Hikari's Perspective
Hikari stood frozen in the doorway of the Council Room, her breath still ragged from her sprint. The scene before her was not what she had braced for. There was no confrontation, no polished debate. There was only Hoshino Shizuka, the school's perfect princess, sitting in the piercing sunlight, her head bowed, her body trembling with the effort of containing a silent, furious storm of tears.
The sight was shocking, but in its wake came a flood of understanding, cold and clear.
Kaito had been here.
He had listened to whatever she said.
And then he had left.
The victory Hoshino had tried to claim in their earlier conversation was a lie. Whatever she had said to Kaito, whatever demand or warning she had issued, had not just been rejected. It had been dismantled so thoroughly that it broke her polished composure into this raw, emotional wreckage. Hikari hadn't needed to defend their friendship. Kaito had done it. Decisively.
The tight knot of confusion and doubt Shizuka had tied in her chest loosened and vanished. She hadn't been saved from embarrassment. Their friendship had been saved, defended by the one person whose opinion on it actually mattered.
Hikari didn't say a word. She simply stepped back, pulling the Council Room door closed with a soft, final click, leaving the vice president to her private devastation. The hallway air felt different—lighter. She knew exactly where she needed to go.
She found him on the roof, just as she'd expected. He was sitting on their usual bench, his lunchbox open beside him, eating with his characteristic, methodical calm. The wind ruffled his dark hair. He looked utterly untouched by the emotional typhoon he had just left in the Council Room.
For a moment, she just watched him, this boy who wielded silence and truth like a shield and a sword. Then, she walked over and sat down on the bench beside him, leaving a careful, respectful space between them.
He didn't look surprised. He simply finished his bite, set his chopsticks down, and waited.
"I guess," Hikari began, her voice quieter than she intended, "I owe you once again. Thanks."
Kaito turned his head to look at her fully. His gaze was steady, clear, completely free of the anger she now knew he had unleashed moments ago. "Why are you even saying thanks?" he asked, his tone matter-of-fact. "It was Hoshino who misused her authority and power. I had just cleared up a nonsense rumor. That's all."
Cleared up a nonsense rumor. The sheer, breathtaking understatement of it made a startled laugh bubble up in Hikari's throat. It was a real laugh, short and sharp, cutting through the last of her tension.
"You said you were 'clearing it up'?" she said, a wry smile touching her lips. "Instead, you just added more fuel to the rumor mill, you know. The 'Solitary King' getting summoned by the 'Princess' and then storming out? People are probably writing novels about it downstairs."
A faint, almost imperceptible shrug lifted Kaito's shoulder. He picked up his chopsticks again. "Who cares about rumors?"
It wasn't a dismissal of her concern; it was a statement of principle. The social noise of the school held no power over his reality. He took another bite, chewed thoughtfully, and then spoke again, his voice lowering slightly.
"I have a request."
Hikari nodded, her smile fading into seriousness. "What is it?"
"Don't tell anyone what happened. About the Vice President. She misused her power, and that was wrong. But she is still the Vice Council President. Exposing this would cause unnecessary chaos for the council and the school. It's not worth it."
Hikari considered it. The part of her that was still the prickly "Ice Queen" wanted to see Shizuka face some consequence for her manipulative little speech. But the larger part—the part that had just felt the solid ground of Kaito's loyalty beneath her feet—understood. This wasn't about protecting Shizuka. It was about integrity, about not stooping to her level, and about choosing peace over drama. It was a very Kaito request.
"Alright," Hikari agreed simply. "I won't say anything."
"Good." He offered her the other half of a perfectly cut tamagoyaki from his lunchbox, balanced on a disposable chopstick. A silent peace offering, a return to normalcy.
She accepted it. The sweet, layered egg tasted like certainty.
The lunch bell rang too soon, its electronic chirp scattering the quiet of the roof. They packed up in a comfortable, synchronized silence and walked back inside, down the stairs, toward their classroom.
The difference was palpable. Before, the stares had been shocked, curious. Now, they were intense, searching, almost hungry. Eyes followed their every move from lockers and hallway corners. Whispers trailed them like shadows. The rumor mill was, as Hikari predicted, operating at full capacity. Did they have a fight? Did Hoshino-senpai break them up? Why did Sato-senpai look so angry leaving the council room? Why does Tanaka-san look so… calm?
Hikari felt the weight of every gaze, but for the first time, it didn't feel like judgment pressing down on her. It felt like irrelevant static buzzing around a private, unshakable signal. She glanced at Kaito, walking beside her. His expression was its usual, impenetrable calm, but his posture was relaxed. He didn't speed up or slow down to avoid the attention. He simply moved through it, unconcerned.
As they reached their classroom door, he held it open for her, a small, automatic gesture. Another wave of whispers crested behind them.
She walked in, head held high, not with Ice Queen defiance, but with a new, quiet confidence. The eyes of their classmates were on them, trying to decipher the mystery.
But the answer wasn't in the rumors. It was in the cleared air between them, in a protected secret, and in a shared, silent understanding that was now stronger than any unwanted council or curious stare could ever break.
(End of Chapter 18)