Kaho's jaw dropped, and a flabbergasted laugh escaped her mouth, "You're kidding, right? You've got to be kidding."
"Do I look like I'm kidding?"
"No," Kaho admitted, "But come on! I won fair and square!"
"What's up, Kaho?" Yuta asked, leading the three basketball boys into class, his hair was still tied back from practice. Clearly it had been a rough one; all of them were glistening with a fresh sheen of sweat. He had Ryota's neon pink ball on his finger, spinning it.
"Matsuoka is dragging his feet," Kaho said, "He said he'd join the basketball team and now he's chickening out."
"Awh, man," Eiji said, "I mean, if you don't wanna play, you don't have to but damn, you're really good."
"Thanks," Naseru said dryly.
"I thought you made a bet?" Ryota said, crossing his arms.
Naseru tensed.
"And you lost that bet. So, you have to honour the terms!" Ryota declared.
Naseru glanced over his shoulder at Kaho. She averted her eyes. Busted.
Naseru bristled, "Like I said to Aigawa, she should have made the terms of her end of the bet clearer. She said I had to join. Not when I had to join. I could enrol the day before graduation and still be honouring the deal."
Ryota's eye twitched, "You're kidding. You've got to be kidding me."
Kaho watched Ryota storm across the room to his seat and slump into his desk, arms crossed. He scowled, glaring daggers at the chalkboard, willing Hiro Sensei to appear and quell his simmering rage.
It would have been better to keep Ryota on a short leash, but Kaho had a date with Tatsuya to concern herself with. It was the first time she was going to see him in person since the school year started. The butterflies in her stomach wouldn't cease as she waited and wished the day away. He was picking her up from her place, but her hair was already perfect, pinned in place, styled in two plaits, clipped behind her head to resemble milkmaid braids. A few strands of her dark hair framed her face. Heavy mascara and khol lined her eyes. She was glad as she fidgeted through the day, that she hadn't painted her nails, she would have picked the polish off each of her fingers before lunch.
Kaho didn't bother going to practice. She walked straight home. She had picked her outfit out for the date before bed. Kaho would be modelling on their date, filling the background of a photoshoot with a few other friends of the models on the shoot. They were going for people they could blur out, and draw attention to the three models front at centre. Tatsuya, and his two female co-models. Kaho had never been to one of his shoots before, let alone stepped foot on one before. She had picked something casual but cute to wear, a pair of stretchy flared trousers, long socks, a babydoll tee, and a denim jacket.
Her doorbell rang just as she patted some extra glittery eyeshadow on her lids. She scampered downstairs and swung the door open. Tatsuya was waiting for her in the doorway. His red hair was perfectly styled, so it looked scruffy, but each hair was deliberately laid on his face. He wore a pair of black jeans and a black shirt. As Kaho rammed her feet into some shoes and grabbed her handbag, her eyes flickered to the street, where a black car with tinted windows waited for them.
"The agency sent it," Tatsuya said, wrapping his arm around Kaho's shoulder.
They climbed into the car. Tatsuya leaned over and kissed her, quick and gentle kiss. Kaho chased his lips. He kissed her again.
"Seatbelts," Tatsuya's agent said.
They did as they were told.
"Good job following the brief, you're going to be the prettiest blurry blob in the whole shoot."
Kaho smiled, "Thank you for inviting me."
"I'm looking forward to spending some time together," Tatsuya said, "It's been forever since we went on a date. I'm sorry I've been so busy, Kaho."
Kaho shrugged, "It's a new school year," she said, "There's been a lot going on."
A lot going on was an understatement. Kaho knew that even if he didn't. Her head had been a whirlwind of thoughts and whims, managing them and staying on top of her work was a nightmare. How Ryota managed to get all his homework done before school was always a surprise. Was he just not sleeping? Had he sold his soul to some eldritch demon to achieve immortality and incredible stamina to always get everything done on time? Kaho didn't know. But she was suddenly aware she only had two days until her history homework was due and she hadn't done it.
Kaho sighed, "I miss you."
"I miss you," Tatsuya said, squeezing Kaho's hand, "And after we finish the shoot, I'll take you out for dinner, yeah? Whatever you want? Tteokbokki?"
Kaho nodded, "Perfect."
They sat in comfortable silence, fingers entwined, waiting for the car to pull up at the roller rink, where the photographers were shooting. A fashion magazine was doing a brighter, more colourful shoot at the rink, and to add some dimension and texture to Tatsuya and his fellow models' poses, Kaho and some other background models, were going to skate in the background.
She wasn't sure what she was expecting when the door opened, but it certainly wasn't.
"Oi, you're one of the background people, yeah?" someone said, he was a short, balding man in a lanyard, he beckoned Kaho over to where a startled teenager stood, distributing skates, "Skates on. Now. You're late."
"I'm very sorry, I came straight from school, Sir." Kaho said, lowering her head and rushing to the kiosk. She traded her trainers for a pair of skates and a locker key, where she threw her handbag. The other skaters were already on the rink, zooming across the rink, laughing and doing tricks. Kaho swallowed the lump forming in her throat. she hadn't skated in a very, very long time.
Her skates felt massive on her feet, elevating her height by a good few inches. She attempted to cross the walkway and avoid the three models and their entourages by walking on the toe stoppers as if she was on pointe shoes. She hoisted herself into the rink and took a deep breath, kicking off and skidding along the rink toward another girl, her hair was a honey blonde, and it reeked of peroxide. She wore a pair of boxy denim shorts and a crop top with thigh-high shorts.
"Ow! Watch it!"
"I'm sorry!" Kaho exclaimed, struggling to righten herself. She helped the other girl to her feet. She sighed, fanning her face, it was lacquered in intricate makeup.
"Oh shit," the girl said, "What are you, fourteen?"
"Sixteen," Kaho said quietly.
"I'm sorry," the girl said, "I'm in such a mood, God, I thought I was doing a serious shoot and here I am being a blurry blob in the background of an idol's shoot. God. What is this industry?"
Kaho raised a brow at the girl in front of her, "I'm sure you'll get your big break?"
"Pfft," she laughed, "I'm twenty-two and my first glossy magazine shoot is just me as a blur. God." She ran a hand through her hair, "Sorry for being such a cow. I'm tense as Hell. C'mere kid. You're the youngest in the wolves' den. Do you want a slushie or something? God I must sound so patronising? I just meant because the snacks are catered by the magazine so they've got all the slushes on a tab. Grab a few. Get your money's worth."
Kaho's eyes flickered to the slushie machine. Tatsuya was standing beside it with his two female colleagues, both were heavily made up in edgy colourful makeup reminiscent of the neon eighties aesthetic that came from the lights, disco ball and chunky roller skates.
The woman skated closer to where the other models were, young men and women of different heights and skin tones stood in fashionable but pedestrian clothing. Block colours, simple, flattering silhouettes. Kaho looked up at them all. They were older than her. Each and every one of them had sharper, more mature features, angular faces, sharp lines, lithe, nimble bodies, perfect for editorial photo shoots. Kaho sighed.
The girl she'd collided into adjusted the chunky gold hoops in her ears, removing them to massage her tender skin, and then forging the heavy gold through the piercing again, "I'm Suzuki 'Moko."
Kaho ignored the slushies, and her boyfriend, and followed the woman to accompany the other models.
"So," said one, a man with dyed silver hair, "What's your name."
"I'm Kaho," she said.
"Welcome to Hell, Kaho," he said, "I'm Hitori Kyosuke, Let's have some fun."
Despite her clumsy beginning on the shoot, Kaho didn't completely ruin it. She skated in the designated background zone, holding hands with other models, laughing, talking. They didn't need to do anything, just pass the other models by while they did the hard work. Kaho watched 'Moko and Kyosuke stare longingly at Tatsuya and the girls as if they wanted to tear them from their spots on the rink and replace them. They looked good together. A camera would like them. Hell, both would look great as models for a portrait project. Something colourful and crisp like what Makoto painted of Kibata Mae the other day.
When the shoot was called for a recess, Tatsuya plucked Kaho from the crowd of professional models and gave her a twirl, "Slushie?"
"Blue, please," Kaho said.
He bowed theatrically like a prince would to his princess and skated off the rink to join the queue for slushies.
One of the female models, wearing an iridescent purple PU leather trench coat, a haler neck ribbed crop top. She wore a pair of flared trousers with decorative buckles, buttons and embroidery. Her hair was mushroom brown, dyed and well-maintained, and her makeup was heavy and Western, with bright colours and a bold lip. She had three moles on her face, one above her left eyebrow, one on the right side of her chin and one to the left of her nose. She arched her brow and pursed her lips, skating to Kaho's side.
"You know, you're good on those skates."
"Thank you."
"I'm Rin, Rin dot Tabishiroh on Instaflash."
"Nice to meet you Rin dot Tabishiroh on Instaflash," Kaho said dryly, "Love your outfit."
"I'm so excited to show my followers I have some grit and stuff," Rin flipped her hair, "Hey, Girlie, do you know how to use a skateboard?"
Kaho nodded weakly, "I mean, I guess?"
"And do tricks?"
Kaho shrugged, "Why?"
"Well, like I said, I'm on Instaflash and I want to give my followers another side of me. But I'm not very good. If I pay you, will you pretend to be me and do some tricks? I'll pay! I'll pay big money?"
Kaho raised her eyebrows, "What? Like a stunt double?"
"Uh… yeah?" Rin said.
Tatsuya skated over with two blue slushies in his hands. Rin took one from his hand and slurped it. Tatsuya glared at her, handing Kaho the second slushie and turning back to the queue.
"He's so chivalrous," Rin said.
Kaho glared at her, "I'm not interested in being your stunt double, Rin dot Tabishiroh on Instaflash."
Rin sneered at her, "Do you think you're better than me?"
Kaho shrugged, "No? When have I ever said that?"
Tatsuya returned with a third slush. He sipped it triumphantly, snaking his hand into Kaho's. She smiled at him.
Rin bared her teeth, "Tatsuya! Thanks for the slush."
"Don't even think about it Rin," Tatsuya said, glaring at her, "I'm warning you. I know what you're like."
Rin shrugged and skated away, turning on her toe stoppers and skating closer, she stumbled on her return and the blue slush went soaring toward Kaho. Most, fortunately, landed on the rink, but some neon blue spatter collided with her crisp white shirt. Kaho squeaked and dropped her slush too.
"Seems me and your little girlfriend aren't so different, we both make big messes and cause trouble, hey, Tatsuya?"
Tatsuya glared at her and ushered Kaho away from the mess, handing her his slush. He was going to take the fall for the mess it seemed.
Kaho's stomach felt like it was lined with lead. Nausea bubbled in her throat. She no longer wanted tteokbokki. She wanted the floor to swallow her whole.