"Hey, Hirata, what are you doing this afternoon? Heading back to Soccer Club for practice?" After lunch, Shangguan Che strolled leisurely through campus with his hands in his pockets, following Hirata.
They called it "walking off lunch," but really, he was spending less time lying around in his dorm and more time hanging out with Hirata.
Hirata slowed to a stop and shook his head lightly. His tone was calm. "I'm not going to Soccer Club."
"Then where are you going?" Shangguan Che's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively pressed him for an answer. "You're not still running around over Sudo's situation, are you? Take a break, too. Don't push yourself so hard."
As far as Shangguan Che was concerned, "taking a break" meant sleeping a few extra hours. But Hirata had been working nonstop for days, and his dark circles were almost down to his chin. That didn't look like rest to him.
"I don't have anything else to do, anyway." Hirata turned to him with an easy smile, though the fatigue in his eyes was impossible to hide. "I was thinking of asking students from the other classes if they'd heard anything about the fight."
Shangguan Che saw right through his act. "Nothing else to do," sure. He was worried about Sudo and concerned the incident might cost the class points and make his classmates unhappy.
Shangguan Che sighed inwardly, but deliberately kept his tone flippant. "Sure, I'll come with you. But let me make one thing clear: if we find any leads, you're buying me dinner. And I mean meat with every meal."
"Wouldn't that be a bother?" Hirata looked surprised, gratitude in his eyes.
"What bother?" Shangguan Che patted him on the shoulder and deliberately raised his voice. "Of course your dad's gotta look after you, son!"
"Will you stop saying weird things?" The warmth that had just welled up in Hirata vanished in an instant. He glared at Shangguan Che, half amused and half exasperated.
"Oh, sorry, sorry. I misspoke." Shangguan Che corrected himself with a solemn face. "I should've said your adoptive father. We're not blood-related, after all. That's more accurate."
"You little..." Hirata sighed helplessly, then suddenly raised his right hand as if gripping a weapon. A mischievous glint flashed in his eyes. "Hey, why's my 'Sky-Piercing Halberd' moving on its own? Watch out, Shangguan! It's about to stab you!" With that, he charged at Shangguan Che.
"Whoa! A gentleman uses words, not fists!" Laughing, Shangguan Che spun around and ran. The two chased each other down the empty corridor, their laughter carrying far.
"Do Hirata and Shangguan play childish games like this, too? Or are all boys like that?" Horikita Suzune stood by the stairwell some distance away, watching the two fool around. She couldn't help muttering to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka beside her. There was a hint of confusion in her voice, though it sounded more like she was talking to herself.
"Horikita, you shouldn't say that," Kushida Kikyo chimed in, her smile gentle. "Hirata and Shangguan are just close, so they act like that. There's nothing childish about it."
She had deliberately called them "Hirata" and "Shangguan," keeping a little distance in the way she addressed them.
For one thing, she knew Hirata had a girlfriend and wanted to keep up her "angel" image by steering clear. For another, she'd made a small blunder while chatting with Shangguan Che before, so she'd decided to keep things formal for now.
Horikita paid her no mind and turned toward the exit, her back decisive and brisk.
Ayanokoji stayed where he was, his gaze following the two as they horsed around. A trace of envy flickered in his eyes.
He remembered how "friendship" was described in books. Maybe it was like this: no need to put on an act, free to fool around without holding back, and genuinely concerned about each other.
He quietly clenched his fist and wondered to himself, When would he have a friendship like that?
Meanwhile, the smile on Kushida's face gradually stiffened.
Watching Horikita walk away without a backward glance, she mentally cursed her out from head to toe. Yet she kept her gentle expression in place and quietly considered how she could change Horikita's opinion of her later. Otherwise, it would be hard to get things done in class.
Hirata had actually been out of energy for a while, but seeing Shangguan Che deliberately slow down to let him "chase" him warmed his heart.
He knew Shangguan Che was going easy on him, trying to help him relax.
So he went along with it, fooling around with Shangguan Che. It wasn't often he got to let loose like this.
Shangguan Che had the same idea in mind: Hirata had been frowning for days, and it was rare to get the chance to make him smile. Spending a little time messing around with him was worth it.
Besides, chasing each other around would get Hirata moving. These past few days, he'd done nothing but sit around tutoring, watching surveillance footage, and searching for people. He was probably stiff all over.
I really am a great guy, Shangguan Che praised himself as he ran.
After fooling around for a while, the two finally stopped and leaned against the wall, panting. Hirata wiped the sweat from his forehead and smiled. "Come on, I'll take you somewhere. We might find a lead."
"Where?" Shangguan Che asked curiously.
"The club building," Hirata explained. "It's Saturday, so there aren't many people in the main school building. But the club building's busy, and students from different years and classes go there. Club members also often pass by the abandoned club building, so they're the most likely to have seen something."
Shangguan Che understood and nodded quickly. "Not bad, Hirata. You came up with that fast."
He'd been wondering if Hirata had some other plan in mind, but now it seemed he'd been overthinking it.
He might as well just follow Hirata. Thinking too much was exhausting.
The two arrived at the club building, which was indeed bustling with activity.
Students in club uniforms filled the halls. Some carried musical instruments, some held sports equipment, and others discussed plans for club activities.
Hirata immediately got to work. He went up to any upperclassmen passing by, greeted them politely, and asked if they'd seen anything unusual near the abandoned club building at dusk on Friday, or noticed any students from Class C or Class D.
Following behind, Shangguan Che watched Hirata weave tirelessly through the crowd. He kept a warm smile on his face and patiently spoke with everyone. Shangguan Che couldn't help grumbling to himself, Does this guy have endless energy or what? He's like a husky—never runs out of steam. I should've stayed home. Just standing here is exhausting.
He found a long bench by the window and sat down to rest. But the moment he did, he spotted a familiar figure.
Pink hair, long locks, and a Student Council uniform. Who else could it be but Ichinose Honami?
Ichinose held a pen and paper as she stood outside a clubroom, carefully taking notes. Now and then, she spoke with club members, a gentle smile on her face.
Shangguan Che suddenly remembered the messages he'd exchanged with Ichinose a few days earlier and couldn't help laughing.
He'd just found out that Ichinose had joined the Student Council and immediately sent her a teasing message: "So you joined the Student Council, Ichinose. You'll have to look out for me from now on. If anyone picks on me, you've gotta stand up for me."
Ichinose replied quickly: "Of course! As long as it's a reasonable request, I'll definitely help you, Shangguan."
Shangguan Che pushed his luck: "So you're my backing in the Student Council? Does that mean I can do whatever I want from now on?"
"What do you mean, your backing?" Ichinose sent a helpless-looking emoji. "Good students shouldn't talk like that. The Student Council is there to serve everyone, not to be someone's backing."
"Okay, okay, I was wrong." Shangguan Che immediately admitted defeat, then went right back to joking around. "Then whenever I run into trouble, or see someone else having trouble, I'll tell them, 'Go find Ichinose, the great person on the Student Council. She can do anything.' How's that?"
"You don't have to exaggerate that much." Ichinose sent a bashful emoji. "I'm only in charge of club activities. I still have to rely on Nagumo-senpai for a lot of things."
"Nagumo-senpai?" Shangguan Che frowned as a name crossed his mind.
"You don't know him, Shangguan? I mean Miyabi Nagumo-senpai, the Student Council vice president. He's really impressive," Ichinose explained.
At the time, Shangguan Che had replied, "I've heard a little about him," though he hadn't thought much of it. What was so special about a vice president? He'd already lost to Shangguan Che, after all. (Just kidding—Shangguan Che had been making an offhand joke.)
Back when they'd met on the soccer field, he and Miyabi Nagumo had had a little contest, and Shangguan Che had come out on top.
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