Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

We did it. We beat the killing game. We beat Danganronpa. We crossed to the other side, hoping to find people who would help us; people who would resonate with us. We were taking a huge risk, but…it was a risk we were willing to take.

I woke up to a faint light in a gray room.

My body felt numb, as if I hadn’t moved in months. My eyes burned when I looked directly into the light, causing my head to turn away and a groan to leave my lips. That groan alerted the woman in the corner who I had yet to notice.

“Ah, Mr. Saihara! You’re awake!” A beautiful woman, who had to be in her late 20’s or 30’s, walked over to the side of my bed (I vaguely noticed I was on what looked to be a hospital bed). “How are you feeling?”

The woman had straight, light brown hair with dark brown eyes that shined with kindness. Her smile was light and genuine. I felt myself smiling.

“I’m feeling…” I coughed, my throat feeling sore. “...confused?”

“I can understand that. My name is Mirai, by the way. It’s nice to see you awake, Mr. Saihara.”

“Mirai…” I couldn’t stop myself before I muttered her name out loud to myself. “Your name means…future…”

Mirai chuckled. “Pretty fitting, right? I’m here to help you and everybody else recover so you can all figure out your futures.”

“Everybody…you mean Yumeno-san and Harukawa-san, right?” I asked, glancing around the room to see if there was anything that looked familiar.

“Well, I guess so! Now then, do you want some time to yourself to get your bearings? Or are you ready to head out now?”

I wiggled my fingers, the numbness going away as I gripped onto the sheets under me. “I think…I could use some time to figure things out.”

Mirai nodded in understanding and walked over to the door. “I’ll come back in an hour, if you’re feeling ready by then.” She left the room and gently closed the door behind her.

I was able to quickly scan around the room. There was nothing suspicious about it, as far as I could tell. It was a normal room you'd normally see in a hospital. Was I in a hospital? Why?

I should probably get out of this bed. I thought to myself. I sat up on the bed and twisted my body so my legs were dangling over the sides. When the sheets fell off of my legs, I saw they were bare. I was in hospital clothing, too.

"I look a little paler than I remember…" I muttered to myself as I dragged my fingers along my skin. It wasn't a huge difference in color, but then again, I was always one to notice the smaller details.

When I got off the bed, I almost fell down. Thankfully, I was able to grab onto the sides of the bed before I did. 

Guess I need to take things slow. Gently placing my hands on the wall, I began to slowly walk laps around the room. After three paps, I was able to let go of the wall. I still wobbled a bit, but I could walk by myself.

My eyes wobbled over to the nightstand that was next to my bed, where I noticed a note of some kind. Stumbling over, I grabbed the paper.

Dear Saihara Shuichi,

Congratulations on winning Season 53 of Danganronpa! For being one of the three remaining survivors, you are being rewarded with a hefty sum of cash: 10 million yen to be exact! The money will be delivered to you once you settle down, so don't go on a shopping spree just yet!

Best of luck to you!

-Team Danganronpa

I crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the trash.

The rest of the hour was spent making sure I could use every part of my body normally. I didn't know why I shouldn't be able to, but I chose not to freak out until I knew exactly what was going on. I had to stay calm. Especially after reading that letter; it made my blood boil in a way I didn't want it to. Like I was some pot over the stove.

I was doing arm stretches when Mirai knocked at the door. Jumping a bit from surprise, I walked over to the door and opened it up. Mirai was still smiling.

"Hello, Mr. Saihara, I see you got out of bed! Does everything feel okay?"

"More or less." He said with a shrug. "By the way, where am I? What's happening?"

"You're in a hospital. But here we like to call it a recovery center." Mirai stepped into the room so she wasn't blocking the hallway. "After the participants of Danganronpa wake up, our job is to make sure everything is okay, and help them return into society."

"I see…so, what's going to happen to me?" I asked. Would they need to run tests on me?

Mirai scanned me up and down. "Well, for the most part you look fine. I think after some basic testing, we can check you off as ready. You'll just have to wait for everyone else to get to the 'good' point."

"Everyone else?" The way Mirai was speaking made it sound as if there were more people here than just Yumeno, Harukawa and I. But…that couldn't be right…

Could it…?

Mirai tapped me on my shoulder, grabbing my attention. "Hey, if you're ready, do you want to go meet up with everybody?"

"Huh? Ah, um…sure…" I don't know why I suddenly got so nervous. Mirai grinned and led me outside of my room.

The hallways were spotless. They were all colors that gave the building some nice colors, but they weren't too bright. Lots of grays, mainly. Mirai noticed me looking around a lot as we walked.

"What's up?" She asked.

"Huh?" I stopped looking at the wall. "Oh, it's just…this recovery center is just very clean. I don't see any dirt, or even dust anywhere."

Mirai let out a light chuckle. It bounced off the walls and into my ears, calming me down, but also making me feel embarrassed. "We gave a very successful company sponsoring our recovery center: Team Danganronpa!"

The name made me shudder.

"They're the ones that built this building after they realized the major PTSD and…other issues the participants get after the game. They noticed around…I dunno, season 7? And it's been here ever since!" She seems very proud as she talked about the history of the hospital. I wanted to show some support, but the mentioning of Team Danganronpa dropped my mood. It made me remember everything we've been through…all the deaths…

I'll never see them again…

"Saihara-kun...?" My head shot up. That voice-!

"Yumeno-san!" I exclaimed, recognizing the red hair instantly. Looking at Mirai for permission and gaining a nodded, I jogged over to my friend and engulfed her in a hug. She hugged back, and we let go after a couple of seconds.

"Sorry…" I apologized, rubbing my neck. "I was just relieved to see you."

"Nyeeh…it's okay…I used my magic to protect myself in case you squeezed me too hard." 

"When are you going to drop that?" A familiar cold voice said from behind Yumeno. The Ultimate Asassin was looking at us with those same piercing red eyes. 

"Harukawa-san." I gave her a smile. "You're okay."

"Of course I am." Both of the girls were also wearing hospital gowns like me. It made me feel a little less insecure. Though, I noticed Harukawa fiddling with the hem of it, as if she was embarrassed about wearing it too.

Yumeno and Harukawa had people with them dressed similarly to Mirai: a white shirt with a beige jacket and pants, completed with a dark brown belt. Mirai waved at them, and they waved back. Guess they were friends, then. 

"So, what do we do now?" I looked at Mirai. 

"We keep going!" She said, pushing through the wall the others had created. I followed her, and the girls trailed behind.

I noticed that on the left side of the hallway were all of the patient doors. They were the kind where it only shows a number, and not the name of the person being taken care of in the room. 

As we walked, a large door on the eight came into view. It was a double-door, and it looked like it led to a pretty big room. I could hear voices from the other side.

"What are we doing here?" Harukawa asked.

"Yeah, I want to take a nap." Yumeno mumbled.

"You can take a nap after you three are done here." Said the man who was walking with Yumeno. "This is important."

Harukawa glanced at me skeptically. I shrugged in return. I didn't really know if I could trust them yet, but they weren't doing anything bad so far.

"Ugh, come on!" A voice shouted from the other side of the door, making me jump as everybody’s heads turned.

"Quiet down, we could get in trouble!" 

Wait a second…

"They're wasting my time by making me wait here!"

These…

"Please refrain from shouting, you could injure yourself."

These…voices…

I know them! 

Slowly, I reached for the door. My hands were shaking. My breath was short, stuck in my throat. I didn't know if I was right. I knew it was impossible, but there was still a part of me that wanted this thought to be right. It had to be. I grabbed the handles, and the doors flew open.

The first thing I saw was her surprised face. Then her blonde hair. Her hospital clothes. Her fair skin. And then… her smile.

"Shuichi…" I would have fallen over if I wasn't holding onto the door. It was her. It was really her…

Akamatsu Kaede was alive.

"Akamatsu-san…" I whispered. I could see the tears pooling up and flooding my vision.

"No way." Harukawa said behind me. "This has to be some sick joke."

"This ain't a joke, Maki Roll." Momota, too. He stepped closer and smiled. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Mirai and her coworkers led me and the girls further into the room. The more we walked, the more faces I noticed. Gokuhara, Shinguchi, everybody. They were all wearing hospital clothing, just like I was.

We were in the middle of the room, and I had no clue what to say. Yumeno and Harukawa were just as speechless. Yumeno was about to cry after spotting Chabashira, and Harukawa had her eyes set on Momota the moment he spoke up.

Akamatsu cleared her throat. "So…this is a little awkward. Why don't we lighten up the mood?" She looked around the room in hopes of finding somebody who would strike up a conversation, but nobody did. She sighed and looked back at me.

"You look nice with your hat off. I've wanted to tell you that for a long time." She smiled once more, and I couldn't stop the year from rolling down my cheek.

"How…is this possible? You…I saw you…" 

"Die?" She finished my sentence, clearly seeing how it was hard for me to get the words out. "Yeah, I know. When I woke up, I was pretty surprised, too!"

Akamatsu laughed and stepped closer, taking both of my shaking hands into her warm, and alive ones. "It was all a simulation, Shuichi. It all felt real, but it wasn't. We're all okay."

"For the most part." Amami, who was sitting on a round chair, spoke up. "Those of us who died have certain…issues to deal with."

"What does that mean?" Harukawa asked.

"Well, think of it like Iruma-san's virtual world; it's basically just like that. Our bodies thought we sustained certain injuries, and now we have to deal with those consequences. For example, I have mild memory loss now."

"Both Iruma-san and I have trouble with breathing…" Akamatsu glanced down at her neck as she spoke, and Iruma brought a hand up to hers.

I watched in a strange mix of guilt and relief as everybody explained what they're having to work through. Hoshi has dizzy spells, Tojo has hand cramps, both Yonaga and Chabashira have problems moving their neck, Shinguchi has fevers, and Gokuhara has issues eating. They also explained that Shirogane wasn't here, since she worked for Team Danganronpa.

"And Keebo...? What happened to him?" Yumeno asked, and that's when I realized that the robot wasn't in the room. Memories of his sacrifice flashed into my mind, and I shut my eyes tight, trying to block them out.

"Atua says he is being rebuilt as we speak." Yonaga raised her hand to grab the attention of everybody else. "He could join us as any moment now!"

"That's good..." I whispered to myself; I wanted to see Keebo again. To thank him for saving us.

"What about you…Kaito?" Harukawa looked back at the astronaut, who broke out into a grin.

"I'm fine, Maki Roll. No more sickness, no need to worry!" I saw Harukawa's gaze soften. She really does care for Momota.

"Nyeeh…it's still kinda hard to believe…" Yumeno said as she looked around the room again.

"It was a surprise for all of us when we woke up!" Chabashira exclaimed. "Actually, I punched my nurse in the face!"

"We all thought we were dead…so waking up seemed like a sick dream, or a joke." Hoshi said as he looked to the side. I'd missed hearing his strangely deep voice.

"Wait a moment…" I took a quick scan across the room, looking high and low to count every single person in the room. At first I hadn't noticed because I was so glad to see everybody, but…

"Not everybody is here." The moment I said that, those who had woken up earlier exchanged worried glances. "Where is Oma-kun?"

After I said his name, Harukawa and Yumeno started looking for him, while everybody else shuffled uncomfortably. Except for Yonaga, who was unfazed.

"Um, you see…Shuichi…" Akamatsu was about to speak, but she suddenly broke out into a coughing fit. Tojo slipped over to her and handed her a bottle of water.

Momota cleared his throat, and maybe that was slightly influenced after seeing Akamatsu, making sure he could speak clearly. "He's…well…occupied…"

"Doing what?" Harukawa's gaze was back to the murderous cold I had grown familiar with. "What is he doing that's so important that he can't come here?"

Momota put his hands up, trying to subtly calm down the assassin. "Okay, maybe I didn't phrase that the best way…he's…um…"

"Mr. Oma hasn't woken up yet." 

I turned around to stare at Mirai with wide eyes. Did I hear that right? There was no way…but the look in her eyes…no, she was definitely telling the truth.

Now that the news was spilt, the others started to relax. Looks like they just didn't want to be the ones to drop the bombshell on us.

"Gonta knock on door to see if Oma-kun awake, but door never open. No matter how hard Gonta knock. Then nice doctor told Gonta that Oma-kun was going to sleep for long time." Gokuhara looked like he was about to cry, which I found strange. Wasn't Oma the reason Iruma and Gokuhara died? Why did he look so worried? But then again, Gokuhara was a gentleman, and I didn't think he could truly hate anybody. Not even someone like Oma.

"I was pretty confused when I woke up before he did." Momota rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't really know how well he's improved…or if he's improved at all." 

"I can show you to his room if you'd like." Mirai offered. Yumeno and Harukawa declined pretty quickly. I didn't know what I should do. Oma hurt me, and so many others…

...but…even so…

"I'll see him. But I want to come back here afterwards."

Mirai nodded and opened the door, letting me walk into the hallway. She quietly closed the door behind her and started walking, me trailing behind.

"Do you know why he hasn't woken?" I asked. She nodded slowly. 

"The trauma of being crushed by the press. Unlike the other deaths, Oma's brain believed that there was nothing left of him. So, it's refusing to get up. We have the greatest in our field working on waking him up, but…" She paused for a moment. "Actually, that part isn't important."

Mirai stopped by door number 10. "Here we are."

I reached for the door, and slowly pushed it open. I knew what I should have expected when I walked in, but…it was still mind-blowing.

There he was. Oma Kokichi, the Ultimate Supreme Leader. Lying, unmoving on the hospital bed. His hair was a lighter shade than I remembered it being, possibly an effect from thinking he'd been poisoned. It was now a light lilac, and the light shade made mixed in with his skin well. His skin was deathly pale, and he looked skinny…and really small. Almost like a skeleton. And his face…it was so calm. I don't think I've ever seen his face look that… normal before.

Strange how Oma was only normal when he wasn't awake.

"He doesn't look very good, I know." Mirai mumbled behind me. "We're really doing our best, we promise. The professionals say he could wake up any day now! At most, two weeks."

I couldn't respond. I was speechless. My mouth was dry and my eyes were glued to his face. The face that was always shifting in dramatic ways as he spewed his lies. The face that…I said those words to.

"You're alone"

"M-Mirai…san…" I managed to find my voice again. "Has anybody visited Oma-kun before me?"

Mirai hummed for a moment, and tapped her chin as she thought back. "...No, I don't think so. You're Mr. Oma's first visitor."

So…nobody has even bothered to check on him…

How sad.

"Mirai-san…I think I want to go back to the others, now."

Chapter Text

The walk back to the others was quiet. Mirai didn't ask me anything, and I never said a thing to her in return. She led me back to the main room where the others were, and I put a smile back on my face. That's right, all my friends were here. There was no reason for me to be unhappy. I had to push Oma out of my mind.

The door opened, and once again, Akamatsu was the first person I saw. I felt all of my worries wash away the moment our gazes met. I missed you so much.

"Shuichi, you're back." She walked over to me with her signature smile. I noticed she wasn't holding a water bottle anymore.

"Akamatsu-san, is your throat feeling better?" I asked. She nodded.

"Yeah, it is. Also, you know you can call me Kaede, right?"

I stiffened up. "H-Huh? Really? But-"

She took a step forward, cutting me off. "I call you Shuichi, don't I? So it's only fair for you to call me Kaede."

"A-Ah, I…guess you're right…" I mumbled. She gave me a look, and I sighed. "...Kaede-san."

Kaede let out a chuckle, her cheeks turning a faint pink. "Ah, I didn't think I'd get so embarrassed over that."

"Yeah, it's a bit embarrassing at the start…" I agreed. "You'll get used to it."

"I guess I will." Kaede and I stared at each tiger for a moment longer, and then she frowned. "Shuichi…I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. When I…left, I put so much pressure on you. With entrusting my wish to you and all that…"

Despite myself, I quickly grabbed her hands. "Aka- Kaede-san! It was your wish that pushed me to find the truth every trial! You gave me the strength I needed! Don't apologize to me! Please!"

Kaede's eyes widened in surprise. She stared at our hands as I spoke to her. I could see her trying to hold back tears of grief and gratitude. "Kaede…you can cry if you have to…" I mumbled.

"No, it's okay." She whispered, her eyes never leaving our fingers. "I'm okay…thank you, Shuichi. I watched you do your best over and over on the screens…and I couldn't be more proud of you."

I felt my fingers lose tension as Kaede began to laugh. I couldn't see far past her, but I could have sworn Amami was watching us with a calm smile.

"Hey, there's my sidekick!" There was a loud intrusion on a calm moment; though I wasn't angry. In fact, I grinned. It was Momota-kun. "How are ya, Shuichi?"

"Momota-kun." I turned my head to look at him. Harukawa was by his side, unsurprisingly. "I'm doing well."

Momota scoffed at me. "Shuichi, you can call me by my given name!"

Why is everybody suddenly giving me that privilege? I heard Kaede chuckle from behind me.

"I'll let you guys talk." She said as she left with a wave.

"She could have stayed if she wanted to." Momota- now Kaito- mumbled. "Anyways…"

His hand slapped me on the back, knocking a bit of air out of me. "Congrats on making it to the end! I'd never accept anything less from my sidekick!"

"Ah, thank you…" I rubbed the new sore spot on my back. "But I wish you were there with us."

"Nah, I had to do what I did…there was no other way.. " Kaito frowned suddenly, and I saw Harukawa's eyes flicker in worry. "Speaking of…how is Oma?"

"Why are you worried about him ?" Harukawa asked, her worry transforming into disgust. "He's the reason you were executed."

"I'm not worried about him! I just don't want him to die! Cause…if he died in the real world thanks to the death I gave him in that fake one, I'd feel guilty…" Kaito explained as he rubbed his neck.

"Well, apparently he could wake up any day now." I said. "So you don't need to worry, Kaito-kun."

Kaito huffed a breath of relief before giving me a thumbs up. "Knew I could count on you for the info. Thanks, Shuichi!"

I nodded. I secretly wanted the conversation to stray away from Oma, but I didn't know a way to do that without making it look suspicious. The three of us looked around at each other with the 'Oma tension' making things extra awkward. I was silently praying for somebody to make a scene so I had an excuse to leave.

"Leave me alone, bug sucker!" A feminine voice screeched. 

Bug sucker…? Must be Iruma-san, then. My conclusion was proven to be correct when I glanced to my right and saw the inventor storming away from Gokuhara, who had his hand outstretched to her. He frowned, and it was at that moment I found my ticket.

"I'm going to see what happened over there. Why don't you two go off on your own?" I suggested. Kaito nodded and put his arm around Harukawa's shoulders. She tensed, but didn't push him away. I smiled and walked over to Gokuhara, who was now holding his arms sadly.

"Gokuhara-kun, what happened a few seconds ago?" I asked him. He turned to me with some tears in his eyes.

"Gonta keep trying to apologize to Iruma-san, but she always push Gonta away. Gonta sorry, really sorry!"

I suddenly felt bad using Gokuhara as an escape route. I patted his elbow. "Gokuhara-kun, you know how Iruma-san is. I'm sure she'll forgive you one day!"

"But Iruma-san don't know about plan. She thinks Gonta just kill her to kill. She…don't know about Oma-kun, or what Gonta saw." 

I felt a lump in my throat. I tried to swallow it down. Oma-kun. That's the second time he was brought up. 

Gokuhara wiped some of his tears away. "Gonta want to apologize to Oma-kun too. Say sorry for failing, and leaving alone."

"Gokuhara-kun, did you…think Oma-kun was your friend?" I asked. The gentle giant thought for a moment.

"Gonta know Oma-kun liar, but…Gonta don't think Oma-kun lie about wanting Gonta to stay. Gonta think…that first time Oma-kun showed Gonta his truth."

The trial…Gokuhara thinks Oma-kun…was actually sorry? But, Oma-kun said…Ah, but that could have been a lie…

Oma-kun, why are you so confusing? Even now…

"Well, when he wakes up, you can talk to him, okay?" Gokuhara nodded and smiled at me. 

"Thanks, Saihara-kun. Gonta feel a bit better now."

"Oh, everybody, it is time to go." Tojo's soft voice rang through the room. 

"Already? But Himiko was showing me some magic!" Chabashira complained.

"It's mandatory, Tenko, we have to go." Kaede said.

"Where is everybody going?" I asked Gokuhara.

"Everyone go to 'group therapy' thing." Gokuhara answered. "Everyone sit in circle and talk."

Group therapy? This is the first time I'm hearing about this. I looked at Mirai, who was standing by the door. She noticed my gaze and cleared her throat before making an announcement.

"The three survivors will be joining you all in group therapy starting tomorrow, after they have their checkup."

"Maki-Roll and Shuichi are gonna join us? Heck yeah!" Kaito said enthusiastically.

"It's gonna get a lot more crowded in there." Hoshi said.

"But Hoshi-kun, the room is huge." Kaede mumbled.

I watched as everybody- minus Harukawa, Yumeno and I- walked out of the room. 

"Nyeeh…now what are we supposed to do?" Yumeno asked.

"It's pretty late; you three could head to your rooms, and we'll bring you dinner." Mirai said. "You three know which room is yours, correct?"

We shook our heads. Mirai then gave us our room numbers. Yumeno was in room 14, Harukawa was in room 15, and I was in room 16. 

The three of us silently walked to our rooms, too exhausted to say anything to each other. I closed my door and collapsed onto my bed.

The surprise of seeing everybody alive is totally worn off…now I'm just tired. I don't know if I'll be up by the time dinner is here. 

Thankfully, I was. I ate quickly, the food filling my stomach with warmth. I smiled, thanking the nurse as my dish was taken away. She grinned back at me, saying it was her pleasure.

I don't remember what happened after that; I must have fallen asleep. All I know was when I opened my eyes, it was the next morning. My back was sore from the position I fell asleep in, but after some stretches, it was dulled.

I wonder what's going to happen today… I opened the door to my room and saw a man I didn't recognize. The first thing I noticed about him was his thin beard.

"Hello, Mr. Saihara. I'm here to check on your health." He explained 

"Oh, you're the doctor." I quickly realized. He nodded 

"Yes. This won't take long. I just need to see if you're healthy enough to move out of the hospital with everybody."

"Ah, sure." I stepped to the side, allowing him entrance to my room. "So, if I pass, I'm discharged?"

"Not exactly. Once every person in your group is good to go, you will all be moved to a new location."

"Oh, so once everybody is healthy, we leave?" The doctor nodded. "So…who's left?"

"If you, Ms. Harukawa and Ms. Yumeno pass, we will need to work more on Mr. Shinguchi. Also, Mr. Oma needs to wake up as well."

I watched as the doctor began setting things up for the test. So…minus us three, just Shinguchi-kun and Oma-kun…the others must be upset they're getting held back waiting for them.

Long story short, I passed the test with flying colors; I was healthy. Of course, I still had anxiety. That was something that would never go away; at least not for me. The doctor read through his notes one more time and cleared his throat.

“Mr. Saihara, I should also warn you to be careful of…well, flashbacks.”

“Flashbacks?” I repeated. “Do you mean, like…panic attacks?”

“Not exactly. It’s a special case only the survivors go through. I don’t know enough personally to tell you what will happen; so just be aware.”

“Of flashbacks.” I stated warily.

“Of flashbacks.”

“...Okay. Thank you, sir.” Even though I wanted to know more about these ‘flashbacks’, I decided to leave it alone for now. I was hungry and I wanted to eat breakfast with everyone. I was quickly excused and made my way to the main hall.

I was still waking up, so it took me a while to process the fact that Keebo was standing in the room. We both stared at each other in a silent shock. Everyone else was looking, too. Seeing how we would react.

“Saihara-kun.” He said.

“Keebo-kun.” I replied.

He flexed his fingers awkwardly, glancing down at them. “You’re…okay…”

“You are too.” I didn’t know why it was so awkward. It wasn’t this way with any of the others. Maybe it was because of the way Keebo died…sacrificing himself, and then being rebuilt to realize it was all fake. 

He must have felt a little foolish…

“Keebo-kun, I…I wanted to say thank you for what you did in the game…I don’t know if we would have made it out without you.” As I spoke, he stopped fidgeting with his fingers. He looked back up at me and smiled.

“Thank you, Saihara-kun. I’m just glad everybody…and I mean everybody is okay.” He scanned the room (though I don’t know if he actually scanned the room). “I can’t help but notice Oma-kun isn’t here.”

“Hasn’t somebody explained to you?” I asked. Keebo nodded.

“My nurse filled me in.”

“Then why did you bring it up?” I couldn’t help but feel like he was plotting something.

“I wanted to know if you wanted to visit him with me.” And there it was. I couldn’t believe Keebo would actually want to visit Oma, with him always being made fun of and all.

I tried to get him to reconsider. “Keebo-kun, you know what Oma-kun did-”

“I know. And that’s why I want to visit him.” Keebo interrupted. “I want him to wake up, so he can start atoning for the things he did as quickly as possible.”

Atone…? Can somebody like Oma-kun even do that…? I wondered. I never thought about that before. What if Oma really did want to make things better when he woke up?

“Well…I guess we could visit him…” I mumbled. Keebo smiled, giving me a silent ‘thank you’ with his eyes. “But let’s have some breakfast first.”

Keebo’s smile vanished. “Um, Saihara-kun…I can’t eat.”

“...Oh yeah.”

We ate our breakfast- well, I ate my breakfast, and then I showed Keebo to Oma’s door. Instead of walking in and leaving quickly like I thought we would, we were just standing outside while Keebo stared at the number of Oma’s door- 10.

“It’s strange how they gave him door number 10. Out of 16, it’s a weird number.” Keebo said- probably to himself- but I couldn’t help tuning in.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

“I’ve been thinking…how did they decide who should stay in which rooms?” Keebo turned to look at me. “I think they placed participants in the rooms based on what order they died in.”

“H-Huh? What made you come to that conclusion?” I asked.

“I’m staying in room number 13. I was the thirteenth person to die.” He explained. “Room 12 is empty. That’s because normally Shirogane-san would be staying there, but since she’s a part of Team Danganronpa, she was taken away so as to not…trigger certain people.”

“And Harukawa-san, Yumeno-san and I are in rooms 14, 15, and 16…because we were the last ones?” The dots in my head were connecting. “That’s right…if we remember who died in which order…Oma-kun was the tenth to die…”

“I wonder how Momota-kun reacted when he found out Oma-kun’s door was right next to his.” Keebo thought. That image brought a smile to my face- imaging Kaito either gasping or yelling out in surprise.

“I’m sure it would have been funny. But…shouldn’t we go in now?” I asked. Keebo nodded, and grabbed the handle.

Alright. Now we can go in, Keebo can see the state he’s in currently, and then we can leave. It shouldn’t take too…

My thoughts drowned out once I could see Oma. He was in the same position he was in before, unmoving on the bed. But this time…

His eyes were open.

“Ah, it appears he must have woken up this morning.” Keebo said. Meanwhile, I was in shock. Just yesterday Mirai said Oma was comatose! And now he suddenly wakes up?! What are the chances?!

I shook my head; that wasn’t the important thing right now! We came here for a reason. Sucking up my shock, I walked over to Oma’s bed. He didn’t even look at me as I practically glared down at him. “Oma-kun, you need to apologize for everything you’ve done.”

“S-Saihara-kun, that’s a bit too harsh! He might have just woken up!” Keebo exclaimed as he rushed to my side. He looked at Oma, who was still staring at the ceiling. “...Why isn’t he doing anything?”

“He’s probably just being difficult.” I huffed. Keebo looked uncertain, and I saw his eyes begin to glow from the corner of mine. Is he…scanning Oma-kun…?

Keebo went quiet for a moment when his eyes returned to their normal mechanical-blue state. “...Saihara-kun…I don’t think Oma-kun could hear you…or see you, for that matter.” He said. His voice was almost silent, as if he couldn’t believe what he had just scanned. 

“What happened, Keebo-kun?” I asked, a hint of worry seeping into my voice.

“I just scanned Oma-kun to see what was happening with him, and…” Keebo inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself before he dropped the bomb on me. “Oma-kun’s brain…isn’t working.”

If I was holding a cup, I would have dropped it. “What do you mean…it isn’t working…?”

“No electrical signals are being sent out to it, and it’s not sending out any itself. Because of that, the eyes can’t process the light going through them. And the vibrations the hairs in the cochlea send it? It can’t process those either. Oma-kun can’t hear, see, feel, think…anything. He’s awake, but he’s…like a living statue…” Keebo stared down at Oma with pity; and honestly, I did too. I couldn’t imagine how he must be feeling…if he was actually feeling inside of his body.

Oma-kun…I had no idea you would wake up…like this…

Even I…can’t help feeling bad for you.

Chapter Text

“Well, is there anything we can do to help him?” I asked Keebo as I looked over Oma’s frail body. Most of it was covered, but I could see just above his shoulders. He looked even weaker than I remembered.

“Anything we can do? No. But the doctors and nurses are going to help him, I’m sure of it.” Keebo assured, placing a hand on my shoulder. “We should probably leave…”

“Yeah, probably.” When we first got here, I wanted nothing more than to leave; but now that I’ve seen Oma, I…

I wanted to stay. I wanted to try and figure him out some more. He was awake, right? So I could probably get at least a few clues out of-

I heard the sound of a door opening behind me. I turned my head and found a young lady- no younger than 20- in a nurse’s outfit. She eyed us, and then her gaze traveled to Oma. Once she saw his open eyes, she gasped loudly.

“He’s awake! Get out, you two! Get out now! I need to perform tests- I need to alert the doctors! I need- get out!”

Eventually we were pushed out of Oma’s room by his nurse, who I was almost positive was going to have a panic attack. There was nothing else we could do, so we decided to meet up with the others again.

While we were on our way, I wondered if the others should know about Oma waking up. I asked Keebo, but he shook his head.

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Why not?” He asked.

“Think about it. Did anybody care when Oma was hit by the floorboard? Did anybody care when he was crushed?” Even though I knew the answer, I didn’t want to say it. I waited for Keebo to answer for me. “No; nobody cared. So I don’t think anybody will care knowing he woke up. In fact, I think most of them will do what you just did and yell at him to apologize before asking about his condition.”

His reasoning made sense, but it also made me feel guilty. I swallowed some spit that was pooling in my mouth. “Y-Yeah, I get it…it would just be a waste of time…”

We made it back into the main room. I guessed this was where everybody liked to spend their time, because it was a large space with free food and some games. Of course, not everybody was there. Shinguji was probably in his room getting another checkup, and Harukawa was missing, too.

I got some ‘welcome back’s from Kaito and Kaede, as well as a few others. I smiled and waved, trying to act as normal as possible. I needed to find something to do to pass the time and get my mind off of Oma. Thankfully, I found just the person.

Tojo and I played multiple rounds of chess with each other. We were both pretty good, and most of the games ended in ties. Of course, on multiple occasions, we would need to take breaks because Tojo would get hand cramps. During those times, I had nothing to think about except for Oma.

What are they doing to him right now? What kind of tests are being done on him? How are they planning to get his brain to work? What-

“Saihara?” Tojo’s calm voice infiltrated my head. “It’s time for lunch. Is something wrong? You look worried.”

I turned my head and smiled at Tojo. “Ah, no, I’m okay…what are today’s lunch choices?”

We sat together at a long table (which made me vaguely remember the cafeteria at the academy), each of us with different foods on our plates. Some healthier than others, but none looking like it could cause heart attacks.

“So, what’s been everyone’s favorite part of the day so far?” Kaede asked, trying to start up some conversation.

“Well, I must say Saihara-kun plays a good game of chess.” Tojo said almost instantly, as if she was waiting for the right moment to boast about my chess-playing abilities. All eyes went to me, and I quickly shoved some mashed potatoes into my mouth.

“Really? I might want to play against you someday, Shuchi!” Kaede said with a smile. Even if I couldn’t see it, I knew she was smiling at me.

“M-Maybe…” I mumbled after I swallowed my potatoes. Kaede’s plan ended up working, because people began to talk amongst each other. Groups of two, sometimes even four. Either way, it made everything feel a lot lighter. Happier. Easier.

When lunch was finished, it was time for my very first group therapy. I didn’t know what to expect; it wasn’t like I’ve ever been to therapy before. Of course, sometimes I’ve thought about it, with my anxiety and all, but I’ve never once stepped foot into the terrain of a therapist.

So, needless to say, this wasn’t what I was expecting.

It was a large room, not much larger than the room we had just eaten lunch in. There were beanbags and small mats made of different materials to sit on. I also saw stacks upon stacks of blankets and pillows, complete with a mountain of stuffed animals. There was a corner full of toys and board games. It looked like the paradise a five-year-old would dream of, but I didn’t feel embarrassed about being in a room like this. In fact, I felt some tension leave my shoulders.

We had a couple of minutes to get settled in the room, which really meant we had a couple minutes to figure out who we wanted to sit by in the circle. Of course, I sat in between Kaede and Kaito. I felt the most comfortable around them.

The therapist was a beautiful woman with short black hair and brown eyes. Her name was Kaneshiro Mizuki. She introduced herself to Yumeno, Harukawa and I, and then the session began.

“So, to start things off, let’s go around the circle and say one word that describes how we’re feeling. Now remember, you can’t describe an emotion with an emotion. For example, today I’m feeling bright!” Her voice certainly showed. It was light and cheerful, like the rays of the sun.

Harukawa, who was at the starting point of the circle, crossed her arms. “I’d rather not do this. It seems foolish.”

Kaneshiro nodded. “That’s okay, you don’t have to participate if you don’t want to. Do whatever makes you feel comfortable, Harukawa-san.” 

Everybody used the words that I expected the most: soft, fluffy, warm, all the good-feely words that would put the spotlight off of them as soon as possible. It’s not like I thought they were lying about the way they were feeling. It’s just that…it was different from the way I was feeling.

So, when it came to my turn, and I said ‘sticky’, some people in the circle looked at me with curious and worried gazes. I looked down as Kaede said her word.

“Now, if anybody would like to elaborate on the word they chose, now is the time! And if you want to only tell me what it means, you can meet with me after the session.” We had gone around the circle, and this was the second task Kaneshiro had given us. I could tell instantly that some people wanted me to elaborate on why I was feeling ‘sticky’, but I never opened my mouth once. Kaito was the first person to speak up, which did make me smile. He was always so energetic that way.

After two hours of group therapy, I was exhausted. I wanted nothing more than to go to bed, but of course, I had to eat dinner first. I wasn’t terribly hungry, but I did want to tide over before returning to my room.

I was listening to the sound of my footsteps against the floor. Counting, creating a pattern. It was nice and distracting, just like I hoped it would be.

But when I passed that ‘10’ on the wall, my feet stopped moving. My eyes traveled to the door. I wanted to go inside. As my brain screamed at me to get a grip, I knocked on the door. After a couple beats, it opened, and I silently walked inside. I made eye contact with Oma’s nurse, and we both smiled.

“Are you here to check up on Mr. Oma?” She asked.

“Um…I guess so…I was mainly just curious.” He admitted. “I wanted to know how you planned on getting his brain to work.”

“Oh, that’s easy.” She said as she closed the door. “We’re going to shock his brain until it wakes up. We’re starting off with small doses, but if we don’t get any reactions, we’ll up the number.”

“I-I see…that easy, huh?” I glanced over at Oma, whose eyes were still staring blankly at the ceiling. Normally I would think he’d be planning some evil scheme to screw us over, but…he couldn’t do that right now, could he? “Well, uh…thanks for your time. I should probably…go.”

I didn’t eat dinner that night. I headed to my room as quickly as I could. I just wanted to sleep. But I couldn’t even do that.

The next day as breakfast, I had an idea. Maybe if he gets used to noise, he’ll start hearing again…

And so began my routine of visiting Oma.

It would always be right after group therapy, when everyone would scatter away to do their own business. I could slip into Oma’s room undetected and spend a good amount of time with him. I would talk about whatever came to mind as I sat by his bed, trying to see if what I said got any reactions out of him.

“Today I played a game of chess with Kaede-san.” Oma seemed to enjoy games, so maybe bringing them up would spark something in him. 

It didn’t. I took some time to really take notice of his hair. It had definitely turned into a lighter shade. From purple to lilac.

Another day. “Hoshi-kun and Yonaga-san played some tennis. It was a little scary.” I noticed the steady rise and fall of his chest through the sheets.

Another day. “Iruma-san tried to force-feed Keebo-kun.” I noticed his neck was bare; not covered by a scarf. It was thin, just like the rest of his body.

Another day. “Today-”

Another. “I saw-”

Another. “You’ll never believe it-”

Another. “It’s a bit embarrassing, but-”

Another. Another. Another.

Just do something already! 

Whenever I visited Oma, before I went into the room, I would always say the same thing. You’re only doing this so you can help him start his atonement. Once he wakes up, you won’t have to bug yourself with this again.

I don’t know why I decided to visit him so early in the morning. I just had a feeling that I should check on him before breakfast today. It was like a gut feeling- one that you just can’t ignore. It was an annoyance of a gut feeling, so I only went through with it so it would disappear.

Of course this would happen on a Wednesday. The most forgettable day of the week. I grumbled in my mind as I opened the door. My eyes locked onto Oma, and…

His eyes locked onto mine.

Oma was…

Looking right at me.

I rushed to the side of the bed before I even knew it. When I saw Oma’s eyes follow me, I covered my mouth to stifle the loud gasp I was about to make. He was watching me. He was seeing me.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Thankfully, my hand was still covering my mouth, otherwise I would have let out a really embarrassing scream. Oma’s nurse, who I recently found out was named Nori, was sitting in the corner, writing down on a piece of paper. Notes, probably. “We managed to get the electric current running to and from the eyes, but only the eyes so far. I think his brain is working just enough to recognize some colors and shapes around him.”

“So…he still can’t hear? Or move?” I asked. Nori nodded.

“Sadly, yes. But he can see; and that’s better than nothing.” She got up from her chair and set her things down on the seat. “Shouldn’t you be at breakfast?”

“I was going to, but…I wanted to see him first. I don’t know why…”

“Maybe you knew he had improved.” Nori said, walking next to me to look down at Oma, whose eyes traveled to stare at her.

“Maybe…” I muttered. I was about to turn around to go to breakfast, and then I noticed something new in the room.

A wheelchair.

It was at that moment I had a horrible idea.

“Hey…Nori-san? Is that wheelchair for Oma-kun?” I asked. Nori looked over.

“Oh! Yeah; until he regains movement in his limbs, he’s going to be in a wheelchair. We brought it in just barely.”

“Could we…well…could we put him in it right now?” I wanted to slap myself for actually going through with this. “So he could…go to breakfast?”

“Mr. Saihara, you should know that Mr. Oma can’t eat in this condition.” Nori looked at me like I was stupid, which, trust me, I felt plenty stupid right now. 

“I-I know that! It’s not that I want him to eat, it’s…well…” I didn’t really know how to explain it. It wasn’t like the others were going to care. It wasn’t like they would hug him or give him a pat on the shoulder. “I want him to…see everyone.”

Yeah, that sounded right.

Nori thought over his words for a while, thinking about possible bad things that could happen to Oma in that situation, finally she gave him an answer. “I suppose…if I’m by his side the whole time, he can join you for breakfast. But once it’s over, he’s coming straight back here, okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay with that. Let me help you move him into the wheelchair.”

We placed Oma into the wheelchair, moving his hands so they were placed comfortably in his lap. It was the first time I got a good look at his entire body, and..yes, he was incredibly skinny. I always knew he would be, but…I didn’t like how skinny he looked.

I ended up going ahead of Oma. Rude, I know. I left because I didn’t want to enter at the same time as him, and have the label of ‘interacted with Oma’ be slapped on me by everybody else.

“Shuichi, there you are! I was wondering when you would show up!” Kaede exclaimed, jogging up to my side. “How are you?”

“I-I’m fine. Good morning, Kaede-san.” I wanted to tell her she shouldn't run like that. It could be harmful to her. Of course I’d told her that before, and she would always puff her cheeks and insist that it didn’t hurt her. Of course, I was suspicious about that.

A few minutes later, the door opened again. I could tell the others were confused, since everyone was already grouped together. To them, nobody would need to come in here.

So when Oma was wheeled into the room, it was as if that happy ‘good morning’ atmosphere never existed in the first place. Everybody was staring at Oma, who in turn, was busy looking around the room. His head never turned. Only his eyes moved. Seeing whatever could be seen from where he was. Taking in all the colors. All the shapes.

“It’s Oma-kun!” Gokuhara cried out as he ran to his side, dropping to his knees. “Oma-kun, Gonta so sorry! Gonta so sorry he couldn’t do it! Oma-kun forgive Gonta, right? Right?!” He sounded so desperate. Like he’d been waiting forever to apologize to the man who- in a way- killed him.

Oma’s eyes traveled to Gokuhara, but he didn’t do anything more.

“He’s a little…non-respondent right now.” Nori whispered to Gokuhara. The boy frowned, and began to reach out for Oma. Nori shook her head. Guess she was really protective of Oma, if she didn’t want anybody to touch him.

“What is he even doing here?” Iruma asked angrily. “Shouldn’t you know that nobody in this room wants anything to do with him?”

“Well, that’s a little rude-” Nori was about to speak, but Iruma’s yelling drowned out her quiet voice.

“That little brat is the reason I died! He’s the reason people began to distrust each other! He’s a menace, and a danger! You can see in everyone’s eyes that nobody wants him here!”

Kaede walked to Iruma’s side. “Miu-san, I’m sure that Oma-kun is-”

“If you’re about to say ‘sorry’, don’t even bother.” The inventor spat out. “That gremlin isn’t capable of feeling something like that. I don’t trust being in the same room as him, even if he is in a wheelchair now.”

“You’re worried about him hurting someone?” Keebo asked. Iruma rolled her eyes, as if that was obvious. “If that’s the case, then would you feel better if somebody kept an eye on him?”

Yonaga raised her hand. “I believe Saihara-kun would be a good sacrifice!”

“Why do you- wait, what do you mean ‘sacrifice’?!” I was shocked at how quickly I was nominated for the job.

“Because being Oma-kun’s caretaker is surely a sacrifice of its own!’ She explained, clapping her hands together cheerfully.

“Do you all…really think that?” I looked all around the room. People were staring at the floor, shuffling their feet, not wanting to admit that’s what they all thought.

“Shuichi, it would make everybody feel safer, so…” Kaede tried to push me into agreeing. I wanted to say no. Obviously, I wanted to say no, but…

Nobody else wanted to either. And besides, I had already gotten into the routine of visiting him.

I sighed. 

“Fine, I’ll take care of Oma-kun. Now, can we please have some breakfast? I need some coffee if you all expect me to deal with him for hours on end.”

Chapter Text

The past two weeks were the most boring of my entire life. Since my friends were so gracious by giving me the privilege of babysitting Oma, all I did was sit in a corner with a boy who did nothing but stare in front of him for 16 days straight. I tried to pass the time by talking to Oma, but he never gave any reactions, so it always got boring quick. I was only able to leave him alone for three reasons:

One, I was eating. Oma still couldn’t eat, so he would wait by himself.

Two, group therapy. Nori wasn’t letting Oma join group therapy yet. She insisted that once his hearing came back, he could participate. Kaneshiro is patiently waiting for him.

Three, doctors. Oma was still getting his brain shocked daily to try and get it to work. That would always happen during group therapy though, so it’s not like it really mattered. Once Oma’s hearing improves, the doctors told me that might be the point they’re going to start trying physical therapy to get his limbs moving.

Any other time of the day, I’m right by his side.

“So, he still hasn’t made any progress after 16 days?” Kaito asked. We were eating lunch, and he sat beside me to ask about Oma’s condition.

“It doesn’t look like it at least.” I responded after I had finished a spoonful of miso soup. “Though, it’s weird. I haven’t seen him at all today. When I went to pick him up, Nori said the doctors were busy working on him. So…maybe they did make some progress.”

Kaito sighed; whether out of annoyance or relief, I wasn’t sure. I didn’t feel like asking. “If he dies, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to live with myself.”

“Kaito-kun…” I set my spoon down to give my attention to my friend. “Oma-kun is going to be fine. You’ve seen him, haven’t you?”

“The kid looks like a ghost! Which is even worse!” He exclaimed. Some of the people sitting near us, like Harukawa and Hoshi, were alerted by the sudden noise. “He looks awful! Like if I were to so much as touch him, he’d fall over!”

“Well, he might look…fragile, but this is Oma-kun we’re talking about. He’s not going down so easily.” I smiled to try and give him some confidence. Kaito’s shoulders lowered, but his frown never left his face. He just continued eating.

“I couldn’t care less if he dies.” Harukawa said, butting into the conversation. “It would lift some tension off of everyone’s shoulders, that’s for sure.”

“Maki-san!” Kaede stood up, slamming her hands on the table. “Don’t talk about Oma-kun that way!”

“K-Kaede-san-!” I was shocked by her outburst. Was she… defending Oma-kun?

“Why shouldn’t I? He messed up everything.” The assassin mumbled, glaring daggers at the pianist.

“He was trying to help! Sure, he didn’t do it in the most effective way, but if it weren’t for him, would you all have survived Miu-san’s trial?”

“Don’t bring that up! I don’t want to hear about it!” Iruma yelled. Keebo had to hurry and tell her not to overexert her voice.

“And I don’t want to hear all of you saying such horrible things to Oma-kun behind his back!” Kaede pushed her chair in and stormed out of the room in a huff. I wanted to go after her, but the mood around me was sour. I had to try and fix this first.

“H-Hey, let’s forget about Oma-kun.” I spoke up. “We have group therapy soon, and we want to be in a good mood for Kaneshiro-san.”

The table went quiet. Glances were thrown, but Oma wasn’t brought up again. I quickly left to try and find Kaede, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen. I was tempted to find her in room number two, but there was the slim chance I could walk into something I didn’t want to see.

She probably just went to group therapy early…hopefully I can ask what’s wrong afterwards.

I sighed, unsure of what to do. Should I go to Kaneshiro and wait until everybody else comes? Should I head back to the others? I wasn’t sure.

“Ah, Saihara-kun, there you are!” Keebo walked over to me. “You went looking for Akamatsu-san?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I couldn’t find her, though. I want to know why she was so upset…”

“I think I have an idea, but I do hope it’s not what I think it is. Otherwise I may end up feeling worse than I already do.” Keebo awkwardly stared at Kaede’s door. “Did you see if she was in her room?”

I quickly tried to defend myself, even though there was nothing I needed to defend myself for. “N-No, of course not! I didn’t want to barge into her room like that!’

“Ah, I see. Well, I don’t see any need for us to stick around, then. Shall we head to Kaneshiro-san?”

“Yeah…let’s head over.”

We were surprisingly quiet as we were walking through the hallways. Every once in a while, Keebo would glance at me; he probably wanted to start a conversation. I never looked back at him. I just wanted to find Kaede and help her out with whatever she was feeling.

“Oh, hello Saihara-kun, Keebo-kun. What brings you two here?” Kaneshiro was sitting at her desk, writing on some paper. When she heard the door open, she lifted her head with a smile on her face.

“Hello, Kaneshiro-san.” Keebo bowed. “We had nothing to do, so we came here early. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all! Please, make yourselves comfortable. And remember, if you ever need to talk, you can rely on me.” She gestured to the bean bags and mats. I grabbed a soft mat to sit on, since I knew I would fall asleep if I chose a bean bag. Keebo followed my action.

"Kaneshiro-san, did Kaede-san come here a few minutes ago?" I asked. I didn't see her anywhere in the room.

"Did something happen?" Kaneshiro leaned forward in her chair.

"Well, she stormed off after… somebody made a comment about…another person." I didn't want to throw anybody under the bus, so I kept things vague. Kaneshiro's face shifted. 

"I see…Akamatsu-san has always been protective of her friends."

"I know, but…I've never seen her that angry before." I set my mat down in my usual spot I sat in when we were in a circle. Keebo sat next to me.

"It's true. It was as if she was personally hurt by the comments." Keebo added in.

"Well, maybe she'd be willing to share how she thinks during our session today." Kaneshiro said hopefully. She returned to her work quickly after, leaving Keebo and I in silence. We decided to play some cards while we waited for everyone.

"Any threes?" I asked, looking at my cards.

"Go fish." Keebo replied a second later. I groaned and drew a card from the deck. "The others should be coming any minute now. Kings?" I slid him a card.

"Yeah. Wonder when they'll get here. Um…sixes?" I was given two cards, and smiled, placing down my set of four sixes. I looked up with my smug grin, and Keebo frowned at me the way he often did with-

"Oh, hi Mr. Saihara, Mr. Keebo." I heard Nori's voice. Turning around, I found the girl had just walked in with Oma being wheeled in front of her. "You two sure are early."

"Hello, Nori-san." Keebo greeted her. "Why are you here?"

"Well…I thought it could do Mr. Oma some good to get used to this room. There's lots to look at, after all." As she was speaking to us, Oma's eyes were darting around, taking in his new surroundings.

"I see...you should probably put him in the corner." I started to put the cards away; it was an excuse to not have to look at Oma. "He might trigger some people."

Nori glanced at Oma, as if she was checking to see if he was okay. "...I'll do that, then. Wouldn't want to upset anyone."

I got up and placed the box of cards back on the shelf where Keebo and I had found them. When I began returning to my seat, the door opened and everybody else came flooding inside. With his brighter hair, Oma was noticed almost instantly.

"...What is he doing here?" Harukawa asked skeptically.

"He's taking in his surroundings, Ms. Harukawa." Nori answered with a smile on her face. The girl huffed and walked to her spot next to Kaito. The astronaut looked over at me, an eyebrow raised.

"Just ignore him." I whispered.

The circle felt more claustrophobic. Most of us had uneasy expressions, hoping this session would be quick so we could leave the room. Leave Oma.

Kaneshiro rose from her desk, beaming like a light bulb. "Okay, everybody, welcome! As most of you have probably noticed, Oma-kun is joining us today! Please say hi!"

"Hello, Oma-kun. It's good to see you here." Kaede was the first- and only one- to say hello. Her eyes looked a little red.

"Today's session will be different from most days." Kaneshiro announced. "You see, it won't exactly be a session. Akamatsu-san wishes to share something with you all, and she wants you all to hear it at once. This came to me on pretty short notice, so I couldn't prepare much." 

Kaede stood, and Kaneshiro backed up to give her space. She gripped her gown nervously and took a deep breath. "I…wanted to talk to you all about how you've been treating Oma-kun."

"How have we been treating him?" Amani asked in pure confusion. He had probably forgotten momentarily.

"Gonta want to be nice to Oma-kun, but don't get chance. Saihara-kun always with Oma-kun, and Gonta don't want to interrupt."

"You can talk with Oma-kun anytime, Gokuhara-kun." I quickly said. "I would appreciate the extra company. I don't know about him, but…" 

"I say don't waste your time." Harukawa said as she ran her fingers through her hair.

"See? That's exactly what I'm talking about!" Kaede's hand gestured to Harukawa. "You guys aren't willing to give Oma-kun a chance! Why?"

"Well…he's pretty hard to get along with…" Kaito mumbled.

"So am I." Hoshi spoke up. "And yet you guys make an effort to speak with me."

"I know you guys think Oma-kun is evil and heartless, but…" The hand gripping Kaede's gown tensed. "The truth is, he sacrificed his life to save you guys! He died in hopes that those of you remaining could survive. Right, Momota-kun?"

She looked at Kaito, who froze for a split second before answering. "Well…he said he wanted to end the killing game. It was probably just for himself-"

"How could it be for himself if he's dead?" Kaede asked loudly; almost like a shout. "You guys don't want to forgive him, that's all it is! You don't want to accept that he had good intentions! How come you villainize somebody who died to protect you…and love somebody who tried to commit murder?" 

Kaede-san…

So that's what this is about... My face fell in guilt.

"That isn't true!" Chabashira exclaimed. "You were ready to die for us!"

"Only after I realized Rantaro-kun wasn't the mastermind. In the beginning, I was fully willing to murder the mastermind…I'm a coward."

"How is that cowardly? You took a huge risk!" Kaito said in encouragement. He was trying to make Kaede feel better.

"I was willing to take someone else's life so everyone could live. But Oma…was willing to take his own for that same cause. He took a bigger risk than I did, because…he would never know if his sacrifice was even worth anything." Kaede looked at Oma, who was staring at her from the corner; his purple eyes a little wider than before. "And from the way none of you even cried when you realized it was him under the press...I don't think it was."

Keebo frowned, looking down at his lap. "I…never realized. At the time, I said he was probably telling the truth, but…I never took the time to truly acknowledge what he did…you're right, Akamatsu-san. Even if he acted twisted, and was more robophobic than he had to be…in the end, he tried to save us."

Kaede nodded, her eyes shining gratefully at the robot. "Thank you, Keebo-kun. I just…want everybody to give Oma-kun a chance."

"Gonta promise to help Oma-kun! Gonta want him to get better!"

"...Atua says it couldn't hurt! I'll do it, if he donates some blood!" 

"I guess it's technically my fault he died, so…maybe I could help him build some muscle!" 

I watched as a few of our friends agreed to Kaede's wish. I couldn't understand how they could agree so easily. I mean, what she said made sense, but…It was hard to forgive him so easily. I wanted a personal reason to make an effort for him.

Since Kaede was done talking, we were all excused. Chabashira, Gokuhara, Kaito, and Amami gave Kaede a big hug before they left, telling her they'll be here if she needs anything. She looked in my direction, and I gave her a smile, hoping she'd understand I'd be there, too. She was always there for me, after all.

I returned to my room, taking off my slippers and flopping on my bed. My eyes slowly drifted closed, and I turned my body until I found a comfortable position.

I was expecting another night with no dreams. It would be pure black until I woke up. That's what I had gotten uses ro.

I was wrong. I opened my eyes, finding myself in a hallway filled with lockers on the right side. Is this…a school?

My body moved on its own. I was moving to the left wall. I could see my legs. It looked like I was wearing a school uniform. 

There was a figure against the wall. They were wearing a uniform, too. I couldn't see them very well. I got closer. Their head was buried in their arms, so I could only make out their hair. Purple.

I recognized the hairstyle. I'd never seen another like it before. There was no doubt. This was definitely…

…Oma-kun?

Chapter Text

I had to remind myself that I was dreaming. I felt completely conscious, unlike most other dreams I’ve had. I couldn’t control what I was doing with my body, but I could think clearly for myself. It was like an insane out-of-body experience.

Oma appeared to be crying. He wasn’t making any sound, but his shoulders jumped and shivered in a way I recognized quickly. Why would Oma-kun be crying? 

My hand was placed on his shoulder. I felt my mouth moving. I couldn’t make out the words, but I knew I was speaking to him. Apparently something I said caught his attention, because his head slowly lifted. If I could have frozen in place, I would have.

I was so used to seeing Oma like a zombie- unable to do anything but observe. But seeing him now, like this…it was like he was alive again. His hair was the same dark color as it had been in the game. Purple eyes shined at me like amethysts, with small tears glistening in the light. His skin looked smooth and pale, mouth slightly agape as he stared at me. I’d never seen him look this vulnerable before. In fact…I don’t think I’d ever seen Oma cry in the past. I had no idea he would look like this.

He spoke to me. For the first time in a very long time. Though, I don’t know if I liked the words I heard. "You’re a…bad guy. Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

My response was out of my control. My mouth opened all on its own, and the words spilled out. “I thought you’d decline if you knew.”

Oma started fiddling with his fingers; another thing I’d never seen him do before. “...I’m sorry.”

The world was like an old-timey movie. It flew by in a blur, erasing all color until it was just Oma and I; crouching in a white void. It didn’t hurt my eyes, but…it was unsettling. Oma smiled as his eyes continued to stare, unblinking, right into mine.

“I thought it would take longer…I guess you still care, after all.” His voice sounded different. It was similar to being underwater…or maybe a more accurate description was his voice was surrounded in a soft echo.

I swallowed, and realized I could speak freely. “O-Oma-kun…who do you look so…”

“Different?” His eyebrow rose, wondering if that was what I was about to say. I nodded in confirmation. “Ha…of course you don’t remember…”

“Remember? Oma-kun, what are you talking about?” My voice rose, and for a brief moment, I forgot that this was a dream. I was just…talking with Oma. That was all I was doing. He was crazy, and insensitive, and he…wasn’t…any of that…

At least, not right now, he wasn’t.

Oma frowned and brought himself to his feet. I did the same; though I was much shakier than he was. “I’m a bit thankful you don’t remember anything. Because that means I can remind you of all of it.” A wicked grin spread across his face. I’d seen it on Oma’s face so many times, but it looked unnatural on this…’version’ of him.

“We’re going to have so much fun together, my dear Saihara…” His voice was soft and flowed like a river; right into my ears and fogging my brain. I didn’t understand what he meant. I was…confused, and scared. Very scared.

His hands, a strange mixture of warmth and cold, were placed on my shoulders. His grin now looked like the innocent smile of a child; his school uniform made him look weak and feeble. I imagined him hiding out in classrooms during lunch to avoid social interactions.

“Saihara, I’ll never be the same again…and it’s all your fault.”

I awoke with a jump. My legs were tangled in the sheets and my hospital gown was slipping off my shoulders. Placing a head to my forehead, I didn’t feel the warmth of a fever, or the cold of a sweat. That made me shiver. Such an awful dream, but no symptoms to show for it. It was supernatural. It was scary .

“My fault…” I whispered to myself in the dim light of my room. “Is it really…my fault?”

I had wanted a personal reason to make an effort for Oma, and now I had one. I still didn’t know if that dream was true or not, but it felt too real. I’d never seen Oma in that outfit or setting before, and I’d never seen him cry. It just felt too strange to feel fake; like there was a part deep inside of me that just knew that dream was a memory from the past.

As I got out of my bed, I remembered my conversation with my doctor. Was that…a flashback? Is that what he meant? Am I…remembering my past self’s memories? That theory made sense. That would explain the school, the uniforms, and Oma acting so strange. Then that would mean Oma-kun and I were friends…in the past. But why?

I wanted to know. I wanted to see if there was a chance- the slimmest chance, that we could be like that again. I wanted to trust Oma, just like Kaede had asked. I wanted to be shown that he had redeeming qualities.

“Okay, let’s go.” I said out loud. Putting my feet inside the hospital slippers, I left my room. My heart was beating a bit faster than usual, but I kept a calm face. I slowly made my way to the main room/cafeteria. I glanced at my clock before I left: 10:06. That meant everyone else was probably there and waiting for me to arrive.

Opening the doors, Amami was the first to notice me. He walked over with the same calm smile he always had. “Good morning, Saihara-kun.”

“Morning, Amami-kun How are you? Have you had any troubles lately?” I asked. Amami hummed and tapped his head.

“Not anything major. Just some tiny short-term losses; they come back after about thirty minutes. I’ve been improving a lot.”

“That’s good. I’m proud of you, Amami-kun.” I congratulated. “I want everybody to get better as soon as possible…have Shinguji-kun’s fevers gone down?”

“I can’t really remember…you better ask somebody else.” He said. He then left to go speak with Kaede, who happily welcomed him into her conversation with Harukawa and Yonaga. I was a little worried as to what those three girls would be talking about.

I scanned the room for Shinguji; it was harder to spot him without his flashy outfit. After some searching, I finally found him. His eyes widened slightly as he saw me approach. The hospital was nice enough to provide him with a mask to wear.

“Ah, Saihara-kun, you’ve finally approached me. I feel as if we haven't spoken in a long time.” His voice was still as smooth as velvet. I smiled, trying to look friendly.

“Yeah, it’s been a while. I wanted to ask about your condition. Have your fevers gone down at all?” I asked. Shinguji nodded.

“Yes, the fevers have gone down quite significantly. Though they still plague me like the grief of many here, they are becoming manageable.” He really should write some books with the way he talked. He sometimes acted like the Ultimate Poet instead of the Ultimate Anthropologist.

“Well, I’m glad. So if I’m right, that means we just need to wait for Oma-kun’s condition to recover, right?”

“I suppose so. Gokuhara-kun has been taking care of him while you were napping. He and Nori-san are working very hard with him.”

“Working? What are they working on?” I questioned. I’d never heard of anything of the sort. Did something happen while I was sleeping?”

“Oh yes, that’s right, you weren’t informed. Oma-kun has begun his physical therapy, and the doctors and therapists have been working him tirelessly. I’m quite interested in watching him perform; it’s such incredible research.”

Ah…now he’s acting like the Ultimate Anthropologist. “I-I see…he’s started physical therapy…then that means they got his hearing to work?” Shinguji nodded. I kept the smile on my face. “That’s…great…well, I guess I’ll check up on him. Thanks for the chat, Shinguji-kun.”

“You can come to me anytime you like, Saihara-kun.” Shinguji put up his hand in farewell, and I did the same.

It wasn’t very hard at all to find Oma- he was in a wheelchair after all. And the biggest guy in the room was crouched right by his side. When I looked at him, he was in his new form: lilac hair, scrawny body, incredibly pale skin, and curious eyes. The zombie I’d grown to see as ‘normal’.

“Gokuhara-kun.” I walked over to the entomologist, who turned his head with a smile.

“Saihara-kun is here! Now Gonta can tell him!” He was beaming with excitement and pride. “Oma-kun hear now! Gonta can talk to Oma-kun! He start ‘phy-si-cal therapy’ thing! Gonta helping him move!”

I couldn’t help but smile at Gokuhara. “That’s amazing, Gokuhara-kun. How much progress have you and Nori-san made?”

Gokuhara glanced at Oma, who looked back at him. “Not much…but we trying really hard! And Oma-kun, too! He trying hardest!”

“I’m sure he is.” My attention was brought to the boy lying in the chair. His eyes met mine, and I saw a flash of the schoolboy from my dream. I swallowed and tried not to let my nervousness show. “Hi, Oma-kun…I’m glad to see you’re improving so much…just a few weeks ago, you couldn’t even see. Look at how far you’ve come.”

Of course, I didn’t get a response; his vocal cords still weren’t working, after all. He blinked at me, as if to signal that he heard me. A question popped into my mind, so I turned to Nori.

“Um…Nori-san, is Oma-kun able to express emotion through his eyes? Like…can his eyebrows raise in surprise or something?”

Nori thought over the question as she placed her hand over Oma’s. “Well…I’ve never really tried that with him. He’s always had this expression no matter what people say to him. Hopefully physical therapy can start to help with that.”

“Yeah…” I said. Oma was still staring at me; he never even glanced at Nori when she started speaking. I sat down, and his eyes followed my movements. Maybe he just wasn’t used to hearing my voice yet.

“Let’s try again, Oma-kun!” Gonta placed his hand on Oma’s right one, just like Nori was doing with his left.

“What are you two doing?” I asked in curiosity.

“We’re trying to help Mr. Oma learn how to move his fingers.” Nori explained. “We start by moving them for him, and then we hand him some putty. If he gets used to having things on or in his hands, the brain can start sending signals to them. Putty is a good thing to use because he can practice squeezing, spreading his fingers, and a lot more.”

“I see…” I mumbled. Shinguji was right; it was pretty fascinating to see physical therapy in action. Glancing to the corner, I saw Kaito watching Oma with a somewhat guilty expression on his face. Right…Kaito-kun must feel incredibly guilty…since he’s the one who killed Oma in the game and put him in this condition…

Gokuhara and Nori slowly moved Oma’s hands: left and right, up and down. They softly bent his fingers at the joints, and Oma watched them with what I assumed was interest.

“Alright, Mr. Gokuhara, set his hand down slowly and softly.” Nori instructed. Gokuhara followed the direction and put Oma’s hand back on the arm of the wheelchair, palm up. Nori grabbed a plastic bag filled with putty and broke a small chunk away. Placing it in Oma’s hand. “Here you go, Mr. Oma. Go ahead and try to move your fingers. Try to concentrate on your fingers as much as possible.”

Oma stared at the putty in his hands. The three of us (and probably Kaito and Shinguji, too) watched him with bated breath, wondering if his fingers would actually move.

Ten minutes went by and nothing happened. Nori sighed and looked my way. “Mr. Saihara, you haven't eaten yet. You should have breakfast first before spending time with Mr. Oma. Your health is just as important as his.”

I had completely forgotten about breakfast; once it was mentioned, I felt my stomach grumble. “A-Ah, right…I’ll grab something. Thanks for reminding me.” I quickly stood up and was about to grab some food, but before I did, I looked at Oma, who was still concentrating on his hand. “Good luck, Oma-kun. I’ll be cheering you on.”

The words felt strange and foreign on my tongue, but they didn’t feel sour at all. In fact, it made me smile. I was really making an effort. For Kaede, myself…and for Oma.

I’ll get to know him. I’ll help him recover…so I can understand more about him…both the ‘him’ now, and the ‘him’ back then.

I grabbed the quickest thing I could see: a bagel. Thankfully it was really good, so I didn’t feel like I had a bad breakfast. I made sure not to eat too fast, I didn’t want to choke. I finished it off with a cup of milk. Usually I would have made coffee, but I was in a hurry.

My meal lasted no longer than ten minutes, and then I was right back at Oma’s side. Gokuhara looked at me worriedly.

“Saihara-kun eat, right?” He asked.

“Yeah, I had a bagel. I’m not too hungry, so it was enough for me.” I told him. He nodded, and looked back at Oma, who was no longer holding any putty. “Where did the putty go?”

“We took it away from him.” Nori said. She had a huge smile on. “He made a huge improvement. Would you like to see?”

I was hesitant. I don’t know why I was, but I was. Maybe the dream I had was still affecting me. Maybe I was worried his hands would make me shiver like they had not long ago. Still, I did as Nori said and I stretched out my hand towards Oma. Nori grabbed my wrist and pointed it lower, so it was right in front of Oma’s hand.

Oma’s eyes drifted down to stare at our hands, which were nearly touching. Nori let go of my wrist, and I realized that part was sore now. She has a strong grip…

His fingers twitched, and I jumped. I hadn’t expected that. He moved…he moved…!

His fingers lifted from the arm of his wheelchair, only by about five millimeters. But that was still enough for him to place his fingertips on mine. Immediately I felt the slight warmth, the softness of his skin, and the pure intensity of the moment.

I no longer cared that all of my friends could have been staring, watching, and silently judging. I no longer cared that Oma had just given me the nightmare of my life. All that mattered was his hand in mine; the efforts he made just to move his fingertips. I was so…so proud of him .

As tears of joy and relief flowed down my cheeks, I could have sworn I felt the ghostly touch of a hand trying to wipe them away. ‘It’s not your fault,’ It told me; in a voice that sounded similar to my own. ‘It’s mine.’

Chapter Text

Oma's recovery was going well. He was now attending group therapy alongside everybody else, but he never really participated. He stayed in a corner with Nori, while she switched out things he could hold in his hands. It was usually putty, but sometimes she would give him a stuffed animal or a small ball to hold. When he had his hands in his lap, he couldn't really see what he was holding very well, since he couldn't turn his neck yet.

Group therapy became a little more exciting. Whenever I was bored, I got to turn around and see Oma's fingers twitching around whatever he was holding at that moment. Nori would give me a grin, and then I'd have to quickly look away.

I knew that Kaito wanted to talk with Oma, but he never went up to him on his own. I knew that I'd have to be the one to coax him into it. Kaede, Amami, Gokuhara, and Keebo weren't embarrassed to be seen hanging around Oma. Amami would usually forget he'd done so afterwards, but he always treated Oma well.

Yonaga, Tojo, Hoshi, and Shinguji were making an effort for Oma, but they wouldn't consider him close. They did favors for him every once in a while, and made small talk if they were near him.

I, on the other hand, didn't know where I stood with him. I was one of his caretakers, and he seemed to like me? He would look at me a lot, and from my knowledge, I was the only person he'd reached out to. I wanted to help Oma recover, since my nightmares gave me some strange form of guilt, but I still haven't forgiven him for everything he did in the game. I had a better idea of why he did it, but it still hurt.

We were attending group therapy, and Kaneshiro was giving us our first assignment, because apparently we were getting those now.

"I'm going to hand out some notebooks to you all, and whenever you don't know what to do, draw or write something in your notebook! At the end of the week, if you're comfortable with it, you can show your notebook to me or everybody else! It's a good way to express yourself and get a better grasp of your feelings."

We were all given good-quality notebooks. They weren't the kinds with lines in the paper; meaning they were perfect for drawing. The realization dawned on me that this task could be added into Oma's physical therapy. I smiled.

"I'm sure Angie-san's notebook will look amazing!" Kaede said. Yonaga laughed and had to agree.

"You better not draw anything embarrassing in yours." Harukawa warned Kaito, who scoffed in surprise.

"Maki-Roll, come on! I'm not that immature!"

Iruma cackled. "I think it's better none of you see what I'm gonna draw!"

Keebo shivered. "I'm not a very great artist, but I'll do my best."

"Gonta gonna draw lots of bugs!" Gokuhara loudly announced. 

I was surprised at the level of enthusiasm everybody was showing. I mean, it did sound fun, but I wasn't sure everyone else would think so.

"Shuichi, what do you think yours is gonna look like?" Kaede asked, turning over to me. 

"Oh, um…I'm not really sure. I've never been huge on drawing stuff…" I admitted, opening up my notebook to stare at the blank pages. "Who knows, really?"

"I'm excited to see! If you'll let me, of course." Kaede giggled, and I smiled.

"Yeah, me too!"

We were all excused to go about our own business. Some decided to stay in the room to mess around, while some went to their rooms. I saw Nori and Oma in the corner. He was holding a small white bunny stuffed animal in his hands. He was looking at Nori as his fingers gently petted it. 

Even though he’d moved his fingers for the first time three days ago, it still brought a smile to my face every time I saw him move. He was able to move up to his elbows now. I was honestly surprised nobody had tried to high-five him yet, though I wasn’t going to be the first to do so. Didn’t want that reputation.

Walking over to the pair, I greeted them with a wave. “Hey, you two.” Oma’s eyes instantly traveled in my direction. His eyebrows rose slightly in confusion- or maybe annoyance. Oh, yeah! Oma started to move his eyebrows too, which gave his face more emotion every once in a while. His mouth was a different story; it was always in a neutral state.

“Hi, Mr. Saihara.” Nori smiled. “I’m glad you’re here. Mr. Oma has something he wants to show you.”

Her smile turned into a grin as Oma looked at her, betrayed flashing in his eyes. That only lasted a second before he looked down at the stuffed animal.

“Something to show me? What is it?” I asked, looking at Nori. Once I saw she wouldn’t tell me, I looked at Oma. “Oma-kun…you don’t have to show me if you don’t want to…but I would really like to see whatever you have.”

I was definitely using my sweetest voice to guilt Oma into showing me; I couldn’t help it. My detective nature made me curious. It wasn’t every day Oma made or did something special for somebody. Oma kept staring at his bunny, and then one of his hands shoved it off of his lap. I saw that under the stuffed animal was a folded up piece of paper.

“Is this it?” I asked. Nori nodded, and I slowly reached out, grabbing the paper. I tried not to open it too quickly in worries or ripping it. Once I had smoothed it out well enough, I saw only two words on the paper.

Saihara Shuichi

The kanji was light and extremely messy, telling me whoever wrote it had the pencil just barely touching the paper, and their grip on it wasn’t good at all. Of course, I knew who the mysterious writer was right away. Eyes wide in shock, I looked back up at Oma, who was clearly avoiding looking at me.

“Oma-kun…you wrote this?” My voice was quiet; showing who unbelievable this was to me. Nori chuckled.

“He did! He learned how to hold a pencil today in physical therapy, and this was the first thing he wrote. The way it looked to me, it was like somebody was guiding his hand to write that out…just for you!”

I felt my cheeks redden. “Y-You don’t actually mean that. It was probably just an easy thing to write. Still…” I glanced at my name written on the paper again. “It’s amazing…Oma-kun, you learned to write in such a small time! You must be very determined to recover as soon as possible.”

Oma finally looked back at me, and blinked in recognition. He couldn’t speak, but his gaze converted a message. ‘Of course I want to recover. Are you stupid?’.

Even when he couldn’t talk, I still felt like he was insulting me every chance he could get. Maybe it was just me. I chuckled. “Well, I still appreciate it. Is it okay if I keep this? Or do you want it back? Blink twice for the second option.”

Oma blinked once, then looked away. That meant I could keep it if I wanted to. I carefully folded the paper back up. Since my hospital gown didn’t have pockets, I kept it in my hand. “I’ll set this in my room. I’ll take good care of it.”

Nori nodded. “Great! Dinner will be starting soon, so you better hurry before the hallways get crowded.”

“Yeah, good idea. Bye Nori-san, bye Oma-kun.” I waved goodbye and left Kaneshiro’s room. My room was the closest to Kaneshiro’s, so I didn’t have to walk too far to reach it. My lights were dim, and I didn’t bother to turn them on. I was just going there to place Oma’s paper and my notebook on my nightstand. I’d find a better spot for them later, if I found one.

Dinner was similar to every other I’ve had here. The food was good, but nothing extraordinary.  There was small talk, but no conversations were super ‘noteworthy’ to remember. It was just stuff like ‘how was your day’ and ‘what are you planning to do tomorrow’.

My stomach was full and my eyes were droopy. I wanted to go to bed as soon as possible. I knew that Oma was probably asleep; since his food was still being inserted directly into him, he didn’t need as much time to eat. He had a lot of sleeping time here.

I saw Mirai in the hallways, waiting outside my room. I raised my hand in greeting, and her face lit up once she saw me. “Mr. Saihara! It’s nice to see you! Has group therapy been going well?”

“It’s been going as well as it can.” I replied, rubbing my eyes. “I’m sorry, I’d really love to talk, but I’m a bit tired. Is it okay if I turn in for the night?”

Mirai seemed to realize she was blocking the path to my room. “Oh! Of course, have a good night!” She stepped aside, and I gave a small ‘Thanks’ before heading into my room.

The dim lights helped me get into the perfect mood for sleeping. I didn’t want to be in complete darkness, so this lighting was perfect for me. I took a deep breath; hopefully this night will be a bit better than the previous ones. I closed my eyes, hoping for the best.

My dream was just lie the ones I’ve been having every time I close my eyes. I woke up in that ‘white paradise’, where Oma would be waiting patiently for me. He would always tease me, poke at me very suddenly and quickly, and mostly, he would scare me. He seemed to enjoy causing me pain and discomfort.

“Saihara is back!” Oma exclaimed cheerfully, dancing and hopping around me, much like a dog when its owner came home. “I missed you so, so, so, so muuuuuch! Did Saihara miss meeee?” He stopped in front of me, looking up with wide, sad eyes.

“U-Um…” It was unsettling. He was still the Oma I’d seen in my first nightmare; the schoolboy with dark hair. He acted similar to the Oma in the game, though, which I didn’t think was right for him. “I don’t know…”

“Huh!? You didn’t miss me!? What’s wrong with you!? I thought you loved me!” Oma teared up and sniffled, hands going up to cover his eyes. “Saihara is so mean to me…why did I ever trust you in the first place?”

“Oma-kun, I still have no idea what you’re talking about! You keep on talking about how much you love me, or how I loved you, but…I don’t remember any of that!” I had to try not to raise my voice; I didn’t want to scare him. One time I yelled at him because I was upset, and he bawled his eyes out for the rest of the dream. I woke up absolutely exhausted.

Oma sniffled one last time, and lowered his hands. His innocent expression was all gone; now he was frowning at me. “You know, you’re not very fun anymore, Saihara. You used to be so interesting! But now you’re just…boring. Like me.”

“I don’t know if you’re insulting me, or yourself…” I mumbled. Oma sighed.

“I can’t show you very much…not yet. Your mind isn’t quite ready for all that yet.”

“You’re going to show me more memories? When?” I asked, my curiosity rising. I wanted to learn more about who I was before I auditioned for Danganronpa. “How do you even do that?”

“I have my ways!” His smile returned, and he clapped his hands together, filling the space. “You should know I’d do anything for you, my precious Saihara! I’d even throw my own life away for you! Oh, wait…I already did that…”

“Oma-kun, what do you mean? Please…just tell me.” My voice was heavy; I was tired, and wanted to understand the riddles that he kept on telling me. Oma nodded.

“Okay…I guess I can show you one…” As soon as he said that, the white void I’d grown used to morphed into an area of browns and whites. It was a cafe. Or at least…it looked like one.

I looked to the side, and saw Oma, holding a large bowl of ice cream. Next to him was somebody that looked very familiar. Is that…me? 

‘I’ was wearing an outfit that definitely looked like my style. A middle-sleeved black shirt and boots. I still wore my hat, and it looked like I had a bowl myself. Vanilla; one of my favorite flavors. 

“Do you want to eat this on the way?” ‘I’ asked as I smiled down at Oma. We started walking out of the store.

“Hmm? Where are we going?” Oma didn’t sound very childish; like I was used to. He sounded nervous, like he was carefully choosing every word he spoke. 

“I was thinking we’d go back to my place. We can finish the first season of Danganronpa while we eat our ice cream.” ‘I’ offered, my smile widening in excitement. It made me cringe. Guess I really did love the show…

Without even asking Oma for his opinion, ‘I’ started walking away. Oma followed after me without hesitation, and then answered the previous question. “Oh, yeah. That sounds…fun.” He frowned, and stared down at his bowl, taking a bite of the ice cream.

Why did he pause like that? I quickly observed him, using my skills to come up with a theory. He looks…sad. Did he really want to do that? Or was he just saying that to make me happy? The realization came to me quickly; what Oma said was starting to make sense. ‘I’d do anything for you’.

“Oma-kun, why…” My voice was a soft whisper, but I knew that Oma would be able to hear me. He was around here somewhere; watching, and listening. “Why did you do that for me? How many times have you done that for me?”

“You have no idea how much I’ve sacrificed for you, Saihara.” Oma replied as he walked by my side. “You were oblivious to all of it. All my efforts…all my sorrows…you noticed the little things, but couldn’t grasp the big picture.”

I kept my gaze on my previous self, happily talking away while Oma dragged along behind him, eating his ice cream to keep his frown unnoticed. Why didn’t I look back…? Why didn’t I notice? …Was I really that selfish?

“I-I’m…sorry, Oma-kun.” I finally looked away, turning my head at the boy who I’d considered a bother. “I’ll try better. I’ll do better for you now; I promise.”

Oma chuckled, his eyes meeting my own. “I have no doubt about that, Saihara! You’ve always been one to try your best at everything! The sad thing is not everything goes your way, and you end up making huge mistakes when you try to fix things!”

“Oma-kun, you’re talking about the ‘me’ back then…I’m different…” I spoke those words, but deep down, I wasn’t quite sure. Had I really changed? There was only one way to find out; to make an effort.

“We’ll just have to see, Saihara.” Oma put his hand on my arm. That cheerful voice he spoke with had a hidden malice behind it. “Let’s see if you can repent for your sin: the sin of killing me!”

Chapter Text

I drew another line on my paper. The lead broke from the force I was applying to it, and the snapping sound was enough to get me to notice I'd been dozing off.

Groaning, I looked at my notebook. I was at least four pages in at this point. I decided to distract myself by looking at all my drawings starting from page one.

The first page had all the drawings you'd expect from somebody like me: a magnifying glass, a book, some doodles of diamonds and smiley faces, the works. The second page had a poor drawing of Keebo. We'd tried to draw each other without looking at the paper. One of his eyes wasn't even attached to his body.

On the third page, the scribbles began. Some web just a line, others were multiple pencil strokes creating a large, dark wall along the white paper. The smiley faces had turned to frowns. I'd drawn those without even thinking.

The fourth page was filled with nothing but pencil marks. If the pencil had been red, the page would have looked like a murder scene. It made me feel a strange mix of disgust and calm. Who knew my notebook would end up looking like this? 

Another grumble left my throat as I closed my notebook and messily chucked it onto my nightstand. It slipped off the corner and fell onto the floor, the smack making my head hurt. I fell backwards onto my bed.

"Mnghhh…" Words wouldn't come out of my mouth. My eyelids burned, so I brought up my hands to shield them from the light. Though, that didn't do much.

I want it to go away…this feeling… Now that my eyes were covered, I was filled with the strange need to cry. Nothing had happened to really upset me, but I could feel my eyes start to sting with tears. Get out of my head!

He couldn't hear me; not while I was here, like this. He could only hear me if I was asleep. I didn't want to sleep, though. I always felt worse whenever I woke up, so it was better not to sleep at all. I hadn't so much as taken a nap for three days. I felt like I was dead.

There was a knock at my door. I heard a voice on the other side. "Yo, Shuichi! Just here to check up on you, man! How are ya?"

Kaito-kun… He wasn't opening the door in order to respect my privacy. Taking a breath to try and gather my voice, I let out a loud grunt. It was the best I could do. At least he knew I heard him.

"Well, uh…I did what you told me to do a few days ago, and…I talked with Oma…" By the way he was talking, I could imagine him rubbing his neck and staring at the floor. "I told him I felt bad for the way he went out, and…he wrote that it was fine. It was his idea, so I shouldn't feel guilty…"

There was a long pause. He was probably gathering his thoughts. "So, uh…I feel a bit better now. I think I'm gonna try to get to know him better…thanks, Shuichi. You really are a great sidekick!"

Footsteps retreating. Kaito had left. I rolled onto my side and my hands left my eyes to grasp the sheets underneath me. Sidekick…why does he still believe in me…? I'm awful…

My knuckles started to turn white with how hard I was clutching onto the fabric. Once it started to hurt, I let go. My tears had dried. I didn't feel sick anymore. Just tired. I wanted to sleep.

But what if sleeping just makes me feel even worse? What if I see new things? Things that I don’t like? Anxiety started creeping up on me. That, mixed with the guilt, made my heart pound in a way that felt like cannonballs were bursting through my chest.

‘Hey, everything’ll be fine!’ A small voice in my head spoke; almost like it could hear my feelings. Like it was alive. ‘Kokichi isn’t scary! He’s just going through a lot! Promise!’

Kokichi… Why was his first name brought up? I’d only ever said his given name once…when…

“You’re alone, Kokichi. And you always will be.”

I felt a small tear or two fall down my face. I shouldn’t have said that. Who or what gave me the right to say such a thing?

Sleep…I just need sleep… I tried to steady my breathing and calm my heart, moving my body so I was comfortable on the bed. I closed my eyes, feeling the burn of my eyelids once again. Those would go away once I got some good sleep. That’s all I needed. Some sleep.

I wasn’t surprised when I saw Oma there once again. I felt empty. I just wanted this dream to be over with. I didn’t want to face him. I couldn’t.

“You don’t look well, Saihara.” Oma didn’t sound worried; not in the slightest. He was stating a fact, as he studied my face. The bags under my eyes. The frown plastered on my face. “Is something bothering you?”

I hummed. There was nothing to look at except for Oma and my shoes. So, I stared at my shoes. He caught on quickly that I was ignoring him.

“Saihara, you’re hurting my feelings. I asked you a question.” Oma crossed his arms and stared, waiting for a response. I realized nothing would end unless I acknowledged him. I lifted my gaze.

“Sorry…I just don’t know how to feel…” I could feel the exhaustion seeping out of my voice. I was so tired; even when I was asleep.

“That’s good.” Oma was the one to look away this time. He was acting differently. He wasn’t that cheerful ball of malice that had been tormenting me for at least a week now. “I’ve been…thinking, and…I think it’s a good idea to show you what I’ve been meaning to.”

“What do you mean? You have something else?” I asked. Usually I would be curious, but now I was just afraid. Afraid of what I would see myself do. Or not do.

“Yeah…I don’t really like this memory either.” Oma admitted, rubbing his arms, which were still crossed against his chest.  “But you deserve to know. Maybe it will…help you two. Or something.”

I’d grown to accept that this Oma will always say stuff I don’t understand. Nodding, I accepted my fate, and Oma nodded back. I watched and waited as the memory shifted into existence, and I faded into the background to watch.

I was in a room; Oma’s. I’d been here a couple of times before in previous memories I’d been shown. We were talking on his bed. He was smiling; ‘I’ was smiling. ‘My’ hand reached into ‘my’ pocket, and ‘I’ pulled out a piece of paper.

“Kokichi-chan, guess what?” ‘My’ voice sounded excited; like a video game I loved had just come out with a sequel. “It’s time!”

‘I’ shoved the paper into his hands, and he carefully unfolded it. I could read the words on the paper. ‘Danganronpa Season 53 Audition Form’.

Oma’s eyes went wide, as he stared at ‘me’ in shock. “S-Shuichi-kun…how did you get your hands on these?"

‘My’ eyes lifted in excitement as ‘I’ explained. "I had to wait in line for at least two hours to get them! I was waiting for so long! All for you, Kokichi-chan!"

"That's…" His fingers tensed. I cringed when I noticed that. ‘I’ still never noticed back then. "Cool, I guess…but…what if I don't want to audition?"

“Why wouldn’t you want to audition?” ‘I’ raised an eyebrow. The fact that I looked genuinely confused disgusted me. I’d quickly learned that Oma didn’t really like Danganronpa; he only watched it because it was ‘my’ favorite show. “This is the chance of a lifetime, Kokichi-chan! We could actually be on Danganronpa! Together!”

“I-I know that, and being on a show with you sounds great, but…” His eyes glanced back down to the paper. “What if something happens to you if you get picked for the show? I mean…what if you die? I wouldn’t…be able to handle that…”

What if something happens…to ‘you’... I repeated his words in my head; slower. He said ‘you’. He didn’t take himself into account at all…he’s only worried about me.

“It’s not like it’s real, Kokichi-chan.” ‘I’ reassured him with a pat on the shoulder. “Besides, don’t you owe me this one? How many times have I done something for you? It’s just one audition!”

I’d never felt so angry at myself before, hearing those words. You idiot! Oma-kun has done so much for you, but you were too blind to acknowledge and appreciate it! You should be thanking him! 

 Oma nodded, his lips pursing in guilt. “I-I…I guess so…” He kept his head low as he tried to talk himself into agreeing. Watching him struggle from my perspective was hard. I wanted to look away, but my gaze stayed on his messy purple hair. “Just one couldn’t hurt…”

“Oh, Kokichi-chan, thank you!” ‘I’ stepped forward in an instant and pulled Oma into a huge hug, lifting him into the air and spinning him around. He yelped, and his eyes slowly brightened as he chuckled at ‘my’ antics.

He was set down, and he readjusted his shirt. “It’s nothing, Shuichi-kun…after all, you know I would do anything for you…” His smile was pure, and genuine. I’d seen that smile more times on this Oma’s face than I have on the Oma I knew. It saddened me; I wanted to see my Oma make that face…at least just once. That would be enough for me. Though, that sadness was instantly drowned out with an  even worse- indescribable feeling when I came to the horrifying truth. What Oma was showing me. Why Oma was showing me. The scene faded, and I stared at the nothingness in front of me; frozen in shock. I heard Oma’s voice, speaking directly at me.

“Do you understand now, Saihara?” Soft. Low. Like the calm before the storm. “Do you understand…why I’ve kept on saying it?”

There was no way I couldn’t understand. It finally made sense. My mouth was dry as I responded. “It’s because you’re right…It really is…”

“Don’t say it.” Oma quickly cut me off. “Not right now; in front of me. You can say it as much as you want once you wake up, but…not here. Not now.”

I nodded without any hesitation. “Yeah, okay…you got it, Oma-kun.”

“...Thank you. For listening.”

Those words were the last I heard before my eyes opened up to the real world. The lights in my room were still dim. I realized my eyes didn’t burn as much as they did before. They felt better; more refreshed.

I wish I could say the same about the rest of myself. My chest was tight, my throat was dry, and my eyes were watering. I could barely get a thought into my head. There was one phrase repeating over and over and over; like I was an NPC with only one coded line.

It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault.

Oma had auditioned for Danganronpa for me . He got chosen because of me . He was in the killing game because of me . He turned into a villain because of me. He died because of me .

And now he was in a wheelchair…because of me . I couldn’t forgive myself. At least, not yet. I wanted- needed to hear Oma tell me that everything was okay. That we could start over. But I wanted to make sure it wouldn’t be a lie. I wanted it to be genuine, and true. I wanted…

I wanted to actually be his friend. I wanted to know him so well that I could tell in the blink of an eye whether he was lying or not. Then maybe I could forgive myself.

Oma-kun was right…I’ve sinned…and repenting will be hard. I didn’t know if I could even face Oma after what I’d just seen. Knowing he was in this situation all because of me felt like I was drowning in an ocean of my own creation.

I heard the soft knock on my door. This time, I actually got out of my bed to answer. My legs felt wobbly from not moving a lot over the last couple of days, but I managed to make it to the door, opening it up to find just the person I didn’t want to see.

Oma was in his wheelchair, hand still raised in a fist. He’d been the one to knock at my door, and Nori was standing there behind him with a smile. “Morning, Mr. Saihara. Glad you’re up.”

“Yeah…” I nearly stuttered when I spoke, but I just barely held it in. Oma stared at me, like he knew something was going on with me. “What’s happening?”

“Come outside.” Nori instructed. “The crew and I have a big surprise for you lot.”

I hummed, waiting for Nori and Oma to create a pathway out of my room for me. I counted the steps in my head to give me something to think about. Anything other than Oma. I couldn’t think about Oma. I couldn’t…think about anything but Oma. It was torture. Torture that I deserved.

I was led to a large double-door, in a hallway I’d never been in before. Everybody else was waiting there. Oma and I had been the last ones to arrive. I saw Keebo’s shoulders lower when he saw me,

“You came out of your room, Saihara-kun. I’m glad to see you again.” He said as he walked over to me, passing Oma. I nodded.

“Yeah, well…apparently there’s a surprise for us.”

“Mhm. I wonder what it is.”

Mirai was standing by the door, smiling wider than I’d ever seen before. And she had very wide smiles. “Well, if everybody is so curious, why don’t I just show you?”

Her hands traveled to the push bars, and in one swift movement, the doors opened. Bright lights flashed me; eyes shutting closed and groans sounding all around me. Quickly we recovered, and once my eyes had adjusted, I realized just what was in front of me.

It was the outside world. We were being let outside.

The silence was deafening, but in a comforting way. Slowly, nervously, the group started to step out’ slippers crunching under grass and eyes looking up at the sky. Nori gripped onto Oma’s handles and pushed him outside. His eyes darted left, right, up, down, everywhere they could. Everybody else was doing the same, some letting out gasps and squeals.

“Wait a moment!” Kaede exclaimed suddenly, gathering everybody’s attention. “If you’re showing us this, then…does that mean…?” Her voice sounded so hopeful; it made me feel just a bit better than I'd been feeling a few seconds ago.

Mirai nodded. “Yep! You’re all healthy enough to move out of the hospital! Your house is already built and vacant for you to move in whenever you’re ready! There’s also one more thing…” She gestured her arm to the right, and we all looked. There was a large group of people- all adults.

“Who’re they?” Hoshi asked, his voice defensive and on guard. Mirai laughed.

“Why, it’s your loved ones!” Her head turned to the group. “Come on, you guys! Say hello!”

With no other warning whatsoever, the adults rushed towards us, tears falling and voices cracking as they went to their children, cousins, nephews, nieces, whatever. Us high-schoolers were left confused, since we didn’t know who these strangers were. Were these people really our family?

“Shuichi!” A man with a large chest ran up to me. His eyes glistened, but I didn’t see any tears. “I’m so happy you’re okay…what were you thinking!?”

“I-I…” I couldn’t answer. This man was scaring me, and I was already feeling bad enough. I didn’t want to see him right now. There was so much to think about, and the thought that I had abandoned this person for a dumb TV show…I couldn’t talk. I couldn’t. There was absolutely no way. My chest felt so tight; it was like I was being strangled. I-

“Sir, Mr. Saihara is overwhelmed right now. You can visit him another day.” Mirai noticed my anxiety quickly. The man looked hurt, but he quickly backed away, allowing himself to be escorted off of the property. My heart started to slow down as I took deep, slow breaths. I felt bad for that man, but there was no way I would have been able to talk to him today.

“Kokichi!” The voice of a young woman filled my ears. Twisting my head to the source of that sound, I saw a woman with purple hair and crying, yellow eyes running to Oma’s side. She dropped down to her knees so she and Oma were at the same height. Her cheeks were wet, and some drops were falling onto her pants.

“Kokichi, I was so, so worried! Why did you do this? Why?” Her voice cracked and faltered as he wept in front of Oma. I’d seen this woman before: this was Oma’s mother. Oma Kaoru, if I remembered correctly. I wasn’t quite sure. Apparently Oma wasn’t sure either, because he stared at her with a blank expression. She noticed this.

“Kokichi…why are you looking at me like that…? It’s me, your mother…” Her hands moved at a snail’s pace as she reached up to place her palms against her son’s cheeks. She was being so careful- so gentle. Like he was glasswork. “Do you…not remember me?”

Oma stayed silent. Well, he couldn’t talk, so it wasn’t like he could talk in the first place. Kaoru shuddered, one of her hands reaching further to run his fingers through his lilac hair. “Y-Your hair…it’s lighter than before…you look so thin…so sickly…This isn’t my son.”

Her head fell as she stood to her feet. She turned around; probably to leave, but when she lifted her head, her eyes fell onto me. They widened in recognition. She knew me. I froze. Her gaze was full of shock, but then…it turned into anger.

“You!” She shouted, gathering the attention of a few people around us. “You’re that boy! His friend! Sai…Saihara! You’re Saihara!”

“I…” Was all I could get out before she stomped over, roughly grabbed my wrist, and dragged me over in front of Oma. Her eyebrows scrunched up as he pointed at her son.

“Do you see him!? Do you see what happened to my baby!?” She shouted right in my face. My just slowing heartbeat picked up again. “I kept on wondering: ‘what could possess him to do something so reckless? So out of character for him?’ Well, now I have my answer! It was you ! You did something to make him audition, didn’t you!?”

“Miss, please-” Nori tried to intervene, but Oma’s mother wasn’t listening to her. Her rage drowned out any other voices around her.

“You did this to my son! He’s in this situation because of you! You think you’re a good person? You ruined my Kokichi's life! This is all your fault!”

All tension left my body. I don’t know how I kept myself on my two feet. I lost control of everything inside, and the tears flowed without mercy. I wasn’t making any sound- just staring wide-eyed as I wept. 

My fault. It’s…my fault…all of it. Oma-kun…my fault…my…

I felt that presence again. It was more visible- like there was somebody standing right in front of me. They tried to wipe my tears away again, just like they’d done another time when I’d thought the same thing. But this time their efforts were wasted, because they never stopped. They never ended. My vision blurred, and I couldn’t tell what was happening around me anymore.

‘I’m sorry.’ They told me. ‘I wish I could say that to him, too. He deserves it…because they’re all right. But you shouldn’t have to take the blame for that.’

I ignored it. I ignored everything. Nothing was clear and nothing made sense to me anymore. Was I walking? Was somebody talking to me? I couldn’t tell. I didn’t care. There was only one thing I knew: It’s all my fault.

Chapter Text

Living in a house was nice. Well, it was less like a house, more like a mansion. All fifteen of us were living together, since apparently we weren't able to be separated. We could go wherever we wanted whenever we wanted, but there was always somebody monitoring us; making sure we didn't say anything we weren't supposed to. We didn't have to wear those hospital gowns anymore either; we could wear our own clothes. Our relatives had already provided clothes we used to wear. Mine were pretty good, but I would need to go shopping sometime soon. I couldn't have just black in my closet. 

We were free in a prison, and we were making the most of it. Well…at least, the others were. I was content spending my time in my new room, reading a book. Distracting myself from the people- or person I didn't want to see.

The story I was reading was about vampires. It was a 'boy who cried wolf' scenario: the main character pulls pranks revolving around vampires, so when he actually sees one, nobody believes him. One night he gets chased by wolves into an abandoned house, and ends up getting caught by the vampire. Where I'm at right now, the main character just woke up in a bed.

It doesn’t say anything about wounds…does this mean the vampire didn't attack him? I wondered, my eyes quickly scanning the words on the page. Reading was a good distraction.

"Shuichi!" Kaede knocked on my door before opening it up. "Kirumi-san made lunch! Come on down!"

"Ah…right now?" I quickly found my bookmark and placed it in between the pages, closing the book. "Alright."

I followed Kaede down the stairs and into the dining hall. If I had a choice, I would have eaten my food in my room, but sadly my friends were huge extroverts and one time they actually dragged me here to eat with them. Kaito is a monster.

"Saihara-kun is here!" Gokuhara announced once he spotted me. I lifted my arm in greeting.

"Hey, guys." My voice was quiet, but thankfully nobody was being super loud, so I was heard.

"Hey." Harukawa didn't even look up from her food, but that was normal for hee.

"I knew you'd be coming here. I looked into the future, yknow." Yumeno told me. Chabashira squealed and praised Yumeno, saying 'you're so smart!' and stuff like that. 

"I made beef stew. Please take as much as you'd like." Tojo informed me with a bow of her head. I nodded back and quietly went to dish out my bowl. Sitting down next to Shinguji and Iruma, I took a bite.

It was delicious- as always with Tojo. The stew was savory, with a slight spice to it, while the beef soaked up lots of flavor, and was easy to rip with my teeth. I could feel my stomach lift, warmth filling my abdomen. 

"Alright now, open your mouth." I turned my head towards Tojo. Who was she saying that to? 

I got my answer quickly, as I saw her holding a spoon to Oma's mouth. His lips were parted, waiting, as he eyed the spoon. What was in it? Certainly she wasn't trying to feed him beef stew; he'd choke on it!

"Oi, Pooichi, what's that look on your face for?" Iruma asked, her mouth still had some stew in it. "You're staring at that abortion like he's about to saw off his arm. Stop."

"He is probably worried about Oma-kun's well-being. After all, he's locked himself in his room for so long, he's missed a lot." Shinguji said, taking his eyes off his food to talk to Iruma.

"I don't think I've missed too much." Even so, my eyes refused to meet theirs, looking down at my stew.

Iruma snickered. "Wow, you're stupid! You've missed so much ! Kaeidiot and Ran-barf-o went on a date two days ago, and that grape-child started eating yesterday!"

Kaede had told me she and Amami hung out a couple days ago, but she never told me it was a date . It could have just been Iruma overdramatizing things again, but for some reason I believed her. The second piece of information came as a much greater shock, though.

"Oma-kun is eating?" I would have raised my voice if I wasn't surrounded by people on all sides. I didn't want to embarrass myself.

While on the topic of eating, Iruma shoveled another spoonful of beef stew into her mouth, nodding to answer my question. Shinguji gave me a verbal response. "Yes. Though it's only liquid foods for the time being, he mustn't rely on tubes to fill his stomach anymore."

"That's…amazing." I looked back to Oma; who had just closed his mouth around the spoon. A few seconds went by, and Tojo removed the spoon slowly. I noticed the movement of swallowing on his throat. "What's Tojo-san feeding him?"

"Soup." Shinguji said. "You should probably eat your own food before it gets cold."

"R-Right." I whispered, before digging my own spoon into my bowl.

I need to spend more time with Oma-kun. I was clearing my dishes. Most of the others were gone at this point, but Tojo was still slowly feeding Oma. If I'm going to repent, I need to spend time with him! Stop procrastinating, Shuichi!

Pep talks. They usually worked; so I gave myself one now. I needed to help him. Talk to him, at least.

"Um. Oma-kun?" I wasn't even facing him, so there was no way I could know if he heard me. Sighing at my stupidity, I quickly turned around, and had to suppress a smile when I caught Oma's gaze. 

Realizing I had to keep talking, I cleared my throat. "So, uh…we haven't spent a lot of time together and…well…do you want to hang out in my room?"

"He'll need to finish his food first, Saihara-kun." Tojo said.

"Yes, of course! I was just giving him some time to think about it…could you bring him to my room if he wants to?" I asked. Tojo nodded without hesitation.

I was more excited than usual when I opened the door to my room. I felt the strange urge to clean up, even though there was barely anything out of place in my room to begin with. Still, I made sure my bed was made and that my laundry was put away.

I saw my notebook sitting on the nightstand; and I recalled when I'd shown it to Kaneshiro. She visited everybody right before we left the hospital. Reluctantly, I showed her all of my 'drawings', and she only had one thing to say to me:

'Why don't you talk to him?'

I knew she was talking about Oma, but I still didn't understand. I talked to him a moderate amount, and it wasn't really doing much. If anything, sometimes it made me feel worse. So why did I still make such an effort? I knew the answer- it was because I didn't want to feel guilty anymore. 

I decided to pick up my vampire book again. It was a fine way to pass the time, and it kept me entertained. I got maybe ten pages in before I heard a knock at my door. 

I knew who it was, obviously. When I opened my door, Oma wasted no time wheeling himself into my room and almost running me over. I had to sidestep to avoid him.

I didn't know he could wheel himself now. His arms must be back to their full strength. I couldn't help but stare at Oma's hands gripping his wheels. He turned so he was staring at me, and then his hands left the wheels to grab the notebook lying on his lap.

"Why do you have your notebook?" I asked, closing the door. "Didn't Kaneshiro-san pass yours off?"

Oma gave me an unimpressed look. He opened up the notebook, and grabbed the pencil that was wedged in-between the pages. He scribbled something on the paper, and then turned the notebook around. 

So I can talk to you.

Reading the kanji, I smiled. His handwriting looked a lot better than before; physical therapy was going well, I supposed.

"I'm surprised you actually want to talk to me." I stepped away from the door, walking to the edge of my bed and sitting down. Oma had to turn around again.

Why is that? 

It took him a while to write such a short sentence. This conversation would be longer than I'd thought.

"Well, um…I don't know." I admitted. "I thought you'd be mad at me…for ignoring you."

Oma's shoulders rose, and then fell as he wrote his response. He sighed at me. I noticed he was holding the notebook high up, so he didn't have to move his neck 

You do that all the time. It's nothing new.

"Oh…" My voice fell. I couldn't refute that; I knew it was true. I did ignore him a lot while we were in the game. "Well…you seem calmer than usual. That's good."

I guess so.

And this was the moment where I had no idea what to say. Oma wasn't giving me any room to keep the conversation going, and asking an off-topic question out of the blue would make me look weird.

It took me a moment to realize Oma had written something on his paper. I read it.

Why did you want me here?

"Huh?" I faltered; that question caught me off guard. Oma quickly starting writing before I could properly answer. 

We aren't in that place anymore. You don't have to pretend to like me.

"O-Oma-kun…" My eyebrows raised in realization. "When I hung out with you at the hospital…that wasn't fake. Sure, the role was given to me, but…I still did what I did because I wanted to."

Oma didn't look convinced. He was closed off; guarded by walls he'd built on his own. I decided to ask what I'd wanted to know for a while. Now was the time.

"Oma-kun, are you telling yourself these things…to protect yourself?" By the way Oma's eyes instantly looked at the floor, I thought I might have been on the right track. "I've thought about it for a while…you never actually made any friends; even in the beginning, before the game started. I think you didn't want to make friends, because they could act like shackles to you."

Oma's grip on his pencil tightened. He wrote his response, but refused to make eye contact while he showed me.

Why does that matter? If it's true

"Well, because…you don't have to do that anymore. You aren't in danger anymore…you can make friends." I smiled. I wanted to look friendly- and vulnerable. Maybe he'd agree that way. 

You don't have to take care of me You're not my mom, Saihara

There wasn't a 'chan' at the end of my name. That tiny little detail sent shivers down my neck; mainly because that's what my Nightmare Oma called me. I didn't want this Oma to call me the same thing.

"What happened to 'Saihara-chan'?" I asked, my smile wavering. Oma raised an eyebrow.

I didn't feel like writing it. Did you miss the pet names?

"W-Well…" Even though it wasn't verbal, I could sense the teasing tone in the words. "Nobody else calls me that."

Alright. This is getting boring, so you better get to the point.

"Right, I almost forgot. You have a strange way of making time fly by, Oma-kun." I tried to butter him up just a little more. A little praise could go a long way; though Oma showed no signs of appreciating it.

"Anyways…I guess I just wanted to…" There was no right way to really say it. I mean, I could just say it flat out and get straight to the point. Yeah, maybe I'd do that. "Oma-kun, I want to start over." 

He cracked. His mouth parted and his eyes shot open. He seemed to notice, but he made no attempt to cover it up; that'd just make it more obvious. 

He messily circled something on the paper, and nearly shoved the notebook in my face. I looked at the circled kanji.

Why

"Well…" I pushed the notebook out of my face. "I didn't really treat you right in the game. You were…difficult, and I didn't bother making an effort. I don't want that to be my forever feelings of you, so…" 

Oma slowly brought the notebook back to his lap. He wrote slower this time. He was hesitant. Unsure. But he still showed me what he'd written.

Okay

I smiled. Honestly, I didn't think he'd agree; I thought he would leave, or maybe even insult me. This was definitely the best-case scenario. Without even thinking about it, I stretched out my hand. "My name is Saihara Shuichi."

Oma stared at my hand, almost like he was analyzing it. He reached out, and accepted the handshake. His skin tone was pretty different from mine, and his hands were a little cold. I was about to pull away, but then I heard him.

"O-Om…mmm…Om…a…K-K-Ko…ki-i…si."

Oma Kokisi. He didn't even say his name right. His voice was quiet and scratchy and rough. Still, I was stunned; I couldn't even process what had just happened. No words left my mouth, but Oma's cheeks still reddened- like somebody had just told him about his mispronunciation of his name. He took a large, shaky breath, ripped his hand away, and started writing on the paper again.

It's a work in progress. Nori is working me half to death on this

I chuckled; that sounded like something Nori would do. She was always more…'out there' than the other nurses I've met. She was perfect for Oma.

"Still, that’s…that's amazing, Oma-kun! The fact you're already learning to speak is…" I still couldn't gather my thoughts correctly. I was in shock.

I'm holding you onto that promise, Saihara-chan. We're starting over now so you better stop ignoring me for good

When I looked up from the paper, Oma was glaring at me. He was serious about this. I nodded. "You can count on me, Oma-kun. I'll make things right."

This definitely went better than expected.

Chapter Text

Things were amazing now. Oma and I started hanging out on a daily basis, and most of the time it was unplanned. He would just wheel up to me with something to do, and we'd waste three or four hours on that. Right now, we were playing Uno, and Kaito and Harukawa had joined us.

"So…why is he playing with us?" Harukawa asked after our fifth round. Oma was shuffling the deck, most likely pretending not to hear her.

"He's the one that brought the game, Harukawa-san." I told her. "It makes sense for him to play."

"He'll probably cheat."

"He hasn't cheated yet, has he?" Kaito asked. "I mean, he's only won one game."

Harukawa didn't reply, crossing her arms. She still hated Oma, and I could understand it. I mean, he revealed her talent without her consent, and picked on her a lot. Still, I felt like she could loosen up a bit.

That thought made me realize just how far I'd come. Back then, I would have thought Oma deserved it; but now I was actually taking his feelings into consideration.

Starting over. I reminded myself. None of that stuff matters anymore.

Oma started handing out the cards. Kaito was the type of guy who picked them up as they were being handed out, whereas Harukawa and I waited until Oma was finished before picking up our hand.

Mainly blues… I quickly took note of the cards in my hand. I didn't have any draw cards, but I had a yellow skip.

Kaito went first, putting down a green six. I groaned; I didn't have any green cards. Harukawa put down a three. 

Perfect! Placing down my blue three, I smiled and looked at Oma, wondering what he would put down. He stared at his cards for a moment before he put down a blue draw 2. Kaito loudly grumbled as he drew the cards.

"What's happening over here?" Amami walled behind Harukawa, scanning the table. "Playing a card game?"

"Yeah, Uno! Wanna join us?" Kaito offered. Amami shook his head.

"No thanks, I'm busy. Actually…" He paused for a moment, before his face lit up. "Do you four have anything else going on today?"

Everybody shook their heads, and Oma shrugged. 

"He might have physical therapy later, but I'm sure we could get him out of it." I told Amami. He smiled at that.

"Great. Kaede and I were going to go shopping in an hour. Care to join us?"

"That sounds great!" Kaito instantly agreed; so naturally, Harukawa nodded.

"Sure! I need some new clothes, anyway." I said, adding onto the group. "Do you want to come, Oma-kun?"

The lilac-colored boy set his cards face-down on the table, thinking. It didn't take him very long to let out a soft: "Yes."

Hearing his voice always brought a smile to my face. It didn't sound like a zombie anymore, but Oma still spoke softly since his vocal chords were really sensitive. He'd written to me that even though he knew how to say all the words, he had to retrain his vocal chords on how to make the sounds, so he couldn't say much. So far he'd learned all the simple things: Yes, no, thanks, hi, bye, okay, that kind of stuff. 

"I'll let Kaede know. Probably." Amami chuckled before waving goodbye. He liked to make small jokes about his memory loss; apparently it was his way of accepting it.

"See you then!" Kaito exclaimed, before returning his attention to the rest of us. "So, wanna continue the game?"

"No." Harukawa got up from her seat and pushed in the chair. "I'm going to get ready."

"But you're already dressed!" Kaito loudly said; but she was already walking away. I knew the real reason she left: she didn't want to be near Oma. Apparently he knew that too, since he scooted his wheelchair away from the table, getting ready to leave.

"Oma-kun, wait!" I stopped him, shooting a hand forward. "You don't have to leave just yet, do you?"

"...No." He put his hands back in his lap.

"Yeah, don't ditch us just yet, buddy!" Kaito agreed, grinning widely. He was lucky he had white teeth.

"Buddy?" It took me a moment to realize his choice of words. "Did you two become friends?"

"I guess you could say so." Kaito shrugged as he started putting all the cards back in the box. "We don't hate each other anymore, so…"

Oma nodded in agreement. It made me happy that Oma was taking my advice and making friends. Kaito would be a good person to have by his side.

I should let Gokuhara-kun know about this. I thought. The boy would be thrilled to know he could become friends with Oma. For real, this time.

Kaito gave Oma his game back, and the boy nodded appreciatively. 

I got up from my seat, stretching my legs. Kaito followed suit, stretching his arms as well.

"I should probably check on Maki Roll soon…make sure she's feelin' okay and stuff." Kaito said, glancing in the direction Harukawa had left in.

"Yeah, you probably should." I agreed. "I can wait here with Oma-kun."

Kaito flashed another grin before walking off to find Harukawa. The thought crossed my mind- I wonder if they're dating yet.

Everybody knew they both liked each other; Kaito and Harukawa included. I wanted to ask, but I was worried if it'd make things embarrassing. Guess I'll just have to see…

An hour later, the group was standing outside while we waited for Kaede. She was late since she couldn't find her wallet. Once she found it, she burst out of the doors.

"I'm here!" She exclaimed, waving her wallet in the air for everybody to see. It was embroidered with music notes.

"I'm glad you found it." Amami said. He turned to the rest of us. "Alright; there's a pretty nice shopping center near here, so we can just walk."

"Great! Wouldn't have it any other way!" Kaito gave a thumbs up. Harukawa nodded in agreement.

"Oma-kun, do you want somebody to push you, or can you wheel yourself?" Kaede asked. Oma looked at her, thinking over the question. After a while, he placed his hands on the wheels.

"Gotcha. Well, let's head out!" Kaede made a 'follow me' gesture with her hands, and started walking. She and Harukawa took the front, Amami and I trailed not far behind, and Kaito and Oma were the last in our line. Kaito was telling Oma some strange story about rabid bunnies. I often found myself glancing behind my shoulder to see Oma's amused expression as he listened to the tale.

"So…" Amami stepped in a bit closer. I jumped, not expecting him to invade my personal space like that. "You and Oma, huh?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

His eyebrows rose as he looked at me. "Oh.. well, sorry if my judgment isn't right, but you've kept staring at him."

"Oh, I have?" I didn't realize I was staring. I thought I was just looking every once in a while.

Amami smirked, nodding slowly. "So you can't really blame me if I think you like him."

"Like him?" I repeated.

"Like him." Amami confirmed. Now I got it- Amami thought I had a crush on Oma.

I flushed. "N-No! That's-!" I was going to say 'that's impossible', but something stopped me.

"That's…not where we're at right now." I mumbled, breaking eye contact. My cheeks were burning.

"My apologies, then." Amami said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Let me know when you do get to that point, alright?"

"Y-Yeah…okay." I had no idea why I agreed to that.

We made it to the shopping center. Somebody had the whole place cleared out for us, since the outside world wasn't supposed to see us yet. Not until the End of Season Q&A.

"Where should we go first?" Kaito asked.

"Maybe let's go to a clothing store." I said. "I need some new clothes in my wardrobe."

"Same." Harukawa agreed. Amami then led the search to find a suitable store.

He found one pretty easily, and it was huge. I couldn’t even see the back of the store; there were clothes everywhere. If none of us found anything we liked in here, I would be surprised.

We all split up to find our own clothes, and agreed to meet up at the changing rooms. I found a lot of interesting things- ranging from jackets to shorts. I even tried on some new shoes, as well. 

When I met up with everyone, Kaede and Amami had the most things to try on, so they went first. Kaede had bought mostly new skirts and vests, and most of them fit her very well. There were some that were too short for her liking, so Kaito put them away for her. Amami’s forte was long-sleeved baggy shirts and ripped jeans. Of course, they all looked good on him.

Harukawa was still into blacks and reds. She got some crop-tops, some hoodies, and even some sleeveless shirts. She had asked Amami where he found some black ripped jeans, and she got a pair of those as well. 

Of course, most of Kaito’s clothes were space-themed. Tons and tons of galaxy shirts, along with a couple jackets for him to throw over his shoulders. Even though I would never wear something like that, somehow he managed to pull it off.

I was next to go. The first thing I tried on was a white collared shirt with a blue low-hanging sweater on top of it, combined with some light-gray pants. I was glad when it ended up fitting well, since this was a combination I thought looked really good on me. Next, I tried on a gray hoodie with some tan pants. It looked basic, but everybody told me I should keep it. There was also a stone-gray turtleneck and an orange jacket I tried on for when it was really cold outside. I threw some shorts into the mix, too. 

Oma was the last to go. I wasn’t really sure what his style would be like. Whenever he was around the house, he was just wearing plain clothing; no patterns or anything. It was strange seeing him without his checkered pattern. 

He was taking a little while to change; probably because putting on the pants was hard for him. None of us minded (except maybe Harukawa), though. He opened the door, and I smiled when I saw his first outfit. He was wearing a lilac turtleneck with a white jacket over it, and some black pants. 

“That looks good on you, Oma-kun.” I voiced my opinion first. Oma nodded and waited for everyone else to give their opinions before wheeling himself back in to try on the next outfit. His next outfit surprised me a bit. He wore a black shirt with a white crop-top that covered his neck with high-waisted, dark purple shorts and a checkered belt. 

“You sure know how to style, Oma.” Amami said. “You look great.”

“That definitely suits you!” Kaede agreed. Oma nodded again and looked at me. I was a little busy gazing at his exposed legs, and I cleared my throat before giving my answer.

“Y-Yeah! You look amazing, Oma-kun.” I rubbed my cheeks, and Oma went to try on another outfit.

The last outfit he tried on was a white hoodie with a pink hood, some light-gray pants. I saw he had more in his basket, but when I asked if he wanted to try them on, he just shook his head. I was a little disappointed; I liked seeing Oma in all those different outfits.

Thankfully all of the stores were equipped with self-checkout, so there weren’t any employees necessary. We walked out of the store, bags in hand, and debated where we should go next.

“Let’s just walk around, and if there’s a store we find interesting, we can go inside.” Kaede said. Everybody was happy with that idea.

As we walked, I noticed that Oma seemed to be struggling with wheeling himself. His bag was placed on his lap, and it seemed to be blocking his arms a bit.

“Oma-kun, do you want me to hold your bag for you?” I asked. Oma looked at me and wordlessly nodded. I took his bag, and that allowed Oma to wheel himself a lot easier.

I decided, since I was right next to him, I might as well start a conversation. Even if he can only say so much. “So…is there anything in particular you want to find here?”

“Yes.” He answered, keeping his eyes focused on the path in front of him.

“That’s good. I basically just wanted clothes, so I already have all I need.” I said, chuckling a bit. Oma nodded, showing that he heard me. I slowly registered the fact that ever since Oma woke up, I’d never seen him smile before. He should be able to, right? So why hasn’t he?

My thoughts were interrupted by Kaito pointing out one of those weird shops with crystals and stuff. Amami thought it was interesting too, so we all went in. 

I didn’t really see anything worth buying while I was inside. I mean, it was just chunks of crystal and smooth rocks as far as the eye could see. I didn’t want to pay money for that. Harukawa felt the same as me, but everybody else was looking around.

Kaito and Amami had bought a few things, and I noticed Oma also had a tiny bag resting on his lap. I was a little curious as to what he’d bought, but I figured he wouldn’t tell me, anyway. 

The rest of our shopping trip wasn’t too extravagant. We stopped to eat sometime through the day, and we found a couple more stores that we liked. I didn’t buy anything other than my clothes, since I didn’t want to waste any money. Harukawa bought a pocket knife that she found really interesting, and Kaede bought some new hairclips.

“Thanks for inviting us to join you, man!” Kaito said to Amami as we were walking back. The green-haired boy chuckled.

“It was my pleasure. It’s always good to hang out with friends.”

Kaede nodded as she joined into the conversation. “Yeah! It was super nice to spend time with you all.”

“We should do this again sometime!” Kaito pronounced. “Maybe go out to eat or something!”

We quickly made it back to our house, and everybody parted ways. Harukawa and Kaito left to go do something, and Kaede gave Amami a big hug goodbye. She waved to Oma and I, and we waved back. Amami was the next to leave.

Oma and I were alone, and he was staring at me.

“Um…is there something you want, Oma-kun?” I asked, feeling a little awkward. I mean, sure, I had been the one staring at him all day, but at least I had other people around me.

Without a word, he handed me the small bag he got from the rock shop and wheeled away. I stared at the gift, dumbfounded. Did he buy something there for me? Why would he do that?

I decided to investigate. Quickly going to my room, first I hung up all my new clothes. Then I sat down at my desk and opened up the bag. Inside was a small box, so I opened that, too. The box held a single, shining, blue moonstone. 

Why would Oma-kun get me a moonstone? Does it have a secret meaning, or something? I wondered. Thinking over my words, I quickly grabbed my laptop and booted it up. Searching ‘moonstone meaning’, I quickly found my answer.

‘Moonstone holds a strong sense of secrecy and mystery.’ Well, that definitely sounds like Oma-kun. I thought. ‘It is considered a stone that bears truth from within. As a gift, it was favored between lovers as a symbol of passion.’

The last passage made my cheeks heat up. Lovers…? Passion!? Why would Oma-kun give me this? Is he just trying to mess with me? O-Or does he really… The thought made me flare up even more.

Why am I reacting this way…? I never reacted like this to him before… Suddenly, the conversation I had with Amami reappeared in my mind. 

Don’t tell me…do I really…like Oma-kun?

Chapter Text

If the gods had suddenly decided to curse me for all the wrongdoings of my past, I wouldn’t have been surprised; because nothing was going my way.

Sure, it was easy enough to admit I had feelings for Oma. It was just a small, measly, insignificant crush. I’d had a crush on Kaede when I first met her; and Kaito was painfully charming during the killing game, as well. I was bisexual, and I knew that. Oma was just another person in my list of highschool crushes.

Except that my feelings for him didn’t go away as easily as the others. For Kaede and Kaito, it only took a couple of days- maybe a week. But so far it had been three weeks since I’d first had my revelation.

And things were only getting worse.

He was learning. He was speaking more. He was moving more. Even though he still hadn’t smiled yet, every time his eyes glistened in amusement at the dinner table, I could feel my heart beating in my chest; louder than before. I started taking notice of the little things; how he fiddled with his hair when he was nervous, how no matter what he wore it always covered his neck, how every meal had something sweet in it. He was interesting; he was captivating. It was too bad he was so busy.

I liked that he had friends- he needed them after the killing game. But he was spending so much time with Kaito, Gokuhara, Amami, and a few others that I didn’t feel special. Back then, it was just us. Oma and me. Together. Maybe I wasn’t all that great to him after all…maybe I was just another friend to him.

I decided that I needed to get Oma to notice me; just like he’d tried to do with me back in the killing game. I needed to do something that would grab his attention. Something that would make me irresistible to somebody like him.

I had to flirt.

How I wish I could have just grabbed a book from our in-house library, but it wasn’t that easy. There were no books of any kind, and my online research was just…creepy. I had to experiment on my own. First, I would start simple: Compliment him. Lots. Oma wasn’t used to compliments, so maybe it would pique his interest in me.

I was in the living room, pretending to read a book. Secretly, I was waiting for Oma to appear so I could ambush him. Thankfully, he was alone when he wheeled himself into the room. I immediately closed the book and put it down, not even bothering to place a bookmark in. It’s not like I was actually reading it, anyway.

“Hi, Oma-kun! You look super cute today.” I said. Inside, I wanted to slap myself. Cute!? Are you kidding me!? That’s the word you went with? Oh, great going, Shuichi!

Oma looked at me and replied with a simple, “Thanks.”

Okay…at least he wasn’t weirded out by it. I let out a sigh of relief. Then I realized I had to keep Oma’s attention before he got bored and left. 

“Um, Oma-kun, I really like your…bracelet.” I scanned his body before my eyes landed on the threads around his wrist. It looked sloppy- like it could break apart at any second. Oma looked down at it before nodding and wheeling over to me and stretching out his wrist so I could see it better.

“Gonta-chan did it.” He told me. That explained why it looked so messy. Gokuhara had started taking an interest in crafts, and apparently he decided to make a friendship bracelet for Oma. I smiled, but I felt a tinge of jealousy.

“It looks great on you, just like everything else you wear.” I said, trying to keep my tone sounding cheerful and genuine. Oma raised an eyebrow at me.

“You’re being weird.” He said. Oh no…

“W-Weird?” I repeated. “Weird how?”

Oma didn’t reply; he just stared at me. Like he was debating over whether or not he should say it. After a couple beats of silence, he just shrugged. “It’s nothing. Doesn’t matter.”

With that, he turned and started to wheel towards the kitchen, where I’m assuming was his original destination. I sighed. This was a failure.

‘It’s okay if you can’t understand it right away. Sometimes people do weird things because…they get a new perspective! Maybe try figuring out his perspective before you start saying all those things…’

Are you saying I’m rude for thinking that?

‘Ah- I’m not! I just…think that maybe you don’t have all the pieces yet…sorry, I probably sound super lame right now…’

Yeah, super lame.

The next day I tried something new, but simple: gift giving. Oma already knew I was a big gift-giver from the game, so this wouldn’t be ‘weird’, but it would still be surprising enough.

I knocked on the door to his room, a bottle of Panta in my hand. I heard from Kaede that it was his favorite drink, so I decided to buy him some. The bottle was cold as I gripped it, hoping it wouldn’t slip out of my fingers.

Oma opened the door, then wheeled himself back a little to give us some distance. “Hi, Saihara-chan.” He greeted me. It was always so amazing whenever he said my name. I got butterflies and couldn’t help but grin like an idiot. His voice was sounding more clear nowadays; and he was going to physical therapy less. That meant more time for him to hang out with all his other friends...and not me.

“Hey, Oma-kun. Um…” I glanced down at the bottle of Panta, before I showed it to him. “I saw this at the store earlier, and remembered how much you liked it, so I bought it for you.”

Oma stared at the drink, the sugary bubbles swirling to the top of the bottle. “...Is this a thank you?”

“Hmm?” I was a bit caught off-guard. “A thank you for what?”

“The stone.” He said, as if it was obvious. 

“Oh! The moonstone…yeah, I guess it could be a thank you for that, but I also just wanted to give this to you! Because…you’re special to me.” I blushed as I spoke; but I couldn’t help it. I guess I was still in the mood to compliment him. 

“Spe-Sp…mm…” Oma looked away. It seems ‘special’ wasn’t in his vocabulary yet. His frown grew.

“Hey, it’s okay. You’re still learning, Oma-kun.” I said, trying to lift his mood. I wanted to reach out- to comfort him, but I didn’t know if he would be okay with that.

“I know.” He muttered. He was refusing to look at me; it hurt. “It’s fine. I’m still le-l-lear..earning. Like you said.”

“Mm.” Nodding, I extended my hand with the Panta. Oma looked back at me and slowly took the drink from my hands.

“Thanks. You can go now; ‘m busy.” He kept his eyes on the drink, even though he was speaking to me. Why was he looking away?

“O-Oh, yeah…sure thing…” Even though I was able to slightly comfort Oma, I don’t think it made him like me any more. This was yet another failure.

‘Don’t overthink things. If he’s anything like I remember, he truly meant it! He was never a liar.’

…

‘Ah- I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that! Y-You know I never mean to insult you…I’m sorry. Will you forgive me?’

…Sure. I mean, it’d just be stupid to ignore you.

New day, new attempt. This time I was going to get physical. Not in that really creepy, pervy way; I would just give him the occasional high-five, or pat on the shoulder when he did something well. Always good to start off small, y’know?

“Saihara-chan.” This time, it was Oma that came up to me. I was a little surprised, but it wasn’t like this ruined my plan. In fact, maybe it helped it. I was helping Tojo make dinner for everybody when he wheeled over to me.

“Hey, Oma-kun!” I greeted him with a big smile. “What is it? Do you want to help with cooking, too?”

Oma shook his head. “I wanna show you something.”

Setting down the knife I’d been using to peel the potatoes, I turned around so I could give Oma my full attention. For a while he said nothing; just staring at me. Then, I saw him take in a large breath of air.

“That looks…sp-spe-special...” Oma made sure to space out the word ‘special’. The word that the day before, he hadn’t been able to say. Had he spent his therapy today learning how to say that word? The thought of it made my stomach flutter once again.

“Yeah…you are, Oma-kun. You’re a great friend.” My hand twitched when I realized I’d just friendzoned the man I was trying to get to like me. In quick hopes to salvage it, I was about to reach out to him, but he moved his body to the side. He rejected it.

“I’m gon' go now. Rantaro-chan wants to meet.” His voice was lower as his hands gripped the wheels of his chair. 

“Oh…okay. Have a good time, Oma-kun.” By the time I’d said that, he was already leaving. I frowned, and grabbed the peeling knife again. Did I screw up? 

“Did I just hear Oma-kun?” Tojo asked, peeping her head in from her part of the kitchen.

“Uh, yeah. But he’s gone now; Amami-kun invited him to hang out.” I explained. I didn’t give the details of what happened during our encounter.

“I heard you two talking. Sorry if that conversation was supposed to be private.”

“No, it’s fine…it’s not like we were talking about anything super embarrassing.” I grabbed one of the few potatoes that were still left unpeeled and began to slowly glide the knife across it. It was a nice distraction; talking to Tojo and prepping food- but I’d have to make sure I was careful with the knife. I already knew how dangerous they were from when…

NO! Don’t think about Oma-kun right now! I stopped peeling for safety, and violently shook my head. If I thought about Oma any more right now I’d either start feeling sad or way too excited.

Tojo continued the conversation we were having. “I see, well I’m glad that’s the case. Although, I think there’s something unresolved between you two.”

“Unresolved?” I started peeling the potato again. “What do you mean? Oma-kun and I have started over; we’re friends now.”

“Of course, I understand that, but I feel like Oma-kun is keeping a certain distance. After all, you’re his only friend that he still uses the surname of.”

My knife slipped. Thankfully it didn’t cut me and only sliced off a big chunk of the potato. Tojo had no idea that I had no idea that was the case. Since I called Kaede and Kaito by their given names, I didn’t really notice when Oma started to do it. And since Gokuhara is always referring to himself in the third-person I didn’t notice that one either. Amami was the only one I had no excuse for.

She’s right…I’m still just ‘Saihara-chan’! But I’ve been his friend for the longest time! How is that- that isn’t fair! Why am I the only one?

“Saihara-kun?” Tojo called out to me. I didn’t notice I even spaced out. I cleared my throat.

“Y-Yeah?”

“You can go talk to him if you’d like. I can finish peeling the potatoes.” She offered. I appreciated that she wanted to help out, but I had a feeling Oma wouldn’t want to see me. Besides, he was with Amami. Supposedly.

“No, it’s fine. I can talk to him tomorrow.”

‘You don’t know that’s what he meant by it. He could have just been cautious. I mean, we can’t really blame him, right? You know how he is! Better than I do, probably…this isn’t out of the ordinary for him, is it?

Not really, but it’s just not fair!

‘Why not? Aren’t you doing the same thing to him?’

Well I actually have a good reason for it! What does he have?

‘Nervousness and doubt, maybe? Talk to him; that’s always the best way!’

How do you know? You’re trash at communication.

‘Ah- well, that’s- um…you’re not wrong…”

…I can talk to him tomorrow.

I handed Hoshi’s book back to him. “Thanks for letting me read this, Hoshi-kun. It was super interesting- all those crime scenes and mysteries. Where did you find this?”

“Don’t mention it.” Hoshi said, taking the book from my hands. “It’s important not to let a good book go to waste. It was brought in with my stuff when we first moved in here. Gave it a read and thought you might like it.”

“Well, I am the Ultimate Detective.” I replied. Hoshi gave a huff- or maybe a chuckle, and I went on my way. Hoshi wasn’t a huge communicator, but it was still nice to have small chats with him.

Today was a busy day. Everybody was in a good mood and hanging out together around the bottom floor. No matter where I looked, I always saw somebody doing something. Tojo, Gokuhara, Kaede, and Amami were making pastries in the kitchen, Yonaga, Keebo, and Shinguji were painting together, Keebo, Iruma, and Yumeno were playing video games, and…well, there was a lot of activity.

I was hopping around from group to group, catching up with some people and making sure they were all having a good time. I didn’t know why, but I felt a need to keep track of who was in which room. It was like something was wrong; or something was missing.

“Saihara-kun!” Gokuhara walked out of the kitchen towards me, a small plate with a pastry in hand. “We finished making treats! Want one?”

“Oh, hi Gokuhara-kun! What did you make?” I asked, trying to identify the pastry before he handed it to me.

“We made ‘muffins’! They look really yummy!” Once he said it, the smell of a perfectly baked chocolate-chip muffin wafted through the air. I hummed, the smell clearing my head and making my worries feel light.

“I’d love to try it. Are you bringing some for the others, too?” I asked, taking the plate off Gokuhara’s hands. He nodded.

“Yeah, we are! But Gonta wanted Saihara-kun to be first to try one.” Gokuhara smiled at me. I returned the favor before grabbing the muffin. It was still warm, but not hot enough to burn my fingers. I took the first bite, and I once again began to appreciate the fact Tojo still continues to cook and bake for us. Her recipes were unreal.

“They’re amazing.” I said once I’d swallowed the bite in my mouth. “You all did great on them!”

“Thank you! I hope Oma-kun likes them, too.”

Oma-kun? Where is he, anyway? I haven’t seen him…anywhere.

Now I knew why I felt the strange need to scan everybody in the room. It’s because freaking Oma was being a no-show! Where was he!? In the library? The garden? Is his room?

His room- his room! He has to be in his room! 

“Uh, Gokuhara-kun, I could bring Oma-kun his muffin! That way you could serve the people down here and become better friends with them!” I offered. I felt bad that I was using Gokuhara for my own personal gain, but really? As long as I got alone time with Oma, I could regret my decisions later. Right now, I had to keep on trying. Keep getting his attention. Keep. On. Flirting.

Oh, and talk to him about the names. That too.

Chapter Text

First things first: Thank you guys so much for 100 Kudos! I can't believe a simple 'why not' project like this has made such an achievement! I'm so honored!

Second note of business: I'm going on a trip to Disneyland, so for the next five days I won't have access to my computer, ergo, no access to Ao3. There will be no updates for the next 5 days, and sadly this means I won't have enough time to make something special for Kokichi's birthday coming up. I haven't really had the motivation to write anything for the last couple of days, so even when I get back, I might not have written another chapter for you guys. I'm sorry, but you'll just have to be patient and wait for me to get back and find my will to write.

So...HAPPY BIRTHDAY KOKICHI!

And I really hope you guys will have a wonderful week! I'll come out with the next chapter as soon as I possibly can! I love you guys! <3

Chapter Text

I was standing in front of Oma's door, plate and muffin in hand. I wasn't sure if I should knock or not. If I knocked it could scare him and make him upset, but if I didn't, I might walk in on something private. Maybe he was changing his clothes or something! On second thought, I shouldn't have mentioned changing clothes, because now I had images flooding into my brain. I had to get rid of those before I walked into his room.

This is nothing you need to freak out about, Shuichi; you've walked into his room tons of times! There's nothing weird about walking into a room! Just knock!

My knuckles tapped against the door three times. I rubbed them as I anxiously waited for a response. Once I heard a faint "Come in.", I grabbed the handle and turned it.

"Sorry to intrude." I opened the door and saw Oma sitting on his bed, legs crossed, with his wheelchair waiting on the side. We made eye contact, and Oma's face shifted into something I couldn't quite catch.

"Saihara-chan." Oma greeted me. "To what do I owe the pl…uh…why are you here?"

His change in sentence was most likely because he hadn't learned how to say 'pleasure'. I extended the hand holding the plate. "Tojo-san and some others made muffins. They're handing them out, so I came to deliver yours."

Oma's palms gripped the mattress, and using his arms, he twisted himself so he was now facing the edge of the bed- and facing me. "That sounds like lots of work."

"It's not like I had to walk very far." I reasoned, walking closer to place the muffin on the bed.

"It's a chocolate chip one." Oma said, looking at the pastry next to him.

"Yeah, it is." I replied with a nod. Instinct told me this would be the point where awkward silence would ensue, so I quickly continued. "Um, could I sit for a moment?"

"Why?" Oma asked, tilting his head back up at me.

"Oh, you know. My legs are so tired from all that walking." I joked, smirking to clearly tell Oma I wasn't being serious. He must have caught on very quickly, because I saw his eyes glisten with humor. He gestured to a spot on the mattress on the other side of the muffin.

"Then by all means; rest yourself." Once I was given permission, I sat on the edge of the bed. It was soft and comfortable, and my body sank a bit; kinda like quicksand.

"Thanks, this really helps." I forced out a content sigh. 

"Glad to help you, Saihara-chan." Oma grabbed the muffin, turning it in his hands. Once he found the perfect spot, he took his first bite. I watched and waited as he chewed, and once he swallowed, he looked back at me. "It's good."

I smiled, knowing he would say that. "Tojo-san made it, so there wasn't much doubt to begin with."

Oma hummed as he took another bite. His eating didn't give much room for conversation, but I didn't mind. Being near Oma calmed my nerves, which was a pretty new experience. Usually when I'm near him my heartbeat would skyrocket.

I patiently waited until Oma was done with his muffin. He wiped the crumbs off of his shirt and placed the plate on his nightstand. "Kirumi-san makes really good treats."

"She…really does, Oma-kun." My hands found their place on my knees, and I gave them a firm squeeze. He's even using Tojo-san's given name? Why am I the only one?

"Uh, you…" I racked my brain, trying to think of something to say. If we were left in silence, then I'd end up thinking too hard, and that might lead to my anxiety acting up. "How's physical therapy going?"

"Eh, it's fine." Oma shrugged as he smoothed out his shirt, double-checking for any muffin crumbs. "I can move my feet now; though that's not much help if I can't move my ankles."

"That's still really great progress, Oma-kun. How is Nori-san?"

"Saya-san's doing good." He replied.

"Saya-san?" I repeated curiously. "I asked about Nori-san."

"Yeah, that's her name." He replied. "Did you not know that?"

"Um…" I squoze my knees again, grounding myself. "No, I didnt…Oma-kun…could I ask you something?"

"I guess. You sure like changing the su-ubject, don't you?" His voice was tinted with sarcasm, and he turned his head to give me his full attention. "So, what's up?"

I really didn't want to hurt Oma's feelings. What if I told him and he blew up at me? That would ruin any chances I could have had! Though, if I let this continue, I might get angry at him. It's best to just let him know what I'm thinking.

"I've noticed that you haven't been calling me by my first name." I said. I didn't want to look directly at him, so I opted for staring at my knees. "Normally I wouldn't mind, but you've been using given names for everybody else, and…I just want to know why."

I didn't hear Oma's voice for a while. It was quiet, aside from the sheets rustling whenever one of us made a slight movement. I was starting to slightly regret my choice of telling him, but then I finally got a reply.

"I didn't know you were mad about that." His voice sounded unsure, or even anxious. The chance that he felt the same way I did gave me enough courage to raise my head.

"I'm not…mad. I'm just confused. Is it because I never said you could? Because you totally can! If you want!" I was glad I decided to wear shorts today, because if I hadn't, the wrinkles would have made obvious just how hard my hands were squeezing my knees.

"It's not that…" Oma muttered. "I just…well…it's hard to say it."

"Then write it." I offered. Oma's eyebrows raised as the thought came to him. He glanced at me in surprise, before leaning over towards the nightstand and grabbing his notebook and pencil.

He stared at the paper, thinking about what to write. I didn't want to stare at him like a creep, so I looked around his room. After a minute I felt a tap on my shoulder. Turning around, the words were right in front of my face 

I don't want to hurt you.

I had to think about what I wanted to say in reply. If I said the wrong thing, Oma could completely close off on me. I couldn't just spout out words the way I'm used to.

"Why would you think that?" I kept my voice soft to try and keep the situation calm. "Is this about getting close to me?"

Oma gave a quick nod. "I thought…if I kept you at dis-istance, I wouldn't get a chance to hurt you…like I did before."

"Before?"

"In the game." He said the words quickly, clearly wanting to gloss over them. "I toyed with you, I tricked you, and I never even told you why."

So it's guilt…I should have known he'd have some with him- Of course he would! 

An idea popped into my brain without any warning. It could either go very well, or very poorly. There was only one way to find out, so I put an innocent smile on my face. "Oma-kun, what are you talking about?"

He looked at me like I was crazy. He didn't get it yet, so I continued. "None of that stuff ever happened; because we've started over. Haven't we?"

Recognition spread across his face. He stared at me with a stunned expression, not sure how to reply. I decided to throw in a light-hearted callout. "Aren't you the one who told me to keep to the promise?"

"You-" Oma stuttered at me. I could tell his brain was scrambling to find the right response, and I had to admit, it was pretty amusing catching him off-guard.

Of course, the second I had that thought, he switched the roles and caught me off-guard by throwing his arms around me and pulling me into a hug. My chin hit the top of his head as he buried his face in my shoulder. His lilac-colored hair tickled my skin, and I could feel his breath heating up my shirt. He gave me a gentle squeeze, and once I'd recovered, I wrapped my arms around his waist, solidifying the hug.

"Idiot." He mumbled. I was just able to catch his words. "You're such an idiot, Shuichi-chan."

I could feel my heart leap in my chest. I smiled, and rested my head atop of his. "Yeah." I whispered. "Yeah, I know."

We stayed just like that; holding each other close in- for once- a comfortable silence. It was clear we were both thinking of something to say, but nothing really sounded right in the moment.

"That felt nice." I felt Oma tilt his head so his words could be heard more clearly.

"What did?" I asked, my eyes looking over his hair. I was really getting used to this new color; it was pleasant to look at.

"Saying your name." He replied. "Wanted to use it for a long time."

"Really? How long?" I felt my cheeks heating up the more he talked to me. This crush really wasn't going to leave for a while, huh?

"Ever since I first learned your name." Oma's hands moved to a more comfortable spot, and I had to keep myself from making an embarrassing noise. I could still feel his cheek against mine, and I felt it lift upwards; a motion I was familiar with. Oma was smiling. I'd never seen him smile ever since he woke up, but he was doing it now; here with me. That alone made my grin widen even more. I was glad he wasn't against my chest, otherwise I would have been busted long ago. 

I'm glad things turned out this way. I thought. As my head rested on Oma's, I picked up a light scent of coconut and lavender. It must have been the scent of his shampoo.

Oma started to hum, and I could feel his muscles start to lose tension. He didn't hum a tune to a song, or anything I'd recognize; he just hummed to fill in the space. A soft, gentle buzzing that influenced my eyes to close. Now that he wasn't shouting profanities at anybody, his voice was incredibly soothing. If I wasn't careful, I might fall asleep.

Turns out, I wasn't careful at all, because before I knew it, I was opening my eyes. They had that pleasant sting of just waking up from a good nap, and it took me a minute to fully take notice of where I was.

I was in a bed that looked similar to my own. I was lying on top of the sheets, and I strangely felt warmer than usual. Somehow, the last thing I noticed was Oma sleeping next to me, one arm gripping onto my shoulder, and the other sprawled across my chest. 

Normally, I would have freaked out. I would have jumped and shouted, waking Oma up and causing him to scold me. However, because my brain was still waking up, the only thing I could process was how cute he looked. He was totally calm, his features relaxed, and even peaceful. His pale skin and light hair gave him an innocent aura, and he was nuzzled comfortably onto the pillow.

Oma-kun… Without thinking, I lifted my left hand and placed it gently on his head. My fingers laced through his hair, and I could see Oma relax even further into the mattress. It's soft…I can see why he plays with it.

Oma made a soft groan, and his eyes fluttered open slowly. I didn't stop playing with his hair as he noticed me. "Sai..mmm…Shuichi-chan…?"

"Hey." I whispered, my eyelids were lowered, and I smiled softly.

"Why are you…in my bed?" He asked, the hand on my chest smoothing and slightly pinching my shirt.

"I don't know…but I don't mind it." I spoke my thoughts clearly. I don't know how I hadn't broken out of my haze yet, but it appeared Oma hadn't either, because he spoke without thinking, too.

"Me ne-either. I like you, Shuichi-chan." Oma's hands used their weight to pull his body closer. Now his head was on my chest, and I could see his body lifting with every breath I took. I wondered if he could hear my quickening heartbeat. "So much…"

My hands unconsciously moved to rest on his back as his moved onto both of my shoulders. His eyes made contact with mine, and we smiled. Seeing his face move in the way I hadn't seen in so long felt amazing. It felt like I had everything I wanted, right here.

"You look so cute like this..." I muttered, moving my hands in a circle pattern along his back. He hummed pleasantly at the action.

"You're cuter than I am…just look at that messy hair." One of his hands moved up to my head, grabbing a strand of hair between his fingers and twisting it slowly. The scene felt intimate; and it felt good. I wanted to lean in; to gently grab him and pull him closer. I wanted to kiss him; to feel his lips on mine. What would that feel like?

I was thinking too much too early, and Oma could see that. Using his hands once more to lift himself up, he leaned in close and placed his lips against my cheek.

"You should go." He whispered, since we were now in such close range. "Before someone sees us."

I wish I could have processed what happened right then and there, but there was just no way. "Yeah, I…probably should." I didn't want to. I wanted to stay right here in bed with him, and hold him tight until we were forced to leave. But I left anyway, because he told me too.

I was so smitten that I'd do anything he asked.

Chapter Text

“And then he kissed my cheek!” I screamed, my face buried in my hands in utter humiliation. I’d come to my senses about three minutes after I entered my room, and I haven’t left it since. Kaede and Keebo had brought me my dinner, and now they were hearing all about why I didn’t feel like coming down. “There’s no way I can face him after that! What would I say? What would he say? I can’t, there’s just no way!”

“That…makes perfect sense.” Keebo commented, looking awkward and out of place. “Oma-kun was refusing to make eye contact with anybody, and left the moment he finished his food. Something was clearly bothering him.”

“So it did bug him- I should have known!” My anxiety was growing as my mind spiraled, thinking of every worst-case scenario. “He probably thinks I’m a gross pervert now!”

“I’m sure Oma-kun doesn’t think that.” Kaede tried to reassure me. She kept her distance so as to not potentially scare me, which I appreciated. “He kissed you, right? So doesn’t that mean there’s a chance he likes you, and is having the same thoughts you are?”

I hadn’t thought of that. I had a habit of constantly hopping to the bad and skipping over the good. My hands lowered so I could look at my two friends. “...Maybe. Should I…talk to him tomorrow?”

“That could be good. It’d be very bad if awkwardness settled between you two.” Keebo nodded, smiling encouragingly. “I think he’d be happy to know you were so worried about this.”

“Really?” I asked. “He won’t just think I’m weird?”

Kaede’s eyebrows raised in surprise. Was that the wrong thing for me to say? “No way! Anybody would be happy knowing somebody they cared for was worried about their feelings!”

“Oma-kun…cares about me…?” I knew that we were getting closer, but Oma was never the type to openly show his thoughts about somebody. He shared enough so that he was either annoying or endearing, but that was it. He never went too deep into relationships, and that was one of the reasons I was having such a hard time with my feelings. Oma and Kaede seemed like they were very close, so he’d probably talked about me with her.

“He sure does. We talk about you a lot when we’re hanging out.” Kaede’s response confirmed my previous thought. I felt a mix of happiness that Oma talked about me, and slight annoyance that he could tell Kaede how he felt about me, but not tell me to my face.

I could feel my anxiety backing away. I once again felt glad that Kaede and Keebo had decided to be the ones to deliver my food. They always helped calm me down and feel better when my nerves were getting the better of me. I smiled at the two of them, and they returned the gesture. “Thank you two. I think I’m feeling brave enough to talk to Oma-kun tomorrow.”

“Attaboy, Shuichi!” Kaede exclaimed, fist clenching strongly. Keebo gave me a thumbs up, his eyes gleaming at me proudly. I was really lucky they were my friends. I definitely needed to spend more time with them in the future.

Keebo got up from my desk chair where he’d seated himself for our conversation. He wiped his hands over his legs, even though he didn’t have any wrinkles or dust to speak of in that area. “Well, we should probably head back down. We’ve already been gone for a suspicious amount of time.”

“Oh, right! For a moment I forgot we were supposed to just deliver food.” Kaede quickly got up to follow Keebo to the door. The three of us said our goodbyes, and soon enough I was left alone with my meal. It was still warm, and the chicken- which was what Tojo had made for dinner- was still nice and juicy, with barely any fat to speak of.

Who needs to go to a restaurant when you live with the Ultimate Maid? I thought to myself as I placed another asparagus in my mouth. I had no idea what spices she used to make things taste so heavenly.

How should I go about talking to Oma-kun? Since I had now calmed down and had an entire room to myself to think, I did just that. With every bite of the meal I took, I thought some more. I could write him a card…? No, that might make it look like I’m ignoring him. Send him a text…? Does Oma-kun even own a phone? Maybe I could buy one for him; I’m sure he would appreciate that. I mean, I have enough money to spare from winning the game…

Not long ago, members of Team Danganronpa had deposited the money Harukawa, Yumeno, and I had won from winning the killing game into our bank accounts. I decided not to ask how they had that sort of information and access, and just accepted the gift. It got them to leave us alone faster, so it was better that way.

Of course, if I offer to buy him a phone he might take that as me flexing how much money I have…maybe it would be better to just take him shopping…? No, I’ve already done that! I can’t go reusing Amami-kun and Kaede-san’s ideas! I have to be original! Maybe take him out to dinner! But what if he still can’t stomach hard foods like they have at restaurants? I don’t want him to feel limited! What should I do…?

I tried to stab another piece of chicken, only to hear the loud and unwanted sound of a fork hitting a plate. I cringed and looked down to find that the plate was empty. I’d finished my food without even realizing it. Sighing, I realized I’d have to walk downstairs to place my dishes in the sink. Hopefully Oma was staying in his room, and we wouldn’t cross paths.

“I don’t really remember what hap-appened after I fell asleep on him.” I mumbled as I laid, staring up at the ceiling from my bed. My hands were comfortably placed behind my head as I spoke to him. “I’m pretty sure I woke up at some point, but I don’t exa-actly know what went down.”

“I remember.” He said as he sat beside me on one of my extra pillows. “I could tell you…if you want.”

“Nahh, don’t bother.” I waved him off. “I want to hear it from Shuichi-chan’s mouth. It’ll be like a test!”

“A test?” He tilted his head in confusion, like a puppy. He seemed to do that a lot. Is that where I got it from?

“Mhmmmm!” I dragged out the noise until I felt satisfied. “If he tells me, that means he’s worthy of my af-f-fection! But if he doesn’t, you can tell me instead!” I flashed him a quick smile, but then my cheeks hurt, so I stopped. He gave me a soft grin of his own.

“I can sort of understand that logic. You’re a good planner.” He complimented. He gave out a lot of those, and it really helped boost my ego. If he wasn’t around so much, my personality probably wouldn’t have recovered as quickly as it did. Or…was. I don’t know if I’d ever go back to the way I was in the game. I didn’t want to; at least in certain areas.

“I know I am! And once I can move my legs again, things will be even easier! I can go visit Shuichi-chan whenever I want quicker, and we could go to the park!” Ever since I could start dreaming again, I’d been dreaming of going to the park with Shuichi. We were probably too old to go on the actual playground, but we could sit on the benches, or go on the swings. I’d like for Shuichi to push me on the swings.

“Can’t you go to the park now?” He asked. Clearly he didn’t understand that the park isn’t very fun when you’re confined to a wheelchair. Of course, he’d never been in one, so how would he know? I didn’t know until I was put in this stupid situation.

I put myself here. I reminded myself. There’s nobody else to blame but me.

He put a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t think that. Things are getting better for you, right?” 

I sighed and closed my eyes, not responding. I really didn’t understand this guy. How could somebody be so unimportant, yet so helpful? Of course, he knew I felt that way. There was no way he couldn’t know. His gaze shifted into one of guilt.

“I’m sorry I’m such a bother for you, but there’s really no way I can explain it.” He shrugged and glanced around the room nervously. “I’m just…me. But you should know that I’ll always be here if you need any help.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” I rolled my eyes for dramatic effect. “You’ll come right here if I holler loud enough. You’re reliable, Yowamushi.”

He let out a light chuckle, as his guilt seemed to fade from his face. His mood changed very quickly, just like mine did. We were similar in that way. “Thanks, Kokichi. I’m glad I can be of some use to you this way.”

I steadied my breathing as I tried to finish the chapter I was currently reading. Once I’d finished this chapter, I would leave my room and try to find Oma. I would apologize and explain everything, and pray that he would forgive me. Our soon-to-come encounter was all I could think about, so I was barely paying any attention to the words in front of me.

Man, I really hate anxiety. That thought broke me out of my ‘worried about Oma’ state just enough to be able to take notice of the letters on the pages again. I continued reading, trying to quickly flip through the pages so I would finish faster. The sooner I talked with Oma, the sooner I wouldn’t have to freak out over it anymore.

And done! The book closed with a satisfying clap and I grinned to myself as I placed it on my nightstand. The time was now; I would find Oma and we would make amends! Hopefully…probably…maybe…I needed to stop this train of thought.

Either the gods were blessing me or cursing me, because the second I opened my door and walked out into the hallway, I saw Oma doing the exact same thing from the corner of my eye. I jumped in surprise as the two of us made eye contact.

“Shuichi-chan.” Oma greeted me with his usual blank stare, though there was emotion in his eyes. I was too far away to make it out, however.

“Oma-kun.” I greeted him back, trying to smile and show him I wasn’t upset or nervous in any way. Except I was actually extremely nervous. “Could we talk for a minute?”

“Sure. Should we go down to the main floor or something?” He asked, grabbing onto the wheels of his wheelchair to start turning.

“That sounds good.” I agreed, and was about to make my way to the stairs, but then I saw Oma turn in the opposite direction of them, and I stopped. “Oma-kun, where are you going? The stairs are this way.”

Oma didn’t turn around to face me as he replied. It was probably too much unnecessary effort to do so. “I can’t go down the stairs.” The moment he said that, I felt stupid. He was in a wheelchair, how did I expect him to be able to go down the stairs?

That made a question pop into my head. “Wait, then how do you get down? I’ve never seen a special ramp or anything installed for you.” Abandoning the stairs, I quickly jogged to his side.

“It’s pretty well-hidden; I’m not shocked you never saw it before.” Oma started to wheel down the hallway, and I followed him until we were at the end. I stared at the wall, trying to find the thing Oma was referring to, until I saw the lines indicating a door. It was the same shade as the walls. Oma was right; it was well-hidden.

“Is this…an elevator?” I asked as the doors opened. Were they sensor-activated or something? There was no button in sight! Oma wheeled in without second thought, but I hesitated for a moment. I wasn’t handicapped, so was I allowed to go in there? And would there even be enough room?

“Come on, Shuichi-chan! Get in before it closes!” Oma exclaimed, raising his voice. We weren’t too far away, so I didn’t understand why he felt the need to shout. I nodded and walked into the elevator with him, quietly watching as Oma pushed a button and the doors closed in front of us.

“I’m a bit mad there’s no music in here.” Oma said as we rode down. I’d noticed the lack of music pretty early on, too, and I had to admit, the silence wasn’t very welcome. Music would have definitely made this less awkward for me.

“Yeah, it doesn’t really feel like an elevator if there’s no music.” I agreed, smiling at the humor Oma had brought out of me. He turned to look up at me and nodded, glad that I’d joined in.

“See? You get me. They can install cool futuristic stuff, but not music? How lame.” He let out a loud huff as he looked back at the doors. We’d come to our stop, and the doors slid open to reveal the main floor. I led Oma wheel himself out first before leaving the elevator myself.

“It’s nice they installed an elevator in here just for you.” I commented as I exited the elevator. The two of us were now on the hunt for somewhere we could have a private conversation.

“Yeah, but once I get out of this chair, it will be for everyone. I won’t need it all to myself anymore.” Oma said. That made me smile. That was really considerate of Oma.

We found a couch that was unused for the time being, and settled on that. We walked over and I sat on one of the cushions while Oma stayed to the side of the couch. Once we were situated, Oma spoke to me.

“So, what’s up, Shuichi-chan?” He asked. His eyes looked interested as he stared at me. I could feel myself getting nervous again, but I had to clear things up.

I inhaled a big breath, trying to gather up the courage I needed. “I’m…sorry for falling asleep in your bed last night. That made things really awkward for both of us when we woke up, and I should have been keeping better track of myself.”

Oma nodded once it was clear I was done speaking my thoughts. “It’s okay Shuichi-chan. I was a bit confused this morning, but I knew you didn’t do anything to me while I was asleep, so I was per-erfectly fine with it.” Oma’s voice was innocent as he spoke, and I could feel my cheeks getting hotter.

“Y-Yeah…thanks for not being upset, Oma-kun. I’m glad we could…talk over this.” I flashed him a wobbly smile, and he nodded, extending his hand. I accepted it, and we did a small handshake before Oma pulled away.

“Glad to chat with you, Shuichi-chan. Thanks for letting me know you were sorry.” Those words were basically a way of saying ‘the conversation is over now’, so after I gave him another smile and nod, I stood from the couch. I gave him one last wave goodbye, and decided to return to my room. It wasn’t like I’d made any plans for today.

When I turned, from the corner of my eye, I could see Oma watching me go, with a thankful smile on his face.

Chapter Text

I don't know how I went this long without talking to her. Maybe she was busy doing her own things. Maybe I was just conveniently not in the room when she was. But sadly, my luck just ran out today. I know I probably shouldn't be thinking about her that way, but talking to her was…hard. She didn't like to listen to anybody but herself, especially when she was wrong.

The woman in question was Iruma Miu.

I was minding my own business, reading a book in the library. It was just past lunchtime, and this was usually when everyone broke off into groups and hung out. Since the library was almost always empty during this time, this was when I always visited. I needed to restock my room with some better novels, so I was searching through the shelves. I had just finished searching through one, so I slipped into the next, and that's when she spotted me.

"Hey, it's Sadhara!" Iruma basically teleported in front of me, startling me so bad I nearly dropped my books. Thankfully I had a pretty good grip on them, so they only slipped a bit. After I recovered from the startle, I gave a reply.

"Ah…'Sadhara'? That's a new nickname, Iruma-san." I didn't really know what else to say. 

"Yeah, well last time I saw you you were totally depressed! Huge turn-off if you ask me." Iruma's reply at the end almost got a sigh out of me. Her dirty mouth definitely hasn't changed.

Depressed…? Ah, that must have been when I was blaming myself for Oma-kun's condition. Has it really been that long since we've seen each other?

"Well, I'm doing better now. There's no need for that nickname anymore, Iruma-san." Really. I didn't want her to call me that at the dinner table. That would lead to a very unnecessary and very awkward conversation with the rest of the group.

Iruma rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips. "Still a huge stick in the mud, huh? Whatever. Can you at least help me find what I'm looking for?"

It never even registered to me why Iruma was here in the first place. I didn't imagine she'd be looking for a book. "Oh, sure. What are you looking for?"

“Dirty mags, of course!” She shouted, as if it was the most simple equation in the math homework. I didn’t know why I was shocked- it was Iruma . Why else would she be in a library if not to find inappropriate magazines?

I sighed. A very small sigh, but still a sigh. “Iruma-san, I can confidently tell you that this library has nothing of the sort here. Sorry, but if you need something like that, you’re going to have to go buy it somewhere.”

“Then what’s the point in having a library here in the first place if I can’t find what I’m looking for!?” Iruma was getting upset now, teeth showing in a scowl I was very familiar with.

“Iruma-san, most of us aren’t even 18 yet, why would they supply dirty books here? It doesn’t make sense. And besides, libraries are full of lots of different books that you could enjoy. I could recommend some to you if you’d like.” I smiled, trying to offer her something that could potentially cheer her up. She didn’t want any of it though.

“I don’t want to read that vanilla crap!” She raised a hand, and for a moment I was afraid she’d try and slap my books out of my arms. Thankfully, she was just moving some hair out of her face. “This was such a waste of my precious time.” She muttered to herself.

“I’m…sorry you couldn’t find what you were looking for?” I tried to sound sincere, but I was incredibly confused. Why couldn’t Iruma just find another book to read? “Well, I need to go put these books in my room, because Oma-kun said he wanted to-”

“You’re hanging out with him?” Iruma cut me off. “Wait, actually I knew that. What I meant to say was: Why are you hanging out with him?”

I stuttered. “Wh…What do you mean, Iruma-san? Oma-kun isn’t a bad person. I can hang out with him if I want to.”

“He ‘isn't’ a bad person’?” Iruma’s expression shifted. I probably just angered her again. “He killed me! I died because of that abortion!”

“Whoa, okay! That’s really offensive, Iruma-san. Don’t say that about somebody.”

Iruma raised a brow and scoffed. “Why are you suddenly getting so defensive? You had no problems with it when I said it during the game.”

“I…” I stared down at my books. “It’s different now. Back then, I was…scared. I didn’t want to make anybody mad and give them a reason to target me. But now I can confidently speak my mind. Calling somebody names like that is never okay, Iruma-san.”

“It’s not like it matters. That brat deserves to be called names after he killed me.” Iruma put her hand back on her hip.

I groaned, trying not to get upset at her. “Listen- Iruma-san- can you just…humor me for a moment? And think over what I’m about to tell you?”

Iruma looked at me like I was crazy, but she shrugged, and waved me to say what I wanted to say. “Okay. Would Oma-kun have done what he did…if you didn’t try to kill him ?”

I could see the recognition spread across Iruma’s face. She opened her mouth, then closed it. She opened it again, then closed it again. She was thinking. She was realizing.

“Well…he…” Iruma stammered, trying to find the words. “Whatever! What does that matter!?”

“You’ve been ignoring Oma-kun and Gokuhara-kun because you’re blaming them for your death. And, yes, they did kill you. I’m not saying they didn’t. But I’m also saying that Oma-kun did it out of self-defense, and Gokuhara-kun did it because he thought he was protecting everyone. Nobody would have been harmed if you hadn’t had the intention of taking somebody’s life.”

I was expecting Iruma to snap back at me with something. To yell, or make another sexually-infused comment towards me. Maybe call me ‘emo’. Something like that. Instead, she frowned, and I could see the confidence leaving her the longer she looked at me and thought over my words. I felt a little bad for dropping the bomb on her, but she needed to realize how much she was overreacting.

“So…I guess maybe I’ve been sorta hypocritical. What am I supposed to do now?” Iruma asked, looking nervous.

I smiled. Iruma wanted to make a change, and wanted to apologize to them. “Talk to Gokuhara-kun first. He feels really bad for what he did to you, and he wants to make up with you. He wants to be your friend. I can promise you; if you come up to him, he’ll smile and greet you with open arms.”

“Ew. I don’t plan on doing anything with him.” Iruma smirked, obviously enjoying the flush to my cheeks when she spoke. I knew she would make a comment like that.

“Just…talk to him. Okay?” I mumbled, trying to hide my face behind my books. Iruma cackled and waved, turning towards the library doors.

“Alright, whatever. See you around, Sadhara.”

“Don’t call me that!”

I showed my clenched fist, and once he pulled out his two outstretched fingers, he sighed. I pumped my fist in the air, a quiet celebration.

“ You’re pretty good at this, Kokichi. I’ve never met somebody who can win every single round of rock - paper - scissors. How many have we played?”

“Maybe twenty. It’s a quick and easy way to pass the time.” I mumbled, lowering my hand. “It’s nice that you’re not a sore loser, though.”

He chuckled. “Those kinds of people aren’t very nice. I’ve met quite a few in my school years, and…yeah. Not fun. Have you met any?”

“Yeah, tons! I’ve hu-umbled them, though.” I put my hand to my chest, showing off my greatness. He grinned. He was getting used to my antics now.

“I’m glad you were able to soften their hearts, Kokichi. Fixing the world, one sore loser at a time.” I knew he was being sarcastic, but it wasn’t intended to hurt me. He was being funny, in his own dumb little way.

I went along with his joke, nodding my head and crossing my arms. “You know it! I’m the king of the world!”

Somebody knocked on my door. Really loudly at that. He jumped; he clearly wasn’t expecting anybody to come into the room. He looked at me for an explanation, and I just shrugged. Since I was sitting on my bed, I couldn’t come to the door. So, instead I shouted for them to come in. Coughing, I grabbed the water on my nightstand.

That water was nearly spit out when Iruma Miu walked into my room. Thankfully, I have an amazing poker face, and I swallowed the water without showing her any reaction. Setting the cup back, I started to stare at her.

“Well, this is a surp-prise. Why are you here, Iruma-chan?” I tilted my head, and Iruma rolled her eyes.

“No need to act so happy to see me, gremlin.” It’s been a while since I heard that nickname thrown at me. Actually, it’s been a while since Iruma even bothered to talk to me. What was going on here? Did she want something from me? Maybe she built a new invention and wanted me to be a test subject. “I’m here because I want to… apologize .” She muttered the last words, almost like it was a curse she didn’t want anybody to hear.

If I wanted to smirk at her, I would have; but I kept a straight face. Though, my brows did raise in curiosity. “Really? What brought this up?”

“Why is she calling you a gremlin if she’s trying to apologize?” He asked, moving to look me in the eyes. I glanced at him, but quickly returned to looking at Iruma.

It’s just something she does, don’t worry, Yowamushi.

“I realized that…maybe I was being a little hypocritical. I was ignoring you ‘cause I was mad about what happened in the game. But none of that would have happened if I didn’t try to kill you first.” Iruma kept her gaze on the floor, almost like she was ashamed to look at me. “So…you can have the privilege of my apology. You’re welcome.”

“And?” I stared at her expectantly.

“Wait, didn’t you say Gokuhara-kun killed her?” He asked me.

I’m the one that made him do it, so she probably blames me, too.

“And…I’m sorry.” She said after a while. She lifted her head, and I nodded at her. Her gaze lightened, and she managed to make eye contact. “So what now? Do we keep ignoring each other, or…?”

“Whatever you want.” I shrugged.

“Then maybe…do you want to come to my room tomorrow? I made a pretty sick invention, and I want to show it off to as many people as possible.” Iruma smirked, her confidence suddenly appearing out of thin air. I knew that inventions would come up at some point.

“I guess I can. It’s not like I have much planned for tomorrow, anyways.” I tried to act like I wasn’t very interested, but Iruma wasn’t having that.

“Oh, shut up! You want to see my epic invention and you know it! Come to my room after 3, alright?”

“Yeah, sure thing. See you then, ugly.” I threw in a nickname of my own. Iruma cackled, getting a kick out of my response.

“Man, I almost forgot how annoying you were! Have a fuckin’ awful day, you grape!” Iruma flipped me off with a smile, and stormed out of my room, slamming the door. I hummed in satisfaction. That was a successful interaction.

“I think you made her mad. She slammed that door pretty loudly.” He said, eyeing the door like it was going to attack him. I scoffed.

“Nah, it was all playful fun, and she knows that. If I wanted to insult her I would have said something much worse. You should know that, Yowamushi.”

He looked back at me and smiled awkwardly. “Why are you always calling me that? It’s a pretty rude nickname, Kokichi.”

“It’s true, though. You’re a wimp, so that’s what I’m gonna call you.” I leaned back in my bed, putting my hands above my head. He sighed and drifted to sit on the edge of my bed.

“Yeah…I know that. It’s fine, I’m not hurt by it. Cause it’s all just playful fun, right?”

“You know me well.” I smiled, and noticed just how well the light in my room was reflecting onto his purple hair.

Chapter Text

Harukawa and Yumeno started acting strange recently. If I wasn't a detective, I probably wouldn't have noticed. But, I am a detective, so I noticed.

It wasn’t like they were doing anything suspicious. Both of them were already pretty strange individuals, as most of us were, so everybody else probably just shrugged it off. But there was something about it that made me curious.

See, every once in a while, I would walk into a room that one of them would also be in, and I’d catch them whispering. But nobody else was in the room for them to be whispering to , and the things they were saying weren’t things somebody would normally whisper to themselves. It was like they were speaking to somebody who wasn’t even there. Or somebody that couldn’t be seen by anybody else.

I decided to just ask them about it. There was no point in beating around the bush, after all. They were both (sort of) straightforward people, so hopefully they would give me an answer. I decided I would talk to Yumeno first. I hadn’t been hanging out with her a lot recently, after all, and it was always good to catch up.

It was very lucky that when I opened the door to my room, I caught Yumeno walking down the hallway. I smiled, believing I could get my mini-interrogation done with just like that. All I would have to do is go up to her and start a conversation.

“Hey, Yumeno-san.” I said softly as to not startle her. She’d gotten a little jumpier after the game, which was to be expected. She was still worried that somebody would be there to stab her in the back if she let her guard down, so she was normally found around Chabashira to keep herself safe.

Yumeno turned around, eyes widened a little from the sudden surprise. I saw her expression shift as she realized it was me. She looked more relaxed. “Oh, hi Saihara-kun. Is there something you need? I’m a little busy right now.”

“Oh, is something going on?” I asked. I could make a little small talk before getting straight to the point. It was important to make sure she was feeling good beforehand, anyways.

“Nyeeh…I promised Tenko-chan I would meet her in her room to play some card games…I can’t be late.” She mumbled, staring at the floor. “Maybe we could talk another time.”

“Oh.” I should have known it had something to do with Chabashira. She took her time with Yumeno very seriously, and got upset if anything got in the way. She said they were ‘making up for lost time’, or something like that. “I see, it’s not a big deal. Go have fun with Chabashira-san, and make sure to win a couple rounds, okay?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll put a spell on the cards.” She promised, waving goodbye with a smile. I returned the gesture and turned around to find Harukawa. Hopefully she wouldn’t be busy, and would be able to answer my questions.

I managed to find Harukawa in the gardens after a very long time of searching around for her inside the house. The place was absolutely huge, and I checked every room she could have been in. It was a waste of time, though, because the second I stepped outside, I found her. Sighing to myself, I walked over. I made sure to put a smile on my face for her.

“Hey, Harukawa-san. How are you?” I asked. She turned around and stared at me with her usual cold stare. I remember when I was still a little afraid of her; but now I know that’s just how she normally is. If she was actually mad, her expression would have looked much worse.

“I’m feeling fine; just a little annoyed at somebody right now.” Harukawa glanced to her left, looking like she was glaring at somebody. It was just us outside, though, and I was standing right in front of her.

“Why is that?” I asked curiously. Maybe she would answer my question without me even having to ask it! That would be very convenient for me.

Harukawa sighed, crossing her arms as she returned her gaze back to me. “Well, she’s-”

A sharp pain suddenly appeared, stabbing my brain in several places. I groaned, stumbling back and putting a hand to my forehead. Harukawa reacted immediately, lunging forward to grab and stabilize me. Without saying a word, she brought me to one of the benches in the garden, sitting me down and then placing herself on the other side of the bench.

My head was pounding. My vision was growing blurry, swirling and shifting until I didn’t even know where I was anymore. I felt sick, like any small movement would cause me to throw up everything I’d managed to eat today. I had no idea what was happening, but once my vision started to clear, and my stomach started to feel normal again, I realized that I wasn’t in the garden anymore; I was somewhere different. Harukawa was nowhere to be found, and everything looked like it was covered in some sort of mist. In that mist, I heard a voice.

“Thanks for waiting for me.” It was a voice I’d recognize immediately; Oma-kun . I turned my head, and nearly choked when I noticed his outfit. This was the Oma from my nightmares- the Oma from my past. I’d grown to fear that school uniform and that purple hair. Why was he here? What did he want? I thought I was doing good; I thought I was making progress!

“Of course. It’s not like I had much planned after school, anyway.” I said, my mouth opening all on its own. That was weird, it wasn’t usually like this. Usually, I was just a spectator, watching as my past self interacted with Oma. But now, it was like I was actually him. I was seeing through his eyes, and talking with his mouth.

“You could be hanging out with your other friends.” Oma offered, smiling sheepishly as he tightened his grip on the bag. “You don’t have to spend so much time with me.”

“I like spending time with you. Don’t feel bad about it.” I reassured him. Oma’s smile grew, and he nodded softly. I was strange not having Oma tormenting me, smiling cruelly as he reminded me of all the horrible things I did. Of how I killed him.

Oma sat next to me on the edge of the fountain. I didn’t even realize I was sitting on a fountain edge until he joined me. Staring at his bag, he spoke again. “So…there’s a school dance coming up, I’ve heard. Are you excited for it, Saihara-kun?”

I’d gotten used to hearing ‘Shuichi-chan’ from Oma, so hearing my name being said so formally stunned me. “Yeah, I am. Are you? Do you know anybody you’d want to go with?”

“I don’t know if anybody besides you would want to go with me.” He admitted, chuckling lightheartedly. “I’ve never really gone to school dances in the past. I’ve never seen the point in them, since I was still kind of a loner back then.”

“Well, you’re not alone anymore.” I said, scooting closer to Oma. He looked up in surprise. “You have me now. And yes, I would love to go to the dance with you.”

I noticed Oma’s cheeks rise in color. He chuckled again, probably to fill in the space. “Y-You’re making it sound like I asked you to go as my date.”

“Whoops.” I replied. The two of us laughed together, the sounds of the water pouring down the fountain making for a good ambience.

The mist around me faded, and before I knew it, I was back in the garden. My headache subsided, and I was trying to catch my breath. Glancing to my side, I saw Harukawa was still there, sitting across from me, waiting for me to recover.

“S-Sorry.” I apologized out of reflex. “I don’t know what that was.”

“I get them, too.” Harukawa quickly said, bringing up a hand to comb through her long hair. “So does Yumeno-san. It’s because we survived the game; we’re getting back the memories of our past selves.”

Oh yeah…I remember the doctor at the hospital warning me about something like that happening to me. So, does that mean my dreams with Oma-kun were different? Or were they the same?

“Is…that why you two have been whispering to yourselves?” I finally asked. I noticed Harukawa’s hand pausing in her combing just for a moment. I’d caught her off-guard. She stared at me for a couple of seconds, before sighing.

“Yeah, you could say that. It’s been a huge bother for the both of us, and now it looks like it’s going to be a bother for you, too. Better get used to it.” Harukawa finished combing through her hair and stood up. “I’m going to go now. I need to go find that idiot before he manages to do something stupid.”

I knew she was talking about Momota. I nodded and waved goodbye, even though her back was facing me. She quickly left the garden, not saying anything else to me.

Physical therapy with Saya was going good. Going well? Going…whatever, it didn’t matter. The two of us had gotten a lot closer; I’d started to consider her a good friend as of late. Maybe not as good as some others, but she was getting there.

“This is amazing progress, Oma.” Since she wasn’t being supervised by other workers, she wasn’t calling me ‘Mr. Oma’. Thank goodness for that, because that name was super awkward to hear day in and day out. “If you keep on practicing, then you’ll get the hang of it in no time!”

“Why do I have to practice?” I groaned, leaning my head back in my wheelchair. “I wanna do fun things instead!”

“You can do a lot more fun things if you work hard on this, though.” He said, moving so he was in my line of sight. It looked like he was towering over me, and I didn’t like that, so I brought my head back down so I was looking forward. He drifted over to my side again.

“But if you work hard on this, then you’ll be able to do a lot more fun things.” Saya said, basically repeating his exact words, just flipped around in order. I nearly scoffed at that, and he actually gave a small chuckle. He probably found it amusing.

“Well, I guess since we both told you the same thing, it has to be the right thing for you to do.” He commented, giving me an encouraging smile. I rolled my eyes at him.

“Whatever…I guess I can do that.” I mumbled. Both he and Saya’s grins widened.

“That’s great news, Oma! I believe in you!” Saya stretched out her fist, and I complied, giving her a fist-bump. It was something we started to do at the end of all our sessions. I don’t know why she suddenly started doing it, but it was a fun way to end our time together, so I didn’t mind it too much.

I wheeled out of the room after Saya had gone out herself. I was bored now, and I didn’t know what to do. Do you have any ideas, Yowamushi? I asked him. He hummed as he stared forward in thought. I started to wheel towards my room, and he followed me. It wasn’t like he had a choice in the matter, but still.

“ Maybe you could tell somebody about what just happened. It’s a pretty huge accomplishment, Kokichi, and I think they’d be really proud of you.” I moved my hands away from the wheels. He had a point. I did do something pretty amazing, and showing it off to the right person would definitely get me some praise. I smiled; I knew exactly who I wanted to show.

“Yowamushi, can you spot Shuichi-chan from here?” I asked. He immediately went to the railing, looking down at everybody who was on the lower floor.

“Hmm, I don’t…oh! There he is! I see him coming back inside from the garden!” 

“Perfect. Now, let’s go tell him!”

I sighed as I walked back inside the house. I didn’t get much information out of either of them, and to top it all off, now I guess I have to deal with flashbacks. Wonderful. I didn’t really feel like hanging out with anybody else today, since those plans would probably get messed up somehow, too. I just wanted to go back to my room and read a good book. I could never go wrong with a book, after all. 

I had just started walking up the stairs when I heard somebody call my name. Looking up, I saw it was Oma sitting in the hallway, waving his hands to get my attention. He was all by himself, and I wondered what he could be doing there. Was he headed back to his room, too? I hurried over to him, careful not to trip over myself.

“Hey, Oma-kun. Do you need something?” I asked, trying not to let my frustration show on my face. I didn’t want Oma to think I was in a bad mood and decide not to talk to me.

“Yeah. I want to show you something. Come to my room.” Oma turned around and started wheeling himself to his room, not even waiting for me to reply. I smiled as I followed after him. I know I said I didn’t want to hang out with anybody else today, but Oma was the exception. He was always the exception.

We entered his room, and I made sure to shut the door and turn on the lights for him. He spun himself around until we were facing each other. Something about him seemed different today; he seemed more confident in himself. That was good- really good, but I wondered what could have happened to make him appear this way. I guess I would find out soon enough.

I could hear faint music coming from the walls. Ah, Kaede-san must be playing the piano again. I thought, smiling as I imagined the peaceful expression on her face as her fingers danced across the keys. Then, I realized Oma was probably waiting for me to say something, so I brought my attention back to him. “Uh, so…what did you want to show me, Oma-kun?”

Oma smiled softly. It looked like the muscles in his face were getting used to that action, because it didn’t disappear after a couple seconds like it usually did. “Hope you’re ready for this.” He said, before he put his palms against the arms of the wheelchair, steadying his body. His arms pushed up, and then he stepped out of the wheelchair.

I stood there in silence, staring at Oma standing in silence as well. He was waiting for a reply, and I was trying to process what just happened. I guess I wasn’t ready for that.

“You…that…Oma-kun…” I stammered, trying to find the right thing to say. A huge grin spread across my face. “Oma-kun, that’s incredible! You’re moving your legs again!”

Oma nodded, confidence seeping from every pore of his body. “Yep! I worked super hard with Saya-san today. Pretty awesome, right?” He lifted his foot, probably intending to take a step forward, but as soon as he tried, his knees buckled and he started to fall forwards.

Reacting quickly, I ran over to catch him. Scooping my arms under his, I successfully stopped his fall. Though, he landed on my chest, and I could feel my face starting to burn , at least Oma wasn’t hurt.

“Careful! Don’t hurt yourself; take things slow.” I said as I helped Oma adjust himself. I kept my arms on his to make sure he wouldn’t topple over again.

“Saya-san says I should practice moving them a lot, but I don’t know how.” Oma said, not seeming bothered by my hands. That was good. “It’s not like I’ll be able to jog to move them, cause that would be dangerous.”

“Well…” I tried to think of something I could offer. I wanted to help Oma in any way possible. In the silence, I could hear the piano through the walls again. My mind then drifted back to the memory I had not long ago, and before I knew it, I opened my mouth. “Oma-kun, do you know how to dance?”

“Huh?” Oma asked, eyebrows lifting in surprise. I was about to take back everything I’d just said and apologize nonstop, but Oma beat me to speaking. “I haven’t done it in a while, but I guess it could work. If Shuichi-chan’s willing to help me, that is.”

Oh…

Oh.

Oh.

“Yeah, uh…I could help.” I kept my voice low. I was nervous. Slowly, I moved my hands so one was resting on Oma’s shoulder, and the other had a gentle hold on his hip. Oma moved his own hands into the same position. “How about…a box-step? Have you ever done that before?”

“No.” Oma said, shaking his head.

“Alright, well, it’s pretty simple. All we have to do is move our feet in a box pattern. So, I’m going to step to the right, and you step to the left, okay?” I moved slowly, making sure to match my pace with Oma’s. I didn’t want to go too fast; he had to get used to it. Oma looked down, watching his feet as he lifted them and placed them to the left.

“Now, I’m going to step back with my right foot, and you step forward with your left.” I looked down myself, making sure that my feet were moving in sync with Oma’s. This was definitely the slowest box-step I’d ever done in my life, but I wasn’t feeling impatient. In fact, I was feeling really happy.

“And now-”

“I think I got it.” Oma cut me off, and then moved to his right. I smiled and followed him by going to the left. He stepped back, I stepped forward. He went left, I went right. We repeated the motions slowly, and before I knew it, Oma was looking back up at me, and I was looking at him. We’d started to step a little faster, too.

“How are your legs feeling?” I asked quietly. 

“They feel fine.” He replied. “Now keep dancing, Shuichi-chan.”

“Alright, alright.” I chuckled, and focused on dancing again. We started going faster, matching the pace of Kaede’s piano. I smiled, feeling nothing but peace and comfort inside of Oma’s room. The lights were dim, making his lilac hair and pale skin stand out in the slight darkness.

I started to turn my body, and Oma followed after me, twisting himself until we were now spinning in circles along with our box-step. It felt like we were at a party, dancing along with the other rich-folk to the soft music in the ballroom. But there was no party, no rich-folk, and definitely no ballroom. It was just Oma and me; together, in his room. 

The hand that Oma had put on my shoulder moved down until he grabbed the one I’d placed on his hip. I was surprised, but I never stopped moving my feet; keeping the rhythm going. Oma intertwined our hands, and I could feel my palms getting hotter as they made contact with his. He smiled at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back. Leaning his head down, he kissed the top of my hand. If I thought my face was hot before, I didn’t know anything.

“Thanks for teaching me, Shuichi-chan.” He whispered, looking up at me. He looked mischievous, but he also looked genuine. I could almost imagine him in a suit, dancing with me for the big event.

“Yeah…you know I’m always willing to help you, Oma-kun. You mean a lot to me.” I replied, hoping the light would keep my blush hidden from Oma’s sight. He never commented on it, so I supposed that was a good sign.

Oma’s gaze softened, and he tightened his grip on my hand. Not enough to hurt, but enough to convey his message. “You mean a lot to me too, Shuichi-chan. Thank you.”

I don’t think I would ever have a more amazing dance for the rest of my life.