Chapter Text
Your mind continued its incessant wandering as the rainfall hit the boardroom window. Here, in the darkness, you could almost pretend you were back in the old world of mundane daily activity and materialistic obsessions. A world you’d barely tolerated, yet still largely prefer. You turned your head, looking out at the pool-area several stories below. The patio- usually swarmed with scarcely-dressed bodies, now lies empty due to the dreary weather. Still, the steady vibration of club music underneath your feet reminded you of how dedicated the party-goers at The Beach are to their craft. You drummed your nails on the long table in front of you to the beat of the song.
Hours earlier, Saiko had barged into your room. “Executive meeting at 6, Hatter’s orders,” she announced.
You flicked your eyes up from your book, not bothering to move your head with it. “Didn’t we just have one yesterday?”
Saiko leaned against the door frame, one side of her vest falling open to reveal her slender figure flattered by a leopard print bikini. Sighing and flicking her long, dark hair away from her face, she pierced you with her impatient stare. “We did, but Hatter’s gone off about something again. He won’t tell anyone but Aguni what it is, just ‘we all need to discuss this as a group and figure out a solution’”.
You let out a sharp exhale of disbelief. You rolled your eyes as you placed your book face down on the bed, shaking your head as you made your way to the door. You stopped in front of Saiko, your denim shorts bunching as you put your weight on your right leg and crossed your arms. “He is so dramatic. The last few meetings have been about ‘doing your part to keep the supplies stocked’ and ‘not glaring at your fellow executives’,” you imitated Hatter in a mocking tone, “I highly doubt those are things that need to be discussed with the whole group.” You’d allowed Hatter to bring you in as an executive member as if it was his own amazing idea, and you’d allowed him to place you at a lower rank than you truly deserved. Not that it mattered to you anyway, you thought Hatter’s theories about this world and the card's role in it were a bit far-fetched. Still, you’d nodded along and pretended it was the smartest thing you’d ever heard when Hatter gave you his speech for the first time. You’d thought that by becoming one of the higher-ups in an organization as large as The Beach you’d gather some useful intel, or at least gain some kind of advantage over other players. But now, you were beginning to regret your decision, as seemingly every moment of alone time you’ve tried to spend has been interrupted by your so-called leader’s pointless whining. “Can’t you just tell him I’m… feeling under the weather or something?”
Saiko looked at you with an expression full of mock pity. “Oh sure, why don’t I go do that?” she countered, “I’m sure Hatter coming after you personally when he sees you’re not there would be way better than just zoning out while he rambles on for fifteen minutes,” she deadpanned.
You angled your head down to the ground, closing your eyes. Rubbing your temple with your right hand, you pondered Saikos' argument. Unfortunately, it wasn’t entirely unreasonable. “Fine,” you whispered to yourself. You lifted your head back up, this time directed at her, “Fine.” Shifting your weight to your left leg, you begrudgingly continued, “I’ll go. Just tell everyone not to bother me until then.”
Saiko smiled and backed away from your door, seemingly getting what she wanted. Then, after a brief mock salute, she was off.
Now, back in the boardroom, your knee bounces as the final ten minutes of your “preparation time” approach. Every meeting that you’re forced to attend drains any energy you might've had right out of you, so you liked to spend about half an hour before each one in the boardroom mentally preparing yourself- and also claiming your spot. You rested your head in your hand, allowing yourself to close your eyes and let your mind wander into nothingness for a while. You sighed, remembering the times you used to sneak out of your room past midnight just to lay on the gravely roof of your house. The effort you would put in to slowly and silently open your window, crawl through it, and climb up the thick drain pipe that was conveniently right beside it. Once up there, you’d look up at the stars and relish in the cool breeze gently kissing your skin, moving you to wish you were the only person on earth so you could always feel this peacef-
“You’re here early.”
You snapped your head up and glared in his direction, receiving only a condescending smirk in return. This guy. The one surpassing your rank by one, always one-upping you in the eyes of Hatter, and the only one who knows exactly how to get under your skin with a fleeting glance. Shuntaro Chishiya.
“I'm always early,” you stated plainly.
Chishiya strolled into the room, hands in his pockets as his eyes scanned the dim boardroom as if it was the most intriguing thing he'd seen all day. “I know,” he said, looking out the window. His gaze flitted to you, looking you up and down like you’re life’s greatest mystery.
Suddenly his calculative gaze all made sense. “Ah. I see,” you smiled, tilting your head and looking him right in the eye, “you think I’m up to something, don’t you?” You put both of your hands on the table, pushed out from your chair, and stood up. You walked slowly and nonchalantly around the table, stopped to wipe some dust off one of the chairs, and eventually made your way over to where he stood near the doorway. If he was growing impatient, he showed no sign of it. You continued, “You think I’m trying to snoop through classified information, right?” you tried, “Or… ooh!” You snapped your fingers and pointed, nodding your head knowingly. “You think I’m trying to steal the cards.”
An added glint appeared in Chishiya’s eyes, though you weren’t able to decipher what emotion it was revealing. You deduced it was because you’d guessed right. Still, he said nothing.
“I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” you added as you began to circle him, “but I doubt Hatter would hide the cards in the room all other executive members have access to.” You stopped behind him, putting your hand on his shoulder while leaning to peer at the left side of his face. “I think you’re getting close though, let me know what else you come up with,” you smiled, nodding encouragingly.
Chishya smirked, looking down at the ground and nodding his head. He then turned his head to the left to look at you, still not moving from his original place. His eyes held a mysterious darkness, yet the rest of his expression read completely calm. The small amount of light coming through the window shone perfectly on his face, illuminating his skin with an almost unreal-looking glow.
“Is there a reason someone this insufferable has to look this captivating?” you thought to yourself.
His low, quiet hum of disappointment snapped you out of your thoughts. “Hmm. And here I came early thinking you’d be the one with the ideas."
You immediately retracted your hand and stepped away, brows furrowed in confusion. You weren't sure if he was insinuating what you thought he was, but you wanted nothing to do with it nonetheless. Whatever sick game he was playing could mark you as a traitor, and you'd hate for all your effort to preserve your life to go to waste. “I don’t know why you’d think that,” you said softly, walking back over to face him. Running away would only make you look guilty, and besides, it could be useful to try and figure out Chishiya’s intentions.
Chishiya had just opened his mouth to speak when you heard Niragi's unmistakable cackle coming from just down the hallway. You whipped your head around to follow the sound, feeling more irritated by the second. You gave Chishiya one last finalizing glance, then eased yourself back in your chair. Even worse than leaving Chishiya’s intentions unknown: being directly in Niragi’s line of sight when he entered the room. You didn't need to look up to see Chishiya’s condescending expression, you could already feel it creeping up your spine and sending goosebumps down your bare arms.
During the meeting, where your eyes would usually settle on the wall of cards behind Hatter’s head, now find themselves recurrently wandering over to Chishiya’s unimpressed face and elegantly situated hands. The first couple of times it was because you were trying to assess his overall attitude towards Hatter, The Beach, and the beliefs and standards Hatter was constantly preaching. But then, your eyes just kept wandering back. You were entertained by the way he’d raise his eyebrow at Niragi and his entourage when they started to get riled up, or the amused glint in his eyes when Hatter mentioned a philosophical metaphor incorrectly with complete confidence.
Now, it was the point at the end of the meeting where Hatter gave everyone “feedback sticky notes”. No one ever ended up writing anything on them though, not anything feedback-related anyway. You looked over to see Chishiya halfheartedly scribbling away on his, cheek pressed into his left hand. His sleepy eyes scanned back and forth over the square of paper as if he was now rethinking what he'd written. This intrigued you, as you hadn’t taken Chishiya as the type to take anything back.
As Hatter officially announced the meeting had adjourned, everyone scooted back their chairs and made their way out of the room. As Chishiya approached the door, sticky note in hand, instead of pasting it to the small table by the door as instructed, he simply crumpled it and tossed it in the trash, not even sparing it a second glance as he exited the room. You turned to Saiko who’d been sitting beside you. “I just need to tell Kuzuryu something really quick,” you glanced over her shoulder at the wadded-up sticky note settled perfectly on top of the garbage, “just go on without me, ok?” you finished.
“Sure,” she shrugged, turning to see Niragi striding out of the room before starting in that direction herself, “come find me later for drinks if you're up to it.”
You gave her a warm nod as she left the room, leaving you with Hatter, Kuzuryu, and Mira. Quickly and quietly, you made your way to the trash can, stopping once to confirm the others were still engrossed in their conversation. You bent your knees just as much as necessary to reach the note, gracefully picked it out of the bin, and then carried yourself confidently through the door.
Once back in your room, you sat cross-legged on your bed and tried to steady your uneven breathing. Careful not to rip it, you unraveled the sticky note, heart jumping into your throat when you read what it said.
“ Enjoy the view? ”