Sour raisin (джен)

May flooded the school windows with hot, humid air and the heavy scent of blooming lilacs. The rest of the class was completely checked out, dreaming of summer vacation, but for the trio, May was the month of the final trap. Lila had executed her role flawlessly; her talent for arrogant manipulation had made her an irreplaceable asset to Dead Chan’s inner circle. She knew every single movement of the pastel queen.On that particular Friday, the assembly hall was blasting pop music—the fan club was throwing a massive end-of-year bash for Dead Chan. The guest of honor was glowing at the center of the room, her bracelets clinking as she twirled in her pink skirts.Meanwhile, in the abandoned math classroom, Mizuki and Barbara stood over Dead Chan’s desk. Lila was leaning against the door frame, casually filing her nails, her eyes scanning the corridor with her habitual expression of pure disdain for the student body."Hurry up, children," Lila drawled over her shoulder. "Our pastel Barbie is currently eating a gluten-free cupcake, but she might decide to go touch up her lip gloss any minute. You have exactly four minutes before I have to go pretend I care about her lifestyle blog again.""We’re good," Mizuki said softly. She was completely unbothered by the pressure. She gave Barbara an encouraging smile and squeezed her hand. "Don't shake, Babs. I’ve got this."Mizuki unzipped Dead Chan’s pastel backpack with practiced precision, pulling out a brand-new, expensive smartphone. The screen lit up, demanding a passcode. But Mizuki hadn't spent all of April sitting near Dead Chan for nothing while Lila kept her distracted. With a small, mischievous grin, Mizuki typed in a six-digit combination—the birthdate of Dead Chan’s favorite anime character, which she bragged about constantly online.The phone unlocked instantly. "Wow, she really is aggressively basic," Mizuki chuckled, navigating through the system.But the moment she unlocked the hidden, encrypted chat applications, her smile completely vanished. Mizuki adjusted her glasses, staring at the screen, her eyes widening in absolute shock. Barbara leaned over her shoulder to look.At the very top of the secret archive was a lengthy chat history with a contact saved only as a single emoji. The profile picture showed a wealthy, sophisticated man in his late forties wearing an expensive suit. But the content of the chat was utterly vile. Dozens of highly explicit, nude photographs of Dead Chan—still wearing those signature pink bows. There were audio files of her voice, whispering submissively and moaning, explicitly trading herself for bank transfers to fund her expensive wardrobe and cosmetics."You promised you’d buy me those designer shoes, daddy... I did exactly what you wanted... Mmm, yes, please..."—the text messages blazed mockingly on the screen."Oh my god..." Barbara breathed out, a wave of intense nausea hitting her. "So that’s why she hides her real name. If the school ever sees these audio files and pictures... she’s completely finished. They will destroy her. They’ll call her a prostitute.""This isn't just a scandal; it’s total digital execution," Mizuki said, her tone dead serious. Then, her face softened, and she looked at Barbara with pure affection. "Babs, this is your ticket out of hell. She will never, ever touch you again."Mizuki rapidly transferred every single photo, video, and chat log to Barbara’s phone via an encrypted ad-hoc channel. Once finished, she meticulously wiped the data transfer logs, locked the phone, and slipped it back into the pastel backpack."Done," Mizuki smiled, softly tapping a complex bass rhythm on the desk to break the tension. "Operation 'Doll Autopsy' is a massive success. Let's move before Lila actually vaporizes someone in the hallway with her glare.""Finally," Lila muttered as they stepped into the courtyard. "That pop music was giving me a literal aneurysm. Well? Did we find anything juicy?"Barbara silently raised her phone, showing the screen. Lila scanned the photos, and a slow, wicked, completely triumphant smile spread across her lips."What an exquisitely disgusting little creature," Lila laughed arrogarily. "Well, Babs, let’s wait for the grand finale. On June tenth, we give our Dead Chan her curtain call. I’ll personally make sure she attends the meeting."Barbara gripped the phone tightly inside her jacket. The power dynamic had officially flipped.