Chapter 182: Recovery Massage
"Hikigaya-kun, I'll leave Totsuka-kun to you for now."
With her arms folded across her chest, Yukinoshita turned around to look at Hikigaya Hachiman, who was standing not far behind her.
"Eh, why me?"
Hearing that Yukinoshita wanted him to take care of Totsuka Saika, Hikigaya's face was full of resistance. Come on, just looking at Totsuka made him feel like he was about to fall to the dark side, okay? And now she wanted him to make close contact with him…
"Because you know a special massage technique, don't you? The one that allows someone to recover their stamina quickly."
Yukinoshita looked at Hikigaya's sullen expression with a faint smile on her face. What he had just done to Yuigahama Yui—she had seen it all.
Although she wasn't clear on exactly what Hikigaya did, the fact was that Yuigahama had indeed recovered her stamina afterward. Now that Totsuka was like this, aside from having Hikigaya help, there was no other way to continue training.
"Hikki, you can do massages? Wait, Yukinon, how do you even know that?!"
Hearing Yukinoshita's words, Yuigahama, who was supporting Totsuka, widened her eyes in shock. Clearly, it had always just been the three of them together…
"Well, before you joined the Service Club, he mentioned it once."
Faced with Yuigahama's wounded expression, Yukinoshita guiltily averted her gaze. Behind her back, her hand gestured discreetly to Hikigaya, urging him to quickly help Totsuka recover.
No helping it…
Hikigaya let out a heavy sigh, his heart full of reluctance, and walked over toward Totsuka.
As he approached, Totsuka slowly lifted his head to look at him. Whether it was because his body still hadn't recovered from the earlier run or because of something else, Totsuka's face was flushed red.
"Um…"
His gaze dropped to his shoes, his hands clutching tightly at the hem of his shirt, his body swaying uneasily.
Finally, after overcoming the embarrassment inside him, Totsuka took a deep breath and gathered up his courage to look up.
"Could you… be gentle?"
"..."
This world is beyond saving.
That was Hikigaya's only thought as he stared at Totsuka's shy, blushing face.
The god who created this world definitely screwed up, right?
Otherwise, how could a creature like Totsuka Saika—a boy this unbearably cute—exist?!
If Yukinoshita and Yuigahama weren't watching him right now, the moment he heard that line, Hikigaya's nose would have absolutely exploded in a fountain of blood.
Even so, with the two of them staring at him, he still felt a terrible itch in his nose. If he didn't do something to distract himself, he really would get a nosebleed. And if that happened, he was absolutely finished.
"Anyway, please, sit down first…"
Lifting his head, he stared straight into the blinding sunlight.
Only after his eyes felt like they were about to go blind did Hikigaya lower his gaze, looking at the hazy outline of Totsuka in front of him, gesturing for him to sit on the bench.
.
.
.
"Um, Yukinon, do we really have to do this?"
Just as Hikigaya was about to begin "massaging" Totsuka, Yuigahama suddenly sensed something fishy.
"Of course. If we don't let Totsuka-kun recover his stamina, we won't be able to continue training, right? Besides, there's also something I want to confirm…"
As she said that, Yukinoshita glanced sideways at Hikigaya, who had already started massaging.
"Nnh…"
Even though it was the hottest time of day, Hikigaya's hands were surprisingly cool. The stimulating touch made Totsuka let out an unconscious sound.
"Uh… are you okay?"
Hearing Totsuka's voice, Hikigaya could clearly feel the two dangerous gazes burning into his back.
"N-no problem… please continue, Hikigaya-kun…"
Face still flushed, Totsuka nodded.
"Then… I'll continue."
The moment Hikigaya's fingers pressed onto Totsuka's shoulders, his entire body shuddered. As Hikigaya applied strength with his hands, Totsuka couldn't help but let out a voice of relief.
Hikigaya: ...
"Sorry, it's just… Hikigaya-kun's massage feels too comfortable…"
Realizing that the sounds he made were a bit suspicious, Totsuka quickly explained.
"It's fine."
His mouth twitching, Hikigaya continued to push his spiritual power into Totsuka's body to quickly restore him to peak condition, all while enduring the oppressive stares behind him that were about to materialize into killing intent.
Totsuka closed his eyes, completely relaxing under Hikigaya's touch. The icy sensation from behind him, paired with the blazing sun above, gradually emptied his mind…
"All done, Totsuka-kun!"
At some point, Hikigaya's voice snapped Totsuka awake.
"I actually… fell asleep without realizing it?"
Startled, Totsuka quickly stood up and thanked Hikigaya.
"It's nothing. Hurry up and get back to training…"
For some reason, sweat dripping down his forehead, Hikigaya forced a smile at Totsuka and then bolted toward the distant school building with his head held high.
"…Just as I suspected."
Yukinoshita stared expressionlessly at Hikigaya's retreating figure, running away as if escaping.
"Yukinon, what's wrong with Hikki?"
Beside her, Yuigahama looked worried as she watched Hikigaya suddenly leave.
"Probably not feeling well and went to the bathroom."
Though she knew perfectly well what Hikigaya was really going to do, it wasn't something suitable to tell Yuigahama. So she casually gave a vague, generic answer, then led the recovered Totsuka and Yuigahama into the next phase of training.
"Push-ups?!"
Hearing that the next exercise to train arm strength was push-ups, Yuigahama immediately sensed danger. And when she heard it confirmed from Yukinoshita's mouth, she couldn't help crying out in despair.
"Is there a problem?"
Yukinoshita didn't understand why Yuigahama was reacting so dramatically to this form of training. After all, during P.E. class, this was a basic exercise practiced by both boys and girls. Even if her arm strength was weak, surely she could at least manage five or six, right?
"Well, it's just…"
Scratching her cheek, Yuigahama turned her head away, hesitating on whether she should say the reason out loud. After all, to Yukinoshita, her reason would probably sound… pretty hurtful.
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