Uneasy daily life

Yukino Yukinoshita took a deep breath, calming herself down a bit, and slightly ground her molars: "Shiraku-kun! I think we need to make a deal, you can't speak in my voice!"

"You should wipe your hands first."

Bai Ying offered her sincere advice.

"...Really."

Yukino Yukinoshita wiped her left hand, her gaze fixed on the white figure for a moment, then looked away at her palm. After a moment's hesitation, she muttered softly, "In the end, I didn't really care that I wasn't mentioned in the rumors and lies... In the end, it's just some ignorant guys spreading pointless lies and ignoring the facts—Shiro-kun didn't spread the rumors, but the truth wasn't very comprehensive either."

"This has nothing to do with me."

Bai Ying shrugged and pondered, "Perhaps in most people's eyes, the Hero is a model of a new-era intelligent student robot—good at studying, good at discipline, and good at giving people the cold shoulder, completely unrelated to topics like romance? The most well-known thing about him at school is probably that you and Miura were exchanging barbs in the classroom over who got the Deadly Chef title..."

"What do you mean by 'talking back and forth'?" Yukino Yukinoshita frowned slightly. "That's arguing, debating, or quarreling."

"Okay, let's call it oral gymnastics..."

"The debate about the definition of the word is over." Yukino Yukinoshita wiped her hands and asked with some concern, "If you just wanted to stir up some messy rumors so that Yuihama and Miura wouldn't care about the chaotic atmosphere... why didn't you mention me?"

Bai Ying continued eating her lunch, then asked curiously, "Because you'll get angry."

"Hmm?" Yukino Yukinoshita was surprised, and looked away slightly. "Why would I get angry about something like this? Perhaps you're judging me by my own standards?"

"Did you know? Yukino confessed to Shirogane and got rejected! Really? That can't be true, it's more like the other way around. Shirogane confessed to Yukino, and Yukino rejected him! Shirogane confessed to Yukino, and Yukino rejected him for Yui! Not because of Yui, but actually because of Miura blah blah blah..."

Bai Ying demonstrated the possible distortions of the rumors, then shrugged and said, "How it will actually turn out is secondary; the point is, you'll definitely be unhappy."

Yukino Yukinoshita squinted and said, "I'm quite unhappy right now too."

"To help others out of their predicament, you spread my feelings for you as gossip—Baijun, don't you think that's going too far?"

The white figure put on a cold, Yukinoshita-style face, trying his best to maintain a detached tone, but one could still hear the sorrow and weariness in his voice. Before Yukinoshita Yukino could recover from her daze, the white figure changed back to his own voice, saying with certainty, "In my opinion, you should think that way."

"..."

can you?

Yukino Yukinoshita was somewhat skeptical, but the little bit of emotion in her heart gradually dissipated.

Am I unexpectedly possessive?

Could it also be worry and fear?

Or is it that you're unhappy because you heard rumors about Haku and Sakurajima but not about yourself and Haku?

"...If Bai Jun were to suddenly disappear one day, I would relentlessly pursue him."

Yukino Yukinoshita murmured, her tone ambiguous.

Bai Ying's eyes sharpened, and she resolutely said, "I don't believe it."

"Um--?"

With a slightly drawn-out nasal tone, Yukino Yukinoshita cast a questioning glance at her.

"Don't even mention disappearing. If I became your brother-in-law, you would definitely keep your distance instead of chasing after me relentlessly." Bai Ying finished the last piece of bread, slurped her milk, and murmured absently, her eyes distant. "So sad... but because I'm your sister, I can't... This is fine. I've long been used to being alone. This is just going back to normal. This is enough..."

"Shiraki, your speculation is clearly baseless and baseless," Yukino Yukinoshita retorted, unconvinced. "Even if it's my sister, I..."

“I will admit it, I will allow it, I will witness it, I will bear all the mistakes—!” The white figure pointed a finger and said emphatically, “You’re just a little pushover.”

Yukinoshita Yukino: #!

"a type of hand-loving bacteria"

Sorry to bother you.

The door to the activity room was swiftly pulled open, and Mai Sakurajima walked in carrying a lunchbox: "Black Fan, Yukinoshita, so you're having lunch here after all. It wasn't for nothing that I asked around all the way here... Yukinoshita, why are you wiping your hands?"

"Ha..." Yukino Yukinoshita wiped her hands clean, crumpled the tissue into a ball, threw it into the trash can, and said with a disgruntled look, "That's a question for some kind of toxic bacteria that causes coughing, side stitches, and sneezing."

Bai Ying raised her head and puffed out her chest: "That's right! I did it!"

"Hmm..." Mai Sakurajima walked over, sat down familiarly, looked around, and suddenly asked with a smile, "Nothing unhealthy has happened, has it?"

"?" Yukino Yukinoshita frowned. "Sakurajima, this is the activity room for the Service Club and the Support Club."

“Although it’s more exciting from an ethical standpoint, but…” Bai Ying changed the subject, “The hero just accidentally spit out his food, which is perfectly healthy, while the hero plus isn’t so healthy.”

"Cough cough..."

Mai Sakurajima coughed twice and took out her lunchbox to eat lunch.

Yukino Yukinoshita was completely baffled: "What are you talking about?"

I have a feeling there's some hidden meaning behind it.

"Some unimportant topics." Mai Sakurajima's gaze drifted slightly as she met the innocent, questioning look. "Yukinoshita doesn't usually have many online friends, and she doesn't go online much, right?"

"Yes, what's the problem?"

"No."

Mai Sakurajima smiled back, revealing a few clean, even teeth: "There's nothing to talk about with this. Let's talk about something else—Hey, Black Fan, is your support department still hiring?"

"This one……"

“The activities of the Aid Club and the Service Club are largely similar, so Sakurajima could consider the Service Club. However…” Yukino Yukinoshita said, “Sakurajima-senpai will probably be busy with her entertainment career and won’t have enough time for club activities. Joining a club would be a burden for Sakurajima-senpai, wouldn’t it?”

"It's okay, I can be a ghost member."

Yukino Yukinoshita took out the rules and regulations: "This does not comply with the club's regulations."

Mai Sakurajima countered logically, "It seems that a club needs a sufficient number of members to be established. The Service Club and the Aid Club only have two people, which doesn't quite meet the club's regulations. They should be considered special cases, right?"

“It’s not an exception,” Yukino Yukinoshita said in a deep voice. “The Service Club and the Aid Club are considered one club by Hiratsuka-sensei. It’s just that there are some internal disagreements right now. The decision on who will be the club president will be based on the results of completing the commission. Sakurajima-senpai can’t spare enough time for club activities, so she doesn’t have to force herself to join the club.”

Hmm, like a particularly possessive kitten, baring its teeth and claws.

Sakurajima Mai couldn't think of a reason for a moment, so she looked at the white figure: "Black Fan, are you just going to watch like this?"

Bai Ying was watching the show when she heard this and decisively clenched her fist and said, "Go for it! Brave Plus, make your move and kill her!"

“Yukinoshita is right. I do have work to do and can’t stay at school for long. I have to go to shoot an advertisement in a few days.” Sakurajima Mai rolled her eyes at Shirokage, ate a few bites of food, and casually said, “Does Black Fan eat bread and milk every day for lunch? Do you need me to prepare a bento for you?”

Yukino Yukinoshita chimed in, "Sakurajima-senpai, Shirafujima likes heat, and cold bento boxes don't suit her taste, so she eats bread and milk every day at noon."

"The hero's fighting power is going up! It's constantly going up! Incredible! Right now, she's like a Super Saiyan, her fighting power has increased fiftyfold!" the white figure enthusiastically explained from the sidelines. "And what about Hero Plus? What is Hero Plus doing? She's..."

"I'm stepping on you, you hater."

Mai Sakurajima smiled and moved her toes, her footwork in the grinding, drilling, and squeezing exercise having improved considerably.

"Alright! Enough with the jokes!" Bai Ying gestured for a pause. "Tell me your request. You have to trust the Minister of the Aid Department's fighting prowess!"

"Okay~"

Mai Sakurajima withdrew her foot and pondered, "It's mainly about Kazuha..."

"?"

The question mark above Yukino's head slowly faded away. While listening to Mai Sakurajima's request, she seemed to realize something—Sakurajima didn't actually want to join the club. Was the conversation just now deliberately teasing her?

*Gurgle...* There's a subtle feeling, like being toyed with by my older sister!

With a slightly annoyed feeling, Yukino Yukinoshita prepared to listen to the details of the request.

"Let's discuss the specifics and my thoughts in more detail during the club activities this afternoon."

Mai Sakurajima changed the subject, and Yukino Asayuki smiled.

We've definitely been tricked!

Yukino secretly grinded her teeth beneath the snow.

……

……

Rumors are characterized by wildly imaginative logic, absurd details, and an overall tendency towards increasing entropy...

"In just half a day, I've already heard that I confessed to Zaimokuza, and even Chitanda came to ask me if I had confessed to Oreki..."

During club activities, Hachiman Hikigaya sat in his usual spot, holding his forehead in disbelief: "How did things get to this strange point?!"

"Perhaps it's springtime—in adolescence, when we only have a vague understanding of the world and are always full of fantasies and impulses, topics about the opposite sex are ambiguous and difficult to understand, making us itchy to explore, but because of the subtle distance between genders, we don't know what to do... A joke, a glance, an unintentional brush past can all stir up ripples in our hearts that can't be calmed for a long time."

Bai Ying closed her eyes slightly, her tone cheerful, full of vitality and the vigor of all things thriving: "Who knows how many turbulent emotions are hidden in these messy rumors right now?"

Minister, you started this whole thing!

"I'm just a nobody, please forget about these strange rumors," Hachiman Hikigaya remarked, then asked with some concern, "Where's Yui? Why didn't she come to the activity room?"

The club president has made the atmosphere at school strange. Is Yui still bothered by the fireworks festival? Well, it would be strange if she wasn't. Given her personality, even though the club president's various interruptions to her confession probably didn't want her to stay in the same space with him any longer…

There's nothing we can do; the awkwardness in our relationship is something we chose to make.

"She will come, Hikigaya-kun."

Yukino Yukinoshita spoke up.

"Are you sure?" the white figure asked, peering out. "Are you sure that pink-haired girl, who has a bit of a people-pleasing personality, wavers between you and Miura, and is gentle and weak, would still be willing to come to the clubroom to participate in activities after going through that kind of dark history?"

That's right, that's right...

Hachiman Hikigaya nodded unconsciously, then instinctively became wary. "If I agree with the minister's idea, then there must be something wrong with me!"

"In that case, shall we make a bet?" Yukino Yukinoshita closed her book.

Bai Ying turned and asked, "My general, step forward! I'll take the bet with her!"

"I surrender."

Hachiman Hikigaya forced a Buddhist-like smile: "I've already admitted defeat, so let's forget about the bets and stakes."

"Yah hello!"

Yui Yuigahama strode into the activity room with great enthusiasm, clapping her hands together.

"I ran into Sakurajima-senpai on the way, so I'm late! Sorry, sorry!"

...They've really come?

Could it be that my observation skills have deteriorated?

As Hachiman Hikigaya doubted himself, he saw Mai Sakurajima follow him in.

It's perfectly normal to glance at the minister and Yukinoshita.

It's perfectly normal to take another look at Yuihama.

Uh……

But the relationships feel so complicated, in every sense of the word.

Chapter Five: The Life I Yearn For

"Regarding Kaori, I tried to persuade her before I came, and we had a bit of an argument. She stubbornly said that she could take care of herself if she lived alone and refused to go home... Thank you, it's very good."

Mai Sakurajima sighed softly, took the black tea offered by Yukino Yukinoshita, took a sip, and thanked her.

Then don't transfer to Soubu High... cough.

Yukino Yukinoshita put aside her subtle thoughts and pondered, "Toyohama... is she still bothered by the argument she had with her mother before?"

"I would say I do mind, but it's not like we've become enemies. How should I put it..."

Mai Sakurajima sipped her black tea, carefully choosing her words: "Even if I bring it up, she really doesn't like hearing anything about Aunt Toyohama."

"So you want Toyohama to go home?" Yukino Yukinoshita frowned. "Are you worried that she won't be able to take care of herself if she lives alone?"

“I’m not worried about that. She can do all the laundry, cooking, cleaning, and keeping to a regular schedule by herself. She has the ability and self-discipline to live alone.” Mai Sakurajima paused for a moment and shook her head. “It’s just that the problems still need to be solved. If things continue like this, I’m very worried, but I really don’t know how to solve them. I also have a hard time saying what changes she will make after we move to Chiba.”

"That's why I came to the aid department to make a request and seek help."

Mai Sakurajima put down her teacup, smiled, and looked at the white figure who was standing with his arms crossed, nodding and looking serious.

"Could you be more specific about your request?" Yukino Yukinoshita interjected. "Just to get Toyohama home?"

“If Kazuka is willing to go home, it means my request is complete. But if Kazuka doesn’t go home, it doesn’t necessarily mean my request has failed.” Mai Sakurajima rested her elbow on the conference table and propped her chin on her hand. “More than any demands or results, I hope Kazuka… is willing to think and act.”

Are they willing to think and act?

Yukino Yukinoshita vaguely understood what the other person meant. The simplest example was herself. In the past, when she moved out after the car accident, it did not mean that she was truly independent, nor did it mean that her parents approved of her, nor did it mean that her relationship with her family had improved.

The problem remains, it just hasn't surfaced yet, and I haven't thought about it or taken any action because the problem hasn't erupted.