The Mask Slips

Everything is going exactly as planned. The three idiots are following Horikita's study plan to the brim and I've been helping Hirata with his study group. Despite all of this, I still wanted to ensure that everyone would pass but still, I can't come up with anything. I look to Kiyotaka for guidance.

"Kiyo do you think there is anything else we can do to ensure that everyone will pass the test?"

Kiyotaka looked at me and after a while, he nodded.

"Yeah, I have something in mind."

He explained his plan to me and I agreed to help. I walked over to Kushida.

"Hey Kushida do you have a minute?"

"Yeah what's up?"

"Kiyotaka and I have an idea that would boost Class D's chances of passing the test but we need your help. Can you do that?"

"Definitely. If it ensures Class D's victory then I'll do anything."

"Good to hear, alright here's the plan..."

Once lunchtime arrived, Kiyotaka, Kushida, and I bought meal tickets and waited for our desired target. After about a minute or two, said target bought a meal and walked over to an empty table with heavy steps. Kiyotaka gives me the signal and we walked over to him.

"Hey senpai, remember me?"

"I don't... ah shit you again?" The senpai looked at me with disgust.

"Mind if we sit here?" We didn't even give him time to answer as we took our seats. Kiyotaka sat to his left and I sat to his right while Kushida sat across from him on the other side of the table.

"That free meal you have isn't very tasty, isn't it? Quite the opposite, am I right?"

"What the hell, you guys are starting to annoy me."

He tried to get up but I stopped him.

"My friend has a favor that he wants to ask you. If you comply, he will surely show his gratitude." I refer to Kiyotaka who is patiently waiting for the senpai to look at him. The senpai looks at Kiyotaka with interest.

"... Gratitude?" Seeing that he has captured his attention, Kiyotaka presented his proposal.

"Do you still have the problems on the midterm from your first semester? If you do know someone that has previous test questions, can you let us know?"

"Hey, do you even understand what you are saying?"

"It's not surprising. It's not against school policy to use old test problems to study."

"Why are you asking me?" I let out a laugh, which causes him to turn his attention to me.

"What's so funny?"

"Isn't it obvious? Seeing you eat that pathetic excuse of a meal told us all we need to know. You're broke, aren't you? Because of that, you're destined to eat pieces of shit like that for the rest of your third year. Or, you could listen to my friend's proposal and be rewarded. How does that sound?"

Kushida had a shocked expression on her face. She's probably surprised by my sudden change in tone. After the senpai digested what I said, he looks back at Kiyotaka.

"How much?"

"10,000 points. That's as far as I'm willing to go." Kiyotaka said this with a stern voice.

"I don't have the problems on me but I know someone who does. If you want me to ask him for help, you need at least 30,000 points."

"30,000 points is way too much. I don't have that kind of money." Kiyotaka said this without any hesitation. His ability to lie never ceases to amaze me.

"How much do you have left?"

"... 20,000 points."

"Then 20,000 points... No. 15,000 points will do. Nothing less."

This greedy bitch is trying to get as many points as he can. I look at Kushida and give her the signal. It's time for her to do what she does best.

Kushida catches the senpai off guard by grabbing his hand and looking at him with puppy eyes.

"Please only 10,000 points! My friends and I are low on points and were desperate to save our friends! I couldn't bear to see my friends get expelled..." Kushida looked like she was about to cry. The third-year was starting to get nervous since being blamed as the one who made a girl as cute as Kushida cry would be social suicide.

"A-Alright there's no need to cry, I'll be fine with 10,000 points anyway."

"Aww thank you so much!" Kushida said this with a huge smile and the senpai looked away with a blushing face. Well done Kushida.

"Alright, pay me 10,000 points and I'll send you the old questions."

"But uhh senpai... could you throw a freebie like answers to a mock test? I would really appreciate it," Kushida said with puppy eyes. He immediately caved and agreed. I don't blame him, to be honest, it takes superhuman willpower to resist Kushida's puppy eyes.

He soon left the table and we left the cafeteria to sit on a nearby table, waiting for the third year to send us the questions.

"Your guy's plan was good but are you sure we did the right thing?"

"I don't see anything wrong with it. The school rules say students are allowed to transfer points so there aren't any violations," Ayanokoji said as if it was the most obvious thing.

"I know that, but isn't it dishonest to get past year's questions?"

"Dishonest? That's not the case. There would be something in the school rules if the school didn't allow it. Besides, by talking to the third-year student, Akira and I were able to determine that these kinds of transactions aren't that strange."

"Huh...?" Kushida doesn't seem to understand so I decided to enlighten her.

"He wasn't caught off guard by the proposal, and he quickly agreed. This most likely isn't his first time negotiating. He had not only the answers to the midterms but even the mock test. There's no doubt in my mind."

"But doesn't the fact that past questions are past questions and this year's test might be completely unrelated make this transaction useless?"

"Wrong. The problems may not be the same, but there will be some similarities. The mock exam also gave us a hint. Right Kiyo?" I passed the baton to Kiyotaka.

"Precisely. Kushida, you noticed that really hard and really easy questions were mixed together right?"

"Definitely, I had no idea how to solve those problems."

"Those really hard problems were problems that second-year and third years were learning. First years aren't expected to be able to solve those problems. There is probably another reason as to why they were put on the test. If the problems on the mock exam were the exact same as previous mock exams, what would happen?"

"If I saw those problems, I would be able to ace that test."

We hear a ring come from Kiyotaka's phone. We check to see that he received a message from the third year. It had an attachment that contained the old tests.

We compared the old tests with the mock exam and realized the last three problems were identical. Upon seeing this, Kushida was ecstatic.

"Amazing! If we show this to our classmates, everyone will definitely pass! We gotta show this not only to Sudou-kun, but everyone else!"

"Woah slow down Kushida, we can't show them yet." Kushida stops her celebration and gives me a puzzled look.

"W-why though?"

"The midterm may not be the same as the mock test; we can't ignore the possibility that the problems are different on the midterm. Also if we gave everyone the test answers right now, they would lose their motivation to study, especially the three idiots."

"Then when would we show them...?"

"The day before the test. We'll tell everyone that these problems are roughly the same as this year's test. This will be beneficial because not only people will have studied and had the fundamentals down by then, memorizing the questions will reinforce the chances of no one failing the test."

"Wow, you two are cunning."

"Maybe, but Kiyotaka was the one that came up with the plan, not me." I didn't want to take all of the credit.

Kushida almost jumped in excitement.

"I can't wait to see the look on their faces when we show them these!"

"You two can show them to the class, not me." Kushida and I both look at Kiyotaka.

"Are you sure Ayanokoji-kun?"

"Yeah I want to avoid trouble and I don't want to stand out. Besides, it would be better if you two did it."

"Alright if you say so," I say to Kiyotaka with hesitation. I think it would be good for him to take credit since everyone would think more highly of him but it's his decision.

~~~~~~~~~~

Today is Thursday after school. The midterm was tomorrow and we were ready to give the test questions to everyone.

As soon as Chabashira-sensei walked out of the room, Kushida and I walked to the podium.

"Sorry, but could you guys listen to us before you leave?"

Everyone stopped and looked at us. I wasn't used to being the center of attention so I let Kushida do the talking.

"I hope everyone has been studying a lot for tomorrow's test. Nishida-kun and I were able to find something that can help you guys for some final studying tonight. Nishida-kun, could you pass these out for me?"

I obeyed Kushida and passed out the questions and answer sheets to everyone in the front row.

"Are these test questions? Kushida, did you make them?"

Horikita was also surprised.

"Actually, these are old test questions, we were able to get them from a third year."

"Old test questions? Are you sure they are valid?"

"Yep. Two years ago, the midterm had nearly the same questions like the one on this problem set. If you practice, I think we'll do better."

"Woah are you serious? Thank you Kushida-chan!" Ike hugged his test in happiness. All the other students couldn't hold back their emotions and started to thank Kushida profusely.

"I appreciate the praise, but you guys should also be thanking Nishida-kun. He was the one that came up with the idea."

Everyone suddenly put their undivided attention on me. It was so abrupt I didn't know how to respond so I just stood there like an idiot.

"I-it wasn't much there's no need-"

"Thank you so much Nishida-kun!" I was cut off by Ike who was on the verge of crying and shaking my hand profusely.

Everyone else in the class started to thank me. Being the center of attention was nerve-wracking, but if I get more attention from the girls, then I don't mind.

~~~~~~~~~

Chabashira-sensei walked into the classroom and had a look of surprise when she looked around the classroom. Everyone was eagerly waiting for the results of the midterms.

"Sensei. I'm aware that the results for the exams will be released today, but when exactly?"

"Calm yourself Hirata, you probably passed."

"When will they be released though?"

"I'll be releasing them right now. I gotta say you guys did a good job. I didn't think this class would do this well. In Japanese, math, and social studies, there were over 10 perfect scores."

Chabashira-sensei put all of the test scores on the board and everyone was cheering too, including me. Although I was happy everyone did well, the main reason why I was happy because I scored a date with the Kushida. I blew the three idiots out of the water with 75% across the board. I could hardly contain my excitement.

"All of you worked really hard, however..."

Huh?

Chabashira-sensei pulled out a red marker and drew a red line above Sudou's name.

"W-what the hell? What does this mean?!"

No way did he-

"You failed, Sudou."

"What? This is a joke right?!" Sudou said in shock.

I was in shock that Sudou failed also. I mean he studied with Horikita and we gave him the test questions the day before. I was almost impressed by Sudou's incompetence.

"Although your stay was short, you went down fighting. After school, you're going to have to fill out a drop form. Your legal guardian will have to be there though so I'll contact them for you. The rest of you passed so good job. On the final, please work hard to pass that test."

"Chabashira-sensei is there really no way to save him?!" Despite Sudou hating his guts, Hirata was the first one to come to his defense.

"It's the truth, Sudou will be dropping out."

"Chabashira-sensei, do you have some time?" Chabashira-sensei and the entire class were surprised that Horikita spoke up. She barely talks in class.

"How unusual of you Horikita. You never raise your hand or even ask a question. What's your question?"

"Earlier, you said the previous test had a passing grade of 32 points, which was calculated by using the formula earlier. Correct?"

"That is correct."

"Then I have one more question. I calculated the mock test's average to be 64.4 points. If you divide by two, you get 32.2 points. To put it simply, higher than 32. Despite that, the passing grade was a 32 by truncating the decimal point. That contradicts this situation."

"Y-yea! The passing grade should be 39 points then!"

To put it simply, Sudou's 39 should have just barely passed.

"I see. Now I know why your English score was low, you anticipated Sudou's grade to barely pass.

"Horikita, you..."

Sudou and the entire class noticed it. Even though four of her five grades were perfect, she got a 51 on her English score.

"You, you actually-" Sudou realized what she did.

Horikita purposefully lowered her own grades to lower the average grade.

"If my opinion is invalid, please explain why the calculation differs between this test and the last test."

Interesting argument, but false. Chabashira-sensei rounded the test score. In math, you sometimes round numbers to make calculations less complicated. It would make sense to round 39.8 to 40 since 39.8 is so close to 40. If we go by that, it makes sense to round 32.2 to 32 since 32.2 is much closer to 32 than 33.

"I see. Well, allow me to explain. There is one error in your formula. We didn't truncate the score, we rounded it. The last test was rounded down to 32 points. This time, the test was rounded up to 40."

Bingo.

"Good try Horikita. Anyway, the first period is about to start so I'm leaving."

Chabashira-sensei left the room and the class was silent. While trying to accept the fact that he was going to drop out, Sudou looked towards Horikita, who tried to prevent this by dropping her own grade.

"... I'm sorry. I should have lowered my score more."

Horikita slowly lowered her hand.

I kinda felt bad for Sudou. If I did the same thing, he definitely would have passed. But on the bright side, I scored a date with Kushida. That's a plus-

"Ayanokoji-kun where are you going?!"

"To the bathroom," Kiyotaka said before he walked out of the room.

Huh?

It was an obvious lie but everyone bought it. I was curious as to what he was doing so I decided to follow him. I subtly open the door and what I hear next surprised me.

"Please sell me one point for Sudou's English test."

"..."

Looking at Kiyotaka in astonishment, Chabashira-sensei laughed loudly.

"Hahahaha. That's an interesting proposal. I never imagined you trying to buy points."

"You said on the first day nothing can't be bought by points in this school. I believe a point for a test counts."

That's... actually true. She did say that.

"True you could think that way, but do you have enough to pay me though?"

"Well then, how much would one point cost?"

"A very difficult question indeed. I've never had a person ask me to sell them a point. Let's see... I'll give you a point for 100,000 points."

That evil bitch.

"You're cruel sensei."

There isn't a single person in the school who hasn't used a point at all.

Wait she said 100,000 points under the impression that only Kiyotaka would be paying. If I chip in, well be able to buy the point.

I pull out my phone to check the number of points I have.

Wait a minute. Shit! Do I even have enough points?! I should have waited on buying that light novel series and anime collection-

"We'll also pay."

My hand was suddenly grabbed by the tsundere. She tugged me along as she walked up to Kiyotaka and sensei.

"Horikita, Akira..."

"Kuku. As I suspected, you three are interesting."

After Kiyotaka and Horikita gave sensei their phones, Horikita forcibly grabbed my phone from my other hand and handed it to sensei.

"Alright, I'll agree to sell you a point. I'll take a total of 100,000 points from the three of you. You can go tell the class that Sudou's expulsion is canceled."

After Chabashira-sensei returned our phones, she continued to look at us in wonder.

"If you two play your cards right, you might actually be able to move your class up."

"I will rise up," Horikita said this with conviction.

"Are you sure about that? In the past, there has never been a time where class D has been promoted. Its because the school immediately labels you as inferior. What gives you the confidence that you can accomplish such a challenge?" Chabashira-sensei challenged Horikita's promise but Horikita's conviction didn't waver.

"Sensei. I'm not gonna lie, many of the students in class D are inferior. However, that doesn't mean they are garbage."

"And what's the difference between the two?"

"There's a paper-thin difference. I think that with some repairs, there's a chance that an inferior good can become a superior product."

"Interesting. It sounds oddly persuasive when you say it like that."

I had to agree with what Chabashira-sensei said. Her words certainly had weight behind them.

Horikita, who viewed everyone else as a liability, was slowly changing. As if she noticed it as well, sensei faintly smiled.

"Well, in that case, I look forward to it. As your homeroom teacher, I'll make sure to watch future events with anticipation." Chabashira-sensei then walked away to the staff room.

We were left behind in the hallway.

"We should head back in too, class is going to start soon."

"Uhhh Horikita?"

"What?"

"You can let go of my hand now."

Horikita looked at our held hands and her eyes widened a bit before going back to her usual cold gaze. She then roughly threw my hand back at me as if she was disgusted by it, and walked back into the classroom. I looked back to Kiyotaka who just shrugged his shoulders.

We then walked back into the classroom.

~~~~~~~~

Ayanokoji POV

"Cheers!"

Holding a can of juice, Yamauchi shouted with joy.

After the midterm results were announced, all of the study group members gathered at night. Everyone, except Horikita, was smiling because no one dropped out.

"What's with the depressed face? Everything's fine since Sudou wasn't kicked out, right?" As Ike asked this, a cloud of Dorito dust puffed whimsically into the air.

"The celebration is great and all, but why does it have to be in my room?"

"My room's dirty, and so is Sudou's or Yamauchi's. We also can't go into the girl's room right? I mean, I wouldn't mind if we were in Kushida-chan's room. That's why your amazing and completely empty room is the best, Ayanokoji."

"Akira's room is clean also," I say in annoyance.

"Naw man. Too many books."

"H-hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Akira said with an offended tone.

"Dude, you read so many books your room is basically the school's second library. No girl wants to go into your room, It's a major turn off dude."

"Tch. That's ironic because I was the one that scored a date with Kushida," Akira said with a snide grin.

"H-hey that's a low blow man! I tried really hard on that test!" Ike said while flailing his arms in anger.

"I felt bad for you Nishida so I let you beat my score. I would have gotten a perfect score if I tried my hardest. Hahaha." Yamauchi, who looked like he had a personal grudge against Akira, slapped his shoulder roughly.

"I guess you boys will have to try harder next time," Kushida said with a laugh.

"If there's a next time," Akira mumbled under his breath.

"Speaking of test scores, Sudou should have dropped out. How were you able to stop it?"

Ike said while looking at me.

"It wasn't me. It was those two."

"Eh?"

"Nani?"

"Those two chewed out Chabashira-sensei hard. Saying that she should round up Sudou's score and sensei ended up giving in."

"R-really you guys did that for me...?" Sudou looked at Akira and Horikita as if they were his new gods.

"The only reason I did it was because it would help me reach class A. Nothing more. Nothing less."

"I mean that's what friends do for each other right?" Akira said this while nervously scratching the back of his neck.

He looked to his right and he seemed to notice something because he stood up abruptly.

"Guys I'm super tired so I'm gonna hit the hay." Akira let out a yawn to emphasize this.

"But it's so early, are you sure you have to leave?" Kushida said with sadness.

"Yeah sorry. Don't worry you haven't seen the last of me. Besides, we have a date to go on." Akira winked at Kushida who looked away flustered. Ike and Yamauchi stared at Akira with malicious intent as he walked out of my room. I wonder what caused him to leave so abruptly.

~~~~~~~~

"Hey, thanks for helping me clean up Kushida."

"Oh it was my pleasure. You were the host of the party, so I had to help."

After the party, saying my room was a little messy would be an understatement. To be honest, my room looked as if a tornado went through it. Trash was scattered across the floor and it was pretty disgusting. Thankfully Kushida was willing to stay behind and help me clean.

"Ayanokoji-kun?"

"Hmm?"

I turn to look at Kushida, who is staring at the ground with a nervous expression.

"What is it?"

"There's something I want to say..."

It seemed like she was struggling to say what she wanted to say.

No way! Is she going to confess!?

"Is Horikita your type?"

"Eh?"

I stare at Kushida in confusion.

"It's just that you and Akira are the only ones that Horikita talks to. All the girls are talking about it."

People are still talking about the three of us? I hope there isn't a rumor of the three of us being in a polyamorous relationship, that would be awkward and uncomfortable.

"Horikita is just my neighbor, I'm not even sure if I can consider her a friend."

"Oh I see... well, I should get going. See you on Monday." Kushida walked out the door after she said this.

I was about to take a shower until I notice a phone that I did not recognize on my bed. I picked it up and realized it was Kushida's phone. I rushed out the door to give Kushida her phone back.

I walk down the hall and just missed Kushida, the elevator doors closed in front of her and I noticed something strange. The girl's rooms are on the upper levels, so why is she going down to the lobby?

I take the next elevator down and when I get to the lobby I noticed the main entrance door that was closing by itself. It must have been flung open with force. I walk outside and spotted Kushida crossing the street and walking towards a ledge with handrails that are facing the ocean.

What is she doing?

I follow her and I hide behind a tree. I don't really see why I should be hiding, but...

'What a pain in the ass."

Her voice was so low and different that it took me a second to realize that it was Kushida's voice.

"So you think you're better than me just because you're prettier? I hate your guts!" Kushida yelled this with ferocity in her voice that was so foreign.

She then proceeded to kick the handrails while saying:

"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you! I wish you would just drop dead Horikita! I hate you, I hate you, stupid cow!"

I felt like I'd seen another side of this cheerful girl, the most popular person in our class. She definitely didn't want anyone else to see this darker side of her. A voice in my head told me it was dangerous here and that I should leave.

Bzzzzzz

Shit!

I check my phone and Akira was trying to call me, I thought he went to bed.

"Who's there? Is someone spying on me?"

I let out a sigh before revealing myself.

"It's just me. Ayanokoji," I say as I walk towards her. She then begins to briskly walk towards me.

"I'm sorry. You left your phone in my room." I held out her phone and she took it. She didn't respond to my question, she just continued to stare at me with an intense gaze.

"Did you hear?" she asked.

"Would you believe me if I said I didn't?" I asked, already knowing the answer to the question.

"I see..."

Kushida closed the distance between us and invaded my personal space. She wore a terrifying expression that could rival Horikita's.

"If you tell anyone what you just heard, I won't forgive you."

"And what if I did tell?"

"Well, in that case, I would tell everyone that you raped me," she said.

"That's a false charge."

"That's alright. It wouldn't be a false charge."

The power behind her words left me unable to reply. As she said this, Kushida grabbed my right wrist and slowly opened my hand. She pushed my palm against her soft breasts.

"What are you doing?" I hastily tried to retract my hand but she pushed on the back of my hand.

"Your fingerprints are on my clothes, which counts as evidence for my claim. I'm serious, understand?"

"I understand, I do, so please let go of my hand."

She lets go of my hand and backs up. She still had that emotionless expression on her face.

"I'm going to leave this uniform in my room without washing it. If you betray me, I'll hand it over to the police."

I let out a defeated sigh, there's nothing I can do against her. She has the evidence and everyone would believe Kushida over me.

"Well, this is certainly an interesting development."

Kushida and I jumped in surprise.

"Who's there!?"

I heard movement coming from the bush to my right and I see someone emerge. The man walked towards us and the moonlight illuminated his face. It was Akira, with a phone, and a smile on his face.

~~~~~~~~~~

Akira POV

"So the mask slips. The cheerful and angelic Kushida is nothing but a regressive brat that throws temper tantrums when things don't go her way."

"W-what are you doing here?" Kushida asked.

"I went on a walk and came across you two. What you two did was very interesting." I show them my phone. Kushida's eyes widened.

"D-don't tell me..."

I played the two videos that I recorded. The first video showed Kushida kicking the handrail while yelling and the second video showed her threatening Kiyotaka.

"It would be detrimental for you if this footage was made public..."

I slowly walked towards Kushida who was backing away from me. She eventually backed into the tree Kiyotaka was hiding behind and slid down the tree. She then looked at me with wide eyes.

"Don't worry Kushida, since you took off your mask..." I took off my glasses and looked at her with a wicked smile on my face.

"I suppose I'll take mine off as well!"

Kushida looked at me with a terrified expression.

"Isn't it amazing when you lift the curtain and see how people really are!? Like man, Kushida, I knew you were wearing a mask but I didn't know your mask was this heavy!"

"You knew..." Kushida asked with surprise and fear.

"I started to suspect ever since the study session in the library. It was pretty weird and random that Horikita called you out for wanting to help those three idiots and it got me thinking, and that's when I realized it. You and Horikita knew each other before enrolling in this highschool. Am I correct?"

The look on her face told me I was right.

"Is that why you stopped me from following her?" Kiyotaka asked.

"Precisely. The face she made when everyone praised Horikita and me for saving Sudou gave it away too. I knew she was hiding something from everyone, but I never would have known it was this bad if I didn't witness this exchange between you two. Something inside me told me to record your temper tantrum in case something like this ever happened but Kiyotaka's unexpected presence made everything so much better."

"But how?"

"Your presence was vital in my plan of getting information. I needed to know how far she was willing to go to keep this outburst a secret and your unexpected appearance gave me an amazing opportunity. Unfortunately, in order to do that, I had to call your phone to expose you to Kushida to see how she would react."

I then turned my head to look at a petrified Kushida.

"And what you did made me realize how far you were willing to go to keep this a secret. You were willing to blackmail my friend with a false charge, something that could get him expelled. That is something that I can't ignore."

I put a hand on my chin, feigning contemplation.

"I wonder what would happen if I released this to the public. Your reputation of being an angel would plummet, people would look at you with disdain, hell, you could even be expelled from the school... what's up with that look Kushida? There's no need to panic this is all pure speculation!"

I dropped the sarcastic act and I closed the distance between Kushida and I. I then grabbed her chin, forcing her to stare into my eyes.

"I propose a deal. How about you act as my puppet for Class D? You will attack when I say to attack, and you will block when I say to block. Disobey me and I won't hesitate to destroy your good reputation and public image. Do you agree with this relationship?"

No response. She just stared at me with hollowed eyes. Perhaps the sudden change in the persona that I display to everyone every day shocked her to the point that she forgot how to use her vocal cords. I'll have to drill this into her skull at another time. I let go of her face and stand up.

"Seems like you're too shocked to listen to me. Going on with this would be unproductive for both of us. Let's take a breather."

I begin to walk away but I stopped and looked over my shoulder to tell her one more thing.

"Consider the situation you are in Kushida. You're reputation and position at this school are on the line. If I were you, the first thing I would do is go to your room and wash that uniform."

And with that I walk away, allowing Kushida to digest what just happened.

This whole school is a chess match and I will be the grandmaster that wins the game.

In chess, you need to use your pawns effectively and Kushida...

You will be an excellent pawn.

So I would like to thank you...

You will be very useful in the future.