Ouma's POV:

I sat nervous in the car, Saihara decided to take me directly to his father so we could go to the police station near where he works at.

In his words the one in this town couldn't be trusted with such a testimony, not after what happened to DICE in the first place.

Saihara's father was oddly quiet, I didn't know what to expect though, I tried to remember if Chi had ever shown me a photograph of her Uncle so I could maybe know what he looks like but I couldn't remember.

Same with Saihara I guess...same with Shuichi.

I can do this. I repeated again as I felt doubt overcoming me, it was one thing to say it in sign language but...my voice...

"He doesn't talk much does he?" A voice finally asked. Shuichi held my hand tighter, "he uses sign language primarily, remember when I asked if I could enroll a friend in speech therapy?" Shuichi asked.

"I see, well I suppose that's a good thing, any false interpreter could just tell a lie." His father said approvingly.

"Sign language though...you were my niece's friend weren't you?" He asked calmly. I nodded unsure how to respond.

"I see...so you learned it before or after what happened?" He asked, I felt like I was getting a pre interrogation.

'Before' I told him, "and you're blind right? So you rely on audible communication?" He repeated, "father why're you-" Shuichi started uncomfortable but then stopped.

His hand was shaking in mine.

"I'm trying to get him to talk Shuichi, because if he can't feel comfortable with even normal questions how do you think he'll manage in that testimony where he will have to describe exactly what happened to him?" He barked.

Shuichi didn't have an argument.

Preparing...I took a deep breath, "I rely...on people talking to me...if someone moved my hands to talk...I would understand that...but I don't like being touched..." I paced myself.

"There we go, now....what're your intentions with my son?" He asked and I froze as Shuichi let go of my hand.

....

"Your son...is a very good friend to me..." I worded carefully, I silently pleaded for Shuichi to continue.

"Honesty is best here, if you tell one lie any lawyer will try and find a way to spin it that it was all a lie. That story is already unbelievable, so the more honest you are the better" he advised as he took a sharp turn.

"I'm sorry..." I apologized, "not your fault, it's my sons fault for not properly preparing you for this, hopefully I will manage to do what I can" he grunted.

I heard Shuichi taking deep breaths, his common method for calming down as I turned to him in pity.

"It's...he tried before sir...I just...I stuttered so much back then...it's still hard to..." I tried to defend him, but I could tell he wasn't really listening.

The car stopped and I could hear my wheelchair being brought out, I carefully got out with some help and tried to tune out the sounds of the station.

I can do this...

~-~-~-~

The room was cold, and I could hear the slow tired breathing of the man in front of me writing something down.

I wish Shuichi was here but it wouldn't have been in good practice apparently.

"Name?" He finally asked, I could hear the click of the recording machine.

I can do this.

"Ouma Kokichi" I said, "age and occupation?" He asked, "I am 17, and I'm a...I'm a senior in high school student at imperial high" I told him cursing my pauses.

"And what is the reason you have come today?" He asked calmly, the mans voice was so emotionless though...

"I've come...I've come to report a murder case" I told him, "what is your relationship to the case?" He asked without missing a beat.

"I was one of the victims, however...I was the only one who survived..." I admitted my heart was pounding and all I wanted to do was run and hide.

"When did this occur?" He asked, "May 19th, it was five years ago" I told him.

"Why did it take you so long to come forward?" He asked calmly, "I...I was in a coma for a few months following...and after that I developed selective mutism...and PTSD" I explained.

"Can you tell me what happened? In detail please" he asked.

"From the fire or...?" I asked, "from the beginning of that day, as much as you can remember" he asked.

"It was a normal school day...I remember that my friends arrived late because they wanted soda...the substitute teacher gave them villain points as a punishment..." I started.

"What are villain points?" He asked, "a system he created...if a student behaved poorly they would receive them, after...after a certain amount we recieved...a punishment but he didn't tell us what.." I recalled.

Such pretty eyes

"Go on then" he asked, "the day resumed on as normal...but when me and a couple of friends were about to leave...I remembered my friend Takura wanted to throw a party...he called it a prank party...but then I realized he was going to use a broken outlet...I rushed back in with my friends to stop him...

"But it was to late. A fire broke out...we had a popcorn machine, and the fire reached the oil...then it got out of c-control..." I told him.

Mind if I poke around here?

"Go on" the man encouraged despite my stuttering.

"The fire...we all ran outside...but when we opened the door...we accidentally let in to much oxygen...we were panicking...and we ended up blacking out...before I did though...

"I remember...my substitute teacher looking down on us...when we woke up...we were tied up in a w-warehouse" I choked up.

Villains deserve the punishment they recieve

"Is that where the incident occured? Did you know what time it was?" The man asked.

"Yes...I didn't know the time though" I told him, "what happened after you woke up?" He asked.

"The man...he revealed he was an assigned...hired to kill us, he revealed the punishment was death...and by causing that fire...we were beyond redemption" I told him my voice felt weak.

"My friends...my friends and I panicked...we didn't...we didn't know what to do...but that's when...he started to..." I paused, I felt warm hot tears finally stream down my face.

"What happened next?" The man asked immediately.

"He...he killed my friend...Riko" I told him, "how did he kill them?" He asked, "he sliced her throat open..." I told him, "I can still see her face...she was crying...she was terrified..." I mumbled.

"The same happened to the rest?" He asked. "No...the next...Eiji...he dragged him to another room...we kicked and screamed for help...I clawed the walls till the skin on my fingers tore off...but in the end...no one rescued us..." I told him terrifed.

"He tortured them, one by one and we heard the screams, we heard and we begged, begged for him to stop, why? Why did we deserve this? Why did he do this? Please stop...stop it....leave them alone but he laughed at us, he laughed...and eventually we just didn't scream anymore or try fighting, all we could do was cry...and even after a while we stopped that. The man taunted us, he laughed at that...

"I begged whatever God that existed to make him kill me next, so I wouldn't have to hear them screaming anymore, to save them...I didn't want to live anymore, but in the end...

"I was the last one, and I saw what he did to them, he mutilated them, I could barely recognize them, he butchered them apart, and he was proud of that and after that..." I finally stopped when I felt a small hand on my shoulder.

...

"What did he do to you?" The man asked, he was still being professional but he finally sounded sympathetic.

"He...I don't...he's the reason...my leg was cut off because of him...but the doctors later reattached it...I lost my eyesight...he gave me drugs so I wouldn't fall asleep...he told me he's done this before...he hurt me enough so I was still screaming...but didn't die...he timed it out...after that...

"Two of my classmates...they found me." I reflected, "who were they?" He asked.

"Momota Kaito...and Harukawa Maki" I whispered, "were you friends before?" He asked.

"No...I used to prank them...Momota told me he saw the sub take me away in his van...and that he and Harukawa tried to find us after..." I confessed.

"What happened when he found you?" He asked, "the sub ran...I passed out at this point...apparently he ran...and my friends....my friends were already dead. I was the only one who was still alive..." I said.

"What about the following years?" He asked, "I couldn't speak...couldn't react...every time I closed my eyes I saw my friends bodies...I heard that mans voice...I still hear it...still see it in my dreams..." I told him.

"How did the police handle the crime?" He asked.

"Suicide...they framed everything...their murder...as a suicide...that we committed arson, that it wasn't an accident...that our sub...that he tried to save us...but he died drowning..." I whispered.

"Was there anyone else other than the two previous who knew the truth? Your parents?" He asked.

"No...not till this year...did I finally tell someone what really happened..." I admitted.

"It says on your file you suffer from suicidal tendencies, how many times did you consider or attempted? Was any of those murder attempts as well?" He asked.

...

"Only the warehouse was a murder attempt" I told him. He paused, "do you know who hired the sub?" He asked.

"No"

"Do you know who he was?"

"No"

"Did you ever suspect he was going to do something like this?"

"No"

"That's all the questions I have for you Ouma, however we will get in contact with your guardian if we need to conduct more information" he told me.

"Alright" I whispered, "thank you for your time" he told me. I wiped my eyes as the door opened, and I felt a warm presence.

That might have been the best hug I have ever had in my life.