Pain {Kakegurui FanFic}

13.

"What the hell is going on?"

I stood in confusion as I eyed Mary and Yumeko at the same time. One was stripped of the HousePet tag, the other still wearing the heavy binding chain. I pulled Mary into a deep hug as it finally hit me that my friend was free. However, the euphoria that I felt didn't distract me from the fact that Yumeko was still wearing a HousePet tag and smiling as if she had won the lottery. I cautiously sat at the table that the group was seated at whilst eyeing Yumeko.

"Take that off and pay your debts so we can be over and done with this mess." I snapped at Yumeko and she smiled wider, causing me to hiss lowly. We were in the middle of the dining hall and I didn't want to bring any attention to us because there were eyes everywhere in this academy. Ryota hesitantly glanced between Yumeko and I, causing my scowl on my face to get even darker and meaner.

"Thanks, but no thanks." Yumeko chirped as she held onto her HousePet chain even tighter. I tutted as Mary glared at Yumeko. This girl has seriously lost her mind! Why in the world wouldn't you...

"Oh don't tell me that's what you plan on doing." I snapped as Ryota paled at my words. Bingo. Yumeko simply smiled as I resisted the urge to yank my hair out of my head. This girl was crazy. Opening up my mouth, I went to speak again but halted when she flashed a small smile at me and I groaned, knowing what she wanted.

"Yumeko...are you planning on gambling against Runa?" Ryota asked and I had to cover my surprise shock. Ryota really couldn't read a situation for shit.

"Yeah, something like that." Yumeko vaguely stated whilst a small smile graced her features. This whole situation was really starting to grind my gears. Mary and I wouldn't be able to get what we wanted if Yumeko kept trying to do her own thing like this. But I'd talk to her about that later.

"Never mind that, we're not safe just yet. The Council knows that we scammed them in that debt settling party and yet we haven't been summoned yet. Why?" Mary asked, her golden eyes glinting dangerously. I often thought that Mary could sense danger from miles away so I was making sure to keep note of the uneasy expression that crossed her face.

"Well, they have an angle of course. The really question is when will they strike?" I said, causing the table to fall into silence. We had to keep on our toes from now on. Yumeko was dangerous; a threat to the peace of the school. And now that we'd formed an alliance with her, we were just as dangerous. Yumekos face went blank before she clapped excitedly, blushing wildly.

"This is going to be amazing! Mary, Ryota, Aiko! This is going to be such a gamble, so thrilling!" Yumeko gushed before jumping up and running off somewhere, excitedly tumbling along like a baby deer.

"Geez! I'll be right back!" Mary exclaimed before running off after Yumeko, leaving Ryota and I alone. I smiled brightly as I took note of the lightness in his eyes and relaxed expression as he finally felt the lack of weight from the binding chain that used to constrain his neck like a viper. It was a wondrous feeling and I knew that from personal experience. Yumeko had given him some money from the debt settling party so he wouldn't have to be a HousePet any longer. I grinned as I took in the sight of the boy before me, remembering the events of what had happened last night.

***

Yuuto had just dropped Runa and I back at the school and dusk was steadily settling across the sky, creating a beautiful collage of red, orange, pink, purple and yellow swirls. The vibrant green grass tickled my legs as I quietly sat on the track field to watch the sunset. I was still mad about going to visit my parents, they always put me in a bitter mood. A frown on etched on my face, I angrily tore the grass out in fistfuls.