Chapter 098: So, Have You Already Thought of the Child's Name?
So, Ichinose, what exactly are you talking about?
Hachiman immediately looked at the girl in front of him, who had beautiful pink-gold long hair.
The girls at this school were all quite good-looking. By conventional standards, if one were to rank them, Sakayanagi might be the cutest in the entire school, while Karuizawa could take second place.
But if we were talking about sheer beauty, then Sakura and Horikita would be at the top.
However…
Ichinose was definitely at the same level.
Or rather, thanks to her personality, Ichinose Honami might actually be the most popular girl in the first year.
And now, the most beautiful girl in the entire grade—the girl everyone called a great angel—was about to confess to him?
This kind of thing…
"It's about to happen soon," Ichinose said. "I..."
"I'm about to get confessed to!"
…
Right.
So, it was exactly what he thought.
If you're about to be confessed to, then don't say things that could be so easily misunderstood.
Coming to such a secluded place and then saying something that sounded like a confession—it almost made Hachiman lose control of his emotions for a moment.
After all…
If the most beautiful girl in school confessed to you, who wouldn't be caught off guard?
And considering everything…
He had helped Class B twice, helped her avoid Nagumo-senpai's pressure from the second-years, and built up a lot of goodwill...
It would have been a lie to say he wasn't momentarily shaken.
Gentle girls were always the easiest to misunderstand.
"So," Hachiman said. "The reason you called me here is… because you don't want to accept the confession?"
Now that things had ended before they even started, Hachiman's mind was incredibly clear.
He quickly analyzed why Ichinose had invited him here.
She was beautiful, kind, and gentle. She had a lot of friends, and there were probably plenty of people who liked her. She was definitely no stranger to confessions.
So she should be quite skilled at rejecting people.
But she still needed someone else's help.
Which meant…
"Is it an impossible-to-refuse confession?"
"Or… does the person confessing have a unique status?"
"Or maybe…" Hachiman considered. "You want to reject them but still maintain your friendship?"
"Nyah?!" Ichinose let out an unintelligible sound of surprise.
"Hachiman…"
"You really do think a lot," she said. "Actually…"
"This time, the person confessing is indeed… different."
As she said this, she took out a pink envelope with a slightly nervous expression.
The envelope had a heart-shaped seal, and it had been carefully decorated.
Only the youthful surge of hormones in teenagers could inspire people to take the time to make something like this.
"But I don't want to develop things further with this person. At the same time, they're very timid, so I want to reject them without hurting their feelings."
Oh.
So that's what this was about.
That was definitely a tough situation.
Still, she had turned people down before. Why was she being so cautious about it this time?
When dealing with guys, she was gentle, but she should also know that sometimes, a quick and clean rejection was better in the long run.
"Is it Kanzaki?" Hachiman asked.
"Eh?" Ichinose looked surprised, as if she couldn't understand why Kanzaki's name had suddenly come up.
But Hachiman continued, "Then… is it a girl?"
"Eh?! EHHHH?!"
This time, Ichinose was truly shocked.
"Wh-why… why would you think it's a girl?"
"If it were a guy, you wouldn't be this troubled," Hachiman said. "And, though this might sound bad, guys generally handle rejection better. They might be sad or disappointed, but it's not like they can't move on."
Of course…
That was just an excuse. If he were the one being rejected, he'd probably want to dig a hole and hide in it.
And if they still had to see each other all the time after that? Absolute hell.
That was exactly why he would never confess to anyone.
Because…
If his confession ever got out, his entire class might turn it into a joke.
That was something he never wanted to experience again.
"It's Chihiro. Shiranami Chihiro," Ichinose said. "She's a girl I often hang out with. I thought she saw me as an older sister, but… yesterday, she gave me this letter."
"She asked me to meet her here… to confess."
Ichinose looked troubled.
Clearly…
Unrequited love.
Ichinose had no romantic feelings for Chihiro.
But at the same time, they were friends. They had always spent time together.
Now, she found out that Chihiro had feelings for her.
And yet, Ichinose didn't want to hurt her.
Now Hachiman could somewhat understand why she was so troubled.
"Wait a moment," Hachiman said.
With that, he stepped away from Ichinose.
He pulled out Horikita Suzune's contact information.
"Let's test your knowledge. Do you have any information on Shiranami Chihiro from Class 1-B?" Hachiman quickly typed.
"…"
But there was no response from Horikita.
So, Hachiman sent the same message to Kushida.
Since Kushida was likely alone in her room, she replied almost immediately.
Her reply was completely unreserved.
If she had been around others, she wouldn't have been able to write something so bluntly.
Her message read:
[Shiranami Chihiro? The girl who's always with Ichinose? She's shy and timid, like a little chick. But she's a bit interesting—sometimes, the way she looks at Ichinose seems… off.]
Oh.
So that's how it was.
Kushida, you're amazing.
Even this kind of thing didn't escape your notice.
Or maybe…
Kushida, just like Ichinose, put on a cheerful and friendly persona, like a little sun that attracted everyone.
If that charm worked on guys, it probably worked on some girls too.
So… Kushida, have you also experienced something like this?
Thinking of someone as a friend, only to find out they had romantic feelings for you…
[But why did you suddenly ask this? Did you witness Shiranami Chihiro's confession scene?]
Hmm.
Although Kushida-san isn't great in terms of intelligence, she's strong in other areas.
Her intuition is sharp, too.
But unfortunately, while a confession was about to happen, it hadn't actually started yet.
Hachiman put away his phone and looked at Ichinose.
"I can help with this."
"And what you want, Ichinose, is for me to pretend to be your boyfriend and act lovey-dovey so that the other person will back off, right?" Hachiman said.
"That's pretty much it," Ichinose replied. "If it were someone from the same class, they'd see through it easily. But if it's someone from another class… Chihiro isn't very familiar with you, so it might work better."
"So… I'm counting on you, Hikigaya-kun."
Ichinose said this while even bowing slightly in request.
Indeed, this method could make someone back off. Based on the information he had, this Chihiro person seemed rather timid, so she probably wouldn't have the courage to go after someone who already had a boyfriend.
But.
Ichinose, do you understand?
Telling one lie means you have to keep covering it with more lies.
And.
Once you start pretending to be a couple, if Shiranami Chihiro sees them together again, they'll have to keep up the act.
Not to mention how annoying this whole process would be, it would also make a complete mess of Hachiman's social relationships.
After all, he and Ichinose weren't actually dating, but their classmates wouldn't see it that way.
Hachiman considered the best possible solution.
Certainly, pretending to already be in a relationship could prevent the confession from even happening, suppressing the other person's feelings and maintaining their usual relationship.
Yes.
Ichinose likely wanted to maintain her friendship with Chihiro.
Because once a confession happened, even if they tried to stay friends, it would be difficult. They would both become too aware of the "like / being liked" dynamic, and even if they wanted to go back to how things were, they wouldn't be able to.
After all, friends don't have those kinds of thoughts.
But if they went through with this, he and Ichinose would be trapped in a never-ending web of lies.
And the only way to resolve it was probably… that.
As Hachiman was thinking this over, he noticed another girl approaching from the direction of the setting sun.
Short, light green hair. A petite figure.
Delicate features, with a somewhat fragile and pitiful air about her.
That must be Shiranami Chihiro.
But on her face was a look of pure shock.
"I-Ichinose-san, who is he?"
However, her expression quickly turned into one of distress, her eyes welling up with tears.
"Who… are you?"
But Hachiman was already prepared. He countered with a question of his own.
"But it doesn't really matter who you are," Hachiman continued. "Can you wait for a moment? Right now, this is my moment."
Then, he stepped toward Ichinose.
"Uhh…"
Ichinose looked at Hachiman as he approached.
She gave him an apologetic look and was about to take his hand.
Because Hachiman had just agreed to her request, right?
That meant that now, in front of Chihiro, they had to act like they were already dating so that Chihiro would back off.
"Actually… Chihiro, there's something I want to tell you—"
Just as Ichinose was about to speak…
Hachiman suddenly took action.
He turned to Ichinose and said:
"I've liked you for a long time. Will you go out with me?"
Then, like any other guy in a confession scene, he stretched out his left hand toward Ichinose.
As if saying, if you accept, then take my hand.
But.
"Eh…?"
Hachiman's unexpected move completely shut down whatever Ichinose was about to say.
Because.
Originally, the situation was that Shiranami Chihiro was going to confess to her, and Ichinose, not wanting to hurt her, had asked Hachiman to pretend to be her boyfriend.
The result.
Why did things turn out like this?
Hikigaya-kun, you're confessing to me.
Is it sincere?
Or… is it part of a plan?
But Hikigaya-kun's expression became serious—it didn't look like he was acting.
Which means… could it be that he really likes her?
Ichinose was always gentle, and she often gave people the illusion that she might like them. But now… this feeling of being unable to grasp the situation had fallen onto her.
Does this mean… Hikigaya-kun likes her?
Ehhh?!
This was an outcome she had never even considered!
Didn't he always have Horikita-san by his side? And wasn't it said that he often ate lunch with Sakayanagi from Class A?
So… neither of them was the one for him?
At that moment, Ichinose felt completely flustered.
"And Ichinose, you once said that if I confessed to you here, you would have a response prepared, right?" Hikigaya-kun said. "Then you must have even thought of names for our kids."
"If we have a boy, we'll name him Makoto. If it's a girl, let's call her Sora."
…Huh?
Why are we suddenly talking about post-marriage life?! And besides, she didn't even want two kids—just one would be enough!
And at that moment—
"Beep beep!"
Ichinose's phone vibrated, and as she held it in her left hand, a message flashed on the screen.
[Reject me. This is part of the plan. Also, what are you hesitating for?] – by Hikigaya Hachiman.
"..."
So it was a plan.
Because just a moment ago, she had actually thought it was real…
"Um…"
But Ichinose wasn't stupid. With so many friends, her emotional intelligence was definitely not low. She quickly understood.
If Hikigaya-kun's confession was fake… and the goal was to prevent Chihiro from confessing—
Then there was only one way this could end.
"I… I'm sorry, Hikigaya-kun."
She said, "During my three years of high school, I don't plan on dating anyone. Whether it's a boy, a girl, or even a crossdresser, I won't accept them."
"I'm really sorry."
Then, she even bowed slightly in return.
"...Is that so?"
Hachiman looked like he had taken a hit. "I see… Studying is important, after all."
He seemed almost at a loss for words.
…Wait, why did she specifically mention crossdressers too?
Ichinose really did know a lot, didn't she?
"Then… can we at least be just normal friends?"
Hachiman forced himself to ask.
If dating wasn't possible, then at least they could be ordinary friends.
"…Of course! Weren't we already friends, Hikigaya-kun—"
Actually, they weren't.
At most, they were just class representatives from different classes who had exchanged contact information.
They were far from being real friends.
But after going through something like this together, maybe they could become ordinary friends.
Because real friends were too difficult to find, and Hachiman didn't think he ever would.
But.
At that moment, he turned around.
"Well, my moment is over. Do you need to use this area? If so, I apologize." Hachiman said.
"Eh?!"
"Wait, um…"
Shiranami Chihiro had written a love letter to Ichinose, hoping to confess here.
When she arrived and saw Ichinose there, she was happy. But then… she saw that there was a boy next to her.
That made her nervous.
Did this mean… Ichinose was already dating someone?
But in reality, they weren't dating.
This boy, Hikigaya, had come to confess too.
And then, Ichinose had rejected him.
And the reason she gave for rejecting him… was that she wanted to focus on her studies.
No matter who confessed to her, she would turn them down—because she only wanted to study.
As a student, of course, studying was important. And Ichinose was a top student, too.
So if Chihiro confessed now… wouldn't she also just be disturbing Ichinose's studies?
"I… I have nothing to say."
Saying that, Chihiro turned around and ran away.
She had no idea how to handle this situation and bolted as fast as she could.
"Ahhh—!"
Meanwhile, in a corner, a pink-haired girl was frozen in shock.
She had just come here to take some selfies.
But when she arrived, she saw that someone else was already there. Being shy, she decided to hide.
And then… she ended up overhearing something huge.
Hikigaya-kun had just confessed to Ichinose from Class B.