Sincerely, Me [Kindaichi Yuutarou] | ✔

Sit

Shino stared flatly at the vending machine which had gobbled up her spare change in exchange for nothing. The milk that was supposed to have been shuffled out of the mechanical box was stuck—the chocolate milk carton was stuck half-hanging off the edge of its place.

It was but a mild annoyance for Shino, and she hammered her fist on the vending machine in vain. Then she paced back and forth once before trying again.

The classes she and Kunimi were running (as of today) had been dismissed ten minutes ago. Kindaichi and Kunimi were waiting at the gate for her to join them on their journey home.

"How irritating," she murmured, banging her fist on the glass one last time.

"Hm? Iwasaki-san—hey." Shino shifted her eyes to the left to see Iwaizumi, his skin slick with perspiration. "Do you need help with that?"

"Ah, if you could." Shino stepped back, allowing Iwaizumi to give the machine a once over. Then he slammed his fist in a certain position, and the milk carton came undone, falling into the collection box.

Wordlessly, Shino picked it up, turning it around in her hands a few times.

"The machine can be a real pain in the ass sometimes," Iwaizumi said, giving her a crooked smile. "You won't believe the amount of times Oikawa has come crying to me because it ate his pocket money. Like the bastard doesn't already have enough..."

Shino popped the carton open, taking a sip. "Thank you for the help, Iwaizumi-san. Is there anything I can do in return?"

"Eh? No, don't worry about it, Iwasaki-san—you don't need to repay me for just that."

"So there's nothing? Nothing at all?" Her blue gaze met his charcoal one. For a moment, they simply stared.

Then Shino's phone buzzed. A text from her LINE group consisting of her and Kunimi and Kindaichi. It was Kunimi who'd sent the simple message of "Hurry up".

She typed back a reply with one hand, her fingers nimble. Go without me. I'll be fine.

Kindaichi replied this time, refusing.

"Iwaizumi-san, whatever it is you need, tell me now," Shino said tonelessly, looking up at him again.

Iwaizumi sighed. "It's nothing big, really, but I guess there is something you can do for me."

"Right. Will you walk me home afterward? I have a feeling that I'll be hearing nothing but lectures if Kindaichi finds out that I went home myself."

"No problem. But don't you take a bike?"

"I can roll it along. I can afford to take my time."

"If you're sure. I'll go get my things and then we can head off. Practice is just about over anyway. Wait for me at the gate?"

So while waiting for Iwaizumi, Shino found herself in the company of one indifferent boy and one irate boy.

"I can't believe you're bailing on us again," Kindaichi said accusingly, narrowing his eyes. "Look, if you don't want to walk home with us, you can just say so—"

"Why are you so annoyed?" Shino wondered, her eyebrows lifting ever so slightly. She was genuinely confused—anyone with a working pair of eyes could see as much. "It was only today that you asked me to join you."

"She's got a point," Kunimi agreed as he shuffled through his playlist on his phone, his eyelids hooded, exhausted from having to teach nearly a whole class of first year students. "Kindaichi, just drop it, why don't you? She's not trying to offend you." You just tend to take things the wrong way sometimes. It was a quality that had reared its ugly head plenty of times throughout their friendship. It was this particular side of Kindaichi (combined with Kunimi's irritated disposition and Kageyama's attitude) that had led to the downfall of the Kindaichi-Kunimi-Kageyama trio during their middle school days.