Hyouka
Title: Liar
Summary: Mayaka wonders why he even bothers to avoid the truth. -Houtarou/Eru/Mayaka
Disclaimer: I own nothing save this story.
~0~
Mayaka first notices it during the summer.
She knows Oreki Houtarou values honesty over almost everything else; it saves heaps of precious (to him, anyway) time and energy from trying to concoct an alibi or an excuse, trying to not let your face betray anything that will give yourself away. Being honest, frank, and straightforward have been the traits that drew Fuku-chan and Chi-chan to him, that made her grudgingly accept his existence on earth.
But maybe sometimes, she thinks, honesty is the last thing on his mind.
"Quit slacking."
Oreki doesn't even blink. The nerve of him.
"I'm not slacking," comes his dead riposte, turning away from what he was openly gaping at. "I found a marble, so I came here to throw it away."
Mayaka almost rolls her eyes. "Oh, really?"
~0~
"Oreki, how did you do it?" she hesitantly queries him one day at the clubroom after Fuku-chan merrily left to go sewing and Chi-chan went home early. The coast is clear. "I know you did something."
Slowly turning away from the window, Oreki acknowledges her question with a tilt of the head and a raise of an eyebrow.
"The anthologies," she says, thinking it is enough.
It is. Oreki replies, "I didn't."
She sees Hyouka for sale online when she logs on to Kamiyama High School's official website two days later.
~0~
"I'm sorry, Chi-chan!" Mayaka bows her head. "I knew all along who stole my chocolate!" The word stole leaves a bitter taste on her tongue as she tries to quell the onslaught of emotion that wants to take her.
"Huh?"
At that Mayaka feels sorry for not letting Chi-chan in the loop at first, her anger at Fuku-chan momentarily left to its own devices as she explains, "After Valentine's Day last year, I told Fuku-chan that I'd wait until he gave me an answer.
"Today was supposed to be that day he gave it."
"Then your chocolate…"
"Fuku-chan probably already has it." Chi-chan's surprise hits her hard in an odd way; she must have thought initially that Fuku-chan would never be the type to do that to her. That he did so brings Mayaka back to her rage. She let him get away. Again.
The rage then becomes overwhelmed with sadness.
"I see…"
"I'm sorry that I ended up hiding it from you."
"Don't worry about it! It's my fault for making such a fuss about it." The expression on Chi-chan's face is nothing short of understanding and embarrassment, and – once again – she takes the blame for blowing things out of proportion on her shoulders. In an ordinary day Mayaka would have protested, but this afternoon the words are a blessing. Mayaka thanks the gods for letting her have a comrade like Chitanda Eru.
"So, when Oreki-san said someone from the Astronomy club took it…"
Ah, Mayaka thinks. He's always at the top of his game when it comes to Chi-chan. "I'm sure he's just lying to cover for Fuku-chan," she decides. But then again, he's also a step lower.
Mayaka isn't sure whether or not the blush on Chi-chan's face sprouted from the cold. "I see."
She continues. "But how could Fukube-san be so mean as to pretend they were stolen?"
"I know, right?! It pisses me off so much!" Mayaka shakes her head angrily. "But what pisses me of the most is that I still love him!" The admission is not lost in Chi-chan, she thinks sourly, and although she's never kept her affections for Fuku-chan a secret, the uncensored confession on her part apparently still astounds her flighty friend. She likes to think of herself as many shades better than Oreki when it comes to being true to herself.
Mayaka offers Chi-chan, with as much grace as possible, to stuff their faces with cake. Chi-chan indulges with a smile.
~0~
It is the first week of May. The fact that it is as hot as June bothers her very much, and wonders whether anyone would be staying at the clubroom under this heat. And by clubroom she means the Geography Prep Room, the Classic's Club base of operations. She just quitted the Manga Society; she slightly longs for the better ventilation the Society's clubroom offers, the hostile environment surrounding her and her senpais even less.
She is surprised to see Oreki inside the clubroom, his upper half sprawled against most of the wooden table haphazardly. He is the last person she expects to see.
She pushes his arms away, giving herself some space to place her bag on top. Oreki stirs reluctantly.
"I thought you would've gone home by now." Mayaka sniffs, glaring at the weary way he cranes his neck to face her. "Why are you here?"
"Why are you?"
Mayaka doesn't dignify the question with an answer. She crosses her arms disdainfully. "Geez, you're as irritating as ever. Seriously, I thought by spring break you would have shed that annoying attitude of yours."
She expects him to say "Sorry to disappoint" or something along those lines. But his expression becomes unreadable when he asks her, "What do you mean?", and Mayaka is lost for a while, feeling as if it is the first time he has ever asked something to her.
It takes a second before she answers. "I mean, you should have mellowed out of your shell by now after, you know, after everything. After Chi-chan – "
"Did Chitanda say something?" Is she imagining it, the flicker of light that flashes in Oreki's mossy eyes?
"No," Mayaka replies, measuring her words perfectly. They are sixteen now, a second year. Some things may have changed. "Why? Did something happen to the two of you?"
"Nothing happened."
Oreki returns to his slumber, and Mayaka lets him win this time.
~0~
"Well?" Mayaka exclaims. "Are you going to say something to her?"
"Say something to who?"
"Ugh. You're such a snooze. Forget it."
~0~
The fact that the slug is considering going to college is mind-boggling. The fact that the slug is considering majoring in business is inconceivable.
Mayaka feels her eyes bulge as large as saucers when she sees Oreki's college application papers. "What?!"
Oreki briefly lets his annoyance show. "For the love of god, how come everybody does that?" he groans audibly.
She examines the papers with absolute care, taking it as a sign of an impending apocalypse. "You're seriously considering taking up business? Are you nuts?"
"I can't see why my course choice indicates the loss of my sanity – "
"Why?"
It takes a long time – even for him, she notices – for Oreki to respond. "It's the easiest way for me to go, I guess."
She studies him carefully. "You're really serious about this."
He shrugs.
She knows now. She stops talking for a moment, the realization jarring her. It's ludicrous to think that Oreki wanted even an ounce of responsibility, but he's not exactly acting like the pain in the butt she knew in middle school. Now, Oreki is anything but thoughtless. This she gradually, painstakingly acknowledges.
Has Fuku-chan also changed this much?
"Chi-chan says she's still deciding between agricultural sciences and chemical engineering. Something about helping her family out". She gauges whether this will prompt a response out of him.
It does, and she sees it. "Yeah, she mentioned about something like that last spring," he replies. To someone else those words mean nothing.
"You know," Mayaka starts again, remembering his little remark about Chi-chan back at the Juumoji incident. She eyes the B Business Administration & Accountancy written in blank ink."There are a lot of ways you can do. You don't have to go all out."
He frowns at this. "Maybe." He looks out at the window and watches the track team march its way towards the relay warm-up. He sighs.
"I do what I have to do," he mumbles.
The problem is she's not someone I can ignore.
This she understands.
~0~
"I can't believe this."
"Hmm?"
"How did you do it, Oreki? Did you hypnotize her? Drug her? Got her drunk? Whisky bonbons?"
"… No."
"Liar."
~0~