Chapter 49: Winter is coming.
"What?"
Kei looked at Yuto with a quizzical expression, trying to feign ignorance.
Yuto sighed as he took a spoonful of his ice cream. "Funny thing about loyalty, Kei. It doesn't always get rewarded," Yuto said casually, stirring his ice cream.
Kei frowned. "What are you getting at?"
"Oh, nothing. Just wondering if you've ever felt like a pawn in someone else's game."
Kei's face contorted into a confused expression as she stood up. "I'm leaving."
Yuto shivered, experiencing a brain freeze. "You might not be as safe as you think, you know."
Kei froze, asking without looking back, "What do you mean?"
Yuto moaned as he took another bite of his ice cream. "Recently, Class C found all the traitors in their class. I planted three, but the number found was six. With a bit of investigation, I learned those additional three traitors were Manabe and her group."
Kei didn't respond, standing still.
"Kei, weren't those girls pestering you during the Zodiac Exam? I found it strange that they simply stopped. That could only mean one thing, no?" Yuto smirked. "Ayanokoji di—"
"All right, I got it! Stop! What do you want?!" Kei banged the table as Yuto flinched, causing everyone in the shop to stare at her.
"Umm... why don't you sit down first? I'll ask while you eat your ice cream."
Kei reluctantly took her ice cream and began eating while Yuto asked, "I heard from Sudou that you threw water on Kushida and offered to wash her clothes. Pretty weird behaviour, isn't it? Tell me, why did you do that?"
Kei glared at Yuto with a helpless sigh. "Kiyotaka wanted me to plant a sheet in Kushida's uniform for the exam. That's it."
Yuto observed her for a moment. 'Hmm... makes sense. After my fight with him, he probably doesn't trust me to provide evidence with the video. Kushida wouldn't dare wash that uniform. Since ANHS only provides two coats, she'll wear the one Kei washed on the exam day. But that's not all...'
He looked at Kei with pity. "Kei, you do realize Ayanokoji is manipulating you, right?"
Kei frowned heavily. "What? What do you mean by that?"
Yuto pointed his spoon at Kei as he explained. "By planting the chit in Kushida's uniform, you've exposed yourself to Ryuen. What do you think Ryuen will do next?"
Kei scoffed. "Kiyotaka said he'd protect me! Un!" she huffed.
Yuto's eyes narrowed. "And what if he abandons you at the last moment?"
Kei slammed the desk. This time, she was furious. Forcing a laugh, she said, "You don't know what you're talking about. Kiyotaka would never abandon me."
Yuto raised an eyebrow. "You sure? People like him don't form attachments." His gaze drifted solemnly to his ice cream. "I'd know that better than anyone."
Kei clenched her fists under the table. "You're wrong. He said he'd protect me." She got up and began walking off with her handbag, leaving Yuto with an extra pair of panda pyjamas and bunny slippers.
"All right. Just contact me when he does abandon you," Yuto said as he continued eating his ice cream.
Suddenly, he froze, the spoon still in his mouth as cold sweat dripped down his side. He looked around and gulped. "She didn't pay for anything..."
***
"Tsk... I think she's a scam artist. That woman sucked me dry!" Yuto muttered as he walked along the pavement, frowning heavily. The surroundings were quiet, and the wind was cold. A strong breeze blew past, making Yuto shiver. "Maybe I shouldn't have eaten so much..."
He sighed, briefly looking at the sky, where a glowing, luminous ball illuminated the night. He had come to detest the moon; just looking at it soured his mood. Suddenly, he heard footsteps.
Turning to his side, Yuto's frown turned into a grimace. "What are the chances..." Walking toward him were Kushida, Ayanokoji, and... Horikita.
Yuto realized his mistake in standing still as he promptly made eye contact with Horikita's vermillion eyes. He instantly looked away, biting his lip.
"Ah! Kazuki-kun! What a coincidence! Everyone I hate is here! How come?" Kushida said in her usual cheery voice.
'Ugh, this bitch is here too,' Yuto groaned internally. "Ah, yes. What an unpleasant coincidence," Yuto said with a twitching smile.
"I wonder, is it really a coincidence, or did you follow us here like last time?" Kushida narrowed her eyes at Yuto, her tone dark.
"No, no. It's just a coincidence. Like I'd want to follow a fucking unpleasant bitch like you!" Yuto replied, mimicking her cheerful tone. Finally, he looked at the group.
"How mean! I was about to boast about how a beautiful man started stalking me!" Kushida said. Yuto Ignored her as he looked at Ayanokji, who had his hands in his pockets. It was tempting to foil Ayanokoji's plans right now...
"Kazuki-kun, did you finish teaching Kaurizawa-san?" Horikita asked. Yuto cupped his fists. 'Class affairs is the only thing she asks me...'
"No. I was going to her dorm right now to give her some study material. I trust you thought her enough for her to pass." Yuto said, his voice becoming a little rougher. Horikita looked at Yuto for a second, before nodding, "Yes, I did. She should have any trouble passing 60." Then looked at him, as if she wanted to add something else.
Yuto looked at her, waiting for her would say more, seeing she wasn't he walked towards the dorms when...
"Ha! I finally got it!" Kushida laughed, her grin turning malicious. "So, it's not just about the fight, is it? You two must have gotten so caught up in your little 'game' that she stopped playing along. Did she tell you to your face that you're just a pawn? Or maybe you realized you're nothing more than a distraction to her goals—just like everyone else who gets too close."
Yuto froze in his tracks. "Oh, little Kazuki~! It's fine, I can be your friend~" Kushida said in her cheery voice, clasping her hands together. "Well~ You would've had to come to terms with the fact that this bitch was never going to fall for you. It's fine! I'll expel her for you~" she said, her voice bubbly, as if mocking his distress.
"At the end of the day, this bitch can only use people and throw them away~"
Yuto's jaw tightened, a vein bursting on his temple while Horikita clenched her fists. Yuto at that moment turned to Kushida with an intense glare, his eyes narrowing hollow purple. "Kushida, enjoy the last few of your days in this school," he said, his tone dark. "I'll make sure you see your parents soon."
Kushida flinched before forcing a strained laugh, "I'd like to see what you would do now!" She was confident in her partnership with Ryuen. Yuto lost all his support and was too dumb to do anything to Kushida with Ryuen on her side.
Though she couldn't make Yuto a social outcast due to his popularity, she could very well spread nasty rumours about him. Even have him expelled when the moment presented itself. She wasn't afraid.
Yuto turned around and walked off into the chilling cold. After all, it was going to be winter soon.
**
Kei sat in her bed, knees pulled tightly to her chest, staring at the faint shadows dancing on the wall. Yuto's words replayed in her mind like a broken record, each one cutting deeper than the last. She bit her lip, trying to dismiss them, trying to convince herself that they weren't true. "He doesn't know what he's talking about," she whispered to herself. "He can't know…"
The soft chime of the doorbell shattered her thoughts. Kei blinked and sat up.
"What am I even doing?" she muttered, running her fingers through her hair. "I should be resting. Tomorrow's too important to waste time thinking about…" She shook her head and shuffled to the door, too drained to feel anything but exhaustion.
She called out, her voice heavy with disinterest, "Who is it?"
The silence that followed was almost louder than the question. Just as she turned to walk away, a voice finally responded. Soft, familiar, achingly familiar.
"Kei, it's me."
Her features turned into a grimace. She didn't need to ask who it was—she knew. That voice was the only voice she had been thinking of for the past few hours.
She leaned against the door, crossing her arms in defiance. "Go away, Yuto. I don't want to talk to you right now."
The silence returned. For a moment, Kei thought he might've left. Relief flickered in her chest, only to be doused when his voice came again, gentler this time.
"I brought you revision notes… and your pyjamas."
Kei froze. The mention of the notes hit her like a punch to the gut. She needed them, especially after barely keeping herself together all week. But… pyjamas? Her brows furrowed.
Yuto's tone wasn't teasing like it usually was. It was… worrying, in fact.
Her resolve cracked. She sighed and reached for the handle. "Fine, fine. I'm opening it. But don't think I'm—"
The bitter cold rushed in the moment she opened the door. Kei instinctively shivered and hugged herself, looking up at the person standing there.
Her breath caught in her throat.
There he was, Yuto, but not like she'd ever seen him before. His usually sharp features were softened, not by the cold but by something far heavier. His azure eyes, always so full of cheerfulness was now brimmed with unshed tears. His lips trembled, not from the chill, but from the weight of whatever he was holding inside.
Kei's voice wavered. "Yuto… are you crying?"
He didn't answer. He couldn't.
Instead, a single tear slipped down his cheek, cutting through the frost clinging to his skin.
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[A/N: guys, my preboards/boards are about to start so I won't have time for a few months but but, I will still upload chapter when I can so dont keep your hopes too high, and GOSH did I have fun writing this chapter. mI might upload the next chapter in this next few hours if I do complete writing it.]
Chapter 50: Paper Shuffle Exam.
"Uamm..." Yuto yawned as he strolled towards school, the soft hum of morning chatter barely registering in his mind. His gaze drifted aimlessly until it landed on Kei, animatedly conversing with her friends. Their eyes met briefly, instantly making Yuto flinch in embarrassment. Last night's display of waterworks made his cheeks warm as he noticed Kei's lips curl into a teasing grin.
She knew exactly what she was doing!
"Oh, Yuto-kun! Yahello!" Yuto turned around to see Ichinose waving at him. Yuto smiled as he waved back. Ichinose quickly joined him on his walk to school.
Of course, like last time, they stuck out in the crowd. This time, the crowd seemed convinced they were a couple.
"Haha, brings back memories, doesn't it?" Ichinose commented as she walked along with a smile.
Yuto chuckled softly. "Yeah... it does," he replied, his gaze lingering on her longer than it should have. This time, however, he saw Ichinose in a different light.
The rumors brought him a strange discomfort, but unlike last time, he didn't mind this discomfort. Back then, his heart was completely devoted—he even worshiped!—Horikita. But now, standing next to Ichinose, he allowed himself to entertain the possibility.
He couldn't say he had lost his feelings entirely, but he wanted to. He looked at Ichinose, smiling as she walked in front. She was really cute. Anyone who spent as much time as he had with Ichinose would've fallen in love with her. Except, he wasn't just anyone.
Yuto involuntarily bit his lip. He wanted to fall in love with someone other than Horikita. And deep down, he knew the disgusting reason for it too. It wasn't for the sake of falling in love. No, far from it. It was to reject his love and feelings for Horikita.
Yes.
He wanted to fall in love simply out of spite for Horikita. It was a disgusting, inhumane reason, but he wanted to regardless.
"Alright, Yuto-kun! All the best. Let's meet again after the exam!" Ichinose's cheerful voice pulled Yuto out of his rabbit hole. Yuto turned to his side and realized he was standing in front of Class-D's entrance.
"Ahh, alright. We'll meet up later! Good luck!" Yuto flashed a smile while Ichinose smiled back.
Waving each other goodbye, Yuto entered the class as everyone momentarily went silent. It wasn't for long, though.
"Yutoooooo! I'm dead, man! DEAD! I couldn't complete my English portion. What do I do?!"
Sidestepping the larger boy with practiced ease, Yuto dropped a stack of revision sheets onto the desk. "Use these. At this point, focus on what you know rather than trying to cram." Yuto said bluntly before turning to look at the class. Almost everyone was here.
He briefly made eye contact with Kei again as she wiggled her fingers in a cheeky wave, her grin wide and unapologetically mischievous.
Yuto groaned inwardly. That woman! She'd been relentless in teasing him ever since last night.
Soon, Sae entered, distributing the papers. After everything was done, she went up to the podium and announced,
"Start!"
Instantly, almost every student opened their paper. Yuto, however, took his sweet time as he perused the paper. It was easy enough; he should get a good score of 80+ with Kei as his partner. He was, however, more interested in Two-Face's reaction. The venom in his smirk was involuntary as his eyes flicked to her.
She was pale, her hands trembling ever so slightly as she scribbled answers. Her usual mask of cheerful confidence was cracking, and Yuto drank it in like a man parched.
An hour or so into the exam, Yuto was done with his paper and raised his hand to submit it early. No one was surprised—not that they had the time to notice.
'I guess it's time.'
He raised his hand again, cutting through the stillness like a blade.
"Sae-chan-sensei."
All eyes turned to him. Sae's brows furrowed slightly, sensing the tension radiating from his mischievous grin. "Yes, Kazuki? You've already submitted your paper, and as you know, the use of the lavatory is prohibited during exams."
Yuto leaned forward, his voice calm but deliberate. "I'd like to request a check of Kushida-san's uniform. I have reasonable suspicion she's cheating using chits."
The room didn't erupt, no, the room was veilled by a tense atomosphere. Heads turned subtly, students exchanging quick glances but keeping their movements restrained under Sae's watchful gaze.
A few pens froze mid-sentence, and the air grew heavy with unspoken questions. Horikita's lips went agape as she remembered Yuto's words last night. "No... Way..." she mouthed silently while Ayanokoji face was masked by his usual indifferent expression, but he too had to admit he was shocked.
Sae hesitated briefly, masking her own surprise. "Kazuki, you understand the seriousness of such an accusation? If false, you'll face penalties."
"I understand," Yuto replied, his arms crossed as he turned to see Kushida's reaction.
Kushida blinked, her expression a mix of confusion and disbelief. "Excuse me?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her fingers instinctively brushed the edges of her jacket as if reassuring herself of its innocence.
"Kushida-san," Sae's voice cut in. "Please stand for inspection. Your exam will be paused, and time will be compensated if you're found innocent."
Kushida didn't move at first. She glanced down at her uniform, brows knitting together in genuine bewilderment. "What…?" she murmured under her breath, her confusion tangible.
Yuto's smirk remained, but he watched her closely, knowing the exact moment realization would dawn.
Slowly, Kushida's gaze shifted to Kei. Kei's expression—momentary shock giving way to reluctant acceptance—told her everything. Realization struck her like a truck.
Kei planted them.
The color drained from her face as her breathing quickened, panic clawing its way to the surface. She bit her lip, her mind racing through scenarios, calculations, ways to salvage the situation—but every thread unraveled before she could grasp it.
"Please…" she croaked, her voice trembling as she turned back to Yuto, her eyes glossy with unshed tears. "Don't do this."
Yuto's expression wasn't unreadable, no. Even someone like Yamauchi could read his current expression. He was holding his laughter. "Get up," Sae prompted again, more firmly this time.
Kushida obeyed shakily, her legs feeling as though they might give out beneath her. Her eyes flickered to Kei one last time, looking at her pure disdain and shock. Kei looked at Kushida with pity as she mouthed:
"Sorry."
Like that would help!
As Sae gestured for a female staff member to step in for the inspection, Kushida's panic reached its peak. Her hands trembled visibly as she tried to protest again, words tumbling out incoherently. But her voice was swallowed by the suffocating silence of the room.
Hirata looked at Yuto with a shocked expression. Was this really the Yuto he knew? Sudo train of thoughts were cut as Yuto gestured him to continue with his exam. Like hell he could!
Ike and Yamauchi were shocked, not by entertaining the possibility that Kushida could get expelled. No!
They were shocked by how dumb Yuto was!
Like, how did he even think some one like Kushida could hold chits! Ridiculous!
Whisphers soon began to circulate from the back as Sae banged a table for decorom.
Yuto sat back, satisfied. He crossed his arms, his face unreadable but for the faintest twitch of amusement at the corner of his lips. In his mind, the game was already over.
Kushida's hands fisted at her sides as she whispered under her breath, a trembling mantra of disbelief: "This can't be happening… this can't be happening…"
But it was.
Her fate was sealed the moment she pissed of Yuto yesterday.
And as the staff member approached to carry out the inspection, Yuto couldn't resist leaning forward slightly, his lips moving silently as he mouthed his parting gift: "I keep my promises, bitch."
____________________________________________
[A/N: I mean, I bet some of you expected this from the last chapter but believe me, if you are writing a COTE fic, you would know how annoying of a character Kushida is to work with. Plus, she keeps annoying Yuto! Well, he didn't pull of some crazy big brain move here to expel Kushida but I feel that here, in this situation, simplicity was for the best.
Idk, what are y'all's opinions and where do you want for the story to take forword to.
And thank you all of you for the support and patience for keeping up with my upload sechedule. We finally broke 50 chapters! I ask you for the continution of you patience.
Also I started working on a novel I might upload on April (due to boards and I want to stock pile at least 20 chapters). So check it out when it comes. It is a fansaty story and a bit cliche. If you like very detailed, slow paced story with amazing world building, I think you will like what I am making.
Also, could someone teach me how to pace my stories as pacing and dialouge flow was always a problem for me. Still I believe if you look back to the first chapter, my writing has come pretty far and I can't say I'm not proud.
Again, thank you for all your support and this is you author-chan out!]
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