the secrets hidden in your heart

Oneshot

"We've been having trouble keeping the crowds away from you, girls. Especially you, Sayaka, so," Started the manager, giving Himeko's cleavage a good eyeful. If Sayaka would not be hit if she slouched, she would've, just to avoid his gaze. Unfortunately, the rules had been taught to her in blood and bruises, and Sayaka obeyed them. "So we hired a bodyguard."

Sayaka knew the bodyguards the manager (who was now staring at Satomi's tights; the next one to be put under that leech's gaze was herself, she knew) liked to hire, and did an internal sigh, already readying herself for the abuse. Between the fans and the bodyguards, she almost preferred the fans. Almost.

His gaze landed on Sayaka, centered between her too-exposed breasts, and Sayaka held his gaze, steady and cold.

If she hadn't done so much to get where she was, she would've dropped out and gone solo; it felt bad to abandon her group mates, although she knew that they'd do the same, given the chance. This tension, taut and ready to explode, suited them just fine. It was what made their music so good.

"Please greet your bodyguard." He said, and opened the door to show -

Mukuro Ikusaba zeroed on Sayaka almost immediately, and Sayaka felt herself blush, sitting even more upright, looking into her classmate. The manager was speaking, but Sayaka wasn't listening, too busy feeling how short her idol clothes were.

It was part of the job, and it was one thing to be seen at a distance, in the big screen, as she danced and sang; another whole thing was to be seen at a close distance by her classmate. Fans didn't count; Sayaka didn't know them personally, didn't have math on Mondays with them.

(Makoto also didn't count. Sayaka had decided that on the first day of classes; he was her friend first and her fan second)

The manager finished his monologue, and both Ayaka and Kyouko went after him as he left, probably ready to discuss how little lines they had on the most recently released song (they were dancers, not singers; Sayaka avoided a well-deserved eye roll), while Himiko and Satomi leaned into each other, taking off their phones from the hidden pockets of their clothes and scrolling through their Twitter feeds, which left Sayaka alone with Mukuro. She rose up, dusted her too-short skirt and smiled too sweetly at Mukuro, who seemed to want to be anywhere but there.

"I thought you were a soldier?" Sayaka whispered, with more daggers in her voice than needed. Mukuro looked away.

"It pays well?" Mukuro replied, and Sayaka gave her a long sigh. "Listen, I know it's not ideal, but it'll be just a few short weeks until your promotional cycle ends. Then we can go back to just being classmates."

Sayaka could work with that.

"So, can I ask why you're following me?" Sayaka asked, walking forward without looking at Mukuro, who was exactly four steps behind her on the stairs.

"Well, might as well start working sooner, if we're going to the same place." Mukuro replied, casually breaking a camera from a man. At least she assumed it was a man, but they tended to be. "Besides, I'm your bodyguard."

Sayaka looked back, and saw Mukuro giving a cellphone a swift kick, with a man scrambling after it a moment later. She kept walking.

"Technically, you're the bodyguard of the whole group." She pointed out, and Mukuro shrugged.

"The whole group doesn't go to Hope's Peak, do they?" Mukuro grabbed Sayaka's arm, bringing her closer, and leaned in. "By the way, there's another man following you today as well. I'm going to ask you to crouch in three minutes so I can deck him in the face, and I'm going to tap your shoulder to let you know. Is there a problem with this?"