For guys, Valentine's Day doesn't really come with any surprises.
If a girl they know well gives them chocolate, they usually have a good idea beforehand.
Of course, considering how many high school boys suffer from delusions… well, to put it simply, a significant number of them fail to recognize reality.
Hikigaya used to have that problem too, but thankfully, he's been completely cured.
He no longer foolishly expects anything, especially something as trivial as Valentine's Day chocolates.
But the real issue now is… wasn't this "surprise" a little too much?
To put it a little narcissistically, Hikigaya wasn't particularly shocked that Kushida secretly gave him chocolates.
He had a hunch about it beforehand, even after she publicly declared in class that she wouldn't be giving out chocolates this year.
After all, Kikyo-chan was a liar through and through.
What really caught Hikigaya off guard, though, was the fact that she had shown up at his door in the middle of the night…
Was that really necessary?
And it wasn't just her—Kamuro and Horikita also took him by surprise.
Especially Horikita… He'd always assumed she was the one person who would never bother with Valentine's Day, someone who outright despised such a foolish occasion.
And yet, even she had given him chocolates.
It's not that he wasn't happy, but it did make him wonder if Horikita had lost her mind.
Then there was Ichinose… sigh.
Other than sighing, Hikigaya really didn't know what to do.
At this moment, he would've rather been overthinking things. He wouldn't even mind adding another entry to his black history if it meant he was just misunderstanding.
But looking at the situation now… No, no, no, that's not necessarily the case, right?
Hikigaya tried to stay positive—after all, there was no way to be sure about these things.
Just because he was specifically called behind the gymnasium didn't necessarily mean it was for a confession.
Maybe Ichinose was just shy and didn't want to hand over the chocolate in public, and he was the one misinterpreting things.
Maybe that was the simple truth…
Clinging to this self-decep—no, optimistic—train of thought, Hikigaya headed to school with Ayanokoji.
The moment they stepped into the school building's entrance hall, they were met with a familiar sight—guys anxiously checking their shoe lockers over and over again, or grinning as they tried to strike up conversations with girls.
…Seriously, no matter how many times you check, chocolate isn't just going to appear out of thin air.
That said, Hikigaya couldn't blame them.
For guys, Valentine's Day was a battlefield.
But these guys only acted this nice to girls today, practically wearing their intentions on their faces.
Honestly, that made it even worse.
If they wanted obligatory chocolates for the sake of their pride, they should have treated girls better all year round, put in some effort to raise their favorability.
Cramming at the last minute wasn't going to cut it.
Silently ridiculing them in his mind, Hikigaya opened his own shoe locker—then froze.
Inside was a small, neatly wrapped box.
…Could this be…
"Oh, Hikigaya, you got Valentine's chocolate again, huh?"
At some point, Ayanokoji had peeked over from beside him.
This guy… Don't just casually look!
"I wasn't peeking, I just happened to see it," Ayanokoji replied before Hikigaya could complain.
Unfortunately, his words had already been overheard by the surrounding guys, who immediately shot over hostile stares.
"…Did you hear that? He said 'again.'"
"Heh… Go to hell."
"Why is it always that guy getting all the luck…?"
Jealous grumbles filled the air, especially from those who hadn't received a single chocolate.
…How annoying.
"This damn masterpiece... it wasn't intentional, was it!?"
Hikigaya felt his irritation rising and immediately plotted his revenge. He deliberately raised his voice and said, "Oh right, Ayanokoji! What about you? You must have gotten chocolates from Sakura and Hasebe, right? Oh, and of course, Karuizawa! Did she give you one?"
Now it was Ayanokoji's turn to be the center of attention.
"You don't have to be so loud… I'm not deaf."
"No need to worry! I'm sure she'll give you one!"
Unfortunately, Hikigaya ignored his response and continued shouting, "After all, you put on quite the show on the rooftop, rescuing a damsel in distress! Girls love that kind of thing, right? I heard Karuizawa even broke up with Hirata because of it!"
"Alright, alright, I get it." Ayanokoji quickly raised his hands in surrender. "I was wrong. I shouldn't have teased you. So please, stop shouting… By the way, aren't you going to check who sent yours?"
"…Hmph."
Even though he knew Ayanokoji was just changing the subject, Hikigaya was indeed curious.
Turning away, he quietly opened the box and peeked inside.
Surprisingly, there was only a single piece of chocolate—no card, no message, nothing that could indicate the sender.
Not even a single word.
Weird… Who sent this?
Even by lunchtime, Hikigaya hadn't figured out who had put the chocolate in his shoe locker.
Or rather, he hadn't even tried to look.
Because he had no idea how to go about it—he couldn't just go around asking people, right?
Still, he did suspect Matsushita.
Among the girls in the class he knew, Kushida and Horikita had already given out chocolates. That left… well, Matsushita. Of course, this didn't mean she had to be the sender—Hikigaya wasn't narcissistic enough to assume that.
It was just a simple process of elimination.
But then again, would Matsushita go through so much trouble?
After all, they were seat neighbors. If she wanted to give him chocolate, she could just pass it to him directly—no need to secretly place it in his shoe locker.
Because of that, Hikigaya considered asking Matsushita a few times, but in the end, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
If it turned out not to be her, wouldn't he just be making a fool of himself?
…Forget it, better not to ask.
Leaving the classroom, Hikigaya planned to follow his usual routine: grab some bread from the cafeteria store and then enjoy his meal alone at his favorite spot.
However, halfway there, a drizzle started to fall from the sky.
Seriously… it's raining now?
It had been cloudy since morning, but the rain never came—until now, right at lunchtime.
Was the weather trying to mess with him?
No choice. Looks like he'll have to eat in the classroom.
Even though the class atmosphere had been tense and restless lately, Hikigaya wasn't about to sit in the rain munching on soggy bread.
Wet bread gets soft. And soft bread is gross.
Guess I'll have to enjoy my meal in the classroom today.
"Sorry, the yakisoba bread is sold out."
"…Huh?"
Hikigaya stared blankly at the cafeteria worker.
No way… It's sold out already?!
Don't tell me someone pulled some strings behind the scenes—no, wait, it's just yakisoba bread. That's impossible.
There were plenty of other delicious bread options, but none quite hit the same.
Maybe the first thing you set your sights on always feels like the best.
"…Why am I overthinking bread?"
Just as he was about to grab something at random, someone suddenly tapped him on the shoulder.
"Who is it?"
Turning around, he found Manabe from Class C standing behind him.
Wait… why was she here?
"Do you need something?" Hikigaya asked, looking confused.
"You don't have to be so wary." Manabe scoffed. "I just happened to see you and thought I'd say hi. Could you not act so surprised?"
"No, I'm just a little shocked… Wait a second."
Hikigaya paused, realizing something.
"You have the nerve to show your face in front of me?"
"Hah? What's that supposed to mean?" Manabe narrowed her eyes.
"Hmph… Don't tell me you've already forgotten about the time I asked you to buy bread for me. And let me remind you, I said buy it."
Just thinking about it made Hikigaya irritated.
If she didn't want to buy it, that was one thing. But why did she have to go and steal it instead?!
She even dragged his conscience into it!
"Uh, it wasn't like that."
Manabe scratched her head awkwardly, realizing what Hikigaya was getting at. "I just happened to run into Ishizaki that day, so I borrowed a yakisoba bread from him… And I did send him the points for it later!"
Oh sure, you borrowed it… right into your stomach.
Hikigaya waved his hand dismissively. "Whatever, I don't care anymore. Since you weren't expelled, I guess we'll call it even, yeah?"
"Yeah, of course."
However, Manabe didn't seem to pick up on Hikigaya's clear attempt to end the conversation and continued talking enthusiastically.
"By the way, you're something, huh? Shiina went ahead and slammed into the wall, just like you planned. And you even made the student council president take a fall—I heard a lot of second-years are talking about you."
"…Why do I get the feeling they're saying bad things?" Hikigaya muttered.
"Well, who cares? It's not like you're afraid of them. Oh, and actually—I've got something for you."
With that, Manabe reached into her jacket pocket.
But just as she was about to move, her actions suddenly froze, and a hesitant expression appeared on her face.
A moment later, her hand retracted, only to stretch forward again.
She repeated this back and forth several times.
…What the heck is she doing?
"Uh, are you okay?" Hikigaya cautiously asked.
Mainly because her behavior was kind of creepy—like she was possessed or something.
Hearing his words, Manabe hesitated for a moment before abruptly thrusting the bag in her other hand toward him.
"Here, take this."
"Huh?"
"You were trying to buy bread, right? I happened to buy one this morning but didn't get the chance to eat it," Manabe explained, trying to sound nonchalant. "I was planning to have it for lunch, but seeing you looking all pitiful after missing out on bread, I figured I'd just give it to you. Besides, I do owe you for this exam."
"…No thanks, I'm not hungry."
"Stop whining and take it."
Without giving him a chance to refuse, Manabe shoved the bag into Hikigaya's arms.
Then, without another word, she turned on her heel and strode away.
Jeez, what's up with her…? Well, whatever.
Hmph, I guess she does have some conscience.
Feeling somewhat pleased, Hikigaya opened the bag and looked inside.
And then, his smile froze.
Inside… why is it chocolate bread?
I mean, if I wanted this, I could've just bought it myself! Who asked her to give me one?!
I was expecting my beloved yakisoba bread, and this is what I get.
Though he had the impulse to throw it away, food was still food. No matter what, he couldn't waste it.
Resigned, Hikigaya took the chocolate bread back to the classroom and sat down at his desk, silently munching on it.
Mmm… Not bad.
This was his first time eating it. He'd only heard Matsushita mention before that it was ridiculously sweet.
But surprisingly, it suited his taste.
As expected, sweets are the best.
Speaking of Matsushita, she seemed to be in the classroom as well.
Probably because of the rain, there were noticeably more students staying inside today than usual.
They were grouped in twos and threes, scattered around the room, some even pushing desks together to have lunch.
Every time Hikigaya saw this, he always wanted to ask:
Did they get permission from the desk's original owner before doing this? What if it was inconvenient for someone else?
Hikigaya had dealt with a similar issue before.
Back in middle school, there was a period when people treated his desk like a storage spot for plastic bags and miscellaneous junk.
If he weren't worried that removing the "trash collection site" would inconvenience others, Hachiman would've complained!
Fortunately, in high school, people were more considerate.
Though at first, some still borrowed his desk without asking, by the third semester, no one dared to touch it anymore.
No one even dared to come near it.
It was as if an AT Field had formed around his space… Well, that was a good thing.
At least he could eat his lunch in peace.
"Hikigaya-kun, are you here?"
As he was lost in thought, a voice came from the classroom entrance.
He looked up—Ah, it was Asahina-senpai… huh?
Hikigaya froze on the spot, and a small commotion rippled through the classroom.
Especially those three sharp gazes from somewhere, nearly drilling holes—no, three holes—into his stomach.
Compared to that, Asahina seemed completely unfazed.
Ignoring everyone's stares, she scanned the room and quickly spotted Hikigaya sitting in the corner.
"Hikigaya-kun, seriously." Asahina pouted. "I called out to you, at least respond! Why are you pretending not to be here?"
"…Sorry, I didn't hear you."
At this point, Hikigaya had no choice but to brace himself and step forward under everyone's scrutiny.
Asahina didn't seem too bothered. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a plastic bag filled with chocolate cookies.
"Here, a Valentine's gift. This is my masterpiece, so let me know what you think later."
"Eh—Eh?!"
Before Hikigaya could react, Asahina shoved the cookies into his hands without hesitation.
The classroom erupted into an even bigger commotion.
"No, I mean... you just tripped on flat ground, senpai?"
Even if you're giving me something, at least choose a place where no one's around... No, wait—why are you giving it to me in the first place?!
Hikigaya suddenly felt a headache coming on. He never expected that Asahina would also give him a Valentine's gift.
"Don't take Nagumo so lightly!"
"Um... thanks."
No matter what, he figured he should at least say that much.
Then, lowering his voice, Hikigaya quietly said, "But... is this okay? If Nagumo... the student council president... finds out, it might cause trouble for you, senpai."
"Hehe, it's fine. It's not like I'm anyone special to Nagumo ."
Asahina chuckled, lowering her voice as well, even leaning in slightly toward Hikigaya's ear.
"Besides, to be honest, I'm pretty happy that someone finally gave Nagumo a proper lesson. He's gotten way too full of himself. So, just think of this as a reward for that."
"...Anyway, thanks for the gift, senpai." Hikigaya subtly took a step back. "I'll make sure to prepare a return gift on White Day."
"Mm, I'll be looking forward to it. Bye-bye."
Waving her hand, Asahina walked away with a bright smile.
Ah, just looking at her felt kind of soothing.
Despite her gal appearance, she surprisingly had a lot of feminine charm. The cookies looked delicious, too.
At least they were hundreds of times better than a certain someone's charcoal-like creations.
But... couldn't she have picked a better time?
Feeling the various gazes directed at him from behind, Hikigaya suddenly had a strong urge to just go home.
Seriously, don't do this again... No, let's make sure this never happens again.