Chapter 86: The Kiss That Broke the Internet

The world is just a sound.

It is the sound of a thousand camera shutters firing at once. Click-click-click-click-whir-FLASH.

It is the sound of Hiroto Suzume screaming, "THE TRUE ENDING!" and fainting.

It is the sound of my father roaring from the VIP section, "THAT'S MY GIRL! YOU GET HIM, AOI!"

And it is the sound of my own heart, which is not in my chest, but in my ears, pounding like a taiko drum.

I am kissing Fuji Kenji.

No. I am being kissed by Fuji Kenji.

He is kissing me back.

His arms are wrapped around my waist, holding me so tight I can't breathe. His lips are not cold, like I always imagined. They are warm. And desperate. And... perfect.

This is not a rescue breath. This is not a forehead kiss.

This is a real, stupid, movie-ending kiss, and we are doing it on a stage, in a palace, in front of the entire world.

He finally pulls back. We are both out of breath.

His forehead rests against mine.

His eyes are closed.

"You," he whispers, his voice shaky, "are so much trouble."

"You," I whisper back, "are a terrible planner."

"Fuji-sama!" Kenichi is suddenly there, his face pale, trying to pull his prince away. "Your Highness, we must go! Your father-!"

The spell is broken.

Fuji opens his eyes. He looks at me. One last, quick, desperate look. It says, "This is not over."

Then the Ice Prince mask is back.

He is whisked away by guards. Kenichi blocks my path.

"Aoi-chan! That was amazing!" My dad is suddenly there, grabbing me in a bear hug. "You kissed the Prince! You won!"

"Dad! Put me down!"

"What a kiss!" my mom is crying, fanning her face. "So romantic! It was just like my dramas!"

The ballroom is chaos. The press is trying to rush the stage. My family is hustling me out a side exit. Toujo is stuffing his pockets with Imperial-branded macarons. Rika is just... pale.

"You kissed him," Rika whispers in the car ride home, her eyes wide. "You actually kissed him."

"He kissed me," I mutter, my face bright red.

"He kissed you back!" Toujo argues, his mouth full. "I rate that kiss a 9/10! Very dramatic! Good lighting! But... I still think my dance-off was the real climax."

The moment I get home, my phone melts.

It is not an exaggeration. I set it on my desk, and it does not stop buzzing. It vibrates so hard it falls onto the floor.

I am not "Bloody Twilight" anymore.

I am "The Prince's Girl."

The headlines are insane.

"BLOODY TWILIGHT STEALS THE PRINCE'S HEART!"

"THE IMPERIAL KISS: A COMMONER DEFIES THE CROWN!"

"THE KING, THE PRINCE, AND THE GIRL WHO CONQUERED THEM BOTH."

My Instagram, the one I use only for pictures of my cat, has gone from 400 followers to 6 million. In an hour.

The Penguin Apron Brigade has already made merchandise. T-shirts. With a blurry screenshot of the kiss.

A text from Hiroto: "5 STARS! A PERFECT ENDING! RENEWED FOR SEASON 3! I AM SENDING YOU THE SCRIPT! I AM FAINTING AGAIN!"

A text from Daiki. It is just one sentence.

DaikiJerk: "Really? In public? You have no class, Twilight."

I text back.

Me: "You walked away, King. The spoils go to the victor."

I am... happy.

I am terrified.

I am standing in my room, my reputation in tatters, the most powerful man in the country (the Crown Prince) probably plotting my demise.

And I am grinning like an idiot.

I won.

I check my phone one last time.

Nothing.

Nothing from Fuji.

My good mood... vanishes.

He has not texted. He has not called.

"He is just busy, Aoi-chan," Rika says over the phone. "He just... defied his father! He is probably grounded!"

Grounded. A Prince.

It is funny. But... I am scared.

This new kind of terror is way worse than any bully.

What if... this was the end? What if this was his grand finale before he disappeared forever?