Prologue

The theory of multiple parallel universes. Or simply called the multiverse theory. The multiverse is a theory in which our universe is not the only one, but states that many universes exist parallel to each other. These distinct universes within the multiverse theory are called parallel universes. [1] I'm not sure if it is a scientific theory since it borders the paranormal… I think? Meh, it's not like I'm an expert in science anyway. And I'm not really interested in science-y watchamacallit. Heck, the only 'science-y stuff' I've been interested in is MITOSIS!

…It's just that, the idea of having multiple Hachiman(s) interests me.

I wonder what the Hachiman(s) of the other universes would be like. Would one Hachiman be attending the same high school or would he be attending another such as Kaihin Sogo High? Would one Hachiman be forced to join the same club or would he be in another? Would one Hachiman be crippled? Partially crippled? Would one Hachiman have more sinister eyes instead of these pathetic dead-fish ones? Would one Hachiman have a dark secret life in which he only knows (supposedly)? Would one Hachiman be commanded by Komachi to go to a gym and build his body up? [2] Would they still be a cynical loner pessis- err, I mean, realist?

…

Well, technically I'm no longer a loner now, well, since, you know… Ruri. My cynicism and realism are still grounded within me though. So I guess I could say that I am now just a cynical realist? Hmm. I still have my loner tendencies though. Like, whenever there are social gatherings, my instinctive action would be is to separate from the crowd; whenever I am invited to outings, my instinctive response would be 'NO' (as much as possible); you get the point. It's not like I'm not trying to 'fix' that. It's just, having loner tendencies is one of my idiosyncrasies. So yeah, even though I acknowledge that I am surrounded by wonderful people, and thus I can't proudly call myself a loner, I am still one by heart. So yeah, I'm still the same Hachiman, a cynical loner realist… but admittedly with a few changes. Like, I do not immediately reject invitations for social gatherings such going to the newest café, which usually come from Yui. I first pause for 15 seconds before I give them my 'NO'. Does that make sense?

…

Well either way, if there's one thing that I can be sure of that would remain true to all Hachiman(s) of all universes, it is this: THE UNDYING LOVE FOR MAX COFFEE. That is not a theory. That is a fact.

You must be wondering why I'm suddenly talking about the multiverse considering that I haven't given interest to anything like it before. Well, that's because of a certain revelation has caused the necessity for such theory to be discussed.

"Well, even if you cannot prove it, there is always the possibility of it being true. And it's not like we can truly disprove it either. That's just how the paranormal goes right?" Says the brown-haired pretty boy.

"Yeah. I'm sorry if I can't explain it very well. In my universe, it is you Koizu- Izumi who has always done the explaining part." replied the slightly taller brunette.

See, this is the reason why I suddenly got into thinking about parallel universes. The slightly taller brunette, the one named Tadamichi Kyousuke, has just finished narrating how he was from another universe. It's only recently that he has come to such realization.

"Um yeah, I can attest to that. You have always been the chatty one Koizumi-kun… I mean, Izumi-kun. Sorry. I'm still getting used to the slightly different names."

And apparently, the red-headed petite girl is also from his universe. That's why they are both feeling a bit disoriented.

"Don't worry Asahina-san. You have only regained your memories just a while ago. It's only to be expected that you two will feel a bit disoriented. We understand. Right Miyuki?"

"…yes." replies bespectacled girl. "Although I am curious as to why it is only the two of you and not the whole brigade."

"Yeah. About that, I still can't remember why." says the taller brunette with a look of guilt on his face. "Although I'm sure that it is there deep within my memories. How about you Asahina-san?"

"…it's the same for me. I'm sorry." the red-haired petite girl confesses.

…

Well there's that. Unless there's a way for us to make them remember more, this should be the end to this conversation. I still don't know why they brought me to this, but eh, I could at least do the summarizing. Okay then. Let's wrap this up.

"Ok, so let me put this on the table." as I say that, my current companions have turned to face me. I felt a little bit of discomfort. I'm still not used to getting much attention afterall.

I fake a cough as to slightly alleviate the awkwardness that I feel. I then countinue, "As Tadamichi-"

"Kyon. Just call me Kyon." interrupts the taller brunette. "It feels weird to be called by real name considering that I have been called Kyon for years now."

…well, Kyon is easier to pronounce than Tadamichi anyway. Why not right?

"…Right. So, as Kyon said, he and Asahina-san are from another universe. In his universe, the SOS brigade is formed in their High School instead of Middle School. Izumi, known there as Koizumi Itsuki, is an esper; Agato-san, known there as Nagato Yuki, is an 'alien'; Asahina-san is a time-traveller; and Kyon is just a normal human… That is until he was able to 'slide' into this universe, thus making him a slider."

I know. Sounds unbelievable right? I admit that I still don't believe him. But I'm with a group that investigates the paranormal. It would be pretty rude of me to just blatantly express my disbelief in front of them. And considering the things that have happened recently, I cannot fully discredit Kyon's story.

…

Wait, I almost forgot to mention one more thing.

"And Ruri, known there as Suzumiya Haruhi, is also some sort of a paranormal being."

As to what kind, Kyon still hasn't mentioned it to us. I wonder why though?

"…yeah." weakly replies Kyon. I guess he's still uncomfortable sharing it to us.

…

Well, I shouldn't pry him on it then. Isn't that how I always am? I don't pry to another person's own business, unless if it is for a request or a job. I just wait for them to open up to me.

Besides, I still don't know why I am in involved in this conversation, which brings me to ask,

"So… what does this have to do with me? Shouldn't Ruri be included in this conversation instead of me?" really! She would be delighted since apparently, the thing that she is so passionate about definitely exists (probably). In another universe that is.

As soon as I have finished asking that question, most of the attention was shifted to Kyon, which, admittedly, gave me sort of relief. There was a brief moment of silence before Kyon finally spoke out:

"Well, that' because…"

"AKIHABARA![3]" joyfully shouted Komachi as we landed at our destination.

Uh, Komachi, I think you're in the wrong light novel series. Heck, we're not even anywhere near the place of which its name you've just mentioned.

I lightly bump my first on the back of her head and said "Stop spouting random non-sense. We are in Nishinomiya, not Akihabara. If you're gonna shout like that, at least shout the correct name of the place."

Komachi just let out a 'tee-hee!' while scratching her head in a cute manner. I'm pretty sure that she did that mistake on purpose. It would take an absurd amount of stupidity for someone to make such a stupid mistake as that. And while Komachi isn't the smartest, she's is not that dumb.

…

Right? My bestest cutest most adorable 100% genuine little sister couldn't possibly be that stupid.

"Oh! There's Ruri-neesan! Let's go onii-chan! "

Oh yeah. That's right. I did mention that I plan on bringing Komachi back here during the break right? Well, as you can tell, it is now the school break. We are free to enjoy it the way we want. And I kind of promised to Ruri that I'll go back here. So there you have it.

I've invited my clubmates too, with permission from Ruri of course (we'll be staying at their house afterall). They were delighted of my invitation. That is until I told them that I won't be paying for their expenses. Now I know that Yukino could still have probably joined us since she can finance herself, but I doubt that she'd be coming without Yui, who apparently, has already planned her school break activities and no longer has room for unexpected ones. Heck, she has already chipped some of her budget for her school break in favor of Yui things. Seriously, that girl needs some lessons in how to handle her finances.

So in the end, it's just us, Komachi and me, who has been able to make the trip here at Nishinomiya. We'll be staying here for at least a week, but we can always extend it whenever we want to. It's pretty unfortunate that Yui and Yukino aren't able to come with us though. Welp, the lesser people I am with, the lesser the people I have to keep an eye out for. So it's not like it's a big loss. Actually, I think it's even advantageous for me. Now I have more chances of monopolizing Komachi! Heh.

"Welcome to Nishinomiya Komachi, Hachiman. How was your trip?" asked the young lady as we approach her.

"Normal. Like how'd you expect a six-hour trip would go." I replied.

"I see. Well, you must be tired. Let's go to our house now so that you could properly rest."

"Ah Hachi-kun, before you were interrupted by Isshiki-san, what were you about to say? It's not like I don't have an idea. I just want to make sure."

"Oh… yeah. Well, I'm pretty sure that what you think is the right one."

…

"…I still need to hear it from you."

…

"Well, Yukinoshita Yukino… I … want to be your genuine friend."

…

…

"I-I see."

"Were you not on the mark?"

"W-well no. But I think it's better than being flatly rejected ne?"

"Oh. Sorry about that. It's just that, it'll be irresponsible of me to tell you that 'I love you' if I'm not really sure of it yeah?"

"H-hachi-kun. It's okay. It's not like I was expecting you to… well I did considering how you built up your pathetic confession. But I guess being rejected this way isn't bad at all."

"…yeah."

…

…

"Very well, since you've been able to complete that sentence after so many attempts-"

"Oi, I've only done it twice before this and you know that."

"It's rude to interrupt someone when he or she is still talking. Hmpf, Hachirude-kun."

"R-right."

…

"As I was saying before you rudely interrupted me, since you've been able to complete that sentence after so many attempts, I accept you request. I will be your genuine friend so long as you are one to me."

We are now at the dining table currently seated by four occupants namely: me, Komachi, Ruri, and Nanako-san. Yeah. For some reason, Nanako-san is still here at Nishinomiya. I wonder about her job. Is she stationed here for a month?

…

Not like it matters though. What matters is that I'll be able to eat a sumptuous meal after that tiring six-hour trip. What I mean to say is, I am starving. And Komachi probably is too.

After expressing our prayers of gratitude, lunch was officially in progress. On the table were an abundance of meals, some that look familiar to me. They have really gone overboard with this one. I mean, it's just the two of us who would be coming today, but they've cooked for maybe six people? I recognize that some of the dishes were of Ruri's cooking. After being made lunch by her a lot of times now, isn't it only expected of me to be able to recognize her cooking?

I took a bite of the dish that I recognized was of Ruri's cooking. As expected, it's good. Ruri's cooking has only been improving ever since the day she started making me lunch. But it's not like she was bad at it to begin with. As far as I remember, the first time we had lunch together, I've said that I like her cooking. And I was not lying at that time. With the rate that she is improving, it wouldn't be a surprise if she's able to surpass Yukino in this department sooner or later. Not that it's a bad thing of course.

…

"What?" I finally asked after a minute of feeling of someone staring at me.

"Uhm, how was it Hachiman?" Ah, I expected that. She always asks me that whenever she makes me lunch.

"Well, to be honest, it's not as good as the other ones."

"Oh." the young lady says with a tone of disappointment.

"It's actually better."

The young lady's face reddened at that. Ah, the sight of the flustered young lady. I will never get tired of it. It is always so refreshing to look at. I know that I'll be paying the price for teasing her so much sooner or later, but eh, it'll be worth it.

"A-ahem." that came from the other side of the table. And I know where it came from. And Ruri seems to know too.

We, Ruri and I, both instinctively looked over to the source of the voice. It was Nanako-san afterall. And I think that she finds whatever we were doing is flirting. And I think so too. This must be the second time this happened I think? When my sight finally met the other side of the table, what greeted me is the pair of the grinning Nanako-san and grinning Komachi. Uhh, I know where this is probably going.

"Hachi-kun, would you please marry my Ruri-chan? I'd really like it if you become my son-in-law." Yep, although that may appear to come out of nowhere, I expected it. That's because of the conversation the two (Komachi and Nanako-san) had earlier. Seriously, did they not expect me to hear them considering how conspicuous they were?

"O-okaa-san!" expectedly protested the young lady, her already red face turning a deeper shade of crimson.

As much I would like to enjoy the sight of the young lady more, the teasing has to stop at one point right? I took a sip of the glass that was assigned to me. I tried my best to appear calm. I then said:

"The issue of our age aside, as much I want to say that I would, I don't think that that is something I could decide for myself alone. I mean, shouldn't marriage be something mutually decided on by the two people involved?" yep, I used the same answer that the young lady gave to Komachi when she was asked that question [4].

…

What? It's a good answer. And it's not like it's not true anyway. Marriage should always be a mutual decision. Because if it isn't, it wouldn't be genuine at all. Uhm-hmm.

"Oh wow." Nanako-san lets out. Why is she surprised? Is it because she did not expect for me to take it seriously? Why wouldn't I? Isn't marriage supposed to be a serious thing?

For about a minute, there was silence. Not a sound could be heard. And although I usually love the silence, I am uncomfortable with this one. It's pretty awkward and suffocating. Seriously, why wouldn't they expect me to take it seriously?

The silence was only broken when Komachi lifted her bowl and went on with her lunch. Nanako-san followed suit a few seconds later. Oh ho, so they are gonna pretend that this did not happen. They must have really been teasing us just then huh? Well, if it means that that's end of that, I'll just have to let it be then. I'm starving anyway so might as well follow them.

However, there is still one thing that's been bugging me.

"What is it Ruri?" I asked the young lady who was staring at me with curiosity. Her face is no longer as red as before, but those crimson dots on her cheeks are now made more obvious.

"N-n-n-nothing." The young lady replied and then finally started on her lunch. I wonder why she is startled though. I just used the same answer that she has given when she was asked the same question.

I am now lying on the bed of the room that was assigned to me. It's pretty normal to feel sleepy when you have just eaten a sumptuous meal right? Add to the fact that I've just been in a six-hour trip. So, yeah, I am pretty tired.

I've thought about the weird body language of the young lady during lunch. I wonder what prompted such state on her... wait, I shouldn't be thinking too much. Shouldn't I be taking my needed nap? And take a nap is what I would do. Uhm-hm.

I was about to do so when I a knock on the door came. I guess my nap would have to be postponed for now huh? Judging from the way the knock went, it's probable that the one on the other side of the door is Ruri.

"Come in." I said as to indicate that she is welcome to enter the room.

The door opened a few seconds after my welcome. When it fully opened, what greeted me is the person that I've expected her to be: Yuzumiya Ruri. "Uhm… Hachiman, can we talk?"

"Sure." I answered as I rose up from the bed. I then seated on one of its side, and then patted the space that was beside me signifying that Ruri can sit on there.

The young lady then finally entered the room and proceeded to seat on the space that I prodded her to seat on. She then put one hand on her chest and breathed in what air she could. For her to be worked up like this what we're about to talk about should be something heavy I guess?

After a few seconds of inhaling an immeasurable amount of air, the young lady finally let it out. I guess this is my cue to start the conversation.

"So, what is it that you want to talk about?" I ask.

"Ah yes. Well Hachiman, it's about earlier." We've talked about a lot of things earlier though. So I'm not yet sure what she wants to talk about.

"Hmm? What about it?"

Ruri then finally faced me and said, "Well, the answer that you gave to my mother, do you really mean it?"

Ah, so that's what it is. The thing about the marriage. The one where I answered the same answer that she gave to Komachi. I guess it's only reasonable for her to ask about that. Afterall, I haven't talked to her about marriage all this time that I've been with her.

"Yeah… isn't it normal for couples to end up with marriage? Well, that is unless one party does not ag-"

"Hold on Hachiman. Did you just say that we're a couple?"

…

Uh, Ruri, I thought that it is agreed that we are one?

"Well, we are one aren't we?" I asked with a pleading tone.

"Uhhmm…."

…

OH GOD! I made a terrible mistake! This is even worse than the time that I've committed a social suicide! What should I do? What should I do? It's not like I could just go home and coop up in my room. Komachi wouldn't want to go back to Chiba right now. OH GOD. Ruri must really be thinking that I am a pathetic creature for thinking that she is my girlfriend when in fact she is not. OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD I wanna-

"Hachiman, when did you think did we start to become one? A true couple that is."

…

Well, I guess I could still clear up this misunderstanding. We could always forget that I assumed things. I hope.

"Well, remember when we ended our fake relationship? I said that it it's just the beginning for us."

"Oh."

"And well, we've been spending more time with each other after that. We even see each other during the weekends. I just thought that that's what couples usually do."

…

Okay, since I've been able to explain things, maybe it's to really clear up this misunderstanding.

"I'm sorry for assuming things. I should have made things clearer. I'm really not that great with this kind of stuff. I'm really sorry."

…

"You can just forget that I think of us like that. I won't hold it on you."

"Ah no it's okay Hachiman. I'm actually happy that you thought of us that way."

…

Well, atleast she took it well. I won't have to coop in my room sulking in depression and deep shame then.

"It's just that, I've wanted to hear a direct confession from you. And not the scripted one like for our fake relationship."

Oh.

Well she already did confess to me. I think it's only right for me to give her one too. A genuine confession that is.

…

I don't really know how to give one though.

…

AH SCREW IT!

"Uh-uh… Ruri, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Please go out with me."

The young lady gave me her sweet smile at that. Ah, that must mean that from now on,we're official.

"Hachiman, I love you too. I would gladly go out with you."

…

That's when things got… pretty interesting.

Prologue - End

[1] – how-to/content/the-theory-of-parallel-universes.html

[2] – Reference to a lot of fanfics out here on this site. I would want to reference them one by one, but I feel that it would make this reference section stuffy. Meh. What a lame excuse. I'll just admit that I'm being lazy then. haha

[3] – Oreimo reference. Kirino does this whenever they arrive at Akihabara.

[4] – Reference to Chapter 8. I want Something Genuine of the prequel Are the Rom-com Gods Favouring me now?

A/N Hello! diceWW with a new story. And this time, it is sort of a crossover. Well, more like Oregairu with elements of the Haruhi Suzumiya series. I had a couple of story outlines for the ship HachiRuri ready to be fleshed but I ultimately decided on this one. It's because it is with this outline that I can squeeze out the most development for both Hachiman and Ruri. The other one was meant to be an all fluff HachiRuri story, but I just couldn't agree with it because there so much more room for character development for Ruri.

This chapter is short compared to the previous ones I have written I know. But it is only a prologue. And the main reason why I've uploaded it this early is to earn some feedback from you. Will you support this story idea of mine? If not, I will to design another story outline.

Well, that's it for now. I hope that my portrayal isn't too OOC on this one. It was pretty hard considering that development that I gave him from this fic's prequel.

PS : Reuploaded. Couldn't really consider it as a crossover yet since it felt more like a parody (only the characters are added; they don't have a major role here... probably). And did some polishing. My first upload was full of errors.