"You ready?" I asked.
The raven-haired girl next to me nodded, opening the door to the opulent student council room.
Since it was after school on Tuesday, a good number of people were present. A few familiar faces such as Yagami and Ichinose were sitting on the plush seats that are placed to the right of the door.
On the left, there appeared to be Kiriyama, conversing with some other members of the council. I recognised them as well, but it wasn't because of the OAA.
Near Christmas last year, Nagumo approached me, almost as a provocation. These few people were alongside him.
Horikita strode forward, not paying mind to the people around her.
"Nagumo-senpai."
Nagumo looked up from his documents, eyes widening in surprise as he noticed Horikita's presence. I guess he didn't even notice her walk in.
"Welcome, Horikita. What do you need?" Nagumo asked, a coy smile plastered on his face.
"I need the form to join the student council."
Nagumo's smile grew wider, and his arm reached for the drawer, not taking his eyes off Horikita. Mechanically, he took out a form and handed it to her, never having once taken his eyes off.
"I wanted to make the form accessible online, but the school is slow when it comes to things like that," Nagumo sighed.
Horikita eyed the document for a moment before filling in the details.
"You know, I'm surprised. Never expected you of all people, but I'm not complaining," Nagumo chuckled as he observed Horikita.
Horikita completed the form and returned it to Nagumo. But the blonde-haired man didn't even take a look at it.
"I don't really want to obediently say yes, but this is a hard offer to refuse," he remarked.
Horikita's expression remained calm, "Does that mean you don't want to have me on the council?"
Nagumo shook his head, "Ah, no, not at all. I just struggle to refuse things when they're interesting. If you want to join, I really have no issue with it. Whatever your reasoning. A desire for status, benefits, or you just want to help out, I don't really care."
Struggle to refuse interesting things? If he doesn't care about the reasoning, then that must not be what's interesting.
If the motive isn't intriguing, then the only thing left could be...
"You're a special person, Horikita Suzune. Out of curiosity, did your dear brother have something to do with it?" Nagumo asked, his eyes eager.
Horikita's expression tightened for a moment. Perhaps she was wondering what to say exactly.
"My brother didn't exactly push me to it, no. He had told me to do whatever I wanted, and I wanted to join the council."
Part of that response is a lie, a blur, a fabrication.
Nagumo is certainly observant, but he's not omnipotent. He has no way of knowing that's true.
But then again, I suppose it doesn't matter at the end of it all.
Nagumo's smile dropped slightly, looking a little bored, "I see. For a second there, I thought he wanted some form of dynasty."
Horikita would never gain his trust.
"Nagumo-senpai, my brother didn't ask for it, but make no mistake," Horikita began, a fire within her eyes, "I wish to become president."
The room which had been so full of chatter from the surrounding parties had slowly ceased. All eyes were placed on Horikita.
"I see. Hmm, there's quite a lot of ground to cover. Honami and Yagami, in terms of feats, are far ahead of you," Nagumo told her bluntly, not a hint of emotion in his voice.
He was stating the facts.
"It's not impossible to catch up."
And Horikita was doing the same.
For the first time, Nagumo's eyes were glinted with something that wasn't boredom or curiosity.
It was excitement.
"You really are the same," he muttered, a grin forming on his face.
Standing up, he walked over to the standing Horikita.
"I was a little worried about the lack of second-years before, so this eases my worries partially. And, additionally, calling you Horikita is a little confusing to me. So I'm just going to refer to you as Suzune now," Nagumo told her nonchalantly.
Horikita crossed her arms, "Do as you wish."
Nagumo nodded, stretching out his left hand.
"Then welcome, Suzune."
Horikita's hand connected with Nagumo's.
A few of the eyes placed on Horikita moved away, and the room's chatter was growing back to normal.
"Nice job, Horikita~!" a cheery voice rang.
Ichinose was lightly clapping and possessed a warm smile as she approached the girl beside me.
"Thank you, Ichinose."
A boy with messy hair stretched out his hand towards Horikita as well, "Pleasure to work with you, senpai," Yagami remarked politely.
"Thank you, Yagami," Horikita muttered, now being a little taken aback by the sudden attention.
A few of the other students inside the room also stood up, practically forming a crowd around Horikita. The girl was tasked with fighting off the warm regards coming her way.
Nagumo approached me with his hands in his pockets, a confident grin on his face, "Nice to see you again, Ayanokouji."
"Nice to see you too, senpai."
"It's unfortunate how this school works, I'd have loved to see your little stint play out in real-time. But it seems like everything worked out in the end," Nagumo said offhandedly.
Out of the case between Tsukishiro and me, the true winner was Nagumo.
"I'll ask you again, do you want to join? I have pages of those forms, you know?" he offered brazenly.
Kiriyama had overheard the request, walking up to Nagumo with a confused expression, "What are you thinking, Nagumo?"
Nagumo shrugged, "What? In the eyes of the school, he's got the highest academic grade out there. Well, tied with Kiryuuin, I guess. He seems rather competent enough to fill out a seat here, don't you think, Kiriyama?"
There was a condescending undertone within those words, and Kiriyama simply sighed.
"We only had one position left anyway and now that's been taken up by Horikita. What would he do?" Kiriyama asked.
Nagumo bit his thumb, mulling over it.
After a moment, his eyes widened and he had a bright smile.
"He can be my secretary!"
"You already have one."
"He can be the secretary's secretary!"
Kiriyama sighed.
"Or, alternatively, he can always just take your spot," Nagumo added, his voice dropping an octave.
"... ..."
"Kidding, kidding! Lighten up, Kiriyama!" Nagumo chuckled, lightly hitting Kiriyama's shoulder.
All this and I hadn't even given my response...
"Sorry, senpai, my answer's the same," I told him.
Nagumo clicked his tongue, "Ah, that so? Worth a shot."
I expected him to turn back to Horikita, who seemed to have been done fighting off the war with the demon 'politeness', but he stayed back to speak to me still.
"You know, I really thought it'd be easier getting into this year, but I've just been swamped with work. Soon, I promise to be a more hands-on role model for my kouhais," he added.
What's that supposed to mean?
"Enjoy the normalcy for now."
With that, Nagumo ignored me, turning towards Horikita once again.
"I do have one additional note for you, Suzune," he began, his eyes narrowing sharply, "All former presidents have graduated as class A. Considering your position now, I think it's best you pick up the pace."
He turned his head towards Ichinose who appeared to be listening in.
"Honami, this advice goes for you as well."
Ichinose nodded, looking down at the ground.
"Nagumo-senpai, I have no intentions of anything but."
Nagumo donned a thin smirk as if he liked that answer, "Then prove it."
I turned to leave the scene. Horikita had begun a member from that very moment, after all. There's no need for me to stick around.
But as of this day forward, it looks like I've got some more eyes in the council.
A true meritocratic system.
I wonder what instilled in him such a desire.
The strong against the weak. If his system truly arose, the first exam of the year would have been wildly different.
I'd imagine anyone below a D+ would be expelled. Hundreds of class points would be lost and the general school economy would be wildly different.
"Kiriyama and Horikita, huh?"
Kiriyama is an interesting individual. Since there hasn't been a time for me to act, we haven't talked to each other. But it looks like that opportunity will be arriving soon depending on Nagumo's words.
Perhaps Kiriyama will act, then.
Looking at the gap in points between the two, an insurmountable mountain was present.
There's only one way to solve that issue, and unfortunately for Kiriyama, it's something Nagumo excels in.
Expulsions.
Looking at the classes within the third year, none of them are at their full capacity of 40. Even Nagumo. His class of 40 had dwindled to a 29.
But still, that gives him the most out of his year. I'm sure some of them were due to his enemies, but I don't doubt the possibility that Nagumo expelled some people in his own class.
He is a man who holds the entire school in the palm of his hand.
A foe like Tsukishiro, in a way.
* * *
All of us decided to meet at TimeZone at 5 p.m. I didn't notice anyone else along the way, so it was a rather boring walk.
"Huh, much more crowded."
I guess it makes sense. The last time I approached this side of the school, it was around dinner time, so most of these things were closed.
I looked to my side in the direction of the trees that were across from the several buildings. It looks like they were in front of a chained fence that went on for as long as the eye could see. Across that fence, I couldn't make out much.
I did notice, though, that the ground across the fence was much more dead. The grass looked grey, lifeless. I couldn't tell much more than that, but I was curious as to what amenity there was.
"Yo, Kiyopon!"
I looked forward and found Haruka at the entrance to the maroon building, waving at me.
Moving a little faster, I approached her destination relatively quickly.
"Hey, Haruka."
"Hmm, looks like you were the last one. They're all inside," Haruka told me.
Entering alongside her, my shoes left the smooth pavement that was at the entrance and met the plush carpet on the inside. The black carpet ran across as far as I could see, and it was lined with lots of 'retro' items. 8-bit? Is that the word? Sotomura told me about it.
Near the entrance was a small staircase that led downwards, and another staircase that led upwards.
"C'mon, this way."
I followed Haruka downstairs, and soon, we found ourselves where the rest of the group was.
"You took your time," Horikita remarked bluntly.
I shrugged and sat down on the cushioned seats next to Akito. After a minute, a man who was wearing a one-piece race suit approached us.
"Hello!" the instructor began, "So, you guys have 3 laps. First, you need to see your vehicles and get your helmets, so follow me."
3 laps for 15,000? This place sure is expensive. I guess it includes food and drinks, so it's not entirely unfair, but still.
Turning, he walked down the dimly illuminated hallway. All of us followed him, and soon, we reached the light at the end of the tunnel.
"Woah..."
We were faced with a large track. The black surface on which the vehicles were built was surrounded by a neon blue barrier so that you wouldn't fall off the track.
And of course, there were the sleek karts that were softly humming, waiting for their driver to take control of them. Each with its own colour.
"Alright, all of you pick your kart and sit down."
"I want the green one!" Haruka declared instantly.
She moved over to it like an animal. I wouldn't be surprised if she was salivating over it. Sitting down, she put her seatbelt on, eagerly waiting for the neon sign near the ceiling to say 'GO!'.
"Hmm, this one will do," Horikita muttered, getting into a purple vehicle.
Airi went towards the pink one.
Keisei found a grey kart.
Akito got a blue one.
That only left one, the red kart. I got inside, feeling the padded seat on my back. I stretched my foot slightly, feeling the two pedals. The thin, tall one on the right, which I believe was the accelerator. And the wide, short one was the brake, placed for the left foot.
I took the black seatbelt and connected it to the red object on my left. It snugly fit me, the black material on my neck almost like a razor blade.
I took the palms of my hands and placed them on the steering wheel. Though the material was leather, it was coloured a reflective silver.
"Alright, here are your helmets. Adjust them as you see fit," the instructor informed.
He began going around to each vehicle, handing all of us our helmets.
I noticed that the way the karts were arranged in a straight line, all of us at the starting line, waiting to begin.
I put on my helmet, adjusting the strap to have it hug my neck. My vision wasn't impacted by much. The only real effect was my peripheral vision being shortened a little due to the black sides of the headgear.
"Okay, then. Some advice. No bumping into each other intentionally, and don't go full speed at a corner. Have your seatbelts on. The tall pedal is the accelerator and the wide is the brake. Have fun."
The instructor walked off the track, shutting the gate behind him.
I looked up at the neon sign. As of now, it wasn't on, but in a moment--
'GO!'
There it was.
I let a few of the others move first so I didn't get in their way.
"Bye!" Haruka giggled.
The green vehicle moved off fiercely, Akito and Horikita not far behind them.
I pushed on the accelerator, my vehicle jerking slightly before taking off. The air on my face, my back on the seat...
I could feel it all. I moved forward, looking to my side and found Keisei and Airi close to me, practically neck and neck.
The straight track ended, and I turned the steering wheel right, maneuvering around the corner roughly.
"Too late..." I muttered.
Airi and Keisei both passed me, like grey and pink streaks zooming past. I pushed the accelerator, moving forward once again. The track went up this time.
Gravity was pushing me back, but I floored the pedal, making me rush with a speed unlike before. The track then sloped down, and it was like I was at the apex of the world.
The wind rushed past me, making the helmet snug on my head. The hum of the kart's engine in my ear.
The neon blue barriers flashed by as I moved faster and faster.
"Stop following me!" Haruka complained.
I had barely caught up to the others ahead. Haruka was expertly navigating the track, turning like a professional.
"Horikita... Stop doing that!" Akito berated.
"It's not my fault you're in my way," she coldly replied.
They were in a tough battle for second place, both of them making identical moves like machines. Akito sped up and turned, denying Horikita access to overtake.
"Looks like you caught up," Keisei yelled out.
We three were neck and neck. However, I changed my strategy for this turn.
My mistake was increasing the speed and turning, but that just makes it too hard to control.
I eased up on the accelerator and pressed the break lightly, twisting my steering wheel until it couldn't go anymore and cut through the inside of the track, moving past the two smoothly.
I floored the pedal again, leaning back as if I was experiencing 10 G's of force. It was much lower, but that's what it felt like.
The track continued to twist and turn, straights and corners, turn after turn, but the positions never changed. Haruka maintained her lead, and Akito and Horikita fought for second place.
I couldn't overtake them as I am now.
'LAP 2'
We crossed the starting line, leaving us with another 2 laps before the race was over.
"You guys are so slow!"
Haruka had even increased her distance due to Horikita and Akito sabotaging each other.
Halfway through the second lap, nothing had changed, but that's because the opportunity I was waiting for hadn't arrived yet.
'Wide Turn Incoming'
These little signs on the side were quite helpful.
There was a wide turn, large enough for three cars. As of now, I've been behind Akito and Horikita, not able to overtake either. But that changes now.
The track opened up, and I floored the accelerator once again, but that's not all.
"You're going too fast!" Akito advised.
I let go of the accelerator, my foot on the brake as I turned the steering wheel to the right, my car moving through the turn without losing any momentum.
Exiting the wide turn, I pressed the accelerator once again, feeling the rush of wind on my face.
With a burst of speed, I overtook both of them, the surprise evident through the transparent visors on their helmets.
I continued to try and maintain this newfound momentum, trying to catch up to Haruka, but she was too good. All of her turns were like an expert, conserving the energy of her vehicle every time.
If I was at 80, Haruka was at 100.
If I was at 100, Haruka was at 120.
'LAP 3: FINAL LAP'
I zoomed forward, trying to catch up to Haruka in the slightest. And on the first corner... She made a mistake.
She was too fast and almost hit the barrier, having to slow down much more than she wanted to not hit the sides.
"Crap, crap, crap!"
But she recovered well, and I took advantage of that setback to move forward.
I had closed the distance, leaving us both vying for first place.
Haruka shot me a competitive glance, "Stop being good at things!"
The neon blue barriers flashed by as the final lap continued.
Both of us had never overtaken each other for long, always ending up back at the same spot.
The final stretch had arrived.
I pushed the accelerator to the maximum, the kart roaring with a newfound speed.
'FINISH!'
* * *
Driving the vehicle into the pits, I took off my helmet, adjusting my disheveled hair and standing up.
I didn't know who had won between Haruka and me, but I was told to get out of the vehicle. Haruka had already gotten up, heading towards the waiting area.
I saw Horikita, and Akito placing the carts into their pits through the wired mesh fence as I walked towards the waiting area.
Ironically, they were neck and neck doing that as well.
Airi and Keisei joined soon after them. I proceeded to the waiting area where I found Haruka with a solemn expression.
"Kiyopon..." Haruka began.
Does that mean I won?
"I won, suck it!"
Turns out I didn't.
Haruka pointed to the leaderboard with a mischievous grin, "I won!"
"By 0.3 seconds..." I retorted.
Haruka shrugged, "Oh yeah, 0.3 seconds that made you a loser," she said cheekily.
"I came in second."
In all honesty, I only had a chance to win because of that mistake Haruka had made. If not for that, she'd win comfortably.
"Hmm, looks like Horikita beat Akito. Then Airi beat Keisei."
I took a seat on the plush couch, leaning back, Haruka standing in front of me, her hands on her hips.
"That was fun, though. When did you get so good?" Haruka asked me.
"I just got lucky. I made a pretty big mistake at the beginning, and you made a mistake near the beginning of the third lap which allowed me to catch up. I wasn't really that good," I shrugged.
"Hmm, nah, you did pretty well. Also..." Haruka looked to her side to see if someone was approaching, "I heard Airi talked to you."
Ah, right. It had been 2 days since then, she hadn't brought it up since.
"Yeah, she did. You probably know the rest of the story."
Haruka nodded, taking a seat next to me, "Hmm, she looks fine right now, but... I don't really know if that's what she's really feeling. She told me she confessed, and that you said no, that was it."
"Did you try being direct?"
Haruka sighed, "No... I don't want to be too annoying. But at the same time, I don't like not knowing how she's feeling. What should I do...?"
It looks like she needed advice.
"I think the only thing you can do is be direct. Some people bottle things up, others wear everything on their sleeve. Of the two, I think Airi's the former. If being direct doesn't work then... I think the only thing you can do is leave her be," I told her.
"But I don't want to leave her be if she's hurting."
That's a rather clumsy mentality. Of course, on the surface, it seems noble. You don't want to leave her alone if you think she's in pain, but at some point, you're overstepping.
"Leaving her be doesn't mean 'Abandon'. All it means is that you won't pursue it. I think it'd hurt Airi more if you kept pushing her for an answer."
Haruka's eyes widened for a moment, nodding softly, "I guess so."
"You guys were here?" Akito muttered as he walked into sight.
He took a glance at the leaderboard, his mouth twisting into a frown.
"Oh, come on, I came fourth?" he complained.
Horikita walked past him nonchalantly, "The numbers don't appear to lie."
She stood in front of me, her hands on her hips and an annoyed expression on her face, "You beat me again..."
"Did your instincts from the elementary school party not kick in?" I joked.
Horikita sighed, "Very funny, yes. You made a risky move with that wide turn, I'm honestly a little disappointed you didn't crash into the wall."
"Well, all of you suck anyway," Haruka stated with a confident expression.
Akito looked at her with a blank expression, "Agreement to never say Haruka's the winner?"
"Good idea," Horikita agreed.
"I have no problem with it," I told him.
"Noooo!"
Keisei and Airi came out next.
"Sorry, bathroom," Keisei apologised.
Airi nodded.
"Well, what now?" Horikita asked.
The room was silent, at least, until the leaderboard changed.
The times and placements changed into 'ticket values'. The first placing received 10,000 tickets, plus an additional for how much they beat the second place by. The little bit of text on the side said that if the time difference between first and second was over 10 seconds, first place would recieve another 10,000 points.
But for Haruka, that additional value was a... 5.
"10,000?! I could get so much stuff with that. Like headphones, or a new phone or even something like a--"
* * *
"Here's your bouncy ball, you now have 4 tickets left over," the receptionist told Haruka.
"T-thank you..." Haruka muttered, turning around, her eyes on the ground and her shoulders slumped.
"Haruka... You okay?" Akito asked.
"All that for a bouncy ball the size of a marble..."
I approached Horikita who was sitting at a table, looking over the menu.
"Did you have fun?" I asked her.
Horikita's eyes peeked at me from over the menu, "It was... more enjoyable than I thought."
I couldn't make out her overall expression since it was covered by the menu, but I had an idea.
"That's good. I assume Haruka and Akito will ask you to come again, just letting you know."
Horikita put the menu down, arching a brow, "I expected this to be a one-time activity..."
It's too late now. Haruka's got her ways to make Horikita come back.
"This was fun, but I can't--"
"Horikita, you wanna go bowling next week?" Haruka asked Horikita, taking a seat next to her.
"I appreciate the offer but I can't."
Haruka nodded, "Yeah, I get it. You probably don't want to lose to Kiyopon again."
Horikita's eyes narrowed, "Excuse me?"
"I thought I was clear."
"That isn't going to work," Horikita countered.
Haruka shrugged, "Whatever you say."
"I'm serious."
Haruka nodded, "Yeah, I know. Anyway, Airi--"
Horikita grits her teeth, her expression morphing into a scowl.
"Alright then, I will join you next week for bowling."
"Awesome~!" Haruka said with a bright smile.
And just like that, Horikita is trapped.
Truly a terrifying foe.
Author's Note:
I like go-karting, so I added it for fun. Kiyo could use some slice of life after a month of pain.