Some After School Shenanigans

Hikigaya's Route to Senior High Is Not Normal, As I Expected

"First they ignore you, and then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win." - Mahatma Gandhi.

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Hachiman's POV

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Hachiman sighed in exasperation as he was pretty much coerced into giving Kikyou his contact. In over 24 hours technically, he had already gained three different contacts.

One, being his library boss, Manabu Horikita, and now, Kikyou Kushida.

Having done her job, Kikyou called it a day and decided to wave a goodbye to Hachiman, clearly wanting to just garner more contacts within her own class.

Hachiman didn't know why. In the meantime, he decided he could always just ignore her if she ever tries to contact him. In the meantime, Hachiman made his way towards the library, where he clearly was ready to begin the start of his job.

Considering he had paid for this, he immediately got himself ready for the work for the next six hours. He wouldn't be done until 8pm, but again, this was only for the first week. The main reason for that is due to him not having much homework.

As if to surprise Hachiman further, the school wasn't giving him numerous homework, at least as much as he expected considering from Junior High.

Sure, Hachiman was somewhat unsure regarding what the school was trying to play with, but for now, Hachiman knew he just needed to try and survive.

As this occurred, Hachiman immediately made his way back towards the library. Likewise, Nao was already waiting for him, smiling as he entered.

"Oh! Hikigaya! I didn't expect to see you here so soon!" Nao smiled, confusing Hachiman.

"Nagamine? I know where the organizing facility is, why did you wait for me this entire time?" Hachinan asked, a bit confused. He had gotten a message from Nao explaining that she was waiting and anticipating for him to enter and begin working.

Nao smiled, "It's rather simple. This is the only free time when you can work here. Although I would have expected you to come by a bit later."

"And why is that?" Hachiman asked curiously.

Nao shrugged, a nervous smile encompassing her face. "I don't know. For all I know about you, you could have friends, maybe a girlfriend?"

Hachiman shook his head, "Sorry, none."

Nao's eyes widened, "Wait, really? How come?!" She seemed so surprised that if she wasn't in the library, she would have broken the sound barrier and all the glass around.

Hachiman shrugged, "Most girls don't actually like me. Perhaps it's my eyes."

Nao made a noise of disapproval, "Nonsense you seem like a nice brooding guy, your eyes ca- oh, nevermind… I see what you mean…" Nao's opinion switched a complete 180 degrees as soon as she looked more at Hachiman's eyes.

Hachiman could only deadpan at that reaction, giving Nao an expression of if she had to make that comment. Regardless, he changed the topic to focus on the main reason he was here.

"So anyways, you waited to show me how this entire thing worked?" Hachiman asked curiously. Nao snapped back to reality and nodded.

"Yes! Let's go to the room right now." Nao explained as she led Hachiman to a small quiet room. It was on the bottom floor, but near the elevator, meaning Hachiman didn't have to take the whole cart upstairs, he was blessed with the small amount of automatic assistance available.

Regardless, Hachiman followed Nao and clearly saw a large puddle of books, unorganized.

Nao merely looked at the small carts, each with two separate areas, both on the top and bottom. "This part is very simple. You just need to match the books with the label and genre each cart has on it. Some employers will come and sort it out themselves during the day, and if there's any remaining at evening time, you can place them appropriately."

"What about watching over students who misplace books or leave them on the tables?" Hachiman asked curiously towards Nao.

Nao nodded, "Great question! There are cameras everywhere in the library, so one, if any student causes any problems, they will ultimately be penalized for their actions, and two, we have representatives and workers who place the books back regardless."

"Oh, I see." Hachiman nodded, before he asked something he just realized, "What do you mean penalized?" He asked. Perhaps that had to do with the cameras he had recently been noticing were around the school.

Now that Hachiman thought about it, once he spotted a camera after that class 3-D student made a scene after being bullied by their similar aged peers, he began to see others, and with Nao hinting they were used in penalizing those who didn't adhere to society norms.

Nao shrugged, "Well, it was a part of the overall system the school put in. It's like every warning a student gets for being rowdy or immature, you know?"

Hachiman hummed as he then pointed to something else. "But whenever I saw a Class D student, they were always made fun of for having less points. Not to mention those higher in the classes were always making fun of them verbally. When you mean penalized, do you mean by impacting a students' private points?"

Nao looked at Hachiman, a bit stunned he was still interested in this and looking into it. She silently cursed herself for being so open to that, but alas, she was answering Hachiman's questions.

Hachiman sighed, "Well then…" Hachiman pondered, as he begun thinking. "So students can lose private points by their actions… That spells a problem for our class specifically since many of the students are slacking off and being… rebels…" Hachiman thought.

"So that pretty much means that our actions likely impact how many private points we get monthly... Is that it?" Hachiman asked, before he shook his head.

"No, there must be more than this. I'm missing one thing connecting everything together." Hachiman sighed clearly knowing he was close but missing one thing.

"Nagamine, can I ask something?" Hachiman asked.

Nao nodded, "Sure, what is it?"

"Do Class D students usually cause the most problems for you in the library?" Hachiman asked Nao. Perhaps it wouldn't be a strong sample if he was only using Nao, but he needed something to confirm what he was thinking.

Nao nodded, "On average? Yes. I would say they do."

Hachiman nodded, "And yet, the class environment of 3-D makes me believe everyone was suffering the same fate of a deficit of private points. Does that mean that they are all connected? Every student in a class?"

Hachiman could only theorize, and unless he had some form of confirmation, he couldn't say he was confident with his answer.

For all intents and purposes, he could be wrong. Just like he was supposedly wrong all those numerous times in Junior High.

Nevertheless, Hachiman decided he should focus on the library right now, considering he was supposed to work a total of 12 hours before he could begin getting paid.

But if what Hachiman was theorizing was correct, then he should stick to his original plan and begin saving his private points while he can.

And that was what Hachiman did. He focused on the current work he had for the next six hours. Nao was clearly surprised he had chosen to remain in the library's time of opening.

By the time it was 8pm, Nao was about to close the library, that is until she realized Hachiman was in the nonfiction ail, placing the remaining book he had organized in it's appropriate place.

"Hikigaya? You still here?" Nao asked surprised.

Hachiman nodded, "Yes, I planned to work six hours for the first couple of weeks, and even month since homework and assignments are usually light in the first month."

Nao nodded, but was still a bit confused, "Aren't you sure you didn't want to do some studying, or anything else other than this?"

Hachiman shook his head, "No, I enjoy this more than that. And remember, I don't have any friends nor girlfriend to hang out with, so this is fine with me."

Nao could only look on, a bit confused, but sighing in exasperation. "As long as you don't overwork yourself, then it's fine. But to think in one day you already are halfway finished a requirement…"

Hachiman shrugged, "Don't worry, there's a lot more reasons why I'm working here. And I promise it's nothing malicious. I just enjoy the library. Nice and quiet."

Nao nodded, "Of course, you don't give any malicious intentions. However, I do think eventually you should try and communicate with someone from your own class, and even hang out with friends."

Hachiman sighed, "I have someone from my class on my contacts, so it's fine. But even then, I don't think I'm ready to hang around anyone for a while."

"Especially not after what happened during Junior High…" Hachiman sighed as he faintly remembered two, maybe three girls who had really made his life in Junior High horrible.

They didn't need to, and yet they did.

But Hachiman sighed. That was in Junior High, he was now in Senior High, away from those people and any connections which may come back to haunt him.

They simply shouldn't be able to due to him being closed off from the rest of the world for three years.

The best Hachiman could hope, was that he was simply forgotten by. Especially by Aoki. Hachiman didn't feel worthy to still be remembered and cherished by Aoki. But alas, he did.

Nao calmly placed a hand on Hachiman's shoulder, making him flinch as he was taken out of his thought. "I don't know the kind of person you are around others Hikigaya, but what I can tell you is that people are vast and individually unique."

Hachiman nodded, "Trust me, I know…" Hachiman mumbled, as he, as much as he hated to admit it, began to see a bit of Aoki in Nao.

Sure, Nao was a bit more nervous and softer spoken, also not as bold towards beating people up when it was warranted, she still held similar morals, but rather than using her fist and power, she used resilience, and her words.

Hachiman saw a bit of Nao in his former and maybe current sensei. A teacher, sure.

But still, Hachiman couldn't help but hate her just a tad. Because she was a girl. Thankfully, for Hachiman, it was not enough for him to impact his actual limited social interaction he would have with Nao.

Nao then asked another question for Hachiman, "Can I ask you something?"

Hachiman nodded, "Sure."

"Have you ever loved anyone?" Nao asked, which surprised Hachiman. He hadn't expected anyone to ask him that kind of question.

The thought of a certain girl with bobbed brown hair, going down to her shoulders made its way into Hachiman's mind.

Even a black-haired girl, sure Hachiman could say perhaps something was going on there, it was ultimately too quickly and too early to decide.

Regardless, they were in the past, and although it was for different reasons, they all impacted Hachiman heavily, even if they were no longer here, metaphorically, or literally.

As Hachiman began to think, Nao apologized. "I can see that is a bit of a sensitive topic for you. But the way you hold yourself makes me believe you were the type of person to care too much for the people you loved, and once you got hurt, you decided to never show that loving side ever again."

Hachiman nodded, accepting Nao's apology. But again, this once again made Hachiman feel that Nao was a lot like Aoki in many ways.

The only difference is that Nao didn't see what Hachiman lost. But even then, Nao didn't lose it as well, unlike Aoki…

Perhaps Nao was a tad more confident but laid back, Hachiman still couldn't help but see a lot of similarities between Aoki and Nao.

Hachiman then spoke. "Perhaps I did love too much back then… But I was only a kid. As for anything else, it's fine… You do remind me a bit of someone I care for, though, so thank you for this conversation."

Even if it was a bit awkward, Hachiman has had conversations with Aoki like this before, and whilst he would always be filled with guilt with Aoki, he hadn't done anything to Nao, meaning he didn't feel the pang of guilt as what he did with Aoi.

In the meantime, Hachiman and Nao both locked the library, with them going their separate ways. All the while this occurred, Hachiman walked outside, wanting to enjoy the brisk cool air, that while it was a bit heated during the daytime, during the night, was nice and cool, especially when windy, which lucky Hachiman, was a current predicament.

Regardless, Hachiman decided that just for a couple of minutes, he could do a bit of reflection, just so that he remained grounded, and not lose himself entirely in his cynicism.

He enjoyed the time outside, especially during the night, as Aoki would always encourage him to do so. It was just, nice, and entrancing, and Hachiman felt he didn't have to worry about the world and the stress that came with it.

In the meantime, this gave Hachiman time to reflect and think about everything he was told.

"So. Let's get started, first, with the cameras." Hachiman placed a hand underneath his chin as he began to think. "Nagamine explained that the camera's were implicitly used to find students who were misbehaving and not adhering to proper rules. Nagamine explained that students would be penalized if they left books out in the wrong isle, or even on the tables." Hachiman remembered when Nao explained it pretty briefly.

"And considering the environment that seems to plague that of the third years, I can assume that they suffer receiving private points if they act badly. As for whether one individual affects the whole class, I'm not entirely confident and sure about that." Hachiman's mind was pretty much wandering and thinking as he was clearly trying to make use of every information he had gathered.

"However, considering everything, perhaps the amount of private points we are given monthly varies depending on our behaviour." Hachiman was confident that was the case. However, he was still unsure of some nuances, such as how the other members of Class D were impacted.

If they were likely to be bullied for their status, they were also more likely to suffer from lashing out, which could definitely lower their private point yield.

Hachiman could see it was a circle of downward spiral for that of Class D students.

Hachiman and Class 1-D were no different. They would suffer the same fate as those before and after. They would be subject to scrutiny, harassment, and overall scorn just by their status as "underneath."

It was what the school promoted. Those who are underneath and defective are likely to fail in society, whilst those at the top were more comfortable, and secure in their place.

Regardless, Hachiman could only look with some apprehension. He wasn't necessarily one to care. After all, he was focusing on securing himself, as he failed to connect with anyone in his class. After all, he was living without them just fine, and so were they, for now.

In the meantime, Hachiman decided he should head back to his dorm.

The second day of classes were finished, and with that, so was pretty much Hachiman's day. He slowly walked over towards his dorm, clearly not anticipating seeing anything happen.

Of course, that was when Hachiman noticed Kiyotaka outside. Just outside of the dorm itself, were two people Hachiman was aware of, considering the amount of limelight that was on the two of them.

It was Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, and Suzune Horikita. Hachiman managed to learn their names as the day went by and by them calling each other by their family name. Although for Hachiman it almost confused him due to Suzune's name also being that of Manabu's, the student council president.

In short, Hachiman concluded that, unless it was a strange coincidence, Suzune was Manaub's younger sister. Now that Hachiman thought about it, they were somewhat similar in appearance and overall facial expression.

If anything, Hachiman could see a lot of Manabu in Suzune, at least in looking at their faces. Regardless, Hachiman decided to just walk past them silently, hoping nothing would come out of it.

Unfortunately for Hachiman, Suzune seemed to stare at Hachiman with some judgment in her eyes.

"What is someone like you doing outside late at night? I guess your fisheyes work better in the night." Suzune commented, as Kiyotaka seemed silent and apathetic as usual.

Hachiman turned to face Suzune's clearly displeased expression, as Hachiman could clearly understand that for some reason out of Hachiman's own control or decision, Suzune had decided she just held a disdain for Hachiman.

Hachiman merely remained silent, clearly thinking of what an appropriate way may be to respond. All Hachiman could think was how similar Suzune was, to Yukino. The only thing that made Hachiman realize it wasn't Yukino, was the fact that Suzune had two circular objects on her chest.

Regardless, Hachiman knew he couldn't respond to Suzune in a way like Yukino. However, even then, Hachiman didn't have the motivation to even respond to Suzune.

Therefore, Hachiman, after staring at Suzune's face with uncaring eyes of his own, he decided to just ignore her. To not even give her the pleasure of getting someone any attention.

For girls like Yukino believed they were always at the top because of their status. If Suzune was the type of girl to think like that due to her brother being student council president, then Hachiman felt he knew how Suzune Horikita was.

Ignoring the clearly angered look Suzune was giving him, he just walked back to his own dorm, not caring nor willing to bother dealing with someone right now.

…

Sorry for a bit of a delay, having some computer issues, but this chapter was fine to give out. Next chapter will be the third day which was when the swimming contest occurred. This will be a bit of a critical point for Hachiman in one way, but otherwise, it will be a bit more action packed than before.