After school in the afternoon, the door to the Service Club was pushed open.
Hiratsuka Shizuka-sensei stood at the entrance, an unlit cigarette held between her fingers.
Hikigaya sat by the window, halfway through his novel. Hiiro was at the long table working on English exercises, her pen scratching rhythmically against the paper.
The two of them occupied their own corners, leaving most of the room empty between them.
Hiratsuka Shizuka walked in, took the head seat at the long table, and tucked the cigarette back into her pocket.
"Just the two of you?"
" Sakuraba said she was coming too."
As soon as the words left his mouth, footsteps echoed in the hallway. The door was pushed open, and Sakuraba Ema poked her head in.
"Ah, Sensei is here too," Sakuraba Ema said softly, walking in to take a seat in the middle of the long table.
Hiratsuka Shizuka glanced at her.
"I received your application to join the Service Club. While there are no hard requirents for joining this club, I still need to get a preliminary understanding of you."
Sakuraba Ema nodded.
"So, tell , why do you want to join?"
Sakuraba Ema took a deep breath and answered with a firm gaze.
"I want to help too. I don't want to always be the one protected by others."
Hiratsuka Shizuka remained silent, watching her for a few seconds before shifting her gaze away.
"Fine. Since you're here, stay and do your part."
She leaned back against the chair, her eyes circling the three of them.
"I heard you guys made so big headlines," Hiratsuka Shizuka said, getting straight to the point.
Hikigaya didn't respond, continuing to read his novel. Hiro's pen paused for an instant on the paper before resuming. Sakuraba Ema pursed her lips.
"The whole school knows about the confession. The Class J horoom teacher was even fuming and wanted to call both sets of parents, but I talked them out of it," Hiratsuka Shizuka
said, her tone making it hard to tell if she was praising or scolding them. "The previous rumors have indeed been suppressed, but the direction seems to have shifted a bit."
Hiratsuka Shizuka tapped her finger lightly on the tabletop.
"Now the entire school is discussing the two of you. No one is ntioning the rumors about Sakuraba Ema anymore." She paused. "Does this count as a success?"
Hikigaya closed his book and placed it on his lap.
"I suppose so. At least the objective was achieved."
"The objective?" Hiratsuka Shizuka arched an eyebrow. "What was your objective? To protect Sakuraba Ema? Or..."
She didn't finish the sentence, but the aning was obvious.
The room fell silent for a few seconds. A breeze blew in through the window, fluttering the pages of Hiiro's exercise book.
"The objective was to protect Sakuraba Ema," Nikaido Hiro spoke up. "Nothing else matters."
Hiratsuka Shizuka looked at her.
"Nikaido, you're certainly being cooperative. How did you agree to such a stupid thod?"
"Because it's the most effective way."
Hiratsuka Shizuka stared at her, silent.
The room remained quiet for a few monts. Emma kept her head down, her fingers clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
"Effective as it may be," Hiratsuka Shizuka finally spoke, her gaze moving from Hiro to Hikigaya, "have you considered that rumors aren't sothing that just end because you push them onto soone else?"
"But at least they moved away from one person. Rumors aren't physical objects; they don't double just because another person carries them. The total volu is fixed. If it's concentrated on , it won't crush anyone else."
Hiratsuka Shizuka frowned.
"That's twisted logic."
"Twisted logic is still logic. And rather than letting Sakuraba shoulder it alone, it's better if I do it. Anyway, I was talked about back in middle school; I have plenty of experience."
"That 'experience' is nothing to be proud of."
"It's not pride, it's making the best use of resources. This level of talk is just an itch to , but Sakuraba is different. She hasn't been through this, and forced endurance would cause her much more damage."
Hiratsuka Shizuka stared at him for two seconds.
"So you're treating yourself as a consumable?"
"I'm just making the choice with the highest cost-performance ratio. Trading one person who didn't have much of a social life anyway to ensure she doesn't have to endure those things—no matter how you do the math, it's not a loss.
Besides, rumors are simply people needing a topic. Once they're bored of discussing it, they'll naturally find the next thing. I just need to hold out until then."
Hiratsuka Shizuka watched him, her mouth twitching slightly, as if she didn't know whether to smile or not.
"You certainly have a way with words when it cos to this twisted logic of yours."
"It's a summary of experience. A solitary soul fears no idle gossip."
Hiratsuka Shizuka shook her head and turned to Nikaido Hiro.
"And you? Do you also think this is the 'choice with the highest cost-performance ratio'?"
Nikaido Hiro's pen stopped on the paper.
"No," she said. "But it is currently the only effective choice."
"Aren't you worried about yourself?"
"There's nothing to worry about," Nikaido Hiro's tone was flat. "There are already plenty of people who gossip about . One more or one less makes no difference."
Hiratsuka Shizuka watched her for a few seconds but didn't press further.
She turned to Sakuraba Ema.
"You heard them. They're shouldering it for you. What do you think?"
Sakuraba Ema looked up, her eyes slightly red but her expression very earnest.
"That's why I can't keep staying like this. I want to join the Service Club. I want to do what I can. I don't want to let others stand in front of every single ti."
Hiratsuka Shizuka looked at her for a mont and then nodded.
"Fine."
"Now, there's still one problem. You used a thod that produces short-term results, but how long can this thod last? A month? A sester? How long do you plan to act? Until graduation?"
"It won't take that long. Once everyone gets used to it, nobody will care. When the ti cos, we'll just find a reason to 'break up'."
"'Break up'?" Hiratsuka Shizuka arched an eyebrow. "Have you thought it through?"
"I have. We'll just say our personalities were incompatible. Everyone can see she and I aren't the sa kind of people anyway. High school romance—it's normal for a top student to be deceived occasionally."
Hiro's pen made a heavy scrawl across the paper. She said nothing.
Hiratsuka Shizuka glanced at the two of them.
"I'm not blaming you," her tone softened slightly. "I just want you to think clearly: is what you're doing now actually solving the problem, or just pushing the problem further down the road?"
The room fell silent for a few seconds.
"Still, it's not easy to go this far."
She looked at Hikigaya.
"Just make sure you can handle it yourself.
Alright, we'll consider this matter settled. You found the thod yourselves, so I won't criticize it further. You two can keep up the act, but don't cause any even bigger scenes. I'll keep an eye on Ema's situation; let know imdiately if anything happens.
On to business. There is a new request..."
Before she could finish her sentence, there was a knock at the door.
Three knocks—not too heavy, not too light, with an even rhythm.
"Co in."
The door was pushed open, and a girl stood at the entrance.
Her black, shoulder-length wavy hair was tied into low twin-tails, and her thick bangs almost covered her eyebrows. She wore the sa school uniform as the others, but a black bow was tied at her collar, and a small tal pendant hung from a choker, glinting under the lights.
Her gaze swept around the room, finally landing on Hikigaya.
"Excuse ," she said. Her voice was flat, devoid of any fluctuation.
Hiratsuka Shizuka looked at her and then stood up.
"Just in ti, the client is here. This is Kurobe Nanoka from Class J. You can handle it yourselves."
The door closed.
The room was quiet for a few seconds as Kurobe Nanoka stood at the entrance.
"May I sit?"
"Feel free." Hikigaya pointed to an empty spot at the long table.
Kurobe walked over and sat at the other side of the table. She sat very upright, hands placed on her knees. Her posture was different from Hiro's "top student" poise; it looked more like she was maintaining an alertness, as if she were ready to stand up at any mont.
"So, what is your request?" Hikigaya asked.
Kurobe looked at him, then at Nikaido Hiro.
"Before that, I want to confirm one thing..."
The door was suddenly shoved open.
"Wait!"
A blue-haired figure with ringlet braids rushed in, her detective hat tilted and a magnifying glass in her hand.
Tachibana Sherry stood at the doorway, her large amber eyes darting rapidly around the room before landing on Kurobe.
"Don't steal my case!"
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