On the way to the station.
Hikigaya stayed on high alert, his gaze flicking backward every few steps.
Fukukawa Shoko, on the other hand, seemed blissfully unaware of anything unusual. She gave him an apologetic smile.
"Sorry for the trouble tonight, Hikigaya-kun."
"Don't mention it. Sure, we're living in a time of peace, but you never know what kind of creeps might show up at night."
Hikigaya shook his head.
"Hehe, Hikigaya-kun is so kind," Shoko said with a gentle smile.
"…"
Hikigaya froze.
Don't… don't go slapping the kind label on me!
Hikigaya was screaming inside.
Just then—
A ringtone suddenly cut into their conversation.
It came from Fukukawa Shoko's phone.
"Ah, sorry, that's mine."
She quickly pulled out her phone. But the moment she saw the caller ID, her expression shifted. Her beautiful face contorted subtly with disgust, scorn—even a hint of loathing.
Huh? Who could it be?
For her to make that kind of face…
An ex?
Wait—no, she said earlier it was her first kiss, so she's probably never dated before.
"Sorry, sorry. I need to take this real quick."
Trying to mask her emotions, she gave Hikigaya an apologetic smile before stepping aside.
"Go ahead."
Hikigaya didn't mind and nodded.
While she spoke on the phone a short distance away, Hikigaya stayed in place—though his eyes kept scanning the path behind them.
Someone really was tailing him.
Could it be… Kawasaki?
No, no way. At this hour, she should still be working late.
But who then?
Ever since he started hanging out with Fukukawa, this weird chill hadn't gone away.
Something definitely felt off.
Hikigaya was deep in thought when Shoko returned, jogging over with her phone tucked away.
"Sorry about that—took longer than expected."
"No worries. Let's keep going."
"Um… actually—"
She looked a little hesitant, her expression conflicted.
"What is it?" Hikigaya asked.
"I need to swing by the convenience store. You don't have to wait for me, Hikigaya-kun—you can go ahead."
She took a deep breath as she spoke.
"That's funny. I was just thinking about grabbing a coffee. Let's go together."
"Eh?"
Shoko's face lit up. She had clearly been hoping he'd say that.
"In that case, let's go together!"
And so, the two of them headed off to the convenience store.
A few moments later—
Inside the store, Hikigaya grabbed a can of Max Coffee. As he glanced over, he noticed Shoko standing in the liquor aisle, eyeing the bottles.
His brows furrowed.
"Wait… are you buying alcohol?"
"Ahh!"
Startled, Shoko practically jumped like a frightened rabbit, turning back to him with an awkward smile.
"My dumb dad insisted I bring home a bottle. But, ugh…"
"Hmm?"
Hikigaya's sharp eyes quickly picked up on it—she kept glancing at the price tags.
9,999 yen.
Well, yeah, it is liquor.
Good booze usually comes with a hefty price tag.
After a few seconds of internal struggle, Shoko finally picked up the 9,999-yen bottle and made her way to the counter.
At checkout—
"What? I'm a thousand yen short?"
She froze as she opened her wallet. Sweat began to bead on her forehead.
She hadn't realized her money was short. Did her deadbeat old man steal from her wallet?
Whatever the case, this was beyond embarrassing.
The cashier hesitated awkwardly.
Unable to stand by and watch anymore, Hikigaya finally sighed.
"I'll cover it."
"Eh?! No, I couldn't possibly—"
Shoko frantically tried to stop him.
"It's fine."
Hikigaya calmly handed the remaining money to the cashier.
"This…"
Seeing that there was no stopping him, Shoko lowered her head gratefully.
"Thank you."
A few minutes later, they left the store.
Shoko carefully placed the bottle in her bag. She glanced up at the boy beside her and said quietly,
"Thank you again. You really saved me."
"We're friends, right?"
"Friends, huh?"
Something stirred inside her. Shoko smiled softly.
"Then, since we're friends now—how about we exchange contact info?"
"Eh?"
"Why not? It's totally normal for friends to have each other's numbers, right?"
"…I guess so."
Whew. Just make sure Yukinoshita never finds out about this.
If his girlfriend ever caught wind of this, she'd absolutely flay him.
Shoko smiled happily, and they exchanged LINE IDs—and even phone numbers.
"You're actually the first guy on my LINE, Hikigaya-kun."
"Eh? All your friends are girls?"
"I've always gone to all-girls schools."
"Ohhh."
All-girls schools, huh?
Usually that meant she was from a pretty well-off family… but not always.
The two continued walking toward the station.
After everything that had happened, the air between them felt noticeably warmer.
At first, Shoko had been stiff and reserved—after all, she hadn't spoken much to boys growing up. But now that she and Hikigaya had talked a bit, she seemed to relax more. The smile on her face grew more frequent and natural.
Around fifteen minutes later—
Hikigaya successfully escorted Shoko to the station.
Before parting, she turned to him and said earnestly,
"Hikigaya-kun, thank you so much for everything tonight. I'll be sure to pay you back soon."
"No need for that."
Hikigaya really didn't care. It was just a thousand yen, after all.
Especially considering how Yukinoshita had been stuffing money into his wallet lately, he'd become sort of numb to the idea of small expenses.
Still… he'd used Yukinoshita's money on another cute girl.
Ugh. He suddenly felt like scum.
Yukinoshita… I swear I won't do it again.
They went their separate ways.
Hikigaya turned and started heading home.
It was a bit of a walk, but he figured he might as well jog and get some exercise while he was at it.
After one last glance behind him, Hikigaya took a deep breath, cleared his head, and sprinted into the distance—so fast that he vanished in a blur.
Meanwhile—
From the shadows, Nagasaki Suyo watched in stunned silence.
The hell just happened?
By the time she snapped out of it, Hikigaya was already halfway down the block.
Frantic, she darted out and gave chase.
But—
He just kept running faster and faster.
Suyo was already gasping for air, on the verge of puking from exhaustion.
What the hell is this guy—a rabbit?!
Why's he running so fast this late at night?!
The distance between them kept growing. In desperation, Suyo finally shouted:
"Wa—wait up! Hey, you—guy in front! Can you stop for a second?! Wait uuuuup—"
She was about to cramp up.
Seriously, what was with that speed?!