Chapter 12

I tried my best to look as uninterested as possible as I walked up to their table. Hopefully, they would take a hint. Himeno and Amikuro glared at me as I approached their table. What the hell do you want me to do? This is your fault. Ichinose greeted me once I got close enough.

"Hey Hikigaya, how are you just getting back from school? Also, would you like to join us for dinner?"

Usually, I would assume that this girl doesn't really care about me and is just trying to unite the class, but I get this weird feeling from her that she genuinely cares about my social life. I have no idea why though I'm the one isolated myself. I skipped self-introductions on purpose, and I was purposely cold to anyone who attempted to talk with me.

"ah, I was at the arbitration for Class D, and I was just gonna grab a snack then head out"

"oh, before you go, at least tell me about it, I was helping them out yesterday"

"..."

I seriously can't get a read on this girl. While I was talking with Ichinose, the glares of the other two girls grew intense. This is on you girls, not me. To be honest, I just wanted to grab my sandwich and head back to the dorm, but at the same time, I felt some guilt for Ichinose. After all, she was the leader of Class B, so she had no choice but to help me unite the class. Alright, I'll play along with her plan for a bit.

"Alright, I'll go get myself some food and then tell you what happened"

I turned around and walked towards the cashier to order some food.

-*- (POV Change to 3rd Person)

Watching Hikigaya leave, the two girls beside Ichinose immediately changed their expressions. Himeno asked Ichinose.

"Why are you trying so hard to communicate with him Ichinose?"

"ah, I guess I feel some responsibility for him as he is part of the class. At the rate he's going right now, he'll have to go through the next 3 years without any friends. I can't imagine that"

Himeno, looking around to make sure Hikigaya couldn't hear them quietly responded.

"Ichinose, it's clear that he doesn't want to make any friends. He left during self-introductions and has given a harsh attitude to anyone who tries to speak with him"

"Still, I'll try my best to help him fit in"

Himeno and Amikuro said in unison.

"Ah typical Ichinose"

After another 2 minutes, Hikigaya arrived back at the table with a latte and sandwich. He awkwardly sat down in the booth seat next to Ichinose and was now facing Himeno. Hikigaya began to unwrap his food, ignoring the awkward silence and glares he was receiving. Hikigaya asked Ichinose.

"So what do you want to know?"

Ichinose was shocked for a second as she never expected Hikigaya to start the conversation, but she responded.

"How did it go for Class D?"

Hikigaya responded quickly.

"Nothing happened in the trial. No substantial evidence was brought up, and I doubt any evidence will turn up in the future."

"..."

Ichinose and the other girls were confused by my straightforward answer. What does he mean no more evidence will show up? How can he be so sure? Usually, Hikigaya was alone and quiet, so they expected him to be the type to be nervous and stutter around girls. However, he showed no drop in confidence when talking to them and spoke clearly. After recovering, Ichinose asked.

"What do you mean there will be no evidence?"

Hikigaya was noticeably shocked at Ichinose's question. Did she not realize that this was all a scheme made by Class C? I get that she's kind and pure, but she can't be that naive, can she? After chewing a bit of the sandwich, Hikigaya responded.

"I mean the fight was obviously a scheme made by Class C, and I doubt Class C is dumb enough to leave any evidence or witnesses."

"... ah you're right. What do you think will happen then?"

"uh, the trial will go on until Class D somehow makes Class C withdraw their report, and if not, the trial will end with no punishment. Class C's only evidence is the body of the students and the student's past with violence, that alone is not enough to prove anything"

"I see, so our helping yesterday was completely useless. The trial will end in Class D's favor anyway"

Hikigaya nodded his head and finished the last of his sandwich. He grabbed his cold drink and got up, preparing to leave.

"If that's all, I'll be heading out."

"Wait! Can I get your Lime ID? We have a class group chat, and you're the only one not in it yet"

Hikigaya, who had never used any messaging app besides the default one, was now nervous for the first time. He clearly had no idea to add someone on Lime, and he definitely didn't have the app installed on his phone.

"... Ah sorry, I don't have that app"

Himeno and Amikuro audibly gasped at his words. A high school boy without the most popular messaging app? Even middle schoolers had Lime. How was Hikigaya, an obvious introvert, so comfortable speaking with them? Other students in their class who were way more extroverted still had a hard time speaking with the girls without stuttering once.

Ichinose gestured for him to hand her phone, and he complied.

Now this guy was handing someone else his unlocked phone without any sign of fear. Who was this guy? He was a total enigma. 

After playing around with Hikigaya's phone for a minute, Ichinose handed it back with a smile.

"Thanks, Hikigaya, we'll talk to you on Lime now!"

Hikigaya nodded his head, knowing damn well he would put everyone on mute as soon as he got home. The two girls, who were previously silent during the encounter, spoke up after Hikigaya left the cafe. Amikuro started.

"That Hikigaya is interesting"

"Yeah, he seems so introverted, but at the same time he's able to talk to you so naturally Ichinose."

Ichinose blushed and responded

"What do you mean Himeno?"

Suddenly, the two girls looked at each other for a second with the same face. It looked as if everything had suddenly clicked in the two heads. Himeno, looking at Ichinose, asked.

"Ichinose, he was able to speak to you so easily, and he gave you his phone without any fear. Do you think he likes you?"

-*- (Back to first person Hikigaya)

I headed back towards the dorm building after the short meeting. I was confused about Ichinose. Until I had told her, she seemed to think that looking for evidence was a good idea, even though she knew it was all a scheme from Class C. I didn't doubt her intelligence, but this action was due to her naivety. She seemed to be genuinely pure and kind, unlike other girls who faked it for popularity. Can such a person be a Class leader? 

Anyway, it wasn't my job to decide the Class leader, that was the rest of Class Bs' After walking for a minute, I noticed that someone was following me, and they were really bad at it. It wasn't like I was mad that I was being followed, but I was more so angry that they gave such a bad person the task of tracking me. After another minute. I stopped and said.

"Hey, if you're gonna follow me. At least, do it well, please this is irritating."

A purple-haired girl stepped out of the bushes and stared at me for a moment. I wasn't in the mood to give out autographs, so I ignored her and continued on my way back to the school dorm. As I entered the dorm, I noticed the purple-haired girl was still following me, but this time, I think she was also going back to her dorm.

I pressed the elevator button, and the girl waited beside me patiently. When the elevator arrived, I stepped into the elevator and pressed my button, however, the purple-haired girl also joined me in the elevator. 

I was confused. Why do girls in this school have so much confidence? This girl, who was stalking me not even 10 minutes ago, was now joining me on the elevator like nothing ever happened? Shouldn't she wait for the next elevator to avoid this awkwardness?

The girl also didn't press any buttons on the elevator. There was no way for us to have the same floor as the boys got the lower floors while the girls got the upper, so she was clearly trying to follow me again. Does this girl have no shame? She's not even trying to hide the fact that she's following me to my room.

The elevator arrived on the 5th floor, and I got off while the girl shortly followed me. I didn't want this stalker to have my room number, so I went in the opposite direction of my dorm. The girl still followed me. Seriously, where does this confidence come from? At this point, I only had one way to save the location of my dorm room.

I took out my phone and called Ichinose. I know I was just talking about how I was going to mute her as soon as I got home, but desperate situations call for desperate measures. After a couple of rings, she picked up. She would probably already be at the dorm as I took a longer path to ensure that the stalker was following me. I spoke loud enough into the phone so the purple-haired girl could hear me as well.

"um, some purple-haired girl is following me around on my dorm floor and trying to locate my dorm. Could I have some help by chance?"

The purple-haired girl, who heard me, looked at me with shock. Bet, you didn't expect that. After processing my words for a second, Ichinose responded.

"Could you put the call on speakerphone?"

"Done"

I turned around and faced the purpled-haired girl with the phone in my hand. Ichinose spoke to the girl.

"Hello, can I ask why you're following a member of Class B?"

The purpled-haired girl thought for a moment before opening her mouth for the first time.

"u-uh, I-i like h-him r-romantically."

"..."

"..."

[A/N: In the anime, they skipped straight to the end of the first semester after the trial arc, so I wanted to ask how many chapters of building relationships/communicating with people you wanted to see. I was thinking around 5-7, but please let me know. These chapters won't have a big effect on the plot, however, they will show Hikigaya making relationships with his class and communicating more with the student council members along with characters like Hyori, Horikita, Ayonokoji, and the other classes.]

[A/N: Also please review the book / add it to your library if you haven't already]