Hikigaya's Inner World of Spring

"Hmm? Where are Mama and Hikki?"

After finishing their workout, Yui and Miura returned to the grassy area where Hikigaya and Mrs. Yuigahama had been sitting earlier, only to find that both of them were gone.

"Where did they go?"

Yui looked around curiously and saw a cute stray kitten strolling out from behind the trees.

"Hehe, little cutie, do you know where they went?"

She reached out to play with the kitten, which meowed a few times in response.

"They probably just moved to another spot to keep stretching or something," Miura said casually.

"Stretching?"

"When you weren't around, Hikigaya and your mom often did light workouts together," Miura explained.

"Oh, like jogging? But Mama isn't even wearing her exercise clothes today…"

"Doesn't have to be jogging. Maybe just squats or something," Miura said with a shrug.

"Squats?"

"Anyway, don't worry about them for now. Let's talk about you."

Miura sat down on the grass, patting the spot beside her. Yui hesitated for a few seconds, then sat next to her.

"Yui," Miura began, poking her finger at Yui's arm playfully, "so how are things going with you and Hikigaya?"

"E-Eh?!"

Yui's cheeks instantly flushed a deep pink. She fidgeted with her fingers and stammered, "I-I think… things are going well?"

"'I think'? What does that even mean?"

"I mean… not bad?" Yui mumbled, her voice barely a whisper.

Miura sighed. "At this rate, someone else is gonna snatch him up."

"If that happens… then I guess it just does," Yui said softly. "As long as Hikki's happy, I'll be okay."

"Seriously? You're just going to hand him over to Yukinoshita?"

"Well… she makes him smile. More than I do…"

Miura rolled her eyes. "Hmph. You act like Yukinoshita's your only rival. What if there are other girls too?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Miura cleared her throat. "I mean… it's possible you're not the only one who likes him that way."

Yui blinked, baffled. "There are other girls? Who would like someone like Hikki? He's just a totally normal guy."

Miura gave her a deadpan look. "Normal? Come on. If he were really that average, would you have fallen for him?"

"W-Well… not to me, he's not normal…"

Yui admitted it with a shy, blushing smile.

Miura glanced sideways at her, then asked, "Yui… what do you really think of Hikigaya?"

"M-Me?"

The question clearly caught her off guard.

"Yeah. Be honest."

"H-He's… a bit of a weirdo," Miura muttered, her own face turning a little red as she looked away. "Always staring at… stuff…"

"Ehh? Hikki's not like that!"

"Oh, please. Always sneaking glances at legs and stuff," Miura grumbled.

"H-He's never looked at me like that…" Yui glanced down at her chest and sighed dejectedly.

Miura's eye twitched. Seriously? With that figure? She couldn't help but feel a little self-conscious.

"Hikigaya's just putting on a front. If you took the lead a bit more—maybe even pushed a little harder—he'd probably fall for you in no time," Miura advised.

"W-What? Yumeiko?! What are you saying??"

"I mean it," Miura said seriously. "If you really want him, take action."

Yui's entire face turned crimson.

"You know what they say—once something happens between two people, it's hard to go back. If that happened, I'm pretty sure he'd take responsibility. He's that kind of guy."

"Y-You mean like… really…?" Yui squeaked, covering her face.

"This might be your only chance," Miura said bluntly.

"But I'm still in high school… I can't just…"

"Well, if you really want to win… what if you just got pregnant with his child?" Miura said, half-joking, half-serious. "Then it'd be checkmate. Yukinoshita wouldn't stand a chance."

"Eeehh?! Pregnant?! I'm still a student! Becoming a mom now would be—waaahh, I can't!"

---

Meanwhile, behind the tree nearby—

Hikigaya and Mrs. Yuigahama sat awkwardly side by side, their clothes wrinkled from sitting too long, and a strange tension lingered in the air.

Neither dared to make a sound, fearing they might be discovered by Yui and Miura.

"A-Auntie… I'm really sorry…" Hikigaya whispered, clearly embarrassed. "What I did earlier… I went too far. I didn't mean to…"

Mrs. Yuigahama's face was bright red. She stammered, "I-It's okay, Hikigaya-kun. You're a boy, and… I understand. Really, I do."

Hikigaya let out a slow breath of relief.

Just then, she leaned a little closer, her voice trembling as she whispered, "Hikigaya-kun… um… would it be too much to… maybe… do that again?"

"W-What?! A-Auntie?!"

"I-I'm sorry… I just…"

Yui… I'm sorry… Mama got carried away…