Kawasaki arrived near the sports field.
She looked around.
Scanning her surroundings.
"Where the hell did Hikigaya run off to in the middle of the day?"
"No matter what, I have to help Yukinoshita find Hikigaya!"
"Sigh… After all the things I've done to let Yukinoshita down, I have to make up for my sins this time!"
Taking a deep breath, Kawasaki continued anxiously searching for the boy.
As she walked, she found herself near a few trees by the field.
"Huh? What's that noise?"
With her sharp instincts, Kawasaki immediately picked up on some sounds coming from behind a tree.
She inhaled.
Approached.
However…
Just as she was about to step closer—
A head suddenly popped out from behind the tree.
Kawasaki was startled.
"You—"
"Ahem, good afternoon, Kawasaki-san."
It was Kasumigaoka.
"G-Good afternoon."
Recovering from the surprise, Kawasaki stared in confusion at the girl peeking out from behind the tree.
"What are you doing here, Kasumigaoka-san…?"
"Reading."
"Reading?" Kawasaki frowned.
"Yes."
Kasumigaoka nodded calmly.
"This place… ahem, this place is rather quiet. Reading here helps me focus better."
"You're really dedicated to studying, huh?"
Nodding in admiration, Kawasaki didn't dwell on it and continued scanning her surroundings.
Seeing this, Kasumigaoka asked, "What are you looking for, Kawasaki-san?"
"Oh, well, I'm helping Yukinoshita find Hikigaya. Have you seen him?"
"Him…"
Kasumigaoka's eyes flickered as the corners of her lips curled slightly.
But in the next second, she quickly sucked in a breath and hastily said, "I-I haven't seen him at all. He… he usually spends his lunch with you, doesn't he? Sss—"
"We ate together, but then he ran off." Kawasaki sighed.
"Oh… I see…"
Kasumigaoka pressed her lips together, then asked, "Speaking of which, Hikigaya has been spending a lot of time with you lately, hasn't he? Hehe, you two must be pretty close."
"Eh?!"
Caught off guard by Kasumigaoka's sudden remark, Kawasaki's expression became awkward.
"Hikigaya and I are just normal friends. What's wrong with eating together? Is there a problem?"
"Hehe~ Just normal friends?"
Kasumigaoka chuckled.
"Making him a homemade bento… is that something 'normal friends' do?"
"!!"
Kawasaki froze.
Kasumigaoka continued,
"Typically, that's something only couples do, you know? If you ask me, Kawasaki-san, could it be that you actually want to… sss—pursue Hikigaya?"
Kawasaki's heart skipped a beat, her face flushing red as she hurriedly denied, "No way! I-I don't have any feelings for Hikigaya at all! I-I'm only doing this for Yukinoshita! We're in the same class, and I'm just looking after my friend's boyfriend. What's wrong with that?!"
Watching Kawasaki get so worked up, Kasumigaoka remained silent, smiling faintly.
Kawasaki gritted her teeth, embarrassment creeping up from deep within her.
Seeing this, Kasumigaoka had originally planned to tease her a bit more—
But…
Something seemed to cross her mind.
Kasumigaoka quickly spoke up, "Well then, Kawasaki-san, if you don't have anything e-else, I need to get back to… uh… s-studying."
"I'll say it again, I don't have feelings for Hikigaya! Don't get the wrong idea!" Kawasaki couldn't help but emphasize once more.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it! Now go already!"
"..."
Kawasaki fell silent.
Letting out a few sighs, she prepared to turn and leave.
"Huh? Wait! I can just call him!"
Kawasaki suddenly smacked her forehead.
In her rush, she had completely forgotten about this option.
Hopefully, Hikigaya had his phone with him.
"C-Call him?!"
Kasumigaoka looked puzzled.
But the moment she saw Kawasaki pull out her phone, she visibly tensed up.
"K-Kawasaki-san, w-wait a second!"
Her heart dropped. Kasumigaoka nearly lunged forward to stop her.
"Don't call him here!!"
"I'll be quick."
Kawasaki replied casually as she dialed Hikigaya's number.
Then—
A phone started ringing.
And the source of the ringtone—
Came from behind the tree where Kasumigaoka had been hiding.
Kawasaki: "???"
Kasumigaoka: "!!!"
Their gazes locked.
The atmosphere froze.
Swallowing nervously, Kawasaki asked in a trembling voice,
"Why is his phone…?"
"B-Because I took it! I—"
Kasumigaoka attempted to explain, but when she saw Kawasaki approaching her, she panicked.
"W-Wait! Kawasaki-san, d-don't come over here! Stay back! Don't come any closer!!!!"
—
Meanwhile, in Class 3-J.
Sitting by the window, Yukinoshita looked toward the field and sighed deeply.
Kawasaki is probably about to uncover Senpai and Kasumigaoka-senpai's secret affair.
Sigh, I just hope the two of them can get things back on track.
"Heh… In the end, they'll both be conquered by my dear husband anyway."
After sighing, Yukinoshita didn't even realize—
The corners of her lips had curled into a subtle smirk.
—
Elsewhere.
After some time had passed and things had calmed down.
Hikigaya, Kasumigaoka, and Kawasaki made their way back to the classroom.
Hikigaya kept his head down, silent.
Kasumigaoka casually twirled her hair, looking completely unbothered.
As for Kawasaki—
Her eyes were lifeless, her legs trembling as if her entire worldview had collapsed.
At that moment—
She kept mumbling to herself,
"How did it come to this…? How did it come to this…?"
"Well, that's just how it is~"
Kasumigaoka flicked her hair back and said coolly,
"Although you didn't show up at the perfect timing, it still turned out alright. Hmm… in fact, hehe~ I might just end up pregnant with Hikigaya's baby this time~"
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?! Pregnant with Hikigaya's baby?!"
Kawasaki snapped back to reality with a jolt.
She turned to Hikigaya in horror,
"Hikigaya, d-don't tell me you actually—"
Hikigaya frantically waved his hands, "Don't listen to her! I-I didn't! Kasumigaoka-senpai is just spouting nonsense…!"
"T-Then…"
Kawasaki hesitated.
But—
Seeing Hikigaya looking so dejected and utterly defeated, she found herself unable to say anything harsh.
She couldn't even bring herself to scold him.
Which only made her frustration boil over even more.
Unable to vent it elsewhere, she turned to Kasumigaoka, glaring furiously,
"Kasumigaoka! Do you have any idea that Hikigaya has a girlfriend?! You shameless woman—how dare you seduce him right out in the open?! Tell me, how do you plan to take responsibility for this?!"