Chapter 16: Wait, what?

"Come on, Chihiro! You can do it!"

This is hell.

"Dude, there's no way she's going to be able to go through with this."

I'm in hell.

"She won't ever be able to start if you guys keep talking! Shush!"

Classes for the day ended not ten minutes ago and… I can't believe I'm even saying this, but I just want to go pick out my stupid frilly costume! Anything would be better than this…!

"Chihiro is already turning pink, and she hasn't even said anything!" Leon laughs, kicking up his feet on the desk he's occupying. "No way in hell she's going to be able to go through with it."

"Only because you're making such a fuss over it, dipshit." Mondo clips, glaring at the ceiling. "Why are you even here?"

"Gee man, I dunno. Why are you even here?" Leon shoots a sidelong look at the gang leader. "I mean, it's just a lesson. We could have left her to explain this to Taka on her own, you know?"

"That's…" Mondo sighs and scratches the back of his head. "I'm here to help her through the hard parts, alright!?"

He snorts. "The hard parts, indeed…"

"You son of a-!"

"Why are you only giving me shit for being here, anyway?" Leon points to the other three unexpected occupants in the room. "I'm pretty sure those three girls aren't Taka, either."

Hina puffs out her cheeks. "We have something to do right after this! It doesn't make sense to split up!"

Kyoko just sighs and shakes her head.

"Not to mention…" Sakura clears her throat, giving Leon and Mondo an especially hard look. "We're here to assure that Chihiro isn't pressured into explaining anything more than what is necessary. The minute she becomes uncomfortable…"

"Its fine!" I blurt, gripping the podium at full force. "I-I promised I'd explain it properly to him, so a few more people shouldn't make a difference… r-right?"

"Ah, are we beginning the lesson then?" Taka asks, perking up slightly. "Fantastic! Everyone, please quiet down so Chihiro can begin! We've had enough distractions as it stands!"

Taka beams at me. He's sitting in the desk directly in front of the podium, giving me his full attention.

"R-right… so…" I sigh. Just make it as clear as possible, as fast as possible. You can do it, Chihiro! "A vibrator is… exactly what it sounds like!"

"Exactly what it sounds like?" Taka crosses his arms.

"Er, yeah!" I nod. "Its a thing. That vibrates."

I hear a snort and hear a murmur that sounds vaguely like "smooth" from Leon's direction. Any other jeers he had are quickly cut off by a loud smack and a grunt of pain.

"That's all it does?" Ignoring the fuss behind him, Taka keeps his gaze steady, confusion showing clearly in his bright red eyes. "What use is a random object that just… vibrates?"

"Well…!" I feel my cheeks start to heat up. "I-Its also often referred to as a "personal massager." People use it to… relieve stress."

"I see!" Taka scribbles down something in his notebook. "So its used to relieve stress… is it a portable version of one of those massaging chairs?"

"Sort of, but…" Letting out a shaky sigh, I quickly grab my skirt out of habit. "I-Its more private than that. People tend to buy them just for themselves o-or… someone special to them. Its not something people just… go around saying they have. That's why Sayaka was upset that people saw her's."

Taka, for what it's worth, seems genuinely perplexed by my words. There's no malice in his next question, no teasing. Just pure curiosity.

"What exactly do you mean by "private," Chihiro? Why would Sayaka be embarrassed about something used to relieve stress?"

Oh god.

He's staring at me so intensely, so seriously…! If I wasn't bright red by now, surely I must have just reached that point. I pause to collect myself.

"W-Well… basically… i-its a private massager!" I say after a moment. "Easy, right?"

He continues to stare. "I understood that part, but I was hoping for a little more-"

"T-Taka!" I blurt, cutting him off. "Listen closely. I-Its a massager."

He nods.

"A private massager."

He nods again. The way he's looking at me tells me that he has no idea what I'm getting at.

"Er, Chi…" Mondo looks mildly uncomfortable as he catches my attention. "I can just take him out of here to explain it! You don't gotta push yourself-"

"Nonsense!" Taka turns back to Mondo and gives him a scathing look. "Chihiro is doing a fine job in giving this lesson! We shouldn't underestimate her abilities, brother!"

"You aren't catching on to what she's saying at all though!" Leon sighs and kicks his feet off the desk, opting to prop his head up on his arms instead. "Really man, you shouldn't be putting her through this when you can't even realize that-"

"Understanding comes with time!" The moral compass turns to me and smiles, clearly trying to encourage me. "I'm sure I'll come to understand it if we just let her finish the lesson properly!"

I quickly bury my face in my hands. I must look like a tomato by now, but he still can't seem to put two and two together…

"T-Taka, come on! How else can I put this to make you understand…?" Not having any options left, I decide to keep my face buried in my hands as I try to take the blunt route. "Its a massager that people use to… s-stimulate themselves!"

A few seconds of silence go by without a murmur. I peek out my fingers to see how well he's taking the information.

He's still just… smiling.

"Don't all massage tools do that, though?"

My hands fall to my sides. He's… oblivious. Too pure for this sinful earth. I can only gape at him for a moment before my embarrassment finally reaches its peak.

"You…!" I fist my hands in my skirt once more and crush my eyes shut. "I-Its something people use to masturbate, Taka!"

…

Leon loses it. He falls to the floor in his merriment, clutching his sides as he gasps for air. I watch Taka's expression shift slowly from confusion to horror.

"W-What!?" He rockets to a stand, chair falling over from the force of it. "Ma…mastur-!?"

"Oh my god, Chihiro!" Hina is blushing scarlet as well, looking at me in horror. "Did you have to say it like that!?"

"I-I had no choice! He didn't- I tried to be subtle, but…!" I quickly turn away from everyone, leaning my arms on the blackboard and burying my face in them. "Y-You knew what this was about anyway! Why are you surprised!?"

"Ahaha, ha, oh- That-" I hear Leon gasp out from behind me. "That was the best! Chihiro, I didn't think you had it in you to go through with it! I'm so glad I stayed behind for this…!"

"Chihiro, are you okay?" I turn around at Sakura's worried tone. Her expression is stormy. "Perhaps I should have intervened…"

"Bro, do you understand why I wanted to just tell you myself?" Mondo's cheeks are dusted the faintest shade of pink from my outburst. "This kinda thing is a bit…"

"I… I had no idea!" As the shock wears off, Taka's complexion reddens almost instantly. "To think I asked Chihiro about such a subject…!"

"I don't mind explaining things to you Taka, but-" I let out a shaky breath. "Next time, don't announce these things to everyone… p-please just let me explain in private!"

Bad wording on my part. All eyes shift to me.

"Not like that!" Frantically shaking my head, I try to resist the urge to bolt out of the room. "I-Its just too much to explain in front of multiple people…! I don't mind explaining otherwise-!"

"No!" Taka, still looking mortified, bends over to right the chair he knocked over. "This subject is entirely inappropriate…! I have no interest in learning anything more!"

Leon snorts and claps Taka on the back as he stands back up, making him stumble. "Hey now, you should accept her offer! I'd love to have some one-on-one sex ed lessons with a cute girl… At least you have the excuse of being totally ignorant!" The baseball star looks over to me and winks. "Unless you wanna extend the invitation to the rest of us, too!"

"H-Hell no!" Mondo looks absolutely flustered at this point, gripping Taka's shoulders and spinning him around so that he's looking him in the eye. "Fuck that! Let me explain shit like this to you in the future, okay!? Don't make Chihiro go through that ever again!" He looks over the moral compass' shoulder and glares at Leon. "And no one is having any kind of private fucking lesson!"

"I already said that I don't-!"

"Dude, you're just jealous that she didn't offer to give you a private fucking lesson!" The baseball star lets out a cackle at Mondo's poor word choice, but quickly silences himself when he takes a swipe at his head. "-Woah! Chill, man! Shit… can't a guy make a joke around here?"

"As much as I'd hate to interrupt…" Kyoko smoothly cuts into the banter, having been silent up to this point. "But we do have somewhere to be. I assume you lot are fine without Chihiro's further guidance on the subject?"

"I am certain they will be." Sakura brushes past the boys and puts her hand on my upper back, gently pushing me towards the door. "Let's not waste any more time here. We've kept Ibuki waiting long enough."

Not wanting to face any of them at this point, I jump on the chance to escape, allowing Sakura to lead me out of the room without another word.

"There you guys are!"

We finally make it to our designated meeting spot behind the school. Ibuki is happily waving to us from her place on the grass. Leaning against the tree beside her is a second stoic silverette I hadn't expected to see today.

"Peko?" The girl in question shoots me a slight smile before returning to her usual stony visage. "Why are you here?"

"Ibuki asked her to join us!" She leaps to her feet, making a "ta-da" gesture towards the swordswoman. "Pekopeko totally fits the "shining justice" theme that is the Sailor Scouts! Ibuki would have been a fool to pass her up as a candidate!"

Peko clears her throat, shooting Ibuki a sidelong look. "I only agreed because she made it sound dire. I didn't learn what I would be doing until after I'd already promised to assist."

"I see that you haven't been slacking either, my sweet underclassmen!" Ibuki jumps forward, giving Kyoko an extremely exaggerated up-down look. "A hardboiled detective from the cold streets of New York turned into a magical girl?! I can see the appeal!"

"I've only agreed to go costume shopping at this point." Kyoko doesn't flinch under the rockstar's appraisal. "And I am not from New York."

"Bawh, you'll come around in the end Kyokopuffs!" Ibuki turns around and starts heading back into the school. "Onward, my lovelies! Tonight…we dine in hell!"

"Ibuki, slow down for a second!" She stops mid-step when I call out to her, completely frozen. "We need to decide who is going to be who first, remember?"

"Pfft, durr!" Ibuki starts walking backwards towards us until she's back in the small circle we formed. "Ibuki wants to be Sailor Mars! Dibs!"

"That's fine!" Hina nods, giving a thumbs up in approval. "You totally already have the hair for it! Besides the streaks, I mean."

"I've already been forced into the roll of Mini Moon…" I bite the inside of the cheek a bit. "That means we have Moon, Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury left."

"I'm unsure as to what these characters look like…" Kyoko admits, crossing her arms slightly. "I can't exactly say who I resemble the most."

"Oh, right!" I pull out my phone and quickly search for a group picture of the Scouts, showing it to the detective. "Here."

"...I see." Kyoko looks a bit perplexed. "They're very… colorful."

"Pekopeko should totally be Mercury!" Ibuki shouts. "She's the most quiet, and she has the shortest hair!"

"I do believe her hair is only it's current length because of how she has it done… Couldn't we just get wigs to match the characters?" Sakura points to me. "Chihiro is going to need one, no? And none of us have blonde or blue hair…"

"Silly rabbit!" Ibuki wags her finger. "Costumes look way better when you don't use fakey-fake wigs! We can get Chihiro extensions that look natural, and just use all the dye! All of it!"

"W-Wait, we're dyeing our hair?" Hina looks a bit mortified at the suggestion. "I'd totally have to bleach mine then!"

"You could just be Jupiter, Hina." Sakura suggests, pointing to the character on my phone. "She does have brown hair, after all…"

"Oh… fine!" Hina puffs out her cheeks. "Since we're doing it like this then, I think you should be Sailor Moon!"

"I'd… prefer not to be in the center, if at all possible." Sakura glances away slightly. "I still think I'd be better suited to play a villain-"

"No good, no good!" Ibuki forms an X with her arms. "No villains, only justice! I guess that means you default to Venus!"

"I'm not sure that's-"

"Which means…" Ibuki rushes behind Kyoko, pulling her hair up into two twintails. "She's the one and only Sailor Moon!"

"...Potential Sailor Moon." Kyoko corrects. "Not only do we have one more character available, but I haven't decided to participate yet."

"Most of the costumes are decided now, at the very least. We can settle the rest later." Peko pulls out her phone, nodding at what she sees at the screen. "The car should be here shortly to take us to the shopping center. Let's make our way to the front of the school."

"Woah, you got us a ride already!?" Hina squeals and grabs Kyoko's and Sakura's wrists. "Our vision is on it's way to becoming reality! Let's go, ladies!"

The energetic swimmer drags along the two least-willing participants in our group, with Ibuki following hot on their heels. I choose to walk along with Peko.

"Did you borrow one of your family's drivers?" I ask, looking up to her. "I bet Fuyuhiko was surprised when you told him what it was for!"

"Actually…" Peko glances away. "I simply called a commercial limousine for us. I haven't told Young Master about this yet."

"Eh?" I blink. "Why haven't you?"

The swordswoman falls silent for a moment, opening and closing her mouth a few times as she tries to find her words. "...I'll admit that I've had a slight… fascination with Sailor Moon. Ever since I was a child, I mean." Her cheeks dust the faintest shade of pink. "Fuyuhiko is well aware of this, so surely he'd…"

"...He'd totally tease you about it, right?" I smile. "You're going to have to tell him eventually…"

"H-He can find out during the contest!" She furiously shakes her head. "There's no reason for him to know about it beforehand!"

"Calm down, Peko!" Her cheeks are turning a dangerous shade of red as she picks up her pace slightly. "Is it really such a big deal…? More importantly, won't he be asking about where you are anyway if you start sneaking around without him?"

"Not at all. Young Master has given me explicit permission to accompany you off school grounds!" She speeds up even more. "Come on then! It's rude to keep everyone waiting."

"S-Slow down a little!" I reach out and catch her wrist. "What do you mean he's given you permission? Don't you need to stay by him?"

"...Ah." Realizing her haste, she exhales a bit and stops. "Given your current situation Chihiro, both Fuyuhiko and I felt like it was important that you have someone able-bodied near you whenever possible. Its one thing if you're within the school, but outside is a different story; you absolutely shouldn't go out alone anywhere."

"I-I mean… I appreciate the thought, but…" I glance over to the school building. "Is it really okay for him to be alone? He's still the son of a gang boss…"

"No one would be foolish enough to enter Hope's Peak to try and kill him. Even if they were-" Peko laughs the slightest bit. "He's able to protect himself. As much as it pains me to admit this, Fuyuhiko doesn't need me as much anymore. He's grown a lot since coming here…"

Mixed emotions are showing clearly on Peko's face. Happy, yet… still so very sad.

"Peko…"

"We've kept everyone waiting long enough." Peko starts off again, but at a much more relaxed pace than before. "I'm sorry to have brought up such a thing so suddenly. It was strange timing on my part."

"N-No, don't be!" I start up after her. "I'm always happy to listen to your worries if you need it, okay? I'd hate it if you felt like you couldn't after everything that's happened already!"

She glances down to me, then nods. "I'll… keep that in mind. Thank you, Chihiro."

Peko turns her gaze forward, and we continue walking towards the front of the school in silence. I don't mention it, but I can see her smiling ever so slightly out the corner of my eye.

"Okay! Game plan time!"

The six of us are standing in front of the shopping center's directory, scanning through the various shops available to us.

"Here's the thing…" Hina turns back to us and taps her cheek in thought. "In order to make sure we look the best, we should try to get all of our costume pieces at the same place! Makeup and hair stuff doesn't matter much… but the accessories should probably match, too!"

"Isn't that going to be an issue…?" I motion between Sakura and I. "We're… not exactly in the normal strike zone for most clothing stores."

"It is! Which is why…" Hina points to a store in the corner of the mall on the map. "We go there!"

"A tailor?" Peko squints up at the store name. "No, wait… "Kostume Kingdom…?" Is that a party store or something?"

"Nope! It's a specialty shop!" The swimmer puffs out her chest in triumph. "I asked Hifumi about places to go for costumes earlier! He said this place was the best of the best when it came to making outfits, guaranteed!"

I shoot her a sidelong glance. "Hifumi recommended this place to you…?'

"He did!" She cheers. "He goes to conventions all the time to, er… market his product? Uh, wait…!" Hina blushes slightly. "I-It isn't anything dirty, jeez! He just so happened to go to a convention recently, and they had a booth there! Apparently the stuff they had on display was super high quality!"

Sakura sighs a bit, relaxing visibly. "I was afraid he'd used this place as reference to his… craft. That's somewhat of a relief."

"I'd never go to a sex shop for costume stuff, jeez!" Hina crosses her arms and puffs out her cheeks. "I may be a ditz, but I'm not that much of a ditz! I did my research before suggesting it!"

"Hina…" Kyoko looks pensive for a moment. "How do you intend to pay for this…? Custom outfits can't be cheap."

"I still have money left over from my summer job!" She scratches the back of her head. "I mean, it can't be that expensive, right? We'll be fine!"

Saying that, Hina jerkily turns around and darts off in the direction of the store. Ibuki, noticing her departure, immediately perks up. "We're finally going!? Jeebus, Ibuki was starting to fall asleep!"

As she runs after the swimmer, Sakura shakes her head and starts off after them, Peko falling into a relaxed stride after her. Kyoko and I end up taking the rear.

"She's certainly energetic." The detective has her eyes locked forward as she starts talking. "It'll be a shame when she realizes how expensive it'll be."

I sigh, smiling a little bit at the thought of how excited Hina is. "I don't mind helping her if it turns out to be too much. She'd be heartbroken if it didn't work out."

"That's rather generous of you, but…" Kyoko glances over to me. "Isn't that counterproductive?"

My face scrunches up a little in my confusion. "Counterproductive in what way…?"

"For someone who didn't want to participate in this, you'd be doing quite a bit to facilitate it by helping her pay." She clarifies. "It doesn't make much sense."

"Well…" I laugh a little, locking my hands behind me as I walk. "There's no way I can back out at this point. I may as well do what I can to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible, right? Its actually a little weird to admit, but… I'm starting to have fun with it!"

"Are you?" I hear a faint huff of amusement escape her. "I'm glad to see you're feeling better, at the very least. This past week or so was… unsettling. I'd never seen you so upset."

"Y-Yeah… I'm sorry about that. I was pretty angry, and I didn't want to drag anyone else into it…" I feel a little sheepish under her gaze. "I'm better now, though! Nothing to worry about!"

Kyoko hums to herself. After a minute of silence, she speaks up again. "I'm guessing it has something to do with Mondo and Taka's newfound friendship, correct?"

I nod. "Taka apologized earlier, not that he really needed to. He was really upset when he realized he was ignoring me! I forgave him, and that's when he asked me… about that." My face heats up a bit at the thought of what happened earlier. I end up awkwardly clearing my throat to try and dispel the wave of embarrassment that just hit me. "N-Needless to say, we're fine."

"Oh? What about Mondo?" Kyoko frowns a bit. "Has he not…?"

"Er, no." I quickly wave her off. "Its fine though! Now that Taka realized it, I'm pretty sure he'll be actively pulling me into their conversations now. It isn't a big deal!"

"...I see." Kyoko looks perplexed for a split second before sighing. "Well, he's never been the most observant. I suppose its to be expected."

I flinch a little at the detective's blunt observation. Ever the honest one. "I-I know he isn't, which is why I'm not mad. Its just a little…"

"The fact that Taka noticed before him is a sad statement." She deadpans.

I sigh. Bullseye.

Kyoko falls silent for a beat or two, clearly thinking about something. "...May I suggest something? I'm not the most well-versed when it comes to situations like this, but… I may have an idea as to how you can get his attention."

"No, that isn't… necessary. I already said it was fine. So-" I end up cutting myself off. As his friend… I don't want to be ignored by him. I'd like for us to hang out like we always do! If Kyoko has a plan, then… I may as well hear her out. "Well… what exactly do you have in mind?"

"You'll see in a bit. Coincidentally, this helps with a problem I was having as well." She suddenly stops. "I'll explain in more depth after we finish up here."

"Here?…Oh!" Sure enough, we ended up talking the whole walk over. The store is small, but I feel strange for not having noticed it before; its bright, with outfits and accessories lining the walls and storefront. Ibuki and Hina are inside already, talking to the clerk.

"...yes, our prices do include the materials- Ah!" She smiles at us from her spot behind the counter. "Welcome! I'll be with you shortly-"

"Oh, no no. They're with us!" Ibuki cheers. "Like we said! A whole big group costume! With frills and sparkles and everything!"

"I see…" The clerk scans over all of us, nodding to herself slightly. "Alright, definitely doable! Come in, come in! I'll need to get a better look at all of you to see what I'm working with here!"

The four of us step forward, standing side-by-side with Ibuki and Hina.

The clerk takes out a pad of paper and hurriedly starts scribbling down notes. "So, there are six of you total… and you want the costumes to match each other. We'd need to make some tiaras and berets to go with your outfits… which scouts were you going for, exactly?"

"T-The original five plus Mini Moon…" I answer. She nods, scribbling my answer down.

"Mini Moon and Sailor Moon's outfits are the most detailed of the lot, though not by much… How soon do you need these done?"

"The week before the week of Halloween!" Hina chirps, nodding. "They absolutely need to be done by then."

"That shouldn't be an issue!" The clerk's pen blazes across the notepad as she talks. "So, including labor, materials, and a small finders fee for the matching shoes… this should be your total!"

She presents Hina the notepad with a flourish. "Alright! Let's see he-" The swimmer all but freezes in place when faced with the dreaded price. As expected, it's probably way out of her price range.

I move to take a peek at the damage, but Kyoko smoothly takes the notepad from Hina's hands. "Cost isn't an issue." Not even sparing a glance at the actual number, Kyoko slides the notepad back to the clerk and produces something from her coat pocket. "Spare no expense when it comes to these outfits. I'll accept no less than your very best work."

The woman's jaw drops at the sight of what Kyoko hands her next. Hina snaps out of her stupor to gape at the tiny rectangle along with the rest of us.

"A black card…!? A real one!? I've only seen those in movies!" Hina leans over the counter and looks at the object in the clerk's hands, awestruck. "It even has your name on it, Kyoko! What the gack!?"

"Its a card my father had given me for school expenses." She answers easily. "Is this form of payment acceptable here?" The clerk shoots her a dubious look as she walks over to the register to swipe it, but her face immediately lights up when the card clears.

"Of course, Ms. Kirigiri!" She chirps, handing the card back to the detective. "Only the finest! Since we have you all here, let's go ahead and get your measurements! I'll be right back with my things!"

As the clerk disappears into the back, I can't help but feel apprehensive. "Kyoko, is this really okay…? Won't your dad get mad?"

"The contest is being hosted by the school. I see no reason why I shouldn't be able to use it for costumes." Kyoko turns back towards us, her expression unreadable. "I've never used this card until today, either. He will have no reason to complain."

"Kyoko, you're a god!" Starry-eyed, Hina grabs both of Kyoko's gloved hands in her own. "A hero! There's no way my measly pocket change would have covered my part…!"

"It isn't an issue." The detective looks slightly flustered at Hina's proximity, but she doesn't pull away. "I'm only doing what I can to help. That said… I'll be taking the roll of Sailor Mercury as payment. I have no desire to be the center of attention."

"Bawh, fine!" Ibuki puffs out her cheeks a bit. "You're forcing Ibuki to abolish the no-wig rule! Ibuki won't allow you to cut off your luscious locks! No way, no how!"

"I… wouldn't cut off my hair regardless."

I nudge Peko a little, smiling up at her. "I guess that means you're going to be Sailor Moon, then! Lucky you."

"..." Her expression doesn't change, but I think I see her cheeks dust the faintest shade of pink. "I… I suppose that's alright."

"This is so, so exciting! I can't believe it! This is going to be the best Halloween ever! It all happened so quickly too…!" Hina is practically vibrating from her place next to Kyoko. "Ohhh man, but now we won't have anything else to do after this! I was planning on trying to find stuff to work as accessories and stuff, but she's totally handling all that!"

"Isn't that a good thing, Hina?" Sakura still looks uncomfortable with the situation as she finally speaks up. "We'll have far less to worry about now."

"I mean, yeah, but…" She puffs out her cheeks in a pout. "Its super lame that we're gonna end our day out early. Like, we drove here in a limo! Isn't it blasphemous just to go back immediately?"

"Ah, in regards to that…" Kyoko holds up her black card, tapping it with her index finger. "How about we get an early dinner? I have something I'd like to do afterwards as well. We can discuss it once we're done here."

"Is it truly alright for you to be using that card, Kyoko…?" Sakura's brows furrow as she voices her concern. "I would hate it if you got in trouble for treating us to such frivolous things."

Kyoko merely shakes her head again as the clerk steps out from the back. "Like I said, I'll explain everything in detail once we're done here."

I glance towards the detective as she turns around to talk to the woman. Kyoko had said the same thing to me not minutes ago, and yet… I can't shake this feeling I have. Could she really be…?

"...Simply put, I'm doing this because I need to."

We're all seated at a circular table of a pretty nice restaurant in the mall. After the clerk took our measurements, we made a B-line over here to hear Kyoko's reason for being so liberal with that credit card.

"But why?" I ask. "I don't really understand it at all… what reason could you have for doing this all of the sudden?"

Kyoko sighs. Her emotions always seem to poke through when her father is involved; her usually stoic expression is pretty stormy at this moment.

"All I can say without going into specifics is that I find that man to be incredibly frustrating. There's a certain situation I've been trying to look into, but he's doing everything in his power to dodge my questions." A gloved hand taps on the table in an almost rhythmic way. "This is my solution to the problem. If I spend enough on this card, he'll have no choice but to confront me about it… assuming he's even halfway responsible with the school's funds."

"And if it doesn't work?" Peko asks. "He may very well just give you a warning without much fuss."

"...I'm aware." Kyoko looks away from us to flag down a waiter. "Even so, he's forced my hand in this situation."

I stare at the detective, who still refuses to turn towards us. It seems like my hunch from earlier was right.

She's absolutely doing this to be petty.

There's no way she'd ever admit to it, but… I can't explain it any other way. She wants to get back at him for being difficult, so she's blowing a lot of money trying to make him mad.

Who knew she could be so… vindictive?

I jump when she turns back towards us and our eyes meet. I whip my gaze away as soon as I can, but there's no way she didn't notice me staring. The waiter she flagged takes our orders and wanders off.

"...That said, this does bring me to the second thing I wanted to discuss with you lot." Kyoko laces her fingers together and rests her chin on them. "After this, we're going to be going clothes shopping."

"Clothes… shopping?" I ask. Kyoko nods. "Why though?"

"This is my solution to your problem." She answers. "I'm not certain it will work, but… an eye-catching outfit may very well get him to notice you-"

"Wait a second…" Kyoko lifts an eyebrow at my interruption. "How is that going to-!?"

A loud smack cuts off my train of thought off with a start. All eyes whip over to our resident Swimmer, who had unceremoniously smacked both her hands down on the table.

"Ch-Chihiro…" Hina looks like someone shot her puppy. "How could you do this to me…?"

"W-What? Do what?" Completely flustered, I stare at the now teary-eyed swimmer. "What did I do?"

"You… you have a crush! And you didn't tell me!?" She looks absolutely crestfallen, as if this news is the worst thing she could have possibly heard. "That is so not cool…"

"Eh…!? No!" I frantically shake my head. "That's not it at all!"

"Ah, I suppose I should have explained the situation better before bringing it up. My apologies." The detective nods towards me. "You may not have noticed it Hina, but Chihiro has been upset this entire past week due to both Mondo and Taka ignoring her."

"Wait, seriously…?" Hina takes a sip of her drink as she mulls over the detective's words. "…Thinking about it, that's totally right! Usually Mondo talks to everyone, but he's been glued to Taka all week!"

"Exactly. Taka realized his error and apologized, but the same can't be said for Mondo." Kyoko affirms. "I decided to offer Chihiro my assistance after I noticed she was still bothered by his lack of self-awareness."

"Okay, but while that does seem to be rather kind of you…" Peko chimes in, looking at the detective with measured coolness. "What will a new outfit do for Chihiro's situation?"

"The idea is to make him aware of Chihiro once more." She closes her eyes. "He's been so focused on his new friendship that he's essentially been blind to everything else. If we make Chihiro stand out more than she usually does, then he'll be forcibly ripped away from this blind spot he seems to be in.."

"..." Peko hums. "I see. The reasoning doesn't sound too bad."

I"Wait, what!?" How does that make any sense at all? That sounds completely pointless! "You agree with her?"

Sakura crosses her arms. "While I usually do not approve of underhanded tactics, I feel like its wise to be subtle when approaching this issue. If he were told directly that he's been ignoring Chihiro, he'd deny it for certain."

"Woah, why not take it a step further then!?" Ibuki asks, sparkly-eyed. "Let's dress Chihiro in some swanky new duds and have her hang out with other people! Mr. Gangsterman will be totally jelly!"

"H-Hold on…" I start. "I'm not trying to make him jealous, I just-!"

"Amazing idea, Ibuki!" Hina shoots her a thumbs-up. "We need to show him exactly what he was missing out on! He shouldn't be ignoring Chihiro; someone else may come along and sweep her off her feet!"

"You're perverting the subject!" I blurt. "W-we're not like that!"

Sakura hums a bit. "Even if you're not, that doesn't mean he still won't become jealous in a friendly sense. I do believe its worth a shot."

I almost want to cry. "Et tu, Brutus…?" Sakura cracks a smile at me in response.

"Its settled then." Kyoko nods, faint smirk on her face. "We'll pick out an outfit for Chihiro after this, and then somehow lure him to the front of the school upon our return. The next step may not happen immediately, but…"

"Ibuki gets it!" She all but screams, earning the attention of most everyone in the restaurant. "Once Mondo-a-go-go is totally aware of her again, he's gonna ask her to hang out! And whenever that happens…!"

"She'll reject him in favor of hanging out with someone else." Peko finishes, nodding to herself. "It seems as though we're all on the same page."

"Excellent." I look over to the mastermind of this heinous plan. There's a bit of mischief in her lavender eyes that I've never seen before, and frankly…

I'm not a fan of it!

"You're all terrible…!" I cradle my head in my hands. "There's no way this is going to go well!"

A/N: Ahh man, it feels good to get an update out for this one! My job had kept me so busy this first part of the year that I barely had time to think straight... I'm totally free for the time being though, so hopefully I can crank out some good chapters before life starts sucking me back in! See you all next time!