Hikigaya and Ai Hoshino stepped out of the police station, walking along the quiet streets.
By now, it was already quite late.
As for the hooded man who had attacked Ai earlier, he had been taken straight to jail.
Walking lightly beside Hikigaya, almost like a carefree child, Ai smiled and said,
"Once again, I have to thank you tonight. You were so cool just now, hu!"
With a playful grin, she gave him a big thumbs-up.
"...Tch!"
Far from being moved by her beauty, Hikigaya felt a chill run down his spine. He quickly corrected her,
"Miss Hoshino, the act stops here. Stop calling me your boyfriend."
"Eh? What a shame. And here I thought Ai was such an adorable idol..."
"Boohoo~ My precious Ai-chan has a boyfriend! Nooo~ My Ai! My Ai!!
Who is it?! Who the hell is it?! I swear, I'll kill him!!!"
Mimicking the crazed screams of a delusional fan, Hikigaya let out a deep sigh and said,
"Think about my situation here. Your fans might actually kill me."
"Pfft~ Hikigaya-kun, you're way too funny," Ai giggled before playfully clenching her fists.
"But Hikigaya-kun, you're so strong! You could totally take them all down with ease! Just like earlier! You were so cool! Boom! One punch, and that guy was out cold!"
Her eyes sparkled with admiration as she waved her tiny fists around, imitating some kind of superhero knocking out a villain.
Sis, you are way too deep into this chuuni act!
Hikigaya's face burned red with embarrassment.
Another black mark added to his ever-growing list of cringe-worthy moments...
"Hehehe, Hikigaya-kun, maybe you're actually a superhero sent by the heavens just for me?" Ai teased, gazing up at him with her glittering eyes.
As she spoke, she leaned in closer and closer.
A faint, sweet fragrance lingered in the air.
With her breathtaking looks and adorable expressions, her charm was almost overwhelming.
No wonder she was an idol.
Hikigaya quickly averted his gaze and muttered,
"I'm no superhero. I'm just a normal guy. What happened earlier was just self-defense, pure instinct. I wasn't protecting you—I was protecting myself. I wasn't about to get stabbed to death over some nonsense."
"Hehe~ If you wanted to avoid trouble, then you shouldn't have come over in the first place~ But in the end, you still showed up to save me~"
Ai smiled mischievously at him.
Yep.
Girls who smile like this are the most dangerous creatures in existence.
"I had no choice; I was on my way home."
"There are a million roads in this world. You could've taken another one, but you chose that exact street~"
"My house is on that street."
"Sigh~ Hikigaya-kun, always lying to women~"
"..."
Under the moonlit sky, the two of them continued their conversation.
Of course, it was mostly Ai talking and laughing, while Hikigaya wore his usual miserable expression.
But as they talked, something about Ai started to feel strangely familiar to him.
She reminded him of...
His past self.
Like a lone wolf, silently drifting through life all by herself.
...Even though he personally didn't mind being alone, he knew firsthand just how lonely that path could be.
It wasn't the right one.
He had struggled through so much, and in the end, he had finally found something real—his true thing.
His girlfriend, Yukinoshita.
He had already broken free from that isolated existence and become a normal person.
But now...
Here was a lost little stray, wandering without direction—just like he once was.
Taking a deep breath, Hikigaya looked seriously at the ever-smiling girl beside him.
"Miss Hoshino..."
"Hmm? Why the serious face?"
Ai suddenly leaned in close, her body lightly pressing against his.
"!!"
Hikigaya froze.
This woman is way too dangerous!
He quickly stepped back, putting distance between them.
"N-nothing. I just think you should try making some real friends. When you have real friends, you'll go out with them, have fun, and you won't end up wandering the streets alone at night. Stuff like what happened earlier won't happen again."
"Oh?"
Ai blinked her bright, sparkling eyes.
"Hikigaya-kun... are you worried about me?"
"No. I'm just thinking about myself."
"Hehe~"
Hearing his tsundere response, Ai simply chuckled.
Then she said,
"Well, I'll take Hikigaya-kun's kind advice to heart. But before that, I need to properly thank you!"
"No need."
"Eh? But I haven't even said how I want to thank you yet! What if you really like my idea?"
"Let me guess. You want to invite me to dinner this weekend or something? No thanks, not interested."
"Wrong~"
Ai shook her head and smiled.
"Hmm, maybe free concert tickets? Sorry, but I have zero interest in idol shows."
"Nope~"
"Giving me money? Sorry, I don't need that either."
"Hehe, not even close~~"
"Huh? None of the above?"
Hikigaya frowned in confusion.
"Then what exactly—"
"Hikigaya-kun~"
Ai took a small step forward, raising her hands as if inviting him into an embrace.
She looked straight into his eyes and, with an earnest smile, said,
"I want you to be my boyfriend! My real boyfriend! Hikigaya-kun, you are the true thing I've been searching for!"
"...?!"
Hikigaya's whole body stiffened as his eyes widened in shock.
"You—you said what?! T-true thing?!"
"Yep~! Oh, wait, you probably don't know what a 'true thing' is, huh? Well~ I can't really explain it either. Anyway, I just know that I want you to be my boyfriend!"
Ai's smile was sincere, and her clear, beautiful eyes showed no trace of deception.
Hikigaya was stunned.
How the hell does Ai Hoshino know about 'true things'?!
And asking me to be her 'true thing'—
"Hehehe~ So, what do you think?"
Ai smiled sweetly, extending her hands again in an inviting gesture.
"You wanted me to find true friends, right? So now I want to be closest to you, Hikigaya-kun. I want to be with you. I want you to be my man. My true thing. I..."
She leaned in ever so slightly, her voice soft and filled with warmth.
"I... want to create a child with you~!"
"???"
Hikigaya's brain short-circuited.
Create... a child?!
Excuse me?!
How long have they even known each other?! How long have they even talked?!
And she's already saying something this outrageous?!
Before he could even begin to process the absurdity of it all—
A sharp, anxious voice suddenly rang out from behind them.
"Hikigaya! Who is this woman?!"
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