The next day, Yukino and Hikigaya were about to end their short cohabitation. When leaving, Yukinoshita packed up the bathrobe and pajamas she wore yesterday, saying that she would take them home, wash them, and return them.
The driver of the Yukinoshita family arrived at the door of the apartment very early. Yukino asked Hachiman to ask the driver to give him a ride, but Hachiman evaded the idea because he had a very ominous premonition that he should not take the car downstairs.
" Where's Hikigaya? Why didn't he come down? " as Yukino got into the car, she heard a cold voice coming from the front seat.
" Sister, Hikigaya has his own things to do. There's no rush to leave here. Let's go home first. "
Yukino stroked the pajamas she had wrapped and answered calmly.
" Don't drive yet . Yukino, you really opened my eyes. You stayed out all night and even stayed in an apartment with a boy. Is this what you learned in America? "
Haruno's voice had some ups and downs.
" Mother isn't worried, so why are you so anxious, sister? I got here safe and sound. "
There was already a hint of sarcasm in Yukino's tone.
" Mother is not anxious because she had more fun than you when she was your age! Just pretend you didn't hear it. You are intact, but how can you guarantee that he won't do anything to you? He even took photos of you in your pajamas. "
The first half of Yukinoshita Haruno's explosive words scared the driver nearby, so she had to comfort him a little to prevent him from losing his mind while driving later.
" I thought you were worried about what I would do to him. Sorry, I was judging you by my own standards. "
Yukino clasped her hands together, and bowed slightly.
" Just so you know I care about you ... You didn't do anything to him, did you? "
Haruno suddenly asked. Yukino turned her head away and did not answer.
" Okay, it doesn't matter , but we're not in a hurry to leave. Watanabe, drive the car across the street. We'll just watch here and see if our car leaves and Hikigaya-kun comes downstairs immediately. "
Haruno instructed the driver to drive away and park the car on another street to observe the exit of the apartment building. At this time, Yukino turned off the phone in her pocket that showed that she was on a call.
In fact, Haruno didn't intend to catch him cheating or do anything else that would harm Hikigaya. She really just wanted to pick him up, that was for sure. Of course, the final result was that she waited foolishly for half an hour, but she didn't see the junior student she had been thinking about coming downstairs, so she had to believe that what her sister said was true.
————
"Wow, it feels like a lot of things happened during this holiday..." Hikigaya lay back on his familiar bed, muttering to himself. Thinking back, he realized he had only spent this New Year's holiday at the Yukinoshita home, where various events had unfolded between him and the Yukinoshita sisters.
As for his main job—writing—he had made no progress in the past week. Of course, it was perfectly fine for an author to take a break during the holiday.
In the new year, Hachiman planned to focus on his writing career. By March, he would complete and officially publish all eight stories of his "Disintegration of Various Causes," but he viewed this as just an appetizer. Neither the publisher nor he himself had high expectations for the sales of such a collection of short stories.
As for the new serialization following the end of "Disintegration of the Causes and Conditions," Hikigaya needed to give it careful thought. "All Readings" magazine was set to be published and distributed by Sakuraba Publishing House. To better negotiate with Sakuraba and ensure they would always regard him favorably, Hachiman planned not to include his best work in "All Readings" for serialization.
Hikigaya considered "The Newcomer." This classic story, written by bestselling author Keigo Higashino in his previous life, featured a narrative running through it, but essentially it consisted of a series of unit dramas, divided into nine chapters. The book explored various family matters and was a very humane mystery novel, making it ideal for serialization in magazines.
Furthermore, this book was also highly suitable for adaptation into a television series. Kyoichiro Kaga was bound to become a classic detective figure on future TV screens, capable of supporting his own show.
Hikigaya's most important work this year was "The Clock Museum Incident," which was tentatively scheduled for release in July. Hachiman still intended to have Sakuraba continue publishing this book, but he wasn't in a rush to negotiate the publishing contract.
He planned to flirt with other publishing houses first—dining and chatting with their representatives. He aimed to use various strategies to make Sakuraba feel a competitive pressure. It wouldn't be until the final moment that he formally negotiated with the publishing house about releasing "The Clock Museum Incident."
Sakuraba would not halt operations without Hachiman, but they wouldn't want to lose such a rising and popular new star, so Hikigaya felt confident in this approach.
Additionally, Hikigaya now had an insider at Sakuraba—Editor Naho Imamura. As long as Mr. Hachiman continued to serialize in the magazine, Naho wouldn't be adversely affected and could freely share insights about the publishing house.
"Mr. Hachiman, how about I quit my job and become your personal assistant?" Naho Imamura once suggested, but Hikigaya thought that her idea was too ambitious.
"That's not necessary, Editor Imamura. You just need to share information about the publishing house with me from time to time; that would be a great help."
"What about the current situation at the publishing house? Something has happened recently. Do you remember Director Suzuki, who helped you resolve your qualifications for the Naoki Prize? I heard he will attend the award ceremony this year. Our publishing house hasn't sent anyone to attend in previous years, so this is a first since I joined the company," Naho Imamura recalled.
"So, Director Suzuki is responsible for keeping an eye on my every move. That's good because I need someone like him to relay messages to the higher-ups at the publishing house," Hikigaya concluded.
He briefly contemplated the information provided by Imamura. He was still figuring out how to let Sakuraba know about his interest in other publishers when he realized the publisher was proactively sending someone to document the situation.
After outlining his general plan for the new year, Hikigaya was ready to embark on the last semester of his junior high school career.
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