Kitsune watched Taiyo walk off, her stomach twisting with worry as she quickly typed a reply to Blonde:
"Not coming. Sending my bro though—so be nice!"
She slammed send and shoved her phone back into her pocket. It wasn't like her to bail on her gyaru crew, but after all that shit she remembered—or maybe just imagined—I couldn't bring myself to step into that damn karaoke bar again.
As Taiyo disappeared into the distance, a sinking feeling crept into her chest.
"What if he screws this up?" she muttered to herself.
At the Mixer
Taiyo finally showed up at the damn karaoke bar with his usual goofy-ass grin, clueless about what the fuck he was getting into. Free food and karaoke were enough to keep him optimistic—even if he didn't have a clue what was about to hit him.
The gyaru girls, led by Blonde, eyed him like he was some fucking alien.
"Wait, you're Kitsune's brother?" one sneered.
"Yep!" Taiyo said, flashing a peace sign like it was a damn miracle. "She couldn't make it, so she sent me instead. I'm here to, uh… represent the family, I guess?"
The guys on the other side of the table exchanged confused looks, but Blonde just shrugged. "Whatever, man. Let's get this party started!"
Drinks (non-alcoholic, to Taiyo's utter disappointment) and food started flowing, and before he knew it, the King's Game kicked off like it was nothing.
Taiyo's Otaku Takeover
"Alright!" Taiyo shouted, standing up with a chopstick in hand like it was his goddamn microphone. "Before we get into the boring shit, let's make this fun!"
The gyaru girls blinked in confusion. "What do you mean, boring shit?" Teal asked.
"You know, all that lovey-dovey matchmaking nonsense. Let's do something better! Who here has seen Magical Maid Mikan's Mega Battle?"
Silence.
Taiyo gasped dramatically, clutching his chest. "None of you? None of you have seen the greatest anime of the century? That's fucking unacceptable!"
Blonde smirked. "Oh, so you're one of those anime nerds, huh?"
"Excuse me!" Taiyo snapped, pointing at her. "It's otaku, not nerd! And yes, I am. But by the end of tonight, you'll all be otaku too. I fucking promise."
The boys exchanged looks of uncertainty, but the gyaru girls just burst out laughing.
"Alright, nerd boy," Teal said, leaning back. "Show us what you got."
The Mixer Becomes an Otaku Party
What followed was pure, unadulterated chaos. Taiyo took over the karaoke machine, belting out anime opening songs with so much gusto that even the boys got caught up. The gyaru girls, who'd been mocking him earlier, started grooving along as he taught them some wild-ass dance moves.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Blonde shouted, barely able to catch her breath from laughing. "What's that one where they do that weird hand thing and shout about power levels?"
"Oh, you mean Ultra Beam Spirit Punch?" Taiyo replied, eyes lighting up. "Lemme show you!"
By the end of the night, the entire group was shouting anime catchphrases, striking awkward poses, and debating which magical girl series had the sickest outfits. The mixer lost all sense of its original purpose and morphed into a spontaneous otaku club.
Kitsune's Misunderstanding
Meanwhile, Kitsune paced her room, chewing her thumbnail as worst-case scenarios bombarded her brain.
"What if they're playing the King's Game?" she muttered. "What if he's too damn clueless to figure out what's really going on? What if… oh fuck, what if someone tries to take his virginity?!"
Her stomach churned at the thought. She didn't want to care this much, but the idea of Taiyo getting caught up in something lewd made her skin crawl.
Her phone buzzed, snapping her out of her spiraling thoughts. It was a text from Blonde:
"Ur bro's kinda nuts but, like… in a good way? Mixer's wild lol."
Kitsune furrowed her brows. "What the fuck does that even mean?"
Then another text came from Teal:
"BTW, ur bro said u didn't come bc ur not into boys??? Like, WTF, lol. You into girls or smth??"
Kitsune's jaw dropped. "He what?!"
Her phone buzzed again with a pic. It was Taiyo, striking a ridiculous pose with the whole group mimicking him. The caption read:
"Otaku party ft. ur weird ass bro. Thx for not coming, lol."
The Aftermath
By the time Taiyo got home, Kitsune was waiting for him, arms crossed and that unreadable look on her face.
"Hey, Kitsune!" he said cheerfully. "You missed out! It was the best-ass mixer ever!"
"Oh, I'm sure it was," she replied in a dangerously calm tone. "Care to explain why my friends now think I'm into girls?"
Taiyo blinked. "What? Oh, that! Yeah, I told them you weren't into boys so they'd stop asking about you. It worked, didn't it?"
Kitsune groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "You're fucking unbelievable."
"Hey, they all had a blast!" Taiyo grinned. "And now they all love Magical Maid Mikan! I'm a goddamn hero, seriously."
Kitsune stared at him, torn between wanting to strangle him and laughing her ass off. "Just… go to bed, Taiyo. I don't ever want to hear about this shit again."
As he wandered off to his room, humming an anime theme, Kitsune shook her head.
"Next time," she muttered to herself, "I'm never letting him go alone."