“Saijo!”

Atsuki Saijo recognized the voice and turned to meet Mika Nozaki, one of Kisaragi High School’s many troublemakers. He gave her a cold look as she stopped to catch her breath.

“Is there something wrong Mika?” he asked her. He didn’t need to read her mind to know that she was up to no good.

“Actually, I wanted to know if you were free today,” Mika began. A yellow Shinen emerged from inside of her. “Rui and I were going bowling today and we wanted to bring one more person. Yayoi’s busy, Shinji is still trying to figure out who sent that perverted picture of him, Ryo is working, I don’t want to ask Kiryu and Akira has been giving me the cold shoulder recently. That just leaves you.”

If Atsuki was a cruel person he would have said, “Sorry, I’m too busy trying to save this city from Silent because there are one too many crimes that you have been getting involved in and I’m so busy trying to prevent the killer from killing you.” Instead, Atsuki just nodded his head.

The bluenette grinned. “Great! Meet us there at 4:00 sharp! Everything will be ready by then!”

Mika left before Atsuki could ask her where the bowling alley was. He sighed as he activated Lux Pain to read the R. Shinen hoping there would be clues about which area the bowling alley was in.

"He said yes."

"Perfect."

"Automatic victory."

"Bet he hasn’t gone to a bowling alley in his life."

"Wonderful prize."

"Anything that person wants."

"Rui is a witness."

"Bowling alley area near TOYBOX."

"THIS IS GOING TO BE FUN!"

'I suspected much.' Atsuki thought to himself. 'She obviously wants something from me. I don’t know what she’d want but...' The telepath thought for a moment. 'Whoever wins gets to ask the loser whatever he or she wants huh? Mika puts the stakes too high sometimes.'
----
Atsuki decided to be late on purpose so he could irritate Mika. If she was mad, it would throw her off her game. Besides, he needed to read the Shinen of other potential victims of Silent which was more important than a bowling game.

But the silver haired teen wasn’t that late. In fact, he got there at 4:05 PM. Regardless, Mika still rebuked him.

“Saijo, that’s not fair!” Mika shouted. “With the guys, you are always on time for their dates but you can’t even get here at the exact time I requested.”

Atsuki was not listening to her. He turned to Rui Yamase who already registered them to play.

“Sorry Saijo, she’s pumped today,” Rui exclaimed as she handed him a pair of shoes which she assumed to be the right size for the telepath. “We haven’t gone to the bowling alley in a while and it’s just bad luck that none of the guys wants to come.”

Atsuki didn’t believe her. The guys probably made time to do other things so they didn’t have to face the two girls. They were probably a terror at bowling as they were at fighting.

“No problem. I don’t really have that much to do today, so it’s fine,” Atsuki explained to her calmly.

“Hey, are you listening to me?!”

Atsuki turned to the bluenette. “No.”

“-red vein- Why you…”

“No violence Mika. Take your anger out on the bowling pins,” Rui joked as she asked Atsuki what size bowling ball he would use.

“I’ll take the size six one…”

Rui stared at the black orbed teen. “Umm…Saijo…are you…not that strong?”

“Does Shinji not use size six?”

“…You have a point...but he’s short and scrawny and that is to be expected from a hermit who stays in his room and hacks all day.”

Somewhere else, Shinji Naruse sneezed twice.

“I’m just not as strong as Akira is,” Atsuki replied although he was getting annoyed that they would question his overall strength. It wasn’t his fault that he relied more on intelligence more than his fitness.

“Doesn’t matter if it’s a light ball or a heavy ball, you’re going down!” Mika declared. “Rui, explain the rules!”

“Don’t boss me around!” Rui told her before she enlightened him on the rules that Atsuki already knew. “So basically, you bowl for ten rounds and whoever has the highest score wins.” The blonde clarified. “Although, if you get a gutter ball, I will be the one to deduct from your final score, so be careful that you don’t mess up.”

“I never get a gutter ball,” Mika bragged. “So you’ll going to lose.”

“Loser has to do one thing the winner requests for,” Rui finished. “And that can be anything, so Saijo, if you can’t fulfill Mika’s demand, you’ll suffer the worse consequences ever!”

“I can see why the guys don’t want to play with you two,” Atsuki joked which surprised the two as he sat in the chair. He was to go second and Mika was to go first.

“Prepare to lose Saijo!”

Atsuki was impressed that Mika would use a heavy ball to bowl with. It made him wonder what size Akira used.

“Here, I go!”

Mika rolled the ball through the lane at a fast speed. She got a strike on her try. On the TV screen, it showed a more epic way of her getting a strike.

“What now?!”

Rui clapped as it was Atsuki’s turn. Atsuki frowned. Now there was a reason for the guys to avoid the journalist in this bowling alley.

“Good luck Saijo.” Rui said to the telepath.

“Yeah, you’ll need it!” Mika said with a laugh as she and Atsuki switched places.

Atsuki continued to scowl as he stared at the lane. He seemed to be taking his sweet time that it was getting the bluenette.

“Hurry up and bowl!” Mika shouted.

Atsuki did just that. He rolled the ball…and it rolled VERY slowly toward the pins. The telepath already turned around to sit down before it was halfway in the lane. It looked like the ball would stop at any minute but the bowling ball managed to make it to the end and knock down all the pins despite its slow speed. The two girls literally had their job drop as the screen said it was a strike.

“Your turn Mika,” Atsuki told her calmly.

Mika stared at Rui in worry. Their plans might not go well after all.
----
Mika was supposed to be worried. Despite her skill at the game, Atsuki was always getting a strike with her. At this rate, they would both get a draw and the deal would be off or Rui would tell them to decide with janken which was a game that Mika did not like.

Pretty soon, the entire bowling alley was watching the two bowl mainly because they got strikes left and right. They even stopped their game to watch the two high school students duke it out.

What was worse for Mika’s case was that three of her upper classmen that were Tokyo University students, Kotoru Hino (Honoka’s younger sister), Artermis Tsukimori and Yasha Tsuchiura just happened to be stopping by to hang out (as Yasha would call it) only to see someone they know fairing well against the transfer student in which they have never seen before.

“Go Mika!” Kotoru cheered as she waved her hands in the air.

“My money is on the new kid,” Yasha told her as he placed five dollars on the counter.

Kotoru winked. “I think we all know whose going to win Tsuchiura-kun so the deal is on!”

Artermis just sighed. “Really now? Why are we here again?”

As much as Mika liked the attention, she didn’t expect there to be so many watching. Now her pride as the Bowling Queen was on the line. This was her last bowl and she needed to get another strike to get a perfect score of 300. She tried to inhale some fresh air but it was suffocating with the crowd.

“Take your time Mika,” Atsuki told her calmly.

Mika glared at her opponent. Despite the huge audience, he sat calmly in the chair waiting for his turn and despite the rather emotionless expression on his face, Mika couldn’t help but wonder what he was really thinking.

'That sadist!' Mika thought to herself. 'I’m going to win this one and he’s going to listen to my demand!'

With those thoughts in mind, she threw the ball in the lane. It looked like she was going to get another strike but pin number seven (the pin in the very back) did not fall over.

'NOOOOOOO!'

“I win Mika.” Atsuki said. The journalist gasped when she saw the confident smirk on his face.

“Dammit!”

Mika managed to get a spare but her score was not the perfect 300 that she wanted.

Atsuki walked down the lane with the same smirk on his face. He was actually enjoying seeing the fearful expression on the journalist’s face.

'So this is why the killers go after Mika.' Atsuki thought to himself as he prepared to bowl and win the game…

But of course something had to go terribly wrong and you have to blame Kotoru for that. Not wanting to see Mika lose, she threw a random object at the telepath. It turned out to be a boot. The boot to the head was so unexpected that it caused Atsuki to fall flat on his face. He dropped the ball in the process.

“Boot to the head!” Yasha declared with a laugh.

“Hino-san, I think that was unnecessary…” Artemis told her.

“Mika will surely win now!” Kotoru told him.

“I’m not so sure about that. Look.”

Artemis pointed to the bowling ball that Atsuki dropped. It kept rolling toward its destination. That bowling ball managed to knock down all ten pins.

There was an ominous silence in the bowling alley. The score showed that Atsuki got a perfect score.

“Told you I’d win,” Atsuki told the two girls when he stood up from the fall.

Mika was beyond shocked. She and Rui didn’t think Atsuki would win so easily.

“You cheated!” Mika announced. “There was no way that the bowling ball would move on its own!”

“It’s called putting some spin on the ball,” Atsuki told her. “With a spin, it’s easier to control the ball that you won’t have to worry about the ball’s speed because it should knock down the pins.”

“B-But…”

“So, about my prize…”

Mika felt her cheeks light up a bright pink. She wasn’t supposed to lose yet here the silver haired teen managed to beat her at something she was good at.

“I-I can’t buy you anything expensive. I don’t have the money for that and I won’t go out with anyone you tell me to!”

“Mika!”

“Rui, I don’t want to do anything this guy wants me to do!”

“Stop being a poor sport.”

“But!”

“Mika, I’m not going to ask you for much,” Atsuki told her tranquilly. “I just want you to close your eyes so I can give it to you.”

The bluenette shook her head violently. “I don’t trust you!”

“After all we’ve been through and you say that? I’m hurt Mika. I just want you to-”

“All right! You win! I’m closing my eyes.”

The journalist closed her eyes and waited. What could Atsuki do to her in front of all of these people and Rui? He couldn’t grope her in public nor molest her. Then again, Atsuki wasn’t that type of person to do something so…

She spoke to soon. She felt something enter her mouth. Her eyes widened as she saw the telepath kissing her…

“Yeah!” You can hear Yasha scream like a fanboy.

The audience thought it was cute so they all said “Aww” in union. Kotoru and Artemis felt their cheeks turning bright red. Rui wasn’t pleased at what Atsuki demonstrated as she showed this by folding her arms in disapproval. The minute Atsuki stopped the kiss, Mika just stood their speechless.

“Were you saving your first kiss to the PI?” Atsuki asked with a small smile.

Mika’s face turned red from embarrassment and anger. How dare he! She proceeded to punch him but he dodged but he ended up falling back into Rui.

“You bastard! I hope you get bent!”

With that said, she stormed out of the bowling alley, possibly crying. Atsuki quickly got off of Rui and apologized.

“That was cruel.” Rui told her.

“Hey. It’s first come, first serve.”

“I hope I never challenge you to anything…”

Rui was indeed a witness to the sadistic side of Atsuki Saijo. This was a scoop that she would have to tell everyone…but then Mika wouldn’t be happy.

'Oh, well. She was asking for it.' Rui said with a laugh as the two prepared to leave the bowling alley.
----
The next day…

“Saijo, I challenge you to a karaoke match! Loser gets to do whatever the winner wants!”

Rui sighed. Mika had not learned her lesson from the bowling bet. Atsuki could only grin as he told her, “You’re on. If I win, I hope I get to-”

What Atsuki requested from Mika is inappropriate to the rating of this story. Use your imagination.