"Eh? Yukinoshita's pregnant?"
Hikigaya looked over in shock at the smiling Mrs. Yukinoshita.
"Did Yukino get pregnant?"
Mrs. Yukinoshita kept her usual gentle smile.
"Uh…"
Hikigaya was at a complete loss and scrambled to explain:
"Not yet! Yukinoshita and I are still dating. Um… all the baby stuff in the car is for, you know, future planning."
"Planning ahead?"
"Yes, exactly."
"How about protection? Are you careful?"
"Always," Hikigaya replied as calmly as he could. "Buying all that is just a precaution. We're not planning to have a baby anytime soon."
"I see."
Mrs. Yukinoshita nodded, gently fanning herself with the folding fan in her hand.
Hikigaya, meanwhile, didn't dare make a sound. He just sat there in total silence.
In truth—
He was already drenched in sweat.
As the ultimate final boss, the mother of Yukinoshita, this smiling and outwardly kind woman was, without question, the most terrifying creature Hikigaya had ever met.
Forget trying to talk with her—even just standing in the same room gave him overwhelming pressure. He could barely breathe.
Mrs. Yukinoshita gave him a once-over with that ever-smiling gaze.
Then, slowly, she placed her fan down across her lap and, with a tender expression, asked softly:
"Hikigaya-kun, what do you think of Haruno?"
"Eh?"
Hikigaya was totally thrown. He hadn't expected her to bring up Haruno at all. He hesitated before answering:
"Miss Haruno is… a very capable woman."
"Oh? And compared to Yukino?" Mrs. Yukinoshita smiled faintly.
"It's hard to say for the future, but for now… Miss Haruno is more accomplished than Yukinoshita."
"The future, huh?" Mrs. Yukinoshita's smile lingered as she looked at him.
"Yukinoshita still… has room to grow."
Feeling that piercing gaze boring into him, Hikigaya quickly looked away. For some reason, he had the uneasy sense that her look carried a very peculiar meaning.
"Maybe. But still…"
Mrs. Yukinoshita gave a small sigh after chuckling.
"My daughter is foolish, and honestly, a bit of a blockhead at times."
"No, not at all, ma'am! Actually, Yukinoshita is very smart. At least… at least she's a lot smarter than I am." Hikigaya rushed to defend her.
"There's no need to be so self-deprecating, Hikigaya-kun. As her mother, I know full well what kind of person my daughter is." Mrs. Yukinoshita shook her head, then began to vent a little. "Yukino is always worrying me. The other day, she went out and couldn't even remember if she was on her period. She's getting more and more careless…"
"No, that's not Yukinoshita's fault. That's actually… my fault."
Taking a deep breath, Hikigaya spoke seriously:
"As her boyfriend, I should always be aware of her physical condition. I should've known… about her cycle. But I didn't notice today. If anyone's to blame, it's me, ma'am. Please don't blame Yukinoshita."
Mrs. Yukinoshita's eyes sparkled, and she smiled sweetly.
"Hikigaya-kun, you're too gentle with Yukino."
"I… ahem, no, I'm not being too gentle. You're giving me too much credit." Hikigaya coughed awkwardly.
"Is it because when you're with my daughter, she doesn't bully you much?" she asked kindly. "Come now, tell me. If she ever gives you a hard time, I'll have a good talk with her."
"Uh…"
Hikigaya paused, then quickly shook his head.
"She's never bullied me."
"Oh? Really… never?"
Mrs. Yukinoshita looked softly at him, her gaze locking onto his. Hikigaya immediately averted his eyes, not daring to meet hers.
"Really. Never," he said.
Mrs. Yukinoshita's eyes twinkled with amusement as she continued:
"Hikigaya-kun, Haruno might seem strong-willed, but truth be told, she's much more gentle than Yukino."
"Eh? Miss Haruno?"
Hikigaya blinked, baffled. He couldn't wrap his head around why she kept bringing up Haruno.
But when he saw the brilliant smile on Mrs. Yukinoshita's face, his heart skipped a beat, sensing something ominous.
"Ma'am, you're not saying…"
"Hikigaya-kun, if you're even slightly dissatisfied with Yukino, then maybe—"
"M-Ma'am!"
Sensing the dangerously suggestive tone in her voice, Hikigaya suddenly jumped up. He took several deep breaths before declaring in a firm voice:
"I only like Yukinoshita!"
At last, he realized what Mrs. Yukinoshita was thinking.
She thought he wasn't satisfied with Yukino and was trying to push Haruno onto him. That was horrifying!
"Hikigaya-kun, don't misunderstand. I'm not asking you to betray Yukino. What I meant was, I hope you can—"
Just as Mrs. Yukinoshita was about to continue, she seemed to sense something and turned to look off to the side.
"They're back?"
"Hmm?!"
Hikigaya followed her gaze in surprise. A short-haired woman in jeans was walking toward them with a smile.
A closer look—
Hikigaya jumped, his scalp tingling.
"H-Haruno-san?!"
"Mother dearest, and… Hikigaya-kun~"
Haruno greeted her mother respectfully, then turned a cheerful smile toward Hikigaya.
He swallowed hard.
Of course. There was no way Mrs. Yukinoshita would be shopping alone.
Clearly, Haruno had come with her.
Great.
Now the pressure had doubled. Both the major and minor boss were here.
However—
Just when Hikigaya was about to despair—
A ray of hope appeared.
His girlfriend, Yukinoshita, along with Ai Hoshino, was approaching from the distance.
"Yukinoshita's back. I'll go meet her."
Before either mother or daughter could react, Hikigaya bolted up and quickly headed toward Yukino, not daring to linger for even a second.
Once he was gone, Haruno glanced at her mother and hesitated:
"Mom, just now… were you—"
"Haruno, I've made up my mind. If Yukino doesn't work out, you can go for it."
"Eh? Really?! I can?" Haruno's eyes lit up.
"I'm just worried Yukino is too reserved."
Mrs. Yukinoshita cast a deep, contemplative gaze at the boy in the distance, her lips curling into a small smile.
Hehe… A man I've set my eyes on—there's no way he's getting away.
Hikigaya-kun…
He will become a man of the Yukinoshita family. Our son-in-law.
"Then can I get pregnant, too, Mom~?" Haruno asked with uncontainable excitement.
"Pregnant?" Mrs. Yukinoshita snapped out of her thoughts and looked at her eldest daughter in surprise. "If you have the ability, then of course. Whether it's you or Yukino—doesn't matter who gives birth."