HEATED RIVALRY • 𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐱 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

NINETEEN.

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"YOU GOT THE HIGHEST MARKS IN THE EXAMINATIONS," Haruka looked at you in disbelief, blinking his eyes slowly. "So you really weren't kidding—you are smart."

"I'm a little offended to hear that, but alright," you grinned lazily, looking at the bulletin board. Around you students whispered and pointed towards you, some hissing envy filled vulgarities and others muttering soft praises. The mark sheet from the examinations were out; and right at the top, in bold letters was your name. A perfect score in most of your subjects—you were expecting that anyways. And the name behind...

Second place, Jun. You won that bet after all. You recalled how fervent he had been in his desire to win, to monopolize...and yet all of that was naught, wasn't it? You had won; not him. And now he had to do anything you wanted.

"Wow. Jun's going to be so mad," Haruka crossed his arms. "None of us has seen him ever since the results came out. He's always known for being the top."

"Except now," you unhelpfully added.

"Except now," Haruka smiled. "Daichi had a pretty good chance of getting first too, but looks like he ended up third. Only a two point difference from yours, while Jun has a one point difference. Your idol friend did really well too—fourth."

My idol boyfriend, you mean, you looked with pride at the board. Arata hadn't studied much in the examination, hoping somewhat to slip into the top five rankings—and he had truly achieved it. He was naturally gifted in matters of the brain, like you. Or more like, you two had undergone intensive training from childhood and had been forced into studying the most difficult subjects in the world. That, including your secret spy missions, was enough to render you two set for life.

"He's going to take this really hard. You do know that, right?" Haruka tossed a glance at you warily. The pupils of his eyes kept moving across the ranking sheet, like he was searching for his own name. And when he did, his body sagged with relief. "I passed. Phew. I'm not getting disowned, after all."

"Jun?" You raised an eyebrow. "He'll definitely take this hard. This is the only thing he has going for himself, and I took it away from him. How do you think he feels?"

"Terrible?" Haruka guessed.

"He lost to me all of people, so he might even be contemplating death," you shrugged. "Plus, there's the bet he had to think about. But I've already decided what I'm going to use it for."

"Revenge? His social suicide?" Haruka prompted, looking serious in thought. "He hates you, doesn't he?"

"...Arata would have begged to differ," you admitted, "he thinks Jun likes me. But let's see how well those feelings cope when he loses. First is the winner. Third is still considered good. But second?" You have a long sigh. "Second is the first loser. And especially for a overachiever like Jun, he probably thinks it's the end of the world. I can't begrudge him for that."

"...You talk like Arata knows everything about you. Like he's the closest person in the world," Haruka said suspiciously. "Do I not know something?"

Oh, right.

"Me and Arata happen to be dating," you said casually, "I think I forgot to mention that."

There was an awkward pause, where you looked at him blankly. Then you saw his mouth form into an 'o' and Haruka's eyes widened.

"You and the idol boy," Haruta said slowly, "are dating?"

"Well, your insight really helped. Turns out he was in love with me, and so was I." You smiled genuinely at Haruka. "Then we shared a deep, passionate kiss that lasted so long, it—"