A/N: Hehe, my first time posting a fic. Ever. So that means that my writing will be a bit sloppy and my imagery will be incomplete. Wow. I was originally going to post a 100% Hinanami fluff chapter for Christmas but I decided not to because I'm such a negative person. Well, at least this fic takes place during Christmas but it isn't Christmas-themed. One thing to note though, I'm actually 15 years old and I can't believe that I reduced myself to writing fan fiction. Well, why the hell not? I'll indulge myself later.
How long has it been since their self-imposed exile? A year? Maybe two? It was but a pointless task to recount the days, months or years that have passed since they saved the Future Foundation from its own despair by carrying that burden of despair. Now that Hajime thought about it, maybe it was a stupid idea. The boy-or rather, the Izuru Kamukura part of his brain, mentally cursed himself for not thinking of a more interesting plan to make way for a more interesting future. Didn't he want to shut down the Neo World Program to pursue an open future? He already had a future of multiple possibilities and opportunities for something interesting to happen, and then he just HAD to make one of the worst decisions ever. He can't believe that he just made himself suffer the same boredom that plagued his existence as the artificial Ultimate. Was this Hajime's payback to Izuru for leaving her to bleed out for Hajime to watch in his own powerless state, or was this for the virus he uploaded in the program? What an illogical and absurd deduction. Hajime already used his talents to pay for his latest bill and he already acted as the class representative to the rather eccentric yet predictable 77th Class to respect her wishes to keep her class together. There were some exceptions to his standards for interesting people but they didn't meet his already low expectations, thanks to Hajime's erased existence finally resurfacing. He stared at the blue horizon with his multi-colored eyes-one green and one red, at what seems to be in the middle of the day, with the sun shining its light on the sandy landscape. It was another boring day. Even if he heard that today was supposed to be December 25, which was supposed to be a special holiday, he still found it boring. Even when the others would hold about 5 parties a day, it still wasn't enough to satiate him. The boy then shifted his scrutinizing gaze at a hairpin that he kept with him as a keepsake on his left palm. Every time he looked at it, he would feel tears well up in his eyes; the same feeling he felt the first time he held that pin that floated on a pool of blood. He already controlled his emotions enough to not let those tears fall a second time but his eyes never left that object that laid on his palm, and so did that feeling of longing. That girl's existence, admittedly, was more interesting than the fashionista's "interesting" promises of despair, even though she was just using him as a major piece for her plans. Only she made the inhuman creature feel a human emotion. How he wished she was here with him by the shore. Physically.
"You seem lonely, Hinata-kun." said a familiar and feminine voice that only he hears and has the knowledge of who owns it. Was he finally going insane from being on an island for so long if the girl he abandoned twice was commenting on how lonely he was?
Hajime closed his eyes and looked back to the open sea that stretched beyond his superhuman range of vision. "...You didn't have to remind me, you know." he replied with a sigh. "But yes, you're right. It's quite lonely and boring. You said this was a happy ending, but it seems that I'm the only one who's not happy about it, I think."
Hajime senses the girl approaching him and stood beside him, joining him in staring at the long stretch of the shimmering and wavy shades of blue. "That's because you're ignoring the others again. You really need to level up your social skills..." the girl made a pause before speaking up again. "...I think."
The boy let out a slight chuckle at the faulty statement and pocketed the trinket he was clutching. He's already maxed out his social skills so why is she telling him to level it up? "What's even there to level up anyway? I'm already good friends with the others. They might as well be talking to a rock, or rather, I'm the one who would be talking to the same bunch of boring rocks."
"If that's true, then..." she made another pause. "...you wouldn't be here alone thinking about how boring today is. You still need to make more memories, Hinata-kun." she finally finished with a slightly reprimanding tone that was similar to Mahiru's when she speaks to the irresponsible and lazy boys of her class, himself included for some reason even though he's the reason she's even up and about. "Remember what I said about how memories can make your life interesting? Am I wrong?" she asked him, as if she was genuinely questioning his superb memory; not that he took it as an insult.
"..." Hajime remained silent after her words sunk in. Not long after, he turned his eyes to the girl standing beside him and said, "Things lose their appeal over continued exposure. Who knows when I might do something drastic just to escape this boredom?" His tone and expression darkened as he spoke his next words.
"Who knows if and when I might start another killing game?"
The girl remained unfazed by his words and averted her eyes from the sea and into Hajime's serious gaze which burned just as hot as the sun's rays on a Christmas noon, a warmth that felt out of place for a cold season. "I know you won't."
"Do you doubt me?"
"It's not doubt. It's trust. I trust you, Hinata-kun."
"That trust is misplaced. I could very well kill a person here and watch as they bleed out and beg for their lives. You, of all people, should know that I'm capable of doing that."
"That... was before. You've changed, right? You decided to throw away that you from before and woke the others up. Not only that, but you still saved the Future Foundation. You gave them a chance for a hopeful future while carrying the burden of despair. What you did, wasn't that bad of an idea actually..." another pause as expected. "...I think."
As their back-and-forth was happening, the waves raged with the same intensity that Hajime put in his words, slapping the shore with its impact. Just as quickly as the salty seawater flowed freely towards their feet, they were calmly told to return to the sea yet the raging waters continued to attack the shoreline. A serene and welcoming voice would always calm the waters and return them to the sea, like a mother who would always forgive their child even if they had done horrible things before.
Hajime narrowed his eyes in deep musing and continued to glare at her innocent yet determined expression. The girl's words were noticeably being more inconsistent. First, she said that he has to make a future that *he* wants, and *he* wants an interesting one. Now, she's saying that he just has to make do with what's here and socialize with people he already socialized with just for a bunch of idiotic and petulant adults who were brainwashed by Junko's despair? He owes the world no such thing as a hopeful future and the world holds no compassion nor sympathy for the former remnants.
No. Now that he thought about it, it wasn't her that was being inconsistent. It was him. Despair is an easy way out of boredom. That in itself would be pretty boring and... slightly inconvenient in more ways than one. He needed something that was long-term. Something that was long enough for unexpected variables to appear in his plan. Maybe his future didn't have to end here in this tropical paradise where everything is provided by the Future Foundation. Maybe...
"Hinata-kun? I hope you're not thinking of doing anything dangerous again..." the girl said with a more concerned tone and face, interrupting the boy who was deep in thought for a brief moment.
Hajime smiled a little and softened his glare towards her, soft enough to be considered a friendly look. She let out her own smile as well as she saw the face she was comfortable with seeing everyday. He knew this, of course. "I thought you trusted me?" he said in a joking manner.
She only puffed her cheeks out in response to Hajime. Now, it was her turn to glare at him. "You know that I'm always concerned about you and my classmates. I'm still their class rep and your best friend, y'know. A class rep shouldn't think of killing their own class and my best friend wouldn't throw away the precious memories he spent time gathering. That's like resetting your save file after your run is becoming good..." another pause again. "...I think."
"Of course I know." he said while laughing a little from her motherly tone. He certainly would have expected her to develop some motherly instinct from being a class rep if she were alive. Predictable, but it wasn't boring at the very least.
"Thank you for opening my eyes, Nanami. I think I know what to do today."
Chiaki let out a beam that matched the sun; this time, its warmth fitting the cold noon. He liked seeing that even if she was just a ghost in his mind; a painful reminder that he has to live with until the end of his days. "I'm glad I helped, Hinata-kun. Now go and make more memories for me. I'll be cheering on for you guys!"
With a slightly contented expression, Hajime turned his eyes back to the furthest reaches of the sea and began to plan on what to do for the foreseeable future, then Chiaki faded away like the stain that the wave left on the shore. The day became boring once again.
"...if I just do it, things would turn out ok, huh..."
It wouldn't be strange if a miracle happened, after all.
A/N: Thanks for reading guys! I appreciate any sort of feedback since this is my first time to publish any kind of work. I'll try my best to respond to your feedbacks if I have the time. I'll continue to write DR fics until something else catches my interest. Merry Christmas everyone!