[To avoid any misunderstanding, I need to make this clear first—this is not some kind of date invitation. It's merely a necessity arising from special circumstances. — 17:20 from Catcat Director]
Oh my, but no one asked whether this was a date or not in the first place, did they? Truly a case of "the lady doth protest too much," Miss Yukinoshita Yukino.
[You remember Miss Yuigahama's first request to the Service Club, don't you? Back then, she said she wanted to give a gift to someone very important to her. — 17:21 from Catcat Director]
Ah, so that "someone" would be Hikigaya Hachiman, then.
Even though those two put on an act as if they were meeting for the first time, it was painfully obvious that there was some kind of shared past between them—something they weren't talking about.
[As for Miss Yuigahama and Hikigaya-kun… strictly speaking, it's also somewhat related to me. If you'd like to know more later, I can tell you. But in any case, the relationship between those two right now is… a little delicate. — 17:24 from Catcat Director]
[What's this, did Yuigahama and Hikinezumi-kun have a big falling-out? — 17:26]
Sitting at the dining table, Narumi lowered his head and typed out his suspicion on the screen. At the same time, Yamada smoothly placed his guitar case aside and sat down next to him.
[It's a bit complicated to explain, and perhaps only the people involved truly understand what happened. But Miss Yuigahama probably feels very awkward. She hasn't been coming to the Service Club for a while now. You must have noticed that too, Narumi Club Member. — 17:29 from Catcat Director]
[Yeah… that's true! — 17:30]
Well, if Yukinoshita hadn't said anything, I honestly wouldn't have remembered at all.
Narumi's daily life had been almost completely consumed by that damn simulation, to the point that he couldn't even recall the last time he'd seen Yuigahama. Thinking back, whenever he went to the clubroom to gather, that pink-haired dango girl was either just finishing up and about to leave, or she'd sit and chat for a bit before saying she had something to do and heading out early.
Now that he thought about it, every time that happened, Hikigaya Hachiman's expression never looked particularly relaxed or natural.
Yeah… there really was some kind of friction between those two.
[In any case, if Miss Yuigahama continues to participate in club activities with this kind of attitude, it's no different from being absent altogether. Hiratsuka-sensei has also suggested increasing the number of club members, but I think it would be better to have Miss Yuigahama properly return to the Service Club instead. — 17:34 from Catcat Director]
After going in circles for quite a while and carefully explaining the background, Yukinoshita Yukino finally got to the main point.
[So my plan is this: we'll go buy a gift together and give it to Miss Yuigahama. It will create an opportunity to interact with her, and at the same time strengthen the bonds between club members. I think it's a good approach. — 17:36 from Catcat Director]
Indeed. It was a solution that only Yukinoshita Yukino could come up with—and there was no real reason to refuse.
[So that's why you came to me, Director—you want me to go with you to help pick out a gift for Miss Yuigahama, right? — 17:37]
[Yes. Isn't that obvious? — 17:38 from Catcat Director]
But seeing how seriously she was explaining everything, Narumi couldn't help feeling a mischievous urge bubble up.
[Then why not go with Hikinezumi-kun instead, and come to me? If you want to break the ice between those two, no matter how you look at it, wouldn't it be better to have Hikigaya-kun show a bit of sincerity himself? — 17:40]
While enjoying the freshly served curry pork cutlet rice, the curly-haired boy kept his head down at the banquet table, not joining in the group chatter at all, deliberately choosing to be a little brat.
[Or was it that you wanted to go with me from the start, Director, and never even considered Hikigaya Mouse-kun in the first place? — 17:41]
For the next five minutes, Narumi received no reply from Yukinoshita Yukino at all.
Well, it must be because her phone broke, or she got held up by something else. There's absolutely no way it was because he'd accidentally hit the nail on the head and she was panicking, not knowing how to respond. (Laugh)
[Ah, well, all of that doesn't really matter anyway. The important thing is that I really want to go with you, Director. Have you decided where we're going and what kind of gift we should buy? — 17:50]
Having leisurely eaten about seventy to eighty percent of the pork cutlet rice in front of him, Narumi waited nearly ten minutes before calmly sending another message. After all, pushing Yukinoshita too hard and leaving her with no way to save face wouldn't be very nice.
Teasing a cat needs moderation—otherwise, petting it afterward becomes a real hassle. (Laugh)
[I don't really have much experience with buying gifts either, so we can discuss that after we meet up in person. — 17:51 from Catcat Director]
Oh? An instant reply. So that long silence earlier clearly wasn't because she was busy with something else, Miss Yukinoshita.
[Sure, sure. I'll just leave everything to you, Director. — 17:52]
Imagining the black-haired girl on the other side of the screen, probably blushing furiously and not knowing how to reply just moments ago, Narumi's movements as he picked up another piece of pork cutlet grew noticeably lighter, and the smile on his face deepened as well.
Yamada, who likewise wasn't particularly focused on the banquet conversation, raised an eyebrow at the sight of his expression, but didn't ask any questions. Instead, she quietly took advantage of his inattention and transferred all the pork cutlets from his plate into her own bowl.
[Alright then, let's make it this Saturday. We'll meet at ten in the morning at the newly opened shopping mall in the new district. Will that conflict with your schedule? — 17:54 from Catcat Director]
[Nope, no problem at all. Then it's settled. See you Saturday~ — 17:55]
[Understood. See you Saturday. — 17:55 from Catcat Director]
After sending that message, Narumi tried to pick up another piece of pork cutlet—only to realize that at some point, the plate in front of him had been reduced to nothing but plain white rice. When he turned his head, the blue-haired culprit, cheeks puffed out like a hamster, deliberately averted her gaze and pretended nothing was wrong.
That Yamada…
"Playing on your phone the whole time at a banquet isn't a very good habit, you know, Narumi."
Ijichi Seika, who had noticed this long ago but only spoke up once the boy put his phone down, waved the fork in her hand.
"Otherwise, this is what happens—your food gets stolen without you even realizing it."
She tilted her chin toward the instigator, Yamada Ryō. Having successfully looted Narumi's food, the latter now shifted her target to Bocchi-chan, who was curled up in the corner quietly eating her meal.
"Whatever. We did say she could freeload a meal anyway—so she can have it."
Narumi shrugged it off without much concern. To be honest, he was more curious about what it would be like to go shopping alone with Yukinoshita Yukino for the first time.
And besides, logically speaking, the third simulation should be coming up soon too—so why was that system completely silent, without a single sign of activity?