Leaving the court room after a trial, everyone hung their heads, going their separate ways home. Each of them caught in the utter despair that followed each trial. It was dark, certainly nearing midnight. The sound of waves crashing was white noise in the distance, but was a constant reminder that they were trapped here on this island.

How could this happen. Hinata trudged home. Being here… it was really starting to weigh down on him. Dark bags were under his eyes, his tie was skewed. Despite this he briskly walked home, full of passion and sadness for his recently lost classmates. His emotions boiled down into a stew…creating an awful, thick churning inside his heart.

Another person ruthlessly executed…and for what? These murders….killing their former classmates…it was all Monobear's doing... It's all his fault!

Hinata reflected on the trial. It had been a tough case...all the evidence had been there…it was just a matter of piecing it all together. But it wasn't that which had made it difficult. Komaeda. Ko-ma-e-da…Fucking Komaeda! At least three times during the trial, Komaeda threw out curve-ball accusations against Hinata,

"It seems you don't have an alibi…how do you explain that?"

"Oh..? But where did you find this evidence?"

"How do we know you aren't simply making this up?"

In the end, Hinata was able to present evidence against each of the ridiculous claims, but even when he did this Komaeda would just respond,

"Oh I knew. Hahah. I was simply seeing if you would be able to prove it. Just what I would expect from a high school level…whatever you are! I can see your hope shining brighter!"

Just the thought of him made Hinata cringe. "That guy pisses me off," he grumbled to himself walking back to the hotel.

A salty breeze swept through the air. Hinata inhaled deeply, letting the scent fill his nose and his lungs. He held it in, the salt burning the inside of his nose, until he couldn't handle it any longer. Breath burst forth from him and along with it some of his anxiety. His chest heaving slightly, sleep and stress hanging on his body, he somehow reached the door to his room. As his fingers touched the cool metal of the handle. A black figure approached out of the corner of his eye. He jumped back instinctively, adrenaline rushing. His recently expelled tension flashed back, stiffening his body, his hands held defensively in front of him.

"Hello Hinata-kun," Komaeda smiled his usual over-joyfilled smile. Hinata hesitated to lower his now tightly balled fists. Komaeda's mess of a hairdo blew lightly in the breeze as he smiled. Hinata slightly lowered his fists. Suddenly Komaeda's appearance changed. His cheeks flushed as he clutched his arms, staring off in utter bliss, "The trial was something today...my heart was pounding at the conclusion…" He looked up bright eyed, "…while everyone is feeling pretty down…I'm sure that soon we will be able to pull through it and tomorrow we will be even mo-!"

Hinata cut him off, "Leave me alone. Will you?...Y-you…," his voice began to shake with anger. "Do you even realize what just happened to our friends? How can you even smile after…after something like that…!"

Komaeda chuckled under his breath, his shoulder sagging slightly. His voice became breathy and detached, "Ah I guess that's right…why would someone like you want to talk to garbage like m-"

A clenched fist slammed past Komaeda's face, knocking him back against the outside wall of the hotel room.

Hinata was tired of his hope bullshit.

With his face screwed up anger and his voice shaking he yelled, "Will you j-just…s-SHUT UP ALREADY?" Komaeda looked up, only slightly surprised. He pondered the brunette, interested in what he would do next. Hinata pounded his fist again, shaking the wall of the small hotel room. He hung his head a little, but swiftly raised it, regaining some of his conviction.

He glared with defiance at the other boy, passion, anger, sadness…tears welling in his eyes. Komaeda's face lit up in surprise, "W-why are you crying all of a sudden?" However, his posture changed to be somewhat reprimanding, "That's not very fitting of you Hinata," he informed him sternly.

Hinata sniffled, his breathing heavy, heat radiating from his body. His thoughts weighed down on him as he tried to hold back tears. "Y….y…you!," his voice let out an uncontrollable, throaty whine. He clenched his fist tighter, grinding his palm into the ridged siding.

"You…we…we were friends. We were friends."

"Hinata! Of course we're fr-"

"You..showed me around this…this…hell of a place!…introduced me to everyone...when we first came here…when we…you were the only one I could trust. But all I've learned from being on this…goddamn island!...all I've learned about you….is that you're nothing like the person I thought you were! And you've only proven me more right when I say, I HATE YOU. I HATE YOU. I hate you…" his voice trailed off as his knees gave into the weight of everything he had just let out, buckling beneath him. Hot tears streamed over his dry, trembling lips, echoing the crash of the mocking waves on the beach.

Komaeda panicked as the boy's form crumpled in front of him. No…this was not the Hinata he knew!

"H-hinata!" he gasped, reaching out the boy, his hands hovering just out of reach of Hinata's quivering form. He decided against touching him. "Where has your hope gone! You're the light in this dark place of despair! Without you, who will everyone rely on to keep pushing us forward..." Komaeda was quiet for once. Hinata's body hung limp.

"I can see why you would hate me," Komaeda continued talking, despite the other's current state. Hinata prepared himself for another routine, self-hatred speech.

"Seeing as I have different ideals compared to everyone else…yes…I can see why you would hate me. But, just because I think differently, doesn't mean I think any differently of you." Hinata stopped shaking.

"And, if you're referring to me accusing you during the trial…well, someone was going to do it eventually. I figured I'd beat them to it…and I knew you'd disprove it, because you're wonderful like that!" He continued, "While my methods…are looked down upon by the others…I'm just trying to give everyone hope...I want to see all of us get out of here. I just want the most hope filled out come."

Hinata's mind clouded with memories of past trials…the first day they had come here…there were so many terrible things that had happened over the course of their had Komaeda been in all of this? Rambling on about hope…leading the other astray during the trials and throwing out obscure evidence? But had all of this really been bad? In the end, Komaeda just wanted the best, at least… in a really roundabout way. Even his misleading discussion during the trials had eventually led the group to the correct answer. Maybe this had been his intent all along? Hinata had never thought about it in this way. He just had gone along with what everyone else was saying, "Komaeda is crazy." "Komaeda is always trying to mislead us!" Hinata had yelled at him during every trial and constantly told him to go away whenever he saw him. Maybe the bad guy here really wasn't Komaeda…

He lifted his head and stood up, his arms at his side. His golden eyes shimmered with the dew of a few final tears. He looked at Komaeda intensely, heavily considering the words he was about to say.

"We're still friends...

... So. Stop saying you're garbage."

Komaeda perked up and smiled brightly, "Hinata-kun says he's my friend! This truly is a wonderful day for someone as lowly as me!"

Hinata sighed, completely worn out he receded back to his previous state, "I hate you."

"Of course you do, but your despair will only bring more hope!"

"I hope you'll shut up!"… "Good night!," he added as he slammed the door to his hotel room. Well, Komaeda had at least managed to take his mind off the trial. He settled into his bed which actually felt comfortable for once. Smiling the slightest smile for the first time since he had been here, he rolled over drifting off to sleep, "We're still friends…"