Chapter 67 — Dare to Say You Don't Like "Him"?
Seeing Yukinoshita Yukino's irritated face—her hair puffing slightly as her emotions flared—Yukinoshita Akira couldn't help but laugh.
At that moment, he understood a little of why Yukinoshita Haruno enjoyed teasing her younger sister so much.
There was an odd satisfaction in seeing the usually composed Yukino lose her cool. It was dangerously fun—once you started, it was hard to stop.
From the sidelines, Busujima Saeko watched the scene unfold with a faint smile on her lips.
She could tell that the Yukinoshita family's second daughter—despite her sharp tongue—was actually a sincere and rather rigid person at heart. It wasn't hard to see why she was so easy to tease.
"Not satisfied?" Akira raised an eyebrow.
"Then tell me—how exactly am I inferior to him?"
Yukinoshita Yukino's gaze was sharp and challenging. She could accept losing to someone in skill or wit, but to a boy? That was unforgivable.
"Well then, let's start with appearance," Akira said. "Yukino, there's no denying you're beautiful. As Sobu High's unofficial idol, your looks are beyond question."
"Hmph." Yukino snorted softly, as if acknowledging what she already knew.
"But Totsuka Saika… if we're talking looks alone, he's not losing either."
"Hmph, so what? I'll admit he's pretty, but he's still not as beautiful as me."
"Alright, moving on to presence and charm," Akira continued, half-smiling. "You, Yukino, have this icy elegance that makes people see you as refined and untouchable. But that distance of yours—it keeps people away."
"…"
Yukino fell silent.
She couldn't deny that.
Back when she first entered Sobu High, she used to receive confession letters almost daily from boys smitten by her beauty. But the constant attention had only irritated her.
Out of annoyance, she started rejecting them bluntly—coldly, even cruelly. Her sarcasm and pride created a wall around her.
And so, as time passed, that wall grew thicker.
Sometimes, isolation isn't something that happens by accident.
"On the other hand," Akira went on, "Totsuka Saika gives off this soft, fragile aura. Just looking at him makes people—especially guys—want to protect him. Between someone elegant and distant, and someone delicate and endearing… who do you think people would rather approach?"
"I…"
Yukino bit her lip, unable to answer. She wasn't ready to admit defeat, but the hesitation in her eyes betrayed her thoughts.
Saeko could only sigh softly and shake her head.
Honestly, was this even something worth competing over?
The proud Yukinoshita Yukino was letting emotions cloud her judgment—a rare sight indeed.
Throughout the past school year, she had never cared about things like this. What had changed now?
Her gaze shifted toward Totsuka Saika—now seated, having earlier been helped by Hikigaya Hachiman.
Even if she refused to say it aloud, Yukino had to admit that her "rival's" sense of femininity far surpassed her own.
It wasn't about beauty alone—it was in his gentle expressions, the slight blush on his cheeks, that helpless charm she could never imitate.
If she were in his position, she wouldn't have let any boy touch her.
No matter how much it hurt, she would have handled it herself.
Akira's eyes scanned the schoolyard. A few students were still lingering around the court, drawn by the earlier tennis match between Yukinoshita Yukino and Busujima Saeko.
In the original timeline, this was the part where Hayama Hayato's group and Miura Yumiko would appear, leading to a small confrontation with the Service Club that escalated into a tennis match.
But this time, that didn't happen.
Maybe because of his interference.
Currently, Hayama and Yumiko's relationship seemed strained. Whatever fate awaited them later was uncertain—but for now, they weren't here.
"You sure move fast, Hikigaya. Jumping right in to catch him like that?" Akira teased, smirking as he approached Hachiman.
Now that they were back outside, Totsuka Saika had politely refused any further help, afraid of attracting unnecessary attention.
Despite being a boy, Saika was one of Sobu High's most popular students—different from Hayama Hayato's type of popularity, but no less significant.
"Don't say weird things. There's nothing between us. And I'm heterosexual, not gay," Hachiman said quickly.
"Who said there was anything? I'm just saying, your face says otherwise."
Hachiman rolled his eyes. "Obviously you're just trying to mess with me."
In most areas, Hachiman was painfully ordinary. But when it came to logic and observation, his insight was razor-sharp.
That's why he immediately picked up on Akira's intention. The guy wasn't here to talk—he was here to tease.
"Listen, my dear Hikigaya," Akira began dramatically, "as the wise once said—'The opposite sex exists for reproduction, but true love blooms among men!' Can't you see it? This is destiny! Go, charge forth with courage!"
"Stop talking nonsense! I'm normal, okay?!"
But deep down, Hachiman wasn't so sure.
Ever since he was little, the only girl close to him had been his younger sister, Hikigaya Komachi.
Only recently had he made friends with two girls—Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui.
But he had never felt his heart race around them.
When he later discovered that Yui's kindness toward him stemmed from guilt—because he once saved her dog and was hospitalized for three weeks—he realized it wasn't love, just remorse.
So, toward Yukino and Yui, he felt no special affection. Just the warm comfort of friendship, something precious for someone used to loneliness.
But Saika…
Totsuka Saika was different.
He was the first person to ever make Hachiman's heart pound and his cheeks flush.
Even after learning the truth—that Saika was a boy—those feelings didn't disappear. Every time they were close, his pulse still quickened, his thoughts went haywire.
Yukinoshita Akira watched Hachiman's inner conflict unfold across his face and sighed softly in amusement.
As expected… Neither Yukino nor Yui were his destined love. The one who truly stirred his heart was that "angel" named Totsuka Saika.
A man hopelessly in denial about his own feelings.
"Hikigaya Hachiman," Akira said calmly. "Stop running away. You can lie to others, but you can't lie to yourself."
"What are you talking about? Who says I'm lying—"
"Dare to say that when you're near Totsuka Saika, your heart doesn't beat faster?"
"I—"
"Dare to say that when you caught him earlier, your thoughts didn't wander?"
"I—"
"Dare to say that you've never thought of him in that way?"
"I…"
Three times he tried to speak—three times the words died in his throat.
But his expression said it all.
Akira smiled knowingly.
The seed had been planted.
Now all that was left… was to nurture it until it bloomed.
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