After sharing the pastries with Jashen, we sat in silence.
But it didn't last long.
"Melissa."
I blinked and looked up. "Huh? What about her?"
"Who is she?" Jashen asked. "You brought her up during your um, puberty rant."
I gave a tight-lipped frown. "Don't… don't call it that. Alright? Emotions were high and mistakes were made."
Jashen giggled as she reclined against me, her face resting against my neck. "Sure thing. But I still want to know, who is she?"
Jashen stared up at me with those piercing green eyes. Her tail slowly swayed as she waited patiently for my answer.
"She's the princess," I answered. "And the president of the student council. And now, she's a part of my club."
Jashen's eyes narrowed. "Is she pretty?"
I groaned. "Don't put me in this position, not now."
"I'm not putting you in any position. I'm asking a question, it's not hard to find an answer."
"Fine, she's pretty. Objectively though, it's not like I solely find her attractive."
Jashen was silent for a moment.
"Hm. So why is she a part of your club? Did you pick her?"
I shook my head. "She picked herself. She wouldn't have approved the club otherwise."
"Blackmail?" She asked.
"Blackmail," I answered.
Another beat of silence.
Then, Jashen spoke with all seriousness. "I will be honest with you, because I love you. If I suspect anything and find proof? I will kill her, you, and myself. Okay?"
I felt my hair stand up as I finally met her gaze. "What? What did you just say?"
Jashen held my gaze.
"I did not stutter. If you leave me for her, or have any sort of 'entanglement' I will kill us all."
She continued. "I'm simply warning you. Because I know you have the capacity to resist this temptation. But if you can't, I'd rather you tell me before I find out."
"A-are you joking?"
"I am not."
I almost couldn't believe it. Jashen said this? The same girl who asked for ass pats just threatened a triple homicide with the calmness of a hit man.
"Is there a reason for that?" I asked.
"It's because I trust you." She answered.
"And I only trust you because of the way you are. So if you were to lie to me, I wouldn't be able to process it. Because I believe you are different. You know?"
"So because I'm different you'll kill me for being blackmailed?"
She shook her head.
"No, I'll kill you for letting yourself be blackmailed as an excuse."
She raised a finger.
"You just told me you find me attractive and haven't moved to do anything. Not because you didn't want to, but because you didn't like that you liked it."
She continued.
"So if you expect me to now believe you suddenly can't handle your reactions because of a little blackmail? You're mistaken."
I blew my lips.
So that's it, because I can control my urges I'm now expected to be faithful?
Honestly, this is both draining and validating.
"You know, a lesser man would've folded and stayed silent about it."
"You're not a lesser man."
I held my tongue and really stared at Jashen.
She looked at me the same way a child looks up to their hero. Like I could do no wrong. I wanted to tell her that she was wrong.
That I was very much a lesser man when it came down to the wire.
Why?
I… I don't know. This whole time I've only had a vague idea of my goals.
Most of them revolved around Lilith. But now I'm being asked to make someone else my priority.
"Jashen."
"Hm?"
"Don't put me on a pedestal." I looked away and spoke slowly. "I'm not some saint. I'm a very, very broken person. Giving me that kind of trust isn't a good idea."
Jashen pressed against me. "I don't trust you because I think you're perfect. You're far from perfect."
"Then why—"
"Because you're consistent. And all I'm asking for is for you to maintain that consistency and tell me the truth."
She continued.
"I'm not saying don't have curiosity about her, just, if anything develops, tell me. If she threatens you, if a hand slips, just let me know so we can handle it together."
She looked into my eyes. "That's not hard. Is it?"
I wanted to tell her that it was very hard.
But I knew that was a lie.
It wasn't hard to be honest, it's hard to deal with the consequences of that honesty.
But with Jashen, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
I sighed with a smile. "No, it's not hard."
"Exactly."
— — —
I stayed with Jashen a little longer before I finally returned to the academy. When I got there, Melissa was in the student council room.
Waiting.
I stepped in and looked around.
It didn't change much from last time. Melissa stood from her seat and approached with a small smile. "Ah, you're here. I was beginning to believe you'd ghosted me."
She reached to loop arms.
I brushed her hand aside. "Let's go."
I turned and walked away. I wasn't going to give her my attention in any capacity.
Anger or otherwise.
Melissa blinked as she followed me. "Did I offend you in some way? Lord Lafayette?"
I ignored her and continued to do so as we entered the library. Once inside, I found a table in a far corner near a window and took my seat.
Melissa sat across from me. She still held her hand and she studied me.
I closed my eyes and reclined in my seat.
Melissa sighed softly as she produced a piece of paper and a pen. She scribbled her name upon it before she slid it to me.
I opened one eye. "What's that?"
"The attendance sheet. We need to turn this in to the student council after our meeting is adjourned."
I took her pen and scribbled my name on the page before I returned it. "There."
Melissa sat with the paper in silence.
"Have I wronged you in some way?" Melissa asked, her fingers folded in the corner of the page. "You have my apologies if that's the case…"
I stayed silent.
Melissa waited a moment longer before she stood to her feet and walked away. I opened my eyes in surprise at the sudden departure.
"Where are you going?" I asked.
She stopped in her tracks but didn't look over her shoulder, nor did she raise her voice.
"I have patience for many things but blatant disrespect isn't among them. You want to stay silent? Fine. But good luck getting your approved credit for this farce."
And with that, she was gone.
I blinked.
Turns out antagonizing the person who holds the key to my success isn't the smartest idea.
Especially if she has the power to make my life a whole lot more difficult.
I had two choices. Either I could deal with the fallout of pissing off the princess. Or I could engage with her.
The choice was obvious. The only real problem was finding a way to engage with her without giving her anything to work with.
A long sigh escaped me.
In for a penny In for a pound.
I stood up to find her.
She hadn't gone far, with a book in her hands she sat alone. I approached her table and sat across from her. She didn't look up as I sat down.
"I made a mistake."
Melissa turned a page.
"Everyone makes mistakes, though, I'm finding it difficult to recall your specific mistake. Could you enlighten me as to what you've done?"
I gave a tight-lipped frown. "Don't drag this."
"Drag what? Was it I who decided to behave as if I had the mental capacity of a brick?"
I crossed my arms. "I apologize for ignoring you, happy?"
Melissa snapped her book shut with one hand and lowered it onto the table.
"Immensely. Now, if only you could explain why you decided to do that."
"Because I figured my day would go a lot smoother if we sat in silence for an hour."
Melissa hummed. "Is that it? You're angry with me because I know how to get what I want from you? And you decided the best way to solve this was by ignoring me?"
She smirked. "Perhaps this club could teach lessons in game theory instead. You'd do well to learn it."
"I have no need for games."
"Because you would lose them?"
An irritated sound escaped me.
Melissa leaned forward.
"A word of advice for you, Lord Lafayette. I am not your enemy and you would do well to not treat me as such. I come to you for one reason, normalcy."
She lowered her voice as she held my gaze.
"Do not deprive me of that and our relationship will remain fruitful. You can take advantage of me as I do of you, understand?"
After a moment I looked down at the attendance sheet between us.
Two names, hers and mine. This would be our arrangement for the next six years.
A lesser man would've folded… but I'm not a lesser man, right? I got this.
"Fine," I replied. "But don't mistake this for anything more than what it is."
Melissa nodded. "Of course, just two individuals exchanging favors. Same time tomorrow?"
"Yeah."