"—Woof."

  The puppy's soft bark broke the tense sileweewo boys. Shigeru Yahaba's attention was immediately drawn to a cardboard box not far away.

  "Is that dog….a stray?" he asked.

  Kentarō Kyōtani scowled and gave a curt nod, using his foot to he curious little pup away from him.

  Shigeru's expression shifted uably. He couldn't quite recile this se with the usually hot-headed Kyōtani. The idea of him being soft-hearted felt absurd.

  "…Don't tell me you're pnning to take in this stray dog! What is this, some shoujo manga cliché?" Shigeru raised his voice, sounding like he was trying to vince himself. "Seriously, cut it out. There's no way I'm going to start thinking you're secretly a good person because of this!"

  "I didn't pick it up! It followed me here on its own!" Kyōtani shot back, clearly irritated. Among their cssmates, it seemed Shigeru was the only one who dared to openly defy him.

  Shigeru sneered, looking utterly unimpressed. "Oh, so now you're bragging about being popur with animals, huh?"

  Kyōtani's temple twitched. "What the hell are you even talking about?!"

  As the two bickered, their bad-forth cutting through the air like verbal feng, the puppy curled up beside Kyōtani's sneakers and promptly fell asleep.

  "Hey," Shigeru said suddenly, his tone quieter than before. "Don't even think about dumping the dog somewhere just because it's inve."

  "Hah?" Kyōtani raised an eyebrow at him.

  "Don't gre at me like that. As if I'd trust someone as reckless as you. Holy, if you told me you were pnning to eat the dog raw, I wouldn't even be surprised!" Shigeru quipped with exaggerated disdain.

  Before Kyōtani could fire back, Shigeru bent dowly scooping up the sleeping puppy from where it y against Kyōtani's shoe. He pced it bato the cardboard box, then hoisted the box into his arms.

  "e o's go."

  "Huh? Go where?" Kyōtani asked, a flicker of uainty breaking through his usual bravado.

  "You said you're not taking it home, right? So, we'll just have to find someone else who will," Shigeru replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Though his fidence wavered slightly, he kept moving forward.

  "Oh."

  With Kyōtani finally falling silent, Shigeru didn't bother to push the versation further. Hugging the box tightly, he led the way toward a nearby venieore.

  "Let's get it something to eat first."

  Ihe store, Shigeru grabbed a small pack of sausages while Kyōtani, for some reason, picked out fried chi.

  "You really love fried chi, don't you…" Shigeru muttered, recalling that Kyōtani was rarely seeing anything else.

  "Isn't this for the dog?" Kyōtaed, brushing off the ent.

  With their purchases in hand, the two of them found a small outdoor table he store and sat down. Shigeru watched as Kyōtani tore off a piece of fried chi and dropped it in front of the puppy.

  "...I don't even know where to start scolding you," Shigeru muttered under his breath.

  Perhaps smelling the food, the puppy woke up, tail wagging as it sniffed eagerly at the s. Unsurprisingly, it showed a clear preference for the fried chi over the sausages.

  Shigeru frowned. "This dog's got weird taste."

  After eating its fill, the puppy quickly dozed off again, its tiny body rising and falling with rapid, rhythmic breaths. Both boys watched it in silence, captivated despite themselves.

  Their gazes actally met, and in an instant, they turheir heads away, equally annoyed.

  "Anyway, let's ask Iwaizumi-senpai what to do." Having a reliable senior to sult always brought a sense of relief.

  "Yeah." Evearō Kyōtani seemed to agree when it came to Iwaizumi Hajime.

  Beep...beep...beep...

  "Hello~?"

  Uedly, the voi the other end of the call was light and teasing, almost pyful.

  "Oikawa-senpai? Isn't this supposed to be Iwaizumi-senpai's phone?" Shigeru Yahaba asked, puzzled.

  "I'm at Iwa-'s pce watg game footage. Why? What's up?"

  Even on their club's day off, those two were hanging out together. Shigeru sighed inwardly before expining the situation to Oikawa Tōru.

  "Huh? Why'd you call Iwa- first instead of me? I'm the captain, aren't I?"

  That's not the point here! Besides, this is exactly why we didn't call you first, Oikawa-senpai!

  Shigeru screamed inwardly, his lips twitg as he struggled for a response.

  "Give me the phone, you Gomikawa…"

  The sound of a brief scuffle came through the line, and soon, Iwaizumi's voice repced Oikawa's.

  "her Oikaine is suitable for keeping a pet. Here's what we'll do—ask the sed-years if anyone take it in. Oikawa and I will check with the first-years and third-years to see if anyone's ied."

  "'Oikawa' is fine, but what's with the niame? Don't just call me trash, Iwa-—!" Oikarotest was cut short, followed by a suspicious thud.

  "If no one agrees, taeo the school tomorrow or check with the police about what to do," Iwaizumi tinued calmly, as if nothing had happened.

  Shigeru nodded repeatedly as he listened, impressed. As expected of Iwaizumi-senpai, everything was quickly pnned and anized. Even Kyōtani, who had bristled at the sound of Oikawa's voice earlier, seemed to settle down after hearing Iwaizumi's proposal.

  Shigeru diligently called the sed-year teammates one by one, but everyone politely deed. Just as he expected, anyone willing to keep a pet likely already had one.

  Not long after, Iwaizumi called back with simir results—none of the other club members were willing to adopt the puppy either.

  Dejected, Shigeru slumped over the table, his frustration ced with a faint sense of disappoi.

  "Huh? Is that a puppy? Ohmygosh, it's so cute! Look, look!"

  A group of high school girls in uniforms suddenly appeared at their table, their voices bubbling with excitement.

  "What's this? It's alive? Why's it in a box? Wait, are you filming something?"

  "What breed is it? It's so fluffy!"

  "Could it be a Shiba Inu? It looks like one, doesn't it? Am I right? Kawaii~" Their cheerful chatter and youthful energy filled the air.

  Shigeru quickly ran a hand through his hair, smoothing it back. Fshing a charming smile he rarely dispyed, he said enthusiastically, "Hi there! So, what do you think? Would you like to py with the puppy? You even adopt it!"

  "Really? Are you serious?" One of the girls seemed genuinely ied, her eyes lighting up.

  "...Eek!" Anirl suddenly yelped, her face going pale as she froze. Her gaze was locked on something beside Shigeru.

  fused, Shigeru turned his head and saw Kyōtani gring at the girls, his expression brimming with hostility.

  "What the—?! What are you doing?!"

  But it was already too te. The girls screamed and bolted, their shrill voices eg as they fled the se.

  Shigeru stared after them in shock, his mouth agape, before his fusion morphed into fury.

  "Why were y at them?! One of them might've actually adopted the puppy!"

  Kyōtani snatched the box—puppy and all—straight out of Shigeru's hands and snapped back, "Are you out of your mind? How could you trust random strangers we just met?"

  "...!"

  "And you just met the puppy too!" Shigeru yelled, his frustration boiling over. "Fine! Do whatever you want!"

  Kyōtani's face darkened. Without saying another word, he shoved the curious puppy's head bato the box, picked it up roughly, and stomped off without looking back.

  _________

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