Liability

The next morning, I woke up fifteen minutes before my alarm rang, The moment I opened my eyes to the view of a dim concrete ceiling, the first thing I thought about was the weight of the meeting we had with Reina’s mother settled back into my chest. Yet what made me weary the most was the cold conclusion we all agreed on.

The “professional distance” plan.

It was simple: Reina and I were to avoid being seen together for at least two weeks. No walking each other towards the gates, no library shenanigans and most definitely no accidental mall ‘dates’.

Reina estimated that two weeks is just enough for the digital flames surrounding the rumours of the “Sweetsnap” photo to die down... Personally, I think that’s a bit longer than what I would’ve wanted, but on the bright side, I can finally focus more on beating her on the midterms...

I reached for my phone from across the cold sheets. Having spent weeks getting used to receiving morning messages from Reina, I fully expected a morning command from her, but nothing. Not even a reminder for our supposed professional distance plan.

She didn’t specifically say that texting each other was off the table... I stared at the bubbles of our last conversations for a long, quiet minute before deciding to get up and prepare for class.

Making my way to the small kitchenette, my gaze locked on to the old thermos I usually use for Reina’s morning coffee. "Black with two sugars," I whispered to myself.

Then the sparking realisation hit: why am I sulking like this...? It’s not like all of this is permanent; it was just two weeks apart. No big deal...

When I arrived at the classroom, the air felt incredibly thick. I took my seat, deliberately trying to avoid taking a glimpse at Reina who was sat mere inches to my right.

I felt a slight annoyance when I noticed that she wasn’t wearing the silk white ribbon this morning. Her hair graciously flowing on the edges of her blazer...

 I forcefully swallowed the feeling, thinking to myself that the lack of a ribbon was also a part of what we agreed upon under the "professional distance” plan.

I leant in slightly, keeping my voice a low whisper. "Hey. Good morning, Reina."

She didn't even flinch. Her eyes remained locked on the whiteboard as if it held the secrets to the universe. She didn't blink. She didn't nod.

She’s really getting into character, I thought, a bitter frown tugging at the edge of my mouth. Fine. If she's going to play the part perfectly, I should focus on playing mine.

At lunchtime, I sat alone at a table with my tray of food and a can of instant coffee I got from a vending machine. Fifty yards away, Reina was also alone eating her lunch.

We were both islands in a sea of students who fully believed that we were dating... but the space between us was a clear message to the Academy; there was nothing to see here.

Yet, every time I looked in her direction, some stupid part of me expected for us to lock eyes... But there was no eye contact for the entire lunch break. Not even a microsecond.

When the afternoon bell rang, she stood up immediately, grabbing her things and leaving the room. I waited five minutes, watching her silhouette disappear into the crowd before I even packed my notebooks.

By the time I clocked in for my shift at the konbini, I had no energy to even greet the customers walking in.

"Kaito, you're scaring the customers," Haruna said, slamming a crate of drinks down. "Your face looks extra gloomy today. Did something happen?"

"I'm fine," I replied, my voice flat and monotone. “I’m just focusing on the shift, Haruna.”

She stopped, wiping her hands on her apron, her eyes narrowing as she looked at me properly. "Are you sure you're okay? Do you want to take a ten-minute break in the back? There are customers, but they don't come in much at this hour."

"I told you I'm fine, okay?” The words snapped out a little too quickly, a little too sharp for the quiet store. I cleared my throat, forcing my voice back down. "...No need to worry about it."

"Right. Whatever you say," Haruna muttered, turning away.

When the shift finally ended, the walk back to my apartment felt twice as long. I unlocked the door to my empty, cold apartment, moving past the stacks of textbooks and laundry on the floor, and went straight to bed.

My last thoughts before going to sleep were a desperate attempt at self-assurance. All of this was for the best. After a few more days, we can go back to normal, just how things should be.

I didn’t think that this newfound solitude between us would attracted vultures

The next few days, everything went about the same, the same cold attitude from Reina, the same mechanical distance. I tried to focus thinking that this was the logical sacrifice-a way to prove my self to Ms. Kujo

But during lunch, while I was eating, picking away at a lukewarm meal, still hoping for that miracle of a glimpse from Reina, I saw someone walk towards her table.

He leant on the table, trying to make small talk with Reina, but she just ignored him, her head buried in her book, but he didn’t leave. He kept talking, even going so far as sitting on the seat in front of Reina.

He didn't just stop there, over the course of the day, he kept on appearing every chance he got, free time, library hours, any place where Reina was alone.

After looking into the student database, I found out the guy’s name: Tatsuya Asano. Son of a major political figure in the country and the president of the academy’s soccer club.

It takes more than persistence to wither down the Princess's fortifications, pal, I thought bitterly. Good luck.

Or so I believed.

I opened the classroom doors on Thursday morning and froze in shock. Asano was casually sitting on the armrest of my seat, practically whispering in Reina's ear. He was so close, in fact, that his sleeve was brushing her shoulder.

The worst part was that after I sat down, he didn't move. I was forced to sit there, staring at a blank screen, listening to him charm her with talk of weekend drives and private gallery openings.

He was invading the space I had vacated, and Reina wasn't pushing him out.

Every fiber of my body wanted to get up from my seat and push this guy away... But I couldn't; the rumours would just spark again, and the days we spent away from each other would be all for nothing...

As the morning bell loomed and students began flooding the room, Asano finally stood up. “See you at lunch later, Reina,” the guy said, punctuating the sentence with a devious wink and a lingering hand on the back of her chair.

Man, how long is this guy going to bother her? I thought, clenching my jaw. She hates arrogant guys anyway; he should just give up.

“Sure...”

My heart dropped. My eyes widened, though I forced myself not to look at her.

I must be hearing things. Right?

Meanwhile Asano sauntered off, a smug look of absolute victory plastered across his face.

At lunch, I watched them from a distance. They were eating lunch silently, but I could see that Reina had a subtle smirk on her face...

I barely touched my food that break...

When the final bell rang, I slowly packed my things, waiting for Reina to leave the classroom. The moment she stepped, I followed at a distance.

I watched as Asano approached Reina just outside the north exits. They were talking animatedly, and that annoying confident laughter coming from Asano echoed throughout the courtyard, making my stomach churn.

At the gates, where the black sedan was idling, Asano casually waved off Reina’s driver and opened the door himself. Just about when Reina slid in the leather interior, his eyes darted towards the shadows of the brick pillar where I stood. He looked at me... and smiled.

“That arrogant... bastard...” I whispered to myself, turning back into the building to avoid the sight of them together.

I was nearing the west exit when the rhythmic, sharp click of leather soles echoed behind me. The footsteps approached rapidly until Asano stepped directly into my path, forcing me to a dead halt.

“You’ve been hovering all week, haven’t you?” he asked, his voice dropping into a low, jagged sneer. "I've seen you lurking in the halls, at the back of the library, standing by the gate like a lost dog. It’s getting a bit creepy, Kaito. Like a stalker."

I didn't move. I didn't breathe. I just stared at him, my hands shoved deep into my pockets to hide the fact that my knuckles were turning white.

"Words are going about how you forced her into taking that photo in the boba shop," he said, leaning in until the smell of his expensive cologne was suffocating. “You’re lucky she didn’t have you expelled for ruining her image.”

“She’d never do that…" I said, though my voice lacked the conviction.

“Get a hint, Kaito; she wants nothing to do with you. Seeing you follow her around like this... It's pathetic.“ He gave me a mocking pat on the shoulder before walking away. “Do yourself a favour and stay away from Reina before reporting your 'obsessive' behaviour to the board."

The words spun around in my head all night, keeping me awake until the sky outside my window turned a miserable, bruised gray.

Was I actually just a nuisance to her? A mistake she was desperately trying to erase? We had agreed to stay apart for two weeks, but after everything that had happened, after meeting her mother, I couldn't just sit in the back of the class and pretend I didn't see the target on her back. I needed to hear the truth from her. Directly.

I woke up earlier than usual the next day and headed straight to the academy. It was eerily quiet, without the normal chatter that made the hallways feel alive.

I slide the classroom doors open, immediately spotting Reina on her desk reading a book. Hearing the door, she snapped out of her daze. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw me, her expression turning into something... hostile.

"Reina, can I talk to you?"

She didn't respond, only averting her gaze back to her book.

"Reina...? It's just the two of us here..."

Still nothing.

"Reina, could you at least look at m–"

"Just stop it, Kaito!" Reina snapped, slamming her book shut on the desk. The loud crack echoed painfully against the empty walls. She stood up, her shoulders rigid, a volatile mix of suffocating panic and stress in her eyes. “Leave me alone...”

“Why are you being like this, Reina?” I asked, taking a step back, "I thought we were in this together..."

“Together? Kaito, you don’t even know what kind of things I’ve been dealing with because of those rumours! ” she said, her voice tight and trembling. "My family is watching my every move, the student council won't stop questioning me, and the entire school is breathing down my neck!"

"I can't afford to be seen with you right now, but you keep pushing and trying to talk to me like nothing's wrong!"

“Then let me help, Rei—"

“You don’t really get it, do you? I’m insanely stressed right now, and your persistence isn't helping; it's making everything worse.” She took a sharp, shaky breath, her knuckles turning white against her desk. “If you actually care about our situation, then just get it through your head and stay away from me. Right now, you're just a liability I can't afford."

The classroom fell into a suffocating, dead silence.

Reina gasped slightly, her own words hanging in the air between us. The sharp edge in her posture melted into a fragile, pale stillness as she looked at my face. 

Her lips parted as if she wanted to take the words back; her hand reached out just an inch towards me. "Kaito, what I... I just meant was...”

“No... you don’t have to explain, Reina... I get it.”

The chaotic frustration that had been twisting my stomach since yesterday went completely numb. I just looked at her one last time, turned around and walked out of the classroom.

Forty-five minutes later the morning bell rang; everyone else was in their seats listening to the professor’s lecture. 

But I didn’t bother going back.

I stayed at a hidden corner of the library, in a complete daze, the campus fading into dull white noise. I pulled my knees to my chest, staring blankly at the scuff marks on my shoes.

She really didn't mean that... Right?