Chapter 4
Lelouch tilts his head to the right as if the act would shake off the words he just had heard, or probably, would morph into the very opposite of what have been uttered. He stares blankly at the man before him, seeing and not seeing at all the scene enfolding before him.
He tilts his head to the left. The words didn't change. The man is talking in longer sentences, well, actually explaining the situation, but the longer he talks, his words begin to diminish. Their meaning lost inside Lelouch's baffled but strangely calm mind.
Only three words had left their mark in his brain as soon as he heard it from the principal – External Affairs President.
Perhaps, he said good bye or politely nodded at the head of the academy when the latter left for the next thing Lelouch knows is he's staring at a pair of equally blank golden eyes.
"Well, I'm looking forward to working with you." A small hand reaches out to him for a shake but the boy could only stare at it in confusion.
"Still in shock, I see." The hand disappears before him and he is now forced to look up and meet those bright eyes again. "Just think of it in a more positive way. This would be one less burden, one less responsibility for you, Mr. Internal Affairs President."
At her words, Lelouch snaps out of whatever trance he was in and narrows his eyes at the girl before him. "How?" is his brief question.
"Hmm? Dad probably talked to the principal. If that man wants something, he makes sure that he'll get it, and sometimes, he gets more than what he needed."
C.C. turns around and plops on the couch resting against the wall. Stretching her legs on the floor, she lays down her upper body on the seat, very much far from the model student image that she should be sporting now.
"Don't worry, I won't get in your way. Just do your work and I'll do mine and it would be like my position never existed. I'll pass the after-activity reports in time, build the necessary connections to find sponsorships and all that jazz." She raises a thin eyebrow, "After all, I am more well-connected than anybody else in this school, don't you think?"
His knees begin to feel wobbly, perhaps all of the anxiety and tiredness from the election and home are finally catching up to him. He pulls a chair and sits infront of the wall opposite her. He sighs. Now he just wants to take a long nap.
"No."
"No?"
Lazily, C.C. sits up and gives him her full attention.
"You're not going to act on your own. We're going to work together. I'll assist you on your tasks and vise-versa. We have to function unitedly for the welfare of the school body."
C.C. hums, a small smile is pasted on her lips. "I'm surprised. I was expecting to see more resistance coming from you. Why the sudden change of heart?"
Lelouch tsks at her comment. In all actuality, he has more than a book of protests to counter the principal's decision of assigning her a position just to indulge her father's request. But somehow, all his boiling emotions had simmered down into a steady stream of composed thinking and unabrupt decisions.
"I'm just tired," Lelouch sighs and he notices how C.C.'s gaze softens. "And I read your platform," he adds. "It is actually quite impressive. Most of the things you've listed there are never done before but are doable if we have the right person and the right resources available. And I think," he bites his lower lip before proceeding to say the next words, "You're the only one who can execute them."
C.C.'s smile had gone wider and all Lelouch can think of is Cheshire the Cat. It is a smile of triumph and mischief that he had the second thought to take his words back. But he couldn't do that now, could he? He had thrown those important words between them and she had gladly picked them up with wide-opened arms. As much as this situation still doesn't sit quite right with Lelouch, he can not do anything about it now. Moping and sulking would only exhaust his energy to meaningless activities instead of focusing and accomplishing the tasks at hand.
"Now that it's settled, let's have a party. A pizza party," C.C. declares out-of-nowhere.
"A what?"
"To celebrate. Call the other members. You can also invite your friends to join, too. I'll take care of the food."
"Wait, as in now?"
The stare that she gave him makes him feel like an idiot.
"You could've at least said 'Please'," he mutters while fishing his phone.
Suzaku, Kallen and Rivalz are more than just excited to participate in this impromptu party. To say that they are the most enthusiastic about the idea is an understatement. Well, to be invited in a student council party without being a part of it? That is a rare opportunity. But perhaps, the situation has changed now that two of their classmates are leading the students. The junior council members politely introduced themselves and kept a respectful line of conversation with their seniors.
"Lelouch! Hey, Lelouch!" Rivalz whisper-shouts at him and the boy disengages himself from the council crowd. The group is seated on a separate table borrowed from the other room and Kallen's face is already stuffed with pizza.
"So," Rivalz says in between chew, "You two," he gestures from Lelouch to C.C. who is currently enjoying her own box of pizza at the other table. "Okay now?"
Lelouch shrugs. "We have to. I mean…"
"He means that he's obviously the only one who's actually against the situation. C.C.'s seems to be not that affected so it is his lost if he'll hold onto his grudge any longer," Kallen interrupts.
"Yes, something like that," Lelouch pouts.
"Come on. Have you eaten? Here, say 'aaaahh'!" Begrudgingly, Lelouch takes the slice from Suzaku's hand and the sudden onslaught of flavor invades his tongue and somehow, Lelouch ponders on how long since he had last eaten pizza. Definitely, not in the last few weeks. And its tastiness somehow feels like an alarm clock waking him up from a deep slumber.
"Lelouch?"
"Nunnally!"
With spring on his steps, Lelouch fetches his sister who's waiting by the doorway. Nunnally receives friendly greetings from the people in the room, and additional fonder welcome from Lelouch's group of friends.
"Hmm. Who do we have here?"
A light hand lands on his shoulder startling Lelouch, and all of their attention is suddenly drawn to C.C. who is now curiously looking at Nunnally.
"This is Nunnally, my younger sister," Lelouch proudly introduces. "Nunnally, this is – "
"Hi, Nunnally. My name's C.C. I'll be your brother's partner from now on." The older girl offers a hand which the younger one gladly accepts. C.C. turns to Lelouch. "I like her. She knows how to do a handshake."
The implication doesn't escape him and Lelouch would have replied if not for the sound of Nunnally's chuckle.
"People might get the wrong idea if you introduce him like that." Nunnally laughs, "Especially his fangirls."
Lelouch rolls his eyes. "They're not that many."
"Ah, he didn't deny it," interjects Suzaku.
"Well, I have to go now. I'll see you tomorrow, Lelouch. Maybe, we can start going through this year's agenda after class."
He nods. "Yes, let's do that." But you're leaving now? Won't you help in cleaning the room? Of course, he doesn't say this out loud as much as he wants to.
Before leaving, C.C. gives Nunnally a final wink which makes the latter blush.
"So," Suzaku starts – his mouth smeared with cheese, and the room falls silent. "Who's the alpha and who's the omega in this relationship?"
"Welcome home, Miss C.C."
"Did Dad call?"
"No, ma'am."
"Where's Arthur?"
"He's in your room, ma'am."
Inside her room, C.C. immediately throws her bag without a thought and dives into her bed like a professional swimmer would into a pool. A few moments later, soft paws begin marching on her back and she's having the best massage in her entire life.
"We should really push your massage parlor. You have the manners, the expertise, the skills of the greatest masseur. We just have to hire ten more of you and voila! We'll instantly become the talk of the town."
C.C. buries her head deeper into the pillow as the relaxation her little company provides slowly lulls her to sleep.
But she can't.
Not yet at least.
5:30 pm, her clock blinks as she takes a peek at it. She sighs. Anytime now, the call will arrive and she will have to endure another fifteen minutes of repetitive litany of what she isn't and what she should be.
"Arthur, let's go away from here," she mumbles.
Meow.
"Somewhere where nobody knows this family. Don't worry I'll hoard lots of cat food before we leave."
Meow.
"Then – "
Three knocks on the door interrupt C.C.'s wishful thinking and a maid appears on her doorway. Lifting Arthur carefully, she sits on her bed and asks for the phone.
"Hello, dad."
"So, did the principal adhere to my request?"
As usual, no 'hi' nor 'how are you'.
"Yes. They appointed me as the External Affairs President."
The disappointment in his voice is so palpable that she winces at his next words. "Tsk. It's just a fancy name for a position that is non-existent. If only you weren't too stubborn to transfer schools, you could've properly joined the election and won the official position. Now, you'll look like a clown leeching off someone's victory."
The urge to sigh is to too strong but C.C. wants to avoid more argument which would lead to more time talking to her father. She knows these words like the back of her hand. They etched their meaning to her mind like a childhood memory that she couldn't get rid of. Sometimes, she thinks of recording one of their calls so she can listen to his hurtful words over and over again until she's desensitized and numb from their impact. But C.C. is not that much of a martyr, or rather, her martyrdom has its own limit. After all, she doesn't need a recorder to hear those words again. She dreams of them sometimes.
"Now be a good girl and do your best to become the top student of that school. That wouldn't be too hard now unlike the last one, right?"
"Yes, dad."
"You're carrying the name of Corabelle in your generation. I'm expecting the best from you, Cecaniah. Don't disappoint us."
The call ends with the beep sound ringing inside C.C.'s ears. Handing the phone back to the maid waiting by the door, she cradles Arthur to her chest and lies back on the bed.
Be a good girl.
In all honesty, she doesn't know the meaning of these words anymore. What does being a good girl truly entail? She doesn't do drugs, she doesn't smoke. She doesn't go to parties and get drunk. She gets home at five in the afternoon everyday and never misses the call. She gets impressive grades, if not the highest, but high enough for her to compete as the valedictorian.
Be a good girl.
She doesn't talk back to her parents as much as she wanted to. As much as she wanted to defend herself for trying such is just a futile experience. A waste of saliva. A waste of emotions. In the end, she'll only feel smaller than she felt before.
Be a good girl.
The image of a gentle-looking girl with long wavy brown hair and the sweetest smile crosses her mind. What was her name? Nunnally? Even her name sounds sweet. She definitely radiates good girl energy albeit for different reasons. C.C. wonders if that's what her father wants. A gentle girl for a daughter – easily swayed and impressed.
I'm just tired.
"I'm just tired," she whispers at the empty bedroom, echoing Lelouch's words earlier. And admitting it feels liberating for some reason.
"I'm just tired," she says louder, as if she's taking a stand. Arthur lifts his head from her chest and peeks at her. A purring sound begins travelling from her abdomen up to her chest. She gives her cat a soft pat at the back.
And in the midst of the pressure and expectations from the people around her, C.C. smiles sincerely for the first time in a while.
For sometimes, the only way to feel free is admitting that you're tired.