Frenemies

Hayami and Oto had spent the last three hours mingling with the masses as photographers snapped their shots of the happy couple. And, in that time, Oto had been living his best life. Striking poses and smiling at the right moment for optimal shots. Meanwhile, Hayami was beginning to feel exhausted, her patience wearing ever thinner by the minute.

Her sanity hung on by a silken thread, threatening to snap at any moment in the sea of fake smiles and platitudes. That was when she saw him, standing in the corner of the room with his lopsided grin, thinning mop of curly hair and enthusiastic demeanour.

“Holy shit,” Hayami suddenly exclaimed, slapping at Oto’s arm. “Is that Tintin Quarantino? Do you know Tintin Quarantino? I love his movies!”

“Wha—” Oto was pulled from his current schmoozing. “Oh yes, that is. Our family goes way back. Pa-pa once acted as a technical advisor for the movie Bayside Cats and, then later, Shill Bill.”

“No shit? Can you introduce me?”

“Introduce you? Oh-no-no-no, he is quite the fiend for footwear. And if I took you over, with your toes exposed, I would never be able to pull you away.”

“What? Oto, please—” Hayami leaned over and whispered into his ear. “We may never get another chance. Just five minutes? I can fend for myself.”

The boy inspected her face closely before leaning over and kissing her cheek.

“Fineee—but you stay here. I’ll bring him back, okay?”

Hayami smiled, watching Oto depart and gracefully cut through the crowd in a way that made even her jealous of his dexterous capabilities. Though she would not be able to watch him long, for as soon as he departed, a whiny voice appeared behind her.

“Mmm, you must be the buffoons new master.”

“Ah, lucky girl to lure the oaf in.” Another voice joined. “Even got to kiss him.”

“Mmmhmmm, watchout now, you may get pregnant.” A third laughed as the group that huddled at her rear joined in.

The hair of Hayami’s neck stood as she swung around to face the half a dozen figures in outlandish clothing much like hers. They wore smug looks of superiority as they sipped drinks and stood with arms draped over each other drunkenly.

“And you are?” Hayami responded, her voice flat as she suspected she already knew the answer.

“Us? Well, we’re the idiot’s best friends.”

“Oh, don’t call him an idiot, Chadwick. He dislikes that, remember.”

“The buffoon isn’t here. Just his gold digger, Ermina.”

“Mmm—how has the mooching been, dear? The moron is worth every penny if you can deal with him.”

“Look at her, she’s wearing his outfits. Probably a gutter-povert he picked up slumming it on the train.”

“It was a photoshoot, Reggie, remember?”

The crowd laughed.

All the while, Hayami listened, keeping a straight smile through clenched teeth. Her hands gripped the clutch firmly as she inhaled sharply before releasing a hiss of breath. She listened for a while as they berated Oto behind his back, occasionally checking over her shoulder to make sure he hadn’t begun his return. Until, finally, her frayed thread of patience snapped.

“And what say you, gold-digger? Do you have words to share on the idiot? Or are you just as dimwitted?”

“Oh?” Hayami chuckled softly, stepping closer to the group and leaning in. “You want to hear my take on Oto? Well, first, shouldn't you learn about me?”

“You?”

“Me,” Hayami replied, her voice now as cold and furious as a winter storm. “You see, I like games. Do you six want to play a game?”

“Well, we’re not—”

“Rhetorical question, idiot, because the game has already begun. You see, in roughly thirty minutes, the pipe organ will begin to play. You’ll have until then to run or hide because once that happens, I will be allowed to kill all of you.”

“Kill?” Chadwick laughed. “A frail woman of your—”

“Kill. Or are you too stupid to understand a word that even sweet Oto understands?”

“There’s no way you’d have the gall to attempt to kill—” Reggie began, only to be cut off.

“Want to bet?” Hayami opened her clutch for them and only them to see, making sure to keep it hidden from wandering eyes and ever-watching cameras.

They all peered forward, glancing down at the gun that Oto had purchased her for Christmas. Immediately, half of the group took a cautious step back with a soft gasp.

“Oh my, you brute!”

“Damn right, your manipulative little bitches.” She hissed, snapping the purse closed and eying them individually. “Oto told me all about your friendship, and you can bet that when the chaos begins, there'll be a bullet waiting for each of you.”

The small crowd remained quiet, listening to Hayami as she continued.

“So, run. Hide. Or stay. I don’t care. Whatever you choose, never forget that after that organ starts playing, the game is on, and I’m coming for you. I will kill all of you for what you did to Oto. And that’s a promise, because nothing stops a tiger from getting its kill.”

With that, all but one of the figures turned and began their quick race for the exit. The sight made Hayami smile as she directed her attention back to the final stubborn member. Chadwick. Whose face she committed to memory, both the revealed parts of his chin and cheek and the entirety of his mask.

“You don’t scare me, little girl.”

Hayami smiled, instinctively reaching for the sharpened chrysanthemum rod in her hair. A rage boiled inside of her as she wanted nothing more than to kill the boy that instant.

“Hayami!” Oto’s sweet voice called out. “Hayami, over here.”

Stopping, she breathed a calming breath, suddenly realizing how close she had come to further disrupting their calculated plan.

“See you later.” She hissed to the boy, turning towards Oto’s voice.

With a smile, she approached him, disappointed not to see the celebrity she had hoped to meet, but instead a woman with a beehive of red hair and piercing green eyes.

“Oh, you must be Hayami!” She spoke, her voice drawing out every vowel as she quickly approached and took her hand. “Pleasure, dear! And may I say, god! You. Are. Gorgeous!”

“Umm, thanks?” Hayami replied hesitantly, looking to Oto for assistance as the woman leaned in and inspected her closely. “Oto?”

“Oh, yes, introductions.” He replied with a smile of his own, stepping beside the woman and motioning to her. “Hayami, this is my brand manager, Sasha. She's the one who’s been recommending where we do our photoshoots and who I’ve been sending all our shots to for editing.”

“Oh, okay!” Hayami put on a false smile and played along. “Wonderful work. Your photo editing is amazing.”

“Thank you, dear, but the talent is really all yours. You really make my Oto look good, sweetie! You make trending easy, honey. Absolutely!”

Hayami’s smile weakened as she listened to the woman talk. Something about her scratched at the back of Hayami’s mind, causing the hair on her neck to stand, as her predatory instincts cried out. And, as she looked into her eyes, she didn’t trust her. They were fake, much like everyone else at the party. She had an angle.

“You’re too kind,” Hayami replied with a smirk. "You—"

“And tonight?” Sasha interrupted her. “Gorgeous! Looks to kill! The people are going to die over this look. You’ll both be trending for weeks!”

“That’s our hope.” Oto agreed with a forced smile of his own as he approached Hayami’s side and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“Dear…” A gruff voice then spoke, approaching from behind the couple.

“Oh, honey,” Sasha spoke up, raising a hand to accept the drink that emerged from the crowd. “Oto. Hayami. Allow me to introduce my husband.”

A chill raced down Hayami’s spine at the voice alone. A voice she was deeply familiar with. And, as the figure came into view, she felt her whole body begin to tremble.

“Pleasure.” He spoke.

The man was stout, with thinning hair and dead eyes. His fingers were stained from years of smoking, and his lips, twitching for another drag.

Hayami knew this man. She saw him every day.

“Name's Takeshi.” He grumbled, giving Oto a nod before turning to Hayami and smirking. “Pleasure.”

The Boss’s right hand.