Breaking Point

“There, there, everything is going to be okay, Onee-sama is right here,” Mona-chan’s voice blared on repeat. The slightly robotic voice blasted in Kasumi’s ears at full volume as she hyperventilated in the bathroom stall. She’d run as far and as fast as she could, which only amounted to a moderate sprint to the end of the hall. She’d crashed into the stall in a panic, fishing out her phone and earbuds. She was desperate to calm down in any way possible.

“It’s okay,” she reassured herself, slowly gaining control of her breathing as her heart stopped thumping in her chest. “Now that I know who she is… or at least what she looks like, I can…” Though nothing came to her at the moment, she was sure she’d come up with something sooner or later. After a few more words of encouragement from Momo-onee, she felt ready to head back to class as soon as the warning bell rang. As she pulled out her earbuds, she discovered that having them at full volume hadn’t just left her ears with a slight ring; it had also kept her from hearing others enter.

“I know, right?” said a voice that had become all too familiar to Kasumi. “I wonder where she ran off to.”

“Maybe she ran all the way home,” said another, raising Kasumi’s suspicions.

“We could only be so lucky. She’ll probably be back to bringing the vibe down after lunch.” The Queen Bee’s voice confirmed it in Kasumi’s mind. Beyond the stall door were the Queen Bee and her lackeys.

“Efficient,” Kasumi thought, surprised they would’ve waited until after lunch to begin gossiping about what had just happened. The three stood before the mirrors, applying makeup and tapping on their phones. “Did they come here knowing where I was? No, they’d be more subtle,” Kasumi concluded, deciding to listen in on their unfiltered thoughts.

“I know, right?” said another lackey, building on the Queen’s words. “It’s like, I get that you’ve given up on life or whatever, but could you not drag us down with you, ya know?”

“I swear every day takes years off my life now. Just when I upped my skincare routine, too.”

“And here I thought we could use her,” chimed in the Queen. “There’s no way anyone’s that gloomy. Just give her a little time to adjust, coax her with compliments and gifts, and in no time we’d have a new errand girl.” Kasumi gripped her phone. She was just about to plug her earbuds in again when a lackey’s words stopped her.

“But then she just had to go and ruin it.” Kasumi resisted the urge to block them out, hoping they’d say the meek girl’s name, saving her the trouble of tracking it down.

“I know, right?” said another lackey. Kasumi had already labeled her the “I know” girl in her mind. “It’s like, why would you try gifting her the exact same thing twice in a row, especially after how she reacted the first time? Is she really that clueless?”

“Either way,” said the Queen Bee, silencing the other two. “It seems she hasn’t learned her lesson yet, so we’ll have to try extra hard to make her understand.” They all went silent as the door creaked open, turning to see who’d walked in.

“Well, speak of the devil,” said a lackey, giving Kasumi an idea of who it was.

“Oh, um… I—I didn’t mean to intrude,” squeaked a new voice near the door. Kasumi could guess the owner based on the meek tone alone.

“Not at all, come in,” called the Queen Bee, waving the meek girl over.

“You could never intrude on us,” added a lackey.

“I know, it’s like, impossible for friends to do that, right?” Footsteps followed as the meek girl moved to an open sink and turned on the water.

“I just needed to wash my hands,” explained the meek girl. “The milk tea gets sticky if you don’t wash it.”

“Oh, that’s a pain, thanks for cleaning it,” said the Queen Bee.

“It’s a real blessing how you’re always volunteering to do stuff like that. You’ll make a great wife someday.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” said the meek girl, blushing. “I never do anything worthy of praise.”

“That’s not true,” said the Queen Bee, voice full of fake sincerity. “There’s plenty to praise about you, right, guys?” she asked, turning to her lackeys.

“I know, right, like how you’re confident enough not to wear makeup.”

“And how you’re not afraid to wear the long, old-lady skirt.”

“And your strong-looking working hands.”

“And,” continued the lackeys, listing off backhanded compliments as easily as they breathed.

“Anyway, that’s why we wanted to help you with your nails,” chimed in the Queen Bee, cutting off the lackeys and taking the meek girl’s hands in her own. “A little color to help you stand out and find a nice boyfriend. I had no idea Sensei would act like that. You don’t hate me now, do you?” asked the Queen Bee. Despite the blatant lie, the faintest hint of a tear forming in the corner of her eye was all it took to convince the meek girl.

“No, I don’t hate you,” relented the meek girl.

“Thank goodness,” sighed the Queen Bee, dramatizing the display.

“You have no idea how worried she was,” chimed in a lackey.

“I know, right? I thought she was gonna start crying if you didn’t forgive her.”

“To be honest, I was afraid you might’ve, regardless of what Sensei said,” mused the Queen Bee, a devilish idea forming in her mind. “I picked that color to match those beads you always wear, but you don’t seem to have them anymore, so I was worried it wouldn’t look as good.”

“Oh, you mean these?” asked the meek girl, reaching into her pocket. She pulled out a loop of orange beads ending in a crucifix.

“Yeah, can I see them?” asked the Queen Bee, reaching out and taking them before getting a response. “What did you call it again? Rosa— something, right?”

“Rosary,” explained the meek girl, voice shaken at handing someone else the beads.

“What’s it used for again?” asked a lackey, also grabbing at the beads.

“They’re used to keep track of a special prayer also called the rosary.”

“That’s cool, let me see,” said the other lackey, grabbing on as well.

“You can all see, just please be careful,” said the meek girl as the three tugged on the beads, jostling for a better look. “That was the last thing Father Yamamoto gave me, just before he left to—”

*SNAP!*

*RING*

The rosary beads scattered as the warning bell rang. The meek girl’s mouth hung agape as she stared at the others.

“Whoops, sorry,” said the Queen Bee, acting shocked as she dropped the beads left in her hand, swinging her hand just enough to scatter them. The lackeys did the same, wearing the same fake, worried looks. “Ahh, well, that’s the bell, better get back to class before we’re late.” The three scooted past the meek girl, kicking the beads to scatter them even farther. The bathroom door hadn’t even closed before they began snickering and joking about how, if she didn’t learn now, she never would.

Kasumi remained in the stall, stunned. She’d been trapped inside with the three still present, but now was her chance. “Just have to escape before she starts cry—”

*sniff—kff*

She heard from the other side of the door.

“Oh no,” she thought, knowing she’d lost her chance.

*hic—huh—hic—hh*

Sobbed the meek girl behind the door. Kasumi sighed, settling in for the long haul. She popped in one earbud to help her ignore the crying. She idly tapped on her phone as the meek girl cried and gathered the beads. Kasumi considered popping in the other earbud to block out more of the sound, but she decided it was best to listen for the meek girl to leave so she could follow soon after. Listening to her cry was almost reassuring. As far as Kasumi was concerned, the whole scene had demonstrated that the meek girl, whoever she was, was a doormat in every sense of the word. Weak as she was, Kasumi was sure she could walk all over her if it came to that.

Once the meek girl had collected all the beads, she clasped them in her hands and silenced her whimpering. Kasumi turned her ear, waiting for the sound of the door opening and closing, but it never came. Instead, the meek girl murmured. Kasumi listened closer and realized that she was praying. She could only hear every other word, but the meek girl was definitely praying.

“Makes sense she’d pray for their downfall after that,” Kasumi thought, leaning back, content. But just before she popped her earbud back in, the meek girl’s prayers grew louder, and the content made Kasumi’s blood boil. “No, don't you dare,” Kasumi thought, standing on reflex as the prayers continued.

“Give me strength and guidance, so that I may be a light to the lost. That you may bless those who wish me ill and—” Kasumi swung the door open, slapping it against the other stalls.

*BAM!*

The noise made the meek girl jolt to her knees. “Ah!” she yipped, falling on her back. She dropped the beads, which scattered all over again.

*click*

Kasumi stood, eyes locked on the crucifix that had clicked against her toe. She wasn’t sure why she’d opened the door. She just knew she wanted the meek girl to shut up, and this was the quickest way to do it. But standing over the girl, she was at a loss for what to do next.