Chương 62: Maturely, Tobe Kakeru Moves On
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Tobe remained silent as he met Ebina's stoic gaze. He seemed to have stopped functioning. I wanted to walk up to him and save him from his misery, but the burning glare on my back compelled me to look back. I felt the need to defend myself even though I did nothing.
"It was not my plan," I said, raising my hands, in a placating manner. "And I also didn't know that she was going to do that."
"What a chaos…" Yukino sighed and covered half of her face with her hand. "We might be facing an angry Tobe-kun after the trip."
"What are you going to do about that?" Shinobu asked.
"Be the villain and knock him down, I guess." I shrugged, earning a hit to the arm that could kill an adult human from Shinobu. "I will just play dumb. I am going to bet on Tobe's character and hope that he will move on."
I already knew what Tobe was going to do despite what I said.
"Ah, I see. Then, good luck with that, Hina-chan."
After all, Tobe Kakeru was a fool.
"Hikitani-bro is a good guy. He may reject you, but, at least, you have told him your feelings. I will help you if you need it!"
Quoting me, Tobe smiled foolishly. Ebina looked quite stunned. She quickly recovered and then looked at Tobe solemnly. The flash of guilt in her eyes made her more rotten than before. I told the girls to stay back and got out of our hiding. I did it as discreetly as I could to avoid attracting Ebina and Tobe's attention. It wasn't a hard task.
I acted as the clueless friend who coincidentally walked in on two classmates after their important talk. Tobe and Ebina noticed me when I was a few steps away from them, prompting me to nestle my headphones on my neck. Ebina shot me with a knowing look. I gave her a side glance before focusing on Tobe.
"Sup."
"Yo, Hikitani-bro! Perfect timing!" Tobe beamed. "I am quite tired, so can you accompany Hina-chan for the rest of our free time? I am going to retire early."
I looked at Tobe silently, noting his barely concealed pleading gaze. "I see. Have a good rest, Tobe." I nodded my head and put my hand on his shoulder.
"Thank you," he muttered softly.
Ebina and I looked at each other silently as Tobe's footsteps became lighter. To her credit, Ebina didn't look pleased by what she did. I wouldn't have said anything if she was, but I wouldn't speak a single word to her and leave as soon as Tobe was not in the vicinity.
"Sorry." Ebina bowed deeply. "I didn't have any choice other than to confess my feelings. This way, Tobe-kun should know what would happen if he confessed to me."
"What if he still confessed?" I rebuked.
"He didn't, did he? After all, he didn't want to be rejected."
"Your confidence in your friend sure is low."
"I was merely reflecting on myself, Hikigaya-kun. I wouldn't want to be rejected if I had put out as much effort as he did." Noticing my look, Ebina smiled for the first time. "I told you I am rotten." She skipped to me, leaned her body forward, and looked up at me playfully. "So, what is your answer?"
"Let's hear a more sincere confession, so I can properly reject you."
"That's cold."
"Right back at you."
Ebina leaned back and gave me a soft smile. My face was as flat as a piece of paper but that didn't diminish her smile.
"Why didn't you consider my being sincere?" she asked curiously.
"Did you?"
A playful smile adorned her face. "Who knows?" Glancing behind as we heard the sound of footsteps, Ebina bowed. "Thank you and I am sorry, Hikigaya-kun. I will properly compensate you for the trouble coming at you later."
I scoffed in response. Ebina wasn't bothered by that. She bowed toward Shinobu and the girls before leaving the place. Left with the girls, I turned around to face them. They had a somewhat relieved but resigned look on their faces. I couldn't tell what they were thinking, so I invited them to have some ice cream.
No one doesn't like ice cream.
The evening passed quickly. Morning came, indicating our end of the trip. Everyone was getting ready to go to the station to leave Kyoto. I found myself sitting on the sofa in one of the hotel rooms, looking at my single teacher packing her stuff. She grumbled about how her stuff couldn't fit in the suitcase.
"You would be able to fill all of your clothes if you take those sake bottles out."
"How could I!? What do you think will the other teachers think if they see me carrying sake bottles?"
"That you are single and miserable?"
Whoosh!
A projectile came at me at lightning speed, prompting me to catch it with my hand.
"You should watch what you are throwing."
I showed Shizuka-chan the thing thrown at me.
"T-That is…!"
In this case, I should be the one who had the most right to blush, but Shizuka-chan beat me to it. I tried to, but I just couldn't. I had seen enough of Shinobu's panties to feel embarrassed. Wait, I totally sound like a pervert! Anyway, I threw the set of panties back at her. Her face was still red, but she packed her things more quietly this time.
"Why is he not embarrassed?" I heard her whisper.
"Strip and I might," I commented offhandedly, cursing my light mouth.
"H-Huh!?"
"What? Did you hear something?"
Shizuka-chan glared at me but said nothing in the end. She eventually decided to carry her sake bottle in a plastic. With her packing done, I stood up and then headed to the door. Before I opened the door, I received a notification from my phone. Shinobu messaged me, telling me that she and Saki would join Yui and the others.
"Mess around and find out!"
Such a quote ended her message. I wondered what she meant, but it sounded threatening. Looking back at Shizuka-chan, I wondered if she would be okay with taking a detour. I bet she knew some good ramen shops around.
"Say, are you opposed to a date before we go back to Chiba?"
"Huh?"
Looking at Shizuka-chan's face, I should have worded it better. After a quick apology and clarification, we went to my car and left the hotel. Our ride was quiet but not awkward. Shizuka-chan glanced at me from time to time, but I ignored it. I would never let her drive my baby.
…
"I don't like how the request concluded."
"Forget about it, Yukino. Move on."
"Are you okay with how Ebina-san used you like that, Hachiman-kun?"
"I don't, but what can we do about it?"
I gazed at Yukino from the corner of my eyes while working on my report on the performance of Orion Japan's employees. Yukino looked like she had bitten a sour apple. She tried to form an answer but found herself unable to do so. In the end, she sighed and turned her head to the window. For some reason, she looked like she wanted to kill someone.
"I can't accept how she used you that easily."
"Why don't we stop treating me like a tool?"
"Hina-chan is my friend, but I also don't agree with how she used Hikki like that."
"Oi."
Yui and Yukino looked at each other before chuckling softly to themselves. I rolled my eyes but still smiled. I knew they didn't mean their teasing. They better be.
"Is Shinobu-san going abroad again?" Yukino asked.
"No. She has some matters to attend to at Orion Japan. I also need to attend that, so I will excuse myself earlier today," I replied.
"Understandable."
"What is Orion?" Yui asked.
I patted her head and smiled kindly at her. "It's fine even if you don't know."
"Why do I feel like Hikki is insulting me?"
"I am."
"Deny it!"
I chuckled as Yui hit my chest. Yukino was smiling but also seemed wary of my proximity to Yui. Relax, Yuki-Onna, I won't steal your Yurigahama from you. She frowned as she noticed my gaze before glaring at me. Before she could say anything, someone entered the room, without knocking, I might add. Yukino would kill this unlucky organism, for sure.
"Hikitani-bro, can I talk to you?"
I faced the person and immediately stood up. Yukino didn't say a thing. I motioned Tobe toward the door, but he shook his head. He bowed toward me, surprising the girls.
"Thank you for encouraging me that day. I truly felt like you were on my side that day. Thanks to you, my shoulders feel light nowadays." He lifted his head, showing me his glassy yet bright eyes. "Thank you for your help and support. I am still hurt, but I don't regret a single thing I did."
Tobe Kakeru was a fool. A childish one at that. It was hard to take him seriously, but he was sincere. He was loud, but he was not a bad person.
I put my hand on his shoulder. "Chin up, soldier. You have a long road ahead of you."
Tobe smiled brightly before bowing at the girls and thanking them. Despite his demeanor, he acted maturely and wisely moved on.
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Honorary Mention:
Venerable Immortal Bowzr
Venerable Immortal JayJonnaJamison
Venerable Immortal Kkmoney
Venerable Immortal Solaz
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