Chapter 174: Yukinoshita, Whose Bust Is More Straightforward Than She Is!
Luke returned to the [Kitty Area], handed the drinks to the three girls, and spent a while longer wandering around the Cat and Dog Exhibition with them.
"Whoa? There are birds over there."
"Then let's go take a look."
Seeing the sudden spark of interest in Luke's eyes, Mikasa agreed immediately.
The group returned to the bird section and discovered that it contained more than colorful little birds. Behind sturdy barriers was another area devoted to larger birds, including majestic eagles, falcons, and similar raptors.
Birds required less floor space, so the exhibition could display a much wider variety of species, including some that were relatively rare.
Luke studied the raptors with obvious interest. Their sharp talons, hooked beaks, rigid feathers, and proud posture looked incredibly cool from every angle.
"Huh? Eagles and falcons aren't the same thing?"
Reading the information plaques beneath the enclosures, Luke was genuinely surprised to see them categorized separately.
After comparing them carefully, he noticed that falcons generally seemed smaller and more streamlined, while eagles looked broader and more imposing.
If he had to describe the difference subjectively, falcons leaned a little more toward cute, while eagles were pure coolness.
"How about buying one?"
Luke turned toward the girls for their opinions.
"…They're not for sale," Annie said helplessly.
Mikasa, ever the woman of action, simply went and asked.
"They really aren't for sale."
"Figures."
Luke sighed. He had known that from the beginning and was mostly joking, but having the possibility officially crushed still left him slightly disappointed.
"I really do want a cool pet like that someday."
"No thanks," Annie rejected immediately.
"Hm? You don't think they look cool?"
"No."
'As expected.'
'Women simply cannot comprehend the magnificence of animals like these.'
"What do you think, Megumi?" Annie suddenly asked.
"They're fine. I think that posture is rather beautiful, though."
"Exactly. That beauty is what makes them cool."
Luke nodded in satisfaction at Megumi's agreement, then suddenly remembered something.
"Weren't you two planning to pick out a pet? You didn't find one?"
Pets were supposed to add some relaxation and color to daily life, but if someone lacked patience or emotional stability, forcing themselves to raise one would only create more stress.
Luke happened to be exactly the kind of person who hated unnecessary trouble.
Still, if his two maids wanted a pet to make life at home a little more lively, he did not particularly mind.
"We were going to buy a cat," Mikasa said, "but after thinking about it, we decided not to."
"Why?"
"Too much trouble."
'…Right.'
Apparently both of his maids hated trouble too.
After casually looking through the remaining exhibits, the group finally finished their visit.
Luke let Mikasa and Annie leave first with their new friend, while he stayed behind near the exhibition entrance as promised and waited for Yukinoshita Yukino.
The crisp sound of sandals against the floor soon approached. Wearing a pale beige dress, Yukino arrived shortly after Luke sent his message.
Considering her disastrous sense of direction, Luke had deliberately chosen the exit closest to her.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Yukino said softly.
He had not actually waited long at all.
But Luke had already been dying to ask one question.
"So what exactly is June 18th?"
She had dropped that mystery on him and walked away. He had not cared much at first, but thoughts were like swamps: the more you struggled with them, the deeper you sank.
Seeing his utterly confused expression, Yukino showed the faintest victorious smile and raised her chin with satisfaction.
"It's Yuigahama-san's birthday."
"Hm?"
'So it's Yui's birthday?'
Luke genuinely had not known.
But more importantly…
'How the hell was I supposed to guess that?!'
Luke hated troublesome rituals enough that he barely cared about birthdays in general.
Then Yukino calmly added, "…Probably."
"Her birthday, huh… Wait. What?"
Luke stared at her.
"You guessed?"
"Mm. Her email address contains the numbers 0618, so I made what I consider a reasonable inference."
"Guessing something like that… Never mind. With your communication skills, I doubt you'd ever directly ask her anyway."
Yukino's social ability was practically negative.
If relationships were divided into friends, acquaintances, and strangers, Yukino had effectively sealed off the entire "friend" category.
Even though Yui already qualified as her friend, Yukino still treated her with the caution reserved for someone one step farther away.
That was how Yukino maintained distance from people: never pry into personal matters and never cross a boundary.
A question like, "When is your birthday?" sat awkwardly close to the private side of that line.
'What a troublesome person.'
Hearing Luke's evaluation, Yukino furrowed her brows in displeasure.
"Anyway, the day after tomorrow should be Yuigahama-san's birthday. What do you think?"
"I think with my eyes."
"If you manage to develop vision through another organ, I'll gladly contact a biological research institute and report that humanity has produced a new species."
"Oh? So I've already evolved from a strange creature into a human in your mind? Congratulations to me. Truly worth celebrating."
"You're surprisingly self-aware. After spending time with you, I've reached much the same conclusion."
"Yukinoshita, getting to know someone is like looking into a mirror. By that logic… we're the same species."
"My. Are you provoking me?"
"Exactly."
Luke paused.
"…Actually, forget it. Just tell me what you want to do about Yui's birthday."
He could feel the conversation drifting farther and farther from the original point, and he no longer had the patience for another verbal duel.
Faced with the question, Yukino suddenly fell silent. She pressed her lips together and looked away.
'What is she doing?'
Luke waited.
And waited.
Just as he was starting to lose patience, Yukino finally raised her head and gathered her courage.
"Yuigahama-san is thoughtless, careless, speaks before thinking, enters other people's personal space without permission, laughs things off to avoid problems, and is unbearably noisy…"
Luke blinked.
"Wait. Are you… insulting her?"
"Please let me finish."
Yukino glared resentfully at him for interrupting, then continued.
"But Yuigahama-san isn't a bad person. She's a very good frie… club member. So I think we should celebrate her birthday."
That part was certainly true.
With Yui's personality, even after making a mistake, she could probably pound a fist against her own head, make some ridiculous "tehe" sound, and somehow convince everyone to forgive her.
Still, Luke had never imagined that the famously distant Yukinoshita Yukino would one day actively think about celebrating someone else's birthday.
If he had not just finished an ice-cold drink while standing beneath powerful air conditioning, he might have suspected heatstroke.
Then again, her long list of complaints and her decision to ask Luke for advice were probably her way of convincing herself.
Maybe she was nervous.
Or embarrassed.
Perhaps she simply needed someone else to push her toward a decision she had already made.
Luke glanced at her. Despite all those supposedly critical words, the corners of Yukino's lips were slightly raised, giving her an almost quietly pleased expression.
'What a dishonest woman.'
It was the classic sharp tongue, soft heart.
Translated properly, her complaints sounded more like:
'I bought the cat a perfectly soft little bed, but that silly thing insists on sleeping inside the cardboard box from the delivery. Honestly, what am I supposed to do with it?'
Yukino still could not fully escape the solitary habits she had built over the years. Unwilling to step outside her familiar environment, she pretended not to care about Yui, yet constantly looked after her and gradually allowed her closer.
Meanwhile, Yui continued doing what she always did: relentlessly shortening the distance between them.
Luke decided to tear straight through Yukino's lack of honesty.
"Then just say you want to celebrate your friend's birthday. Why take such a huge detour? You really are dishonest."
Embarrassed, Yukino immediately glared at him again.
Luke ignored the pressure entirely.
"Why are you glaring? And don't start saying something stupid like, 'First, we must define the precise range of relationships that qualify as friendship.'"
Yukino's brows rose sharply.
"If you have this much free time, could you not do something useful? If all you contribute is breathing in and out, even the air conditioner above us has greater value."
She had a point.
Global warming was getting worse every year, and it was already unbearably hot in mid-June. Without air conditioning, Luke would not even want to leave home.
A few extra evil spirits were manageable.
A summer without air conditioning?
Now that was suffering.
"The air conditioner is more useful than me. I'll admit it."
Luke continued his counterattack. "But can't you be a little more straightforward? If you only know how to hide your thoughts and conceal your emotions behind sarcasm, then even your bust is more straightforward than you."
Yukino took a deep breath, and her chest, which had little to speak of, heaved as well.
Even with Hiratsuka-sensei forcing them together and Yui constantly acting as a bridge, Luke still found Yukino remarkably difficult to get along with.
"So what are you planning? You made me wait here because you want to celebrate her birthday in the clubroom?"
"…Mm. I was thinking of buying her a birthday present."
After hesitating, Yukino finally nodded. She nervously pinched the pattern near the front of her dress, lifted her faintly flushed face, and forced out a quiet question.
"So… could you come with me tomorrow?"
Luke looked away from her trembling eyelashes and pulled out his phone.
"…I don't mind. But before that, there's something more important we need to do."
"Hmm?"
"Don't 'hmm' me. June 18th being Yui's birthday is still only your guess. We need to confirm it first."
Luke continued, "And once we know the actual date, we should make sure she's free. She has other friends too."
Namely Miura Yumiko, Ebina Hina, and the others.
Luke dialed Yumiko's number.
"Th-that makes sense… We really should confirm it."
Yukino gave a faint, self-deprecating laugh.
She clearly understood that much herself.
She simply had nobody she felt comfortable asking.
Luke glanced at her just as the call connected.
Yumiko's lowered voice came from the phone.
"Hello? I'm grounded. I can't go anywhere."
"I'm not asking you to come out. I just wanted to ask something. June 18th, the day after tomorrow, is that Yui's birthday?"
"Eh? June 18th… Yui?"
Yumiko paused.
"I think Hina mentioned it before. Let me check."
Of course.
Miura Yumiko, whose queenly behavior often operated according to her own rules, was not exactly the type to memorize everyone's birthday.
"Yeah, yeah. The day after tomorrow is definitely her birthday. Why?"
"Our President Yukinoshita wants to celebrate it, so I'm confirming."
Luke continued, "By the way, are you guys planning anything for her that day?"
Yukino immediately glared at him.
Luke glared straight back.
"Mm, I see…"
Yumiko answered after a moment.
"…Okay, got it."
Once everything was confirmed, Luke gave Yukino an OK gesture.
After settling the timing with Yumiko, Luke and Yukino also agreed on when and where to meet the next day before finally heading home separately.
Luke had originally planned to activate his new Career Card tomorrow.
'Eh, forget it.'
It was not exactly urgent.
He could deal with it whenever he had time.
…
(Don't forget to vote, review, and leave a comment below! :D The more you vote, the more chapters I upload.)
...
Read more chapters(25+):
patréon.com/U22
(Note: Replace "é" with "e" on your web browser.)