After the official school day had ended, (Y/n) wandered up to the student council room, as per usual. Narahashi came, too, followed by Shota and Takuya who were merely there to be with the younger girl. But, she insisted, if they were going to be there, they were going to work. The two boys obliged, helping with the menial work that would have otherwise occupied her the entire rest of the day.

"We're out of staples," the bluenette whistled, holding up a small and empty box, "Would my vice president help me grab some more from the office?"

The girl nodded, silently leaving the room. That left the boys alone. Takuya didn't mind all that much, fairly focused on the work he'd been delegated but Shota was displeased. He would have thought, as the president, Narahashi would have the most work. And, yet, on the contrary, he hadn't touched anything since he'd stepped in the room. The most work he did was sifting through papers meaninglessly before putting them in front of the (h/c) haired girl to do on his behalf.

"Maybe things work differently from Jindei, but," Shota paused, assessing the male once more to find a single good trait in him, "what exactly are the responsibilities of the student council president?"

"That's a good question. I don't really have to worry about it, so I kind of forgot."

"You cannot be serious."

"Is that bad?"

The shameless smile on the bluenette's face ticked Shota off. Really, he had a position that so many aspired for. The student council president of any of the Akahito private schools was considered a huge deal. Not only did it practically seal your future, especially if you were from a commoner family, but it helped make invaluable connections. Shota believed he understood the why of Narahashi running for president. He also understood how it was possible to achieve with his popularity. And though it took him longer to figure it out, he grasped why exactly he could stay in that position.

The way it worked in all of the private schools owned by the Akahito family was a bit different than other schools. Treasurers and secretaries would run separately but the president and vice president ran for the position together. It was supposed to be a test for the president of if they knew how to pick someone who supported them. For instance, if the president was lacking when it came to planning an event, if their vice president could make up for that, it showed teamwork. And since teachers and staff had a larger vote than the students, it was essential to have a good reputation.

It went without saying that one of them was using the other. He probably had no problem getting votes from the students. Shota came to the conclusion that he must have chosen (Y/n) as his vice president solely because she had the ability. Teachers likely voted for them because of her, and he kept the position since she did all the work without complaint. Was he really using his position as her childhood friend to trap her into work like that?

"I thought you were ranked first in the school," the redhead scoffed, feeling a great hatred for the male.

"Me? Yeah, I'd like to think I'm a good student."

"If it's like that, and you're really the smartest one here, why is (Y/n) doing all your work?"

"I never said I was the smartest. And the rankings only consider GPA. She's doing a much harder workload than me. According to school rules, I can get up to a 5.0 even if I only take one college level course and all honors classes. She's taking all college level courses. Except health, anyway."

"You read through the school bylaws to do less work? And you didn't think to clue your 'best friend' into that?"

"There was no need. She knew before I did. Don't worry about her. Trust me, she's happy right where she is."

Shota felt more anger welling up inside of him. He didn't see where the bluenette got off making assumptions like that. In the first place, how could she have been happy when she was starving to death? And secondly, who would be happy to have all the credit for their hard work go to their deadbeat friend? With a complete disregard to the things the girl set for him to do, he chose to spend the rest of his time there finding some flaw in him. He had to show the younger girl how horrible he was. But, in his steadfast attempts to do so, he didn't realize (Y/n) had yet to come back.

. . .

The younger girl sat patiently in an unknown car, wondering what to do. As soon as she had stepped out of the student council room, two unknown individuals were waiting for her. They insisted she follow along. It wasn't really a choice. When they were so much bigger and possessed guns, what was she to do? They hadn't done anything since, probably only planning on using force if it was necessary.

Once the car stopped, she was led to the front of a massive traditional manor. It took up more than a block - possibly three - and a golden wall encompassing the area. There were more people in suits standing at the entrance, presumably guarding it. They nodded at the men escorting her, allowing them to pass fine. But she figured, if she was uninvited, she might have seen the guns they were hiding under their coats.

Beyond the gates, she found a gorgeous traditionally Athainian paradise. It was rare for things to be that way, so, for her, it was like walking into the very distant past or some historical preservation site. The people inside were also traditionally dressed, including the children that ran around. A few large buildings encompassed the area but they entered the smallest one, not that, by any means, it was "small". It was just not as big as the others. Still, the opulence of it was much nicer than the others.

As the doors were opened for her, she saw a younger male there. To her, he looked ten, but he was fourteen. The male had jet black hair and soft blue eyes that were a contrast to the hard facial features of the men that escorted her. He wore a traditional kimono, simple but elegant, and no other accessories.

"Welcome," he beamed, giving a small bow, "I hope we didn't scare you or anything. My name is Yusei Ido Nagahama. Please, feel free to call me whatever you'd like. I'll help guide you to the young master."

(Y/n) could take a wild guess about who she would be seeing. Still, she chose to follow along, trailing behind the ravenette obediently. As expected, the rest of the house was fairly impressive. Keeping in theme with the outside, it was traditional inside. She even had to change into sandals to step inside. The majority of things inside were gold, possibly heirlooms, too, considering how well they were being taken care of. Then, of course, there were gorgeous paintings hung up on the walls, also drawn in a traditional style.

Before long, she was brought to a room, the ravenette announcing his presence before opening the sliding door. As expected, Yamato was there, laying on his bed. He was quick to sit up, motioning for her to come in. Yusei then closed the door behind her, but it seemed like he remained outside of the door all the same.

"I would have preferred an invitation," she mumbled, standing an awkward distance away from him, "Instead of being kidnapped, I mean."

"Kidnapped? I made sure they treated you right. Besides, even if you felt threatened, you could have gotten out of it. I know who you are now. (Y/n) Shiratori."

"Then, please. Enlighten me."

The brunette gave a confident grin, grabbing at a controller. He then very swiftly turned on the modest television in his room, giving a scoff. She turned her head as little as possible, watching a video of a younger her played. It was during the annual mixed martial arts world championship that took place when she was six. On the screen, she was completely dominating another kid her age, the match ending in less than a minute.

"You're a record holder. I know that because I did the research. And I also know you won this competition. And - "

"Shh. Shh."

As she shushed him, she grabbed the controller and fast forwarded. He began nagging her for it, trying to convey how clever he was for figuring it out. But she was only interested in her final match of that competition. A little smile appeared on her features as she saw a much smaller Narahashi. They didn't know each other then, so he was immensely confident in his abilities. As the match progressed though, all that confidence faded away.

At the end, he stormed off the mat. She'd never seen him that mad. Then again, she had just stolen the world championship for the junior youth division of mixed martial arts from him. She would have been mad, too. That was especially true since the match ended in just a few moves. He had never been able to beat her either. But he was a good sport about it after that match. He only wanted to win the competition his father was judging, after all.

"A-Are you done?" the brunette snapped, clearly trying to hold his temper in, "Well! I thought it was strange; that you were attending Keisetsu when you couldn't even buy lunch. So, I had to find out - "

"Yes, very good. I'm on a scholarship for martial arts and academia. Well done. Can I go now?"

"No - Well, I just wanted to - I'm impressed!"

(Y/n) rolled her eyes. There was no way he had his people bring her to his home just so he could say something like that. He had another motive. The brunette rambled on and on about how he was a fan of hers. Apparently, he was also a martial arts student, so he was delighted to have had the chance to meet her. All the while, she glared at him, prompting him to finally trail off his sentence.

"I've never met a fan that couldn't recognize me before," she murmured, watching him become flustered.

"I just haven't kept up with your competitions, so I only know about your earlier matches. So it was harder for me to recognize you! But I still - "

"No. I look different from when I was six, but I didn't look different from when I was ten."

"Well, that - "

"If you really were a fan, you would know I couldn't compete after I was ten. Just say what you mean, please. I've made plans with someone else, so - "

"Alright!"

The brunette glanced down, a shy look on his face. It didn't seem to suit him. She realized he was telling the truth about being a martial arts student. His build insinuated that much. Though the others at Keisetsu were relatively lean, he stood out in a big way. It would make sense if he practiced martial arts. She also noted the katana on display in his room. It was most definitely used despite the great care it was shown.

"Truth is...," Yamato paused, averting his eyes bashfully, "I was wondering how you got along so well with my friends. And when I was trying to find out a little more about you, I found this out. And I...I..."

Yamato's face turned beet red, completely overcome with shyness. And though he was stuttering his way through his sentence and squirming, he eventually got out his confession of love. As he glanced up, hoping she would accept his request to go out, she gave him the most stone cold face possible. And when he asked again if she would date him, a look of disgust crossed her face.

"C-C'mon!" he shouted, turning red again, "I might not have as much money as Haru or have Rei's unbeatable social status but I definitely have both of those things!"

"Good for you."

"My name is Yamato Hisaki! Do you know what that means?! It means I'm the heir to the most respected yakuza group in Athain! I'm loaded and I've got status!"

"What, really?! No way!"

When the girl immediately showed interest in him, the brunette became immediately taken aback. As she moved toward him, he backed away, flustered and wholly unprepared to deal with her sudden interest. And when she kept going on and on about how she'd always thought he was attractive and really liked him, his head couldn't stop from spinning. He didn't even register the insane amount of sarcasm she was using.

"Well, of course I'm great!" he stuttered, dizzy from the "compliments", "So, me, you, date now. Yeah?"

"Please. You're only doing this so I leave your rich friends alone. Like you want to prove I only like them for their money."

"So you admit it!"

Yamato recovered swiftly enough at what he thought to be her confession. He wasn't at all thrilled with it either. He always knew she was targeting Haru for his money. Everyone did, after all, so it was his responsibility to protect the dumbass from girls like her. Pulling out his phone, he revealed that he had recorded the conversation, immediately sending it to his friends. Maybe if he had stopped to think about it, he wouldn't have been so humiliated the next day.

"They'll never talk to you again! So, you might as well - "

Immediately, the brunette's phone started blowing up. Text after text came in from his friends. Shota was scolding him for putting her through some stupid test. Takuya was pointing out her sarcasm. Haru was sending him a flurry of middle fingers. Akari was just spamming for the sake of spamming, most of the messages being exclamation points. And Rei texted, too, but all he ended up doing was calling him a bastard. Usually, for the blonde, it was more than that.

"That - This wasn't - Ugh! What did you do to them?!"

"I...just tried making friends. You should try it some time!"

"Fine! If they won't see what you're after in them, then I've got no choice! Yusei!"

At the call of his master, the little ravenette that escorted her earlier entered the room, covering his smirk with his fist. He presented the brunette with an envelope that had already been prepared. Dramatically and with great conviction, Yamato threw it down in front of her, raising his voice.

"That's a million kine!" he declared proudly, "Now, leave my son - Ahem, leave my friends alone!"

Ignoring the obviously inspired line he must have gotten from watching dramas, the girl stared wistfully down at the money. It was enough to support her for at least four years, including countless expenses. She could hire a bodyguard, move out of that house, into a nice apartment, buy food, and put herself through four years at a local college. But she'd never be able to do something like that. Not with them alive. Unable to handle that thought, she began crying. She did so quietly at first, trying to hide it, but it was still easily noticeable.

"H-Hey, you can't - Shit! Listen - "

Yamato flustered himself over her crying expression. Regardless of his personal suspicions, he had made a girl cry. Guilt overwhelmed him and he was burning up again, this time in absolute shame. For a while, he could do nothing but stutter in an attempt to reassure her, but it only got worse. Her tears came down faster and with more frequency, the girl stepping back and hiding her face, trying to mask her vulnerability.

"I-I'm not the bad guy here!" the brunette shouted, met with a jab of the elbow from Yusei, "Okay! Look, I didn't mean to - I'll give you the million, okay? Just stop crying! A-And as long as you stay away from my friends, I'll give you another million, too!"

"There's no point," she whimpered, choking back her tears as best as she could, "Even if I had that money...they'd just take it away from me..."

"What? What do you mean by that? Hey, I can help you if you're - "

All of a sudden, the door was ripped off of its hinges. Whereas Yusei snickered and Yamato went stiff, (Y/n) could only stare at the perpetrator. The orange-haired woman who had done such a difficult thing was tiny. She was probably shorter than the (h/c) haired girl herself but she sure made the brunette tremble. The male backed away, sweating something fierce as she locked eyes with him.

"No! Hey, I didn't mean to - She just suddenly - "

"You little bastard!" the woman growled, grabbing at the male's ear, "I taught you better than this! Your 'Kage' days are over! And now I find you harassing some sweet little thing?! You're gonna fix this!"

As the woman shouted at the brunette for his disrespect, (Y/n) found herself snapped out of her crying by the sheer shock. A man with dark brown hair and dulled golden eyes extended his hand to her, helping her up. He murmured a timid apology for his child, reassuring her that his wife would make everything right. But she was only wondering how such a petite and young-looking woman could have been a mother.

"Ahem," she cleared her throat, skipping over to the younger girl, "I'm so sorry for this idiot. He's usually very soft with girls. He must have been intimidated by your beauty. To make it up to you, we'll make a nice meal for you, okay? In the meantime, I'll have him show you around."

Before she could decline the offer, the woman had already started shoving both of them outside. Figuring she wasn't giving her much of a choice in the matter, the (h/c) haired girl merely did as she wanted. Yamato led her somewhere - she didn't know where. But the silence between them was deafening. She still had a few tears coming down, and he...felt bad.