Sals: Considering fanart…..omg, if you have drawn anything, please sent it through, I'd LOVE to see it! If you want to submit me anything, check out the links on my profile here on FF. If it doesn't work, you can always message me privately on here too if you have an account :)

All the lovely reviewers: thank you so much for your lovely comments. I really appreciate it! And sorry for the late update, y'all deserve better than that hahah

Okay so for the story, this chapter just continues on where we left off last time. So Masami left Blue's store somewhere in the evening. She's now going to meet Richter to go back to the Sakamaki mansion. WHY? Because she needs their help in order to figure her shit (aka her past, her identity) out. She also needs to convince them to go back to school.

But there isn't any school this week.

Read on and discover ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Edit: I might edit the chapter throughout the week to get rid of some spelling mistakes. Sorry for them in advance haha.

CHAPTER 14

→ Joker

There was some type of empty feeling in Masami's gut when she left Blue's store, the black cats, the heavy smell of herbs and Tabaco, and the earie streets she loved so much. All of the sudden, Masami felt so much more tired, as if hell was trying to drag her down again.

She wouldn't let it though.

Because, at the same time, there was a feeling of accomplishment. There was determination pumping through every one of her veins, and even though she didn't have a concrete plan, Masami knew that she would get her answers one way or another. It never hurt to try and she wasn't going to give up.

She would most definitely solve the mystery.

Sakamaki Mansion

"I can't believe we have to go on this stupid school trip! The bastard is toying with us again!" Ayato said, swinging his absurdly light backpack right over his shoulder.

"You didn't even pack anything, did you?" Reiji said as he walked by, clothed unusually casual. "He told us we had to go, he never mentioned a reason. I'm sure you already know that asking questions is utterly useless." Reiji side-eyed Ayato's outfit as he said this, but decided not to comment on the poor life choices his brother made.

Ayato grunted, his aviator sunglasses glinting on his head, his hands buried in the pockets of checkered shorts. "Can't we just skip on this one? What's going to happen, huh?"

"We'll be sent to the north pole. Ask the good-for-nothing what that was like."

Those words were enough to change the red-head's mind. Ayato let out a last, angry mumble, and then skipped towards the kitchen, last minute remembering he did forget a few essentials.

Reiji ignored the redhead completely, as his mind wandered off to other places. There were too many things they had to deal with. Firstly their sacrificial bride, an unmannered girl, who wasn't half as ordinary as she claimed to be. And then…The atrociously unmannered vampire girl who escaped the mansion during the good-for-nothing's watch. The familiars weren't able to trace her back. Their uncle hadn't been able to trace her back. The fact that the girl was of some importance to father, was unexplainable to Reiji. Father had ordered them to keep her under house arrest. To keep her safe. No one, not even the servants closest to him, knew why. The girl herself? A few drops of truth serum proved that she knew as much as she let on. In other words, she knew nothing either. And lastly…Laito, as well as Ayato, had commented on the strange taste of her blood. Reiji did regret not taking a few blood samples as soon as she had arrived. Another time, perhaps. After all, she couldn't hide forever. Not from us.

"Oh~ what's on your mind, hmmm?" Laito waltzed through the room, his presence ever so annoying. "Why is everyone so upset? We haven't been on a trip together for ages." Laito had his backpack on, as well as a pair of sturdy shoes, his hat and of course, a smile going from ear to ear. "Aah, it's going to be a lot of fun, I'm sure of it, fufu."

Of course Laito was surprised they were being sent off with the rest of the school, considering they never actually had to attend any school trips before… There was no reason for them to go in the first place. Activities would be held during broad daylight, which wasn't that vampire friendly. Laito couldn't figure out what he was thinking. There was so much more going on, and Laito was itching to figure out the truth. Nonetheless, he was still excited, unlike his brothers. The house got awfully boring after his little vampire escaped, and Laito felt like this trip was going to fill up that void of boredom. He couldn't wait.

Subaru came in next. He didn't have any luggage on him at all, nor did he dress for this trip. He was more agitated than usual, too. "How is it going to be fun? Those other bastards are going to be there."

"Ah those guys…"

A few seconds later Shu and Kanato strolled in. Kanato was beyond annoyed, knowing he would hate every second of the trip. Shu, on the other hand, seemed not to care. It was a bother to him, but he'd just need to sleep his way through the ordeal. Nothing could be worse than being sent off to the North Pole, he thought.

When it was time to leave, every brother made their way towards the black limousine, enjoying their last seconds of peace, before trading their luxury car for a traveling bus later on. Subaru, who came outside last, was stopped by one of their butlers. The butler whispered in his ear, while another one went to inform the brothers in the car.

"I see," Reiji said as the car door closed. He stared at the white-haired figure outside, going back into the mansion. Reiji turned his head back to his siblings in the car. "She's been found."

EARLIER

Richter stood with his back towards Masami, already having sensed her approach from several streets away. The girl had been off radar for several days, and out of nowhere she appeared right behind him, like a dish presented on a silver platter. Just like Ayano, Richter knew with who she was. However, what bothered him the most was the how.

How had she been able to find a witch's house? It was a matter Richter had to look into.

Masami stopped two meters away from him, and as he sensed that she would not come any closer, he turned around. Richter flashed a smile and his arms were out and open, as if he was about to embrace a long lost family member.

"And finally, we found our runaway," he said warmly. "Nothing pleases me more than to see you well and unharmed."

Not one word he uttered sounded sincere, but that came as no surprise to Masami. Not one word that left a vampire's mouth was ever sincere.

She knew now.

"In a world this cruel and dangerous, it is our utmost priority to protect a frail woman like yourself."

"I wasn't in danger," Masami said flatly, though it was obvious that she was uncomfortable. Mostly because her bandaged wounds were itching like crazy. She would have been scrubbing against the wall if it were not for the sheer strength of WILLPOWER!

"Now, you're safe, yes." The man gave her a soothing smile. To Masami, however, it felt like being served cabbage for dessert. Unappetizing and unasked for. "You should realize that there are people out there, things even, that you cannot trust."

The Cabbage man continued with a sigh when he noticed that Masami was slightly puzzled. "I see, you do not understand the case here, right?" Cabbage continued. "Witches are, and have always been a great threat to us vampires. They are not to be toyed with and certainly not to be trusted." He tapped with a finger on his temple. "Try to remember this, will you?"

Masami couldn't believe her ears when he said this. As if the offensive gesture wasn't enough! The girl could feel her blood boil as this complete stranger was mocking her, but for some reason the remark didn't bring her on complete edge. She was different now; calmer and more put together. She was still pissed, so in no way did complete peace and serenity exist for Masami. Not for now anyway. She was getting there though, one step at the time.

"I would say the same thing about vampires," Masami commented. She wouldn't allow this man to talk shit about Blue like that. Besides, how did he even know about the witch? Vampires really made sense since never.

"I suppose you can." The man chuckled with the utterly irritable stare still stuck on Masami. It took a minute before Masami was aware what he found oh so interesting about her.

Her bruised and banded knuckles. The strong smell of herbs and medicine she carried with her. The bandages around every visible part of her neck.

Dang son. I AM a walking tragedy.

"It does seem like my nephews took a good hold of you. The same advice would apply to them as well, then," he paused, "Beware of danger." The man seemed to be so amused that he couldn't withhold a short and loud laugh. What annoyed Masami was that he didn't stop staring. It was like her face was a fluorescent sign that said 'look at this dumb girl! KEEP LOOKING!'

Cabbage took a few steps closer, and even leant down a bit in order to take a closer look at her face. "You look just like her… Just like how I remember her…Ha."

He had said it quietly, almost as if it was a secret, something that wasn't meant for others to be heard. But Masami had heard it well.

"What are you talking about?"

"You look just like her."

Who is the 'her'?

Why do people keep recognizing me, as if they've known me for years? First those Mukami scumbags and now this vegetable. Again, vampires make sense since NEVER.

"Ah…Don't mind me," he said, ignoring her question. "Just follow the advice I gave you. If you want to live, that is. Because whatever you are—" the man stepped closer, lifting a hand to Masami's chin, "—or might not be, one thing is certain: you are incredibly weak." The so-called soothing smile made its comeback as he stepped back. "Take my advice to heart, and most importantly, before I forget to mention it... Do not ever try to run away again."

There was certainly nothing soothing about his expression when he said that.

Not many words were exchanged the first few minutes in the car, nor the fifty minutes that followed. Masami requested to be dropped off a few miles away, because she preferred walking back. 'Fresh air' she had claimed as her reason why. Richter granted her the request, knowing she wouldn't run away. He knew she wasn't silly enough to try anything, knowing she'd learned at least something from her stay with his nephews, so there was no reason as to why he would deny this request. She had asked so nicely, too.

The car stopped a few miles away, and Masami moved over to get out. However, as she was about to leave, Richter grabbed her by the wrist. He smiled brightly at her, all while punching his fingers into her flesh.

"You don't look so well, little girl. Don't forget to feed. You still need blood to survive. You can't survive by pretending to be human."

Masami jerked back at the touch, but his grip only tightened. "Pretend to be human? What?"

"I wonder, girl, how much do you know about yourself?"

He completely ignored my question!

"Not much."

Richter did not say anything in return, instead he laughed. It was as if he had expected this answer. "Do you know what the trick is to learning more about yourself?"

"Meditating does wonders, I heard."

Richter smiled and took something out of the inner pocket of his black coat. "Sometimes the memory only needs a fitting key to open certain doors. Certain sparks to return memories."

He presented her an envelope; white turned yellow with dark coffee-like spots on every side, thin and floppy looking, with a blue wax seal closing the envelope off. Right before Masami was able to reach for it though, he jerked his hand back in warning. "It is of utmost importance that this stays between us. It wouldn't be good if it ended up in the wrong hands…"

Everything about this Vegetable was suspicious. The way he talked, his gestures, the rhetorical questions…Everything about this guy seemed off. Masami couldn't help but lift a brow. "What games are you playing?"

"A card game, I think." Richter smiled again, this time handing her the envelope.

"And that there," Richter gestured at the envelope, "is my joker."

'Beware of danger.'

'You look like her.'

'Don't pretend to be human.'

The joker.

Masami bitterly watched the black vehicle until it became one with the horizon, hearing those words a few times over in her head. They made no sense whatsoever.

Masami would have to think these things through. Cabbage did seem to say the same thing about her as Blue did when it came to her not being a "real" vampire. Though he hadn't said it explicitly, Masami knew he wanted her to read in between the lines.

So that was that, Masami wasn't powerful, strong, healthy and dangerous like vampires were supposed to be, because…She wasn't a real vampire? Nothing of the sorts had ever been mentioned by Ayano. Ever. Was her bad memory, the nightmares and her "sickness" a result of what she was? Ayano had to know about that, Masami was sure of it. Now that Masami had her phone back, she definitely planned to call Ayano about all the nonsense that went on. And to complain about why the hell Ayano had left her in the care of her insane family. Honestly. The whole situation needed to be resolved.

You better expect a very angry phone call, Ayano.

Masami walked down the road, slouching slowly towards her Hell Hotel. Before long, she had to stop walking though, since the itching became unbearable. To the point where she'd rather roll back to the mansion. Masami then made the great decision to go into the woods by the road and took off the bandages on her hands. She had no clue what magic mud Blue had made her smear on her wounds, but as Masami scraped off the hideously smelling stuff, she discovered that all the wounds on her hands were gone. The bruises, the ripped skin. Not even the smallest scratch remained.

Overexcitement getting the better of her, Masami immediately got out her clothes –getting tangled up in the process –and then proceeded to throw them onto the wet earth. She continued to remove the rest of the bandages and magic mud, trying to scrape off as much as she could. Her skin was bare and a whole new shade of red, though she couldn't care less. Because she remembered what that one had said. That the deep slash on her inner thigh was a reminder that she was their property. Or his, whatever. Or the Turnip; he had completely destroyed her neck by not biting but ripping it open. Saying that the scars would be a reminder of what happens when you mocked the great turnip lord.

Haha! Where's your reminder now, bitch?

Masami thanked Blue from the bottom of her sad little heart, and felt like she owned her an apology as well. Masami should've praised the magic itching mud, and not bash it for the foul smell. An unpleasant gut feeling told Masami that she'd need that magic mud again. Pretty soon, too.

In the process of getting back into her clothes, Masami thought about what Blue had said. That she should convince the Sakamakis to allow her to go to school again. It was what Masami was going to do, initially. That's why she was walking towards the mansion. The walking would grant her a little bit more time to prepare what she'd say. What explanation she'd give for her sudden disappearance. Why, after she'd spat on their rules, they should grant her the favor of allowing her to go back to school. In all honesty, Masami wasn't like Blue. The second she stepped foot on their property, the Sakamakis would throw her in some hole she'd never be able to crawl out of. Masami couldn't risk a lifelong prison sentence. Masami needed something to back her up.

Someone, actually.

Blue, specifically.

But then again, Masami couldn't depend on her too much. She had no idea who Blue was and what she could do, and more than anything, Masami wouldn't want Blue to get into trouble because of her. Masami had thought about it, and she really did not want anyone to get into trouble for her sake. It was the prime reason as to why Masami didn't want to involve Yui in all the problems she was going through. She didn't want the only friends she had to end up being her shields.

What Masami really needed were allies on the vampire side. People who knew things that she didn't. People with information.

In that moment, Masami came up with an idea.

It was batshit crazy.

Oh man. Here we go.

AGAIN.

The sun was already over half the horizon, with only the last shades of orange left in a soon to be charcoal sky. Masami was still on the empty road, with a forest surrounding her right and left side. It was quite eerie, especially as late evening shifted into early night. Masami did not try to think of herself as a protagonist of a horror movie, however the more time went by, the more real this imagination became.

Masami squinted her eyes at the last remains of sunlight left, knowing she'd have to be quick now. She had created a plan, or you know at least a two steps of the plan that was still in the working.

I'm horrible at planning, god.

Now she had to put her semi-finished plan to action. Masami took out her phone, for a second appreciating the pleasant and familiar weight of the device in her hands. It's been a long time, my friend. For a second Masami felt the envelope in her pocket as well, brushing it with the back of her hand.

She'd open it later.

After the device had restarted completely, she looked through her contacts.

Masami hit dial.

The ring went off a first time. Then a second time. Then a third. Then a fourth. A total of six rings was reached until Masami hung up, not even bothering to wait until the call went into voicemail.

Seriously?! The one time I call and this happens.

Why me?

Masami scrunched her face like she had been sucking on a lemon for the past hour. If it weren't her phone, she'd have thrown the thing between the bushes by now. But fine, self-control. It still existed within her. Masami pocketed her device again, straightened her back and started walking down the road. Okay, it was going to be plan B after all. The problem?

Plan B sucked.

Plant B meant she'd have to walk to the Sakamaki mansion, and then convince them to let her go to school again.

Now it's just me, walking down the suicide road.

Then, in that glorious moment of half-walking and half-slouching herself into doom, Masami's phone lit up and started buzzing aggressively.

Masami picked up, not even bothering to check the name of the caller.

"MI-CHAN!" the voice yelled so loudly that Masami had to physically hold the phone further from her ear. "You called! I've missed you, you know?! It's been ages." He paused. "Where have you been?!"

Kou kept talking, but Masami had long stopped listening. No plan B after all, it seemed. Thank the gods that she didn't have to do the walk of shame after all. Masami brought the phone back to her ear when the person on the other line had calmed down.

"Hello," Masami replied, her tone somewhat annoyed even though she tried to keep it casual. She was still angry with him. "Were you busy? Because you didn't pick up the first time I called."

"My fault, my fault!" he laughed. Masami could only imagine his Cheshire smile now. "I thought you were my manager. Managers tend to nag a lot, it's soooo boring. I mean 'do this', or 'do that' and bla bla bla. An idol's life isn't all sunshine and roses, unfortunately." Kou ended his speech with a deeply tired, to Masami's knowledge, overly dramatic sigh.

"Tragic," Masami added dryly. "Anyway, I didn't call to talk about sunshine and roses. Can you come pick me up?"

"Oh. OH," Kou said so surprised that Masami was questioning what he thought she was suggesting.

"I need a ride to school," Masami clarified. "I'm on a godforsaken road near the Sakamaki mansion."

"Mi-chan, wait…You weren't with them? Where have you been?!"

Masami wasn't sure whether it was curiosity or real concern. "I don't have much time left, so if you can't pick me up, I'll just call someone else," she said. Obviously she was bluffing. Who else could she call?! She needed them as her allies.

In the background, Masami heard a deep and more than anything, very loud voice asking Kou who he was talking to.

"Fine, fine," Kou grumbled, seemingly trying to get away from the loud voice behind him. "Right, where were you again? The road near that place?"

"A godforsaken road,"" Masami corrected as she moved closer to the side of said road, until she stood with one foot in the bushes and one foot on the asphalt. "Will you be able to find it?"

"Do I look stupid to you, Mi-chan?" Kou asked. His tone surprised Masami a bit. "I'll be there in ten minutes. Stay where you are, okay?"

"Yep. See ya."

Before Kou could say anything else, Masami heard the voice in the background get louder, demanding to know who it was until, after what seemed a physical struggle, the loud person was finally able to snatch the device for himself.

"What do you want?" he demanded. Apparently he knew well enough who was calling, Masami thought.

"Hello to you too," Masami responded. "How's life, Ponytail?"

"Oi, what did I say about using that fucking name—"

"What? I can't hear you. The reception is terrible here." Masami couldn't help but tease Ponytail, he was too easy of a victim. Masami turned around smiling, then not a moment later, dropped the smile at the speed of light.

"Don't fuckin' lie!" Ponytail said through the telephone. "Hey! You still there? Brat!"

"Oh shit," Masami said, staring ahead of her. "Oh, crap."

"Are ya toying with me again, because I'm not having it –"

Masami couldn't hear the rest of Ponytail's yammering. Albino Sakamaki had stepped closer and had taken her phone out of her hand. He clutched it so fiercely, Masami swore she could almost hear the yelps of her precious phone, begging Masami to release it from that emo atrocity.

"Who were you talking to?" He asked, standing closely to Masami, who in all honestly, could only stare at the phone in his hands. "You shouldn't have come back."

For a second, Masami questioned whether or not he pitied her.

"You're a real idiot, aren't you? Ha…"

"Heh?" He turned his head to the side and then flicked a hand at her forehead, barely brushing her hair. "What the fuck did you do with your hair?"

The gesture took Masami by surprise, she unwillingly made herself take a step back, almost standing against the tree behind her. At his last comment, Masami unconsciously put a hand on her head. She was willing to continue this conversation as long as she got her phone back. DAMMIT.

"Eyebags put gum in my hair a while back," Masami said, "so I had to get it cut."

Subaru stared for a while. "Then why is it black?"

"Because I wanted it to be black."

"That' dumb."

Masami just shrugged. "Okay."

From all she had learned from that one week where he had been her guardian, was that he'd always say things to her that didn't seemed to be genuine. The tone of his voice or the expression on his face, even though it was only a subtle difference, never quite matched what he said to her. Masami had a feeling that this time too, he didn't really mean what he said. He was just negative out of principle and seemed to hate her out of principle as well. Sometimes though, he really did mean the things he said, and when he did, it was obvious. He wasn't good at managing emotions like Fedora. That's why it was so easy to know when he wasn't being genuine.

Like when he confronted her with the fact that she got presents sent from Goldilocks. He didn't like that. He didn't like being bothered by the blonde Mukami at school either. According to Albino, Goldilocks kept harassing him with questions about her. That was all her fault, according to him. She set that one Mukami up against him. So when Albino got angry with her that day, it was genuine and true anger. It was nothing like the "I'm on edge 24/7, don't breath in my direction" type of anger she usually had to deal with. After having suffered through that, Masami could tell easily by now when he was just having a fit and when he actually, honestly felt real rage.

Her verdict for now: he was just being a dick. He secretly just missed bothering her! Haha!

Subaru scoffed, turning his head away. "You should have stayed away, while you had the chance."

Masami didn't respond. The only thing she could do was stare at her phone.

Am I sweating like a heroin addict? Definitely.

Please, my phone… Oh my god.

"Can I have it back?" Masami said, after gathering some courage. "Please."

Subaru's lips curved from a line into a dark smile. "You were a real foot up my ass, you know that? After all the trouble you gave me, give me one good fucking reason why I should give this back to you."

Masami froze for a second. She had to be absolutely careful with what she was about to say, or he'd just go ahead and trample the thing. And she couldn't have that!

Confuse him with words Masami, confuse him!

"Look, I don't have a reason. You don't own me anything, but I don't own you anything either. I don't know what that blonde guy wants from me and I never encouraged him to get in your way either. I mean, I was locked up in here the whole time, so how can you blame me for it?"

What the hell am I saying?

Okay whatever! Just talk!

"That's bullshit."

"I did absolutely nothing," Masami replied, suddenly feeling really angry. It was stupid to reply, she knew that. How could she not, she had lived with these people for over a month. If she were silent and obeyed, she would have gotten out of most situations unharmed. But she couldn't be silent.

And she could most definitely not obey.

"You did nothing? Ha!" Subaru raised his voice, sounding more aggressive than before. Usual fit or real rage? Masami guessed for the second option, since he had grabbed her by the arm and squeezed as if he wanted to turn her bones into powder. "Don't." Squeeze. "Fucking." Squeeze. "Lie." Squeeze. "To me."

And of course it hurt, it hurt immensely. With every word he tightened his grip on her upper arm, he dug his fingers deeper in her skin. The only thing that withheld Masami from yelping was the sheer force of anger and adrenaline.

Masami had gone through this before. Though it was the first week that Albino had to watch her, it was from the second week around, when he went back to school, that he regularly came to find her to get into a rage fest about how it was her fault that Goldilocks drove him on edge so much.

Subaru released Masami's arm. For a mere second Masami thought it was over, but soon after he shoved her into a tree right by the side of the road with his free hand against her throat. "Don't lie to me, I know he's on your side."

Immediately Masami clawed her fingers around his hand, not wanting him to choke her to death because of this stupid matter. His grip wasn't tight at all, not like what she had gone through with a certain other brother, but his anger was real. And she couldn't gamble her life away like that.

"You're wrong," Masami said. "No one's on my side. I don't need anyone to be on my side."

There were no words after that, not for a moment, anyway. It felt like the space between her and him was becoming smaller, uncomfortably so.

Then, he started laughing, mocking what she had said.

"Again with that face…You pretend not to care, staring with that lifeless look of yours," he said. His face too close, his arm still pressed against her throat. "…Getting a closer look now, you really are just a scared little girl." He held his other hand next to her ear, making sure she'd hear the crack of the device in his fist. Masami didn't allow herself to look away from him. She didn't allow herself to make him think she cared enough. He crumbled her phone in his fist, then dropped whatever was left on the ground.

"…You broke my phone," Masami said, not being able to hide her anger.

RIP phone.

Rest in pieces.

"Why would you need to call anyone, anyway? No one's on your side, like you said yourself. Idiot."

Finally, he let go of her, leaving Masami still standing against the tree, rubbing the skin on her neck.

"Honest question," Masami asked, as calm as she could, even though she was furious beyond imagining, "What do you have against me?"

"What kind of question is that?" Subaru scoffed. "You're weak, you're dirty, you're powerless and you're stupid. How can you live with yourself?"

"Okay," Masami said. "What about you? Do you see yourself as weak, dirty, powerless and stupid?"

Subaru stared at her like he couldn't believe what she had said. Masami herself couldn't believe what she had said. The death of her phone had completely taken her off the rails.

"Can you live with yourself?" she asked.

Masami expected to be pushed against the tree again, getting something far worse than just threats and loud shouting. However, that wasn't the case. Albino just stared into nothing, his head turned away from Masami. The sight seemed almost melancholic to her. More than anything, she didn't expect him to show sadness rather than anger.

Was what she said true? Did he really think of himself that way?

Why hadn't he butchered her yet?

In the end, Masami managed to find the courage to ask him where they were going. However, before she even got the words out, Albino already seemed to be a step ahead of her.

"Get up. We're going," was all he said.

The fieldtrip to Yakushima was meant to lift the spirits of the students, to make them participate in a friendly competition of sports and challenges, and to encourage them to get to know students from other classes as well. From Monday to Thursday they would do all sorts of activities together, and then on Thursday evening, everything would be wrapped up with a dance party.

To reach the island they would travel by bus the whole night, so that they could do all the activities during the day. Everyone had been warned to adjust their sleeping schedules for the trip. Then after the bus ride, they'd have to take a ferry to reach the island. It'd be morning by then.

Yuma looked out of the window, still pissed about what happened earlier in the day with the phone, and even more pissed knowing he'd have to go on this field trip. His garden? A week long unattended. Nothing infuriated him more.

Except one thing.

One person.

From his seat in the bus, Yuma looked down upon a hooded figure, standing there with their hands in their pockets. A backpack hung loosely with one strap on one shoulder, their clothes were covered in dirt.

The next second, the figure turned their head, staring right back at him. Hazel eyes locked with green ones.

She again!

The ghost from his past that kept haunting him, still seemed to find him, no matter how much he tried to avoid her.

Her reaction to him staring, though? She stared back with that dry expression of hers, and then pulled up a peace sign before turning her back towards him.

Nothing else.

It was as if she'd never left in the first place.

Scoffing, Yuma turned back into his seat, clacking his tongue loudly. "That fuckin' brat."

She never failed to press his buttons, she never failed to make him angry.

Like all the talk in the bus about their 'teams' wasn't enough! Yuma honestly couldn't care less with who he shared a team. Everyone kept yammering about it, like it was that big of a deal. Yuma was fine with anyone, as long as it wasn't that Neet and well…her.

Now he immensely regretted not checking out what team number she had on her. He did remember seeing a bit of white paper stuck on her chest. Yuma tugged at his shirt, looking at the letters on the white sticker.

Mukami Yuma

Team 13

PREVIEW NEXT CHAPTER

"If I die, weep for me."

"Just use him as your boat –No, he's not drowning, he's fine! He's waving at us, look. It's fine."

"Maybe we should help him…?"

"No, just wave back. He has to take one for the team."

"You should at least try to look decent. I can barely tell whether or not you're a girl."

"Are you giving me beauty tips? Do you even own a mirror?" You're God's most hideous creation since the existence of aardvarks."

COMMENTS

SO next chapter is definitely going to be a lot more light-hearted (which we really need after too many serious chapters). Also, Masami is losing being less and less controlling of her emotions, so her real personality is definitely going to shine through a lot more. Even in this chapter, she's a lot less careful. (thanks to her stay at Blue's house she has a lot more confindence!)

Next chapter is going to be a little shorter than usual, but that being said, it will be finished a lot sooner then. My goal is to have it finished by the end of the month.

IMPORTANT: who do you think will be teamed up? Who do you like to see together? There are going to be teams of 4 students, randomly chosen to from all years. So the grade they're in doesn't really matter.

ALSO a few clarifications:

- Remember when Kou went shopping with Masami (when she stayed at the Mukami house?), well, he had promised to send the clothes to her. And eh…he did keep that promise. This pissed Subaru off, because he hates the Mukamis, and especially Kou lol. Masami got a lot of shit from the other brothers as well. Things kinda escalated from bad to worse because of the incident. So yeah, Masami is angry with Kou. Subaru is angry with Kou. Honestly, it's not Kou's best day… And yes, this is going to be troublesome next chapter.

-Haunted Dark Bridal Subaru is SO mean omg. I just had to include this side of him. People tend to see him as the softer Sakamaki, but honestly, he still says and does a lot of shitty things (the things he said to Masami, he actually also said to Yui lol). Nonetheless, you did get to see a softer side of him. How all this escalates? NEXTTTT CHAPTERRRR

-THE ENVELOPE? NEXT CHAPTER. Same for who the "her" person is that Richter talked about.

-And yes lmfao. Masami will have to stop pretending to be human. She'll need to feed. Fast.

-Richter isn't really on Ayano's side either. He's on his own side, like almost every person in this story LOL.

-Blue will be one of the guiding teachers there…trouble…is certainly coming. (She didn't sign up for this lmfao)

Last but not least: RIP Masami's phone. It didn't deserve the ending it got.

On the other side, I'm back to being active on my OC blog for Masami, so I'll answer questions every evening from now on, just like I used to. You can find the link on my profile! For the people who haven't checked it out yet, there are some written scenarios in there you might like to read.

I guess that's all I have to say. Again, please tell me what your thoughts were on this chapter and check out my ff profile for links if you want to send anything!

FOLLOWS ARE SEXY. REVIEWS ARE SEXIER.