Your POV:

    'What happened?'

    All I could feel was a dull pain in my body, as if it were bruised by something. For some reason, I could feel the pain now, but why not before? All I could see was darkness, but my face was pressed against something cold and hard.
    My eyes slowly opened, but everything looked blurry. The pain I was feeling intensified as soon as I opened my eyes. A few moments went by as my vision cleared up. I needed to know where I was, and how I got here.
    Once my vision cleared up, I found myself on a cold hard floor. Hues of greens and blues cascaded the room around me while specific items made me know where I was. I could see the large futuristic looking toilet where I was as well as a small window. I had a feeling I was in the Exisal Hanger Bathroom, but I didn't know how I got there. I made myself get up off of the cold hard floor, so I could sit down instead of being sprawled across the floor.
    My heart rate started to increase as I thought about everything that happened before I was knocked out. Kokichi was the mastermind, and he knew about the ability I was trying to keep secret from the mastermind. The state of the world as it was now... every memory from before I woke up was coming back to me.
I recalled Kaito trying to attack Kokichi, trying to launch himself towards Kokichi and his Exisal Entourage. I could remember myself launching into action, trying to stop him. I swore I was able to push him out of the way, but was I able to keep him out of harms way? I had no idea because I felt something smack me down roughly before passing out. I still remembered how it felt...hard, cold, sharp in some areas... maybe the reason I was feeling pain right now was because of whatever happened to me.
    There was a good chance this was Kokichi's doing, and the sheer thought of that caused my heart rate to accelerate even more. Sweat started to roll off of my face as my breathing became slightly labored. In bewilderment, I looked around the Exisal hanger bathroom just to find that I was alone... at least for now. I had no idea what happened after I was knocked out. What did the other's go through? The world was gone... what could I even do right now...?
    The sound of a door opening brought me back to the present. Turning my head from the sound, my eyes widened when I saw Kokichi walking into the room I was being kept in. He had a seemingly satisfied smile on his face as he trailed around the room.
    "It looks like you're finally awake, my beloved," Kokichi laughed, "nee-heehee... you were asleep for the rest of the night... I thought you'd be happy to see me. You don't need to act so shocked about seeing me..."
Kokichi's steps were slow as he trailed himself around the room. It was like Kokichi was a predator stalking his prey, and in this case...I was his prey. Seeing Kokichi also confirmed another thing that was on my mind. Whatever happened to me *was* Kokichi's doing, and he seemed very happy about that.
"I'm sure you're wondering how you got here, aren't you?" Kokichi asked me, his tone somewhat mocking, "nee-heehee~I wonder if your pretty little head will be able to process that information..."
As Kokichi was talking, I noticed something about the way he moved. He was trailing in circles, growing closer after each round he made around the room. Sweat was visible on my face as he got closer. I didn't want to speak. I was terrified of the situation I was in right now, and it was like Kokichi was well aware of that. It wasn't just this situation that terrified me though. The fact that the entire world was gone was enough to make surviving pointless to me. That however didn't stop the terror I felt.
"It's no fun if you don't respond, y'know..." Kokichi explained, "I don't think you are in any position not to reply when I'm talking to you. You know very well I determine whether anyone lives or dies here."
What Kokichi was saying was true. With him being able to summon the Exisals, it was proof enough that what he was saying was the truth. Kokichi obviously wanted me to respond to him, but I had no idea what to say since I was alone with him. However... something confusing went through my mind as he mentioned that he determined who lives or dies here.
    Kirumi, who was a convicted killer at the time Ryoma's body was discovered... I went in front of Kirumi after I brought her back and took her back to the trial grounds. If Monokuma was such a stickler for the rules, why did he back off?
    "If you determine who l-lives or dies..." I trailed off, finally speaking, "why did you let Kirumi live after she was convicted? Why did you let her live after she was brought back?"
    Kokichi hummed lightly as an impromptu response to my question. It was after this point that he stopped walking, his position being in front of me. Since I was sitting on the ground, he looked way taller than he was, and it felt like he was looking down on me.
    "You finally speak, and that's what you have to say?" Kokichi asked, "nee-heehee...I'll explain that later. Why don't we focus on present events right now, hm?"
    I swallowed nervously in response to Kokichi's words. I was getting uncomfortable with him being this close to me, looking down on me like a cat who caught a mouse. Kokichi was trying to force the conversation topic on how I managed to get myself in this situation. I was in no position to argue with him. I was in no position to say nothing. He had every advantage over me, and I couldn't do anything about that.
"You see my beloved, Kaito is an idiot, and he lets his emotions get the best of him," Kokichi explained, "I knew there was a good chance that idiot was going to try to lunge at me, and you know very well that's what happened."
"B-But, I pushed Kaito out of the way," I stuttered.
"I know you did," Kokichi replied, "nee-heehee...instead of Kaito as I intended, you were slammed down by one of my Exisals. In other words, you took his place of being my hostage."
When those words came out of Kokichi's mouth, I was scared, but also relieved. I knew Kaito and I weren't on the best terms for some reason I still didn't know...but... it was a lot better for him not to be held hostage by Kokichi. Kaito was suffering from whatever was making him cough up blood. I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself if I stood there and did nothing.
"You seem to look relieved, huh?" Kokichi asked, "however...I feel like you don't understand what's going on here..."
When Kokichi told me that I looked relieved, his voice held some amusement as he spoke. When he told me that he felt like I didn't understand what was going on, his tone was blank and serious. I felt terrified from how his voice changed from his usual whimsical tone to one that was more serious and gut wrenching.
Before I could even think to respond to Kokichi's words, he lunged forward, extending his arms forward. His hands hit my shoulders, force being extended on them, pushing me down onto the floor. I felt dazed as the air was pushed out of me as my back hit the floor. I gasped slightly, feeling even more pain from my midsection as I harshly hit the ground.
My vision was starting to grow blurry as tears formed in my eyes. Through the blurriness of my sight, I saw Kokichi looming over me. It was similar to what Rantaro did, having my body somehow caged between his, but this felt wrong. Something cold to the touch grabbed my face. It was Kokichi's hand, and I didn't even understand why his hand was so cold. The grip he had on my face was tight as he made me look directly into his eyes.
I blinked away the tears that formed, only to see something terrifying as my vision cleared up. Kokichi's eyes were swirling with what looked like he was amused by what he was doing. I tried to move my head to avoid the eye contact, but no matter how hard I tried, Kokichi was stronger than he looked by a long shot.
"You know very well that I know about your little gene," Kokichi explained as he looked into my eyes, "I've known you were part of this issue ever since you were alone with Kirumi after her execution."
    After this point, Kokichi's eyes became a blank stare as he looked at me. Despite his eyes looking blank, there was still what felt like anger and malice. Seeing this reminded me of what Muzan Kibutsuji did in episode eight of Demon Slayer...the piercing stare that foresaw death in the near future. The look in his eyes made me want to plead for my life. Against my will, I began to tremble. Sweat continued to roll down my face as I was too scared to say anything.
    "You thought you were being so cautious when you tried to hide this from me, so I did a little bit of digging on my own," Kokichi explained, his tone blank but somehow carrying venom being it, "and you wouldn't believe what I found."
Truth be told, I thought I was being cautious enough to keep my gene a secret. I should've known that Kokichi would try to find out what was going on. His tone was blank, carrying no emotion, but still there was anger. Kokichi's lying facade...his carefree yet mischievous nature... the Kokichi staring into my eyes was not the Kokichi I grew to know. I had no idea if this was part of some sick lie, but... my gut was telling me that it wasn't a lie.
As Kokichi told me that I wouldn't believe what he found, his voice still carrying no emotion, the grip he had on my face, more specifically my chin... it got tighter. Kokichi's short nails started to dig into my chin, causing me to wince. I squinted as I felt more tears form in my eyes. In response to my expression, I heard a giggle come from Kokichi, as if he were truly amused by my expression.
"I found *that* book in the library, and I decided to plan something in accordance to that," Kokichi told me, "I'll tell you this like I told everyone, so you better listen carefully... While you were out cold... the true reason I decided to use Gonta to try and kill Miu... the true reason was to use Miu as a Guinea pig. There's a reason why you were so surprised when Miu came back to life... that reason is because you never even cried on Miu."
Part of me couldn't even process the information I was receiving due to the pain I felt, both from Kokichi's nails digging into my chin and the aftermath of being pushed down by one of the Exisals Kokichi controlled. When I heard that he somehow used Miu as some sort of test subject to prove I was the one bringing people back to life, I was still somehow surprised. He knew I was surprised about Miu's revival because I didn't cry on her. The question that was racing in my mind was "how"?
"I bet you're thinking to yourself, *how was Miu revived when I didn't even cry on her*?" Kokichi asked, his tone now somewhat mocking.
    Surprise once again hit my expression when Kokichi spoke. He somehow pinpointed what I was thinking. I had no idea how Miu came back when I didn't cry on her. Kokichi did though, and that was very unsettling.
    "I'll let you in on a little secret," Kokichi told me, "before the investigation started for Miu's death, you remember how I tackled you, riiiight? I suppose you might've felt something brush your face lightly when you teared up from the air being pushed out of you. I'm sure you didn't even find that suspicious at first, but I think you can figure out what happened. Even if you can't figure it out, I'll tell you. I was the one who hijacked your personal space in order to prove you were the one cheating in my killing game."
Kokichi's tone was filled with some amusement as he explained how he managed to trick me into letting my guard down, if he could call it that. I remembered the feeling of Kokichi pushing me down when he wanted me to investigate him. I remembered feeling a slight brush on my face at that time. I didn't even have the idea that he did this to find me out. It matched with how Miu came back. When Kokichi told me that he was investigating Miu's body, chances were... he probably used that moment to strike.
    "As I expected, you were the one behind it, my beloved," Kokichi said blankly, "I know what everyone is up to, all the time. Their personalities... their ticks... including yours..."
    As Kokichi explained that he knew about what everyone was up to, their personalities... what made them angry... his grip on my chin softened. I felt myself grow relieved when the feeling of nails digging into my chin was no more, but it still left a lingering ache. Kokichi may have softened his grip, but I knew I wasn't out of the woods yet.
    "You have always had a self sacrificing tendency from the very beginning," Kokichi explained, "despite what Angie put you through, you still saved her. How would you feel if I told you I used that same self sacrificing behavior against you?"
    Almost instantly after those words left his mouth, I was still in shock. What did he mean by that? How would he use that against me? My brain tried to figure out how he would do something like that.
    "Lets just say, I expected Kaito to try and attack me," Kokichi explained, "and you tried to stop him because you *knew* how dangerous the situation was. My plan to catch you worked like a charm, and I don't think you realized that until now. Now... I bet you're wondering what I plan to do with you. I bet you're thinking that I'm going to end your life, riiiight?"
    Kokichi grinned at me as he said those words. It was as if he was trying to toy with me. Kokichi expected Kaito to attack him, and that was enough for me to follow... he mentioned how I stopped him because I knew how dangerous it was, and that was also true. The thing that shocked me however was that he wasn't planning on catching Kaito....his plan was to catch me... and as he said... it worked.
Kokichi mentioned how I was wondering what he planned to do with me. I still had no idea what his intentions were, but when he told me that I thought he was going to end my life... I faltered in response to his words, trying to hide the fact that he was right on the mark about what I was thinking.
The truth of the matter was this situation was what I feared the most. Being cornered by the mastermind... the mastermind finding out about what I desperately tried to keep hidden. I had a feeling something like this would somehow happen, but I didn't think it would happen this quickly. I didn't think it would happen right after Rantaro and I...
I thought Kokichi was going to end my life, that was the honest to god truth. Despite how hard I tried to hide that, Kokichi saw right though me. I looked down, because I couldn't stare into his eyes due to that sheer fact. It felt like he was going to somehow deal in the final blow.
    Soon enough, I felt Kokichi pull his hand away from my chin, more or less I saw it. I was looking down, to try to avoid his eyes contact. I soon felt something pat my head after that point. Looking up, I saw Kokichi, but he had a small smile on his face, and the anger I saw in his eyes seemed to disappear if only for a moment. Kokichi was obviously patting my head now, causing a slightly shocked expression to appear on my face.
    "You're too cute with that expression of yours!" Kokichi exclaimed, the malice in his voice somehow leaving, "you are just too adorable to kill!"
    After saying that, Kokichi lifted himself off of me, standing back up. Upon instinct, my hand made its way to my chin, where I started rubbing it to get rid of the lingering feeling from the nails he dug into my skin.
"W-What do you mean by that...?" I stuttered, slight dryness in my throat.
"What I mean is that I've taken a liking to you," Kokichi explained in response, "I've taken a liking to you since the veeeery beginning, but you didn't even notice. All you noticed was that playboy."
When Kokichi said those words, a lot of thoughts went through my head. Past memories went through my head... including when Rantaro told me that Kokichi appeared to be crazy about me in some way. Hearing that... made me realize that Rantaro was right. There was another question on my mind as well.
    What exactly did Kokichi plan? Was what was going on with Rantaro somehow his doing? There was a chance that Kokichi somehow manipulated Rantaro's actions, and I still had no idea how he managed to do it. All I knew was Kokichi had some sort of interest in me, and it was because he was the one who said that.
    "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to be alone with you," Kokichi told me, "if Rantaro wasn't brought back in the beginning, I would've had my way in the very beginning."
    Kokichi hummed to himself as he said that, moving his arms to go behind his head in a position where he looked more carefree and relaxed. His expression and body language showed that he knew he had won. 
     Since Kokichi was explaining some of his motives, they did connect somehow despite the fact that I was terrified. What he told me were truths that resolved things that made me very anxious. I did realize something though.
    In the beginning, I remembered finding Rantaro's body, seeing no life whatsoever. I remembered the bloody shot put ball that was used in his murder. I could recall everything that happened that day, including when Rantaro walked into the trial grounds, alive and well.
    After that said trial, I managed to get the device from Miu, and Rantaro and I went to the library where we tried to find out what was going on.... How he survived. How Rantaro told me that he saw a shot put ball fall from the bookcase. I knew very well that it wasn't Kaede who almost killed Rantaro. Considering Kokichi's identity. I couldn't control myself as I asked.
"Kokichi, were you the one who tried to kill Rantaro?" I asked.

Listen, I know this chapter is a little shorter than usual. This week has been very stressful to me, and it's kinda driving me crazy. This week is my finals, and I'll make it up in the next chapter for the shortness of this one.

I had a hard time writing out this chapter and trying to find out what Kokichi would do or say in this chapter. I hope I did well. In any case, I did pass my finals with flying colors, so I'm happy about that. I hope you all are too! I have next week off so expect a good update! I hope that I did well, but in any case, next week will be big. I hope you all have a wonderful spring break, and I'll be back Friday! Ciao!- yuki_no_fuyu