Disclaimer: I do NOT own Danganronopa or anyone and/or anything canon to it. It all belongs to Spike Chunsoft. I make no money off writing this.
Warning: Characters may be a little OOC. It's my first time writing them, honestly.
Dedication: Happy belated birthday to my Komaeda. Sorry I'm posting so late (birthday August 8), but not having internet sucks. I love you 3
000
Light snow falling to the ground outside of Hope's Peak Academy created a sort of ethereal feeling. While Christmas break was in full swing, several students preferred to stay in the dormitories the school provided instead of going home to their families, or whoever was waiting for them back in their hometowns. Junko Enoshima fixed her twin-tails in the mirror, making sure to fasten the little teddy bear hairclips just right to hold everything in place. Not a single piece of clothing could be out of line, and neither could a single hair. She wasn't a fashionista for nothing, after all. With a grin and a wink at her own reflection, she grabbed the pile of pink envelopes off her nightstand and turned on her heel. Christmas wasn't one of her favorite holidays, but the despair that filled the air from students and faculty who didn't have families or homes to go back to made her feel sort of warm and fuzzy on the inside. The thought made her giggle as she clutched her stack tightly in her hands and meandered down the corridors.
"I'm telling you, man!" The excited voice of Kazuichi Souda carried down the hallway. "This is going to be the thing that's going to finally help me win over Ms. Sonia!"
"That's what you said about the last thing." Hajime Hinata sighed, and she could picture him rolling his eyes as she approached. "Just give up."
"But I…"
"Hello, boys!" Junko greeted, waving happily as she intruded on their exchange.
"Oh, uh, hey, Junko." Souda muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "Uh…how much of that did you hear?"
"That's for me to know." She smiled, pulling two cards from her pile. "Here. I'm having a birthday party in my dorm room Saturday. You're both invited!"
"Oh, thanks…" Hajime gingerly took his. "I'll…uh…see what I can do."
"Great." She grinned. "Well, I have more invites to pass around. I'll see you two later. You better come." She glared. "Or else."
The boys shared a look as she left, trying her hardest not to skip down the hallway.
000
She found Sonia and Chiyaki in the cafeteria. Chiyaki was playing a video game as usual, while Sonia was attempting to make some sense out of the food they served there before she ate it.
"Ladies!" Junko greeted, slamming the pile down on the table. "What are we up to tonight?"
"…" Chiyaki blinked slowly at her. "Hey, Junko."
"Greetings." Sonia greeted, smiling pretty at her. "What's that?"
"Oh, this?" She fished out two and handed them to each girl. "Invites to my party."
"A party?" Chiyaki asked. "…For what?"
"Uh, my birthday? It's in three days?"
"Right before Christmas?" Sonia clapped her hands together. "Oh, you're so lucky. I love Christmas!"
"Do they…celebrate Christmas in your country, Sonia?" Chiyaki asked her.
"No! But once I moved here and I saw all the lights and decorations I just couldn't help myself! Don't you remember my gifts last year? You spent hours with me at the mall looking for the perfect ones!"
Junko picked up her pile and slowly backed away from the excited foreigner as she rambled on about decorations. Christmas just wasn't her thing, honestly.
"Ah, Junko!" Akane greeted once she left the cafeteria. "Anything good on the menu? Ha, I know there never is. It's school food, after all."
"I wouldn't know what was on the menu." Junko informed, looking away from the gymnast. "Just talking to Sonia and Chiyaki."
"Oh." Akane shrugged. "Well, your loss, then."
"Yeah…oh, before I forget!" She perked up, thrusting an invitation at her. "My birthday party this weekend. You're invited!"
"Will there be grub…?"
"Uh, yeah, I'm having some food brought in by a caterer, and…"
"Say no more!" Akane grinned. "I'll be there. Anything for food."
She practically jumped through the cafeteria doors to get inside. Junko shook her head. She still had more people to find.
000
Gundham wasn't hard to find, he never really was. He was sitting in one of the corridors with his Four Dark Devas of Destruction, feeding one sunflower seeds while the others rolled around and basked in what little sunlight they could get through the clouds and stained-glass windows.
"Easy, my four dark devas." He all but cooed. "Soon you will be able to feed properly, not on these mere meager morsels…"
Junko tapped him on the head with an invitation almost at the same time the Devas started to notice her.
"Ah, Junko." Gundham seemed to cringe. "To what do I owe the…pleasure…?"
"For you." She dropped it onto his lap. "My birthday party. Join the fun, and your dark Devas will be able to feast on more than just little sunflower seeds."
The Devas squeaked at her, looking between the two students in anticipation.
"I suppose if my Devas' desire to go is really that strong, then we shall."
"Excellent." Junko grinned. "I've got more invites to dish out. See you."
His attention went back to his Devas as she marched off down the hallway. Only two more students were left to find, but it couldn't be that hard. The school was large, but the occupants were predictable. She heard some angry yelling in rapid English around the corner and paused. The recognized the voice, but she didn't care too much about what he was saying. She rounded the corner and spotted Fuyuhiko pacing back and forth, dressed to the nines in his usual suit befitting a Yakuza. She slipped the card into his free hand as she walked by. He turned and stared after her, continuing to yell into the phone even as he opened the envelope.
Spotting the tail end of a green coat disappearing around the corner, she rushed down the hallway after it.
"Ah, Nagito!" She greeted, waving when he turned to her.
"Oh, uh, Junko." He greeted her with a shy smile. "What could you want with worthless old me?"
"Quit it." She slapped him in the chest with an invitation. "My birthday party is Saturday."
"A party? And you want…me…to come…?" He asked, looking up from the invitation at her. "That's…that's really kind of you." He laughed a little. "No one should ever be so kind to little old me…"
"Zip it, White, I don't want to hear it." Junko ordered. "Just don't be late. And get me something good, would you?"
"Ah, yes, of course."
She rolled her eyes and brushed past him.
"I'll see you Saturday, then!" He called after her.
She tossed her arm into the air and waved her wrist in response as she made her way around the corner. She didn't have time for his self-pity. She had a party to prepare for.
000
Junko woke up early Saturday morning, excited for the party she'd spent the night before decorating everything she could in her dorm with balloons and streamers. Food was going to arrive an hour before the party so it would be ready when everyone showed up. She already had her custom-made birthday cake sitting in the mini refrigerator that was standard in all dorm rooms, so she was ready. She shuffled through her closet for something suitable to wear. Earlier in the week, she'd picked out a stylish dress she'd gotten as a birthday present the year before from a magazine she modeled for once. But now, it just didn't seem fitting. Her normal attire wouldn't do, since it felt more like a school uniform at this point. Feeling despair start to creep over her as she looked through and came up empty handed with each passing second, she couldn't help but feel strangely giddy. How ironic. Being happy about feeling despair. With a sigh, she pulled out a dark red dress and threw it on the bed. It would have to do on such short notice.
After showering with her lavender scented body wash and drying enough to put on her clothes, Junko got dressed and plopped down on the couch amidst blown up balloons to wait for the food to arrive. Once it did, she signed for it and waited patiently while they set up, rocking back and forth on her toes in anticipation for people to arrive early. Staring at the clock after they left was unhealthy, she knew, but she couldn't help herself. Minutes, hours ticked by without a single knock on her door. She lay down on her back on the couch, filing her nails and examining them closely for any abnormalities. She had to do something to pass the time. She checked on the cake, ate half of a sandwich, but still no one showed up. She tried dialing a couple of their numbers on her cell phone, but no answer. With a grunt, she flopped onto the couch with her arms crossed over her chest and pouted.
"Where the hell is everyone?" She growled. "They all said they'd be here…" She looked around the room and kicked a few balloons around. "This is bullshit."
She stomped to the door and threw it open, wondering if they'd be on the other side to surprise her. She saw no one, and her hears picked up nothing but the gentle hum of the heating system. She stood there a good half an hour, tapping her foot and looking this way and that to see if anyone was coming. The guys' dorms were in a different building, so it made sense that they took a little longer. But Chiyaki was a floor above her, and Sonia was just down the hallway. They should have been there by now. The time period considered fashionably late had passed a long time ago, and she wasn't going to have it. She slammed the door, shouting out in frustration as she kicked a balloon with her heel, effectively popping it.
"Why isn't anyone here?" She complained. "They had plenty of time to get me gifts, let alone wake up and get their asses over here." She slammed the door separating her living and sleeping rooms and threw herself onto the bed, screaming into the pillow. "This…this…" She rolled onto her back, stretching her arms up to the sky and flexing her fingers. "This…overwhelming despair!" She laughed. "Those bastards…those glorious bastards gave me the best present I could ask for. Complete and utter despair!"
Her laughter carried throughout her small bedroom. "It's so wonderful." She hugged her shoulders close to her chest. "Such wonderful, perfect, lovely despair!"
She cackled, feeling like her stomach was going to rip in two from all the laughter. Junko flung herself out of bed and made her way back to the living area, throwing open her bedroom door and making a few balloons pop. She heard something fall from a shelf in her room and crash onto the floor, but she didn't care. She cheered for her despair, she stomped on balloons just to hear them pop, and tore streamers off the walls. When all was said and done, she stood there, panting, wallowing in her own despair at being ditched by people who pretended to be so eager to come.
"If this was a prank, then great job, fuckers!" She flipped off the ceiling. "And it may be the best birthday present ever, but now that I've received it…" She ripped open the front door. "Come on, you fuckers! I've enjoyed the overwhelming despair, but the time for games is over!"
Shew as a little surprised when no one came flocking to her room to wish her a happy birthday and start the party. Blinking in confusion, she stood there and looked back and forth to make sure no one was coming. She shouted in anger and slammed the door as she went back inside, flopping down on the couch again. Her eyes scanned the disaster that was now her dorm room and groaned as she sank deeper into the couch's plush material. Junko put a pillow on her face and pulled it close, shouting into the fabric. A knock on the door made her screams cut short.
"Finally!" She cheered, throwing the pillow aside and rushing to open the door. "Welcome, friend…s…oh."
Nagito stood on the other side holding a medium sized box wrapped in pink with black ribbon. He grinned happily at her, scratching at his bangs with one hand.
"Hey, Junko." He greeted. "Happy birthday. This is for you." He thrust it into her hands quickly, as if embarrassed.
"Oh, uh, thanks, Nagito…" She looked around. "Are you alone?"
"I am." He nodded. "I'm sorry. Useless old me probably isn't good enough, but I don't know where anyone is." He sighed, shoulders slumping. "If they have any idea that I'm coming, they probably won't. No self-respecting person would be seen anywhere near me. I should probably go before…"
She grabbed him by the shirt. "Get in here." She ordered, ynkaing him inside.
"Please don't kill me…" He muttered, putting his hands up.
"Relax, White, it's a party. Have you never been to one before?"
"Well," he taped a finger on his chin. "actually…"
"Never mind, I don't want to know. I don't care." She grinned. "Grab something to eat, have a seat…whatever." She shrugged.
He looked around. "Did…did I miss the party…?"
"Ah, don't worry about the mess." She waved him off. "Seriously, eat something. This food is going to just go to waste."
"Oh, why thank you."
"Yeah, sure." She sat down, taping her long red nails onto the couch arm as her other hand supported her head.
"Do you want anything?" He asked, nervously shuffling his feet.
"No." Junko waved him off. "I ate my fill. Have at it. You're skin and bones."
"You shouldn't be worried about me, you know. Not worth…"
"If you say you're not worth the time, I'm going to hit you with your own present." Junko warned him.
"I'll just be quiet now."
"Yeah, you do that."
He sat on the opposite side of the couch, not too closer or too far from her as he started to eat. Junko groaned in frustration, slumping down.
"Is it just going to be you and me?"
"It appears so." Nagito nodded, swallowing the food in his mouth. "Sorry your party didn't work out, Junko."
"Eh, I felt a great deal of despair earlier, so I guess it's worth it." She chuckled, closing her eyes and reimagining her breakdown from earlier.
"At least it wasn't completely lame, though I do apologize that you have to spend it with me, of all people."
"Shut up."
"Shutting up." He rolled his eyes. "You need a new line, Junko."
"And you need a new gimmick. Seriously, no one wants to be around someone who's such a depressing shit all the time."
"No one wants to be around someone who's stuck up and drowning in their own sorrows, and yet here we are."
She glared at him while he watched her out of the corner of his eyes, never stopping from eating his lunch. She sighed, pouting as she looked away from the white-haired teen.
"Even when you're alone, you're obnoxious." She complained.
"At least I showed up, unlike everyone else."
She stood quickly at that, glaring at him with her hands balled into fists at her side. "If I wasn't so bored, I'd toss you into the hall onto your backside, Komaeda."
"You get bored easily." He observed.
"Gee, thanks for pointing that out for me. I had no idea." She flopped back down. "This was a stupid idea. I should have known they weren't going to show up, even though they said they would. Cowards."
"You do have a very strong personality, Junko." Nagito smirked. "Gives me hope, you know. That there are such strong-willed people in this world."
"You know what would stop me from being bored?" She asked. "Ripping every last shred of hope out of your body through your nose."
"And lose your only party guest?" He laughed. "We both know you won't."
"Oh, but it would shove me deeper into despair, would it not?" She smirked. "That would just be wonderful."
"Then as someone who believes in hope, I cannot allow you to toss me out or otherwise harm me."
"Are you saying that for my sake? Or your sanity's?"
He cackled. "As a student of Hope's peak Academy, I can safely say that I don't have any sanity left."
"I suppose that's accurate enough." She sighed. "Wonder what everyone else is doing…"
"I haven't seen any of them today."
"So, you're useless."
"As I have said many, many times."
"I walked into that one."
"I suppose you did."
Silence took over, save for Nagito munching on food. Junko looked from her nails to the clock and back a few times, wondering if anyone else would show up to surprise her like Nagito. It would really suck if she was stuck with just the white-haired teen with barely enough self-confidence to fill a thimble. Half hour passed and her eyes started to droop. All the excitement and despair was crashing down on the pinkette at once, as she realized that it was highly unlikely any more guests would arrive.
"Should we have cake?" Nagito asked.
"Huh?" Junko lifted her chin off her hand to stare at him.
"Isn't it customary to have cake at a birthday party?" He cocked an eyebrow. "Of course, I've never been to one, much less had one for myself, so perhaps I'm…"
"No, you're right, shut up." She stood and smoothed out her dress.
Opening the small fridge, she took out the cake with one hand. Happy Birthday, Junko was written in blocky black and red letters, with red flowers decorating a white cake. A picture of a black and white bear head sat in the middle; Monokuma, the Hope Peak's Academy school mascot.
"You…put the school mascot on your birthday cake?" Nagito asked, peering over her shoulder. "May I ask why?"
"It's not your business, Nagito." She pointed to a cake cutting knife. "Hand me that."
"I don't think I should."
"Why not?"
"I'm rather afraid you might kill me with it."
"That would get your blood on the cake. Gross." She motioned for the knife again. "Now."
He handed it to her as she took the top off the cake.
"Junko?" He asked.
"What?"
"Shouldn't we sing first?"
"Sing?" She cocked an eyebrow. "You mean like happy birthday? Sounds a lot better with more people. I've heard you singing to yourself in the hallways. You can't carry a tune to save your life."
"To be fair, you can't actually carry…"
"Shut up." She ordered. "Don't sing. Just say happy birthday and met me cut the damn thing."
"Happy birthday, Junko." He gently put a hand on her shoulder.
She shook him off and began cutting the cake, making a neat line between the black and white halves of Monokuma's face. Nagito chuckled as he watched her methodically cut the cake into even little pieces. She put one on a plate and handed it to him.
"Bon Appetit, Nagito."
"Arigato, Junko." He bowed slightly. "I'm honored."
"Don't flatter me. You're the one that asked about it. I was just going to toss you out into the hallway and end this pathetic excuse for a celebration."
"Should I just go? It's not like you want my dirty paper plate and plastic fork back, do you?"
She blinked. "Just eat your damn cake and get out of my sight, Komaeda." She snarled.
I can't believe, after everyone I invited, everyone I tempted with food, he's the only one that frigging showed up. She thought to herself. Just my luck. Ugh, who needs those backstabbers anyway? They're only here on Christmas break because no one wanted them back home. Wait, I'm here on Christmas break, too. I just insulted myself…No, being here alone is my choice. Hmph.
"I must thank you for the…lovely time…Junko…" Nagito's voice broke her out of her musings. "I'm afraid I have to get going. My roommate has returned from break early to pick up a few things he forgot. Unfortunately, his room key was one of them…"
"Useless, the whole lot of you." She rolled her eyes. "Go on, get out. I was just about to tell you to get lost, anyway."
He smiled gently. "Sure, you were, Ms. Enoshima."
She glared. "Junko…you know this…"
He chuckled. "Thank you for giving worthless little me the time of day, if only for a brief few moments." He smiled gently. "I'll see you around."
She nodded as she finished up her cake, the door slamming shut behind him. She had a feeling he was lying, but she didn't have anything to call him out on it. lucky for him, considering the world of hell she'd leave him in if she caught him lying to her face. His roommate hated him and left a spare key under the welcome mat outside their door. Ibuki had used it a couple times to break into the room when Nagito overslept for a seminar.
Junko's eyes settled on the box he had given her. He left before she could open his gift? How rude. She snatched it off the table and judged its weight, shifting it around and balancing it on one hand. It didn't sound breakable. She tore off the ribbon and gently pulled off the wrapping paper. There was a Build A Bear Box inside.
"What in the…?" She growled. "He better not have gotten me something stupid…"
She opened the box and pulled out the stuffed animal. It was a little pink and white rabbit with hair clips like hers. It looked like either he or someone in the arts program had made them custom for the toy for her. It had on a typical; J-Pop outfit consisting of a red plaid skirt with matching tie, and a black vest. There was a card inside, tied to the rabbit's paw with pink string.
She opened it to read.
Junko,
Sorry I was so late. The timing of public buses are terrible this time of year, and I had very little time between classes to get your gift together. I do hope you enjoy. Nagito's slightly feminine, sloppy handwriting was on the inside. The outfit reminded me of you; I couldn't pass it up. I'm probably not there now, I know you're going to get tired of me easily, especially if no one else is around. (And from what I've overheard, no one is going to be.) Hope your birthday is as full of despair as you put into my life. And believe me, that's quite a lot.
Happy birthday,
Love,
Nagito Komaeda
She blanched at the ending to the letter, face going a deathly shade of white with a tint of green to her cheeks. Love? Did he have to put it that way? What a weirdo.
She put the toy on the couch and began cleaning up, hearing a satisfying crunch under her designer boots from her decoration destruction earlier in the day. Once the room was spotless, or at least as spotless as she cared to make it, she began to retire to her sleeping area. Halfway there, in the doorway, she paused as she took out her hair clips. She stared at the rabbit, its beady black eyes and cute, slightly upturned smile cutting into her. With a growl, she snatched it off the couch.
"What a stupid looking thing." She commented turning it over in her hands. "Then again Junko, look where it came from." She shrugged her shoulders, hands out and palms facing up.
She stared at it for another moment, feeling uncomfortable after a while. She threw it onto the couch and slammed her bedroom door. Junko growled and threw her hairclips onto the dresser, running her fingers through her hair to get out any kinks. She pulled out a fresh set of fuzzy pajama bottoms and a tank top, along with her red silk robe, and tossed them onto the bed. She needed a nice hot shower to get the Nagito germs off her. Call her juvenile, but she had no idea what kind of diseases the white-haired boy could be carrying.
000
After her shower, Junko was walking down to the school cafeteria to grab herself a cup of hot water for tea to take to bed with her. She stopped just shy of the doorway, hearing laughter from inside. She peered through the tiny crack between the doors and found everyone that hadn't come to her party. Nagito was sitting on one of the tables next to Chiyaki, watching her play some portable game. It looked like the others were playing charades, this time being Souda's turn to act. She had no idea what he was acting out, but it didn't seem to be impressing Sonia, who was leaning onto Gundham's arm like she was going to fall asleep on him. Hopefully this hadn't been the plan she had almost walked in on earlier. What a failure. She couldn't say she was surprised, though.
With a huff, she stood and straightened out her back. She could do without the hot tea. A bottle of ice cold water would be just fine. She made her way back to the dorm, trying to ignore the feelings settling into her chest. They had lied to her, then gathered in the cafeteria to have fun, probably sending Nagito as a diversion. She'd never felt so humiliated in her life. They thought so little of her that their best distraction idea was Nagito Komaeda? Then again, they probably used him as a distraction because they thought even less of him. She smirked at the thought as she unlocked her dorm and slinked in. she had no reason to be stealthy. She knew where everyone was, and it wasn't like they were going to see her. Junko ripped open the fridge and took a bottle of water out.
"Bastards. Lying to me like that." She scoffed. "What a damn joke."
She was almost inside her room when the rabbit caught her eye again. She snatched it up and stared at it, almost growling as she did so. What a ridiculous toy. But…at least it wouldn't ditch her birthday party like the others did. She clutched the rabbit tight as she went into her bedroom. She set her water bottle down and climbed under the covers, snuggling up with the toy. Junko stared at the clock on her nightstand until it changed from 11:59 PM on December 23rd, to 12 am on December 24th.
"Happy birthday…to me…happy birthday to me…happy birthday, Lady Junko…happy birthday to me…" She muttered, closing her eyes to sleep. "Such despair…"
A smirk plastered itself to her lips, and stayed long after she drifted off to a night of restless sleeping, dreams of despair dancing in her head.