'Hope's Peak?' asked Hinata, suspiciously looking at the signboard in front of him.'Whose idea was it to name a children's hospital like that? I mean, what kind of person you must be to…'
Komaru Naegi shrugged her shoulders'

'Makoto says that it was named this way on purpose' she explained. ' You know, after all they need hope more than anybody, right?'

She was right, he had to admit it. In the place he was about to enter, hope was in a way exclusive commodity. Not everyone could afford that. He noticed that Komaru is staring at him quite plainly, without even hiding her curiosity. He could see their reflection in the glass door: short girl with grey eyes, almost covered with brown fringe and tall, thin boy with green eyes and black, messy hair. Both were wearing their school uniforms.

' What?' he murmured, a little bit annoyed by her bluntness. Knowing each other since childhood does not entitle anybody to be so intimidating.

' No, nothing ' she smiled and shook her head.' I just can't stop wondering that you agreed. I mean, it's very kinf of you, me and Makoto are very happy that you want to help. We're still lacking of volunteers. It's just... your parents told my parents that you had different plans for this school year.

'Ah, that thing' said blankly Hinata. He blushed a little and focused his gaze on the signboard. 'That thing' was very exclusive school for the most talented students. School to which only the best and the most special kids could be admitted, in which they could fulfill they dreams, achieve greatness and start their professional career. School he was still secretly dreaming of.

' Judging by your face expression, something went wrong' smirked Komaru.

' The tuition is a little bit to high' he said evasively. 'My parents would be able to afford it, but I didn't want to press them. It's not like I care that much.'

Only after a moment he realised that Komaru's brother finished the Academy. For sure she knew anything about admission requirements and tuition. Even if she realised that there is something lacking in his explanation, she didn't comment in any way.

'Anyway it's great that you decided to come here and help.'Automatic door opened in front of them.'It's not very hard work. You'll be playing with kids and sometimes changing sheets and all that stuff. We won't make you clean floors or anything like that though, so don't worry. It can be depressing at times, but you don't even know how much satisfaction you can gain' she explained, as she was dragging a little bit overwhelmed Hinata through the corridor.'Komaru Naegi, I'm here to see doctor Naegi' she said at the reception, waving with plastic ID card.' I brought a new volunteer'.

Man on the reception noted something in his papers and nodded. Komaru opened another glass door and encouraged Hinata to follow her.

He swallowed. Suddenly the idea of volunteer work on oncology ward became not so good idea. For sure much worse than few weeks ago, when agitated Komaru was telling him about helping older brother and trying to make ill children smile. Colourful walls with characters from animated series painted on them, plastic chairs and tables, toys and boxes of crayons weren't able to mask the sense of unnatural, disturbing hospital cleanliness. They intensified the uncaniness. Hinata felt that his hands are starting to sweat. His stomach was strangely cluthed.

' Komaru' he coughed. ' I don't think I…'.Surely she didn't hear him. She just kept on going, happy that she found next person willing to help. ' I don't think it's a good.' – he tried again. Suddenly he bumped at someone with the force that made him fall on his knees. '..idea' he finished. He made a clumsy effort to get up.

' Everything ok?'

He looked up, disoriented and cestfallen. The eyes he met weren't Komaru's eyes. They were very big and very pale, silvery-grey. They belonged to tall boy in green jacket, who was standing in front of Hinata, reaching out to him.

'Yeah, yeah, thanks' he murmured, accepting the help. He tried to look away but he simply couldn't. 'It's ok, it's my fault, I wasn't looking'

The boy looked at him carefully. Not as curiously as Komaru before; silvery-grey eyes were full of kind interest. Hinata was looking at him as well. He saw strands of hair sneaking out of deep hood. In the light of glow-tube they seemed almost white.

'It's not because of disease' explained the boy, smiling provocatively and waving his hand. A bracelet with patient ID was dangling from his thin wrist. 'It's just the way I am'

' Sure, I understand' said quickly Hinata. 'I mean, I'm sorry. I didn't want you to.. I didn't think that…' he looked down, feeling very embarassed. He noticed an envelope lying on the floor uneder his feet. Probably it fell from the comic book white-haired boy was holding in his hand. Seal on the envelope was strangely familiar. Hinata bent, to pick up the letter.

'Mine!' said the patient, also reaching out in the same direction. He swiftly picked up the envelope the moment before Hinata was able to put his finger on it. He started to browse through his comic book, searching for a place where the envelope was placed earlier. Hinata's eyes were fixed on the paper held between two slender fingers. He could see the seal on it clearly. More clealy that he wished to at that point. He felt dissapointment burning his throat.

' Uhm.. if I may ask..' he started awkwardly.

' Hmm?'Silvery-grey eyes were kind, still sparkling with curiosity.

' That envelope…?'

He cocked his head and started to play with strand of his weird, white hair.

' Ah, that thing' he said, as if he suddenly realised what Hinata was looking at.' Fine example of irony' he stated.' Imagine, that you are opening the maibox and you find two envelopes. One contains results of your latest medical check-up, the seconf one informs that you were admitted to'he looked at the seal. '…to those halls of awesomeness, because you were drawn in the lottey as the Super High School Level Luck.'

Hinata looked at him, startled.

'Super High School Level Luck?'he asked with the mixture of awe and jealousy. Till the end he was hoping to be the lucky one. After all it was the way Komaru's brother was admitted to the Academy. 'Really?'

'Your decision depends on which envelope you open first' continued the boy. ' If you read the start with the letter from school, you sort of assume that, since you are officially the luckiest person in the world, there cannot be anything wrong with your results, that you are completely healthly. If you start with the letter from hospital, you know that it doesn't matter to what school youwere planning to go. That your future plans are irrelevant . I think you already know' a bitter smile appeared on his face. 'which envelope I opened first'.

Before Hinata managed to come up with any good answer, somebody gently tapped his shoulder.

'I see you've already started to make friends' said Komaru, smiling at him. She must have finally realised that her temporary subordinate was left behind and she came back to look for him.' Very good, it's important to be open. Hello, Komaeda' she waved to the white-haired boy, who answered with slightly absentminded smile. 'Come on, Hinata, we need to go, Makoto is waiting for you. He wants to discuss your responsibities.'

' Yeah, so… uhm' coughed Hinata.' Bye.. I guess?'.

'See you soon, Hinata' said the patient. He waved both of them goodbye and he started to walk in the opposite direction. Hinata walked automatically, still looking at the floor. He was aware that Komaru is staring at him again. He felt that. But the only thing he could think of were strands of white hair escaping from the hood, bracelet with ID on the wrist and letter from the Academy between pages of the comic book. He felt that something is clamping around his stomach more and more tightly.

'What's wrong with him?' he asked suddenly.

Komaru gave out a small, sinister laugh.

' And you've already started to talk as if you were one of them' she said, slightly shaking her head in dissaproval.

'Hm? What?' he asked, a bit confused. ' What again?'

' The patients, you know. Every time someone new appear on this ward they ask about the diagnosis' she sighed. 'Not about name, or interests or whatever, but the diagnosis. As if the disease was somtething that defines them, their identity' Hinate felt a shiver going down his spine. Colourful corridor with big Totoro painted on the wall all of sudden felt awfully cold. 'It's hard to avoid' continued Komaru.' But Makoto expect us, volunteers, to ask about the name first' she added, assuming teacher-like manner.

'I'm sorry' he murmured, averting his gaze.'It won't happen again'.

'His name is Nagito Komaeda' said Komadu after long silence.'And he was diagnosed with late stage lymphoma'.