How to Survive a Yandere Relationship
Summary: After ten weeks of careful manipulation, Ayano finally won Taro's heart. But Taro already suspected Ayano's dark secret and decides to use it to his advantage…
-o0o-
Chapter 1
Friday, 6pm
"Aishi-chan, I have never heard a more beautiful, heartfelt confession before. Granted, no one has confessed to me before, but your confession was just perfect." Taro said, wiping a tear from his eye. Ayano had just confessed her love to him under the sakura tree. As an avid reader of literature (and manga), it takes a lot to move Taro.
"Thank you, Senpai! Your opinion means so much to me!" Ayano said happily. "Do you love it?"
"Yes, I do. Write it down so I can remember it." Taro said. "I'm sorry for not noticing you earlier. I should have realized that I was loved so much by another girl."
"It's fine! I was too nervous to even talk to you beforehand." Ayano said. She embraced Taro, hugging him tightly.
"I'm glad you're are finally mine!"
'Info-chan's claims are looking true.' Taro thought, taking in Ayano's sweet scent in. 'Ayano a yandere? How…interesting…'
3 weeks back, Info-chan texted Taro that bit of information after Osoro murdered Mei Mio before killing herself. This was after the deaths of Amai, Oka, and Asu, who were all found murdered. Everybody, including himself, was quick to blame the leader of the delinquents, seeing her reputation for extortion, fighting, and other activities as proof. The deaths of Kizana and Megami however, were accidents. Kizana was killed by a falling stage light and Megami was electrocuted in the bathroom. Perhaps these accidents were also murders…
"How about a date to Sishuta-town?" Taro asked. "I always wanted to know more about you."
Ayano let go of Taro, giving him an expression of extreme joy.
"I would love to!" She said excitedly.
"I'll pick you up at the school at 19:00."
"Wonderful!"
Taro and Ayano walked together home. Once they reached Taro's home, Taro bade Ayano good-bye as she reluctantly let him go. Taro dropped off his stuff in his room before heading to the kitchen.
"Hey, Mom. I'm home." Taro said.
"How was school, dear?" She asked.
"It was great. I did well on my Calculus test and I got a girlfriend." Taro answered with a grin. Taro's mother beamed in delight.
"Congratulations, Taro!" She said. "Now both of our children are in happy relationships. Who is the lucky girl?"
"Her name is Ayano Aishi. She was totally in love with me and confessed to me under the sakura tree with an amazing poem." Taro said. "She is really quite charming."
"She wrote you a love poem?"
"Yes."
"Ooh! She really must love you! Such girls are really hard to find. Ayano sounds like she's a keeper." Taro's mom said.
'You have no idea.' Taro thought.
"Don't lose her. You'll never know if you could find another."
"We're going on a date later tonight to Sishuta-town."
"Wonderful! Have fun and watch your driving." Taro's mom said before turning back to her cooking. Taro nodded and went to his room. He changed out of his school uniform and put on nicer clothes. After combing his hair and spraying some cologne, Taro grabbed his wallet and car keys and headed out. Thankfully, Taro's father had not arrived yet, allowing Taro to back out his car without impediment. He drove to the school's front gate and waited. It was half past six and Ayano hadn't arrived yet. Taro parked his car off to the side and waited, keeping his eye out for his new girlfriend. After fifteen minutes, Ayano showed up, wearing a beautiful black dress with a small purse on her shoulder.
"You're early, Senpai!" Ayano said adoringly. "I admire a man who's on top of things (like me)."
"What was that last part?" Taro asked, smirking.
"N-Nothing." Ayano said sheepishly.
"Hop in."
Ayano opened the passenger side door and sat inside. Taro drove away from the school to the neighboring town. After a half hour, the couple reached Shisuta, which was several miles down the coast. Taro parked the car on the side of the street, close to a decent restaurant.
"How does dinner sound like?" He asked. "There is a nice seafood place just down the road."
"Perfect!" Ayano said. "You have the best ideas."
The pair walked down the sidewalk and arrived at the restaurant. It didn't seem particularly busy tonight. The waitress at the front greeted Taro and Ayano.
"Welcome to Kyogi's. How many?" She asked.
"Two. A couple's table please?" Taro said. The waitress gave a nod and motioned the two to follow. They got a table outside near the sea. The waitress laid out the menus before going away. Taro looked at his menu as Ayano continued to gaze at him.
"Aren't you going to order something?" Taro asked.
"I'm going to have whatever you're having…" Ayano replied dreamily.
"Okay…" Taro said skeptically. Another, younger, waitress came, holding a notpad.
"May I take your order?" She asked. Taro and Ayano placed their orders, but not before Taro noticed Ayano's dirty look at the waitress.
'Uh oh. Better stop her before she does something.' Taro thought. He placed his hand on Ayano's, breaking her glare off the waitress with a squeak.
"She's not worth it, darling. Let it go." Taro said lowly.
"Sorry, Senpai." Ayano said apologetically before resuming her gaze on Taro. Dinner proceeded without further incident. Once the bill was paid for, Taro and Ayano took a stroll along the seaside. The night had fully set in by this time and there was no one else in sight.
"So Ayano." Taro said. "I want to know more about you. This is our first date after all. What do you like to do?"
"I like to read manga." She replied, internally tensing. Despite keeping her composure on the outside, she was feeling pressured to answer the questions without looking creepy. She hated lying to her future husband, but it has to be done.
"Me too! My favorite is 'Mirai Nikki.' It was quite interesting to see how the relationship between the two main characters progressed." Taro said off-handedly. "I always wonder what I would do if I was in a relationship with a yandere. Life would certainly be interesting."
'Shit! Does he know!? Play it cool, Ayano. Play it cool.' Ayano thought. 'Maybe Senpai won't reject me because of his preference.'
Ayano and Taro continued to chat as they began to make their way back to the car. Just as they were about to reach it, the couple were ambushed by a lone mugger armed with a baseball bat.
"Hand over your valuables, or else your skulls get bashed in." The mugger demanded angrily. Taro tensed and prepared himself to run. Ayano, however, reacted differently. Her eyes went dark and her mouth sneered viciously. Only one thought ran through her mind.
'Protect Senpai.'
With the speed of a devil, Ayano pulled out a kitchen knife and stabbed the mugger in the neck, taking advantage of his surprise. The mugger dropped his bat and collapsed as Ayano pulled out the knife and wiped it on his sleeve.
"Don't you dare threaten my Senpai in front of me!" Ayano screeched as the mugger bled out and lost consciousness. "I hope you burn in hell!"
Taro stood there in shock and confusion before becoming expressionless.
"Get in the car." Taro said firmly.
"Taro…?" Ayano said quietly as she began to realize the implications of her actions.
"Ayano, get in the car." Taro said. "We will talk about this later."
'Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT!' Ayano thought as she got in the car. She was shaking with fear as Taro drove back home, his face still not showing emotion.
'I saw the yan Ayano and I am both terrified and amazed. Now I'm sure Ayano is a yandere. So cool!' Taro thought. 'Huh. She shaking with fear. She must think I'm going to reject her.'
Once they returned to Buraza-town, Taro parked in front of Akademi and got out.
"Taro! Please don't leave me! I can't live without you!" Ayano cried as she clung on to Taro's arm. "I promise I will be better for you! I'll do anything!"
"You know, dear Ayano, you should really be careful about using that phrase. Who knows what kind of people would abuse that." Taro said, before smirking. "I have no intentions of leaving you, Yan-chan. I want to live to a ripe old age, unlike the six girls you killed. Besides, your devotion is quite attractive, even if it leads to someone else's murder."
Ayano stopped crying and began to calm down when Taro kissed her. She returned it eagerly, almost desperately.
"Senpai…kissed…me…." Ayano whispered after they broke away. Before she could explode into happiness, Taro began to speak.
"Ayano, promise me something." He said.
"An-anything." Ayano stuttered quietly.
"Please… don't kill any more people… don't spill any more blood." Taro said sadly. "I'm grateful that you let Osana and Hanako live. But too many have been killed by your hand in my name."
"I d-don't know, Senpai. What if another slut comes along to steal you away from me?" Ayano whimpered.
"You don't need to worry about that. I will never abandon you." Taro replied. "Only if I am in physical danger, then you could use any means necessary to save my life."
"Yes, Senpai."
"However," Taro said as he went back to his car. Ayano tensed.
"If I find out that you killed someone without my knowledge, then you will never see me again."
Ayano flinched as Taro left, leaving her to walk home in deep thought.
-o0o-
"What have you done!? I can't believe that after what we agreed on that you would break your promise!" Taro shouted angrily at Ayano, who stood over a bloody corpse of a girl unrecognizable to anyone.
"We are through!"
"N-no! Wait!" Ayano sputtered. But Taro walked away without second thought. The ghosts of Ayano's six dead rivals surrounded her, cackling gleefully and jeering taunts at her. A seventh ghost, the Phantom Girl, appeared in front of Ayano.
"Your family shall pay for all their crimes!" She said. "Starting with you and your mother!"
The Phantom Girl lunged at Ayano before everything went black…
-o0o-
Ayano woke up with a gasp, sitting up on her bed. There was nothing out of the ordinary in her bedroom. She let out a sigh of relief, glad that it was only a nightmare. Before she fell back asleep, Ayano noticed a light shining through the crack between her door and the floor. After checking the time (5 am), Ayano exited her room and headed to the kitchen, where the light in there was on. She found her parents in the kitchen, having returned from their trip to America. Ryoba was scrounging through the fridge for something to eat while Father was drinking a bottle of sake.
"Mother? Father? Welcome back." Ayano said monotonously.
"Ayano! It's so good to see you again." Ryoba said. "How was school?"
"It was most...interesting. These ten weeks have not bored me." Ayano said before giving a grin. "I found a boyfriend on the first day of school. He's the greatest."
Ryoba beamed in delight while Mr. Aishi dropped his sake in horror.
"Please tell me you didn't kidnap him." He said.
"Oh no! I didn't need to." Ayano said. "I confessed to him under the sakura tree yesterday and he accepted. It was so romantic!"
Ryoba was bouncing with joy while Mr. Aishi went away to get a broom, sighing in relief. While he was away, Ayano recounted the events of the past ten weeks to Ryoba, including last night's date.
"I am proud of you, Ayano. You saved your senpai from your rivals and from death. I wished that happened to us when we were younger…"
"Mother, how were your high school days like?" Ayano asked. Ryoba maintained her smile and reminisced her past.
"Oh it was not that much different from yours." She said. "I found your father when I was your age. I killed all my rivals and took your father home. But this was 1989. The police weren't fools back then. A private detective also managed to collect enough evidence to arrest me. If it had not been my greatest allies, the Aishi line would have ended with me."
"Allies?"
"Oh yes. The Drama Club President of my time taught me how to act, which was useful to manipulate others. He think he would be proud if he knew I managed to convince the entire country of my innocence." Ryoba said. "My other ally was interestingly enough, the Student Council President, Shinji Saikou. He helped me get rid of evidence and such, for what he says 'protecting the school.' But everyone knew that he was in love with me. That fool was so easy to manipulate."
"His daughter had an unfortunate accident a couple of days ago." Ayano said. "So tragic. She could save the rest of the students in school, but not herself."
"You murdered Megami Saiko!?" Ryoba exclaimed in a hushed voice. "Baka! You might have endangered us all!"
"Why?" Ayano asked.
"Saikou is not stupid. He'll figure out that you killed her and will make you pay for it." Ryoba warned. Ayano steeled.
"I like to see him try."
-o0o-
Taro sat at his desk and took out several sheets of paper before beginning to write.
"This is for you, all future Senpais." Taro muttered. On the top of the paper was written "How to Survive a Yandere Relationship."
TBC...