Since there's a shiny new Rumi character tag now, I thought 'Hey, why not put it to good use?'. Not to mention, almost all of the multi-chaptered Rumi stories haven't been updated since forever. Thus, I wrote a Rumi story. So Aquaquaqua, if you're reading this, cheers for Rumi tag indeed.

However, updates might be a tad slow since I want to complete my other stories first.

I have nothing more to say so read on.

Chapter 1: Hiratsuka Shizuka Is A Very Responsible Teacher(Not Really).

Street lamps.

Utility poles.

Traffic lights.

More street lamps.

And even more utility poles.

Oh! And what a surprise, more traffic lights!

Someone…please just end my existence already.

Why? Can someone please explain to me how a road trip from Chiba to Saitama can take so long? According to Google-san, a normal trip by car would take only one and a half hour. So why does it feel like I'm in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber? Is everything related to education a Hyperbolic Time Chamber?

Maybe, it was less about the car, and more about the driver. They do say that a host can either make or break the party. Though I'm not sure if that can be applied to drivers, nor do I have the experience to make an educated guess.

And so, for the 14th time today (I counted), and with a heavy sigh, I posed a fundamental question that would shake the core beliefs of people everywhere.

"Hiratsuka-sensei."

"What?"

"Are we there yet?"

To which my ever respected teacher responded with a heavier sigh.

"Tsurumi Rumi-san," Oh boy, she's using my full name, "For the 100th time today-,"

"Actually, it's the 14th time."

"Not the point!" She shouted as she made a sharp turn, almost knocking me off balance, "Besides, I told you it'll take at least one and a half hour. And what's the time right now?"

I took a look at the car's clock, "3:14 pm."

"And we left at 2 o'clock. Put those together and?"

"Ah, your clock must be broken then."

At that moment, I was sure that if she didn't have to keep her hands on the steering wheel, Hiratsuka-sensei would've reached over and bonked me on the head.

But she, instead, decided to settle for a grumble instead.

"Y'know, I miss the naïve and innocent Tsurumi. She would've wanted to go on a trip with an awesome teacher like me."

I glared at her. She probably meant the shy and innocent girl that I was in my freshman years. In all honesty, I was only being respectful towards her because she's a teacher at Sobu high and also, due to a couple of stories that the upperclassmen told us freshmen. Apparently, she was a Christmas cake [1], and an angry one at that.

Of course, things were different right now. The glittering, silver ring on her left ring finger was a clear indicator of that.

"And I missed not being forced on a trip after you fed my parents lies. On the last week of summer vacation, mind you." I commented nonchalantly.

"There's only five days left anyways so who cares?"

Hearing her treating my last summer vacation as a high school student like an afterthought, I was about to blow up on her, but she kept on talking.

"Besides, I didn't tell any lies," Hiratsuka-sensei replied, her face straight and serious, "I merely told them that this trip was for the betterment of your academics."

"Exactly!" I pointed an accusing finger at her, "It's like you chose a bunch of random buzzwords, mix them together and then bait my parents with it. Hook, line and snicker."

As I said those words, I could hear a slight grumble to my side.

"God, this is exactly why I'm taking you to meet him. You can't even use idioms properly."

I scrunched up my nose in annoyance. "Why would I need to know how to use idioms properly anyway? I chose the Science course for god's sake. Why am I even writing essays, huh? Also, him?"

"You do know that in college, you have to write essays, right? Learning proper grammar structures and syntax is essential." I grumbled at her reply, "And yes, him."

"Him who?"

"Oh, just an old student of mine. You might have forgotten him, but you two met before, y'know."

I could've sworn she grinned a little.

"Really now?"

"Uh-huh."

Someone I met before who was also a student of Hiratsuka-sensei…Unfortunately, no one popped into my mind. Since that was the case, I must've met this student of hers from a very long time ago, or maybe, I just have horrible memories. Who knows?

All I know is that we still haven't arrived in Saitama yet!

Reaching around for a while, my hand finally grasped a lever and I tilted my seat backward. If I was going to wait, I might as well sleep on the way there.

But before I drifted off into slumber, I asked Hiratsuka-sensei another fundamental question.

"Hey, Sensei."

"What?"

"Are we there yet?"

Her only response was another sharp turn which actually knocked me off balance this time.

By the time we arrived in Saitama, I had already gotten a bit of sleep. Heck, at one point, I even caught myself snoring, though through my sheer mental fortitude, I managed to stop it just in time.

Hiratsuka-sensei's chuckle implied otherwise, but it's not like she'll mention it in passing or anything. Even she isn't that insensitive.

"Oi, Tsurumi. Wake up. We're here already."

Hiratsuka-sensei's voice rang through my ears, forcing me to open my eyes. Why was she trying to get me out of this comfortable position again?

Oh, right. To meet a stranger.

"Five more minutes." I grumbled, turning away from her voice.

"Really?" I heard her sigh, "All this time, you've been asking me when we will arrive, and now you don't even have the decency to step off the car?"

I grumbled even louder.

To which she responded with an exasperated sigh.

"I have recordings of your snores." She simply said.

My eyes shot open and I swiftly twisted my body, my eyes meeting hers in less than a second.

"You wouldn't."

She smirked.

This woman, and her blackmailing ways…

She held a phone in her hand with her finger barely hovering over the play button. Now, I'm not the most technologically savvy person, but even I could tell that it was a sound file.

I take it back. Hiratsuka-sensei can, and has no shame being that insensitive.

I gritted my teeth. Why do I have her as my guidance counselor…

"Fine, fine!"

Drowsy as I may be, I had no problems getting off the car and straightening my skirt. Hiratsuka-sensei was waiting for me with hands on her hip, and a smirk adorning her face.

Oh, not to mention, the most atrocious pair of sunglasses ever.

Maybe I can walk ten steps behind her or something. The second handed embarrassment emanating from her very body was too much for me to handle.

"So, where are we going?" I asked whilst rubbing sleep out of my eyes.

"A café. He's waiting for us there."

Looking at her dubiously, I replied, "A café? Really? That's, like, the most cliché exposition dump backdrop ever."

"Then where do you want to go?"

"Home."

"Denied."

"Tch."

With my request brutally and savagely denied by my ever so beloved teacher, I could only wordlessly trudged along behind her, all while being continually battered by the summer heat.

Damn it, Sun. For such a majestic celestial creation, why do you have to produce deadly lasers at the same time?!

Despite the harsh heat coursing through the atmosphere, there was still a sizable amount of people walking about. Most of them had luggage or backpacks. In other words, they were perfectly normal people who could spend their last five days of summer vacation freely, and not get dragged around by their teacher.

Hiratsuka-sensei. I know you're a guidance counselor and all, but can you at least do the guidance counseling after summer vacation?

Before long, we arrived at the specified café. I said that, but I was a bit wary of the location since Hiratsuka-sensei didn't look too certain. I mean, after all, she isn't the type of person to keep up with trends. Of course, I followed her with a couple of steps between us, just in case, she got the wrong one and have to walk out of there without buying anything.

Fortunately for her, it wasn't the wrong one. But it was quite difficult to spot whoever we were supposed to meet since:

One. I don't even know who he is, much less how he looks like.

Two. Everyone in this goddamn café looks the same with all their fancy laptops and pretentious mannerisms. Everyone in this hipster-esque establishment looked so shallow, they might as well be a puddle.

Hiratsuka-sensei took a good couple of seconds to find our guy, but before long, she was heading towards a table with me in tow. I couldn't see past her due to her height (Cons of being a youthful girl, I suppose), so I wasn't able to see who he was.

But when I did, I almost did a double take.

Sharp, bored and most importantly, unique eyes. Unruly hair that somehow looked pretty good. Not to mention, a posture that would make an orthopedic doctor cringe.

But his eyes though…they were too familiar.

Even so, after all these years, I could only come to one conclusion.

There was no way that it was him.

"You're late." Was the first thing he said to us, or more specifically, to Hiratsuka-sensei. His voice was surprisingly smooth yet deep.

"Sorry about that. Traffic was absolutely horrible." Sensei said as she occupied a nearby chair.

Was this how a former student should act towards his teacher? Of course, I realized the hypocrisy in my statement, but even I wasn't that rude or brash with Hiratsuka-sensei.

My thoughts were immediately halted when his eyes wandered over to me. They weren't filled with apprehensiveness or inquiry, but instead, they were apathetic. I felt queasy all of the sudden.

"So this is your student, I presume?"

"Yup," Sensei looked over to me before beckoning me, "Take a seat already. You're making a scene."

"R-Right."

I quickly seated myself and straightened my back as much as possible so as to not garner any more attention from the other customers, and especially, from him. Like seriously, his blank face was really putting me off.

"So, Sensei…" The stranger began, "For what deranged reason did you call me out here for? In this awful heatwave, to boot."

Wow, he had no restraints on his words.

But despite his rather harsh tone, Hiratsuka-sensei wasn't even fazed. It was as if this was a normal occurrence between the both of them. If so, then I seriously wonder what kind of abusive teacher-student relationship they had.

"Aww, come on. Don't be like that. This heatwave's nothing." She waved off his concerns.

"Y'know, Sensei. There's a reason why there's so many people in this tiny, little café. And it's not because this place's popular."

In response, Sensei just rubbed her head awkwardly, all while also awkwardly trying to laugh and ease the tension.

"Fine,fine. I'll get to the point," She dropped her cheerful act, "I need a favor from you."

Before her former student could speak, Hiratsuka-sensei continued.

"Though, if we really think about it, it's not a favor. It's more like a 'You-owe-me' kind of thing, right?"

Sensei, please stick to a mood and commit to it.

"Fine. We can consider it like that." He sighed, annoyed at the situation. I was pretty annoyed too, but I tried my best to keep calm and collected.

"So, what do you want me to do this time?"

This time? Don't tell me that Hiratsuka-sensei actually used this guy before.

"Marking students' papers again? Or is it proofreading the syllabus?"

I gave Hiratsuka-sensei an incredulous look. No wonder our grades came back so fast before summer last year, even though she didn't have any apparent assistant. Seriously, how lazy can one teacher be?

"No, no, no. Nothing like that at all," Sensei vehemently denied his accusations, "It's a simple thing really. It'll only take five days, that's all."

"Five days." He repeated, "By that, you mean five days of my time? My work time, mind you?"

"Cut the crap. I know you're on summer vacation." She said with a smirk, "You're planning on visiting your family for the last week of your break, right?"

The man immediately concealed his lower jaw, leaving only his glaring eyes. To be honest, I felt tired just looking at him.

"How did you know?" He asked.

To which Hiratsuka-sensei replied with another smirk, "Sources."

It took a few seconds, but eventually, the man asked, or rather stated.

"Komachi?"

"Komachi." Sensei replied instantly.

Heaving a huge sigh, the man let his arms fall to the side in apparent mental exhaustion. I wouldn't blame him. Dealing with Hiratsuka-sensei can take a toll on one's patience and mental stability.

But what is a Komachi? Some sort of underground, black market-type information network? And five days to do a favor? I wasn't sure if I should even be around to hear what they were planning.

"Well? Are you going to tell me what I'm doing or not? The sooner you do, the sooner I'll finish it."

"It's not a quick job, ya know," Hiratsuka-sensei crossed her arms, "When I say five days, I quite literally mean five days."

"F-Five days of work?" The man looked mortified at the prospect, "What kind of hell did you plan for me, woman?"

Goddamn, he really does have no filters on his mouth.

"It's simple, really. While you're visiting your family for five days, I want you-,"

She pointed towards him, before pointing a thumb at me, eliciting a confused face from both me and the stranger.

"-to teach her."

"I refuse." He responded with no hesitation.

Meanwhile, I decided to take in her words and process it. To transform the air particles being vibrated in front of her mouth into neural signals that could be interpreted by my brain. It is generally assumed that the speed of a neural signal is 0.5 meters per second.

That's fast, isn't it?

If so, then there must've been a gap between the neurons connecting my ears to my brain, because it took a solid five seconds (I counted) before I was able to fully comprehend what Hiratsuka-sensei just said.

"W-What did you just say?!" I spoke in a hushed whisper, not wanting to attract any attention.

Hiratsuka-sensei, meanwhile, just looked at me in confusion, as if expecting me to accept this insane proposition of hers.

"I'm saying he's teaching you."

"No, I'm not."

I was about to ask her again, but her former student interjected; his glare sharper than usual.

"Oh come on, it's not like you have anything better to do, right?"

"How could you possibly know what schedule for the week? What if I planned to help in the local community center, huh?"

"We both know you're just going to visit your family. Nothing more, nothing less. You wouldn't waste extra energy doing something extraneous."

"And teaching this kid isn't extraneous?"

Oi, who are you calling a kid?

"I'm just cashing in a favor after all, right? Besides, you're great at literature. This should be piece of cake."

"Let's say I do agree-,"

"Oh, you will."

He grunted in annoyance before talking again, "But I won't be a good teacher. Just because I'm good at writing doesn't mean I'm good at teaching kids how to write."

Seriously? Again with the kid?

"You don't believe in yourself?"

"Well, I-,"

"Because you don't have to," Sensei pointed her thumb to herself. I tried to stop her from doing what she was going to do but I was too slow.

"All you have to do is believe in me. Believe in the Hiratsuka Shizuka who believes in you."[2]

Uggh….Sensei, you just took away two third of my life from second hand embarrassment.

I wasn't alone in my sentiment, as both her former student and I quickly exchanged knowing glances. I assumed he was also internally cringing, but I wouldn't know that.

After all, I didn't let my eyes linger on him for too long. It was just too embarrassing for me, dammit.

"You are technically leaving a high school student alone with me. Besides, did you even ask her parents yet? What do they think?"

Huh, that guy did make a good point. What did my parents think about tutoring?

"Done, done, and done. You think a responsible teacher like me wouldn't have thought of all those things?"

"Pssh…responsible…" I silently scoffed, and to my surprise, my supposed tutor chuckled. Whether it was due to my remark, or due to the ridiculousness of this entire situation, I didn't know.

Well, it did feel a little nice having someone acknowledging you after being ignored all these time.

My tutor seemed skeptical about Hiratsuka-sensei's claims as well, but just like a man who had experienced this sort of forcefulness before, he ultimately succumbed to Hiratsuka-sensei's demand with another huge sigh.

Gee, sighing seemed to be the common theme today.

"Will I get paid?"

"First thing on your mind is money, huh…" Hiratsuka-sensei said, "Of course, you do. I'm not cheap enough to have someone work without proper compensation, y'know."

"Yet you're cheap enough to not just teach her yourself." He countered.

Woah, this guy was actually kinda…cool, with him not putting up with Hiratsuka-sensei's crap and all that.

Of course, I used cool very loosely here. He didn't really put an effort into not accepting this job. Not to mention, being associated with Hiratsuka-sensei already knocks down your coolness stats by half.

"But you're still okay with that." Sensei remarked.

"I guess…"

"Well then," She stood up, "I'm gonna get something cool to drink first, then we'll leave. Want anything, Rumi?"

"E-Eh? No, I'm fine." I declined her offer.

And with that, Hiratsuka-sensei left the table to go order some mediocre and overpriced sugar water that has the same calorie content as actual sugar water, thus leaving me alone with this man.

…

Wait, what?

I'm alone…with a stranger…

At the moment, all I wanted to do was pull out my phone and pretend that I was busy, but that would be too rude, wouldn't it? After all, I had just met him, and if he was going to be my tutor, then I should make a good first impression.

I took a quick glance at him, wondering how he'd cope with this situation.

Maybe I should follow his example and sit quietly or maybe, just-

He'd already pulled out his phone!

Unbelievable.

This man truly didn't care about what others think. Then again, maybe, just maybe, he was waiting for me to make a conversation with him.

Okay, Rumi. Start this off nice and slow with a quick question of who he is or what his name is.

I have a general idea of who he might be, but I didn't want to assume.

Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves (Why was I even nervous around him anyway?), I started by getting his enough attention.

"U-Umm…"

Sure enough, his eyes detached away from the phone's monitor and latched on to mine. I unconsciously gulped at his stoic eyes.

Just ask for his name. Simple, easy, and efficient.

"So…how are you doing nowadays, Hachiman?"

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

"I'm doing fine, thank you."

"A-Ah…I see."

I breathed out a sigh of relief. At least, he is indeed the Hikigaya Hachiman. Jeez, why was I so worried anyway? It's not like he was judging for using his given name, right?

…he wasn't judging me, right?

But still, seeing Hachiman again after all these years was…surreal to say the least. The last time we met was…six years ago, perhaps? At the time, he looked so…bland and anti-social, but now, he looked kinda…better, I guess? There was just this aura of adultness around him that just wasn't there before.

I still remembered when he came over to help me with the cutouts of the decorations. That was one of the only good things to happen during the whole Christmas party ordeal; the other being the end of said Christmas party.

I wonder if he saw me during the performance…

"So, Rumi, are you-,"

"Wait, you remember my name?"

Upon realizing what I'd asked, I immediately berated myself. Of course, he remembers your name. Hiratsuka-sensei probably reminded him of it at some point; not to mention, she'd just mentioned it mere minutes ago. Rumi, you stupid, stupid idiot.

Hachiman looked a bit surprise at this as he retreated a bit back into his seat.

"Well, yeah. Hiratsuka-sensei made sure to remind me of it." He explained.

"R-Right…"

I let out a little chuckle, if only to ease the awkwardness that I put on myself. Why did I think otherwise? Of course, Hiratsuka-sensei would've made sure that my future tutor would remember my name. Hachiman himself probably doesn't remember an unremarkable primary school student like me.

Well, all that mattered right now was that Hachiman did remember my name. That was good enough for a non-awkward, tension-filled conversation.

"So, I wanted to ask you," Hachiman began, "Are you really okay with this?"

Raising one of my eyebrows in confusion, I asked back, "Okay with what exactly?"

"This whole tutoring thing," He looked at me weirdly, "Don't you disagree with what Hiratsuka-sensei said at all? I find it weird that you would be A-okay with any of her proposals."

"Well…" I couldn't find any excuses. Of course, I disagreed with Hiratsuka-sensei. Dragging out your student during summer vacation, forcing her to meet a stranger (Somewhat) was something a psychopath did.

But now, I couldn't find an excuse.

How did I become this mellow?

"I mean, I'm just extremely bad with writing essays so…" I decided to use Hiratsuka-sensei's excuse instead.

"Even so," He looked at me skeptically, "This sort of tutoring or study session can easily be done with a couple of other students."

"I just don't…work well together with others. Besides, I'm not that close to any of my classmates."

"…But you're okay with studying with a complete and total stranger?" Hachiman rebutted.

He got me good there.

"You're not a complete stranger, per se," Seeing his confused looks, I continued, "I mean; we know each other before right? So, you're more like a close, personal…"

Crap, my list of vocabulary ran out. How could I say this without making things even more awkward?

"…acquaintance?"

"Interesting choice of words there." said Hachiman as he took a sip of his coffee, "What university are you aiming for?"

Thank goodness for changing the subject, Hachiman. I wasn't sure if he was sensitive enough to notice my discomfort, but thank you for not being as crude as Hiratsuka-sensei.

Unfortunately for me though, the subject that he brought up was something that I didn't think too much about.

"Umm…that's an…interesting subject…"

God, I need to get better at hiding my anxiety. Then again, what was I getting anxious over? Talking to a man you haven't seen in over six years. That seemed stupid and illogical.

So, why did I feel so uneasy around him?

"You're at third year high school student already, aren't you?"

I nodded. Hiratsuka-sensei must've told him that.

"So then, why don't you start thinking about which university you want to go to? It just seems wasteful to not plan ahead."

Again , I had no retorts.

University.

Future employment.

My future.

Those are things that I never thought too much about. It was troublesome for me to think about them so I decided to sweep them under the rug. Stupid idea, I know, but you can't just expect a teenager to come up with her plans for the future by herself.

"It's complicated…" I finally said.

"How?"

"Well, I nev-,"

But before I could explain myself, a plastic cup filled with pink liquid was slammed down right in front of me, with no regards for my mental health whatsoever. I didn't need to guess who it was as I immediately glared at the perpetrator, who in turn, just gave me a grin.

Hiratsuka-sensei, why do you hate normal heartrate this much?

"You two seem to be getting along fine." She said as she brought a straw to her lips.

I looked down at my own drink. Honestly, I already told her that I didn't need anything, but she got me this overpriced sugar water anyway. Well, since she'd already bought it and all, I guess I should take it after all, since the world is facing food problems after all.

"Considering that you left us alone, we really had nothing better to do."

One of my eyes twitched at his response. Was talking to me really that much of a chore? I take it back. Both of them are just as insensitive as the other.

Hachiman soon stood up, taking his half-finished cup of coffee along with him. Seeing this as a cue for us to leave, both Hiratsuka-sensei and I soon followed suite. All three of us soon ended up outside, under the scorching sun once more.

We all walked with an extremely fast pace. Hachiman probably dreaded coming out of the air-conditioned café, but most likely, he wanted to get back home as fast as possible. Meanwhile, Hiratsuka-sensei probably just wanted to get to the car as fast as possible.

As for me, well…I also desired the cool, air-conditioned car that was so far close, yet so far.

But before we could go, Hiratsuka-sensei called out to Hachiman, who was apparently walking away from us without even a single word.

"Oi, Hikigaya," This caught Hachiman's attention as he slowly turned his head around, "You do know that I brought my car, right?"

Hearing this, he sighed before walking over to us with resignation, having gotten what Hiratsuka-sensei was trying to say.

"You and your fancy car. It's a wonder to how you can even afford it."

Hiratsuka-sensei's car does look very fancy. It looks like something a millionaire who couldn't give a damn about the general public buy. Not to mention, the car is a really ugly shade of red.

Seriously, Sensei, at least get that part right.

"Hikigaya, please," She led both of us to the parking spot, "There's nothing in this world you can't get without hard work and dedication."

"And corruption." Hachiman slyly added.

"And connection." Hiratsuka-sensei quickly corrected him.

When we got to the car, as per usual, I sat in the front with Hiratsuka-sensei while Hachiman decided to take a seat in the back. According to him, his home wasn't that far from the café, which was why he decided to walk. Though, as he said that, he also mentioned that due to the heat, the walk here was ten times more arduous than usual.

To which Hiratsuka-sensei responded by chuckling sheepishly.

Seriously, Sensei, at least take responsibility.

The two adults-or rather, the two elders in the car spoke with each other without any interruption from me. After all, even if I am an adult by my own rights, even I would find it rude when someone tries to intrude in my conversation.

But just being an innocent bystander to their conversation was enlightening; since both of them were catching up with each other, I was able to learn what Hachiman was doing over the past six years or so.

Some say it is unethical to eavesdrop, but I say it's not eavesdropping if you are with the conversationalists.

Apparently, even though he finished college last year, Hachiman had already gotten a stable job. I wasn't able to catch the specifics of it, but I think it might be in a publishing company or something. He didn't really give out that much detail.

On the other hand, I'd heard faint mentioning of the name 'Yuki' and 'Yui'. Sometimes, I had even heard the 'Komachi' that was mentioned earlier. Those names sounded pretty familiar and, not to mention, pretty feminine.

Were they his classmates? Closes friends? Or perhaps…

Girlfriends?!

No way. It couldn't be. Hachiman doesn't look like someone to participate in a polyamorous relationship, especially not with three people.

But then again, covers for books are there for the sole purpose of judging. You don't just waltzed into a bookstore and read ten chapters of a novel before deciding to buy it.

Then again…

I decided to leave the matters of Hachiman's relationship alone. Besides, I could just ask him later, when he comes to…tutor me. God, today was weird.

Hopefully, it won't be as weird as a high school student asking a grown man whether or not he's playing three games at once.

I mean, he probably won't mind, right? We are technically long-lost, sort-of-close-but-not-really acquaintances.

But the most interesting thing that Hachiman said was when his apartment complex was within our sight. He said, and I quote:

"Why did you bring your student here anyway? In fact, why did you even come here? You could've just mailed me or something. It's not like you have to be courteous, y'know."

And Hiratsuka-sensei's response? A chuckle and a condescending "Oh, Hikigaya. You seriously didn't figure it out yet?"

To which both Hikigaya and I stared at her in confusion. Her and her vague answers…

As we arrived in front of the apartment complex, which was very fancy looking by the way, Hachiman quickly got off the car. Understandable action; after all, this is his home, and as such, he would want nothing more than to escape this dreadful summer heat, and escape into the haven filled with cool air.

What wasn't understandable though was the fact that Hiratsuka-sensei urged me to get off the car. At first, I assumed that she was going to get off as well, and we would most likely have a little tea break in Hachiman's home.

While the thought was rude, it couldn't have been any other possibilities.

But as I stood there, waiting for Sensei to get out of the car, she did something that neither of us expected.

She didn't unbuckle her belt, nor did she make an attempt to unlock her car's door. In fact, she locked it, prompting Hachiman to ask.

"Sensei, what are you doing?"

"You seriously didn't think that I would drive all the way out here just to tell you about this whole tutoring thing, right?" replied Hiratsuka-sensei, sporting a mocking grin.

I didn't get what she meant by that, and neither did Hachiman…for a few seconds at least.

"What are you even…" His face dropped mere seconds later, "saying…"

I tried to gauge what his expression or reaction was, but that failed due to Hachiman covering the entirety of his face with his own hand; either out of exasperation or something else, I couldn't know.

But all that changed when I heard the car's engine revving up, as Hachiman broke out of his stupor and rushed towards Sensei's car.

"Wait, wait, wait, did you even ask her for what she wanted to do yet?" His voice was desperate, almost pleading with Hiratsuka-sensei for some unknown reasons.

"I asked her parents." Was Sensei's simple reply.

But…asked my parents for what? For permission on this trip for the 'betterment' of my academics? If so, I didn't see what the big deal was.

"That's not the problem here."

"Oh, it will just fine," Hiratsuka-sensei nonchalantly waved aside whatever worries Hachiman had, "Besides, she's a third year student already. She's basically a grown up."

"No, that's exactly why it will be a problem."

"Argh, you're just a worrywart."

The car's engine revved even louder as Hachiman was forced to let go of the car's window, lest he wanted to be dragged along for a ride.

"OI, Shizuka!"

"Oh, and don't forget to get her home by 10. Also, the last train to Chiba is at 8, by the way!" shouted Hiratsuka-sensei as she drove back the way she came.

It was a miracle that she didn't catch any attention. Though, in fairness, no sane person would be out here dealing with the summer heat anyway.

…wait, then why was I here?

And wait…why did Hiratsuka-sensei drive off into the sunset…without me? Weren't we supposed to have tea time or something together? Will I be the only company for Hachiman during his tea time?

The gears in my head kept on turning and turning. It was a slow, painful process. But eventually, like an old PS2 memory card that hadn't been plugged in for five years, my thoughts slowly formed together into one, single, coherent thought.

"WAIT, HIRATSUKA-,"

But by that time, the only thing visible to me was the gaudy red rear of the fancy car belonging to Hiratsuka-sensei. The same Sensei that left me behind in an unknown prefecture.

"…sensei…"

Remember how Hiratsuka-sensei didn't catch any attention even though she drove away in a luxurious sports car while shouting like a drunkard? Well, I was glad for that since I didn't want anyone to see a high school student slumping on her knees in disbelief.

Well, anyone except him anyway.

And so, I slowly turned my head towards Hachiman, the actual adult here, for any reassurance at all, or perhaps, for any guidance.

But I was met with a face of confusion and pity. The kind of face you would give to a kid who was lied to by their parents.

Because while I sought reassurance from him, and while he pitied me, it was safe to say that both of us came to one, definite, concrete conclusion.

I, alone, was going to spend the rest of the evening with Hikigaya Hachiman.

References:

[1]: Christmas Cake refers to a woman past the age of 25 that hasn't been married yet. Since Christmas is celebrated on the 25th of December, a Christmas Cake is expired past that date; which means that a woman also expires past her 25th birthday.

[2]: Kamina's legendary line from Gurren Lagann.

End notes: Ah, I hoped I captured Rumi's personality properly. I've never really had that much practice writing her, since the anime and novel give her so little screentime.

Some of you might notice, some of you might not, but the title is actually a reference to a segment from the anime Nichijou by the same name - 'Like Love'. It's really lovely, and if you haven't already, go watch Nichijou. It's certainly an...interesting experience.