Chapter 28: Miura Yumiko Still Sent the Text!
Miura Yumiko relentlessly questioned the boy.
Luke nodded weakly.
Right now, he just wanted to be like a normal high school student, curled up on the sofa, watching TV, hugging his maid... eating pudding.
Beside them, the closely following fujoshi, Ebina Hina, looked strangely at Miura Yumiko, who was acting completely different from usual.
Miura Yumiko, known as the 'Flame Queen' in school, lived up to her nickname.
Her social initiative was like a blazing fire; she herself had gathered her friends and companions together.
Like selecting concubines, Miura Yumiko, at the top tier of school life, could freely choose the companions she wanted to gather around her.
And so, they became the top normie group in their grade.
What was strange was... Yumiko wasn't forcefully demanding this boy to join, but sincerely asking.
Connecting this with their earlier discussion about Yumiko's knee...
A storm brewed in Ebina Hina's mind.
She stopped her train of thought.
Thinking further wouldn't be good; she didn't want to lose her current friends.
"I have work after school, and besides, I don't really know the other classmates well. Even just sitting there alone would be considered good," Luke said as the dessert shop staff packed his sweets.
"If I make the classmates unhappy because of me, then that would be a sin, Miura-san."
Miura Yumiko opened her mouth, "With me there..."
But Luke interrupted, "Miura-san, we're not strangers. You know I have more important things to do. There are always people who need help."
Miura Yumiko remembered his exorcism work and closed her mouth.
Luke smiled, took out two puddings, and handed one to each girl.
"This shop's cream pudding is delicious. Try it."
"Ah... Thank you, thank you," Ebina Hina quickly accepted.
Miura Yumiko also reached out and took the pudding he handed her.
Looking at his smile, she hesitated for a moment, then spoke softly, "O-okay, but if you want to find friends, j-just leave it to me!"
Her calm tone suddenly turned prickly, like a cat bristling.
She quickly added, "D-don't get the wrong idea! Just consider it payment for helping me before!"
"Of course. If I need it, I'll definitely find you," Luke nodded amusingly.
"Then I'll be off first!"
"Got it. Go, go!" Miura Yumiko waved her hand haughtily.
Luke slowly disappeared from their sight.
Looking at the strange Yumiko, Ebina Hina decided to do something.
She breathed softly into Yumiko's ear, "You've fallen for someone else~ Yumiko."
"Ah!" Attacked in the ear, Miura Yumiko jolted awake, her face bright red as she desperately shook Ebina Hina's shoulders.
"Are you trying to die?! Hina! Besides, how could I fall for... someone else? That guy compared to Hayama, where... is he... good? Ah? So withdrawn, bad personality, anyway, anyway, I still like... Hayama."
After finishing, Miura Yumiko thought for a moment and added an affirmative nasal sound:
"Mm."
"I~~~ I... understand, please~ spare~ me," Ebina Hina went limp in Miura Yumiko's strong arms, her head swaying.
She felt like her soul had already left her body.
"I'll let you off this time. Y-you better not talk nonsense," Miura Yumiko helped Ebina Hina up, patting her arms.
"Oh~ I survived." Ebina Hina looked up at the sky, still shaken.
It's good to be alive~
"Let's stop here, Yumiko... I want to go home and revive myself by reading some manga," Ebina Hina said wistfully.
"Mm, alright. Anyway, the gift is already bought. Let's call it a day," Miura Yumiko also rubbed her tired shoulders.
"Mm, then I'm going home for dinner... See you at school, Yumiko," Ebina Hina waved.
"Bye."
"Bye." Without lingering, Miura Yumiko picked up her shopping bag, turned, and left.
Her way home was the exact opposite of Ebina Hina's.
"Whoever you choose, I'll support you, Yumiko."
Ebina Hina's voice came from behind the blonde girl.
"Eh? What are you talking about now?"
Miura Yumiko turned her head speechlessly, only to see Ebina Hina's incredibly serious gaze.
Miura Yumiko paused her agitated emotions for a moment...
"You!" Miura Yumiko took out the bee plushie and pressed it against Ebina Hina's chest.
"You're so dishonest with yourself, but towards others... Why are you always like this to others? It would be much better if you showed more of yourself."
"Because being friends with you guys makes me happy," Ebina Hina said simply.
"Fine, it's yours. Diligent little bee," Miura Yumiko waved her hand.
...
Nighttime.
Miura Yumiko lay prone on her bed, holding her brightly lit phone high above her head, her face buried deep in the pillow.
"Oof—!"
Her mind was filled with Ebina Hina's earlier words.
"What's so good about that guy?"
"So withdrawn he doesn't fit in..."
"Not gentle towards girls either..."
"His work is dangerous and scary..."
"His aesthetic sense is bad too, wears those stupid glasses every day..."
"Doesn't listen to advice either, what's the big deal about going to a birthday party to make some friends..."
Miura Yumiko muttered, lifting her head to look at the phone screen.
"Hayama is still better... Sunny, handsome, sociable, treats people... oof."
Miura Yumiko buried her head back into the soft pillow, fiercely squeezing the dog plushie beside her.
Hayama Hayato was indeed good, almost perfect in every aspect, approachable, good personality... but that applied to everyone.
Besides, he was the center of the group, doing everything possible to maintain stability, thus sacrificing himself and refusing change.
Any suggestive hopes would be met with vague deflections, just like Ebina Hina's description of Hayama 'doing nothing'.
And did she really like him?
It seemed, initially, just like Hina and Yui, she just thought he was 'cute'.
Even now...
Holding her breath in the pillow, Miura Yumiko finally lifted her head when she couldn't breathe anymore, looking at the phone screen in her hand.
It showed her chat interface with Luke.
Although there wasn't a single message exchanged between them...
As the top normie group member in school, adding a classmate as a friend was very simple for her.
Even in reality, she personally picked out the cute girls one by one to join her group.
Yui, Hina...
But...
Strangely, looking at the chat box, Miura Yumiko felt like she was looking at an insurmountable chasm.
"I haven't properly thanked him yet..."
Miura Yumiko found an excuse, her fingers flying across the keyboard.
[Thank you for before]
Delete, delete, delete.
Miura Yumiko speechlessly looked at the chat interface, back to square one.
She shifted her gaze to the unopened cream pudding on her vanity table.
[The pudding you gave me was delicious]
Delete, delete, delete.
"Aargh! Is making a friend this hard?!"
Fuming, Miura Yumiko pushed herself up onto her knees, fiercely grabbed the plushie, and slammed it onto the bed.
KO!
"Hoo hoo hoo! Can't take it anymore, whatever!"
Miura Yumiko grabbed her phone and furiously typed out a word—
Send!
...
"How long has it been?" Luke asked Annie, who was sitting cross-legged on his back.
He was doing a plank on the floor, sweat constantly dripping from his cheeks.
"Ten minutes," Annie replied calmly, eating pudding and watching TV.
"Get off," Luke said painfully, his waist couldn't take it anymore...
Then he saw his phone light up.
It was actually Miura Yumiko sending him a message.
Luke opened it—
[Idiot] appeared prominently on the screen.
Lying powerlessly on the floor, Luke stared blankly at the word...
What's wrong with Miura?
What... happened?
...
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