40

You were awoken by the noise that arose from outside your door. You rose up from your bed, sitting on its edge and listened. It sounded like someone was walking—scratch that, there were multiple people walking around in the center of the dormitory. Then you heard what you believed to be the sound of doors opening.

Everyone must be heading to the dining hall, you thought. Huh... So that means I slept in a bit. But then again, I did stay up really late...

Your mind quickly raced back to what happened with Kokichi. Sh*t, we never established when we would regroup...and I doubt that he'd go to the dining hall after what happened with Gonta. You bit on your lip a bit while your mind started to race. In the background, you could barely register the sound of people slowly leaving the dormitory until there was no one left.

What comes next? Will everyone finally stop killing each other or will it just continue? What happens if we never escape...? And how's Kokichi? Oh god, will I actually be able to—

Knock, knock...

You looked over at the door and tilted your head... I'm just hearing things.

No, there's someone at the door.

You snapped back into reality and listened this time. Knock, knock. Sure enough, something or possibly even someone was at your door, making the knocking noise.

What if something bad will happen? Should you really open it...?

You realized that you had stood up, but now you were frozen in place. But...I swear that I heard everyone leave. What's the worst that could happen?

Murder?

No one... No one has a motive to target me specifically...right?

You heard the knocking once more, this time a bit more insistent. You cracked.

Step by step, you cautiously approached your door, breath withdrawn. You then opened the door and looked at the person on the other side—

It was Kokichi. Thank god that of all people, it's him... Just the person I needed to see. You started to examine him a bit more. He was slightly hunched over, now looking back up at you with mildly surprised eyes. There was some sort of tool in one of his hands, with one side of it seeming to be made of metal with a jagged edge. The other tool was a thin piece of metal that was bent.

"Um..." Kokichi's expression remained calm, but a small blush crept up to his cheeks.

"Well, good morning to you, too," you said with a small chuckle. "What were you even doing...?"

Kokichi stood upright and stuffed the tools into a back pocket. "You weren't answering after I knocked just about a million times and I was getting worried, so I was about to lock pick my way in and check on you..."

"That's a lie, right? You couldn't have been waiting here for that long."

The boy stared at you for a while, not saying anything.

"...Oh... Sorry to keep you waiting, then." You awkwardly cleared your throat before stepping to the side a bit and motioning him inside. "Would you like to come in?"

He seemed to brighten up a bit. "Of course!" He bounced into your room and flopped onto your bed.

Good... He seems to be acting like normal. You closed the door behind him and walked over, joining him by sitting on the edge of the mattress. "So...how was your sleep?"

"Mhm!" Kokichi pulled himself up into a proper position, his wide, sparkling eyes meeting yours. "I slept soooo much better with your help! I also had a weird dream, too... Can I talk about it?"

"Sure."

"This may sound a bit embarrassing, but...I dreamed that I was kissed by an angel."

You tilted your head at him questioningly. "Um... Wh-What?"

"You heard me."

"Is... Well, did anything else happen?"

Kokichi tapped his chin repeated with his index finger, looking off to the side until finally replying, "Nope. Well, if something else did happen, then I sure don't remember it."

"Hm... I wonder what could've caused you to dream something like that."

"I do too! Like, there was obviously someone there, but I never saw their face."

When he looked back at you, it was your turn to look away. "Did the angel kiss you on the lips?" you asked with a small huff.

"Oh?" There was a teasing lilt to his tone. "And why are you asking, hmm?" You registered a small arm wrapping around your shoulders and pulling you in closer. You blushed and dropped your gaze to the floor. "Are you jealous or something?"

"N-No!" you mumbled, tensing a bit from his contact. "Why would I be jealous of something that happened in a dream? Besides, you and I... We, um..."

Kokichi quickly pulled back from you. "Right, right. A long time ago, you said that we were just friends... And to answer your question, you don't have to worry. It was just on the forehead..." He let out a sigh, causing you to (finally) look back at him.

"But anyway, I'm glad to know that we can both still smile, joke around—y'know, function properly after what happened last night...or technically this morning—but we have more pressing matters at hand."

You gulped down all of your previous giddiness and feelings of a little anime schoolgirl getting all flustered over a crush. "Right, right..." You glanced to the side nervously and fidgeted with your hands a bit. "You kept mentioning about some sort of plan that you had. Would you mind explaining that to me...?"

Kokichi ran a hand through his hair, twirling his purple locks with his delicate fingers. He seemed to be contemplating something, deeply concentrating. You didn't dare to speak up and break his train of thought.

Then he mumbled something, but it was too quiet for you to hear.

"..."

He sighed again, and mumbled again, but this time it was loud enough so that you could hear. "I was talking about a plan to stop the killings. Make everyone feel so much despair that they'll have no choice but to stop killing each other."

"And how would you do that...?" you asked him, voice barely above a whisper.

"The secret of the outside world." The boy tensed up a bit. "It's hell out there, y'know? It's literal hell. Fire, everywhere. Nobody's alive. It's apocalyptic and terrible... Once the others find out, they'll have no reason to want to leave this place."

"Wh-What happened out there!?"

"The meteors, remember? The meteors that we all saw in the...flashback..." He stopped himself short in favor of catching your gaze. "You don't remember that, do you?"

You shook your head. "No, I never received a flashback like that... It seems like I've never had a flashback that all of you have gotten."

"How could that be? Tell me, what kind of things are you seeing...!?"

"Hold on, hold on..." You rubbed your temples and tried to remember. "First, tell me what you saw when the first Flashback Light was used."

Kokichi hummed a bit, trying to remember before it finally came back to him. "It was about the Ultimate Hunt. The flashback didn't really give us much detail about it the hunt, all I remembered was being chased and that it was important."

You tilted your head at him. "Really...? I saw all of you in normal school outfits, minding your own business...and then all of you were abducted and taken away to...somewhere. This is...odd, to say the least... What about the next one?"

"We saw our own funeral."

"You what?? All I saw was some blurred out text, probably a logo of sorts...and then I heard people talking. They sounded like excited children. They were talking about talented teenagers being scouted by some sort of team to be put into a cast, and they mentioned something about a game..."

Kokichi bit his thumbnail. "That... That sounds awfully similar to our situation, doesn't it?"

"Yeah...but I still don't know how it all connects." You sighed in frustration before continuing. "And you already told about the meteors, now that I think about it. I just saw a lesbian couple watching something on their television... The show that they were watching mentioned its name, but it was muffled and distorted so...I couldn't hear it. But then the show went on to mention the results of some poll that they had apparently made, and they started talking about different settings, motives, and then the last option which was the winner was cut off."

"Gah, this is so...weird!" The boy started to pout and cross his arms. "The first thing to address is whether or not the Flashback Lights are real or not. Are your memories fake or are they real? Are our memories just lies? Is everything a lie!?"

"Kokichi, please! Calm down!" You had started to panic when you saw his frustration growing. "We'll figure this out soon enough, just stay patient and trust me."

Kokichi let out a long sigh, seeming to calm down a bit. "Sorry..."

"You're fine. We can just do this more efficiently if we can think clearly."

"Alright... So either the mastermind is trolling us with your memories or they're trying to confuse us...but if your memories are real, you know what that means, right?" He suddenly turned his entire body to you and placed his hand on top of yours. "(Y/N), you're a key role in solving the mystery around this place and what could really be going on."

"Ah, um...I highly doubt that... The mastermind must have done this on purpose, and I think that I'm a rather boring person that they could—"

"Shush, shush, shuuuut up!" Kokichi pressed a finger up against your lips. "You gotta think about this logically! Hm, let's see... We started this game with seventeen people. Odd number, and then it just so happens that only one of us are getting different flashbacks..."

"This is nonsense—"

"I think that you are a special person in this killing game...!" the boy exclaimed with a gasp. "Perhaps you weren't originally supposed to be here? I guess that it's both fortunate and unfortunate that you're here..."

You squinted your eyes at him and raised a brow. "Eh...what? What do you mean...?"

Kokichi let out a dry laugh. "Hah... Well, it's unfortunate because your life is at risk, since...y'know, you're in a killing game. Not to mention that it makes my life more complicated..."

"Huh...?" Even though you were confused at the situation, you couldn't help but to feel guilty about something.

"It ties into how it's fortunate that you're here. It's fortunate because..." He looked away and pulled his scarf up to his mouth, starting to mumble into the fabric. "...because I was able to meet you. I... I-I have someone b-by my side who I can...who I can t-talk to..."

You weren't quite sure whether he was about to cry or if he was just embarrassed, but the statement still left you dumbfounded. "...Kokichi—"

"But it also complicates my life!!" he suddenly yelped. "Because...it's complicated."

Is he saying that it would be better if you hadn't existed?

Your jaw was open slightly, but nothing was able to come out. What could he mean by that? You tried to think back...

"You're ruining my plans with stupid emotions! What's wrong with you...? Any logical person would hate me and leave me alone!"

Is that what he's talking about? And then you were able to speak again. "I should have realized it sooner... I'm sorry, I guess I've just been a weight this entire time for you..."

Kokichi turned around immediately. His eyes were widened in what seemed to be a mixture of shock and panic. "No, no! That's not what I mean!"

He could be lying. Consider all of the things that he has just told you, and then some more.

"I'm not lying," Kokichi told seriously, his voice stern. "I promise I didn't mean it in a negative way! It's just that overtime, I've gotten this weird feeling and I don't know how to handle it...and I don't really want to talk about it."

You sighed dejectedly and looked at the ground. You swore that you could feel the overwhelming weight of rejection and reality crushing down on you—

"No, stop!" Kokichi's voice was rising with fear. "It's just... I really, really care about you...and you say that you care about me as well. If I were to die, I wouldn't want you to feel bad or even fall into despair... And if you were to die, then...then..."

"Alright, you don't have to finish that sentence..." You turned around to him. Looked him in the eyes, no higher. He was being sincere. Without thinking about it, you embraced him in a small hug. He quickly hugged back. You could feel his racing heart start to slow down.

"...I'm sorry," he muttered. "I'm still not very used to these kind of situations..."

"Shh, you're fine."

You weren't quite sure how much time passed by after that. You just knew that the two of you stayed in that position for a while, listening to the sound of each other's breathing and the occasional sound of someone entering or exiting the dormitory. It wasn't like whoever was out there would find you two, though, so it wasn't much of a bother.

"...Alright, I think I'm good now," Kokichi spoke after some time.

You pulled yourself off of him. "Right... Should we get back to work?"

"Yeah... We were talking about my plan."

"When did you want to show everyone the outside world?"

Kokichi looked off into the distance, humming in thought. "Umm... Soon enough so that there isn't a murder, but perhaps we should give the others some time before I make my next big move."

You nodded at him. "That seems reasonable." For acting like such a child most of the time, he's quite smart and considerate... You felt your admiration for him grow even more.

"U-Uh... Is now really the time to be saying things like that?" There was a barely visible tint of pink dusted on his cheeks as he spoke.

Oh... Did I say that out loud? "Sorry!" you mumbled. Now I'm really being cliche... "Ahem... Sorry for getting distracted... Anyway, what should we do in the meantime? And what happens after we reveal the secret?"

"In the meantime, we need to find the mastermind!" Kokichi quickly exclaimed. This newly found energy seemed to lift his spirits up a bit. "I'm not quite sure what will happen afterwards, but if Monokuma or the mastermind doesn't step in and do something, then we should have all the time in the world to figure a way to escape this place. I'm sure that with you, my beloved partner, by my side, we can do this!"

You smiled at him. "I'm glad to see you so determined."

"Of course! To be honest here, it can feel weird if I'm acting serious for too long."

"Is that a lie...?"

"I bet you already know the answer to that...!"

All of a sudden, you heard his stomach quietly grumble. "...Oh, I bet you're pretty hungry by now. I'm sure that you haven't gone to the dining hall at all this morning."

Kokichi shrugged. "Eh, I'm fine. I can control my hunger for a while, but I'm not so sure about yourself. You should probably go and get something to eat."

You furrowed your brows at him a bit. "But...skipping meals is bad. You're already perhaps one of the thinnest people I've ever met, and now that I think about it more...it's a bit concerning."

"But getting pulverized is worse!"

You glanced over at your digital clock. "...It's 9:47. I don't think that the others are still there eating their breakfast."

"You never know," he responded nonchalantly, looking down at his hand to study his nails. "Just...go eat. You're more important, okay? So you can stop worrying over me."

I thought we just talked about this... You sighed, shaking your head. "You know that I can't do that, but I will go eat. Are you planning on staying here or...?"

"What, are you planning to return or are you going to tell the others that you're okay?"

I guess that wouldn't be a bad idea... I don't want them to think that Kokichi did anything bad. "I suppose that I will return here."

"Well then, if I'm not here when you return then I'll be in my dorm. Y'know, I don't really want to be seen by the others."

"Alright... I'll be back." You stood up from the bed and walked over to your door. You offered him a small smile and a wave before you left.
***

You opened the door to your room. You had tried to be as quick as possible in returning. You found it quite lucky that you had ran into no one on your small journey—having to talk and deal with someone just seemed really inconvenient at the moment.

"Oh, you're back!"

"Oh, you actually decided to wait here."

You looked up. Kokichi was still on top of your bed, casually leaning his back up against the wall.

"Sorry, did I keep you waiting for long...?" You walked over and set some things down on your desk.

The boy shook his head. "Nope! But I will say, for the time that you were gone, I realized just how boring life can be!"

"Um... I'm sure that you were just bored because you didn't have much to do."

He shrugged. Then he raised a brow at you, head tilted in curiosity. "Eh? What are those?"

"Oh...! They're bento boxes." You grabbed the purple box and gave it to him, blushing a bit. "I, um... I made it myself. I know it's not the best but I still hope that it's at least edible," you told him nervously.

Kokichi took the box from you and opened it. Inside was some rice, shaped to look like the head of a cat. The rice was laying on top of some green vegetables, and beside it were some more vegetables and some fish. "Ah... So you used more traditional ingredients, eh? How boring." He said that with a satisfied smile.

Nevertheless, you also handed him some chopsticks as well as a bottle of Panta that you had found in the fridge.

"Wow! I feel like a king!" His smile only grew wider and his eyes almost seemed to sparkle. "You do know that I was just lying before, right? It looks great. Thanks!"

Your heart fluttered a bit. "N...No problem." You then sat down at your desk, opening your own box.

"Hm? You didn't eat already?"

"I thought that it would be a bit awkward if you just ate on your own."

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting you to waste your time on making me something to eat." Out of the corner of your eye, you watched as his lips curled into a smirk. "You must really love me in order to treat me like this~!"

You felt lucky that you didn't choke on your food right then and there. There's no way that he'd know that...right? Not knowing how to respond, you just took another bite to keep from talking.

"Well?"

At the very least, he knows that he's found a way to fluster me. You shoveled some more food into your mouth, causing him to chuckle.

What if he doesn't like it? It'd be so embarrassing...

...I didn't need to think about that right now, huh? Now I'm nervous—

"Really though, I didn't know that you could cook this well! Thank you...I really mean it."

"It's not Kirumi level...but I guess you're welcome."

You glanced back at Kokichi, only to find that he had already turned around to you with a pout on his face. "You gotta stop comparing yourself to others. Kirumi was the Ultimate Maid, of course she'd be go at things like cooking, but that doesn't make your cooking any worse."

You felt your cheeks warm up again. "Just keep eating your food...!"

"Nishishi! Gotcha!" He winked at you playfully and did as told.

Word Count: 3409

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