Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There’s a reason Sayaka gets up ninety minutes earlier than she should on any given school day. It’s not her homework. No, she always does that as soon as she’s home. It’s not out of any real scholarly obligation either. At least, that’s not the main reason.

The reason Sayaka Igarashi wakes up so early is to catch a glimpse of the student council president and most beautiful woman alive; Kirari Momobami. Oh, the mere thought had her biting her lip. It was a crime for one person to be so imposing, so unfailingly glamorous.

Every morning at exactly eight-fifteen, Kirari would arrive on campus and breeze her way to the student council room. Sayaka got a perfect view from where her locker was situated. She needn’t worry about staring, for Kirari was always too focused on her destination to notice her.

Today promised to be more of the same. Sayaka waited at her locker for Kirari’s arrival. Any minute now, Kirari would waltz on by, allowing Sayaka to get an eyeful. Any moment now.

Any moment.

She looked at her watch. The time was correct.

So where was she? Was she running late? Sick? Both? Either way, the moment is gone.

Sayaka shakes her head and sighs. It mustn’t be in the cards today. If that was the case, there was no point in loitering around her locker. She gathered her things and made for the east exit.

.

If someone were to ask Sayaka why she had decided to take the long route to Mrs. Stevenson’s English class, she would have blamed it on having too much time on her hands. Besides that, the weather was warm enough and the unofficial smoking area was probably deserted, so she could pass through without having to inhale any second-hand fumes.

That’s what she thought, anyway.

As she turned the corner, she noted that the area in question wasn’t as vacant as she would have preferred it to be. Two figures leaned against the wall, chatting amicably. Near-sighted as she was, she couldn’t really identify them without getting closer. With every step, the picture became clearer. Was that…? No, it couldn’t be. What would Kirari be doing out here? She didn’t smoke. As far as she knew.

Apparently, she didn’t know as much as she thought. There she was, holding her cigarette between her index and middle finger like a high-class film actress. The sight was alluring as it was sickening. Before she knew it, Sayaka had stopped.

“I didn’t know the student council president smoked.” She says.

Kirari looked down at her with mild annoyance. Sayaka stood firm in her resolve, even if she was internally wondering what the fuck she was doing right now.

“And just who are you supposed to be?”

“Who I am isn’t important. What is important is your health. There are better outlets than… this.”

“And why do you care? You’re a stranger to me.”

“I happen to look up to you all the same.”

“Oh? What is it that you like about me? Go on, tell me.” Kirari challenged.

There were many reasons why Sayaka liked Kirari. Where would she even begin? She ruled over the student council with an efficiency that was borderline ruthless. She spoke with a matter-of-factness that resonated with her, even if it alienated her peers. She was merciless and unrepentant in a way that was borderline sexy.

All of these thoughts came out as:

“Watching you in action is like watching a shark attack.”

Silence. Then laughter. Genuine laughter that made Sayaka thankful for her second fuck-up today.

“A shark, am I? I don’t know if that says more about you than it does me. But I digress. If you want me to stop smoking so badly, what are you willing to give in exchange? I need a good motivation to kick the habit, after all.”

Sayaka thought for a moment. “I’ll make you lunch. Every day.”

“Every day? Okay, how about this? I’ll cease smoking for as long as you bring me these lunches.”

Sayaka nodded. She could do this. She had gotten pretty good at preparing her own bento boxes over the years. Preparing another one would be worth it if it kept her girl-crush away from nicotine.

“Deal.” She said, outstretching her hand.

Kirari snorted, putting out the smoke with her fingers. If it hurt, she gave no indication of it.

“Deal. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

.

“...What in the actual fuck was that just now? That conversation felt like a stroke.” Midari griped.

“It most certainly took me by surprise, I’ll admit.”

“Why did you go along with it? That bitch has a screw loose.”

“Now, now. She seemed so earnest, how could I not go along with it? Besides, it will be fun for a week or two until she gets bored.”

“You sure you haven’t bitten off more than you can chew, shark girl? What if she never stops making you lunch?”

Kirari dropped her cigarette onto the ground, crushing it with her heel. “People don’t work that way. She’ll learn to loathe me like all the others. Until then, a free meal prepared by a pretty girl isn’t the worst thing in the world.”

“Okay. Just don’t blame me if you wind up getting attached.”

“Please. That won’t happen.”

Chapter Text

“Here. Your lunch.”

Midari cackled as Sayaka handed Kirari the rather large box of food.

Sayaka, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she might have prepared too much food, spoke. “I don’t know your allergies, so I avoided things like buckwheat noodles. Let me know if you have any specific allergies, so I can avoid serving them.”

“I’m not allergic to anything, as far as I’m aware.” Kirari said, still looking at the box with bewilderment. She could feel the weight in her hands. Was this girl expecting her to finish it all in one sitting?

Sayaka took out her own box and started eating.

“Are you sure you want to spend your lunch eating with us?” Kirari asked.

“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I? Besides, I have to get the container back when you’re finished.”

Kirari hummed, internally wondering if she was using the container as some kind of excuse to sit with them. …Probably not. She didn’t seem all that conniving. Then again, appearances could be deceiving. Kirari still wasn’t sure what it was about her that caught Sayaka’s eye to begin with. There were prettier, friendlier girls out there.

What made Kirari so special?

It mattered not. She’ll get bored sooner than later, and then it will be back to her and Midari, like it always has been.

Speaking of Midari, she was currently poking her in the shoulder.

“Hey, why do you look so mopey?”

“I don’t. You just can’t tell because your eye is fucked.”

Midari’s eye has been like that since kindergarten. Apparently, she got into a fight with someone two years her senior and got punched so hard, her eye burst. That’s the version of events that Midari had told her, anyway. Midari had this most unpleasant habit of exaggerating things.

“You can’t fool me, Momobami. You were moping just now.” She turned to Sayaka for affirmation. “Right?”

Sayaka leaned forward, watching her closely. It felt like she was having her soul weighed against a feather. She had never noticed that Sayaka had such unusual eyes. Pitch black. Almost frightening, in a way.

“...It’s hard to say for sure. How do you feel?”

“Like I am currently being dissected. Can I eat, please?”

“Oh! Sure thing. My apologies.”

The conversation died there and then, with both parties silently eating their lunches. Minus Midari, who tried and failed to sneak a gyoza out of Kirari’s container.

“No fair.” She grumbled.

Kirari simply ignored her.

She had to admit though, the food was competently prepared. Everything was carefully chosen too. It was clear that a lot of thought went into it, which left Kirari feeling a certain kind of way.

.

It’s been a week since Sayaka had joined them for lunch and for some strange reason, she was still there. Worse, she’s been getting more talkative. Worse still, Kirari finds herself listening.

Despite the fact that Sayaka isn’t all there on a social level (she wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t something wrong with her, Kirari thinks), she was a good speaker, albeit she tended to ramble.

Today, Sayaka had regaled them with the history of the sea monkey.

“-And that’s how Harold von Braunhut created a million dollar business selling brine shrimp to kids over magazine ads.”

“Man, kids are stupid. Sea Monkeys are lame.” Midari said.

“Excuse me, they happen to be very entertaining pets, thank you very much.” Sayaka huffed.

Kirari chimed in. “Do you actually have sea monkeys as pets?”

“Yeah. I purchased a kit as a child and the colony is still thriving to this day.”

Kirari snorted. “Of course you did.”

One thing Kirari had noticed about Sayaka, is that her idea of fun was comically dull. She would get excited about the most mundane, boring things. Case in point: Sea Monkeys. She had to admit, it was oddly endearing.

“Besides the Sea Monkey maintenance, what else do you do at home?” Kirari found herself asking.

“Oh, well I read a lot, mostly non-fiction.”

“Don’t you do anything fun?” Asked Midari.

“Reading is fun.”

“Don’t you play video games or anything cool?”

“I have an old Famicom system that I play sometimes. I like puzzle games.”

“Even your game choices suck dick. You’re like the ultimate good girl.”

“Hey, I can be bad, too!”

“Yeah, I bet you do your homework ahead of time. Real rebellious.”

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t- Forget it.”

.

It’s been a month since Sayaka had joined their little group and she hadn't missed a single day. Things were certainly livelier with her around. Kirari had to admit, she had grown fond of her continued presence, fond of her peculiar, straight-laced nature. Sayaka was the kind of girl to take anti-smoking ads seriously, the kind of wide-eyed earnestness that you just don’t see in people anymore.

At some point, they had exchanged numbers. Kirari forgets the reason why, or if there even was a solid reason for doing so. It was nothing more than an act of mutual benefit.

The next day, Midari is absent. It was surprising that she bothered showing up as often as she does, instead of getting blitzed at home with ill gotten alcohol. For once, though, she was sort of grateful for the absence, instead of cursing it.

They finally had some privacy, beyond their texts.

“It’s been a month since you wormed your way into my life, you know that?”

Sayaka hummed. “It’s been that long? It feels shorter.”

“They do say time flies when you’re enjoying yourself.”

“I have been enjoying myself, to be honest. You’re every bit the woman you seem to be from afar.”

“Is that a compliment?”

Sayaka nodded.

“Well, you’re quite fascinating yourself.” Kirari leaned over to wipe a single grain of rice off Sayaka’s cheek. She was reddened at the interaction.

Kirari took an odd kind of satisfaction in it.

“Would you like to… do something one of these days?”

Kirari raised a brow. She knew what the other girl meant, yet she couldn’t refrain from teasing her. “Oh? And what sort of lascivious activity did you have in mind?”

“Oh, N-nothing untoward. I just thought it would be nice if we could meet up outside of school.”

“I would be open to that. Why don’t you come over to my place after school?”

It wasn’t exactly subtle. Most high-schoolers would understand what she meant. Most would understand what she was offering.

“O-okay.”

Judging by the stammer in her voice, even Sayaka knew the implications were.

Chapter Text

Kirari had forgotten the whole point of the exercise. She had forgotten that this was supposed to be a waiting game, counting down the days until Sayaka grew bored and left her to her cigarettes. Instead, she had gotten attached. So had Sayaka, it would seem.

Attached enough to run through pouring rain to get here.

“Sorry… I’m late.” She huffed. She was soaked. What horrible luck. Kirari had heard that the weather was going to be less than stellar, but she wasn’t expecting a downpour. That's the rainy season for you, she supposed.

“I’ll go get you a towel and a change of clothes. One moment.”

.

“You could have just cancelled, you know. You didn’t have to risk pneumonia just for me.” Kirari admonishes as she dries Sayaka’s hair with a towel. She’s currently sitting on her bed, wearing her previously unused sweatpants.

“Yes well, I didn’t want to disappoint you.”

Kirari frowned. This girl had a self-sacrificial streak to her that was touching, yet worrying. “You need to take better care of yourself. Promise me that you won’t do something this stupid again.”

“...I promise.”

“Good.” She continued to dry Sayaka’s hair until she was satisfied with her work. She really did have voluminous hair. She absentmindedly played with it through her fingers.

“What shampoo do you use?”

“I- I don’t know. Whatever my mother buys at the store.”

“I have a spare bottle of what I use. I’ll send you home with it to try, later.”

“That’s very generous of you.”

“Think nothing of it.”

They both take in the silence. The rain collided with plane glass. The wind howls.

Sayaka’s eyes are closed. Either she’s enjoying the touch, or she’s expecting something. Something more. Something that Kirari isn’t sure she can provide right now.

It feels wrong to try, so she doesn’t. Instead, she wraps her arms around Sayaka’s waist and gently pulls until they’re both lying down on their sides. She feels Sayaka shiver beneath her grip. Good.

She brings Sayaka closer until they’re spooning.

“Is this okay?” Kirari asks, half aware of the absurdity of it all. Kirari never really cared if anyone was ‘okay’ or not before. Not even herself. This was a new feeling. A feeling that was more addicting than any cigarette she’s ever put in her mouth.

“Mhmm.” Sayaka hums.

“Good.” She places a kiss on Sayaka’s neck and closes her eyes, getting comfortable.

.

She’s not here.

It’s lunch time, but she’s not here.

Kirari looks around the car park, seeing nobody of note. It was already five minutes into lunch. Sayaka is always here on time. Always. But not now, not today.

Why?

Her hand instinctively reaches into her pockets, grasping at an unopened box of cigarettes. She stops herself. No, she’s jumping to the worst possible conclusion without probable cause. There are any number of reasons why Sayaka isn’t here right now, ranging from the mundane to the morbid.

She continues waiting, her nails tapping against the box.

Each second that ticks by only leaves her in a fouler mood than before. For the first time in a while, she’s starting to feel the withdrawals of nicotine. Her skin starts to itch.

…Fuck it.

She takes the box out of her pocket, freeing it from its plastic wrappings. She takes out a cigarette and lights it.

Just as she goes to take her first drag in forever, The PA system turns on.

“Attention, Kirari Momobami. You are wanted in the office.”

Goddamn it.

She drops the cigarette to the floor, crushing it with her heel, before leaving.

.

She expects it’s something related to the Student Council. Either that, or this was the end result of some previous offense or grievance. When she enters the office, she’s half prepared for some banal lecture, maybe a punishment too.

What she’s not prepared for is a familiar looking woman in her forties holding a boxed lunch.

“Are you Kirari?”

“Yes. Who might you be?” She asks, although she already has a hunch, based on her appearance. Purple hair and black eyes.

“I’m Sayaka’s mother. She’s currently holed up at home with a fever. She begged me to give this to you. She said it was important that you get it.”

Kirari couldn’t hold back her smile as she took the lunch. Even when sick, that girl is still thinking about her. She was probably in bed right now, worried about whether the boxed lunch made it to her on time or not. Such genuine sincerity made her heart flutter. This girl was too precious to let go.

Kirari had decided that she would keep her for herself.

“Thank you, Miss Igarashi. I’ll make sure to visit Sayaka later to thank her properly for this.”

Mrs. Igarashi shook her head. “No, thank you for taking care of my daughter. She’s happier now than she’s been in months.”

.

Kirari arrived later that afternoon with a bag of supplies. Tea bags, over the counter medicines and things of that nature. She was quickly let in by Mrs. Igarashi, who directed her to Sayaka’s room.

When she opened the door, she let out a gasp. It certainly wasn’t what she was expecting. It was a cramped little space crammed with books and anime merchandise. Little figurines watched her from their varying vantage points throughout the room. She honestly had no idea that Sayaka was into these things, but it only made her appreciate Sayaka further. Just another side of the most endearing girl on the planet.

Sayaka regarded her with half-lidded eyes, as if she couldn’t tell if what she was seeing was real or not.

“...Kirari? Is that you?”

She takes her place beside the sick girl, sitting on her knees.

“Yes, it’s me. You know, you could have just sent me a text saying you were sick. You didn’t have to go out of your way for me.”

Sayaka attempted to lift herself up. “No. I had to. I made a promise.” The expression of urgency on her face was adorable, even if it was offset by redness under her eyes.

She placed a gentle hand on Sayaka’s shoulder, guiding her back to her previous position. “You did. But remember our other promise? I don’t want you putting yourself in harm’s way for my sake.”

“I can’t help it. You mean a lot to me, you know.”

“So then imagine if I were to strain myself for you. That’s what I’m feeling right now.”

“...Do you really mean that?”

Kirari takes Sayaka’s nearest hand and cups it softly.

“Of course I do.”

Sayaka smiles faintly. “I’m so happy… I…”

Her eyelids flutter until they close completely. Kirari takes that as her cue to leave her sleeping beauty alone. With a kiss to her forehead and a whispered goodbye, she closes the door behind her with great care.

Chapter Text

“You know, I haven’t seen you smoke in a while. You sure you don’t want one?” Midari asked, cigarette box in hand.

“No, I’m fine.” Kirari replied.

Midari laughs as if she said something funny and tucks the box back into her shirt pocket.

“Man, how long has it been? A couple of months now, right? She’s still bringing you lunch?”

“Yes. Although even if she stopped, I see no point in smoking anymore.”

“Because you finally got something to live for, right?”

Kirari blinked. It was so easy to forget how perceptive Midari could be at times.

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Hah. Must be nice.”

.

Kirari is so enraptured in her conversation with Sayaka that she doesn't notice her father’s car is in the driveway until it's too late.

By that point, she's certain that he's probably watching from the windows. Little actions like this were a habit for him. A sad attempt to make up for his many long absences. Not that she blames him for working, of course.

He always has something to say. He had plenty to say about Midari, last he saw her. All this fussing about how she's a horrible influence and this and that. How blissfully unaware of her true nature he was, unaware of how true mother’s words rang when she left that fateful day.

How would he act, knowing he had raised such a loathsome girl?

She told herself it wouldn't matter. She already had Sayaka. But there was a part of herself, the part of herself that hadn’t moved on since mother’s abscondance, that wondered what exactly would he think of Sayaka? He’d be impressed, no doubt. Who wouldn’t be? She was a girl with a heart as big as her brain. She would surely charm him as she had charmed her. But would he approve?

She supposed that she will probably find out soon enough. It’s not like Sayaka wasn’t clinging to her arm the entire time.

.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then?”

Kirari nodded. Then, in an act of brazenness, she kissed Sayaka’s cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

With that, Sayaka left, leaving her to face her father all by her lonesome.

“What was that just now?” He asks from the stairs. Kirari can plainly see that he hasn’t shaved in a solid month. The silver beard just makes him look more haggard.

“You’ll have to be more specific.”

“Who was that girl? You never bring friends over.”

“You’re not around enough to make that statement.”

“Fair enough. But who was she?”

She’s tempted to say ‘My girlfriend’, although something stops her from blurting it out. The word sounded so gracelessly juvenile anyway.

“She’s a classmate.” She settles for saying.

“Tell me something less obvious.”

“She’s at the top of her class in pretty much everything. I’m honestly surprised she hasn’t attempted to join the student council.”

“Well, that’s great. But is there a reason you’re trying to sell me on her?”

“Perhaps. You’ll just have to stick around to find out, I’m afraid.”

“Ah, I see. Never a straight answer with you, is it?” Father smiles wryly.

Kirari doesn’t dignify that with a response.

.

Kirari finds herself in a rather boring situation, half-liddedly flicking through applications for a student council secretary. As self-inflicted as it was, it was a long time coming. Work was starting to pile up faster than she could deal with it. More work meant less free time. That meant less time to spend with Sayaka. No, that simply would not do at all. She was already going through withdrawals. Who knew she could be so touch-starved?

So far, none of the candidates seemed promising. Not that there were that many to begin with. Who in their right mind would sign up for a student council position in the middle of the year? What would they stand to gain from such a position? It’s not like it came with a salary. Most people probably just viewed it as extra work with no upside.

She fiddled with her unbuttoned shirt collar. It wasn’t exactly humid, but it was just muggy enough that she felt uncomfortable in her own skin. If only she already had a secretary that could hold down the fort while she visited the vending machines. Alas, she was alone.

At this point, her discomfort was getting to her. She was no longer reading through the documents from top to bottom, instead skimming through them in an erratic order. She sighed. This wasn’t helping. Kirari took a deep breath and tried again.

She hummed. This applicant’s grades were pretty high. Around that of Sayaka’s. A couple of rewards to their name too. Impressive. Oh, what the hell. That was good enough for her. She approved the application, signed it and left to get herself something nice and cold to drink. Nobody was around to scold her for leaving anyway.

.

One week later

.

It was more of the same. She was alone while the other student council members were busy with extracurricular activities. She had things to do herself, but she was inconsolably bored and not in any mood to do more paperwork, instead occupying her attention with a set of Newton balls on her desk.

Then, a knock came at the door.

“Come in.” Kirari called monotonously.

The door creaked open. Damn thing hasn’t been taken care of in years. For such a prestigious school, a lot of property has been lacking in maintenance. Take the student council’s air conditioner for instance. It’s probably older than Kirari was. She tried getting the barely functioning thing replaced on many occasions, but that always required more paperwork than she wanted to deal with.

“What can I help you with?”

“I’m here for the role of secretary.” Kirari perked up at the familiar voice. She never did read the name of the person she chose. She looked up to see deep purple hair and a pair of coal-colored eyes staring back at her in trepidation.

“Sayaka? You’re the hire?”

“Yes. You signed off on it, remember?”

Kirari wisely refrained from mentioning that she was not paying much attention when she did so. At least now, nobody could accuse her of nepotism. Not that they wouldn’t try anyway.

“Forgive me. Why don’t you take a seat?”

“Thank you.”

Sayaka sat down, looking up at her with uncertain eyes. Kirari still couldn’t believe it. What a stroke of luck! Things will run much smoother, now that Sayaka was here to alleviate her workload. There was something deliciously domestic about working together with her girlfriend. It was hard to put into words, but Kirari was very much looking forward to it.

Even so, she had to show an ounce of decorum.

“I’ll run you through your duties as secretary. Afterwards, we can get to work. Does that sound good to you?”

Sayaka nodded determinedly, although Kirari did not miss the slight redness of her cheeks. Apparently Sayaka had similarly unprofessional thoughts in regards to her new job. There would be moments where they could both behave a little unprofessionally, but that was not today. She doubted that Sayaka would mind, however, being the workhorse that she was.

“Good. Let us begin.”

Kirari was very much looking forward to those little moments to come.