"Hanatemari if you're out there I hope you're safe and sorry for all my shortcomings—"

Mary turned the video off before the urge to throw up got even stronger. She had lost count how many times she had rolled her eyes, watching that. She threw her phone inside her bag not bothering to read the comments. It will all be just a bunch of fake sympathizers anyway acting like they give a fuck but would carry on with their day not even remembering her name or Hanatemari's.

But still she wanted to applaud herself for giving that little "performance". It wasn't easy bringing herself to cry in front of the camera, knowing it will be seen by people all over the country. It wasn't that she didn't give a fuck about Hanatemari- she just didn't want to cry in front of all these strangers. She hated to be seen crying. Fuck, she even hated the act itself, made her feel weak and vulnerable but she figured that the only way to gain sympathy was for her to let a tear or two drop; people always loved a "good drama" didn't they and besides it would appear weird if she didn't do it and she didn't want a reason for people to judge her so she just went with the route that she knew would get people to be on her side.

And it turns out it not only worked on strangers on the Internet but apparently everyone else too.

"You're going to school?"

Her mother looked up from where she was busy wiping the table, looking at Mary with surprise and a hint of concern. Her dad had already left for work right after breakfast and in an extremely rare display of affection, had kissed her on the forehead before he left.

Being friends with a missing girl had some benefits after all.

"Yeah." Mary replied. "I don't want to miss on any important school work."

"You know your teachers will probably be lenient on you right? They even said you can take a break if you want."

Mary wished this could go on, that even if Hanatemari was found or whatever, her parents will continue showing this kind of attention on her. But that was a bitter thought to have, she quickly realized. This will soon be over whether Hanatemari was found or not.

"I'm fine." Mary replied and she was surprised to learn that she didn't have to fake her smile. she surprised herself even more when she stepped forward to give her mother a quick hug.

"I'll be going then."

Her mother, just as surprised as she was but looked pleased nonetheless, smiled warmly.

"Hey I'll be going to the shops later. I'll buy your favourite cake so you can have a snack when you get home."

Mary doubted her mother even knew what her favourite cake was but she still smiled back.

It was a lie. She wasn't going to school.

Wanting to take advantage of everyone expecting her to stay home and be all sad and mopey about her friend gone missing, Mary rode the train and alighted at a different station. So as not to have anyone staring at her wondering why she had a uniform on but was clearly not in school, Mary had brought a hoodie along with her and changed in one of the station's restrooms. Also she didn't want to risk anyone recognizing her as the girl on TV.

With this grey hoodie on she hoped to blend in the crowd and just be another random human being. But Mary had a purpose- as much as she wanted to sit by one of those sidewalk cafes and just enjoy the sunny day with a cup of coffee, she wanted to investigate. She wanted to take matters into her own hands. It was clear the police wasn't going to be much of help no matter how rich and influential the Hanatemaris were. There was clearly something else going on here which their school had something to do with and Mary doubted the police would look into that.

Hanatemari wasn't the only Hyakkaou student who had mysteriously disappeared and Mary didn't fancy herself as some heroic detective on a crusade for the truth- she just wanted to get to the bottom of this, period.

And so that's why on this particular sunny morning she found herself trudging up a path that she hadn't been to for quite some time but was still familiar to her.

The Hanatemaris live in one of those neighbourhoods that just screamed "fancy" all over. "Nice" would be an understatement. Walking up the hill, Mary can see the rooftops of those houses that can pass off as villas and was delighted to see a red sports car pass by her. She wasn't a stranger to these sights, having classmates who got dropped off and fetched in much fancier cars but Mary's heart still skipped at the sight of things like these. She liked to envision herself driving one someday, with the hood down and the music turned up and yes it was a cheesy daydream but it's not like anyone will know that anyway.

She never even shared things like that to Hanatemari and she preferred it that way specially after that one time…no, it was no good to think about the things she hated about Hanatemari specially now that she was in front of her sprawling mansion. Hanatemari's dad, being a politician and concerned about safety had his house built behind a huge black wrought iron gate and Mary had to speak on to the intercom before they let her in.

"Hello I'm Mary Saotome a friend of Hana—I mean, Tsuzura-san."

Now that she said it Mary suddenly thought wouldn't it be weird, her just showing up out of the blue and ask to talk to Tsuzura's parents? But luckily she was shown in without being asked. The gate slowly opened with a loud whirring sound but not all the way, just enough to let her in. Mary told herself to remain calm and not intimidated as she entered the Hanatemari's property. The Hanatemaris were nice people after all.

As Mary walked her eyes scanned the garden, taking note of the immaculately trimmed lawn and flower bushes. She also spotted the table where Hanatemari used to host her little tea parties when they were kids. Back in elementary everyone had been nice to her. Of course being rich as fuck was one of the reasons but Hanatemari was just sickeningly sweet you can't help but be nice to her. Mary was both disgusted and jealous at the same time.

Reaching the front door, Mary was about to knock and was surprised when it opened before she can do so and was greeted by a uniformed man whose hair was greying at the temples.

"Come in Mary-san. Madam is looking forward to see you."

My goodness, Mary thought to herself. The Hanatemaris had a butler now?! Since when?!

"Th-thank you." Mary said, suddenly feeling even more conscious now. Why did she pick this grey hoodie? Couldn't she have gone for a better outfit?

Mary was led to a small private room with two upholstered armchairs facing each other and a small round table in between. There were oriental vases and jars strewn around to keep the room a bit more lively and flowers by the window side. Mary seated herself on one of the chairs, suddenly feeling stiff.

"Mrs. Hanatemari will be here shortly. In the mean time would you like tea or coffee Miss Mary? Or some juice perhaps?"

"Coffee would be fine, thank you." As the butler left Mary wondered if this is the room the Hanatemaris use when they entertained their more intimate guests- there was just something about the room that gave off a more personal feeling. As Mary sat there picking on a loose thread from her hoodie and twirling it around her finger she debated on what she should say to Mrs. Hanatemari once she arrives. Will she cut straight to the chase? Or would small talk first be appropriate?

Mary wasn't in a rush but she doubted if she can handle small talk right now. But before she can fully form a decision the door swung open and in came the person Mary was both dreading and looking forward to see.

Mrs. Hanatemari moved with the grace and poise only a woman of her background can pull off and something which Mary wished her own mom had more off. Upon the sight of that familiar black waves and round doe-like eyes Mary was hit with a pang. Tsuzura looked so much like her mom it was almost painful.

"Mary-chan!" Mrs. Hanatemari cried out before launching herself on to Mary, throwing her arms around the young girl. Mary was so startled she barely caught sight of a maid entering the room bearing their tea and biscuits. At first Mary had no idea where to place her hands or what to say even until she felt Mrs. Hanatemari sobbing so reluctantly she brought her hands up on the small of Mrs. Hanatemari's back and Mary thought how odd it was to be the one comforting an adult.

After the maid left Mrs. Hanatemari seemed to have calmed down and she went to the chair across from Mary and sat down, wiping her tears away.

Even the way she does it seems to elegant, Mary couldn't help but note. It took a few more seconds for Mrs. Hanatemari to finally compose herself and when she did she smiled at Mary and reached for her tea like nothing happened.

"It's very nice to see you again Mary-chan. How are you?"

And very odd to be asking after someone else's wellbeing when your own child is missing and you just sobbed on someone else's shoulder but Mary pushed the thought away.

"I'm fine thanks." Mary replied forcing herself to smile. And so that started a series of questions, most of them generic small talk that Mary dreaded but now found herself with no choice but to deal with.

Mrs. Hanatemari asked about school- how was her grades, how were her parents doing, does she have a boyfriend already, etc. to which Mary answered "just fine" and laughed politely at the last one. When finally Mrs. Hanatemari seemed to be running out of things to say Mary decided that this was enough idle chit chat. Putting her teacup down Mary forced herself to look at Mrs. Hanatemari in the eye.

'"Actually ma'am, I came here to ask about Tsuzura."

"Oh Tsuzura. Right."

Mary watched Mrs. Hanatemari's face carefully, see if she will sob again (which Mary feared) or at least shed a tear but instead she just stiffened as if it was a topic she didn't want to talk about but Mary had no other choice.

"What would you want to know Mary? We already talked to the police lots of times."

"Oh no it's not that. I just wanted to know if Tsuzura had been acting weird before she…you know…" Mary hesitated to say the word almost like it was a curse or maybe it just hurts to say it and even more so to say it to Mrs. Hanatemari who did her best to retain her composure.

"Yes she had been acting weird. You see Tsuzura used to tell us everything. We were close you know."

Yes, Mary wanted to say. She knew that as a fact of which she was jealous of.

"And she always used to be so cheerful. When she became friends with you she always came home smiling."

Mary felt a pang in her chest that she did not expect.

"She was always talking about you and all the things you did and I'm glad she was finally enjoying school and most of all I'm glad she has a friend like you."

Mary blinked furiously not wanting to shed a tear in front of Mrs. Hanatemari and she fought down the swell that was starting to form in her throat. She looked towards the window where she can see a view of the garden and she couldn't help but imagine Tsuzura there inviting her out for tea but instead of their elementary school selves it was there present forms that was there. Damn, Mary wanted to scream. She didn't come here for a fucking sobfest.

Thankfully Mrs. Hanatemari continued on.

"So it really surprised me when she started acting…different. She no longer seemed happy. She was jumpy and elusive. Everytime I asked her about school she wouldn't meet my eye and she'd always change the topic. At first I thought you two must've had a fight but she was adamant that it wasn't the case."

Mary bristled at that. So Tsuzura didn't tell her mom?

"One night I decided to check on her and I got scared when she wasn't in her room. When I went down to the kitchen I caught her holding a knife. I had no idea what she was doing with it, or planning to do but she got scared, dropped the knife and ran back to her room. She refused to talk to me afterwards."

As if those words weren't enough to sting her, Mrs. Hanatemari continued.

"And that was the last night I've had with her."

The stuff with the knife made no sense to Mary. After all Tsuzura wasn't suicidal…was she?

But only one thing was clear to her and that was her need to get out of here. But first, the truth. Mrs. Hanatemari deserved it.

"Actually ma'am…Tsuzura and I did have a fight. Her sadness…it might be my fault."

But no…Tsuzura can't possibly kill herself just because of that…no, no, no…

"I said some things I didn't mean…"

"Oh no Mary-chan I'm sure it doesn't have anything to do…why, when I was your age I had misunderstandings too with my friends—"

"No ma'am it wasn't as simple as that. I said some things. Mean, hurtful things despite knowing how sensitive she can be and I also…"

Come on Mary put this in Hanatemari's drink it will be sooo funny!

Jeez it's just a bit of fun it's not like it's poison or anything!

Gosh Mary you're such a goody two shoes no wonder you're friends with such a loser…

"I…" Mary tore her gaze away from Mrs. Hanatemari, hanging her head in shame at what she had done and what she was about to confess: that she had put some drug in Hanatemari's drink after she was goaded by a bunch of schoolmates. She should've known better they were trying to pressure her and they did not care about her at all but she wanted to be accepted so much, hang out with people other than Tsuzura…

God how could I have been so stupid?

Mary forced herself to look back up and just when she was about to say it, Mrs. Hanatemari spoke up.

"Oh right I forgot to tell you one thing."

Mary could not deny her relief at that moment but she was definitely not expecting what Mrs. Hanatemari was about to tell her, will never even see it coming.

"Tsuzura had a debt. She never said how much but that's when it all started, her strange behaviour. She gambled and she lost."

This time Mary did throw up but luckily she was out of the house before she could no longer hold it in. across from the Hanatemaris' sprawling villa Mary hid herself in that empty lot among the grass, puking her guts out. She felt hollow as she did so. Disgusted, even. But most of all, shocked.

Tsuzura had been gambling? Why hadn't she known of it? Or at least, heard?

Mary wiped the corners of her mouth with the back of her hand, feeling even more disgusted. As soon as the pounding of her heart had subsided she straightened herself and started walking away though a bit woozy and the afternoon sun didn't help much either.

As mary walked she couldn't fathom why on earth Tsuzura would gamble. Was she peer pressured? Too scared to tell Mary about it? but that was so unlike her. Tsuzura never expressed any interest in gambling, was afraid of it, even. And if she had been in debt then that means…

She was a pet. Until the day she went missing.

Mary's pace quickened, now more determined to get to the bottom of this. If she had been a pet she needed to know who it was that Tsuzura gambled against with and lost and she knew who kept records of that and can answer her questions but if they won't then Mary will simply have to force them and she'd move heaven and earth just for the truth.

She was going to talk to the student council.

Igarashi Sayaka was extremely bored and was finally glad that the match was over.

Sayaka jumped to hit the ball with her racket and it landed just before it tumbled out of bounds. Yumemi can only stare at it wistfully, complaining yet again how the ball was too fast.

Duh you silly idiot, Sayaka wanted to say as she rolled her shoulders back. It's fucking tennis.

"Ah you're so good at this Sayaka-chan!" Yumemi said as they walked off to the side of the court where they placed their water bottles. Sayaka only shrugged. She can tell that underneath that sweet trying-hard-to-be-cute exterior Yumemi was most likely glaring daggers at her.

They dropped their rackets as they reached for their drinks and just then Sayaka spotted a blonde figure looking at them from the second floor. Yumemi saw her too and they both pretended as if they haven't.

"Looks like you have a visitor." Yumemi said before tipping her head back for a drink.

"I can only guess what the hell she wants now." Sayaka replied sardonically.

"Well good luck with that Sayaka-chan. I need to head to the studio after this. Bye~!" and just like that Yumemi left her standing by herself in that courtyard to deal with the impending mess.

Sayaka watched Yumemi's tennis skirt swishing as the girl walked away and couldn't help but notice how her legs were growing fitter and fitter by day. Sayaka wondered if tennis was the only thing that made her legs this way but then again Yumemi never took any sport seriously. She just did all this exercise to maintain her slim figure.

Sayaka looked away just as Yumemi's ever so faithful bespectacled assistant appeared, greeting Yumemi with a fresh new towel. She sometimes wondered what on earth made that nerdy looking girl so loyal to Yumemi. Was she foolishly in love with her? But then again, who was she to call the girl foolish?

Sayaka looked back up just in time to meet Mary Saotome's gaze and Sayaka repressed another sigh from escaping her lips. Why the fuck does she always get left with the dirty business, she will never understand.

Mary chased after Sayaka down the corridor and tried her best not to let out any expletive no matter how much this ponytailed girl was seriously annoying her right now.

"Please!" Mary practically begged, forcing herself to go faster and keep up with Sayaka's strides. "I need to talk to the president!"

Finally they reached the student council office. She can tell Sayaka was really trying to be patient and it made Mary all the more want to push her buttons. Sayaka paused as she wrapped her hand around the doorknob, sparing Mary a sideways glance.

"The president is too busy to talk to just anyone right now Saotome-san. Any business you might want to discuss, you can tell me. Or if you really like you can schedule an appointment."

Mary felt like screaming at her. No, she doesn't want a fucking appointment this wasn't a goddamn doctor's clinic she wanted answers now!

"It's about the disappearance of my friend—"

"Yes we all know that." Sayaka's calm neutral tone made Mary want to strangle her. "And while we're terribly sorry this has happened, I can assure you that the police are working to solve this case and we are cooperating with them."

Oh really? Mary wanted to say back. Do you now? Because all Mary sees was their stupid asses playing tennis in the middle of the day and the president doing who knows what in that cozy air-conditioned office…

"I just want to know who on earth Tsuzura gambled with!" Mary cried out and this seemed to have finally caught Sayaka's attention.

"Her mother told me she had been in debt. I just want to know who it was. I know you guys keep records of that. You're allowed to say who it is aren't you?"

Sayaka let her shoulders drop, recognizing the threat in Mary Saotome's tone: that even if they are not allowed to say it, she will sneak in here and find out who it was and Sayaka would rather much do it the easier way.

"Yes we are allowed but that is not up for me to tell. You can talk to the president this Friday. I'll squeeze in a slot for you. Till then please don't bother any of us or there will be major consequences, miss scholarship student."

The words had struck her more than she'd like to admit. Damn Sayaka Igarashi and the stuck up student council, thinking they're so fucking important. Mary can only nod and clench her fists secretly as Sayaka entered the office without another glance.

Mary was left standing there feeling like a loser in that empty, silent hallway until she finally accepted the fact that there's nothing for her to do now but go to class and wait for Friday to come.