CH. 98 - Life's Direction

 A different day… Hikigaya is on the couch in the living room playing a videogame happily as Riku approaches him. Riku stares at Hikigaya for a moment, making him uncomfortable until he speaks to Riku.

 “What can I do for you, small one?” Hikigaya asks with a sweat drop on his face.

 “Shouldn’t you be working on your future and stuff?” Riku asks.

 “I am.” Hikigaya responds.

 “How?” Riku asks, confused and judging.

 “I’m formulating right now. You see this game?” He points to the TV screen, and Riku looks at it with a surprised look. “This particular game is very inspirational. It’s showing me all the many things I could do with my life.” Hikigaya says. Riku sweats as he looks back at Hikigaya with a judgmental look.

 “It’s… a cleaning simulator.” Riku says. Hikigaya stares at him for a moment before getting back to his game with an annoyed look.

 “Okay, what do you want? A medal?” Hikigaya asks sarcastically. Riku then sits down next to him with a sad look.

 “No, I was just curious about something…” he says softly. “One day, will I grow as big as you?” Riku asks. Hikigaya looks at him, surprised a bit, before smiling.

 “I don’t know. Maybe not.” Hikigaya says. Riku looks a bit disappointed as Hikigaya rubs him on the head. “But if you’re anything like your sister, you’ll grow up nice and strong regardless of your size.” He says warmly. Riku smiles a big smile.

 “And I am! I got powers just like her!” Riku says happily. Hikigaya sweats and shushes him with a finger to his mouth and an awkward smile.

 “Shh! Shiori hasn’t told your parents yet so neither should you, okay?” He says. Riku giggles a little.

 “Right, right. Can't let anyone know, I know.” He says with a smile, but his smile drops a little, a hint of disappointment on his face. Hikigaya notices and comes up with an idea.

 “Hey, how about we go bug your sister for a bit?” Hikigaya offers. Riku then jumps up with an excited smile.

 “Yeah!” Riku says happily before rushing upstairs as Hikigaya smiles and follows. The two boys then burst into Shiori’s room by kicking down her door, startling her in her chair at her desk.

 “Shiori~!” they shout happily. She exhales in sharp relief after the scare.

 “What is wrong with you guys??” she asks angrily.

 “We came to see if you wanted to play with us!” Riku says with a big smile.

 “That’s right! We’re bored!” Hikigaya says too. Shiori sighs with a soft smile before turning back to what she was doing.

 “You know I’d love to help with your problem, but I am kind of busy here. You’ll have to find entertainment elsewhere.” She says with a smile. Hikigaya looks a bit disappointed but looks at her as she works intently. He admires the look in her eyes as she focuses with passion and determination. He smiles softly with a light blush.

 “Aw! Why not-” Before Riku can complain more, Hikigaya grabs him, covering his mouth.

 “Come on, let’s leave her to work in peace.” Hikigaya says. Riku whines and mopes as Hikigaya takes him away. Downstairs, Riku plays the cleaning simulator game Hikigaya was playing with an excited look. Hikigaya watches for a moment before turning around and pulling out his phone to call Haru. It rings for a moment before Haru answers.

“Hey man, what’s up?” Haru answers.

 “Nothing much. Kinda bored, wanna do some tomfoolery? Some shenanigans, if you will?” Hikigaya asks playfully.

“Dang, that does sound like an enticing offer.” Haru answers with a regretful tone as he holds a couple boxes in her arms. “But I’m out with Suga right now. We’re picking up some supplies for a new piece of equipment he’s making.” He says as Sugawara happily places another box in his arms. “But I can hang after he’s done if you want?” Haru says. Hikigaya sighs a bit but smiles.

 “Nah, you focus on helping Sugawara. We’ll commit tax fraud another day. Enjoy yourself.” Hikigaya jokes.

“Will do, captain!” Haru answers happily before hanging up. Hikigaya scratches the back of his head as he thinks of something else to do.

 “Well, Touma and Ryuji are busy, and I’m sure Lucy is helping Ryuji too.” He leans against a wall with a sigh and a slightly disappointed look on his face. “It seems everyone is busy with their careers and studies..” he says softly before his phone rings. With a surprised look, he takes out his phone and sees Chizuru calling him. He answers. “Hey.”

“Hey Hiki, wanna hangout?” Chizuru asks happily. Hikigaya sweats a bit.

 “I am bored… How did you know?” he asks as Chizuru walks down the street with a cotton candy stick in her hand.

 “Oh, you know, bestfriend intuition.” She says as she bites the cotton candy.

“I don’t believe you.” Hikigaya says through the phone. She sweats a bit with an awkward smile.

“Haru might’ve, maybe called me after you called him, pitying your loneliness and asking me to hangout with you.” She admits as Hikigaya droops a bit. 

 “Of course that idiot did…” he says, imagining Haru giving him a goofy thumbs up. “Well, I won’t turn you down.” He says with a sigh as Chizuru smiles and stops walking.

 “Good, cause I’m outside.” She says, looking at the front of his house. Hikigaya is shocked.

 “So quick!” He shouts.

 A little later, the two of them sit at a park bench under an umbrella, eating lunch as they chat.

 “Where did you get that cotton candy from anyway?” Hikigaya asks.

 “Oh, a guy was selling some at a stand in town. It looked yummy, so I got some!” Chizuru says happily as Hikigaya sweats a bit.

 “By yourself?.. That doesn’t sound safe at all…” he says softly as Chizuru pouts a bit.

 “I told you not to worry about me like that! I’m fine.” Chizuru says firmly.

 “Right, right. My bad.” Hikigaya says with a soft smile as Chizuru’s face shifts from a pout to a warm smile before taking another bite of her sandwich. “So are you busy with anything like the others?” He asks.

 “Nah, not really. I talked to Touma about it and he said he’s more than happy to support us both and let me be a stay at home. And I like it that way!” She says with a big smile. Hikigaya smirks a bit.

 “Your relationship is going that strong, huh?” he asks. Chizuru blushes a bit with a shy smile as she looks away. 

 “Going strong would be an understatement.. I don’t think even you and Shiori are in love this much.” She says softly with a red face. Hikigaya laughs a bit.

 “Seems like it!” he says happily. Chizuru smiles at him.

 “Speaking of which, what about you and Shiori? How are you guys?” She asks. Hikigaya plays it off cool as a large blush spreads across his face.

 “Oh, ahem, you know. She’s cool and stuff.” he says while a thought flashes across his mind. On his bed, still fully clothed, Shiori and Hikigaya makeout passionately as she runs her hands through his hair and he holds her by the waist. “We’re doing good.” He says, flustered while thinking of her. Chizuru giggles.

 “I knew you two were in love. I’m so happy you’re together now. The brightness you cast together can be blinding at times.” She says with a smile. Hikigaya rubs the back of his neck, embarrassed.

 “Y-yeah?.. I’m glad.” He says softly, happy to hear his friend thinks so. They eventually finish their lunches before beginning a walk back. Chizuru walks with her hands behind her back and a joyful look, as Hikigaya has his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face.

 “It’s kind of crazy how we’re gonna be full-time adults soon. With everyone working on their careers and jobs, I hope we still have time to be friends.” Chizuru says with a soft tone and almost worried look in her eyes.

 “Don’t worry, Chizu. I’m sure we’ll only get closer as time goes on. Ain’t nothing can come between our group!” Hikigaya says supportively. Chizuru smiles and nods at Hikigaya’s words.

 “What are you gonna do, Hiki? With your future, I mean.” She asks. Hikigaya gets a slightly conflicted look while looking down.

 “I’m… not exactly sure yet.” He admits. Chizuru looks at him, surprised. “I just don’t know what to do. Should I prepare for college to specialize in a specific field? Or maybe just support Shiori in her career?” He asks openly with a frustrated tone. Chizuru looks at him for a moment, thinking about how to best support her friend.

 “Are those things you want to do?” She asks softly. Hikigaya sighs in frustration before gently kicking a small rock away from them.

 “I don’t know…” He stops walking as Chizuru turns and looks at him. He looks down a bit. “I would love to help Shiori with anything she needs, but I need to be doing something, otherwise I’ll go mad.” He says with a soft smile to Chizuru as they giggle together. They pause for a moment before Chizuru speaks.

 “I wish I could tell you what to do, be of any kind of help.” She says softly, looking away. She then looks back at Hikigaya with a smile. “But I don’t know either!” She says happily as Hikigaya smiles too.

 “Yeah, don’t worry about it. I’ll definitely let you know when I figure it out though.” He says.

 “You better!” She says with a smug smile.

Eventually, Hikigaya makes it home by himself. His mom sits at the counter in the middle of the kitchen, reading some paperwork in front of her as Hikigaya makes his way to a seat next to her. Before he can even fully sit in the chair, his mom speaks.

 “What’s going on?” She asks, not even looking away from her papers. Hikigaya is surprised by her question and stops.

 “What? I can’t even get fully seated first?” He asks, upset, before sitting down with a sigh and leaning on his elbow, pouting. Asami turns and looks at him. 

 “Are you going to answer my question?” She asks. Hikigaya just grumbles to himself. “Fine, don’t take my advice.” Asami says as she goes back to reading her papers. Hikigaya reluctantly turns back towards her.

 “Sorry, mom… I’m just a little lost I guess.” He admits softly.

 “Well, if you want to know what to do with your future, why don’t you just become a writer?” Asami offers. Hikigaya gives her an unamused look as she laughs. “I’m kidding! You can go ahead and leave that to Shiori.” She playfully punches his arm. “What’s your main dilemma?” She asks.

 “Well, I want to be there for Shiori whenever she needs me, but I also want to do something I can be proud of.” He says. His mother thinks for a moment before responding.

 “Why don’t you pick up your art?” She asks. Hikigaya looks at her with a surprised look. “Yeah, you should do that! Do some illustrations for her or do her book covers, or both! You can’t underestimate the power of a beautiful cover.” Asami encourages. Hikigaya thinks about it for a moment. “You’ve always been so talented with your art. Those little sketches and pictures you do. It’d be a shame to let it all go to waste.” She pauses for a moment before looking down with a soft, almost sad smile. “I’m sure Amber would’ve loved to see more of it.” She says softly as Hikigaya looks at her. He nods a bit with a sad smile too.

 “Yeah…” He says softly. After a moment of silence, he gets up from the chair and begins to head upstairs. 

 “You better be walking away from your sad mother to put that pencil to paper!” Asami says with a smirk.

 “Yeah, yeah.” He says back casually.

 “Hikigaya.” Asami calls to him. He stops and looks back at his mother, who smiles softly at him with a comforting gaze. “Think about it, but don’t stress. You’ll find what calls to you eventually.” She says in a caring, motherly tone as Hikigaya smiles back before heading upstairs. Upstairs, Hikigaya flops on his bed on his back with a frustrated sigh.

 “I’m totally stressing about it…” he says quietly while laying on his bed. He sits up for a moment before getting back up and heading to Shiori’s room. There, he softly opens her door to find her asleep at her desk, laying on her work. He smiles softly with a blush on his cheeks as he adores her.

 “She’s so cute..” He whispers before stepping into her room and picking her up in his arms. He carries her to her bed and lays her down gently before covering her in her blankets. She snores lightly as he does. He leans down and lightly kisses her on the forehead as a gentle smile spreads on her lips.

 “You’re so amazing..” he whispers to her before stepping back to leave. On his way out, he looks at her book and pages on her desk and stops when something catches his eye. He reads it for a moment before getting a surprised and inspired look.

 “A young man with bright blue hair and a scar across his face…” He smiles a bit before thinking more about it. “Hm… I could work with that.” He says, surprised, before smiling and rushing to his desk. He pulls out a pencil and begins sketching on a sheet of paper under his lamplight.