Chapter 17 – The End of The Cookie Incident
A throbbing tic appeared on Hikigaya's forehead, veins forming a sharp "#" mark, as he spoke through gritted teeth:
"What I'm trying to say is—guys are so simple it's honestly a bit sad. Just a girl talking to them is enough to get the wrong idea. And getting handmade cookies? That makes them over the moon. So basically…"
He paused for a moment, looking over at Yuigahama. "Something like plain, grainy cookies that aren't all that tasty is already more than enough."
"Shut up already~~~!" Yuigahama turned bright red in anger, grabbed a plastic bag and napkin from beside her, and threw them at him.
At least she only threw things that wouldn't hurt—how kind of her.
"You're so annoying! You damn loner! I'm leaving!" Yuigahama glared at him fiercely, grabbed her bag, stood up, and stormed toward the door, her shoulders trembling with frustration.
Worried that people would start gossiping about him again the next day, Hikigaya quickly tried to smooth things over.
"Uh… if you just show you're trying your best, that alone is enough to shake a guy's heart."
At the doorway, Yuigahama turned back. Because of the backlight, Hikigaya couldn't see her face clearly.
"…Even a loner like you would be shaken?"
"Huh? Oh~~ I'm super easy to sway. Just being treated kindly and I'd fall in love. Also, don't call me a loner," Hikigaya replied with a shrug.
"Hmph." Yuigahama snorted like she didn't care, and turned her head away again.
Just as she was about to open the door, Yukinoshita called out to her back:
"Yuigahama-san, what should we do about this request?"
"No need! I'll try using my own methods next time. Yukinoshita-san, thank you." Yuigahama turned around with a smile on her face.
"See you tomorrow. Bye-bye." She waved and walked out of the classroom—still wearing her apron.
"...Is that really okay?" Yukinoshita stared at the door and asked softly.
"I think it's important to keep challenging yourself in order to grow. In the end, it will help Yuigahama too."
"Mmm, you're right. Effort never betrays you—but it can betray your dreams," Yukinoshita replied.
"That's not quite the same," Hikigaya responded.
"How is it different?" Yukinoshita asked without turning around.
"Just because you try hard doesn't mean you'll make your dreams come true. Most of the time, you won't. But if you've tried, at least you'll feel a bit better about it," Hikigaya said, spreading his hands.
"That's just self-satisfaction," Yukinoshita disagreed.
"But it's not a betrayal of yourself," Hikigaya insisted.
"How naive…" Yukinoshita said, clearly unimpressed.
"This society is already way too harsh on me—you included. So at the very least, I should go easy on myself. Everyone should be kinder to themselves. If we all slack off together, then technically, no one is slacking."
Hikigaya delivered this absurd philosophy with a completely straight face…
"I've never seen such a negative idealist before… If your way of thinking spreads, the world's totally doomed," Yukinoshita sighed, visibly exasperated.
Listening to the two argue, Duan Shiji's face showed some confusion…
Since the request had been resolved, it was time for the school day to end.
Normally, they'd return to the clubroom and stay there until the final bell. But today had been unusually tiring, so the president generously declared an early dismissal.
Not long ago, in the hallway…
"Ah… Aki-kun?" A girl with shoulder-length hair stopped Aki Tomoya at the stairwell as he rushed toward the AV room with a proposal in hand.
"Mr. Hazumi's looking for you in the office… He wants you to help move some equipment to the AV room."
Hearing that, Aki stopped in his tracks, pushed up his glasses with a serious look, and replied, "I'm sorry. I can't go right now."
He glanced back slightly. "There's a task I absolutely have to complete."
"I see. Then I'll go tell him you can't make it…" the girl said flatly.
"Sorry. Please tell him I'll handle it first thing tomorrow morning."
"Alright, I'll let him know."
"Mm, see you," Aki said as he turned to leave.
"Oh, one more thing," the girl called after him again.
"What is it now?" Aki sounded a bit irritated.
"Thanks for last time."
"…What are you talking about?" Aki frowned, clearly confused.
"During spring break—you picked up my hat. The white beret…"
"…That happened?" His frown deepened. "I don't remember."
"Well, it was a while ago…" The girl smiled understandingly. "Anyway, see you."
"Yeah… see you tomorrow," Aki nodded and turned to leave.
But just as he took a step—suddenly, like a lightning bolt across his brain: "Huh?!"
Kameda Café…
"Still zero points." Next to Aki, a beautiful girl with long black hair and a white headband delivered her judgment coldly.
"Still terrible," the twin-tailed blonde sitting across from them agreed, shaking her head.
"This sucks…" Aki slumped against the table, staring gloomily out the window.
"If you want players to see something, to feel something—this completely fails to deliver," the blonde immediately chimed in again.
"In short, you haven't even figured out what kind of project you really want to make," the black-haired girl added, shaking her leg impatiently.
"They're talking like real creators or something," Aki muttered lifelessly into the table.
"We are creators." ×2. The two girls snapped in unison.
"…You two actually get along really well, don't you? I knew it!" Even while collapsed on the table, Aki's snark remained unrelenting.
"Hmm?" Suddenly, he noticed someone familiar waiting at the crosswalk across from the café…
Riding a bicycle leisurely, Duan Shiji looked surprisingly relaxed.
He'd finally come to understand what the Service Club was all about.
Simply put, it was a club that took on student requests and helped solve their problems.
Though from what he'd seen so far, the club wasn't publicly advertised.
Based on what Yuigahama had said, most of the requests seemed to come via Ms. Hiratsuka.
Clearly, she was the one who kept bringing troubled students in every few days.
But a "request" was basically revealing your own wounds.
And for emotional high school students, that wasn't easy at all.
So naturally, most of the time, the club probably didn't get many visitors.
Which was perfect for Duan Shiji—it meant he could do whatever he liked, as long as it was within Yukinoshita's tolerance.
It was honestly more comfortable and freeing than being at home.
Soon, Duan stopped at a crosswalk, waiting for the light.
"Duan-kun, Duan-kun…"
Just as he was feeling optimistic about the future, someone suddenly called out to him.
That's weird… I shouldn't know anyone around here…
With that thought in mind, Duan turned his head—and saw Aki Tomoya, who he had just met this morning, along with… two beautiful girls…