Chapter Text
Kirari sat at her desk in her office, letting out a breath of annoyance. She could never get work done in the same room as the aquarium. Sayaka’s solution was this boring, uninspiring, little room. She had almost blanched when Sayaka showed it to her with such excitement. She would never understand that girl. ‘Thank god,’ she mused as she heard Sayaka’s usual knock.
“Come in,” she said, setting down her unused pen.
“Madam president,” Sayaka said breathlessly. She always appeared to have just come running from somewhere. Miraculously, though, her hair and ribbon were perfectly in place. Kirari always wondered what Sayaka would do if she took that ribbon out for her.
Kirari rolled her eyes and pushed back the royal-looking, red chair so she could rise and face her secretary. She had to stop thinking about silly fantasy scenarios, they were pointless.
“Get on with it, Sayaka.”
The secretary’s eyes widened and she bowed slightly while holding out a previously-crumpled paper. Kirari grabbed it and let her eyes slide quickly down the contents. Interesting.
“Why did you bring this, Sayaka? Getting bold?” It was a tease of course. The various ship names written on the paper were in a messy, barely legible font. All were crossed out except for a bolded “KIRASAYA!” at the bottom. Not Sayaka’s style.
Sayaka blushed regardless and seemed to bow deeper to hide it. Not that she could, not from Kirari. The president’s mood was lifting by the second. The possibilities were enticingly endless when it came to embarrassing Sayaka. Still, she felt the urge to...
“Relax, Sayaka. Face me.”
She stepped closer and reached out to take hold of the secretary’s chin. Kirari smirked and dug her nails in a bit, earning her a surprised gasp. She didn’t know why this was always so thrilling. She’d done it countless times, on a whim, and the result was the same. ‘Not exactly,’ she thought to herself. ‘Her gasp sounds a little different each time.’ She sighed quietly and let go. This was only prolonging their meeting, and Sayaka surely had other student council matters to attend to. Not that Kirari particularly cared.
Sayaka straightened and her eyes were wide, curious. She bit the inside of her cheek, something Kirari’s eyes followed with delight. It wasn’t often that Sayaka looked so conflicted. She prided herself on being the one to bring out the emotional tendencies in her secretary. It was so fun to observe for some reason. That Sayaka chose to ignore the president’s teasing and continue on with business was no surprise. One day, Kirari wished she would act with reckless abandon, or do something the least bit illogical.
“President... this isn’t the only paper like this. And it gets worse. People are placing bets on our relationship, and publicly.” Sayaka‘s expression was neutral now, though her face still had a noticeable red hue. Kirari attempted to pay attention. What she really wanted was to say something smart in response, something teasing to stop Sayaka’s blush from fading.
This was a problem. The gambling too, of course, but mostly her attention span. Kirari chalked her thoughts up to her boring surroundings and looked back down to the paper in her left hand.
“I see your concern. The fact that you found this paper in itself is worrying. If they were really afraid of my reaction, they wouldn’t have been so obvious. Obviously I need to be giving out harsher consequences...”
Kirari got lost in the contemplations for a moment. What she didn’t see was Sayaka looking at her glowing eyes reverently, taking in the president’s widened smile with glee. Sayaka had no reason to fear Kirari’s devious intentions for the school. And she had no sympathy whatsoever for the housepets her president scorned.
Kirari turned her attentions back to Sayaka, an idea forming in her mind already. “I know the solution. I need to be seen with someone as intimidating as me. Well...” she laughed for a few seconds behind her freshly-painted blue nails.
“Someone who appears to be, at least.”
Sayaka’s eyes moved from her president’s joyful expression to the ground. She shook slightly, her nails digging into her palms, but Kirari took no notice. That’s what Sayaka assumed, at least.
The president narrowed her eyes for a moment at Sayaka’s hands but didn’t call her out for now. She had plenty of time to punish her later. With more paperwork, maybe? Yes, that had to be where her mind was going with that.
“May I offer a name, madam president?” Sayaka asked politely after taking in a deep breath.
“Of course, Sayaka. Although, I do have someone in mind.”
Sayaka had to stop herself from clenching her fists together again. She knew exactly who her President was thinking of, and she could not allow that to happen. To see them together would be the end of her. She was barely containing herself now as it was.
“Mary Saotome.”
Kirari tapped her chin with one blue nail in consideration. She was about to respond but Sayaka beat her to it. This was somewhat surprising, as Sayaka went to great lengths to never interrupt or talk over her. Even hearing others do so was prone to enact Sayaka’s wrath. Kirari’s smile was revived at the thought.
“She has seen the Vice President with her mask off, so it is prudent to get her to sign a contract of silence anyway. We could include the... fake relationship clause, as part of the contract.”
Kirari nodded.
It was a completely logical decision, she shouldn’t have expected anything less from her Sayaka. Wait, hers? She banished the thought immediately and handed the paper of ship names off to Sayaka. She couldn’t bear the sight of it anymore.
The secretary understood at once and tucked it into her school jacket’s pocket to throw away at a later time. She preferred not to use Kirari’s possessions, even her trash cans seemed off limits. It was a small gesture of respect. Kirari didn’t know why she was feeling so off from it. Her stomach was hot and there were so many instincts she had to push down. It’s a good thing she was used to that.
Kirari cleared her throat quickly.
“An excellent choice. Not as exciting as what I was thinking, but this will be rather intriguing. Difficult too, given Mary’s distaste for the student council and myself. You said Ririka exposed herself to this girl? Even better... what a thrilling challenge.”
Kirari turned to retrieve one of her custom letter and envelope sets.
“Come up with the terms of the agreement first, then send her a letter to discuss them during lunch today. Bring the Vice President too.”
Sayaka took the set and left in a rush to do as the president asked. Lunch was only an hour away, so she had to hurry. Kirari had no doubts that Sayaka had the time. She always made time for her President.
She knew that her secretary was wondering what the purpose of Ririka’s presence was but would never question such a clear command directly.
In all honesty, Kirari just found it amusing. Mary’s aggressive nature would be a natural foil to Ririka. The clash of personalities was one she looked forward to seeing. Sayaka would never understand this of her, but it didn’t matter. She didn’t quite understand Sayaka’s extreme rationality either, yet it still drew her in.
There was more business to attend to. Finally, she had found something to motivate her. Kirari felt light and the thrill running through her was not strictly the result of her oncoming agreement with Mary. After all, the fun part, confrontation, was yet to come. Her secretary’s hard-working attitude must be what was affecting her.
—
Mary shifted uncomfortably on the couch, recalling the way Kirari had leaned into her at this very spot. She hated how that bitch had made her speechless. She hated her overall existence, actually. Mary didn’t know how, but she would fight her way to the top someday, if only to dethrone that egotistic plague.
Sayaka walked in holding an elegant-looking light blue binder with gold details curving around the edges. Only Sayaka would color-code her binders to the president’s eyes. Mary almost cringed at the sight. She felt personally embarrassed for the girl. Kirari would never stoop so low as to care for her own secretary. Mary doubted the president cared for anybody. Even her own sister she used to her benefit. A strange, angry feeling rose up in her stomach and she tried to swallow but her throat was too dry. A cup of water appeared on the table in front of her without a word. She looked up in surprise to find that the Vice President had joined them.
“Of course you would serve me,” Mary sneered. Sayaka glanced at the Vice President with a confused look but quickly tempered her expression.
It only enraged Mary further when the Vice President didn’t say anything. She never had the guts to stand up to her, or anyone. Mary couldn’t imagine what it was like being Kirari’s sister and having no spine. She barely had the self control to stop herself from jumping up and removing that awful mask. If only to see the face underneath... wait what? ‘Okay, Mary. She may be pretty but she’s a weak nobody, remember that,’ she thought to herself. She shouldn’t be getting riled up in THAT way over the president’s sister, of all people. She was just a masked freak, nothing more.
“Let’s get started,” Sayaka said pleasantly, ignoring the tension in the room. Ririka moved to sit on the couch across, while Sayaka sat next to Mary.
“That you have come here tells me you’ve thought about the proposition, is that right?” Sayaka asked. Her voice was soft, but she was confident. Mary would have respected her if she weren’t so obsessed with Kirari.
“The offer was a little impossible to resist. I’m guessing that was your doing?”
Kirari didn’t know Mary at all. She saw her as another common fish in that damn aquarium. Mary was sure Sayaka was the brains behind that operation. She gritted her teeth slightly just thinking of Kirari. The room they were in certainly didn’t help.
“Yes, it was. I thought you the best candidate for this unique role, and you have a lot to gain should you agree.”
Mary avoided looking at the Vice President, sitting silently in her peripheral. She kept her eyes trained on Sayaka and that stupid binder she had open on her lap.
“Let me hear all the terms first. And don’t use any annoying legal speak. That binder looks way too thick and I want to at least grab a snack or something before lunch ends.” Mary turned her head away from Sayaka, her neck getting fed up with the strain. She thought about closing her eyes or looking at the ceiling, but both options were too vulnerable for the snake across from her to see.
Despite the anger swirling in her stomach at the sight of her, she stared blankly at Ririka. Hopefully it would unnerve her enough and the bitch would leave her alone. She wanted nothing more than to take that mask and find a way to make it shatter into a thousand pieces.
“You will pretend to be in a romantic relationship with the president, Kirari Momobami. This has no decided termination date, but it will not last longer than this school year. You cannot back out once agreed, and if you do, you forfeit your life. Kirari herself will write your life plan.”
Mary’s eyes widened slightly. She quickly remembered that Ririka could see her and scowled, crossing her arms. She put all of the rage she could possibly feel into her gaze and directed it right at her. The Vice President didn’t move a muscle. She might as well have been a statue.
“As you read in the letter, the president is planning to have an election soon once the final details have all been figured out within the student council. You will receive the first 30 election chips that the president earns, as well as all of the vice president’s chip earnings.”
At this, Ririka turned her head sharply to face Sayaka and almost rose from her seat. Apparently, she hadn’t been briefed. Mary didn’t know how to feel. It would be great to take this weakling’s chips, but at the same time she would be enabling her to continue her routine of serving everyone else around her. Did Ririka even gamble?
Sayaka gave an apologetic look to Ririka. “Sorry Ririka, but it’s not like you would have become the president anyway.”
Ririka slowly sat back and turned to face Mary once more. She could have been staring at the wall, but Mary just knew the creep was analyzing her behind that disguise. She did notice that something was different now. Ririka had her hands resting calmly on either side of her before, and now they were holding onto her knees like a lifeline. Maybe the Vice President didn’t gamble, and this was Sayaka’s way of telling her she would have to. Mary couldn't look away from the mask now for an entirely different reason. She wondered if Ririka ever cried under there.
The Vice President’s hands relaxed slightly. Mary didn’t know what to do with the relief she felt from that. Ririka could be pretending, too. Maybe she realized that Mary had noticed her behavior. Well, now she was just angry again. Part of her wanted to get Ririka alone and interrogate her until she knew who she really was.
“You will additionally receive ten million yen for each month that the fake relationship is maintained. If you purposefully sabotage or reveal this agreement, it will count as backing out, and you already know the consequence of that. You can read the rest yourself, it is mostly pertaining to your silence on certain topics, including Ririka’s identity.”
Mary sighed, waving her hand dismissively at Sayaka. “Okay, that was boring. You already know I’m going to agree. You made the benefits far too great for anyone to refuse. Now tell me what I have to do in this fake-dating scenario.”
Sayaka smiled, glad that Mary had agreed immediately. Her hatred for Kirari meant the reward had to be placed extremely high. Her President would be a bit displeased at the amount, but would understand. She closed the binder carefully and folded her hands over the top of it.
“For that, I’m afraid, you will have to discuss the terms with the president herself. Ririka will escort you to her office.”
Ugh. There goes her plan to eat.
“One more thing Mary, we will meet again at lunch tomorrow so that you can sign the contract officially,” Sayaka said.
Mary waved her off again and jumped up from her seat. God, that was boring. At least she wouldn’t have to join the student council for this ruse. Sayaka and Kirari both probably figured how it would look, as if Kirari were being biased toward membership applications. And that would definitely not do for little miss perfect President.
She almost forgot that the ghost herself would be stalking her all the way to Kirari’s office. It wasn’t like she needed an escort, everyone knew where Kirari’s new office was so that they could avoid it. She opened the door with an annoyed look over her shoulder. Great, she was already right behind her. Ririka sure seemed to have a lot of experience following behind people. An image of Kirari walking down the halls popped in her head, the masked Vice President two steps behind.
Mary hated the thought of sympathizing with Ririka. She did this to herself by wearing that mask all the time. Mary sped up her footsteps and slowed down at random times to mess up Ririka’s rhythm on the way to Kirari’s office. She would never admit it, but she had a hard time holding in her amusement when Ririka stumbled a few times and audibly scuffed the floor.
—
“Mary Saotome,” Kirari greeted. She had a few housepets move in two couches to the room after Sayaka left. She supposed she could’ve met Mary in the aquarium room, but Sayaka had chosen this office for her and Kirari wasn’t about to give up on it just yet.
“Lets just get this over with,” Mary said, grumbling under her breath. Ririka stood there awkwardly as they both sat on opposite couches. Kirari found it hilarious that her sister couldn’t just decide what to do on her own. She was almost worse than a housepet.
“Ririka, stand outside and make sure nobody comes too close. I don’t want anybody hearing our discussion,” Kirari finally announced.
Ririka nodded and hurried outside as if she couldn’t get away fast enough. Good. That meant her and Mary had promise in the fear factor department. Kirari crossed her legs and gazed at Mary with her head held high.
Mary seemed to shrink under the stare for a moment, but quickly returned it with one of her own and sat up straighter.
Kirari laughed, relaxing back into the couch. “So, Mary. I have a few conditions.”
Mary just glared at her in response, but surprisingly didn’t interrupt her.
“You will not disrespect me. Obviously, in a relationship people joke around, tease each other, but I’m sure you know the difference, don’t you?” Kirari’s tone made it clear she thought Mary might need help with context clues.
“Yes... I know,” Mary said in a biting voice. She was clearly holding herself back. Kirari’s eyes wandered over the girl’s features. The clenched jaw, narrowed eyes, nails digging into the couch. Perfectly furious. Kirari resisted the urge to laugh again. She didn’t want the girl to back out of the agreement before it had even begun.
“We will be seen together at times, but not too much at first. It would be suspicious if we went from relative strangers to suddenly going everywhere together. Sayaka and Ririka will coordinate for us when needed, but I will also give you my number.”
Mary released her grip on the couch and leaned forward, the picture of shock.
“What?” Kirari said, leaning forward to match Mary’s position. Mary jolted backward in response, as their faces had gotten close enough for her to feel the president’s breath.
“I can’t have Sayaka running off doing things for you all day, I need her with me. And Ririka... well, she’s not very subtle.” Kirari sighed like the conversation was boring her to death by the minute. In truth, she found Mary entertaining in her obvious dislike of her. Kirari planned to exploit that dislike as much as possible for her amusement. This fake relationship certainly would be exciting.
“As for our limits, we will not kiss on the mouth. The cheek is fine, even the forehead on occasion.”
Mary seemed pleased with this and nodded, although she remained tense. Kirari thought she even saw the girl shake, and not with fear. She had half a mind to recommend a massage therapist. Sayaka’s massage skills were unparalleled at relieving her stress, but she would never let Mary get under her secretary’s hands. Kirari almost shuddered at the thought.
“Then we are agreed. Any follow-up can be discussed through text. I’m sure you don’t want to be here longer than you need to be, and I have things to do.”
They shook hands and Mary practically ran out of the room after Kirari entered her number in her phone. Her and Ririka were one and the same. They were both pretenders now, anyway. Kirari moved to her desk and held her phone in one hand, opened to her text conversation with Sayaka. Wasn’t everybody at this school pretending in one way or another? She hesitated for a moment before setting the phone face-down on her desk and turning her focus to the stack of life plans that needed signing.