@icarushector I am curious about that spitefulness comment since it's implying he's not the delicate maiden we been seeing him as this whole time and has a much more unpleasant side we as the readers haven't seen yet. Though the first chapters fairly unambiguously present her as rejecting a confession from him, not breaking up with him as if she already attempted going out with him and has some greater insight to his character than Shuuji would have. We're in the dark as to how exactly Yuuki and Tachibana know each other beyond them being in the same first year class, ie what interactions did they have before the ill-fated confession that starts the first chapter. I compare to Shuuji, because he and Kashiwagi were depicted as defensive of Yuuki when they became aware of Takamine hanging around him.