Risking It All For You. Reawakened! (Saiki Kusuo x Teruhashi Kokomi) (rewrite)

Chapter 16 - Selfless Psychic

It doesn't matter if you're pretty, your demeanor has to be as well. It doesn't matter if you have a good personality, you also have to have good looks. You need both. In order to be truly perfect, one must train both body and mind. This was Teruhashi's internal motto that she never shared with anyone. If it was admitted that she was trying to make herself perfect, then that in of itself was undesirable.

Teruhashi Kokomi studied for years in the human psyche of what makes a person desirable when she was young. Over time, she truly realized what a person desired in a girl: beautiful, cute, and pure. It was essential that Teruhashi expressed herself as this innocent girl who had no experience in dating yet had all the attributes that are desired in a woman. An untouched treasure is desired even more than a used one. Even if a mere fingerprint got on this treasure, it would no longer be considered "perfect." It was Teruhashi's biggest fear that she would be tainted by a "fingerprint."

Her usual daily routine would be relatively simple. She'd wake up, do morning things, then go to school. As soon as she left the house, she would look for boys that are stalking her and look as ethereal as possible. Upon arriving at school, she would not pay any mind to all the boys ogling her and present herself as being this cheerful girl. If someone confronted her, she would have a nice conversation with them and give them a core memory.

In class, she would talk with her friends and attend class attentively. The teachers wouldn't call on her because they didn't want to inconvenience her but even if they did, she would have given the correct answer. It's important that she presents herself as smart as well. When it's time for lunch, she'd get a hefty meal (due to the lunch ladies' bias) and sit down with her friends.

At the end of the day, she'd go home and maybe go to a few stores. More people would ogle her but she would again not pay attention. Then, she would return home, eat dinner, take a bath, and then go to sleep.

There's a constant pattern of constantly putting her attention into presenting herself as being this perfect girl. She loves the attention and she doesn't care what she has to do to keep it. If the eyes are on her, she's happy. If they aren't , then...

What's the point?

A reality in which she wasn't desired always seemed like an impossibility: just a nightmare birthed from her insecurities.

Today, Teruhashi woke up and lived according to her usual routine. She brushed her teeth, washed her face, combed her hair, then dressed in her school uniform. She patted herself off to make sure she was clean, and with a smile, left the house.

Looking around, she noticed that there was a discrepancy from her usual routine; there were no boys ogling her. There were PK students that walked by her house, but no one went out of their way to look at her. She had a few glances, but nothing more than a peek.

She'd arrive at school with a similar environment. No ogles, no blushes, no 'offu's, no anything. Even as the hands of time continuously move forward, she wouldn't get used to it. She grew up with this treatment, and it was suddenly snatched away from her. She didn't know how much she relied on it for her well being until it was gone.

Before she got too depressed, she sat down at her desk and sighed (also noting that no one came running after her). She looked to her right towards Saiki who was busy talking to his friends. She saw him glance at her for a moment and soon after a message slipped into her headspace.

"Sorry."

'Don't blame yourself,' she mentally responded, her eyes drooping low. 'I'm just a narcissist in withdrawal.'

"So your poison is constant attention, huh? You need therapy."

'Unironically, yea.'

The conversation cut short. Both of them didn't really wanna talk about the situation. They had been planning for a solution for a long time now but couldn't come up with one. It felt like it's been at least 8 months since their story had made any progress... In reality, it's been like 3 weeks. Those weeks felt torturous. She felt like a zoo animal without any spectators.