[part 1]
“Lumine is the student council president and Childe is the school’s number one troublemaker. They cross paths more than they’d like. Especially when Childe finds out Lumine’s big secret. Highschool AU à la Kaichou wa Maid-sama.”
[Fic Masterlist] // [AO3 Link]
* * *
“the president and the troublemaker” (part 2)
“This is a surprise,” Childe said, “Madame President.”
Lumine felt like she was sweating out an entire waterfall and experiencing winter in Snezhnaya simultaneously. “Ch-Childe,” she greeted, trying to remain calm. “What are you doing here?”
The corner of his mouth was tweaked upwards in the faintest of smirks. “I should be asking you that. Me? This is somewhere I’m expected to be. You?” His smirk grew a little bigger. “Not so much.”
“I—” She took a breath in. “I am seeing what kind of places delinquents like you congregate. Seems like I was right,” she fibbed. She put on her President persona; hopefully that was enough to convince him.
He tilted his head, blue eyes glimmering in amusement. “Tsk, tsk. I thought our student council president would be better at lying.” He eyed the fighter’s tape still on her hands.
She quickly put her hands behind her back. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Research is research.”
There was silence as he just stared at her, his eyes calculating—something, she didn’t know what.
“Well, I think I’ve seen enough. Looks like I’ll just have to report you to the school tomorrow,” she said quickly, turning to scurry away.
“Outlander.”
Lumine froze.
“Outlander,” Childe repeated. “That’s you, isn’t it?”
She heard his footsteps coming up behind her; she didn’t look at him as he circled her, observing her.
“Same stature, same build,” he remarked. “Definitely explains the mask.”
He knows. He knows. Lumine felt her soul deflate out of her.
Knowing Childe, this news would be all over the school within a matter of hours. Her spotless record was ruined. Her future was ruined.
She bit the side of her cheek. Fine; no more pretending. “Yes, I’m The Outlander,” Lumine said lowly. She cast a glare at him. “What about it?”
Childe raised his brows, surprised at her admission. “What happened to, ‘Fighting isn’t fun.’?”
“It isn’t,” she sneered. “I do it because I have to.”
His eyes squinted in confusion. “Because you have to?”
“The money.” Her fists were clenched. “I need the money.”
He blinked, staring at her in silence once more.
Probably thinking of some way to torture me. What’s he going to do? Extort me for money? Blackmail me?
It doesn’t matter. My life is over as of now. All because of Childe.
She readjusted her backpack, walking out the door. “Do what you want; I’m going home.”
He didn’t stop her.
When the door shut behind her, Lumine ran as fast as she could, not even bothering to wait for the bus; she ran all the way home, trying her best to hold back her tears.
Arriving home, she went straight to her room, ignoring Aether’s worried questioning, and laid face down on her bed. Her heart felt like it was going to burst.
The prospect that her future was going down the drain loomed over her shoulder like a thick, black cloud. On the other hand, her head felt like it was on fire: all the frustration and anger—at Childe for being there and finding her, and at herself for being so careless—bubbling over.
She let out a quiet scream of frustration into her pillow, then sat up. She slipped off her hand wraps, taking a deep breath.
No. She wasn’t going to let someone like Childe ruin everything she had worked for.
She grabbed an energy drink from her bag, sat down at her desk, and continued studying through the night.
Now isn’t the time to give up.
* * *
It had been three days. Three days since Lumine had run into Childe at the arena. And yet, not a single person came to her asking questions, expelling her, arresting her.
Did…did Childe really not tell anyone? Lumine wondered as she walked through the hallways. She had barely seen him at school these past few days—only brief glimpses of him in the crowded halls. He hadn’t even been stirring up trouble like he usually did.
Maybe he’s still planning to do something with the information, Lumine reasoned. Or…maybe…he feels sympathy.
Whatever it was, Lumine was glad nothing had happened. It seemed like her life was carrying on like normal. Maybe it had just been some crazy nightmare she dreamed up.
“Lumine!” a cheerful voice called.
She turned, finding her friend, Xiangling skipping towards her, along with her other friend, Mona.
“Xiangling. Mona,” she greeted happily.
“What’s wrong, Lumi?” Xiangling asked. “Your face was all scrunched up.”
The blonde offered a small smile. “Really? I guess I was just thinking about stuff.”
“Perhaps your duties as President are too strenuous,” Mona said. “I always find it relaxing to destress in a bath of honey and rose petals.”
Xiangling’s eyes glittered. “Sounds yummy…” She shook her head. “Ah, forget that! We’re here to ask you to help us!”
“Some inconsiderate brutes left their gym equipment in the stairwell, blocking the entrance to our club rooms,” Mona explained.
Lumine sighed. “Let me take a look.”
The three travelled across the courtyard, coming to a stop outside the club activities building where many clubs had their meeting rooms, including Xiangling’s cooking club and Mona’s astrology club.
Blocking the stairwell was, indeed, a pile of heavy-looking punching bags.
“Left by the boxing club, no doubt,” Lumine muttered. She turned to her friends. “No worries, I’ll get these out of your way, then have a talk with the boxing club about this.”
“But they look really heavy…,” Xiangling said.
Mona raised her brows. “Will you be able to lift those on your own?”
No different than lifting weights. Considering her fight training, the bags would be extremely easy for Lumine to move. However, of course, to everyone who didn’t know her intense training, she was of a small stature, the punching bags very obviously bigger than her.
But it was her friends who needed help, and they wouldn’t be overly suspicious of her.
“It’s fine,” Lumine reassured. “It’s just like…physics, right?” Judo, more like. “I just have to utilize my center of gravity versus its weight.”
She grabbed the chain at the top of the bag, positioning it so it sat on her shoulder. Then, she swung her leg back, kicking the bottom while simultaneously pulling it, sending it flying over her shoulder, and out of the way. Just like a judo flip. She repeated it for the other bags until the staircase was cleared.
“Wooow,” Xiangling sighed in awe. “You’re amazing, Lumi!”
“Very much so,” Mona agreed.
Before Lumine could say it was no big deal, Xiangling leaned in a bit.
“Say, isn’t that Childe, looking this way?” the cook whispered.
The three glanced in the direction she was looking, and sure enough, the tall ginger was standing nearby, his blue eyes fixed on Lumine.
Immediately, Lumine felt her fists clench. “Need something?” she gritted out.
He blinked at her, then let out an amused chuckle, turning and walking away. Lumine glared daggers into his back until he was out of sight.
“He’s so cool,” Xiangling said dreamily. “And so handsome.”
Lumine rolled her eyes. Xiangling fawned over anyone remotely good-looking like they were food. She remembered a time when the cook looked at her like she was the best roast pig on the market.
“He may have the looks,” Mona conceded, “but unfortunately, he doesn’t seem very interested in girls. He’s rejected every single confession he’s ever gotten—and that’s a lot.” The pigtailed witch put her hands on her hips. “Not very good karma in the stars for him, if you ask me.”
Oh. Lumine almost laughed. Maybe he just didn’t tell anyone because he’s not interested?
Yes, that must be it. He was so uninterested, it would serve him no purpose to meddle in her life.
Hopefully that means he stops causing me trouble wherever he goes.
* * *
Childe.
Childe was in her manager’s office.
Before any fight, Lumine had to report to the overseer of the arena, a man named Kaeya Alberich; he was in charge of paying her, and was the only person in the arena who knew her true identity. He had let her continue fighting because she was good at it—and he was in the business of putting on a good show.
And now, Kaeya was talking to Childe.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Lumine asked.
Next to Kaeya, Childe gave her a smile like nothing was wrong.
“Lumine! Perfect timing,” Kaeya said. “We have a proposition for you.”
“We?”
“Yes, me and Tartaglia here were discussing your future in this field,” Kaeya explained.
Lumine’s face scrunched in confusion. “Tartaglia?” she echoed, looking at Childe, who innocently nodded.
“Of course! Where are my manners? Lumine, this is Tartaglia; he’s a very prominent figure in our…community.” The older gentleman smiled. “And Tartaglia says he already knows who you are?”
“We’re friends,” Childe supplied.
“Friends?” Kaeya chuckled. “Lumine, you should have told me you knew Tartaglia.”
“I don’t,” Lumine interjected.
“We have a very odd way of joking,” the ginger said, winking at Lumine.
Kaeya shrugged. “Anyhow, let’s get down to business.” He looked at Lumine. “How do you feel about Tartaglia being your new coach?”
Lumine choked on her spit. My…coach?!
“What…what does that mean?” she managed to get out.
“Well, we both agreed that you seem like… a big fish in a small pond nowadays,” Alberich explained.
“As your coach,” Childe said. “I can get you into different fighting arenas with my connections. More room for you to grow. And of course, more money.”
“No,” Lumine said, almost instantaneously. Both men made a face. She continued, narrowing her eyes at Childe, “I don’t need your help.” Childe crossed his arms.
Kaeya let out a nervous laugh. “Now, now, Lumine, this could be really good for you—”
“I’ll see you after the match for payment.” With that, Lumine rapidly left the room.
Who the hell did Childe think he was? Barging into her life like this?
She didn’t take handouts. If she wanted something, she’d get it, on her own. After her father left her family heartbroken and penniless, she learned that the hard way: she couldn’t rely on anyone else.
During her match that night, she saw Childe sitting in one of the front rows, his eyes never leaving her.
Damned creep, she thought as her fist slammed into her opponent, effectively winning the match. The crowd’s cheers swelled. See? I’m perfectly fine on my own.
* * *
“U-Uhm, Madame President?” Bennett called nervously.
Lumine looked up from her laptop as she was typing in preparation for the student council meeting later. “Yes, Bennett?”
“I, uhm, may have misplaced some of my reports for this week,” he admitted.
Aether offered a smile. “That’s okay, Bennet,” Aether reassured. “We’ll go look for them.”
Lumine sighed and shook her head. “We have to turn them in tonight.” Knowing Bennett’s luck, the reports were probably at the bottom of the ocean somehow. “I’ll just rewrite them all later.”
Her twin looked at her, concerned. “Lumine, that’s a lot of work. Let me write them.”
Bennett tried to offer to rewrite them as well, but Lumine held her hand up. “I’m the President, it’s nothing to me. You two just worry about your other council duties, okay?”
Bennett and Aether exchanged defeated looks—their President was stubborn, and once she had her mind set on something, there was no way of convincing her otherwise.
Later, as the sun cast its sunset oranges through the windows of the empty school, Lumine still remained, hard at work typing away Bennett’s missing reports.
Her head ached, but she still had a mountain of homework and student council paperwork to finish, not to mention preparing for work tonight. She let out a fit of coughs, before forcing herself to return to her work.
“So I figure you’re some type of masochist,” Childe’s voice rang from the doorway.
Lumine sighed, not having enough energy to be angry. “Do you need something?” she asked.
“You know, you’ve practically worked yourself to death these past few days,” he said. “While I admire your resilience, it’s not healthy.”
She stood, ready to throw him out of the room so she could go back to working in peace, but her head started swimming, the room becoming blurry around her, and she stumbled. Oh no—
Before she fell back, however, Childe was behind her, catching her.
Within a second of his hands on her, she righted herself, shoving him away. “I don’t need your help,” she seethed.
His expression was unreadable, his mouth in a tight line. “I see,” he said, robotically, before walking out of the room.
Breathing heavily, she sat back in her chair, hand on her burning forehead. Shit…
* * *
Just make it through the match. Just make it through the match. Lumine kept chanting to herself.
She was definitely coming down with something, her whole body rolling with heat, but she couldn’t afford to let it affect her—not when she had so many things that needed to get done.
She wished Aether was with her, he would’ve made her feel better. But he was called in for work tonight at the grocery store, so she walked through the run-down streets alone.
She was in a more dangerous part of town, but she and Aether had figured out certain routes to walk where they didn’t run into anyone else.
Tonight, however, Lumine noticed a lone man coming towards her. She clenched her fist, ready to strike if needed. She got closer and closer to him, her muscles tensing with each step.
She passed him, and nearly let out a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, he grabbed her wrist from behind, twisting her arm against her back.
Lumine cried out in shock, weakly trying to break out of his grasp. On any other night she could have easily taken him. Damn this sickness—!
She couldn’t stop him as his other hand inched closer to her jacket. She closed her eyes.
WHAM!
Lumine felt her arm get released, and she opened her eyes, turning around.
The man who attacked her was on the ground, knocked out, and Childe stood over him, shaking out his hand after his powerful punch.
“Childe?” she breathed out. Feeling lightheaded again, she found herself reaching out for him, unable to speak.
Again, he caught her, but this time she didn’t force him away.
His hand was on her forehead, his other hand wrapped around her waist to support her. “You’re burning up,” he said.
She swallowed the lump in her throat. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m sorry, Childe.”
He softly chuckled. “It’s okay. Just rest now,” he murmured back.
Nodding against his hand, she let herself relax, for the first time in forever. All her exhaustion came flooding in, and she quickly passed out in Childe’s arms.
* * *
[part 3 coming soon]