Chapter Text
"I've decided," Kaoruko declares when she stands up, brushing her hair back into place with her fingers.
Futaba passes her the hair dryer and sits in the spot she just vacated. This distracts Kaoruko from her declaration quite effectively, because it will not do. “Futaba-han,” she says haltingly, “are you expecting me to dry your hair with this?”
“Yes,” Futaba says, side-eyeing her. “We talked about this. Did you forget? Were you asleep?”
“We talked about me doing things for you. We did not talk about your bad decisions.” She’s really perturbed now.
“Hah?”
“Your hair is delicate, Futaba-han! It’s short! You want dandruff and split ends? Is that it?”
“ You blow dry,” Futaba attempts.
“It’s different,” comes the response. Kaoruko emerges from the linen cupboard with a spare towel and begins tousling her girlfriend’s hair.
“As I was saying,” she says, “I’ve decided.”
“Decided what?”
“Decided that we’re going to seduce the others into my harem.” She hums, self-satisfied.
“Your harem?” Futaba says, and then, once her brain catches up to the rest of the sentence: “Wait, what are you talking about?”
“Polyamory, Futaba-han,” Kaoruko says. “It’s the only lifestyle truly befitting a Top Star of my elegance and beauty, you know.”
“Yeah,” Futaba says. “Well, no, that’s crap logic. But are you saying we weren’t doing that already? What about Banana?”
“Wh– Banana was a one-off thing, and also a failed endeavour,” Kaoruko tells her. “Are you saying you’ve been seducing people this whole time?”
“No,” Futaba says, too quickly.
“Oh my God, is that what happened with Claudine? You really were–”
“Shut up,” Futaba hisses, flinging a hand over her girlfriend’s mouth. Kaoruko makes indignant, scandalised noises. “Are you going to make this into a big deal?”
Kaoruko shakes her head, because she is a liar.
“Ughhh,” Futaba says. “Literally nothing happened. We nearly kissed once and she was all ‘Oh, I like someone, are you sure you’re not just interested because you’re fighting with Hanayagi-san’ and that wasn’t exactly wrong so– ergh!” She jerks her hand away to wipe saliva off it.
"Traitor," Kaoruko says, with mostly-mock outrage. "Then you're in?"
**
We could try Banana again," Kaoruko says. "You know what she's like, she'd be pretty helpful at recruiting the others." She's not even pretending to study; just leaning back in her desk chair, waving newly-painted nails in the air to dry them.
“What are you on about,” Futaba responds, not even a question at this point. She’s stretching for a jog.
“Girlfriends, Futaba! I need more girlfriends!”
“Don’t see why,” Futaba mutters, a little sullenly.
“Don’t you get tired of me? They’d be yours too, you know."
"To be honest," Futaba says, "I think maybe we'd have more luck with Hoshimi than Banana."
"Please."
"Not even joking, Nana's weird."
"Fine,” Kaoruko says. “Then you can try her, and I’ll do Banana-han, and we’ll see who wins.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
**
This is going to be easy-peasy, Kaoruko thinks.
“Baaaanana-hannnnnnn,” she drawls very adorably.
“Hmm?” says Banana, more focused on her muffin batter than the beautiful maiden attempting to romance her. “Oh, do you mind moving off the counter? I need to grate lemon rind and there’s not enough space for the chopping board here.”
Kaoruko slides very sexily down to one of the stools by the breakfast bar. “Banana-han, do you wanna come to the Antique Rose Teahouse this weekend?”
“Oh? Isn’t that the really romantic-themed café with all the couples and Valentiney menu items and frilled tablecloths?” Banana clarifies, having just enough metanarrative awareness to provide exposition when necessary.
“Yeah, that’s it,” says Kaoruko.
“Did you have a reservation and now Futaba-chan can’t come, or something?”
“No,” Kaoruko says. “She’d be there, too.”
“Huh?”
“All of us!”
“All… three of us?”
Kaoruko pauses to consider this. “Well, it depends.”
“On what?”
“Lots of things,” Kaoruko says. Or rather, lots of people.
“You mean, Futaba might not come? Or you won’t?”
Kaoruko sighs (delicately). Banana is not supposed to be this dense. “Other people might come.”
“Like who?”
“Hoshimi-han, for one.” This is it. The bait.
“You mean, like… a double date?” Nana’s blushing now. Hook.
“Something like that,” Kaoruko purrs. Line.
Nana gives a flustered smile.
“Look, I don’t… know if that’s the best idea.”
… Sinker???
**
“Hey, Hoshimi-san!”
Junna stops to take the water bottle Futaba’s holding out. She crouches down and opens it, panting.
“Thank you.”
“You work hard, huh?”
“Well… I guess so. I don’t want to fall behind.” She looks up. Futaba’s perched on the wall by the gate out front of Starlight Hall. Junna stretches her legs a couple times, then comes up to join her.
“I hear that,” Futaba says wryly. There’s a towel around her own neck, and her hair is plastered down with sweat. It seems they share some similar hobbies.
That’s right. Futaba, dead last in the entrance exams. The Revue of Perseverance they shared. She’s not alone in how she feels.
“Still, you know. Even when it seems like we’re the bottom… it’s an achievement even to be here. This school can make you forget, but there are hundreds of people we’ve already surpassed.”
“I know,” Futaba says. “That doesn’t help much, in the end.”
Junna remembers standing with Nana at the start of the school year, in the locker room at the end of the day. Sliding name-plates out of the doors. Throwing them away.
She tilts her head up, to the sky. It looks like rain, covered in thick clouds.
She can’t see the stars.
“Do you want to–” she says, just as Futaba begins speaking.
“I wanted to–”
“Sorry. You go.”
It seems whatever Futaba was going to say has fled her, as she momentarily closes her mouth. Then–
“You know… Kaoruko was wondering something.”
Eh??
“Why doesn’t she ask me herself?”
“Please. She’d never.”
“What do you mean?”
“She’s shyer than you think, you know?”
Junna is suddenly filled with an ominous foreboding.
With trepidation: “What is it?”
“She’s got a bit of a crush.”
EH???????
“Um…” On you, yeah, she doesn’t say. Because if Futaba doesn’t know this, then there’s one hell of a misunderstanding going on, and she’s not going to out Hanayagi’s feelings like that.
“Well… more like a lot of a crush. Or… a lot of crush es.”
“What do you mean?”
“She really wants to date more people.”
“Oh,” Junna says, cottoning on. “I’m sorry.”
“What– no! We both want to!”
“Well, I know that it can be hard. Even when a breakup is mutual, it still–”
“We’re not breaking up!”
“Huh? Then–”
Futaba grimaces, then sets her jaw.
“I can’t exactly put it how she did, because you’d definitely get the wrong idea based on the strange way she talks sometimes…”
Oh, so KAORUKO talks strangely???
“Isurugi-san. Please try to be clear… and brief.”
“Eh?!” Futaba exclaims indignantly. “That’s not what you should say when someone is confessing!”
What.
“Are you… confessing?”
This does not appear to be going how Futaba hoped it would.
“Well… sort of. What I mean is… I really admire your determination and your talent.” Talent?! Is this some sort of bottled speech? How can it apply to…
“The way you’re able to push yourself forwards without looking to the sides, always focused on the road. Like a motorbike, weaving between cars to get somewhere new… you’re really unique.”
“Isurugi-san, I…”
“We… Kaoruko and I, we wanted to… WAIT!”
“Huh?”
“I forgot to say… it’s not just you. That is… like, for example, Claudine… uh… Hey!” She grabs Junna’s face and leans in. Junna jerks away.
“Hey! I’m not going to kiss you, you know!”
“You’re the one who called it a confession!” Is this anticipation? Excitement? Embarrassment, fear, anger, shame, joy?
“I mean… But suddenly like that! Definitely not! Look…” She puts her hands on Junna’s shoulders and brings them to eye level. “I know about your crush.”
Junna, who had just managed to stop sweating from her run, begins sweating again.
“Oh,” she says, “Which one would that be?”
Futaba smiles an evil smile. “Make that… which four.”
Junna’s eyes go wide.
“Hear me out,” Futaba says.
Paralysed, Junna nods.
*
Kaoruko sputters.
“What?!?!”
How can Nana not want to go on a date with someone as gorgeous and sophisticated as Kaoruko?! To say nothing of two handsome, hardworking, courageous, passionate, handsome, dedicated, strong, handsome…
“...to change anything in our relationship at the moment,” Nana is saying. “So… look, I hope you haven’t asked Junna-chan yet. I don’t want to let her down, either…”
She pats Kaoruko on the shoulder sympathetically and leaves the room. Kaoruko stares, dumbfounded, at the warm tray of muffins left in Nana’s wake. She can’t even bring herself to eat one.