Chapter 8: The Clash of Queens

Saori's POV

If I had to describe my new partnership with Hana Nafutori in one word, it would be chaos.

From the moment her brother assigned her to my campaign, my life had become a never-ending cycle of arguments, interruptions, and unintentional sabotage.

"Look, Hana," I said as we stood outside the first classroom of the day, holding a stack of flyers. "If we're going to work together, we need to be on the same page."

"Sure," she said, not looking up from her phone.

"You didn't even hear what I just said."

"Of course I did," she replied, scrolling through her messages. "Same page, yada yada, teamwork, blah blah."

I resisted the urge to scream. "This is serious! We have to convince people to vote for me, not make them hate us!"

Hana finally looked up, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. "Relax, Madam President. I've got this."

Before I could stop her, she pushed open the classroom door and strode inside like she was walking into a fashion show.

"Alright, listen up!" she announced, tossing a stack of flyers onto the teacher's desk. "If you want this school to be less boring and more, uh… structured or whatever, vote for Saori Dolorez!"

I facepalmed.

The day only went downhill from there.

"Hana, stop!" I hissed as she stapled a flyer to the back of an unsuspecting student.

"They volunteered!" she insisted.

"No, they didn't!"

"Hana, you can't call people 'peasants'!"

"Well, they're not royalty, are they?"

"Hana, did you really tell the science club I'd ban lab coats?!"

"They look like they're plotting world domination!"

By the time we reached the courtyard, I was ready to quit.

"This is impossible," I muttered, slumping onto a bench. "You're impossible."

Hana plopped down beside me, munching on a sandwich like she hadn't just turned half the school against me. "Oh, come on, it's not that bad."

I glared at her. "Not that bad? You've done nothing but sabotage me all day!"

"Sabotage?" she repeated, feigning innocence. "I call it… creative campaigning."

"You're a menace," I said flatly.

"And you're a control freak," she shot back.

We stared at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter. It wasn't a friendly laugh—it was the kind of laugh two rivals share when they're too exhausted to keep fighting.

Despite everything, I had to admit Hana was… effective in her own way.

She had this strange ability to talk to people and make them listen, even if her approach was completely unorthodox. By the end of the day, we'd actually made progress—though I'd never admit it out loud.

As we sat on the steps outside the student council office, watching the sunset, Hana broke the silence.

"You know," she said, fiddling with the hem of her skirt, "your methods aren't so bad."

I blinked, caught off guard. "What?"

"I mean, they're still second-best compared to Onii-chan's, but… you've got something," she said, her voice softer than usual.

I stared at her, unsure of how to respond. Coming from Hana, that was the closest thing to a compliment I'd ever get.

"Thanks," I said finally.

"Don't let it go to your head," she added quickly, standing up and brushing off her skirt. "You're still a pain to work with."

"Right back at you," I said, standing as well.

We exchanged a look—a rare moment of understanding—and for the first time, I didn't completely hate the idea of working with her.

Maybe this partnership wasn't doomed after all.

...

Riser's POV

The world has a funny way of messing with your head.

Take Saori and Hana, for example. Two people who, by all accounts, should have been mortal enemies. From the moment they started working together, their arguments could probably be heard from space.

And yet, as I watched them from my usual perch in the courtyard—lounging under the cherry blossom tree with a soda in hand—I couldn't help but think, Wow, they're really starting to get along.

"They're not getting along," Raiku said, appearing out of nowhere and plopping down beside me.

I flinched, almost spilling my drink. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Raiku shrugged, his ever-present smirk firmly in place. "What are you even looking at?"

I pointed toward the scene unfolding a few meters away. Saori was waving a clipboard in Hana's face, her pink hair practically glowing in the sunlight, while Hana crossed her arms and scowled like a cartoon villain.

"They're bonding," I said confidently.

Raiku raised an eyebrow. "Looks more like they're about to kill each other."

"I told you to stop improvising!" Saori snapped, her pale blue eyes practically shooting lasers.

"And I told you your plans are boring!" Hana shot back, hands on her hips.

"Boring? They're efficient!"

"Efficiently boring!"

From my vantage point, I couldn't hear every word, but the dramatic gestures and exaggerated facial expressions made it pretty clear what was happening.

Raiku glanced at me. "Still think they're bonding?"

I shrugged, sipping my soda. "What's a little yelling between friends?"

But here's the thing about Saori and Hana: for all their bickering, there were these little moments.

Like when Hana accidentally dropped a stack of flyers, and Saori knelt down to help her pick them up. They didn't say a word, but there was this brief, almost imperceptible smile on Hana's face.

Or when Saori was explaining her campaign strategy for the hundredth time, and Hana actually listened.

Sure, they went right back to arguing a minute later, but those moments were there. And I couldn't help but smile as I watched them.

The rest of the school seemed to think so, too. Saori's campaign was gaining traction fast, and Hana's involvement was a big part of that.

"You're a genius," I muttered to myself, grinning.

"Huh?" Raiku asked, tilting his head.

"Nothing," I said, waving him off.

The truth was, this was exactly what I'd hoped for when I "punished" Hana. She might've been rough around the edges, but she had a way of bringing out the best in people—even if she did it by driving them crazy first.

Later that afternoon, as I wandered through the halls, I spotted Saori talking to a first-year girl who looked like she was about to cry.

"I don't know what to do," the girl sniffled. "The math teacher says I'm going to fail if I don't pass the next test."

Saori crouched down slightly so they were at eye level, her expression softening. "Hey, it's okay," she said gently. "We'll figure it out together, alright?"

The girl sniffled again but nodded, a small smile breaking through her tears.

I stood at the end of the hall, watching as Saori pulled out a notebook and started explaining a math problem in simple terms.

The sunlight streaming through the windows caught her pink hair, making it almost glow. Her pale blue eyes sparkled as she smiled at the girl, and for a moment, I couldn't look away.

It hit me then: Saori never smiled like that at me.

My gaze traveled downward, and I couldn't help but notice the rest of her. Her figure was… well, let's just say she wasn't lacking in any department.

"Wait, what am I thinking?" I muttered, shaking my head. "It must be the heat."

As I walked away, hands in my pockets, I couldn't shake the image of her from my mind.

"She's got potential," I thought. "As a leader, I mean. She could actually pull this off."

But then I smirked, glancing at the posters plastered across the walls.

"The elections are in two weeks," I muttered to myself. "I wonder what's going to happen."