Ready, Set...

“I m-mean it!” Hayami cried as she heard the idol on the other side laugh. “I-I don’t have any friends. I try and try and keep trying, but for some reason, they always slip from my grasp. I take care of my appearance, but no matter what I do, it doesn’t help.”

“You have the hottest commodity that Japan has to offer at your mercy… and all you want… is tuition lessons?” Akira wheezed. “Jeez, you are one sad case.”

“I just… I don’t know who else would be better at this sort of stuff.”

“I’m just surprised you don’t want anything else from me except for my time, is all. Usually when people interact with me, they… expect something from me.”

“...I don’t need money. Well, I need it for whaling, but that’s not my biggest problem. I don’t need f-fame, or a career opportunity for that matter, though things in Japan are getting bleaker by the second. I j-just want to be a functioning human being and be able to do normal things without imploding…”

“Well, the first step is admitting you have a problem. Most people don’t even reach that stage. So congratulations for clearing the absolute bare minimum, I suppose. You’ve already exceeded my expectations.”

“Wait… so you agree?”

“Wow. You are really awful at this blackmail thing,” he laughed. “You have a ransom against me, remember? I don't exactly have a choice.”

“To be fair, i-it’s my first time doing anything like this! I don’t naturally want to be a villain…”

“I know. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. It’s cute.”

Why was a normie like him making her blush? He wasn’t anything remarkable like the men of her otome games. He didn't have magical powers or a tragic destiny written in a text box. Though... judging by the way he spoke, he was probably the closest equivalent to a Noble she would ever meet in real life, outside of an actual monarch.

“But,” Akira interrupted her thoughts, “therein lies a bug in this plan of yours.”

‘Here it comes…’ Hayami thought.

“We have to meet in person for any of this to work.”

“Wait, what?!” Hayami nearly dropped the phone. “No! No way! I’m… I don’t do ‘meeting up with strangers.’ Can’t we just do it over the game?!”

“Use your brain, Miss Laurens. First off, this is a dev server. The second you disconnect, the session key expires. You won't be able to log back in.”

He paused, letting that sink in.

“Secondly, how do you expect to learn social skills without seeing the guy teaching you social skills? There are things like posture, eye contact—also the fact your end goal is to reach the point of being able to communicate, right?”

“Then… can’t we do it over video c-call…?”

“...Wow. I really have my work cut out for me.” He sighed. “Look. I’m assuming you’re around my age as well. You listed eighteen on your player profile.”

“...Yeah.”

“And I’m assuming you attend a high school somewhere in Japan.”

Hayami knew, from all the media she read and even Kindred Temptations itself (in certain storylines with your Love Interests), that you do not give any details to the person you were blackmailing.

But did she have a choice in the matter when she knew Akira was right?

“Y-Yeah,” she mumbled. “My last year at… Gold Brooch High School. In Osaka.”

“...Interesting.”

“Wait, what are you planning?”

“You’ll see. Hang in there. It’ll be a surprise.”

“But… aren’t you busy with all your idol stuff…? You can’t just—”

“I can make the time,” he said. “I’m due for a break anyway.”

“What does that even mean?!"

“It means class starts soon, my little lemming. Be prepared.”

Without allowing any time for her to question or prod any further, the words [SERVER CRASHED, RESTARTING...] flashed across the screen. 

All she saw  now was a perfectly normal home screen. The dev server was gone.

Hayami stared at the black mirror of her phone, the rain still drumming against the metal roof.

She tried to stand up, only to realize how painfully stiff her calves were from crouching for so long. Then came the pins and needles from the lack of blood flow. The concentrated effort of talking to a celebrity pig must have taken its toll on her.

Akira was probably lying about seeing her soon to get her off the line.

It was just a way to diffuse the situation, get her hopes up, and then ghost her. It was understandable. Finding time in his schedule must be hell.

After all, Hayami was just a gullible lemming who fell for a trap.

She closed her eyes and began the long, wet walk back home.

\\

“How did you enjoy the walk home, Hayami? Did you sleep well, getting all soaked last night?”

‘Just ignore her, just ignore her. Hina’s just trying to get a reaction out of you.’

“Whoa,” Hina reacted. “You’re gonna break that pencil if you grip it any harder.”

The morning after that fated encounter was as if the universe was punishing Hayami for even thinking there was going to be a change of pace.

Now, it was back to the same old, same old. Endure people’s taunts at school, learn nothing during class, then go home and escape on Kindred Temptations 2. There was a certain comfort… knowing what was about to happen.

So, she took out her Science textbook and simply stared ahead.

“Tch.” Hina soon gave up her antics and sat back down.

A few torturous minutes later, Makima-sensei stepped in.

The class president didn’t hesitate. “Stand up! Attention!”

The class went silent as everyone did as told.

“Bow.”

Hayami always made sure hers was inch-perfect.

“Sit.”

The scraping of chairs dominated the room as Makima began to unpack her things.

“Good morning students, and I am terribly sorry for being late,” Makima-sensei announced.

Now that Hayami thought about it, Makima’s hair was quite ruffled compared to usual.

“The Principal just called me in ten minutes ago screaming about a crazy VIP transfer that we just ‘had to get’ for funding and somesuch. I don't know who pulled strings, but… you will see why very shortly.”

The noise quickly began to pick up.

Whispers, naysayers. It was mostly to the tune of nobody knowing who this mystery person was. Usually, friends would report if their friends from outside the school were transferring in.

Apparently, nobody knew who this mystery stranger was.

A tiny, treacherous spark of hope lit up in Hayami’s chest.

A blank slate.

If nobody knew them, maybe they didn’t know about Hina. Maybe they didn’t know Hayami was the school leper.

‘Perhaps I can try to make friends with this person? It’s as good a chance as I will get.’

Three rapt knocks on the door came from the hallway.

“Ah,” Makima-sensei exclaimed. “He’s here!”

The door slid open.

“Makima-sensei, good morning.”

Wait… that voice…

He stepped inside.

His eyes scanned the room. They only stopped when he found what he was looking for.

Her.

He didn’t stand in front of the classroom to introduce himself. Instead, he simply walked down the aisle straight towards her.

Before proceeding to stop right in front of Hayami’s desk.

“Are you happy to see me, little lemming?”

The student’s most immediate feature was that his shoulders were broader than she’d seen on any man. The skin of his chest was visible through the slightly too-open collar. There was almost nothing soft about him; his forearms corded with lean muscle beneath the rolled-up sleeves.

But all she saw were his eyes. They ignored everything else but the girl underneath.

They were squarely, and only, on her face.

There were no cameras on him now. There were thirty stunned teenagers staring at him with their mouths open, but he ignored them all.

There were no eyes of the world to appease, and still, he acted no less the idol that hundreds of thousands craved.

But this performance wasn't for them.

This was tailored for her.

“I-I-I…” she stammered. “Y-You didn’t have to do this.”

“Of course I had to,” he drawled, leaning down until he was eye-level with her. “I needed to uphold my part of the deal. And I need to be here to make sure you won’t break it.”

He tapped a finger on her desk.

“I warned you, Sato Hayami. I don’t do half-measures.”

For three seconds, nobody moved.

Then, a chair scraped violently against the floor.

A shrill, banshee-like sound practically squeaked from the far side of the classroom—right where Hina was sitting.

“AKIRA’S HERE?!”