Wow… long chapter! This should tide you over for a while! ^_^
Sorry this is such a short note but I should be eating breakfast, so…
*
She gazed at herself in the mirror. I hope I'm not too fat to pull this dress off. Flab would be really noticeable, especially since it's so tight. I really hope that it looks okay…
Bloody hell. Things are not going my way today. Genra can't take me in for a while until he settles in, at least a month, he said, which means I have to spend a month longer with that stupid cow Kasumi and everything…
But… she had to admit, that even with all the shenanigans in the change-rooms yesterday, she looked good. Suck on this, Hayabusa! She thought triumphantly.
But… how to… err, get Kasumi out 'of the way' for this formal? Hmm…
She thought hard, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear as she gazed unblinkingly at her reflection. Come on, Ayane! Revenge has always been your best trait! Don't lose it now, girl!
She could poison Kasumi's drink… nah, seemed a bit risky. Besides, her 'father' would kill her if she laid an obvious hand on his darling Kasumi. Suddenly, an evil thought sprung into her head. It's a snob school, right? And snob schools breed gossip! So, just make up some incredibly rep-damaging gossip and spread it all the way through the school, and viola!
She clicked her fingers. "Make it she's been seeing Zack behind Hayabusa's back!" she exclaimed triumphantly. "Hey, that rhymes! Go me!"
Yeah, girl. You are the greatest. "I'm off to spread some gossip!" she sang, changing out of the formal dress and going to school. The school day before the formal tonight… it was a perfect opportunity. You don't seem to get it, Kasumi. Either I get what I want, or nobody gets what they want. Got it?
She heard whisperings and saw people glancing over at her strangely as she entered the school gates, but quickly dismissed it. She had an advanced maths test waiting for her, joy.
"Kasumi!" Helena's voice startled her, and she smiled at her friend.
"I'm glad to see you're back, Helena. How are you?"
Her smile quickly faded with the serious look her friend was giving her.
"Why didn't you say anything? Hayabusa is going to be so upset when he finds out,"
The world suddenly lost its colour. "Find out what?" she asked guardedly.
"What do you mean, find out what? About Zack, of course. I mean, so close to the formal and everything… it just doesn't seem at all like you. My previous assumption was that you had more sense then to fall for his conniving flirting,"
"What?" she exclaimed. "Do you think I'm seeing Zack?"
"You don't have to deny it. The whole school is buzzing with gossip, but…"
"I am not going out with Zack! Who told you?" she shouted into the sudden hush.
There was a pause, in which Helena was looking increasingly more apprehensive, and a few people had stopped to gather around and see what the fuss was about.
"Well, I heard it from Leifang, who heard it from… Hitomi, I think, who heard it from…"
She tuned out for a moment as her friend ran off several other names.
"Where did the rumour come from originally?" she asked, trying to veil her impatience.
"I'm getting to it," Helena said crossly. "Well, she heard it from Tina, who heard it-"
"Forget it!" she exploded finally, tears springing to her eyes. "Where's Hayabusa? I have to tell him that it's a load of rubbish, and-"
"She heard it from Ayane," Helena said finally.
A loud and awkward silence suddenly filled the area as pairs of eyes across the school yard trained on her to see her reaction.
"Ayane. So Ayane spread this rumour," her voice was low, anger lacing it. "Ayane. I thought I could trust her,"
Helena laughed. "You must be kidding. There is no way that you could trust Ayane, Kasumi. She would hold out her hand for rescue, pull you down and use your body to climb up herself. What do you have that she doesn't have, or wants?"
"Hayabusa," she said certainly, amber narrowing into slits. "There's nothing else it could be. I offered to share when she didn't have a date. But now, she's trying to steal him from me,"
"May this be a lesson to you, Kasumi," Helena's voice was soft, gentle.
"Yes. A lesson which I am about to teach Ayane. Right now," she snapped before walking off to find her hateful half-sister.
"What do you think you're playing at?"
She spun, to see an unusually-angry Kasumi, amber eyes glittering with rage. "Ayane, you cannot and will not spread horrible rumours about me!"
"What makes you think I did it?" she asked airily. "Automatically jumped to me, I bet,"
"Helena told me. I trust her,"
She sniffed. "Yeah. Helena would frame me with stealing her dog even if I was bloody allergic to them, idiot. Don't automatically agree with everything you hear, especially from her,"
"What's going on?" Hayate and Hitomi had come over at the sounds of an argument. "Kasumi, what's wrong?"
"Ayane has spread a rumour that I'm dating Zack in order to turn Hayabusa against me, therefore she gets to take him to the formal with her tonight," Kasumi informed everybody.
"Turn me against who why?"
Hayabusa himself came up, hurriedly tying back his long hair, looking confused.
Kasumi oh-so politely informed him, and she narrowed her eyes.
"Trust. The stupid slut always accuses me of anything to do with not liking her. Perhaps there's another smart person in this stupid school that doesn't like you, bitch-face! Did you think of that? Or did the thought not cross your mind simply because your oversized ego couldn't process the fact that somebody actually might not like you?"
She smirked as her girly, stupid slut of a sister burst into tears.
I'm so humiliated! In front of my friends, even my own brother, she has to demean me so cruelly! Why does she do it? Why can't we just be friends, instead of bitter enemies?
To her utmost surprise, she felt a hand around her shoulders as someone drew her into a hesitant embrace. At first, she thought it was Hitomi, but then, she noticed that the person's head was further up then Hitomi's would be. Must be Hayate, then, she thought sadly as she buried her head in her brother's warm chest, arms tightly wrapped around his torso. I'm glad he cares about me, at least.
"Shh. Don't cry," a soft voice whispered into her hair.
Shit! That isn't Hayate's voice!
She pulled away from Hayabusa's arms as though she had been burnt, stuttering out apologies. "I'm so sorry Hayabusa you see I thought you were my brother and I wouldn't have hugged you if I had known it was you not that I think you're ugly or anything but it just seems like a horrible intrusion on your personal space you know and well I didn't mean to start like that either just that I was so surprised because I thought that you were Hayate-"
A finger gently touched her lips. "Hush. Don't worry about it,"
"Ayane, how could you," her brother's voice was soft, despondent.
"You have some nerve, automatically accusing me! Just because she cries the loudest-"
She was interrupted by Hayabusa's equally soft, yet unequally firm voice.
"Ayane. If you go to such devious lengths to hurt your sister, then I confess that I feel that we will be incompatible this evening, therefore I must withdraw my partnership,"
Her eyes widened. She couldn't help it.
"You're… you're dumping me? Just because Kasumi says that I did something?"
He nodded. "I'm sorry,"
"Well, you know what?" she stood up furiously, striding up to him and slapping him with all the strength she could muster across the face. "I'm sorry too! Sorry that I believed your cock and bull shit about wanting to go to the dance with me! Sorry that I ever even began to trust you! Sorry that I even fucking met you! I hope you rot in hell!"
Angry or sad words she was expecting, but not a burning sting across her own cheek.
What the hell?! He slapped me?! Who the hell does he think he is, laying a finger on a girl?
"I'm sorry too. Sorry that I had to see such an ugly side of you, Ayane,"
With that, he turned away, his face falling into the shadow of the trees.
"You disgust me,"
"What do you think you're goddamn doing, slapping a lady?" she snapped before he could go.
"If you act like a lady, then I'll treat you like one," he retorted.
She lunged blindly at him, but there were arms everywhere, holding her back. She spat, hissed, even tried to bite as he stood there, just out of her reach, sunlight falling on his features as he half turned towards her, only one emerald eye visible.
"As I said before. Act like a lady, and I will treat you like one,"
I don't believe it. She's won. Again.
She pulled furiously out of the grips holding her and started running. Out of the school grounds. Where, she didn't know.
A few minutes later, she managed to look up half comprehensibly at the scenery around her. The frigging park. It always seemed to be that bloody park. She sat down heavily under a tree, feeling something burn at her eyelids.
It couldn't be. Tears? Why so weak now? As if I give a shit about it. I just won't go. That was what I was planning to do anyway… what's the big deal?
She rubbed at her eyes angrily, glaring with burning hatred at the wet, glistening tears on the palm of her hand.
That's just bull-shit. Why am I getting so worked up about that stupid, damn ugly, gay arsehole dickhead? Why did I even try getting closer to him? It always seems to come back and bite me on the arse. Why do I bother? It seems nobody can accept me for me. Why? Because as long as Kasumi is still alive, they flock to her. And I wish she wasn't. I wish I could burn her in hell, stick a pitch-fork up her arse and watch her scream.
More tears welled in her eyes as she rubbed at them harder, flinching as a piece of dirt stuck on her hand went into her eye.
"Fuck!" she exclaimed to the empty park with feeling. Nobody answered.
But then again, that isn't so surprising. After all, they still have Kasumi…
And as long as they have Kasumi…
Then I'm just for naught.
More angry, painful tears sprung to her eyes, too many to control with her hand. She let them flow, not without a stream of obscenities to accompany them, grabbing a stick and angrily stabbing it into the palm of her hand. Nothing at first, then a small sting and a drop of crimson blood welled from the wound she had made.
All for naught. And it's crap, really. Because…
…even though I wanted to deny it, I can't.
…Hayabusa, I was beginning to like you.
But you obviously can't like me.
Because you have Kasumi.
You're just as shallow-minded as the rest of them, after all.
Fucking Kasumi. As long as everyone has her, they're okay. I could just get run over by a freaking truck like that blonde bitch's mother, and nobody would be any the wiser.
Stupid bitch! I hate you! Now you've left me with nothing.
With nobody.
Again, she stabbed the stick into her palm, watching with a pleased savagery as the blood flowed further.
Alone. Again.
She stood up. Hopefully that old guy still has some left. Now seems like a good time.