Catalyst

Ill-Gotten Evidence

Ayano was scrolling through the panty shots on her phone, making sure each one would be to Info-chan's satisfaction. She had taken several, not wanting to risk getting close to those rats again any time soon. She selected a few and with a few swipes sent them off to Info-chan. A response came immediately.

Thank you for your business. I didn't expect you to hold up your end of the bargain.

Then why did you give me the information before payment?

I assumed it was going to be worth it. Let's see if I'm right.

Ayano closed her phone. She had no idea what 'worth it' meant to Info-chan and couldn't care less. Worth it to Ayano meant a few steps closer to Senpai. Sliding her phone into her pocket, she stood up and flicked her eyes around the roof. Before she knew Senpai, this had been her favorite place. Most of the time it was isolated and Ayano had naturally drifted away from people.

As she looked around, Osana emerged from the stairwell, looking nervous. She made a beeline for Ayano and stopped before her, taking a few seconds to breathe.

"What is it?" asked Ayano, doing her hardest to hide her impatience. It was easier to fake emotions when there wasn't anything there to begin with. Replacing one emotion with another was something else entirely.

"You were right," Osana told her. "Kokona just called one of her clients and told him they were gonna meet up in Shisuta town tonight."

So, Info-chan had been correct. "Did you get evidence of her doing that?"

Osana shifted in place. "Uh...well...no."

Ayano's mouth twitched. What an idiot. "Then I guess we have no choice but to go to Shisuta town as well."

*****

Taeko sat at the fountain, waiting for Osana. Where could she be? Usually Osana would be the one waiting for Taeko, ready to go on a rant about how Taeko had to stop being late. She had texted Osana five minutes ago asking where she was and got no answer.

She was just beginning to worry when she saw Osana come into the courtyard with someone and marching towards Taeko, not giving her companion a second look.

"Look who's here on time for once!" she yelled at Taeko.

Taeko sighed, partially in irritation and partially in relief. "Where were you?"

"The roof. I had to talk to someone. It was waaaaay more important than meeting you," she huffed.

"Who was it?" Taeko asked, trying to look around Osana to see the person she was with.

Osana immediately blocked her. "N-none of your business, dummy!"

Taeko let it go. Arguing with Osana generally went nowhere. They walked to class together, just like they usually did. Osana was far quieter than usual, and Taeko could swear Osana kept checking over her shoulder. She hoped her friend was okay. She wished they could have more conversations, like when they were little.

She dared a look in the direction Osana was looking and caught a glimpse of the plain girl in her class, following them back into the school.

*****

Osana couldn't believe she was doing what she was doing. Even more than that, she couldn't believe she was doing it so badly. This was her decision and she needed to see it through. This time, Ayano insisted on coming with her to help. She didn't tell Osana why she was doing that. She didn't need to.

Osana sat on one of the benches outside of school, her bike leaning against her legs. After a few minutes, Ayano showed up on her bike, peddling as if she was heading to run someone over. Osana didn't blame her.

"Why are you so late, you-"

"Get on your bike," Ayano said, cutting her off.

Osana wasn't used to that. Taeko would let her talk for hours and hours if she wanted to. She wanted to punch this girl, but then she reminded herself. Taeko. She was doing this to stay with Taeko.

She got on her bike. "Okay. Lead the way."

They rode down the street. There weren't many people out at this time of night. Shops were darkened and there were hardly any other bikes or cars. Osana wanted to fill the silence with maybe some commentary on how hideous the clothing store they just passed looked, but for once she couldn't bring herself to talk.

Osana was the first to spot Kokona's purple bicycle propped against the outer wall of a low, drab building. A motel. She really was a whore.

"How are we gonna find the room she's in before she leaves?" Osana asked.

"I already know," Ayano told her.

"Oh, okay," Osana muttered dumbly. Maybe she just got irritated when people got quiet, but Ayano was beginning to freak her out a bit.

Osana entered the motel behind Ayano, making sure to be cautious. They passed the desk and headed into the dark hallway lined with doors. The place was incredibly quiet. The silence pressed against Osana's ears and she swore that if nothing was said soon, she would go deaf.

Ayano stopped in front of her abruptly, causing Osana to ram right into her.

"Ow! Could you tell me when you want to stop walking?"

"Be quiet," Ayano hissed. "The room is right here!"

Ayano pressed her ear up against the door, and Osana followed suit. As soon as she could make sense of what she was hearing, her eyes widened. High gasps mixed with low, male moans could be heard through the thin door. Occasionally, the male voice scolded the other one.

"I didn't pay this much for such shitty sex, bitch."

There was some soft, scared muttering in response that must have been Kokona.

Osana scrunched up her face in disgust. She knew that bitch wasn't good enough for Senpai. Ayano interrupted her train of thought with a tap on the shoulder.

"One of us is gonna have to go in there and get a picture of Kokona," Ayano whispered.

Osana's heartbeat sped up. "How the hell are we gonna do that?"

"What do you think is going to get a man like that to open the door?"

Osana tried to think of something, but her mind came up blank. She shook her head in defeat.