Makoto was a reasonable girl. As justifiably angry with Akira as she was, she still had a strong moral compass. Akira could trust her not to crush him on a whim.
Probably.
"I choose Makoto," Akira squeaked nervously.
Visibly surprised by his choice, Makoto quickly schooled her expression back into cold rage as she stepped forward to snatch up her tiny unfaithful boyfriend.
"He's all yours for the day, Mako-chan," Haru said with a grim smile. "Have fun."
"Don't completely break him," Ann added. "Remember, we all get turns too."
Makoto nodded, and left LeBlanc with Akira in hand without a word.
---
The train ride and walk to Makoto's apartment happened in stony silence. At no point did Makoto speak to Akira or even acknowledge his existence, save squeezing him tighter with her fist the one time he ill-advisedly tried to start a conversation.
Akira was beginning to question his decision to have Makoto go first.
Finally reaching her apartment, Makoto walked to the kitchen table, set Akira down, and sat in the nearby chair, glaring at him.
"Why?" Makoto asked.
It was a fair question. One Akira didn't have an answer for.
"Why would you do this to me?" Makoto asked, hurt showing in her voice. "Why would you do this to Ann? I constructed a timeline when I was speaking to the others. I know she was first and I was second."
"Third," Akira corrected her before he could stop himself. "Doctor Takemi was second."
Makoto's glare became more fierce.
"Why, Akira?"
"I... don't know," Akira sighed. "I have a hard time saying no to people."
"BULLSHIT!" Makoto snapped, pounding her fist on the table and startling Akira. "Do you think we didn't talk before we confronted you? If it were just Haru, Futaba, Chihaya-san, and myself, I'd have believed that. The four of us were quite forward about wanting you. But Ann didn't even consider dating you until you brought it up. Hifumi-san was prepared to never see you again. And the other adults really had to be talked into it. It took multiple days for you to convince Takemi-san and Kawakami-sensei!"
Makoto shook her head in disgust. "She's your TEACHER, Akira! Think of how badly that could've gone! You could have violated your probation!"
Against his better judgment, Akira spoke up again. "To be fair we never..."
"Stop talking!"
"Yes ma'am."
Makoto took a deep breath, a war of emotions playing out across her face. Finally, her glare softened into a look of wistful sadness.
"And yet, in spite of it all, I still love you."
Akira blinked. "Wait, really?"
"All I want to do right now is steal the antidote from Takemi and run away with you where the others will never find us," Makoto sighed. She laughed bitterly. "God, I'm pathetic..."
"You're not pathetic, Makoto," Akira said sincerely. "You're one of the strongest people I've ever met. And I love you too!"
Makoto's glare hardened again.
"Luckily, I had the foresight not to confront you on my own," Makoto said firmly. "Sis? You can come in now."
The hair on the back of Akira's neck stood on end as the sound of high heels clacking on the hard wood floor echoed across the room, punctuated by the booming sound of someone sitting down behind him. He turned to see Sae Niijima, arms folded as she loomed over him, her glare somehow even more fierce than it had been in that interrogation room all those months ago.
"So," Sae said. "Cheat on my sister, will you? All that trouble to get you out of juvenile hall, and this is how you repay us."
Akira swallowed nervously. This was going to get worse before it got better.
"Now... what to do with you?" Sae mused.  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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