Yuigahama Yui, who pretended not to exist, ultimately could not escape the grasp of Hirasaka Shizuka.

With a fading sound of crying and shouting, the Service Club was once again left with only Hikigaya Hachiman and Yukinoshita Yukino.

[……]

After a moment of silence, Hikigaya Hachiman suddenly closed his book and stood up.

“I’m heading back…”

He glanced at Yukinoshita, who was still reading by the window, then said quietly and grabbed his backpack before leaving the Service Club room.

Outside the corridor window, the sun still hung brightly and slanting in the sky.

Because he left early, Hikigaya could see through the window the various clubs exercising on the playground.

Among them, the most eye-catching was without doubt Hayama Hayato in the center of the field, wearing a red jersey.

His blond hair shone brilliantly under the sunlight.

He was skillfully dribbling the soccer ball on his toes. Amid countless cheers from fangirls on the sidelines, he passed several defenders and then kicked a powerful shot!

Goal!

Immediately, the entire playground erupted in excitement.

“No wonder he’s the most popular guy at Sobu High…”

Even inside the classroom building, the overwhelming roar was loud enough to make Hikigaya’s eardrums ache.

Leaning against the window, watching Hayama celebrate with his teammates, Hikigaya smacked his lips.

A handsome guy and the main force of the soccer team — this setup really is the classic hero of a real-life youth show.

As Hikigaya was feeling sentimental, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of Iroha’s figure.

She was excitedly running toward Hayama Hayato, holding a water bottle in one hand and a towel in the other.

But before she could reach Hayama, a group of Hayama’s fangirls swarmed and surrounded him, firmly blocking Iroha outside.

Looking at the obviously large fan group, it was clear that petite Iroha couldn’t squeeze her way in at all.

With a disappointed sigh, Iroha turned and walked toward the soccer team’s second-string main player instead.

She handed over what she had with a smile to the second-string player and said a few encouraging words.

Just as Hikigaya thought that was the end of it, Iroha turned back and returned with more water and towels.

No one from the soccer club who had been on the field was left out.

“A rather clever move…”

Watching Iroha’s approach, Hikigaya nodded approvingly.

Hayama Hayato valued harmony among team members, and Iroha’s impartial attitude would undoubtedly leave a strong impression on him.

This was far more likely to catch Hayama’s attention than just handing him water and towels.

Sure enough, after shaking off the fans, Hayama returned to the rest area and actively chatted with Iroha for a while.

Although Hikigaya didn’t know the details of their conversation, Iroha’s expression was noticeably happier than before.

“Guess it’s about time to go…”

Glancing at his phone and seeing the appointed time was almost up, Hikigaya gave up on continuing to watch.

After retrieving his bicycle from the bike shed, he leisurely rode over to the milk tea shop where he had met Miura Yumiko earlier.

He parked his bike and entered the shop.

Amid the surprised looks from the staff, Hikigaya ordered a glass of iced water and quietly took a seat to wait for Iroha.

About ten minutes later, Iroha rushed breathlessly into the shop.

She glanced around, and upon spotting Hikigaya, approached him with an apologetic expression.

“Sorry, I was late because of soccer club stuff…”

“Yeah, I know.”

Hikigaya waited patiently for Iroha to finish speaking, then calmly nodded and pushed the glass of iced water, which by now had lost its ice, toward her.

“What’s this?”

Iroha looked up at him with a puzzled expression, staring at the glass he pushed toward her.

“Just some iced water I prepared for you in advance.”

Hikigaya explained lightly.

“Senpai, you seem to have known I’d be late and that I’d be running here…”

Without hesitation, Iroha picked up the glass and drank the cool water in one gulp.

The refreshing chill flowed through her body, instantly dispelling the heat everywhere.

Iroha let out a comfortable sigh, then fiddled with the empty glass while curiously asking why Hikigaya had prepared cold water for her.

“You’re good to everyone in the soccer club. Aren’t you worried you won’t have enough energy?”

Looking at Iroha’s forehead, slightly sweating, Hikigaya asked back.

“Huh, senpai, you saw that?”

Iroha’s expression first froze, then instantly relaxed.

“A lot of people saw it, including Hayama.”

Hikigaya watched the girl’s face change several times before finally returning to calm.

“Well, it’s normal for people other than Hayama to see something like that…”

Taking a deep breath, Iroha adjusted her mood and comforted herself in her usual cheerful voice.

“I’m not planning to get involved in the matter between you and Hayama.”

“I just want to remind you not to spread your attention too thin.”

After all, Hikigaya was about to enter Iroha’s dream later.

If her thoughts were too scattered and she dreamed strange things, he’d be very troubled.

.

.

.

After a brief reminder to focus, the two didn’t linger in the milk tea shop.

Neither wanted to be seen meeting privately by others.

They went straight to Iroha’s house — a detached two-story residence.

After confirming Iroha’s home address and asking where her bedroom was, Hikigaya immediately said goodbye.

“Aren’t you coming in, senpai?”

Iroha, who had already taken out her keys and was ready to invite him in, was stunned upon hearing Hikigaya’s intention to leave.

“You can’t sleep now either, right? I’ll come again tonight.”

Hikigaya didn’t plan to stay over or wait until she fell asleep.

He arranged to meet with Iroha just to confirm her exact location, so he wouldn’t go to the wrong place at night.

Now that Iroha’s exact home was confirmed, Hikigaya saw no reason to stay longer.

Leaving her with a reminder not to close the window at night, he rode off on his bicycle.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep