The world seemed to come crashing down. Your lover was gone, seemingly never to return, replaced by another who seemed made of nothing more but nightmares.

-"[Name]?" A voice rang out in the middle of that void, instinctively you looked up, only to be faced with the same horrendous sight.

Same courtroom, same people, same bear, same face staring straight at you. Those bright and lively eyes where replaced by opaque dead swirls of black and white, it was kinda entrancing really, but that didn't really catch nor did you want it to catch your attention at that moment.

-"[Name], are you okay?" the calming voice repeated again, you looked next to you, to see that voice belongs to Hajime. He looked concerned knowing the situation everyone and specifically you were facing, or at least you thought at first that was the case, then you became conscious that you were trembling tremendously and just by how you felt you could certainly tell that you were as pale as a sheet.

-"I-I'm fine, l-let's just keep going with the trial" you said, your statement was contradicted by how shaky and insecure your voice sounded, yet Hajime only nodded and looked on ahead and continued to debate with everyone else.

…

In the end it turned out that Teru Teru was the actual murderer, you felt horrible about the entire situation, you had just lost a dear friend, but you knew deep down that you where slightly relieved that Nagito wasn't the actual killer, something that only made you feel worse about yourself.

It was the day after the trial, everyone was in a somber mood, with some people trying to liven things up, but most of you were just sad. Considering what happened yesterday, Souda and Nidai decided to tie up Nagito, for safety purposes. After finishing breakfast you were about to head straight to your room when you heard two people discussing something

-"Then bring this to Nagito on my behalf

-"Huh?….."

-"I was forced to run back and forth too many times….I'm done being his maid"

The people that were talking were Hajime and Mahiru, the latter had to take food to Nagito, a task nobody really wanted, Hajime had a face that you could easily tell said "please don't". You thought that perhaps this was a good time to go talk to Nagito, you sure as hell didn't want to face him, but this was too good of an opportunity to pass.

-"I'll do it" you said with a small voice from the table you were seated in, Mahiru and Hajime both turned to look at you

-"You would?…, thanks [Name]!, I'll return the favor sometime I promise" said Mahiru with a smile as she basically pushed the tray onto your lap and ran out of the restaurant. Hajime walked beside your table.

-"[Name], are you sure about this, I can take the food to him, I wouldn't mind" he said as he tried grab the tray from your lap but you held it in place with a strong grip

-"It's okay, I can do it, I want to do it..." you said, while offering a small smile, Hajime just sighed.

-"Just be careful okay?" he said, you just nodded. He was actually one of the few people that knew about your relationship with Nagito, so he understood the gravity of the situation. He soon left the restaurant.

…

You were standing in front of the lodge, just inches away from the doorknob, there was somehting holding you back, like an invisible force that made you paralyze. You knew you had to suppress the urge to run away, but knew that this was for the best. You ultimately had the bravery to open the door.

There he was, Nagito, the one with whom you had shared great times with, he almost looked normal, at peace, just like the person you had fallen in love with.

-"Ahh..well isn't [Name]! " he said with a dreamy sigh "Your presence certainly is filled with hope, it's a shame not everybody can witness it" he added.

That taunting voice that haunted you brought many mixed thoughts and emotions, you still loved him, but at the same time you were scared of him.

-"My my, did precious [Name] come all this way to bring food to me?, this really DOES seem like my lucky day" he said, you visibly shivered when he said the word lucky, something he seemed to notice, since his smile seemed to waver a bit, but it was probably your imagination.

-"Nagito…I-I really need to talk to you" you said, while moving around nervously.

-"Why sure, is something the matter?" he asked, that really angered you, you had to ponder if he was playing with you or not, something that was hard to oppose.

You sat down on the floor, helped him sit up, and started to feed him without a word, he seemed confused at first when you held up the piece of toast at him.

-"Wow, and [Name] is feeding me too?, could this day get any better!" he mused as he took a bite of food.

Everything was going normally when before you knew it you were shoving the food onto his face.

-"[Name], are you okay?, you seem *pmmhff*" you shoved another piece of food before you finally spoke up.

-"I'm breaking up with you" you quickly said, but Nagito didn't seem unfazed at all, he just keep staring at you with a blank face and a smile, after a long while he finally spoke.

-"[Name], did you really love me?" he asked, he wasn't staring directly at you, but still kept that smug smile on his face.

-"….Yes" you answered while gazing down at the floor.

-"Did you really mean everything you said to me before?" he asked again.

-"…Yes" you answered again, this time your voice cracking up. There was yet another a long pause, he seemed to be thinking, but after sometime he spoke up again.

-"Too bad, because I didn't"

-"What?" you quickly replied shocked, looking up at him

-"I was lying all this time, you totally fell for the joke though" he repeated with that same stupid look on his face

-"W-W-What do you m-mean?" you asked, your voice violently shaking

"It means I don't love you, please go away" he said, with that eye-smile he always showed.

You couldn't believe it…this, this was a lie. You turned around and went running out the lodge, not even looking back, crying while you did, was this always a lie?, was that really true?, all those precious memories, did they really mean nothing….. no, they did mean something, at least to you. Nagito, for one part was a sweet, kind guy who tried to help everybody and always did his best, but for the other part he was sick and twisted and could take a life without a second thought, was this really someone you wanted in your life?, your mind seemed to be jumbled at the thought, but your heart seemed to have a clear answer, you didn't care. You realized that Nagito gave you something he looked for…..hope, hope of a new world, hope of a new love, hope of new discoveries, hope oflife.There was something about him that reminded you there was still life, that it was a rocky road, but perhaps still worth living, was it really bad to feel this way?, was it really bad to blindly hope in a place where everything you see was covered?, I mean, you were just human, just like Nagito…..

You quickly retraced your steps and returned to the lodge, you opened the door and found that Nagito was still in the same position, when you barged in he quickly looked up, his eyes looked normal, no trace of that malevolent scent of craziness, just sad human eyes, just Nagito. Before you approached him, you decided to ask him some questions first.

-"Nagito, did you really love me?" he seemed surprised by your question, but answered right away.

-"…Yes"

-"Did you really mean what you said to me before?" by this point you were already crying.

-"Yes,…..I truly did [Name]" he answered with a sad smile.

You quickly ran up to hug him and started bawling your eyes out

-"You know" he spoke "I never knew that becoming a stepping stone could be this hard" he said, with a single tear rolling down his face.

"I never knew that becoming a stepping stone could be this hard, but is it really bad for me to live in within my DREAMS for a while?"

Every step felt a bit heavier, every breath felt a bit weaker, every thought became scarier, every moment became harder