Chapter 436: Gotta Fall in Love Properly, Yuigahama!

The school bell had already rung, but the uproar caused by this incident hadn’t ended.

Rumors of various versions spread through the classroom, spread through the hallway, spread across the playground, spread throughout the entire school.

Even after leaving school, classmates were still tirelessly discussing and chiming in.

“Hey, heard about Yukinoshita and Himekoji?”

“Ah— that? Somehow feels pretty believable?”

“No doubt about it!”

“Plus, according to a reliable source, Yukinoshita stayed over at Himekoji’s house yesterday!”

“That intense?!”

The rumors kept updating as they spread.

Fragmented bits of information got gathered together, and then, after all sorts of embellishment, finally spawned hundreds of different versions.

Himekoji frowned, his displeasure was practically written on his face, yet he couldn’t lash out.

Because silence was the only option now.

Often, things were just this frustrating.

If you flushed red and argued back, they would inevitably find ways to pick you apart. Their only goal was amusement, purely for fun. So, everything you did, every reaction, would become fresh material for their attacks.

For example—

“Ah, look look, he’s flustered and embarrassed! Meaning it must be true!”

“Exactly, exactly, if it wasn’t true why would he be so worked up?”

They didn’t need any logic. If enough people said so, it would be treated as fact.

So, any rebuttal, any explanation, it was all the same. In front of these people, it was just wasted effort.

Listening to these noisy, chattering, nauseating voices, a creepy, skin-crawling sense of discomfort kept rising.

If this gossip had only involved him, Himekoji might have been able to dismiss it with a careless laugh.

But Yukinoshita, who had helped him, was being dragged into this mess. This, Himekoji couldn’t just let go.

Anyway, he didn’t want to hear any more of this.

Himekoji quickly walked through the hallway.

“Hey! Hey! Akito!”

Then, suddenly, he heard the patter-patter sound of someone running to catch up from behind him.

Such a cheerful, bouncy rhythm— probably no one but Yuigahama.

“Haaah—”

Himekoji let out the stifled air in his lungs, adjusting his mood that had been soured by all the rumors.

After making sure his eyebrows weren’t furrowed anymore, Himekoji turned his head.

At that moment, Yuigahama also happened to jog up close to him.

The hastily catching-up Yuigahama playfully thumped the bag in her hand against Himekoji’s arm.

It didn’t hurt at all, more like ticklish.

“Why’d you leave first?”

That was Yuigahama’s first sentence.

It made Himekoji pause.

“Eh? Huh? Wait, when did we agree to walk home together?”

He couldn’t help but rack his brain—

Today, had he genuinely made an agreement with Yuigahama to walk home together?

“Last month… No! The month before that! You actually forgot?!”

“Ah? The month before that?”

Before Himekoji could figure it out, Yuigahama already announced the answer herself.

However, upon hearing this answer, Himekoji’s expression became rather peculiar.

Two months ago…

Now that he recalled, there really was such a thing.

Must have been the day of the cooking class, right?

He had promised Yuigahama, saying they would go to the Service Club together after school.

But, wasn’t that kind of agreement effective only for the day it was made? And expired the next day?

Could it be, in Yuigahama’s heart, that this agreement was still valid even up until now?

“You really did forget!”

Yuigahama exaggeratedly put on a crestfallen expression.

“No, I remember, I remember…”

Himekoji didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

To appease Yuigahama, he had no choice but to emphasize it repeatedly like this.

“Really? Really?”

Hearing this, Yuigahama’s previous disappointment immediately vanished, replaced by a look of pleasant surprise.

“Pft!”

What a deliberate act…

Even though Himekoji knew Yuigahama was deliberately trying to make him laugh, he still couldn’t help getting tricked.

The discomfort that had weighed on his heart just moments ago completely dissipated.

“Yukinoshita and I aren’t dating, y’know.”

Then, he brought up the topic first.

Yuigahama had noticed Himekoji was unhappy about something, and conversely, Himekoji naturally knew what Yuigahama was bothered by.

Therefore, without waiting for the other to ask, he proactively clarified things.

Otherwise, Yuigahama might very well keep worrying about it indefinitely, yet stubbornly refuse to ask.

That was the kind of person she was.

Overall, undoubtedly a huge idiot, yet sometimes displayed unnecessary, excessive perceptiveness about reading the room.

“Eh?! How did you know I wanted to ask… I mean! Why’d you suddenly bring this up?”

Why try to hide it when you’ve already let the cat out of the bag?

Sheesh…

Himekoji shook his head with an amused smile. Now that he was bringing it up again, he could discuss it calmly—

“Cuz there were all sorts of these weird rumors flying around today, weren’t there?”

“Yeah! Supposedly even the teachers are talking about it!”

Since Himekoji, the person involved, had brought it up first, there was nothing left to hold back. Yuigahama immediately chimed in agreement.

“Did you believe it?”

Himekoji suddenly asked.

“Eh?”

Yuigahama was startled, as if her secret thoughts had been exposed. She nervously averted her face.

“N-no… It’s just…”

She actually really had believed it…

Seeing such an easy-to-read reaction from Yuigahama, Himekoji even felt he could pretty much guess exactly what she was thinking.

That’s precisely why he felt incredibly speechless.

He couldn’t help but retort—

“You believed that?! That’s totally impossible, okay?”

“Why?”

Yuigahama looked at him with a really bewildered expression. Of course, the one being looked at like that, Himekoji, found that even more bewildering.

Because, the reason why it was impossible should be pretty clear.

“Look at her, first of all, she can’t even manage normal interactions with other people.”

Listening to Himekoji’s words, Yuigahama unconsciously furrowed her brow. She let out a pensive “Mmmm” as she thought it over.

“Ah? You mean about Yukino-chan? Yeah, um, well… I guess that is true…”

“So, there’s no way it could be the dating kind of interacting.”

Himekoji judged it as such.

Then, he paused briefly. The next second, Himekoji suddenly added quietly, almost as if talking to himself—

“Me too.”

Just a simple sigh.

His voice was very soft, not really meant for Yuigahama to hear.

But Yuigahama heard it.

The girl’s body trembled almost imperceptibly. Then, sharply raising her face, Yuigahama fixed a direct stare at Himekoji—

“But! Yukino-chan will surely learn how to handle relationships with others someday! So, so one day, she’ll be in love too, right?”

She spoke rapidly, with passion. Her next sentence, however, formed a stark contrast with the previous one, becoming almost inaudible.

“A-Akito too.”

“You won’t be a pervert anymore someday…”

“So, so, one day…”

“You have to fall in love properly.”

Her voice trailed off, finishing in just a whisper.

Even if it wasn’t with her.

…