LRAB Page 183
Page 183
……
Chapter 239 The Society Remains the Same
?
It was time to leave school in the afternoon.
"Should we go straight to the clubroom?"
Unexpectedly, Hikigaya, who always tries his best to remain alone, took the initiative to invite Su Qing to go to the clubroom together after school today.
Join the same club.
They were in the same class.
Traveling together—whether out of human relationships or the instinct of animals to stick together—is a perfectly normal thing.
But for the hesitant Hachiman, it was a transformation—a transformation that confronted himself and yearned for authenticity.
"Wait, I need to reply to a message."
Feeling the vibration from her phone, Su Qing gave Hikigaya a slightly apologetic look, indicating that he should wait a moment.
[There's a buy-one-get-one-free egg promotion at a nearby supermarket, so I'm heading out now.]
[By the way, dessert tonight is egg pudding!]
As expected, it was news from Mahiru.
Following the message was a happy animated emoji – the recently popular milk dragon.
Su Qing smiled helplessly. Of course, he knew that Mahiru was also a sweets lover.
and.
Although she is still a student, her years of experience living independently have made her exceptionally perceptive to terms like "buy one get one free" and "limited-time discounts".
[She would be a thrifty and good wife....]
A strange yet objective assessment arose in Su Qing's mind.
After staring at Mahiru's chat box for a moment and thinking for a moment, he quickly typed a few words: [Be careful, don't get hurt].
Seemingly feeling that this wasn't enough, or perhaps feeling that his explanation wasn't clear enough, Su Qing deleted the unsent message and edited it again:
[I've heard that during these kinds of promotional events, the older folks fight tooth and nail to grab them.]
So please be careful and make sure you don't get hurt.
After holding the send button for three seconds, Su Qing finally pressed it.
He was about to put his phone away when several vibrations came in quick succession a few seconds later—it was Mahiru replying to his message instantly.
[Okay! I understand.]
[Well... I'll go home and wait for you after I buy the eggs.]
[Well-behaved] (emoji)
The girl's writing is gentle yet powerful.
In a daze, Mahiru's voice seemed to echo in his ears—as if she were speaking to him directly.
The chat history, less than a page long, was reflected in Su Qing's pupils, like a bright moon suddenly appearing in the dark, silent night sky.
Then, a soft light filled the entire night.
Su Qing smiled, a very gentle smile.
He did not type a reply immediately.
He stared at the chat box with a smile on his lips, as if the girl, as beautiful as a gardenia, was right there in it—and in fact, she was.
After a long while, he still didn't type anything.
In the end, what was sent to Mahiru was an animated emoticon that patted her head.
Because he had only been using e for a short time, and he had never used these animated emoticons before, the ones he sent out were ones he had just found.
Been looking for it for a long time.
?
Meanwhile, Mahiru, who was on her way to the supermarket, stopped in her tracks when her phone vibrated.
Upon seeing the [pat on the head] message from Su Qing, she couldn't help but smile, and joy sparkled in her eyes.
[Hmm... Come to think of it, when I was lying on his lap this morning, I forgot to let him touch my head.]
[Let's make it up to each other tonight...]
Having made up her mind, Mahiru put her phone away with satisfaction, and her steps became lighter.
?
"Okay, let's go."
When Su Qing put away her phone and looked up...
They noticed that Hachiman had his face turned away, and only turned his head back after hearing Su Qing's words.
Seeing this, Su Qing simply smiled and didn't say anything.
……
"Speaking of which, what about Yuihama?"
After leaving the classroom, Hachiman suddenly asked.
Unless there are special circumstances, Yui would naturally walk side by side with Su Qing, while Ayaka and he would follow behind them.
"Yui said she went to the restroom, but Ayaka isn't here either?"
“Ayaka also told me she needed to go to the restroom and told me to go to the club first.”
Hachiman vaguely sensed something was off, but it was just the two of them going to the restroom, at most a coincidence, so he didn't pay much attention to it.
"Caijia isn't here, so I'm sorry to trouble you to come with me."
Seeing that Hikigaya looked thoughtful, Su Qing teased him.
"W-What are you saying... You're the one who should be upset that Yui isn't here."
Hachiman's face flushed red at first, but he quickly retorted.
"It does take some getting used to. Compared to the taciturn and even somewhat repressed Hachiman, the lively and cute Yui is definitely better, isn't she?"
Su Qing didn't stand on ceremony. After looking Hikigaya up and down, he shook his head and sighed.
"Soviet-style comparison method? I'm really sorry for being a bit of a closet pervert..."
……
The seemingly mundane and uninteresting conversations are often the moments when true feelings are revealed.
For Su Qing
Mahiru, who had fallen deeply in love, was like this, as was Hikigaya, her friend.
The two joked with each other, occasionally bringing up trivial topics that boys usually discuss, and headed to the Service Club while chatting and laughing.
Just as their figures disappeared around the corner, two pairs of eyes suddenly peeked out from the corner of the wall—it was Ayaka and Yui, who had made an excuse to go to the restroom.
"They've made up."
Seeing that Hachiman and Su Qing had returned to their former selves, and even surpassed them in some ways, Ayaka felt a little empty inside, but was genuinely happy for Hachiman.
Clearly, Su Qing and Hachiman's conversation was overheard by the two people hiding in the shadows.
"am I right?"
Yui's face was beaming with a smile—she was still basking in the joy of Su Qing secretly praising her as "lively and cute" behind her back.
After Su Qing and Hachiman walked away, she said to Ayaka:
"Let's hurry up and catch up with them to the club."
“That’s true.” With a smile, Ayaka nodded as well.
……
?
The sun was setting, and the chill was biting.
As dusk approaches, the community office remains unchanged.
Looking out the window, Yukino mentally calculated the time.
They... should be arriving soon.
"Phew... The corridor was really cold, but I'm finally alive again."
As the office door was pushed open, Hachiman's sighs echoed, along with the faint sounds of him breathing on his palms and rubbing them together to keep them warm.
"That's the narrow channel effect, but did you forget to knock?"
Su Qing followed behind Hachiman, intending to offer a reminder, but in the end, she was a little too slow.
The beginning of autumn is approaching.
Zongwu High School thoughtfully provided heating for its students.
However, this was limited to the classroom.
The narrow corridor is naturally not within the scope of heating.
"Ah...oh no, I forgot."
Upon hearing Su Qing's reminder, Hachiman's expression immediately froze.
He hasn't adjusted to the terrible weather yet.
The cold wind seemed to seep in through the gaps in his school uniform, a chill that had nowhere to hide.
Most students had prepared their scarves in advance, but Hachiman carelessly forgot to bring his today.
"It's alright. Let's close the door first."
Unusually, Yukino didn't say anything, but simply asked the two of them to close the door to prevent the cold from spreading indoors.
perhaps.
This is how she was originally supposed to be.
"Good afternoon. Didn't Yui and Totsuka come with you?"
Raising her eyes, Yukino asked.
"I went to the restroom, but I should be back soon."
In fact, Su Qing noticed everything that Ayaka and Yui were doing, but he just didn't say anything.
buckle -
buckle -
After receiving a response from the people inside, the office door was opened again.
Just as Su Qing said, Caijia and Yui were right behind them.
"Good afternoon, whew. It's so cold outside, it's much warmer inside."
Yui and Ayaka also breathed out cold air and rubbed their palms together, trying to bring themselves some warmth.
"Good afternoon." Yukino nodded, then asked the others, "I just made some black tea. Would you like some?"
A corner of the view.
On the long table were the tea set and teacups that had been used not long ago.
"I can drink Xiaoxue's tea again, but I didn't make any extra snacks today..."
Yui sat down excitedly, then felt a little annoyed.
"Ah...it's alright. It's a little disappointing, but I can't trouble you to do it every time..."
Hikigaya, feeling guilty, offered a rare word of comfort.