As she reached the door, she uncurled her fists, taking a slow, steady breath.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
Her knuckles rapped against the door. She counted in her head, trying to calm the thrum of nerves.
Eight.
Seven.
Six.
Five.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
With an exhale, she gripped the doorknob. Let's do this, she thought, inhaling one last time before twisting the handle and stepping inside.
As she stepped inside, she was greeted by darkness. The heavy curtains were drawn, blocking out the afternoon light. Only a dim desk lamp flickered in the corner, casting long shadows across the room.
Why the hell was it so dark?
Emi's hand hovered on the doorknob for a moment longer than necessary before she finally let it go, her pulse quickening. Her eyes scanned the dimly lit room, adjusting to the shadows. The only thing she could make out clearly was the outline of the chairman's large desk near the window.
"Aika Emi," a voice came from the darkness—calm, but with a chill to it that sent a shiver down her spine.
She straightened, forcing her posture to remain strong even as her earlier resolve wavered. "Mr. Chairman, Asano-san," she greeted, her voice steady, though her fingers twitched at her side.
There was a brief pause, followed by the click of a button. The room brightened with a soft hum, the sudden light making her blink. The chairman sat at his desk, hands clasped together, his gaze sharp and unyielding.
"Have a seat," he said, gesturing to the chair in front of him. His tone was polite, but the underlying edge was impossible to miss.
Emi moved forward, heart pounding, the sound echoing in her ears. This was it. No turning back.
As she took her seat on the couch, she fidgeted with the keychain hanging from her skirt's belt loop—a small round bell and a pouch of cat treats. Every soft jingle of the bell sounded like a rebellious declaration, something she wasn't ready to let go of yet.
"Good afternoon, sir," she said again, her voice carrying a steady tone despite the storm brewing within. "To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing your face on such a dull, uneventful day?" The sarcasm dripped from her words.
She adjusted the keychain again, fingers tapping restlessly against the metal. A small act of control, a reminder that despite the chairman's looming presence, she wasn't backing down.
Chairman Asano's gaze didn't waver. His expression remained unreadable, a wall of cool detachment. "A rumor has reached me about your involvement in a recent altercation involving a student from Class 3-E," he said, his tone carrying thinly veiled suspicion.
"We're taking rumors seriously now, sir?" Emi blurted out, the joke slipping through her nerves before she could stop it.
Good job, Emi.
His eyes narrowed slightly, and for a moment, she felt the weight of his scrutiny pressing down on her. But she quickly regained her composure, sitting up straight, her defiance barely concealed in her posture—tense, but far from submissive.
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Mischievous Meetings | Akabane Karma X OC
Fanfic"Hey, genius. Go out with me." Aika Emi is dared, well, she takes it as a dare, by her "friends" to date the school genius delinquent, whose troublemaking tendencies are tolerated by the school as his grades are quite high. One of the "friends" suck...
