Liberation

chapter 6

chapter 6: Payment

Kirari had left to go get changed in her own room, leaving Sayaka to get ready herself. Sayaka and Midari had agreed to meet the twins in their own room which, to no one's surprise, was the penthouse suite. Sayaka went with simple denim shorts and a tucked in oversized band shirt. It was the complete opposite of Midari's choice of a crop top and fishnets for her but they compromised and left her hair down. Midari just wore an all black outfit that had metal jingling with every step that went with her menacing outward appearance.

As they made their way to the top floor, Midari asks, "So where are you planning to go?"

Sayaka looks at her incredulously. "I'm not telling you! You'll just follow us there."

"You're no fun."

Midari pouted the rest of the way up. Sayaka rolled her eyes at the dramatics. While she did cherish their friendship, she didn't trust Midari not to ruin this day for them.

When they knocked on the door, Ririka was the one to let them in. It's been a while since the election ended and Ririka had started wearing her mask less outside of school. Thanks to Mary, she'd gotten more comfortable letting other people see her face but she was still tense around her peers.

"Kirari's just in the bathroom," she informed them.

To say Sayaka was nervous would be an understatement. Her jittery nerves were going haywire and she tried to let off some steam by walking around and admiring the room. It was a big room too, taking up the majority of the top floor, with an amazing view of the skyline. The modern feel gave it an air of sophistication. The large windows let a lot of natural light in making it bright, almost blinding near the windows.

She heard Midari and the Vice President conversing in the background. It was more of a one-sided conversation with Midari pushing Ririka to say more.

Sayaka heard a door open to her left. She spotted the President coming out wearing a denim skirt and a white button down. Seeing her in casual clothes, not to mention her choice of pajamas, was still new and it made her stomach do flips. She ignored it for the time being.

"You let your hair down," Kirari said simply.

Sayaka pats her head self consciously. "Y-Yeah. You did too."

Kirari chuckled. "How observant of you."

Sayaka blushed. She was already screwing this up and they haven't even left the room.

"Let's go?"

Kirari offered her hand and Sayaka took it hesitantly. The older girl led her to the door.

"We'll see you later, Ririka. Midari."

Sayaka was able to send a wave before the door closed behind them. The two girls left in the room stared at each other.

"Well," Midari threw an arm around the taller girl's shoulder. "Looks like it's just you and me."

Ririka cringed at the thought of being left alone with her. She'd rather third wheel her sister than spend a day with Midari.

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The bus was crowded when they got on. There were no seats left so they were left standing for the whole trip. It wasn't ideal but it would get them to their destination. It was just Sayaka's luck that the bus started moving before she was able to grab a pole. She jerked forward as the bus lurched, losing her balance. She would have slammed her face into a pole if it wasn't for the President. The arm around her waist was firm and Kirari pulled her close. Much closer than Sayaka could handle.