"Mrs. Shiota," Karasuma says, extending his hand in a manner so rigid and formal is shocks me ti think that he was the shoulder i cried on just a few days prior. "It's nice to meet you. Thank you for bringing Nagisa here today." He continues.
My mother takes Karasuma's hand and holds it for a beat too long.
"Oh, it's no trouble at all," she said, her voice dripping with sweetness. "I just want to make sure my daughter is safe."
Karasuma's eyes narrow slightly, and I felt a pang of guilt. He must be on high alert because of me. If I wasn't so bad at hiding things he wouldn't have to worry about a useless brat like me. That being said, he seems to notice things about my mom that no one else has ever dared to see. Honestly if I wasn't so scared I'd be impressed, I had never thought that anyone else would be able see through her perfect facade, but here he is, unraveling the mystery right before my eyes.
Then he turns his attention back to me and I feel an odd sense of safety and warmth from the kind expression on his face.
"Well, Nagisa,"
He smiles at me and even if just for a moment, the tension in the room fades away and I feel at peace. She can't hurt me here, not while he's watching. "Let's get started, shall we?"
We walk back towards his office and he gestures towards two empty seats across from his desk.
"Feel free to make yourself comfortable"
We take our seats and his kind expression becomes more serious.
"First I need to take down some general information: date of birth, your full legal name, and a signature from your mother stating that we can use your testimony as evidence in the prosecution of your attacker."
I open my mouth to speak but my mother's glare leaves me speechless. She takes it upon herself to answer the questions for me.
"Her name is Nagisa Shiota. Date of birth 20th of July, 1990."
She eagerly signs the paper in front of her... or at least that's what she wanted it to look like. I knew it was more a warning than anything else, it was her way of asserting dominance and it worked remarkably well.
Karasuma tried his best to hide his annoyance, but it's clear his patience was wearing thin. He seemed to hate my mother just as much as I did. He forced out very professional smile as he spoke,
"Mrs. Shiota, would you mind if I had a word with you privately?"
My mother looked surprised but nodded, following Karasuma into a nearby office. I watched them go, my stomach churning with anxiety.
As I waited for them to return, I tried to keep my mind occupied, but it backfired hard. At least right now I'm safe, who knows what's going to happen when I get home. She might actually kill me this time. I already pissed her off this week with my suspension and my e-class banishment, this is just the icing on the cake. I decide that focusing on the conversation they may be having in the hall is the lesser of the two evils. Whatever it is it's bound to be better than whatever torture I can imagine awaits me when I get home.
I focus on the muffled voices in the hallway.
"As you know, talking about this subject could be fairly distressing for your child. All I ask is that you give me a few moments alone with your child to help counsel her through this and evaluate her mental state before we proceed. Everything will be recorded, but anything mentioned will be off the record. All I need is your verbal consent."
"But why can't I be in the room with you? Do I not have a right to know what's going on with my own daughter?"
"I assure you ma'am. I have dealt with hundreds of these cases in my career. This is the best way to make sure we get a good statement and protect the mental health of your child. The reasoning behind it differs from case to case but the correlation is clear. I wouldn't be asking you for this if I found it unnecessary"
"Fine. I don't like this, but if you really think it's that important that I not be in the room then I guess I can wait. Just please don't take too long"
I hear the click of the doorknob as Karasuma calmly enters the room.
He gives an audible sigh, clearly relieved that he was able to get these few precious moments away from my mother. In all honesty I almost join in, but I can't feel relief quite yet. This will only make things worse when we get home.
"Hey, kid. I'm just gonna ask you a few questions without your mom in the room. Is that ok?"
I nodded, taking a deep breath.
I watch him take out a pen and piece of paper, writing down what seems to be a question and I start to panic. Why can't he say it out loud? Are we being watched? Can she hear me? I can't ask for help like this, not like I would deserve it anyway.
Wip- no strings ch.4?
Start from the beginning
