Chapter 5

The pain Akane felt in her being was constant and biting. Whereas before, the bitter coldness she'd endured for so long had left her numb, her brief time spent basking in the warmth of her Senpai now left her truly feeling the arctic sting of her own despair. There were officially no more barriers to cross. All she had left holding back the tide of her own insanity, her own destruction, now, was the vain hope that somehow, some way, she could convince her torturer, the woman who had taken her everything away from her, to see reason, to take pity.

It was all but hopeless. How could this girl possibly understand? Sana had everything in life, designer schoolbags, a gorgeous figure, more power and popularity than she could possibly know what to do with. How could Akane expect someone like that to take her seriously?

And yet, there was this faint echo in her mind, a slight draft through the door so firmly shut around her conscience, that wanted Akane to try and find a peaceful resolution to this anguish she now lived in. In truth, she did not wish her pain inflicted on others, even someone as miserable and fake as Nijio-senpai. Which was why she was determined to hold back the tide of viciousness and mayhem forming within her being, if only for just long enough to at least talk to her bitter rival, woman to woman.

It was too much to hope, but maybe, just maybe, she would understand.

Akane followed Sana that day and had to watch as she clung to her beloved Senpai's arm all throughout their classes. It was killing her, watching them laugh together, listening to that obnoxious trill in her giggling. Sana was making him smile, and she hated it! It should have been her doing that!

Yet still, she maintained her composure and waited until Nijio-senpai was finally alone. At first, she didn't approach. Akane needed to see for herself what it was that made this girl so much better than her. Yet, for the life of her, she just couldn't see it. Sure she had money, sure she was a natural blonde, even if her hair completely disregarded the dress code, sure she had a voluptuous figure and those absurdly large breasts, but that couldn't be it, right? That couldn't be all it takes to win someone like Caleb's heart, could it? He wasn't like lesser men. Her Senpai was distinguished and cultured; just one look, and she could see his brilliance.

Could this bitch see it? No, no, she couldn't. Akane refused to believe that. But she had to try, regardless. As furious as she was, as distraught as Akane had become, she needed to at least try to save what little humanity she had left.

Before she set the monster, this world had turned her into loose.

It was up on the roof of the school where Akane decided to finally confront her rival. Sana was speaking phone with someone, planning something for later that night with family or some such. The details were unimportant to her. All that mattered was this talk. She needed Nijio-senpai to hear what she had to say more than anything else at that moment.

"No, no. I don't think that will be necessary. I'm more than capable of..."

As Sana slowly turned around, she came face to face with Akane's dead, vacant expression. With a curious tilt of her head, she considered this bizarre girl with a slightly judgmental glint in her eyes. Akane felt she should have been enraged, but the truth was she had passed that threshold some time ago.

"Daddy, I'll call you back. Something's come up." Sana hung up her phone and placed it in her purse before folding her arms. "Can I help you?"

She didn't respond. Sana's judgmental gaze turned into a suspicious glare.

"Is there something you wanted to say or not? Because if you're just going to stand there staring at me like a creep, I'm gonna leave."

Finally, Akane willed her voice to speak up.

"You're...Nijio-senpai...from Class 3-B, correct?"

Her expression seemed to soften somewhat as she nodded. "I am. And who might you be?"

She took a deep, shaky breath to keep her voice even. "I don't expect you'll know me. I'm Toriyasu Akane, one of your juniors."

Again, she narrowed her eyes. "Actually, I think I do know you. One of the teachers mentioned your name." She thought about it for a moment. "Yes, yes. I remember now. You're top of your class grades-wise."

She turned her gaze away.

"Principle Kobaya speaks very highly of you," Sana admitted, seemingly returning to a modicum of friendliness. "He says you're a model student...if a bit of a social recluse."

Again, Akane chose to remain silent.

"So what is it you want, Toriyasu?"

She clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white. "I'd...I'd like to ask you a question."

Sana raised a brow. "Okay. What is it?"

Akane peered directly into her eyes, a hint of desperation in her gaze.

"What is your relationship with Barlow-Senpai?"

She seemed surprised at first, hearing his name like that from another girl. Though soon after, Sana's surprised look turned into a slightly impish grin. With that same fake, bubbly voice, she giggled before clasping both her hands to her chest.

"Barlow-kun and I are kindred spirits. The bond we share is something truly special. Something unique." Her bubbly demeanor faded, replaced with that same impish, slightly catty grin of hers. "Something...that a clueless kouhai like you couldn't possibly hope to understand."

Akane's body went rigid, and her blood turned to ice water in her veins.

"Tonight, I plan to show him just how deep our bond truly runs. We're taking our relationship to the next level."

Her stomach twisted and wrenched in agony as her whole being unraveled at the seams.

"I'm sorry if you have feelings for him. But I'm afraid your Senpai is already taken," she apologized with blatantly false sincerity. "We're going on our first date together as soon as the final bell rings. And tonight?" She snickered. "Well, I am a lady, so I won't go into detail. But rest assured, it will not be a night he's soon to forget."

Akane's skin was completely drained of color, cold and lifeless.

"In any case, I better be going. Barlow-kun is waiting for me by the cherry blossom trees."

She turned to leave, only making it a few feet before Akane stopped her.

"Please don't...."

Sana came to a stop and spun back around, glaring at her.

"I don't just have feelings for him," Akane admitted, her voice pitiful. "It's more than that. I've never felt this way about anyone before. He...he completes me. He makes me feel alive, whereas before, I felt nothing. I just...I just can't bear the thought of losing that."

She bowed her head humbly to her senior.

"I know what I'm asking of you is selfish, Nijio-senpai, but...please...take pity on your wretched kouhai. A woman as pretty as you, as popular as you, can have anything she desires. But this? This is the only thing in the whole world I desire."

Sana continued to quietly stare at her as she spoke, her gaze completely unreadable at that moment.

"So please...don't take him away from me. Let me be the one to try and win Senpai's heart."

A long silence followed. Akane had just poured her heart out to this woman, yet she said nothing. Not a word.

Until finally, Sana burst into a fit of cruel, hysterical laughter.

"So that's it then?" she snickered under her breath. "My my..."

Her smile turned truly malevolent as she began speaking in perfect English.

"...you poor, naive, little fool."

Akane gasped in horror, her heart-shattering at that moment. This girl spoke fluent English! They'd been speaking in English together! That was supposed to be her thing with Senpai. It was their special language!

"Did you really think he had feelings for you? Why? Because he was kind to you? Because you shared a meal together?"

There was not a single trace of that bubbly blonde from before. Whoever this woman was, she had genuine venom in her voice.

"He doesn't love you. A man like him isn't even capable of loving someone like you."

Every word from her mouth was like a knife being wrenched in Akane's heart.

"Don't think I can't see right through your desperate little attempts to gain his attention. Your clownish makeup. The way you leave your blazer open to show off...what exactly?"

She slowly sauntered up to Akane, her hands on her hips, that same cold, spiteful look in her eyes.

"And then there was that obvious love letter you were about to give him. It wouldn't have worked. Caleb will never reciprocate your feelings. If anything..."

She slowly leaned into Akane's ear and whispered.

"...he pities you."

Something inside Akane snapped as her whole body began to tremble violently.

"Now take some advice from your benevolent senpai...." Her malevolent grin turned into a vicious scowl. "...and stay in your lane, little girl."

Akane looked completely distraught, her bottom lip quivering, tears streaming down her face, eyes wide with her own completely broken madness.

"I hope I've made myself clear." She finally backed away, speaking in a more formal tone. "Caleb is off limits to you. You're better off not thinking about him anymore."

With that same malevolent grin, she then added.

"Your Senpai already belongs to me."

Sana turned and walked away, leaving her completely shattered and heartbroken kouhai on the roof. Akane's voice hitched as the whole world went dead around her. She couldn't hear anything anymore, not the school, not the sounds of her own heartbeat, nothing.

Nothing...except the screaming in her head.

Her eyes bulged as a psychotic smile stretched across her face. Akane clenched her fists so tightly her nails drew blood. From the back of her throat, an unstable chuckle began to build. This built into ruckus, unhinged laughter as she collapsed onto her knees, tugging at her hair. She laughed hysterically, louder than she'd ever laughed before in her entire life.

To think she'd been so honest and so open with this woman, only for her to take those feelings and throw them right back in her face. Of course, she'd been expecting her to deny Akane the one thing that gave her life purpose. But she never in a million years expected such a virulent response. This world...cared nothing for her. Absolutely nothing. Peace was never going to be an option, and she could see that now.

Very well. Murder it would be then.