Chapter 230: Shiina Hiyori: I Like Hachiman-kun
"Well, the class assigned me to the two-person three-legged race and the cavalry battle team events."
Hikigaya offered a simple explanation.
"..."
"Class D really knows how to make arrangements."
Although Shiina Hiyori didn't express anything overtly, he got the feeling she was a little unhappy.
'Is she worried for me because I was assigned such troublesome tasks? This girl is just too kind!'
"By the way, Hiyori, how is your body feeling now?
Should we go see the school doctor?"
Hikigaya's face was full of concern.
"It's just a common cold. After taking some medicine, I feel much better.
However, it might be the side effects of the medicine; I haven't had much of an appetite these past two days."
Shiina Hiyori let out a helpless sigh.
"You have to eat even if you don't have an appetite.
Only by replenishing your nutrition can you defeat the germs."
Hikigaya took it upon himself to open the food containers, pushing one of the portions in front of her.
"Hmph~ I'm not eating."
Shiina Hiyori pouted, folding her arms across her chest.
"Are you a child?"
Hikigaya was suddenly caught between tears and laughter. K
"Unless~ Hachiman-kun feeds me."
Shiina Hiyori squinted one eye, dropping a massive hint.
"Hey, hey? Since when did Hiyori become so spoiled?"
"I don't care! I'm sicky-sicky after all~~"
Hikigaya's expression remained unchanged.
"Awhh!"
Instead, it was Shiina Hiyori who was the first to break!
She covered her face with both hands and muttered in a small voice: "I saw a short drama on TikTok recently and tried to learn from it... I didn't expect it to be so embarrassing..."
"It's fine."
Hikigaya used his chopsticks to pick up a piece of tuna and held it out in front of Hiyori: "The sicky-sicky Hiyori is also cutey-cute."
"Mghh!"
Please, Hachiman-kun, stop using reduplicated words..."
Shiina Hiyori was suddenly so embarrassed she wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
"What's there to be embarrassed about?"
Hikigaya maintained his deadpan, serious face.
When it came to the mental state of resisting awkwardness, Hikigaya believed his resistance was already maxed out. Trying to play the awkwardness game with him was completely useless!
"Geez~ Hachiman-kun is truly mean-spirited!"
Seeing that she couldn't shake Hikigaya, Shiina Hiyori had no choice but to open her mouth and surrender.
Hikigaya successfully delivered the tuna into her mouth.
"Next one, say 'ahh'~"
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"Sorry, I really can't eat anymore..."
Shiina Hiyori had managed to pack about seventy percent of the food box into her stomach.
"It's no matter; I prepared a large portion to begin with."
The fact that she could eat that much had already greatly exceeded Hikigaya's expectations.
"But this is food from a high-end restaurant; it's very expensive."
Shiina Hiyori felt a bit of heartache over the points.
"Don't worry. Thanks to the 'tribute' from Class B, I have more points than I know what to do with."
Because of the long-term contract Hikigaya and Ryuen Kakeru signed on the deserted island, Class B had to pay him 500,000 personal points every month.
"It's not a matter of points."
Shiina Hiyori felt no resentment whatsoever regarding her own class's fixed monthly transfers to Hikigaya.
"I believe being diligent and thrifty in managing a household is a virtue."
"Agreed!"
Hikigaya nodded: "As someone who aspires to be a full-time house husband, I very much endorse Hiyori's viewpoint."
"Pfft~ Hachiman-kun's ideal is to be a house husband? That's just too funny."
Shiina Hiyori laughed behind her hand.
"Is it? Doesn't Hiyori think I'm lacking ambition?"
Hikigaya asked, doubtfully.
Previously, every time he spoke of his "great ideal," he would, without exception, suffer the skepticism and ridicule of others.
"Not at all. Maintaining a family life is also a great job."
Shiina Hiyori agreed with a smile, while adding: "Hachiman-kun is so excellent; there must be many girls willing to take care of you."
"Whoa! Where are they?"
A light burst from Hikigaya's eyes.
"Far away in the horizon, yet right before your eyes."
Shiina Hiyori looked at him with a beaming smile.
'Honestly, even though this girl is sick, she's still joking with me. Her emotional value is through the roof.'
Hikigaya's appetite surged; he quickly finished his own food box, then looked at the leftovers in front of Shiina Hiyori. To fulfill the belief of "managing the household with thrift," Hikigaya gave a large wave of his hand and finished off every last bit of food remaining in her container!
"Hee hee hee~"
Shiina Hiyori laughed even more happily.
'Just how much do you love thriftiness?'
"After eating our fill, how can we go without drinking tea?"
Shiina Hiyori prepared to stand up, but Hikigaya stopped her.
"Let me do it. You are, after all, sicky-sicky."
Hikigaya winked at her; this was something he planned to use to tease her for at least all three years of high school!
"Alright then~ Hachiman-kun is so thoughtful-thoughtful~~"
Shiina Hiyori's adaptability was very strong, turning the awkwardness into a joke.
'Dammit!
Did she update her version already? If it were Suzune or Kikyo, I could have played this out for at least half a month!'
"Hachiman-kun, the tea is about to overflow."
Shiina Hiyori gave a gentle reminder, her eyes narrowing as she said meaningfully: "Hachiman-kun suddenly spaced out... you couldn't be thinking about other girls, could you?"
'Do you have mind-reading powers?'
Hikigaya's heart jumped, but he still wouldn't admit it: "N-no such thing!"
"I don't have mind-reading powers. I'm just good at observing Hachiman-kun."
Shiina Hiyori rested her cheeks in her hands, watching him with a smile.
"What is there to observe about me?"
Hikigaya's composure wavered. As a "human observer" himself, he never expected the day would come when he would be the one being "observed."
'This girl's words are just too pleasant to hear...
What if I accidentally fall in love?'
To lower the threshold of his delusions, Hikigaya decided to "trigger the landmine" ahead of time.
"Hiyori, do you happen to like me?"
It had to be said—habit is a terrifying thing.
After experiencing this line, which had an off-the-charts embarrassment level, two or three times already, Hikigaya was now actually able to say it with practiced ease.
"Eh?"
Shiina Hiyori's eyes widened, her small mouth opening slightly.
She looked very startled, having been caught completely off guard.
'Hahahaha!
You never expected this, did you?
With this one step onto the landmine, I've blown you into a daze!'
Hikigaya was quite proud of himself. As long as he wasn't afraid of being rejected, he wouldn't be sad after the rejection!
Shiina Hiyori fell into deep thought.
"You don't need to worry about it, I was just making a jok—"
Knowing when to stop, Hikigaya was just about to dispel the awkward atmosphere.
"I like Hachiman-kun."
Shiina Hiyori answered seriously.
BOOM!
'A thunderclap from a clear sky!!'
Hikigaya's head was now buzzing from the explosion; his brain's CPU was completely frozen.
What did he just hear?
Is this a hallucination?
It must be a hallucination, right?
A hallucination!
Gulp~
Hikigaya almost forgot to swallow his saliva.
"Um... Hiyori?
Are you joking with me?"
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