The President of the Game Club and his girlfriend were taken aback when I told them that Itou hated my guts. They didnt expect that. They seemed prepared for when they would run into me but it was easily written off by that.

Although I was a little interested in what was really happening, I wasnt compelled to just agree to what they were asking of me.

I only visited their club once at the invitation of Hashimoto from our class. And most likely theyre referring and basing my relationship with Itou on what they witnessed inside their clubroom and perhaps, what Miura-senpai just mentioned; Itou always mentioning my name.

Obviously, I was clueless as to the context of that occurrence. Is she mentioning my name in passing? Is she singing praises of me? Or maybe shes cursing using my name whenever something was going wrong.

Uh. Lets scratch that last one.

Because if thats the case, these two wouldnt approach me.

Still, thats just my assumption.

Based on my own knowledge and my interactions with her, the girl really hated my guts but beneath it was the initial interest she had towards me.

I mean, it wouldnt take a genius to understand why Itou asked me to hold her hand when were on that bus during my date with Himeko.

In any case, this returned me to what I wanted to know.

Whats wrong with her that the seniors from her club went and asked me to visit again?

They mentioned all the first years and new members lost the motivation but thats probably just padding to their main point; Itous state.

Soon enough, Miura-senpai recovered first and mentioned things that were within my guess. To them, I seemed to be the only guy close enough to Itou on speaking terms.

From my observation of the girl before, Itou was using that club to unwind from her busy life as the apparent heir for their family business. Playing absurd games or just games in general was enough to uplift her mood.

But according to Miura-senpai, Itou, nowadays, was not as enthusiastic as before. And today, the girl only sat down on one corner, her mind wandering off to who knows where. Furthermore, she kept on sighing and frowning as though she was lamenting over something she was powerless to accomplish or solve.

When they approached her, the girl just shook her head and once again muttered my name.

I once again asked for its context but the couple only shook their heads. I also asked why they were concerned and the answer they came up with was kinda understandable; most of the first years who joined their club were there because of Itou. Its like shes the light-bearer thats illuminating their surroundings. If shes not in her best mood, the others are the same.

Thats kinda unsettling but hey, to each their own. Besides, I couldnt care less about those first-year members of their club. On the same note, its understandable why these seniors wanted to solve that.

If I had to guess, inviting me wasnt the only idea that popped up in their minds, it just so happened that they ran into me today.

In the end, I didnt say yes to their invitation. And the two also had to continue on their way home. They left the parting words; Our club is always open to you, Onoda-kun.

Well, I put that at the back of my mind soon enough as I went to the Book Club to pick up Haruko and the others.

I already received a message from Rae and Kana that theyll be walking along with Ishida-senpai and Otsuka-senpai part of the way. As for Satsuki, they extended their practice for half an hour. She also told me not to worry quickly since shed be riding the bus with the other members of the club. Eguchi-sensei would even treat them to an energizing meal.

You look like youre moving constantly again, Ruki. At least wipe your sweat off.

Those were Harukos first words upon seeing me arrive. She stood up from her seat and approached me with a towel on her hand possibly prepared beforehand. She wiped off my forehead and neck which were slightly riddled with sweat before fixing my slightly creased uniform.

Although I wouldnt say that this was new, its been a while since this girl acted like this. Its her quirk when shes about to have her period I also experienced this from her last month but I was the same busy guy, leading to little time spent with her. Moreover, it was timed during the weekdays, not during the weekend where she stayed overnight.

Thank you, Haruko. I pulled her in my embrace. You know me too well, you even predicted this.

This is par for the course. Dont you think so?

Maybe, but preparing a towel specifically for this? You went the extra mile.

Im going to be your wife. Think of this as training. The girl smiled with unnatural enthusiasm before slipping out of my embrace. She then circled around me, checking if she missed something.

Yep This is her quirk at work. Although not as intense as Akanes quirk, Haruko who would often take a seat at the back would be this more proactive in showing her affection.

This was the same as back during middle school. There was one time during a meeting in a Student Council, as the President, its not her job to brew tea or be too accommodating. But she still did so for me Of course, to not make his ex notice anything unusual with her behavior, she also poured a cup for him as well as the other members of the Student Council. However, I became her first priority.

Later that day, Haruko apologized to me for doing that, fearing that I would fault her for almost exposing our connection.

Well, I was still the idiot bastard back then and I could vaguely remember that I just shrugged at her apology before pushing her down to satisfy my desire.

That quirk hadnt changed even if the way she carried herself in the present was already different than before. In any case, whatever change she exhibits, shes still my Haruko.

One thing I really want to see is for her to stop being too considerate of the other girls. Even before Akane accepted and started giving consideration to the other girls, this girl was already doing it.

Obviously, thats still a long way to go. Theres still Yuika and Minori-senpai who were solely depending on her. No matter what anyone thinks, shes not as heartless as the old me to just throw away the relationship she built because I returned to her life. And thats one of the things I genuinely admire regarding Haruko.

Our relationships are twisted, to begin with, letting me try and make those girls she bonded with fall in love with me is just an additional twist. I somehow succeeded in three, its not wrong to assume that I will also succeed in the last two.

But like I said before, its a lot better to make it happen naturally than force it. They watched Himeko, Mina and Edel lean on me bit by bit and eventually accept me in their life For all I know, those two were already scared of me.

Alright, you win today. Lets go and pick them up, its getting dark. I stopped her from circling by pulling her in another embrace, this time, tighter than before. Once shes settled down, I shifted my gaze to the girl giggling at us from a distance, You too, Aya.. Lets go home.