The day ended.
Hikigaya returned to his dorm and lay on his bed.
It was just a kiss.
It didn't seem like much, and it was just on the cheek.
He'd heard that there were things like the "cheek kiss" etiquette in foreign countries. Perhaps Hoshinomiya had studied abroad before.
It was nothing to worry about.
The key issue was still Ichinose.
For some reason.
Thinking of Class B after school, Hikigaya felt somewhat uncomfortable. Honestly, if she still didn't come to school tomorrow or the day after.
That would truly be a headache.
"Ding-dong..."
Just then, the doorbell rang. Hikigaya walked to the entrance in his slippers and looked through the peephole.
Ichinose stood outside the door with her hands folded in front of her, her face full of bitterness.
The door creaked open.
"Um..."
Hikigaya hurriedly opened the door, trying to organize his words.
He had originally wanted to say she had finally come out, or ask if she was okay, but either felt wrong.
Although he had controlled the rumors.
Ichinose Honami had also been making her own adjustments. Maybe she just happened to finish adjusting before leaving her room.
Perhaps.
He had actually caused her a lot of trouble.
That thought felt a bit self-important.
In the end.
"Oh, Ichinose? What's up?"
Hikigaya asked in a relaxed tone.
However.
If Ichinose could have come out, she would have done so long ago. She must have left her dorm because of him.
Self-righteously defending Ichinose.
That thought also seemed a bit self-important.
By the way, how exactly was he supposed to face Ichinose? At the thought, Hikigaya felt awkward.
"Can we go inside and talk?"
Ichinose said, pursing her lips.
"Um..."
Hikigaya scratched his head. "It's a bit inconvenient inside. Is there something that can't be said out here? If it's long, we could also talk tomorrow, right?"
"Is someone else in there?"
"No."
"Then let's talk inside."
"Oh."
Seeing that Ichinose was being a bit firm, Hikigaya made way. After all, she was a Class B classmate, and it was Ichinose.
She certainly wouldn't harm him.
The two returned to the room.
Seeing Ichinose sit down at the low table, Hikigaya said with a bit of a headache:
"I only have MAX coffee, regular coffee, and water. Which one do you want?"
"Water is fine."
Ichinose said in a low voice.
She didn't bother to comment on the difference between coffee and MAX coffee.
Moments later.
Hikigaya placed a disposable paper cup in front of Ichinose.
"So, what's this about?"
Hikigaya sat opposite Ichinose, holding his MAX coffee.
"Why did you do it?"
"..."
Hikigaya scratched his head helplessly.
"That question again. Are you all members of a curiosity club? All the problems are solved this way. What exactly is the dissatisfaction?"
"But... what about yourself, Hikigaya..."
Ichinose's eyes reddened, and her voice rose slightly.
This again.
"Sigh, I'm fine."
Hikigaya sighed. Being stared at with such concerned eyes made him feel uncomfortable.
Such an explanation would probably be hard for Ichinose to accept.
He scratched his head and laughed indifferently:
"Back in middle school, just because a girl talked to me frequently, I misunderstood and thought she liked me. I ended up being mocked as 'Narcissist-Gaya' by everyone else. Things like that really don't matter to me; you guys don't need to worry about it at all."
Having heard a concrete experience, Ichinose and the others could surely understand now. He truly didn't care about these things.
Past "dark histories" had long since made his heart incredibly strong.
Thinking of this, Hikigaya even felt a bit proud. Those foolish people were probably being led around by the nose by his strategy.
Precisely because these fools loved to make arbitrary judgments about others, he could easily manipulate these idiots.
"But..."
"Even so, this is clearly their misunderstanding."
"Hikigaya-kun is clearly so kind and is always thinking of the class, yet he has to suffer such a misunderstanding from others. It's just too unfair."
Standing before him, Ichinose clutched her aching heart, tears welling in her eyes.
"I'll go to school tomorrow and definitely find a way to clear up these misunderstandings."
If the misunderstanding was cleared, Ichinose would likely fall back into the situation of being targeted by rumors.
However, it didn't matter.
"It is impossible for the misunderstanding to be resolved," Hikigaya said with a flat expression. "Because there is already a 'solution,' and the matter ends here."
She would be liberated from the rumors. Even Ichinose herself could not change this outcome.
"Why did it turn out like this..." Ichinose wiped the bursting tears from the corners of her eyes with her palm.
She understood this as well. The more important the moment, the more people tend to act on their own initiative.
There was no gimmick in the fact that Ichinose was a good person. Yet, how "despicable" Hikigaya was became the popular narrative.
"If I had known it would be like this, I would have gone to school no matter what..."
"No, you really don't need to care."
Seeing Ichinose's tears falling like a broken dam, Hikigaya was momentarily dazed. He hurriedly pushed a box of tissues toward her.
"Please..."
No matter what, there was no need to cry. Hikigaya was truly bewildered.
"How could I not care?"
Ichinose ignored the tissues in front of her, her shoulders trembling slightly.
"It's all because of me that Hikigaya-kun had to damage his own reputation to solve the problem."
"Reputation or whatever is an exaggeration..."
Hikigaya's hands had nowhere to go. He said in a flustered tone, "Rather, it feels pretty good to have my presence acknowledged by people. So, stop crying, okay?"
"Even so."
Ichinose stared at the youth before her with a face covered in tears, choking back sobs:
"But my sense of guilt won't disappear. You're so smart, why can't you think of that?"
"Uh..."
Hikigaya was suddenly at a loss for words.
I see.
So, this was where the oversight lay.
It was indeed normal for the kind-hearted Ichinose to feel guilty about this, but it wasn't hard to solve...
"In that case..."
Hikigaya hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a tissue and handed it to her. "Then, Ichinose, treat me to a meal, and we'll call it even."
"How can that be enough?"
Ichinose kept sobbing and shaking her head.
"I occasionally get the feeling that Hikigaya-kun is far too self-conscious. How can a single meal compare to your reputation?"
"No, my reputation really isn't that important."
Hikigaya felt quite helpless.
Before these events, he basically had no reputation. Probably 80% of the school didn't even know someone named Hikigaya existed.
Even if he had one, it was likely the "evil name" generated during the forest summer camp.
If you looked at it that way, he should probably be the one paying Ichinose money instead.
"That's why I said you're being self-conscious."
Ichinose pressed her palm against her reddened eyes, sobbing continuously.
"That should be for me to judge. What exactly can I do to make up for Hikigaya-kun's loss..."
"This..."
Hikigaya's expression turned stiff.
This was indeed all based on his subjective judgment. The value of his reputation should indeed be judged by Ichinose or other onlookers.
While Hikigaya felt his reputation was worthless, Ichinose clearly didn't think so.
This was a bit of a headache. He had to at least find something that matched the value Ichinose perceived.
Thinking of this, Hikigaya looked up at her. The spot where Hoshinomiya Chie had kissed him suddenly felt a bit hot again.
No, no.
No matter how you looked at it, his reputation didn't have a value that could match Ichinose's body.
He must have been influenced by that bad woman, Hoshinomiya.
"Well..."
Hikigaya scratched his head and said, "Tell me about what happened in your past, how about that? Then we'll call it even?"
Since Ichinose would break down over it, then clearly, the content of that letter must be very important to her as well.
If it didn't work, he would just change the condition.
"Eh!?"
Ichinose was suddenly hesitant.
Although her past was indeed important, compared to Hikigaya's reputation, it was fundamentally not worth mentioning.
After all, it wasn't as if she hadn't told others before.
As long as she provided a little more compensation, it should barely be considered an equal trade.
"If it doesn't work, then forget it."
Seeing Ichinose hesitate, Hikigaya quickly scratched his head. "I'll think of something else."
"No."
Ichinose looked up at Hikigaya. "Is that really okay? Is just my past really enough?"
As she spoke...
Ichinose couldn't help but clutch her chest.
Her past really didn't have much value. In the eyes of others, it might just be a very common, small matter.
Even if Hikigaya asked for a bit more, it would be fine.
Thinking of this, for some reason, Ichinose felt her heart thumping.