The next afternoon, Kokichi and Himiko were sitting on the living room couch, watching TV. Kokichi had his arm wrapped around Himiko, who was leaning against him with her legs tucked underneath her. Suddenly, Kokichi's phone buzzed. He took it out and read the text message that had been sent to him.
KOJI: Hey, man U comin? Jun's here. ;)
Kokichi rolled his eyes and put his phone away without replying. He was still miffed at Koji for what he said about Himiko.
"Nyeh...who was that, Kokichi?" Himiko asked.
"Eh...nobody," Kokichi replied, waving his hand dismissively. Himiko sat up.
"Was it Koji?" she asked. "Was it about the party?" Kokichi sighed and nodded.
"Yeah."
"Oh! Well...are we going?" Himiko asked.
"No," Kokichi replied firmly. "Besides, you don't need to be around them."
"Why not? I can handle a little party," Himiko said. "I'm a bad girl, after all. You saw how impressed Koji was with me yesterday."
"You're not going anywhere near there, Himiko, and that's that," Kokichi insisted.
"Why nooot?" Himiko whined.
"Himiko, they're a bunch of juvenile delinquents," Kokichi sighed. "All they'll do is get you into a bunch of trouble. Stay away from them."
"But, you get us into trouble sometimes, too," Himiko pointed out in a timid voice.
"And I always get us out," Kokichi replied. "And unlike them, I have your best interest at heart," Kokichi said. He stood up. "Listen, Kaito's gonna drop me off at the dentist. On the way back, I'll pick up some snacks, and we can watch movies, like we did last time, okay?"
"Well...alright," Himiko said.
"Good!" Kokichi replied. He leaned forward to give Himiko a kiss. "You just wait here and make yourself comfortable, Monkey Buns, okay?"
"Okay, Kokichi," Himiko replied with a small smile.
"Later, babe!" he said, waving goodbye as he entered the hallway. Himiko waved back. "Hey, idiot! I'm ready to go!" Kokichi called to Kaito. Kaito came in with an annoyed glare.
"Stop callin' me an idiot!" he growled. "And you could thank me, y'know!"
"Nee-heehee...I could, but I won't!" Kokichi replied with a cheeky grin. Himiko watched as Kokichi and Kaito exited the house. Then, she grinned impishly to herself.
"Pffft...he's worrying for nothing," she said, removing her clothes to reveal "bad girl" clothes underneath. "Nyeh...I can handle a little party. I'm not scared of them. I'm a big girl!"
"Where are you going all dressed up like that?" Maki asked, walking into the room.
"Nyeh...to a party," Himiko replied, nodding her head in a cool way. Then, she pointed finger guns at Maki while clicking her teeth. "Nyeh...later, 'assassinator.'" She then headed out the back door. Maki merely shrugged, then continued minding her own business.
***
Himiko arrived at the old, abandoned house near the river that Koji had mentioned. She heard a loud ruckus coming from the inside, a bunch of teenagers shouting mixed with loud music. She stood up straight and walked up to the door. She rang the doorbell, but nobody answered. After a few seconds of waiting, eyes fell on the doorknob. She began to sweat with unease as she thought about entering without knocking, or ringing the doorbell. Taking a deep breath, she reached for it and turned it, surprised to find the door unlocked. She stepped inside and breathed a sigh of relief.
Wow! I came inside without someone answering the door first! she thought, impressed with herself. I really am a bad girl! Cool! She looked around her. Everywhere was nothing but chaos: there were kids either dancing to the music, throwing and smashing stuff against the walls, smoking and drinking, or making out in the open where anybody could see them. Himiko felt her stomach knot up.
"Nyeh...maaayyybe I shouldn't be here after all," she mumbled to herself. She turned to leave, until she heard someone call her name.
"Himiko!" Himiko turned to see Koji walking up to her with a mean smirk. In his hand was a beer bottle. He was walking next to a punky girl wearing red and black. "Where's Kokichi?"
"Oh! Um...he'll be here...later?" Himiko lied.
"Is that so?" Koji replied. "Well, I'm sure he'll be proud to see you pull off...The Big Dare."
"What's that?" Himiko asked apprehensively.
"The Big Dare is something someone who wants to prove themselves to us does to see if they can be part of the group," the girl replied with a smirk. "Kinda like an initiation." Koji gestured to her.
"This here's Jun," he said. "She'll be the one in charge of what your dare will be." Himiko's eyes widened.
"Nyeh?! Oh! Um...I-I wasn't planning on doing any dare, though," she said.
"Why not?" Koji asked. "Don't you wanna prove yourself to us...bad girl? " He and Jun grinned evilly at her.
"Um...I...um, well...okay," Himiko replied quietly.
"Hey, everyone!" Koji announced. The others stopped what they were doing to listen to him. "Our new friend, Himiko, here is gonna do The Big Dare!" The others applauded. Himiko felt her face grow hot. "And Jun's gonna tell her what her dare's gonna be! Jun...?" Jun stepped closer to Himiko, staring right at her like a lioness's piercing gaze right before the attack.
"I dare you...to steal the flowers from Ms. Kazunari's garden," she said. The crowd oohed excitedly.
"Wh-Who's that?" Himiko asked nervously.
"She's a mean old bitch who treats her dumbass flowers like they're her own damn kids," Koji answered.
"That's right," Jun said. "And you have to steal them. Kazunari's a real pain in the ass who keeps getting us in trouble. You'll be the hero if you do this thing for us."
"Yeah, you'll finally be one of us," Koji said. "Think of how proud Kokichi will be of you." Jun scowled as he spoke. Himiko shuddered under Jun's glare. She definitely didn't like hearing that, though Himiko didn't know why.
"Yeah...think of how proud he'll be of you," she repeated through gritted teeth, making a face as if what she said left a bad taste in her mouth.
"Um...okay," Himiko finally said.
"Great," Koji said, wrapping his arm around Himiko's shoulders. He held up his bottle of beer. "Let's go to Kazunari's, you guys!" The others cheered as most of them followed Himiko, Koji, and Jun out of the house. Himiko felt her heart fall into her stomach. She felt nauseous as she realized that she should have listened to Kokichi. What had she gotten herself into?