Hikigaya Hachiman is still in the dark

"I feel embarrassed that you always come here empty-handed." I responded to my grandfather politely. Although my grandfather refused, he still took the fruit I handed over with both hands after my efforts. When he took the fruit, he was very happy and looked a lot younger.

"As for Liumei, she's almost recovered and will probably be able to go back to school tomorrow. Thank you, Mr. Hikigaya, for your concern!" Grandpa told me about Liumei's current situation. Maybe he thought I came here because I was worried about Liumei.

"Really? That's great, it's really nice to be able to go to school properly."

I said this, but I was not happy at all, because the issue of her staying in the United States had not been resolved, which meant that if she stayed in the United States and went to school, she would continue to face school violence. But for me, it was impossible to directly point out the facts and make her grandfather worried, so I had to agree with her grandfather and try to reassure him.

"Go ahead, Rumi-chan should be in her room now."

"Ok."

After agreeing to this, I walked to Liumei's room based on my memory and knocked gently on the door.

"Grandpa, is there anything I can help you with?" Liumei's voice came from the open door. Seeing that it was me, Liumei seemed a little flustered.

That's right, she was wearing a cleaning headscarf on her head and an anti-fouling apron around her body, and the handkerchief she was holding was still very wet, so it was very obvious what she was doing.

Coming to someone else's house when they are cleaning is pretty high on the list of embarrassing things. So, before you visit someone, be sure to call and ask if it's convenient for them. Otherwise, you may end up in a situation like this, which is very embarrassing for both parties!

"Hachi, Hachiman, why are you here?" Liumei adjusted the hem of her apron and looked at me embarrassedly.

"Um, I have something to ask you." I also spoke awkwardly. I didn't know where to look, so I had to look up at the ceiling of the corridor.

"Well, I'm still cleaning that."

"I know, it seems that I came at a very wrong time."

"Wait, I'll be done cleaning soon, Hachiman, please wait a moment." Liu Mei said quickly, and then, before I could react, she slammed the door shut...

I don't know if I can describe this feeling as being met with a lot of disgrace.

Then, from Liumei's tightly closed door, there was a burst of "ping pong" sounds. It was a very unique way of cleaning. I don't know how she did it to make such a sound.

After a while, the door of the room was opened again, and Liumei appeared in front of me again.

Unlike before, Liu Mei had changed into a white silk long-sleeved sweater and a pair of bright black pants. It seemed that she had changed her clothes properly, and the dust on her nose had been wiped clean by her.

"Hachiman, it's ready. It's almost done." Liumei still looked a little embarrassed.

"Ah."

After all, I was the one who came here uninvited, and it was mostly my own fault for encountering such an embarrassing scene. In this case, I couldn't say anything more. After agreeing, I entered Liumei's room.

The room was much brighter than the last time I came. It seemed that she had cleaned it carefully. The room looked very clean when I came before, but today, probably because it was thoroughly cleaned, it looked much brighter than before.

Liumei really loves cleanliness.

In her room, the place where bedding was previously placed was no longer there, and instead there was a very small wooden table. After I sat down, Liumei sat opposite me.

"Well. After all, it would be better to make some tea first."

Liu Mei said as she stood up and walked to the kitchen.

"Hachiman, is normal tea okay?"

"No problem, the normal one will do."

I don't have as many incredible requirements for tea as Yukinoshita does. Rather, as a staunch member of the MAX coffee party, I think that apart from MAX coffee, other drinks taste the same.

However, if Yukinoshita were here, she would probably not be able to stand it and would go make black tea herself. After all, this guy has an extraordinary love for black tea, which is almost to the point of being pathological.

Chapter 188 Tsurumi Rumi and Hikigaya Hachiman

Really, now that they have MAX coffee, they are still interested in black tea? Sure enough, these people's hobbies are really hard to understand!

The sound of a kettle boiling came from the kitchen. After a rustling sound, Liumei entered the room carrying a teapot and a cup of water.

After carefully pouring the tea, Liumei placed the cup in front of me.

"Thank you." I said this, but because I have a cat tongue, I just let the tea sit there to cool down slowly and had no intention of drinking it right away.

"Tea, don't you want some?" Seeing that I didn't drink the tea, Liumei looked a little uneasy and spoke.

"No, I have a cat tongue, so I'm afraid of being burned."

"Hmm, is that so? That's really unexpected."

That's right. Strictly speaking, Rumi and I don't have much in common. It's not surprising that Rumi doesn't know that I'm a cat tongue. Yukinoshita and Yuigahama really care about this about me. Basically, they will deliberately wait until the temperature has cooled down before giving me the things they give me.

Well, if I can't eat it right away, it would be really awkward. Liumei and I sat facing each other. I couldn't move for the time being because we were waiting for the tea to cool down. On the contrary, Liumei was quite uneasy and kept looking around in her seat.

What should I say? I should be the one to speak up now. Before I went to the United States, I really didn’t like to talk. Even when we communicated, I just responded simply. During the joint activities of high school, I was the one who took the initiative to greet them. The current situation is a bit similar to that time.

"Stay in the United States, stay in the United States."

"What a disgusting name..."

Was I criticized for being disgusting right from the start? As expected of me, my level of disgust is truly unmatched!

"Stay in the United States, stay in the United States."

But on the other hand, how could my path as Hikigaya Hachiman be broken so easily? I am a man who insists on being myself!

Liu Mei sighed slightly, and then looked at me with an expression that said "do whatever you like".

It seems that she has agreed... Indeed, Grandpa Lenovo calls her "Little Chinese American Scholar", so maybe my name is not unacceptable.

"So, Hachiman, what brings you here?"

"How rude! If there's nothing else, can't I come and see you?" I said pretending to be angry.

Seeing my reaction, Liu Mei became flustered instead. She said hastily, "No, that's not what I meant."

It seemed that she was quite afraid of my misunderstanding, and this reaction made me feel a little uneasy as I was deliberately teasing her.

"It's just that, um, I feel that Hachiman came here for something, something about me." Rumi's voice was intermittent, like the words of a prisoner under torture.

That's indeed the case, and it was precisely because of these things that I came to study in the United States.

"You guessed right, I did come here for that matter."

"Hachiman, when did you become so naughty!" Hearing my voice, Rumi looked at me with an embarrassed and annoyed expression.

After seeing this expression, I felt that what I did before was of great value. Oh no, did I turn on some strange switch here?

"That's only a small part of the reason. Coming to see you for your health is a big part of it," I said.

Then, Liu Mei covered her chest as if she was hit hard by something, and her expression looked very strange, making it impossible to guess.

"Hey? What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" I asked worriedly. Could it be that Liumei's body has not fully recovered yet? If that's the case, then she must rest well and not force herself to go to school.

Liu Mei patted her cheeks and looked at me with a sad expression: "That's not the case, it's all Hachiman's fault!" Why did the spearhead suddenly point to me? I just teased the cute junior a little bit.

Speaking of juniors, Isshiki is very cute, but it's not that I tease Isshiki, but rather that I am always teased by Isshiki. I don't feel any sense of superiority as a senior at all. If I think in this way, Rumi is indeed an outstanding junior!

Yes, yes, yes, in every sense, those who study in the United States are outstanding juniors!

"Then Hachiman, tell me why you are here?"

Ah, there it is, this super disgusted tone! It seems that Liumei's patience has worn out? No matter what, you wouldn't use this tone to talk to someone who is constantly fighting for you...

However, she behaved very naturally now, not as anxious as before. It seems that our mode of getting along should remain the same.

Sometimes, appropriate jokes are pretty good. Let’s just think of this as me falling into my “joke trap” while studying in the United States.

Thinking of this, my expression relaxed.

"I want to ask if you knew Niwa before high school?" Because something important was mentioned, I unconsciously sat up straight and looked at Liumei with a serious expression.

“No impression at all.”

Then, I got an answer that would make Niwa despair. If he had ever had a crush on someone before, and then heard his/her crush say that he/she had no impression of him/her at all, he/she would probably run naked around Chiba and then jump into the Pacific Ocean out of sadness.

I developed a feeling similar to sympathy for Niwa, and surprisingly, I also developed a feeling similar to resonance... Is it the resonance between losers? When I was in junior high school, I did misunderstand Orimoto's meaning without permission, and ended up confessing to him in a super embarrassing way. How stupid!

"Hachiman, you look so weird..."

"No, there are a few unnecessary emotions, but at the same time, there is resonance."

"Resonance?" Liu Mei looked like she was saying, "What are you talking about? I don't understand anything at all."

It doesn't matter if you don't understand such things, so I don't need to explain it specially. Liumei will not lie to me, but if I consider the situation of memory being forgotten, I will ask again and confirm it at the same time.

"Liumei, are you sure you really have no recollection of it? Maybe you just forgot?"

"Yeah!" Students studying in the United States probably know that they may not be able to remember the appearance of their former classmates. I can hardly remember any of my old classmates either. I can only remember a few who are very distinctive and with whom I have had close interactions.

What I mean by this is certainly not that I don't have any connections with anyone. I'm just emphasizing that it's normal for me to forget my old classmates. That's it.

Besides, after so much time, wouldn't it be even more strange if I remembered all my old classmates? It's like when a 3.0 magnitude earthquake occurs. Even if everyone has done many disaster prevention drills before and knows that earthquakes are not too dangerous, everyone will still panic. People who are calm at that time will seem a little strange.

After thinking seriously for a long time, Liu Mei shook her head at me.

"I have no impression at all, neither of this person nor his name. Before high school, I had never even heard of any rumors about Niwa Aoi!" Niwa-kun, you are being treated very rudely right now! You are such a pitiful person. Being told this by the person you like, your image and impression in her heart are almost zero! In other words, in the worst case scenario, it's not a good impression, nor a bad impression. You have almost been sentenced to death! Hahahaha...

"Liumei, have you really confirmed it? You don't have any impression at all?"

"Emmmmm, that's right. My memory is still pretty good. In my memory, there is no such person as Niwa, and I have never even heard any rumors about Niwa. If he and I were in the same junior high school, then there must be many rumors about Niwa, but I have never heard of them. This is too weird." Liu Mei muttered, and at the same time, her hands kept slapping the table: "So, I think this person's behavior is really inexplicable, just like a dog suddenly jumped out from the side of the road and barked at you. Hachiman, don't you think this kind of person is disgusting and inexplicable? Why are there such strange people in the world? Sure enough, is the world about to end?"

Niwa-san, you've been treated roughly again! Your position in Liumei's heart is completely equal to that of an unknown mad dog. If it was just a fatal blow just now, then you would have been crushed into ashes now! It's really pitiful. Also, Liumei, did you mix in some strange words when you spoke just now?

"Hehehe, you are really pitiful, Niwa-san."

"It's all his own fault." Liu Mei said without any sympathy, and she slapped the table with more force, and the sound of banging echoed in the room.

She is really angry, so scary. It seems that Liumei is really angry. It is so scary. It turns out that when girls are angry, they can be so scary!

"Hachiman, don't you think so? People like this are really annoying and disgusting!"

"I can understand that!"

Hachiman on the surface: Yes, I sympathize with him!

(Inner thoughts: Hahahahahahahaha, this person totally deserves it. I’m totally ecstatic!)

Chapter 189 Quietly, Hikigaya Hachiman

After all, since the other party has caused so much trouble to her, it is absolutely impossible to say that she likes him, right? In this case, it is better to say that she hates him deeply. It seems that Rumi really has a deep hatred for Niwa.

What should I do? Why do I feel more and more sympathy towards Niwa? I can't control myself... Hehehe, that's strange! Don't you think about who I am? You know, I am Hachiman Honban. Even if you put me in the situation of studying in the United States, no matter who it is, it is unforgivable to do such a thing to oneself. It is impossible to whitewash it. This is not some weird light novel routine~ (broken face)

"Really?" Perhaps she was tired of banging the table, so Liu Mei took the teacup in her hand and started drinking tea in small sips.

“Ahahaha.”

I smiled helplessly. Faced with such a scene, I could only smile. I felt that such an atmosphere could not be eased by just saying a few more words.

"Hachiman, I'm so sorry for saying that." Rumi said apologetically.

The conversation just now clearly fell into the category of complaining. If you suddenly say this to someone for no reason and the other person minds, then your impression in the other person's mind will undoubtedly drop a lot.

"It's okay. I don't really care."

"Ah."

After getting my answer, Liumei became much happier. When I walked out of Liumei's house, it was only about six o'clock. I have to say, it was still very early.

When I was leaving, Rumi seemed to want me to have dinner at her house, saying it was a return gift for the food I cooked for her before. But when I thought about the taste of the porridge I made, I remembered that I still had a lot of food made by Yuigahama at home.

After comprehensive consideration, I still declined the kindness of Liumei. Besides, there was someone else Liumei needed to thank more than me, and that was her grandfather. He should have spent more energy and time than I did during the period of her illness in the United States.

It's such precious time, no matter what, I can't continue to bother him. Besides, if he is asked to stay for dinner, I feel that my position will become very delicate.

Having said that, it’s still too early to go back now.

Do you want to go to the Orisuma ramen shop again? However, the owner's enthusiasm is a little overwhelming. If I am given something for no reason again, I will feel a little guilty no matter what.

However, Orikusa seems to be worried about Rumi's health, so I should go and tell her about Rumi's general condition.

Having made up my mind, I got on the tram.

Perhaps because it was not yet the peak hour, the Orisuma family's store did not seem as crowded as usual, but it would probably be the peak hour after get off work soon, and the scene would probably be very different by then.

I walked into the store, and when the boss, who was sorting things in the back, saw me, he gave me his standard generous smile.

"Welcome, what would you like to eat today?"

"Well, I'm sorry. I just came to visit someone today."

"It doesn't matter. Everyone who comes here is a customer. It doesn't matter even if you don't order any food. By the way, would you like some..." Before the boss could finish his words, a very rude voice interrupted him.

"Dad, didn't I tell you not to give gifts casually?"

"Oh, but..."