Chapter 10 – Honami Ichinose
The warm spring breeze of April and the bright sunshine bathed everything like a hot spring, making one feel cozy and comfortable.
Although the weather was great, both Hikigaya and Kito were the quiet type of guys. If they actually tried having a conversation, it would probably end in just two sentences. Just like now—
"Nice weather today."
"Yeah."
"..."
"..."
Sigh. Seriously, can someone just tell me what I'm supposed to say during small talk?
Under this slightly dull atmosphere, the two walked in silence until they reached the entrance of the auditorium and retrieved their luggage from the cloakroom.
"Well then, I'll be off." Kito, holding a suitcase in each hand like he was carrying two bags of fruit, gave Hikigaya a relaxed nod before turning and walking off with light steps.
…Now I'm kinda curious if he felt relieved because he got his luggage back or because he didn't have to walk with me anymore.
Whatever, no point in overthinking it. That's just asking for self-inflicted humiliation.
After Kito left, Hikigaya picked up his own stuff, took out his phone, and checked the student ID map attached to it, preparing to take his luggage to the dormitory.
Just then, a beautiful girl carrying multiple bags appeared in his field of vision.
She had a large backpack sagging slightly from her shoulders, clearly heavy.
In her left hand, she held two stuffed canvas bags—the thin handles digging red marks into her slender wrist. Her right hand was occupied dragging a huge suitcase with visible effort.
Sweat dotted her clear and pretty face, and her pink-gold hair clung slightly damp from it. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and her eyes looked a little tired, but she kept her back straight and pushed forward toward the dorms with determination.
Did she bring her entire life's belongings to school or what?
Hikigaya remembered her. He had seen this girl at the entrance ceremony standing at the front of Class B's line.
Long pink-gold hair, a smile warm and radiant like an archangel's, and big boobs.
…Well, not that the last part is important. Sure, nine out of ten guys notice the chest first, but the remaining ten percent are more proper—they focus on the oppais. So please don't get the wrong idea, Miss F-cup.
Maybe she somehow heard what he was thinking, because just then, the girl stumbled and almost fell flat on her face.
"…Need a hand?" Hikigaya quickly stepped forward to support her.
"Thank you." Her face flushed slightly, clearly embarrassed to be seen in such a clumsy state.
After hearing Hikigaya's offer, she quickly responded in a soft voice, "Eh? R-Really?"
"Yeah, it's fine. You're heading to the dorms, right? I'm going that way too."
Hikigaya took the two canvas bags from her left hand. He was going to help pull the suitcase too, but she lightly shook her head and pulled her right hand back.
"Um, I'm Ichinose Honami, from Class 1-B."
"I'm Hikigaya Hachiman, from Class 1-A."
"Thank you so much, Hikigaya-kun. You really saved me."
Ichinose smiled gratefully, her breathtaking beauty radiating with energy. Her friendly smile made her seem even more lively.
Her voice was lovely—clear and crisp, like the tinkling of bells.
"No problem. You really brought a lot of stuff to school, huh?"
"Uhh—t-these bags aren't all mine. They belong to some classmates too…"
She let out a cute little whimper, waving her finally freed left hand near her chest as she explained a bit flustered.
Huh, so even someone this clearly popular gets bullied by classmates?
Suddenly I'm starting to doubt the student standards of this school.
Maybe she caught on to his thoughts, because she puffed out her full chest proudly with a playful grin. "I-I'm not getting bullied or anything, okay? I made a deal with Shiranami-san and the others: I'd carry the luggage, and they'd buy my daily necessities for me."
"I-I see…" Hikigaya looked away, his face a little red for some reason.
How should I say this—though they all puff out their chests, when Ichinose does it, it feels totally different from Yukinoshita or Sakayanagi.
It's really mysterious.
A slim figure paired with eye-catching boobs—pretty much the ultimate combo.
"Hikigaya-kun, let's exchange contact info."
As Hikigaya was lost in thought, Ichinose took out her phone and gave it a light shake toward him. Her phone had been constantly buzzing with new messages since earlier.
"Eh? Why?"
"B-Because you seem like a really kind and helpful person, and I want to make more friends at this school…"
Oh, I see… Well, it's just exchanging contact info with a Class B student. Shouldn't be a big deal.
Wait, why do I feel the need to explain that to myself?
Hikigaya handed his phone directly to Ichinose. She looked surprised but then took it carefully.
"Eh? I-I should input it myself?"
"It's not a big deal. It's a new phone anyway, and I'm not good at typing."
"I see…"
Ichinose looked down at the phone and her fingers moved swiftly. In no time, she had entered her contact information.
"All done! Looks like I'm the first person in Hikigaya-kun's contacts."
Hikigaya took his phone back and opened the contact list. The rest was empty—only "Honami Ichinose" stood proudly at the top.
After exchanging contact info, they followed the campus signs and soon arrived at the dormitory area.
There were three buildings total, one per grade. Each had signs posted clearly for identification.
A few girls were gathered near the flowerbeds outside one of the dorms, chatting noisily while holding bags full of various daily necessities.
When one of the short-haired girls saw Ichinose approaching, she ran over to help with the suitcase and shot Hikigaya a suspicious look.
"Thanks for the hard work, Ichinose-san."
They had just started school, yet this short-haired girl seemed quite close to Ichinose already. As she got closer, Hikigaya—whose ears were unusually sharp—caught her whispering quietly to Ichinose, "Ichinose-san, run…"
Now that's just rude.
"Shiranami-san, sorry to keep you waiting. This is Hikigaya-kun, who helped me with all this luggage. I wouldn't have been able to bring it back so quickly by myself."
Ichinose gently patted Shiranami's shoulder and introduced Hikigaya to her.
"H-Hikigaya-kun, hello. I'm Shiranami Chihiro. U-uh, sorry for misunderstanding you earlier."
The short-haired girl bowed slightly and quickly took the canvas bags from Hikigaya.
She looked flustered and apologetic for misjudging him.
"It's fine. I didn't take it personally."
Ichinose laced her fingers together at her chest and flashed an energetic smile. "Thanks so much for your help today, Hikigaya-kun. Ah, right—Hikigaya-kun, let's go eat together later!"
"Uh, no thanks. I… need to get my dorm set up."
Hikigaya shook his head and declined.
Dodging invitations with an excuse—that's the standard move of a loner. It's practically a reflex.
"I see… Then let's eat together another time. My treat."
"Let's go, Ichinose-san. I already picked up your room key card."
Shiranami gently tugged on Ichinose's sleeve and led the way toward the other waiting girls with the luggage.
"Mm-hmm. Then I'll head off for now. See you next time, Hikigaya-kun!"
Leaving him with a brilliant smile, Ichinose waved lightly at her chest, then jogged to catch up with her friends and got on the elevator with them.