Work Text:
What is love?
Love is that feeling of warmth when you find yourself next to your significant other. Love is the butterflies in your stomach and the flutter in your heart when you spend time together. Love is a blanket of mutual trust, respect, and comfort that you wrap around each other.
That is love... defined by a fool.
Love is a web of lies woven from honeyed words. Love is a cold, calculating game of chess played behind a mask of smiles. Love is a charade that hides a struggle for dominance.
Love is war... in which the first one to confess loses.
In the Student Council Room of Shuchiin Academy, a boy sat behind a large, mahogany desk with his back to the window. His sharp, blue eyes were focused on the paperwork before him. His pen danced across the pages with precision and efficiency.
This boy was Student Council President, Miyuki Shirogane. He was a man of will and conviction. Intelligent and adaptable, he clawed his way to the top of the academy after having entered as a mere commoner. The golden aiguillette pinned to his uniform was not only proof of his authority as President, but also a symbol of his prowess.
"Would you like some tea, President?" A girl with long, black hair tied back with a red ribbon stepped forward with a teapot. Her ruby eyes were calm yet calculating. Her motions, refined and graceful.
This girl was Student Council Vice President, Kaguya Shinomiya. As heiress of the Shinomiya Conglomerate, she had the full power of her family's empire behind her. Her power and influence rivaled that of small nations. Her cunning and intellect matched her pedigree. She remained at the pinnacle of the student body at Shuchiin for years. Until she was unseated by Miyuki.
"Why thank you, Shinomiya," Miyuki responded. "I'd loved some."
Kaguya poured a cup and placed it on his desk. Miyuki took at sip, releasing a sigh of satisfaction. "Delicious," he complimented.
But while Miyuki continued sipping the warm beverage, Kaguya laughed sinisterly behind her cute, innocent mask. "What you just drank, my dear President, was chamomile tea!"
Chamomile tea. Commonly regarded as a mild tranquilizer and sleep inducer due to the abundance of an antioxidant called apigenin which can initiate sleep.
"Chamomile, huh?" Miyuki thought to himself as he slowly drained his cup. The light, airy taste brought back memories of when he studied for the Shuchiin transfer exam. At the time, he suffered from insomnia due to stress. When he asked his sister for advice, she responded with, "Gosh, I don't ahve time to help you deal with your stupid problems. I dunno, try chamomile tea or something."
With her help he was finally able to get a good night's rest... for a single night. His body quickly built up a tolerance to chamomile and it barely affected him now.
"Shinomiya is underestimating me if she thinks I would be ignorant of chamomile and its somniferous effects. But the real question here is: what is she planning?" Miyuki set his cup back on the table with a slightly aggressive thud. The challenge was accepted. "Thank you for the tea, Shinomiya."
"It was my pleasure, President," she cheerfully replied.
Bam! The door to the student council room was thrown open as a pink and black streak flew in.
"Kaguya! Prez! Look at what I have!" the new arrival shouted.
"Chika, please use your indoor voice," Kaguya chided as she fixed her friend's bow. Strands of pink hair had gotten tangled in it during her sprint through the hallways.
"Ad please be more careful when opening doors," Miyuki added. However, his interest was peaked. "What do you have with you this time?"
"Tada!" Chika held up her hand with a flourish. In it was a glass soda bottle. "I won an old fashion bottle of soda at the local market raffle! Now that it's finally empty, we can use it to play... Truth or Dare! Come on! Let's play at the table!"
"That sounds interesting. I'm willing to try," said Kaguya.
Seeing her response, Miyuki nodded. "I could use a break."
The trio sat down on the two sofas surrounding a wooden coffee table. Kaguya and Chika sat with their backs to the door, leaving Miyuki alone opposite them.
"Well let me quickly explain the rules! First, a person spins the bottle. And whomever it points to when it stops spinning must choose ‘truth’ or ‘dare.’ If it’s ‘truth,’ the person who spins the bottle asks a question and that person must answer honestly. If ‘dare’ then the spinner dares that person to do something and they must do it. If the person is caught lying or fails the dare, they must do the other option instead.”
As Chika explained, Kaguya chuckled internally. “Explain the rules? Please. Who do you think prepared those foreign game magazines and American teen romcoms and dramas so that you’d learn about this game? Who do you think setup that that lottery so you’d receive glass-bottled soda as a prize? Who do you think carefully monitored your drinking habits to predict that today would be the day you finished the soda? As if I didn’t already memorize the rules already!"
What did Kaguya hope to achieve through this meticulous, calculating setup? Obviously, it was so that...
"With the excuse of this game, I'll be able to find out the President's favorite foods, colors, activities, books, and so much more," Kaguya thought to herself. "And he won't ever suspect a thing!"
... she could get to know Miyuki a little bit better.
"Who wants to spin?" Chika sang.
Kaguya immediately grabbed the bottle. The seating arrangement was already in her favor. With Miyuki alone on the opposite sofa, the bottle had a much greater chance to point towards him. The hidden magnet underneath Miyuki's side of the table that could attract the bottle's metal cap would all but guarantee her victory. With her lips curling into a subtle grin, Kaguya spun the bottle.
Miyuki gulped as the bottle's rotation slowed and eventually stopped on him.
"What'll it be, Prez?" Chika asked with a sly smile. "Truth or dare?"
He glanced at Kaguya. He could imagine Kaguya asking something embarrassing like his favorite animals and being forced to answer honestly with "cats and penguins." He could imagine Kaguya snickering at his reply. He could already hear the condescending "How cute," ringing in his ears. He shuddered.
"Dare," Miyuki declared.
Kaguya's eyes glimmered with delight. "I dare you to stand on one foot for two minutes."
Though confused and suspicious, Miyuki stood with his left foot a few centimeters off the ground. Chika placed a running timer in front of him. For the first thirty seconds, he was fine. But then, a wave of exhaustion hit him like a truck. His eyelids felt like they weighed 100 kilograms. His entire body wobbled as he struggled to remain balanced and awake.
"What's happening?!" Miyuki panicked. "I've had my tri-hourly coffee! I shoudl be wide awake! Unless... the tea!" He met Kaguya's eyes and her cold look of satisfaction confirmed his suspicions.
Yes. While Miyuki had thought himself immune to chamomile, all he ever drunk was cheap leaves from the local convenience store. He underestimated the strength of high-quality chamomile brewed by Kaguya who had been trained in the art of Japanese tea ceremony!
“No!” Miyuki refused to yield. “I’ve been pulling all-nighters since fifth grade. I can do this!” He closed his eyes and summoned his every centimeter of his willpower to maintain his balance against the waves of tiredness crashing upon him. In his tense struggle, Miyuki soon lost track of time. He held on for as long as he could and then some more. But then, he collapsed into the sofa.
However, were his efforts worth it? He glanced at the timer.
Eight seconds had passed.
Despair settled into his heart. Kaguya’s expression was now tinged with sinister intent. He was doomed. His secrets were-.
“Oh my god, why are you guys playing such a vulgar game?” The trio turned to the speaker, resident absentee, Treasurer Yu Ishigami.
“Vulgar?” questioned Chika in an offended tone. “What about this is vulgar?”
Ishigami pulled up a video on his phone as he explained. “Don’t you know? If you lie or fail the dare, you have to kiss the person that spun the bottle!”
The video was of an American college party. The trio stared in shock as the participants began making out with the others egging them on. As the video ended, the room was filled with a cold, tangible silence. Kaguya was the first to react.
“Chi-Chika! Ho-how could you taint the student council room with such a vile game!” Her cheeks flushed vermillion. Before Chika could respond, Kaguya grabbed her bookbag and fled the room.
“Wait! Kaguya!” Chika chased after her with tears in her eyes. “I swear I didn’t know!”
Miyuki remained frozen on the sofa, though now wide awake. He unconsciously touched his lips. "How close was I..." Miyuki shook the thought from his head and tried to steady his thumping heart.
As it turns out, adrenaline counters the effects of chamomile tea.
Results of today’s match:
Kaguya Shinomiya’s loss, due to her failure to properly research the game of Truth or Dare.