Haganai vol.8 prologue

Let's talk about a hypothetical person.

Suppose there was a person who hadn't made a single friend in a long time.

He may have been born with a scary face, or have hair that looks like a delinquent's, or not be able to smile well, or get nervous when talking to people and start acting weird, or have a little bit of trouble reading the mood, or have a slightly different sense of humor than most... and it's true that most of those problems likely stem from his own appearance and inability to communicate well with others, but——... Above all, this individual had bad luck.

He failed when he shouldn't have, succeeded when he shouldn't have, lost when he shouldn't have, won when he shouldn't have, got mad when he shouldn't have, got happy when he shouldn't have, laughed when he shouldn't have, and cried when he shouldn't have.

He constantly did all the things he shouldn't have.

Perhaps, instead of saying he had bad luck, one could say that... fate was simply against him.

Anyway, suppose such a person existed.

Always alone, unable to find a place he belonged. That kind of person.

Then, suppose he, by some coincidence, obtained what he'd always been searching for.

If his father wasn't friends with St. Chronica Academy's chairman.

If he chose to go to America with his father when his father moved there for work.

If he didn't get on the wrong bus the first day of school.

If he didn't end up in the same class as his long lost best friend from 10 years ago.

If he didn't meet Sora on that day, 10 years ago.

If Yozora Mikadzuki didn't remember him.

If Yozora Mikadzuki had been leading a happy life with new friends.

If Sena Kashiwazaki had an amiable personality and had tons of friends among the boys and girls at school.

If Sena Kashiwazaki wasn't the kind of girl capable of taking Yozora Mikadzuki head-on.

If Maria Takayama wasn't the manager of Lounge Room #4.

If Maria Takayama had done well at the high school she transferred into.

If Yukimura Kusunoki wasn't under the false impression that he was a "cool guy".

If Yukimura Kusunoki didn't mistake herself for a guy.

If Rika Shiguma hadn't messed up her experiment as he was walking by.

If Rika Shiguma was really just a genius girl, unable to read the mood.

It was like a compilation of all those if's that would fall apart if even one were missing.

Who knows how it happened.

Perhaps it was a miracle.

Maybe fate had made a mistake.

No matter the reason, he had obtained it.

A place he belonged, a world of his own.

A world full of a comforting warmth.

He had desired it for so long, never able to obtain it, but then one day, all of a sudden, with no forewarning, it simply fell into his hands.

Of course, it's not like he didn't do any work for it.

He'd done many things to make friends and clear up the misunderstandings about himself—— at least, he tried to.

But—— The thing he had obtained was far too big for him to simply rejoice and write it off as the fruit of his labor.

I'd like you to keep that in mind as you think about the following.

As you try to imagine it.

As you try to imagine what moving on from that point would mean to him—— and why it would be so terrifying.