had accepted the bottle from Miura without a moment's hesitation.
She hadn't even refused when Miura had forcibly dragged her into a team.
Hmph. Yukino, you're making it way too obvious that you're in love with me!
Yumiko Miura wanted to get to know Yukino better.
With that in mind, after getting home, taking a bath, and lying in bed that evening, she promptly messaged her childhood friend of sorts, Hayama.
[Are you there? Are you there?]
Hayama replied quickly. Even his messages carried the same gentle, unhurried air as he did in person. [I'm here. What's up, Yumiko?]
[Could you tell me about Yukino's past?]
Miura vaguely remembered that Hayama and Yukino had gone to the same elementary school.
This time, it took him a long while to respond. [...Why are you asking all of a sudden?]
Miura replied without batting an eye. [Because I want to be friends with Yukino.]
[Haha, I see.]
[I'd feel much better if you could be friends with Yukino and look out for her a little.]
Why did he sound like he was entrusting her with something precious? Yukino had never liked him, Hayama!
[Let me think... Where should I start?]
Hayama's father worked in the legal department of the Yukinoshita family's construction company, and since they attended the same elementary school, the two of them had known each other since childhood.
In Japan, doctors and lawyers were highly respected, high-status professions with excellent incomes. The Hayamas were a wealthy, upper-middle-class medical family, but of course they still couldn't compare to the Yukinoshitas.
The world of children was pure, but the influence of adults could still stain it with ugliness too soon.
Yukino had been adorable as a child, as lovely as a little princess straight out of Disneyland. The boys all liked her, while the girls were very jealous. And since the girls stuck together, the boys didn't dare show Yukino any special attention.
That jealousy grew worse and worse until it turned into a class-wide campaign of ostracism. Her indoor shoes would mysteriously disappear, and someone would put strange things in her water bottle.
Even if a child went to their parents or teacher about this kind of direct conflict, it couldn't be resolved for good. After a brief spell of restraint, the hostility would grow even more open. The adults might even decide the child being ostracized was immature, had started the trouble, or was simply a nuisance.
In the end, the farce reached its peak one day.
A few girls waited until little Yukino went to the restroom alone after school, then locked her inside and left, laughing. Before they went, they made sure to turn off the lights.
She was locked in the school bathroom all night. It wasn't until evening, when her older sister came home from tutoring and realized Yukino still hadn't returned, that she rushed to the school and found her in a stall, crying and pounding on the door for help, her voice hoarse.
No one knew what Yukino had thought that day, trapped in a completely dark bathroom with no way to call for help until late at night.
But it was the first time Hayama Hayato had seen Yukino, who always faced cruelty with such contempt, completely break down and sob.
She clung to her sister as if she were her only lifeline, crying so hard she could barely breathe.
She said, "Has even my sister abandoned me?"
Later, Yukino transferred to a school overseas. She didn't return to Japan until after middle school, when Hayama saw her again at Sobu High School.
Hayama said quietly, "I've always felt so guilty about Yukino..."
If he'd been able to summon the courage to stand up for her back then—even if all he'd done was become another target of the ostracism—would things be different now?
So when Yukino confessed to you a few months ago, you knew it was a cruel trap and still jumped right in, didn't you?
Miura went quiet for a moment, then angrily replied to the boy she'd probably once liked.
[Hayama, you're the worst!]
Yukino had felt lately that Classmate Miura looked at her with an oddly affectionate gaze.
It was almost like a mother watching her poor, ill-fated daughter.
Yukino: ?
Onozawa Kaho grabbed Miura by the shoulders and shook her furiously. "Yumiko, get a grip! You're making Yukino blush!"
Yukino!
Where was Yukino?
Miura looked around the classroom. "Oh, right. Where is Yukino?"
"Teacher Hiratsuka called her out. She probably asked her to carry some papers."
After saying that, Junko Kamizawa smiled at Miura. "Yumiko's been so distracted at school lately. If she keeps this up, Yukino will surpass her grades one day. Tsk, tsk."
Onozawa Kaho grinned. "She's already been crushed in sports. If Yukino beats her in grades too, will she stop looking at you altogether, Yumiko? What do you think, Yui?"
Yui smiled and nodded. "That's right, Yumiko. You've really been slacking lately."
Aaaaaah!
Miura irritably ran a hand through her perfectly cared-for blond hair. "Fine, I'll study! I'll study, okay?!"
She absolutely wouldn't let the possibility of Yukino not even looking at her happen!
Most students called to the teachers' office were nervous and on edge, but Yukino looked as calm as ever when Teacher Hiratsuka summoned her.
"Teacher, you wanted to see me?"
"Oh, right. Sit, sit."
The office was empty apart from Teacher Hiratsuka. Her desk was covered with a laptop and various books.
"Are you keeping up with your studies? How's your preparation for next week's practice exam?"
As expected, those were the two questions she'd asked.
Yukino nodded. "I had a lot of gaps in my knowledge to make up for, so I need some time to catch up. But thanks to Hikigaya, the Service Club president, I've recently found an excellent and reliable tutor."
"As for the next practice exam, I can't promise anything else, but I certainly won't get a score like the one I got on the last one."
Teacher Hiratsuka took a piece of candy out of her coat pocket, unwrapped it, and leisurely popped it into her mouth.
She rolled her eyes. "True. It would be hard to do worse than the bottom ten in your class and the bottom twenty in the whole school."
Still, with an offhand gesture, she pressed a piece of candy down with her index finger and gently pushed it to the edge of the desk nearest Yukino.
"But since you've been well-behaved lately, here's a reward."
Yukino was about to fall apart.
No way, no way. Did people really hand out rewards in the form of a single piece of candy?
"At least give me ten, Teacher."
"This is the candy that's helping me quit smoking at school. It's what keeps me going! If I lose even one piece, I'll be irritable for at least an hour today!" Hiratsuka grumbled as she unwrapped another piece and popped it into Yukino's mouth. "Two pieces, maximum!"
Her cool fingers, carrying the faint scent of cigarettes, brushed against Yukino's lips.
The woman didn't seem to realize it at all. She smiled. "How does it taste?"
Yukino sighed and finally gave up on the idea of earning a quest from Teacher Hiratsuka.
"Have you really never disliked me, Teacher?"
"What kind of silly thing is that to say..." Teacher Hiratsuka picked up her lesson plan and stood, playfully tapping Yukino on the head with it. "How could a teacher ever really hate a student?"
"Come on, we're going. I'm teaching this class."
She couldn't get a quest from this woman.
But since arriving a year in the past, in this chaotic Timeline, it was the first time Yukino had felt as though a ray of light had shone through a pitch-black tunnel and fallen on her.
Teacher Hiratsuka was an idiot.
That evening, after getting home and eating dinner, Yui's phone vibrated several times while she was running hot water for the bathtub.
It was Yumiko.
[Is Yui there? Is she there?]
[I need to tell you something!]
Yui untied the little bun in her hair. Its color was so light that it looked more pink than brown. She typed a reply.
[I'm here. Go ahead, Yumiko~]
This time, it took a long while for Yumiko to respond. Yui had already taken off her clothes and stepped into the bathtub by the time a long string of messages arrived.
[There are so many rumors at school about you and Yukino being mortal enemies, but I don't think I've ever felt like you hated her... Did something really happen between the two of you in the past?]
Yui's warm, damp fingers froze over her phone, fogging a patch of the screen.
Miura was the Blonde Queen: beautiful, an excellent student, and skilled at sports. She was popular at school and led the group.
Ono was petite and cute, almost like a little girl, with a clever, competitive streak. But at times she could be surprisingly oblivious. She was the group's vanguard.
Kamizawa had long, wavy hair and rimless glasses. She was always smiling, making her look gentle and intelligent, but she was actually quite devious. She was something of the group's strategist.
The three of them were always loud and lively together, while Yui only needed to play the role of a good mediator whenever one of them got worked up.
How nice.
Before you continue